It has been a momentous week for me. Four years on from starting my PhD, my thesis has been submitted for examination. What a journey it has been! To mark the occasion I chose this newspaper, printed 200 yrs prior to my submission date, from Newcastle where academic life began for me some time ago.

Back at my desk today after a couple of days based here - the wonderful Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge - where I learned about museum-community collaboration. Fascinating perspectives, provoking much debate. Great to catch up with fellow CDP students too.

A rare visit to the Edge Hill Uni campus today, where I presented a paper at my dept's postgrad conference @edgehist.bsky.social. Bittersweet as probably the last time I'll do that as a postgrad. Campus is always beautiful in spring - here's a shot of one of its more unusual outdoor sculptures.

A March to the Scaffold moment today! I had the thrilling (but slightly terrifying) experience of giving my first public lecture, to the Friends of @ironbridgegmt.bsky.social. Great audience, knowledgeable & engaged. A surprise was seeing scaffolding at the Coalbrookdale site, for roof refit work.

This was a genuine - and thrilling - surprise in today's post, all the way from Maryland. How lovely that @vpreditors.bsky.social retains the custom of sending a print copy of the journal to its contributors. My first published piece and it's all the more special to have it in physical print. 😀

Hey! Read my latest blog post to find out why this choice of newspaper as a film prop was an intriguing one. www.matthewstephens.org.uk?p=213

What does this image have to do with my latest blog post? Find out at www.matthewstephens.org.uk?p=196

Today marks 170 years to the day that Florence Nightingale left England with 38 women to work at a military hospital in the Crimean War. Read my blog post about the role of the press in her story here: www.matthewstephens.org.uk?p=188

If, like me, you're feeling a bit under the weather, my latest blog post explores some quack remedies and their surprising role in the development of nineteenth-century newspapers. Please have a read: www.matthewstephens.org.uk?p=181

A bit of Friday fun from 'The Week's News', 2 July 1881. I couldn't solve the proverbs. They were in the children's corner, so that doesn't make me feel very clever at all! Solutions can be found in the following week's paper, on www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk

My Dad used to use a sarcastic phrase when you lost something and he found it straight away: 'What do you think this is? Scotch mist?' (Apologies to Scots for the outdated usage.) I was reminded of this on Saturday, heading to day to of the RS4VP conference in Stirling - mist over the campus loch!

Just had a fabulous gift from Mrs Newshound - this v. recent book by brilliant political journalist Robert Peston & Kisan Koria - made really special by the inclusion of this lovely personal note. Just need to get my head out of the 19th century for a while to read it!

A jolly festive creation spotted this afternoon.

With a govt reshuffle ongoing, my research of the 'Illustrated News of the World' from 1858 led me to this engraving of Lord Palmerston - a past politician to serve both as PM and Foreign Sec. It's an interesting example of cutting edge tech for the time - steel engraved from a photo portrait.

By way of saying hello on a new platform, here's a recent pic of a (still quite rare) full arc rainbow taken in Liverpool - complete with its own shadow.