Dr Bob Hall
@drbob317.bsky.social
A retired Scottish-Kiwi sociologist living in exile in Birmingham UK. Left-leaning and a dedicated fan of Liverpool FC, the All Blacks and Bob Dylan.
Early morning trapeze act on Father Bernatek footbridge in Krakow, Poland (part of a sculpture series).
November 7, 2025 at 12:35 PM
Early morning trapeze act on Father Bernatek footbridge in Krakow, Poland (part of a sculpture series).
“Trump’s love of gold fits neatly within the logic of all dictators. For men who fear being forgotten, it promises permanence; for those with fragile egos, it signals power; and for those who dream of being kings, it gleams like a divine right.” (Peter York, author of “Dictator Style” (2006).
October 31, 2025 at 8:37 AM
“Trump’s love of gold fits neatly within the logic of all dictators. For men who fear being forgotten, it promises permanence; for those with fragile egos, it signals power; and for those who dream of being kings, it gleams like a divine right.” (Peter York, author of “Dictator Style” (2006).
And in Scotland too 🏴!
October 26, 2025 at 4:15 PM
And in Scotland too 🏴!
I was in Prague earlier this year and took the opportunity to visit the concentration camp in Theresienstadt, also known as Terezin. This post is therefore particularly poignant for me. #Remember #NeverAgain
October 23, 2025 at 1:00 PM
I was in Prague earlier this year and took the opportunity to visit the concentration camp in Theresienstadt, also known as Terezin. This post is therefore particularly poignant for me. #Remember #NeverAgain
Happy 64th birthday to legendary trumpeter, composer and educator Wynton Marsalis. 🎺 🎂
October 18, 2025 at 7:37 AM
Happy 64th birthday to legendary trumpeter, composer and educator Wynton Marsalis. 🎺 🎂
Franklin Roosevelt’s daughter, Alice, once said of her father that “he wants to be the bride at every wedding, the corpse at every funeral, and the baby at every christening.” But the line fits Trump even better. (Courtesy of The Guardian).
September 8, 2025 at 2:13 PM
Franklin Roosevelt’s daughter, Alice, once said of her father that “he wants to be the bride at every wedding, the corpse at every funeral, and the baby at every christening.” But the line fits Trump even better. (Courtesy of The Guardian).
Yellow roses are to the fore! I came across this lone bloom on my morning walk the other day.
August 3, 2025 at 6:16 AM
Yellow roses are to the fore! I came across this lone bloom on my morning walk the other day.
This is subtle. When Jewish prisoners were fashioning the “Arbeit Mach Frei” sign for the entrance to the Auschwitz death camp (“Work sets you free”), it seems they purposefully inverted and reversed the “letter “B” in “Arbeit”.
July 15, 2025 at 8:21 AM
This is subtle. When Jewish prisoners were fashioning the “Arbeit Mach Frei” sign for the entrance to the Auschwitz death camp (“Work sets you free”), it seems they purposefully inverted and reversed the “letter “B” in “Arbeit”.
And here’s a bunkhouse in the Terezin concentration camp in the Czech Republic. In the 1940s Terezin was a holding camp from which prisoners were to be transported to death camps such as Auschwitz etc. Despite being “just” a holding camp some 30,000 people still died or were killed in Terezin. Hmm!
July 8, 2025 at 11:58 AM
And here’s a bunkhouse in the Terezin concentration camp in the Czech Republic. In the 1940s Terezin was a holding camp from which prisoners were to be transported to death camps such as Auschwitz etc. Despite being “just” a holding camp some 30,000 people still died or were killed in Terezin. Hmm!
Remembered! Never again!
June 17, 2025 at 10:05 AM
Remembered! Never again!
Happy 83rd birthday to Bob Dylan, song and dance man extraordinaire. What a legacy, and still going! Bob the man, the myth, the legend.
May 24, 2025 at 4:23 AM
Happy 83rd birthday to Bob Dylan, song and dance man extraordinaire. What a legacy, and still going! Bob the man, the myth, the legend.
Close by the Company E memorial.
January 25, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Close by the Company E memorial.
Woods by Bastogne, 25 December, 2022.
January 25, 2025 at 2:25 PM
Woods by Bastogne, 25 December, 2022.
Sad news tonight. Denis Law has died. He was a boyhood hero of mine. I saw him play for Scotland in 1967 when they beat World Cup champions England at Wembley. A glorious day! RIP #DenisLaw ⚽️
January 17, 2025 at 9:11 PM
Sad news tonight. Denis Law has died. He was a boyhood hero of mine. I saw him play for Scotland in 1967 when they beat World Cup champions England at Wembley. A glorious day! RIP #DenisLaw ⚽️
Bin day, Birmingham, UK.
January 16, 2025 at 8:07 PM
Bin day, Birmingham, UK.
Bowie is everywhere. He peeked out at me through a window in Krakow, Poland!
November 21, 2024 at 9:49 AM
Bowie is everywhere. He peeked out at me through a window in Krakow, Poland!
What a difference a day makes - yesterday and today!
November 19, 2024 at 1:56 PM
What a difference a day makes - yesterday and today!
First snow of winter in Birmingham. It was a cold early morning walk!
November 19, 2024 at 6:36 AM
First snow of winter in Birmingham. It was a cold early morning walk!
Autumn morning in Birmingham.
November 17, 2024 at 4:32 PM
Autumn morning in Birmingham.
Any time I’ve visited Honfleur in Normandy I’ve always been impressed with its charm. A beautiful town with connections to Eugene Boudin (mentor to Monet) and the enigmatic composer Eric Satie.
November 14, 2024 at 2:21 PM
Any time I’ve visited Honfleur in Normandy I’ve always been impressed with its charm. A beautiful town with connections to Eugene Boudin (mentor to Monet) and the enigmatic composer Eric Satie.
Harbour in Honfleur, Georges Seurat, 1886. National Gallery, Prague, Czech Republic.
November 14, 2024 at 2:09 PM
Harbour in Honfleur, Georges Seurat, 1886. National Gallery, Prague, Czech Republic.