Tom Byrne
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tombyr.bsky.social
Tom Byrne
@tombyr.bsky.social
3.6K followers 12K following 150 posts
Irish. Carlovian. Historian (now very much intermittent). Scribbles and witters. Possibly the other way around. Coffee powered.

History, news, photos, books and writing. Fascinated by the world in general really.
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tombyr.bsky.social
The long shadow of the forbidden fruit #AHistoryOfChristianityInOnePicture 🤣🍎
An image seen from directly above of a red apple on a sunlight desk top, with the shadow of the apple stretching far in front of it.
October 17, 2025 at 1:05 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
Spotted this ad for the sale of the library, including the books, manuscripts and scientific instruments, of mathematician James Stirling (1692-1770).

An unusual collection, just in case anyone has an expanse of empty shelves and a bountiful supply of coin! #History
A picture of an advertisement in a A picture of an advertisement in a magazine from a Sunday newspaper detailing the sale of the library, including the books, manuscripts and scientific instruments, of James Stirling, a Scottish mathematician in the mid-1770s. magazine from a Sunday newspaper detailing the sale of the library, including the books, manuscripts and scientific instruments, of James Stirling, a Scottish mathematician in the mid-1770s.
October 16, 2025 at 6:29 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
It would be brilliant to think all the conflicts in the Middle East could be resolved in one fell swoop ... but as Neville Chamberlain found out, peace agreements can turn out not be worth the paper they're written on...
An image of a scenario where Donald Trump stands at the top of a set of aircraft steps holding a peace of paper, with the caption "Peace in Our Time"
October 13, 2025 at 7:31 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
Slightly off putting when your breakfast looks a wee bit like Donald Trump... 🤣🤣🤣🤣
A round breakfast bowl with yoghurt and orange flax seed, seen from above, so that it looks like a face - with grapes for eyes and almonds forming a sort of droopy smile
September 6, 2025 at 11:51 AM
tombyr.bsky.social
Well played whoever did this! 🙌🤣🤣
A shelf in a book shop true crime section has a copy of Walter Isaacson's biography of Elon Musk displayed prominently
August 25, 2025 at 12:25 AM
tombyr.bsky.social
The advent of Breadhenge! 🍞🥐😂
Half of a round loaf of bread sitting like a half moon on top of a rectangular loaf of bread standing straight upwards, the picture as a whole resembling bread-based mini-Stonehenge - or bread henge!
August 23, 2025 at 12:43 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
Bagel Pac-Man is coming for my lunch! 🤣🤣🤣
A bagel with a bite taken out of it looks like Pac-Man, and seems to be chasing some scrambled egg on a plate
August 20, 2025 at 2:09 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
"Shredded Wheat Says 'Hello!'"
🤣🌾
A torn white Shredded Wheat breakfast cereal wrapper with eyes and a smiley face drawn in on black, and with one torn section appearing to wave like an arm"
July 31, 2025 at 5:06 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
Ah here now, that's a bit much! 🥵🤣 #MeltingShamrock
A small temperature gauge showing 29.7 degrees Celsius in Ireland at midday on 11 July 2025
July 11, 2025 at 1:52 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
I know this one! 🇬🇳🤣 #Scallions
A large wall sign hanging in a railway station advertising a competition for free tickets to the All Ireland Gaelic Games Finals, showing a red food mixer, a yellow crown and green headphones. The question is to identify the Irish county from the clue.
July 2, 2025 at 8:56 AM
tombyr.bsky.social
I think my water bottle might actually be a frustrated Transformer! 😂🤖
A photo of the top of a water bottle where the constituent parts make it look like a Transformer robot
June 5, 2025 at 10:07 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
A cartoon is definitely worth a thousand words - it still boggles the mind that Trump managed to bankrupt a casino!

[From yesterday's Irish Times]
A cartoon showing a parcel delivery person arriving at US Customs to find a casino style fruit machine to randomly pick a tariff rate, with text in the lower right corner saying Good luck America you guys have bet on the only guy in the world who went bankrupt running a casino
May 25, 2025 at 11:15 AM
tombyr.bsky.social
An unusual thing to lose one would think?!
Picture of a car number plate sitting lost on top of a wall
May 14, 2025 at 8:35 AM
tombyr.bsky.social
This little fella has Sunday morning figured out! #Sunday #sunshine #nature #photo
A ladybird or ladybug sitting quietly on a light green leaf of a sage plant in brilliant sunshine in Ireland
March 9, 2025 at 2:56 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
It's a Tuesday with pancakes! 🥞😃🎊

#ThingsToBrightenUpTheWorldAmidstWhoKnowsWhatHappensNext
A large slightly browned pancake on a grey plate with a knife and fork ready to eat
March 4, 2025 at 2:24 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
Hatches battened down as far possible.

Looking forward to seeing Kansas if we go all "Wizard of Oz"!

Stay safe! 🤞🌬️

#StormÉowyn #Ireland
Garden furniture, window boxes, plants and rubbish bins secured in a narrow passageway beside a house as Storm Eowyn approaches Ireland
January 24, 2025 at 1:19 AM
tombyr.bsky.social
There's a storm definitely on the way for Ireland - these goldfinches are usually very combative and chase each other away from the birdfeeder with no mercy being shown, but all the squabbles set aside today. Get the food in and get ready - not bad advice for us humans either! 😃🐦 #StormEowyn
Five goldfinches all eating cooperatively on a birdfeeder together
January 23, 2025 at 12:46 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
SaurDon and his orc hordes are back and dumber than ever! #Trump
A still photo from a Lord of the Rings film showing an orc army, with the leading orc bearing a resemblance to Donald Trump
January 22, 2025 at 1:57 AM
tombyr.bsky.social
For the day that's in it... #Trump
Book cover of Confidence Man The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America by Maggie Haberman
January 20, 2025 at 8:17 AM
tombyr.bsky.social
Reading Diccon Bewes excellent and quirky "Swiss Watching: Inside the Land of Milk and Money", and just found out that the short-lived Helvetic Republic set up by Napoleon had a most fetching flag - very similar to that of #Carlow! 😃🇲🇱 #Books #Reading #History

#DiscoveryOfTheDay 📚
A flag with three horizontal stripes of, from the top, green, red and yellow and Repubique Helvetique written on the middle red stripe
December 7, 2024 at 10:51 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
#Ireland #Winter #Frost
The tops of a line of dark Scots Pine trees visible in the background behind some frost encrusted roofs, with dark green vegetation in the foreground and one golden leafed tree rising through the right of the picture
December 3, 2024 at 3:04 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
All set for a long weekend of watching election vote counting! 😃🗳️🔢

#GE2024 #GE24 #Ireland
Two shelves of a fridge with typical Irish foods
November 30, 2024 at 11:08 AM
tombyr.bsky.social
The campaigns are already starting to become a blur.... 🤣 #GE2024 #GE24 #Ireland
A blurry general election poster in Ireland on a lamp post over another sign announcing the start of a race.
November 28, 2024 at 11:54 PM
tombyr.bsky.social
Frost patterns on a garden table #photography
White frost in fern shapes against a black background of a garden table cover
November 28, 2024 at 12:34 AM
tombyr.bsky.social
Spotted slightly earlier, after hearing a bell ringing from a long way off.

Guessing the sleigh was in for a service! 🎅🎄🦌🤣❄️

#Maynooth #ADifferentKindOfPlace
Santa lookalike walking on a footpath and waving
November 23, 2024 at 9:20 PM