Rory (they/them)
@roryq.bsky.social
Taxonomist (MSc @ Imperial/NHM) | (Ethno) botanist | Autistic/ADHD/ME | Queer | Ex-(ethno)musicologist | Excited about cross stitch, mosses, fantasy plants, Tolkien | also @historicalplant.substack.com on here
I graduated last week!
📷 Steve Tanner
📷 Steve Tanner
November 14, 2025 at 7:54 PM
I graduated last week!
📷 Steve Tanner
📷 Steve Tanner
Day 1! And of course I did what had to be done with the socks 😁
September 29, 2025 at 11:20 AM
Day 1! And of course I did what had to be done with the socks 😁
New bio ready for day 1 on Monday! Eek!
September 26, 2025 at 9:10 AM
New bio ready for day 1 on Monday! Eek!
This is said pup before he got ill - his name is Digby 💜
July 26, 2025 at 9:23 PM
This is said pup before he got ill - his name is Digby 💜
Also, just in case anyone thought that 2025 was an unequivocally great time to be publishing Queer Tolkien scholarship, this is from Robin on why the table of contents is not available at this point.
Tolkien scholarship still has such a very long way to go 😭
robinareid.substack.com/p/queer-appr...
Tolkien scholarship still has such a very long way to go 😭
robinareid.substack.com/p/queer-appr...
July 7, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Also, just in case anyone thought that 2025 was an unequivocally great time to be publishing Queer Tolkien scholarship, this is from Robin on why the table of contents is not available at this point.
Tolkien scholarship still has such a very long way to go 😭
robinareid.substack.com/p/queer-appr...
Tolkien scholarship still has such a very long way to go 😭
robinareid.substack.com/p/queer-appr...
Here we go! Queer Approaches to Tolkien: Essays on the Many Paths to Middle-earth, edited by Robin Reid, Chris Vaccaro, and Steve Yandell, is once again available for pre-order with a brand new cover 😁 The image for which is from Shutterstock with no AI 💜
mcfarlandbooks.com/product/quee...
mcfarlandbooks.com/product/quee...
July 7, 2025 at 6:04 AM
Here we go! Queer Approaches to Tolkien: Essays on the Many Paths to Middle-earth, edited by Robin Reid, Chris Vaccaro, and Steve Yandell, is once again available for pre-order with a brand new cover 😁 The image for which is from Shutterstock with no AI 💜
mcfarlandbooks.com/product/quee...
mcfarlandbooks.com/product/quee...
This is the statement from the three co-editors on the subject, for anyone wanting the maximum level of public detail 😁 Stay excited about the book in the meantime while the new cover gets sorted, it'll be no less a doozy!
June 28, 2025 at 6:53 AM
This is the statement from the three co-editors on the subject, for anyone wanting the maximum level of public detail 😁 Stay excited about the book in the meantime while the new cover gets sorted, it'll be no less a doozy!
The motifs in this design (which I put together) are all from destroyed/depopulated towns and villages in Palestine. They're all from the Palestinian embroidery tradition, tatreez, and freely available on Tirazain (www.tirazain.com).
May 15, 2025 at 9:39 PM
The motifs in this design (which I put together) are all from destroyed/depopulated towns and villages in Palestine. They're all from the Palestinian embroidery tradition, tatreez, and freely available on Tirazain (www.tirazain.com).
I've been dreaming of this course since my first year, and it looks like it's actually happening?! 😍
![A screenshot of part of an email from Imperial College London.
Dear Rory
College ID: [redacted]
Thank you for your application for Taxonomy, Biodiversity and Evolution (MSc 1YFT). We are extremely pleased to confirm that we would like to make you a conditional offer for entry in Autumn 2025-2026.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:x2lobf2u3r5tajuevcszd5oq/bafkreifpqxt5qmg7nice6ptqov7ektdnlrg7jgxlntszxjnqbb4lguub3u@jpeg)
March 20, 2025 at 4:20 PM
I've been dreaming of this course since my first year, and it looks like it's actually happening?! 😍
Actual, honest-to-gods text I just sent to my class WhatsApp. Auditory processing disorder fucking sucks, as does repeatedly asking a group of people to help in a small way and not getting anywhere.
