Giles Sparrow is adrift in the vortex
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gswrites.bsky.social
Giles Sparrow is adrift in the vortex
@gswrites.bsky.social
670 followers 1K following 970 posts
Pop science writer/editor consultant for hire, specialising in astronomy and its history. Regular nerd with @somethingwho.bsky.social
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gswrites.bsky.social
Not sure if it's indicative of anything, but bruising isn't noticeable in similar Somodevilla/Getty images of him getting off the plane yesterday...
Trump getting off AF1 with his left hand clearly visible. Trump at the AF1 door with his left hand clearly visible.
January 22, 2026 at 2:54 PM
gswrites.bsky.social
Timeline synchronicity strikes again...
Above, from The Guardian - Darren Jones to make it easier to sack senior civil servants under plan to 'rewire' Whitehall. Below, from Effin' Birds - a partridge (?) tilts its head towards the post above: "I'm yelling at you because you're a fucking idiot."
January 20, 2026 at 3:12 PM
gswrites.bsky.social
Ripley reckons we should nuke the entire site from orbit.
January 19, 2026 at 8:51 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
You too, huh?
Sometimes my arms bend backwards - me in the Red Room at the BFI’s David Lynch season.
January 17, 2026 at 10:19 PM
gswrites.bsky.social
Can't believe these people didn't study the sacred texts...
Peter Mannion from "The Thick of It" Calls Up... App Britain.
January 17, 2026 at 10:03 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
Fascinating talk from @illuminations.bsky.social on the (very!) early days of television tonight at the BFI - looking forward to reading the book!
John Wyver casts light on early television at the BFI Reuben Library
January 12, 2026 at 8:15 PM
gswrites.bsky.social
If you see this post an Archer
Tim Bentinck (12th Earl of Portland apparently...)
January 12, 2026 at 8:30 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
Have we done this one yet?
The US President appears to spot something out of a window that no one else is aware of. William Ager watches and waits.
January 10, 2026 at 10:28 PM
gswrites.bsky.social
Glitching…
Our tuxy idiot Sooty relaxing on the floor while twisted at an unlikely angle… Soots further demonstrates her contortionist abilities…
January 8, 2026 at 12:47 PM
gswrites.bsky.social
Genuinely intrigued by the thought process behind this cover of First Men in the Moon... I mean I appreciates that Penguin Classics don't want to sully themselves with Spaceships or recognisable sci-fi, but... to me this looks like a cut-and-paste of some guys playing chess?
December 27, 2025 at 9:55 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
Though I'm trying to think of another case where the above would get *quite* such an immediate "but there's still hope, bigots!" follow-up. Does the Graun always add *but <convicted murderer> might appeal so we can't say anything definite yet?"
Equalities law experts are quick to point out that both these rulings are first-instance cases, so they do not set a binding precedent. Maria Kelly, who brought the Leonardo action, is appealing and on Thursday Peggie will set out her next steps at a press conference.
December 11, 2025 at 8:14 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
Or how about you make *this bit* the headline instead of once again pushing the TERF agenda?
But the Peggie ruling concluded that the supreme court judgment did not make it inherently unlawful for a trans female, who is biologically male under the Equalities Act, to be given permission to use a female changing room at work. And a week earlier, another employment tribunal reached a similar conclusion, ruling in favour of the trans-inclusive toilets policy at aerospace firm Leonardo UK’s office in Edinburgh.
December 11, 2025 at 8:09 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
I only ever hear about that guy in stories about him flouncing off BlueSky for people not sufficiently kissing his ass, and yet...
Mo from the Simpsons throws Barney out of his bar - you know the rest.
December 10, 2025 at 7:37 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
The "Is this a Pigeon?" meme, but with Bonne Maman Advent Calendars, Hazelnut Chocolate Spread, and Jam.
December 2, 2025 at 9:44 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
Naxos Quarry Project?
Boy does John Peel have a track for you...
December 2, 2025 at 9:35 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
Sometimes, the timeline just comes into alignment:
Justin Ling parodies Olivia Nuzzi's, deathless prose: "I stood on a rock. The rock was a gun. And everyone pointed the gun at me. The Politician called "Rocks," he said. He was so smart. Smart like a rock. My cat was on fire." This is immediately followed n my timeline by Simon: "I've bought some new socks."
November 17, 2025 at 4:01 PM
gswrites.bsky.social
"And that was..."
John Peel at the sound desk.
November 17, 2025 at 12:13 PM
gswrites.bsky.social
The baked-looking 'Aliens!" guy quotes the wisdom of Jeffrey Epstein...
November 16, 2025 at 5:11 PM
gswrites.bsky.social
Every line its own aliens guy meme:
The "aliens" guy reckons "7 Skin as part of brain? Memebrane?"
November 16, 2025 at 9:35 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
Aliens guy channels Epstein's brainworms: "And the speed of light simply mean one time around. Obviously a constant."
November 16, 2025 at 9:18 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
Took a few days off for a trip to Chester and saw these gorgeous fossa pups at the zoo!
Fossa pups - they look like slinky little kittens with rounded ears and tails as long as their bodies, but are in fact highly specialised mongoose relatives from Madagascar. Super-cute as babies, magnificent as adults, and bad news if you're a lemur on the menu!
November 7, 2025 at 1:58 PM
gswrites.bsky.social
Your third burn of the morning:
A O C tells Riley Gaines she might have had a better sports career if she channeled all her anger into swimming faster.
October 28, 2025 at 6:54 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
Morning - what's going.. oh.
The is this a pigeon meme, only its Americans, some interminable baseball match, and cricket.
October 28, 2025 at 6:44 AM
gswrites.bsky.social
Adverts should be representative of traditional British families
Oh dearie me - it's the crew from The High Life! You fercoffee?
October 27, 2025 at 9:00 PM
gswrites.bsky.social
Who wore it best?
Doctor Who's Black Guardian, probably The Queen, played by Valentine Dyall
October 23, 2025 at 10:56 AM