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RT @ianduhig: Happy Birthday David Jones! This quotation from 'In Parenthesis' I always felt cried out loudest for its own stele. Pic from…

SIR PATRICK STEWART (1940-2026) Before everything else, Patrick was defined by being born and bred in Yorkshire, the proud county in the north of England which he loved to the end. You could hear it in his accented voice and in the stern honesty with which he told you what he thought and felt. Yorkshiremen have no truck with half-truths or avoidance of big issues. He wore his heart on his sleeve, which made him a man to rely on, to admire and in my case, love. We first met as ambitious young actors with the Royal Shakespeare Company half a century ago but we weren’t in the same productions. My first strong memory was a few years later, meeting him in the street in central London when he told me about an offer to take over a leading part in 'Star Trek'. “But Patrick think of your stage career in the UK. Do you really want to risk—getting lost in Hollywood for years and years?”. Well, he took the risk and thank goodness for us all that he did for not just his devoted Trekkies but film and theatre audiences, who marvelled at his using international celebrity to star in a string of cinema successes ('X-Men' of course) and in great classical plays by Shakespeare, Ibsen, Arthur Miller, Peter Shaffer, Pinter and Beckett at Stratford-upon-Avon, in London’s West End and on Broadway. America was his adopted home, where he met his adored Sunny who has cared for him through sickness and health, through thick and thin. But he never forsook his origins: and the proudest achievement of the most respected and beloved actor of his generation on either side of the Atlantic, was his appointment as Chancellor of Huddersfield University in Yorkshire. His farewell performance in 'Avengers: Doomsday' is yet to be seen. Ian McKellen 29 October 2026 Photo: University of Huddersfield

Patrick Stewart in lockdown reading my favorite sonnet, Sonnet 73, “That Time of Year Thou May’st in Me Behold.” RIP.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to: Johns Hopkins Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center Fund    alzresearch.org/giving/ Alzheimer’s Foundation of America Caregiver Resources     alzfdn.org/donate/ Photo Credit: Tommy Garcia

Nigel Farage just couldn’t be arsed. My verdict on the latest attention seeking stunt from Britain’s tin-pot Trump

This plea from Stephen McKenna encapsulates why it is so important to save Radio 4 Extra. It is the National Trust of our radio archives. @BBCRadio4Extra @RadioTimes theguardian.com/media/2026/o…

Tipping Point by Jane Lovell #Poetry #Arctic #ClimateChange

Out tomorrow in The Yorkshire Times

Book Review: Tipping Point by Jane Lovell northernjim.wordpress.com/20…

A new paper by Alex McInturff asks what place stories have in conservation. We need evidence, but we also need to understand what moves people to care and act. Stories help give facts meaning. conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.c… 🧵👇

@MichaelRosenYes and @JonathanHumble, I couldn't resist a wee tribute! #PoetryForChildren #LicensedToThrill #DirigibleBalloon #RosenIsOurBond

northernjim.wordpress.com/20… The Appointment Jonathan Humble #Poetry #Folklore

Michael Rosen is our Bond #PoetryForChildren #LicensedToThrill #DirigibleBalloon 🎈

Labs are the best x

Poem 27 was co-written with Jonathan, online. This one we did line by line, pushing each other to test the surrealist boundaries. He wrote using a spelling board by moving his eyes. What fun we had!

Along with 21 fellow volunteers, I completed our 13 mile overnight walk from Kendal to Crooklands (and back) along the canal. We’re raising money for housing need charity, Manna House. We’d love it if you would donate to their life-transforming work: justgiving.com/page/timfarro…

A week today I am at @PolyFalmouth, part of the superbly-programmed Falmouth Book Festival, @BookFalmouth. My new book - If the Invader Comes - is set in and around Falmouth during WW2. There's a quiz. And a prize! falmouthbookfestival.com/chi…

Words & Pictures: Sam on Boffs' Island Got to love a bit of Postgate and Firmin 🙂