Being disabled and neurodivergent is so, so lonely sometimes 😞
Being disabled and neurodivergent is so, so lonely sometimes 😞
March 17, 2025 at 5:30 PM
Actual, honest-to-gods text I just sent to my class WhatsApp. Auditory processing disorder fucking sucks, as does repeatedly asking a group of people to help in a small way and not getting anywhere.
Being disabled and neurodivergent is so, so lonely sometimes 😞
Being disabled and neurodivergent is so, so lonely sometimes 😞
We're through! We did it! @bucbotany.bsky.social was fantastic, another awesome set of questions and a beautiful job from all our Cotyl-Eden team members 💜 Cambridge, here we cooooooooome!
February 26, 2025 at 4:22 PM
We're through! We did it! @bucbotany.bsky.social was fantastic, another awesome set of questions and a beautiful job from all our Cotyl-Eden team members 💜 Cambridge, here we cooooooooome!
Let's goooooooooo! A harder set of questions this week from @bucbotany.bsky.social but we are very proud of ourselves 😁
February 19, 2025 at 4:09 PM
Let's goooooooooo! A harder set of questions this week from @bucbotany.bsky.social but we are very proud of ourselves 😁
@bucbotany.bsky.social Round 1 - nailed it 😁 The Cotyl-Edens will be back next week - super proud of us, it's so lovely to be back after not being a student last year! Props to Alfred, Kate, and Emma for being fabulous team mates, and honourable mention to Finn, our reserve and chief cheerleader 💜
February 12, 2025 at 4:27 PM
@bucbotany.bsky.social Round 1 - nailed it 😁 The Cotyl-Edens will be back next week - super proud of us, it's so lovely to be back after not being a student last year! Props to Alfred, Kate, and Emma for being fabulous team mates, and honourable mention to Finn, our reserve and chief cheerleader 💜
After some frankly gross conversations about privilege recently, I've been going back and thinking about what definitions we use (and have used against us) and being reminded just how screwed up so much of societal thinking about it is. 🧵
December 9, 2024 at 2:27 PM
After some frankly gross conversations about privilege recently, I've been going back and thinking about what definitions we use (and have used against us) and being reminded just how screwed up so much of societal thinking about it is. 🧵
19. Inferno - Dan Brown
If I believed in guilty pleasures when it comes to reading, Dan Brown would be mine. But there's also a serious reason: this was the first book I managed to finish after my first breakdown and the first big sign I could get better. Still go back to Brown sometimes now 😁
If I believed in guilty pleasures when it comes to reading, Dan Brown would be mine. But there's also a serious reason: this was the first book I managed to finish after my first breakdown and the first big sign I could get better. Still go back to Brown sometimes now 😁
December 2, 2024 at 8:53 PM
19. Inferno - Dan Brown
If I believed in guilty pleasures when it comes to reading, Dan Brown would be mine. But there's also a serious reason: this was the first book I managed to finish after my first breakdown and the first big sign I could get better. Still go back to Brown sometimes now 😁
If I believed in guilty pleasures when it comes to reading, Dan Brown would be mine. But there's also a serious reason: this was the first book I managed to finish after my first breakdown and the first big sign I could get better. Still go back to Brown sometimes now 😁
18. Foxglove Summer - Ben Aaronovitch
I got this far before a Rivers book? Shit. This one went from "ok I'll get through it to get on with the series" to "deffo one of my favourites", mostly on the strength of chapter 11 when H.O. explains what happens at Ettersberg. Breaks me in half every time.
I got this far before a Rivers book? Shit. This one went from "ok I'll get through it to get on with the series" to "deffo one of my favourites", mostly on the strength of chapter 11 when H.O. explains what happens at Ettersberg. Breaks me in half every time.
