🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
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rossbrooks.co.uk
🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
@rossbrooks.co.uk
13K followers 10K following 570 posts
Historian. #histsci. #queerhistory. First book, Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life, to be published by Yale University Press in August. Trekkie. Classical music. Seaside living (near Brighton). He/him. rossbrooks.co.uk. Agent: www.philippasitters.co.uk.
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rossbrooks.co.uk
🌈 Dr Ross Brooks @rossbrooks.co.uk · Nov 3
@bsky.app now has over 40M users! 🦋💙

To celebrate, I thought I'd repost the cover image of The Science of Life (August 1929) from which the beautiful butterflies on my profile banner are taken. The central specimens are all gynandromorphs (simultaneously female and male). #histsci #queerhistory 🌈🗃️
Front cover of issue 12 of The Science of Life by Julian Huxley, G. P. Wells, and H. G. Wells and published in August 1929. Illustrating an article titled ‘What Determines Sex,’ a colour photograph features a selection of butterflies from the collections of the London Natural History Museum. Down the centre are five gynandromorph specimens. For four of the species, female and male specimens are placed either side of the gynandromorph for comparison. Image made from my own copy.
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
tlmarttinen.bsky.social
Check out the insightful critique on the racialization of Roma in Europe by Marius Turda and Bolagi Balogun. www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
The Racialization of Roma as “Black” in Interwar Romania and Beyond | Slavic Review | Cambridge Core
The Racialization of Roma as “Black” in Interwar Romania and Beyond - Volume 84 Issue 3
www.cambridge.org
January 7, 2026 at 12:38 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
royalhistsoc.org
We also have a similar Starter Pack for societies and groups whose members promote #history worldwide bit.ly/4sq5Axf.

And a third Pack for UK-based research institutes and centres in #history and the humanities: bit.ly/44Wv9fg. Recommendations for additions to these two packs welcome #Skystorians
Societies & groups for historians, international
Join the conversation
bit.ly
January 7, 2026 at 1:44 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
royalhistsoc.org
If you're looking for #history networks on BlueSky in 2026, our Starter Pack - recently updated - has details of 150 leading societies, organisations and groups active in the UK and Ireland bit.ly/4ptl0On

#Skystorians
Societies & groups for historians, UK and Ireland
Join the conversation
bit.ly
January 7, 2026 at 1:39 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
wokestudies.bsky.social
Cartoon of Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), dressed as a dandy, made during his trip to the United States in 1882. Drawing by Thomas Nast, Harper's Weekly (September 9th)
#Irish #Literature #decadence #fashion #theatre #drama
Cartoon of Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), dressed as a dandy, made during his trip to the United States in 1882. Drawing by Thomas Nast, Harper's Weekly (September 9th)
January 7, 2026 at 12:55 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
krheyam.bsky.social
Happy new year to all of you *and* to this gorgeous set of forthcoming books! I am beyond excited to finally share A Cultural History of Gender (and especially the volume I've edited, The Early Modern World) with you all.
January 6, 2026 at 9:57 AM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
schilthuizen.bsky.social
La sexualité animale: au-delà de la reproduction rfi.my/CKHk.BS
La sexualité animale: au-delà de la reproduction
« Tous les goûts sont dans la nature », dit le proverbe, repris d'ailleurs en sous-titre du livre de l'éthologue Emmanuelle Pouydebat paru en 2025, Sexus animalus. L'exploration de la sexualité animal...
rfi.my
January 7, 2026 at 6:23 AM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
tvolmag.bsky.social
🎯Skeletal sex is an estimate shaped by hormones, environment, and population variation—and current methods erase intersex and trans lives.

🔗Read the article: www.prosocial.world/posts/an-ant...

#gender #nonbinary #sexuality #anthropology #evolution #biology
An Anthropologist’s Perspective on Sex and Gender in the Skeleton
Anthropological methods show that skeletal sex is an estimate, not a certainty, revealing the limits of binary claims about human identity.
www.prosocial.world
December 17, 2025 at 12:45 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
tricksterprince.bsky.social
I couldn't agree more with @mirror.co.uk that it's a good time to investigate Agatha Christie's London.

