Prof Michael Roper is now delivering our second keynote lecture at the @milwelfhist.bsky.social conference in Birmingham, focusing on historical conceptions of trauma, inflected through his own family history. Fascinating so far, bringing out so many connections with colleagues’ work #milwelfhist

Co-convenor Michael Robinson has just kicked off our @milwelfhist.bsky.social @sshmedicine.bsky.social symposium at Birmingham on war, trauma and emotional injury. Some excellent papers and discussion to come this afternoon and into tomorrow #milwelfhist

Chuffed to have received my copy of this book edited by @siobhanhyland.bsky.social & colleagues at @uninorthampton.bsky.social. I have a chapter in it about the health discourses surrounding smoking & alcohol during the First World War. A great variety of other interdisciplinary work in there too.

Finally launched 'Remembering to Help, Helping to Remember' at the weekend - a new exhibition about #FWW civilian experience in Hartlepool following the Dec 1914 naval bombardment of the town (with a generous grant from @sslh.bsky.social). It covers the emergency response to the attack, including...

Convenor @paulhuddie.bsky.social just introduced our #milwelfhist.bsky.social #milwelfhist panel at
@esshc.bsky.social in Leiden, complete with some fetching mugshots. A good turn out for such an early discussion! #esshc2025

Plus, the Musée de l'Armée was chock full of tobacciana & military welfare-related ephemera. Très bien! #skystorians

It really pays to not get the Metro, get those steps in and actually see the city! (Spotting the Smoking Dog café across the street somewhere in Montparnasse was an added bonus!)

Stumbled upon Rue Jean Nicot when wandering around Paris last weekend. Nicot was the diplomat & scholar who brought tobacco seeds to France in the sixteenth century. And nicotine was named after him.

Please enjoy one of my favourite images associated with wartime smoking, from the National Army Museum (London). Like so many Hollywood stars, these soldiers (photographed in 1917) make smoking look troublingly cool. Plus, the fur coats are fabulous.