December 2, 2024 at 8:40 PM
18. Foxglove Summer - Ben Aaronovitch
I got this far before a Rivers book? Shit. This one went from "ok I'll get through it to get on with the series" to "deffo one of my favourites", mostly on the strength of chapter 11 when H.O. explains what happens at Ettersberg. Breaks me in half every time.
I got this far before a Rivers book? Shit. This one went from "ok I'll get through it to get on with the series" to "deffo one of my favourites", mostly on the strength of chapter 11 when H.O. explains what happens at Ettersberg. Breaks me in half every time.
17. Collins Wild Flower Guide - David Streeter et al.
I went from the kid who read the dictionary to the big kid who just likes reading through flower books. Maybe it's weird, but I can't get out to see them in the wild as much as I'd like, so I take my joy where I can find it 😊
I went from the kid who read the dictionary to the big kid who just likes reading through flower books. Maybe it's weird, but I can't get out to see them in the wild as much as I'd like, so I take my joy where I can find it 😊
December 2, 2024 at 8:40 PM
17. Collins Wild Flower Guide - David Streeter et al.
I went from the kid who read the dictionary to the big kid who just likes reading through flower books. Maybe it's weird, but I can't get out to see them in the wild as much as I'd like, so I take my joy where I can find it 😊
I went from the kid who read the dictionary to the big kid who just likes reading through flower books. Maybe it's weird, but I can't get out to see them in the wild as much as I'd like, so I take my joy where I can find it 😊
16. The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ - Philip Pullman
Related to the previous one, this was another that shook my thinking quite deeply. I need to go back to it, actually, I feel like I missed stuff the first time. It was still a pretty important stepping stone in my thinking though!
Related to the previous one, this was another that shook my thinking quite deeply. I need to go back to it, actually, I feel like I missed stuff the first time. It was still a pretty important stepping stone in my thinking though!
December 2, 2024 at 8:40 PM
16. The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ - Philip Pullman
Related to the previous one, this was another that shook my thinking quite deeply. I need to go back to it, actually, I feel like I missed stuff the first time. It was still a pretty important stepping stone in my thinking though!
Related to the previous one, this was another that shook my thinking quite deeply. I need to go back to it, actually, I feel like I missed stuff the first time. It was still a pretty important stepping stone in my thinking though!
15. The Amber Spyglass - Philip Pullman
I didn't get to HDM until I was 15 or so, but it absolutely changed how I think. I was very much a Christian at that point and it was the first time I realised I *could* question that without the repercussions my youth group leaders threatened...
I didn't get to HDM until I was 15 or so, but it absolutely changed how I think. I was very much a Christian at that point and it was the first time I realised I *could* question that without the repercussions my youth group leaders threatened...
December 2, 2024 at 8:29 PM
15. The Amber Spyglass - Philip Pullman
I didn't get to HDM until I was 15 or so, but it absolutely changed how I think. I was very much a Christian at that point and it was the first time I realised I *could* question that without the repercussions my youth group leaders threatened...
I didn't get to HDM until I was 15 or so, but it absolutely changed how I think. I was very much a Christian at that point and it was the first time I realised I *could* question that without the repercussions my youth group leaders threatened...
14. Conclave - Robert Harris
I listened to this so many times, and I'm never quite sure why. I find myself drawn to secret processes, and I guess going to a Catholic school and singing at Catholic churches both times we've had a new pope recently helped a bit too... I just love it.
I listened to this so many times, and I'm never quite sure why. I find myself drawn to secret processes, and I guess going to a Catholic school and singing at Catholic churches both times we've had a new pope recently helped a bit too... I just love it.
December 2, 2024 at 8:29 PM
14. Conclave - Robert Harris
I listened to this so many times, and I'm never quite sure why. I find myself drawn to secret processes, and I guess going to a Catholic school and singing at Catholic churches both times we've had a new pope recently helped a bit too... I just love it.