Especially because there's 40% off Songs of Seven Dials in the @manchesterup.bsky.social sale.

manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526181954/

#sevendials #20s30s
January 6, 2026 at 10:01 AM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
isaiashernandez.bsky.social
I am pleased to announce the release of my latest article in the Observatory. I believe the findings and discussions presented here contribute meaningfully to our understanding of queer ecology.

#academia #science #education #queer
How Queer Ecology Reveals the Diversity of Nature and Human Experience
observatory.wiki
January 5, 2026 at 5:34 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
manchesterup.bsky.social
Mermaids, unicorns, vampires are an empowering part of our queer folk heritage, author @sachacoward.bsky.social tells @lgbtqnation.com in a recent interview here: www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/12/merm...

'Queer as Folklore' is out now in paperback!
Mermaids, unicorns, vampires are an empowering part of our queer folk heritage - LGBTQ Nation
Queer people have existed in folklore throughout history. Realizing that gives us magical powers, Sacha Coward says.
www.lgbtqnation.com
January 5, 2026 at 10:55 AM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
clio2.bsky.social
Weekly #LGBTQ #Trans update on Daily Kos

www.dailykos.com/stories/2026...

Btw @rossbrooks.co.uk , this borrowed your cheery Bluesky post about the Globe Theater. Thanks for sharing that.
LGBTQ+ update: Shakespeare; further dispatches from the war on trans youth; pansy craze; more
Big updates on RFK Jr.'s proposal to shut down essentially all gender-affirming care for trans youth, as reported here 2 weeks ago. There is an opportunity to file comments, open until Feb. 17. ALSO, ...
www.dailykos.com
January 5, 2026 at 12:16 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
jamiebgall.co.uk
EU pals - shipping is restored!
For the first time since Brexit you can now get my rainbow Science and Science Fiction pin badges across Europe.

Tell your pals!
proudscience.etsy.com
A series of Pride coloured police boxes An array of science and sci fi themed rainbow pin badges Six pins in the style of Doctor Who characters.
January 5, 2026 at 1:50 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
royalhistsoc.org
Applications are also invited for a new RHS programme for 2026, co-hosted with @ihr.bsky.social and @chalkefestival.bsky.social.

'Pitch my Project' is for early career historians to present their research at the Chalke History Festival in June bit.ly/44kfUMM. Closing date: 6 February. #Skystorians
Pitch my Project: an opportunity for early career historians to present their work at the Chalke History Festival 2026 - RHS
Have you ever wanted to share your research with a wide audience? Would you like to gain experience in public speaking, and be supported to develop imaginative ways to communicate your research to the...
bit.ly
January 5, 2026 at 9:53 AM
rossbrooks.co.uk
Mood ('cos it's a bit nippy out):

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8K8...

'See'st thou not how stiff
And wondrous old
Far unfit to bear the bitter cold'
Jakub Jósef Orlinski - Purcell - King Arthur - The Cold Song
YouTube video by Classical HD Live
www.youtube.com
January 5, 2026 at 9:41 AM
rossbrooks.co.uk
Incidentally, the Globe has regular LGBTQ-themed guided tours. There are also excellent learning resources in their free guide 'Finding Queerness in Our Records': cdn.shakespearesglobe.com/uploads/2025... 🌈🎭🏳️‍⚧️🗃️

