Ian Shuttleworth
@ianshutters.bsky.social
Belfast-raised; 30 yrs in London as FT theatre critic; now Brexit refugee in Berlin and the Rhein valley. Fat. Smart. Wears tights. At 60 I recognised myself first as genderqueer, then as neurodivergent. He/him, but theyish. Monopolar depressive.
Psycho killer, qu'est-ce que c'est?...
September 19, 2025 at 9:57 PM
Psycho killer, qu'est-ce que c'est?...
I can't think why I'm remembering this incident from 2012, and my column in Theatre Record magazine:
(For non-Brits, Quentin Letts is a bilious right-wing political commentator for the Daily Mail, with a sideline as a bilious right-wing theatre reviewer for the Daily Mail.)
(For non-Brits, Quentin Letts is a bilious right-wing political commentator for the Daily Mail, with a sideline as a bilious right-wing theatre reviewer for the Daily Mail.)
![Quentin Letts on [Peter Brook's production] The Suit: “A song by Mr McNeill, delivered in a steady contralto, combines terrible descriptions of violence with a gentle, pretty melody of lament.” It certainly does. It’s called “Strange Fruit”, and was first performed by Billie Holiday in 1939; it went on to become her regular closing number and her biggest-selling record (over a million copies even at the time), and her version was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1978. Other recordings of it have been made by artists as diverse as Nina Simone, UB40, Tori Amos, The Cocteau Twins, John Martyn, Robert Wyatt, Jeff Buckley, Diana Ross, The Gun Club, Lou Rawls, Sting and Gil Evans, and Siouxsie and the Banshees. In 1999, Time magazine called it the song of the century. And now Quentin has heard it at last, its history begins.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:iivncipihk5k5ys26zhtb7ss/bafkreihnk6bovbx4yvcvwgmyu2aqkpsg57pkgo2rhe4vlvtrutgvdt4vbi@jpeg)
September 16, 2025 at 2:50 PM
I can't think why I'm remembering this incident from 2012, and my column in Theatre Record magazine:
(For non-Brits, Quentin Letts is a bilious right-wing political commentator for the Daily Mail, with a sideline as a bilious right-wing theatre reviewer for the Daily Mail.)
(For non-Brits, Quentin Letts is a bilious right-wing political commentator for the Daily Mail, with a sideline as a bilious right-wing theatre reviewer for the Daily Mail.)
This is a nonsense. It is impossible to click "Continue" meaningfully. The linked blog post does not explain what the intended changes are, only the areas in which they will occur. So we're being asked to "understand and agree" to things Bluesky are deliberately not telling us.
August 14, 2025 at 5:30 PM
This is a nonsense. It is impossible to click "Continue" meaningfully. The linked blog post does not explain what the intended changes are, only the areas in which they will occur. So we're being asked to "understand and agree" to things Bluesky are deliberately not telling us.
The one thing everybody knows about rhyming in English, er, isn't true.
July 7, 2025 at 8:49 PM
The one thing everybody knows about rhyming in English, er, isn't true.
There's no smoke without fire...
June 24, 2025 at 4:55 AM
There's no smoke without fire...
What I love about this post is that comments are restricted.
May 17, 2025 at 10:31 AM
What I love about this post is that comments are restricted.
I stand to be corrected, but as far as I know the burning was four days later in Opernplatz (now Bebelplatz), 2km away. That's certainly where the 90th anniversary of the first book-burning was commemorated on 10.05.2023.
May 6, 2025 at 5:23 PM
I stand to be corrected, but as far as I know the burning was four days later in Opernplatz (now Bebelplatz), 2km away. That's certainly where the 90th anniversary of the first book-burning was commemorated on 10.05.2023.
Trans / non-binary folk in the UK: you might like to consider carrying this card with you.
April 24, 2025 at 8:17 PM
Trans / non-binary folk in the UK: you might like to consider carrying this card with you.
A suggestion to the Trump régime for transporting their "undesirables".
It's from a memorial about 15 mins' walk from where I live in Berlin.
The vertical slab at the back records the dates, destinations and human contents of 63 such rail journeys.
We see you. And we recognise you for what you are.
It's from a memorial about 15 mins' walk from where I live in Berlin.
The vertical slab at the back records the dates, destinations and human contents of 63 such rail journeys.
We see you. And we recognise you for what you are.
April 13, 2025 at 9:03 PM
A suggestion to the Trump régime for transporting their "undesirables".
It's from a memorial about 15 mins' walk from where I live in Berlin.
The vertical slab at the back records the dates, destinations and human contents of 63 such rail journeys.
We see you. And we recognise you for what you are.
It's from a memorial about 15 mins' walk from where I live in Berlin.
The vertical slab at the back records the dates, destinations and human contents of 63 such rail journeys.
We see you. And we recognise you for what you are.