I listened to this so many times, and I'm never quite sure why. I find myself drawn to secret processes, and I guess going to a Catholic school and singing at Catholic churches both times we've had a new pope recently helped a bit too... I just love it.
13. The City of the Beasts - Isabel Allende
This one was a gamble on my mum's part when I was 10, I think. It's strange and beautiful and I spent years trying to find that same sense of magic. I re-read this and the rest of the trilogy recently and keep meaning to go back and read them in Spanish!
This one was a gamble on my mum's part when I was 10, I think. It's strange and beautiful and I spent years trying to find that same sense of magic. I re-read this and the rest of the trilogy recently and keep meaning to go back and read them in Spanish!
December 2, 2024 at 8:29 PM
13. The City of the Beasts - Isabel Allende
This one was a gamble on my mum's part when I was 10, I think. It's strange and beautiful and I spent years trying to find that same sense of magic. I re-read this and the rest of the trilogy recently and keep meaning to go back and read them in Spanish!
This one was a gamble on my mum's part when I was 10, I think. It's strange and beautiful and I spent years trying to find that same sense of magic. I re-read this and the rest of the trilogy recently and keep meaning to go back and read them in Spanish!
12. The Slow Regard of Silent Things - Patrick Rothfuss
I do not care what people think of his writing timeline, I just love the way this book is written. I relate to Auri very much, and especially did so when I first read it. It's beautiful and strange and elfin and I just adore it.
I do not care what people think of his writing timeline, I just love the way this book is written. I relate to Auri very much, and especially did so when I first read it. It's beautiful and strange and elfin and I just adore it.
December 2, 2024 at 8:29 PM
12. The Slow Regard of Silent Things - Patrick Rothfuss
I do not care what people think of his writing timeline, I just love the way this book is written. I relate to Auri very much, and especially did so when I first read it. It's beautiful and strange and elfin and I just adore it.
I do not care what people think of his writing timeline, I just love the way this book is written. I relate to Auri very much, and especially did so when I first read it. It's beautiful and strange and elfin and I just adore it.
11. Sahara - Michael Palin
I never really got into travel writing much, but my Granny had some copies of Michael Palin's books that I used to love reading when we visited. Sahara was one of those, as was Himalaya. I love the way he writes, I can hear him reading in my head. It's just lovely.
I never really got into travel writing much, but my Granny had some copies of Michael Palin's books that I used to love reading when we visited. Sahara was one of those, as was Himalaya. I love the way he writes, I can hear him reading in my head. It's just lovely.
December 2, 2024 at 8:29 PM
11. Sahara - Michael Palin
I never really got into travel writing much, but my Granny had some copies of Michael Palin's books that I used to love reading when we visited. Sahara was one of those, as was Himalaya. I love the way he writes, I can hear him reading in my head. It's just lovely.
I never really got into travel writing much, but my Granny had some copies of Michael Palin's books that I used to love reading when we visited. Sahara was one of those, as was Himalaya. I love the way he writes, I can hear him reading in my head. It's just lovely.
10. Piranesi - Susanna Clarke
I got to Clarke's work very late in the game, but Piranesi absolutely got into my head. I loved it, even though it takes a minute to warm up. Definitely one of my favourite things I've read this year, and one I'll have to go back to!
I got to Clarke's work very late in the game, but Piranesi absolutely got into my head. I loved it, even though it takes a minute to warm up. Definitely one of my favourite things I've read this year, and one I'll have to go back to!
December 2, 2024 at 8:29 PM
10. Piranesi - Susanna Clarke
I got to Clarke's work very late in the game, but Piranesi absolutely got into my head. I loved it, even though it takes a minute to warm up. Definitely one of my favourite things I've read this year, and one I'll have to go back to!
I got to Clarke's work very late in the game, but Piranesi absolutely got into my head. I loved it, even though it takes a minute to warm up. Definitely one of my favourite things I've read this year, and one I'll have to go back to!