www.shakespearesglobe.com/whats-on/gui... #queer #history #theatre #drama
January 4, 2026 at 10:18 AM
rossbrooks.co.uk
Annual New Year cocktails up the Shard with the brilliant @djberry.bsky.social. Then we went to see a wonderfully wintry production of A Midsummer Night's Dream at Shakespeare's Globe (actually the Globe's indoor Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, so not *too* wintry!). Great day! #London 🍸🎭
Two chaps posing happily in the cocktail bar at the top of the Shard in London. Dominic is wearing a light blue top. I'm wearing a purple jumper and a striped shirt. The cityscape, including the River Thames, can be seen in the background. Photo of myself inside the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse just before a performance. I'm wearing a purple jumper and a striped shirt. I'm also wearing specs. Other audience members and the stage can be seen in the background.
January 3, 2026 at 8:43 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
sciam.bsky.social
The Quadrantid meteor shower peaks tonight! Let us know if you catch a shooting star 🌠
Watch the First Meteor Shower of 2026 Light Up the Sky This Weekend
The new year has arrived, and the Quadrantid meteor shower is coming in hot. Here’s how to see this often-spectacular shower at its peak
www.scientificamerican.com
January 3, 2026 at 6:43 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
uomnch.bsky.social
Transgressors closes Sunday, January 4! This exhibit, originally presented at Chachalu Tribal Museum and Cultural Center, showcases nine artists exploring the past, present, and future of Indigenous queer identity and is curated by Anthony Hudson and Felix Furby. #indigenousart #pnw
A close up of the black fabric introduction panel. The title "Transgressors" crosses the top of the panel in bright pink font, with a rainbow ribbon winding around it. Underneath the title is text reading "transgressor. noun. 1: someone or something that transgresses, going beyond a boundary or limit."  A wide view of the Transgressors exhibit. Black pillars with pictures of the artists and short bios are sprinkled throughout the space. Colorful woven corn by Geo Neptune and an illuminated box with art by Steph Littlebird are visible.  In the center of the frame is a black rectangle with pink text reading "What does a future with us in it look like? Everyone is encouraged to draw or write to add to the wall. Use this wall as a communal wish." The rectangle is surrounded by pieces of white paper, some with colorful drawings, some with text reflections. At least 15 pieces of paper are visible.
January 1, 2026 at 8:00 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
respectthecows.bsky.social
Very excited to share that on the last day of this year, my 1st peer-reviewed article (co-created with artist Jesse Blanchard) about #trans actress Valerie Wilson was published! Read it here
viewjournal.eu/articles/10.... #cinema #valeriewilson #transfilm #frenchcinema #transhistory #archive #memory
“They Lack Imagination…” ─ Valérie Wilson and Trans Life in the Audiovisual Archive | VIEW Journal of European Television History and Culture
viewjournal.eu
December 31, 2025 at 5:04 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
linneansociety.bsky.social
Happy New Year from us at the Linnean Society! Enjoy this print of an advertisement for Pain's Fireworks for Queen Victoria's Jubilee in 1887.

You can even get a print of it here: buff.ly/OYLcWDQ
An illustration of a palace with lights strung between Union Jack flags. It advertises "Pain's Daylight Fireworks," in warm oranges and yellows.
January 1, 2026 at 10:01 AM
rossbrooks.co.uk
Lots of promising queer history books to look forward to in 2026. Here are just a few coming soon . . . 🌈📚🗃️

www.beacon.org/A-Black-Quee...

www.bloomsbury.com/uk/queer-inh...

www.dukeupress.edu/gay-print-cu...

manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526165312/

utppublishing.com/doi/book/10....
Front cover of A Black Queer History of the United States by @crileysnorton.bsky.social and Darius Bost. Published by @beaconpress.bsky.social in January. Front cover of A Queer Scrapbook: Britain and Ireland since 1945 by @justinbengry.bsky.social, Matt Cook, @rebeccajennings.bsky.social, and E-J. Scott. Published by @manchesterup.bsky.social. Front cover of I Will Not Abandon You: Queer Women in Nazi Germany by @schuneke.bsky.social. Published by @uoftpress.bsky.social in April. Front cover of How Queer Bookshops Changed the World by A. J. West. Published by @oneworldbooks.bsky.social in May.
January 1, 2026 at 10:37 AM
rossbrooks.co.uk
Happy New Year! 🎉🥂

Wishing everyone love and happiness in 2026 . . .

#HappyNewYear #HappyNewYear2026
a blonde woman is singing with the words happy new year below her
ALT: a blonde woman is singing with the words happy new year below her
media.tenor.com
January 1, 2026 at 12:00 AM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
momoulton.bsky.social
Give me your best recent British & Irish LGBTQI+ history recommendations! I'm updating the reading list for my queer & trans history module. Looking for things published in the last 2-3 years. 🌈🎓 ‍🌈 🏳️‍⚧️ #queerhistory
December 29, 2025 at 1:17 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
richardfallon.bsky.social
Paul Delvaux's painting The Awakening of the Forest (1939) was inspired by the subterranean forest in Jules Verne's Journey to the Centre of the Earth. As far as I know (not much), we don't have a wide-ranging study of Surrealism's relationship with Earth's history (www.artic.edu/artworks/111...)
Nude figures parade through a mysterious primordial forest; a bespectacled scientist looks on from the left.
December 30, 2025 at 8:31 AM