We use BC/AD consistently on our website and believe, as one of our editors argues here, that any other alternative is worse (and to those who claim offence, more offensive): thecritic.co.uk/issues/october… What do you think?

Bob Vylan: BBC staff praised me when I got off stage at Glastonbury telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/10/2…

Is it a bad look for Philosophy as an academic discipline, or for our age as a whole, that perhaps the best known philosophical text of the past 2 decades is titled 'On Bullshit'?

One of the most profound and atmospheric autumn poems of all time. And perhaps the greatest written in the twentieth century. The Laurel Axe by Geoffrey Hill.

An escape goat. Now that'd be something.

The first escape goat was actually a ram. Used by Odysseus to escape the cave of the Cyclops. open.substack.com/pub/armanddang…

“Meltdown at the Oxford Union” The Abaraonye affair marks a spectacular low point in the history of Britain’s most famous debating society. My latest post is now up! Link below. ⬇️

I admire Hill and I quite like this poem but it is surely not either of the things claimed for it here. Weigh in with your alternative candidates.

Official joint statement from myself & other survivors. Let’s hope they do their job.

‘Broadly speaking, the accusation is that I lived in the Middle East while being Jewish’. Michael Ben-Gad talking to Sky News news.sky.com/story/professo…

engelsbergideas.com/reviews/being-…

Touching to hear Lord Matthew Elliott dedicate his speech to the man who taught him economics A-level, and who was at the launch. We should acknowledge our teachers more often.

Hope you enjoy this one with Tom on Julius Caesar. And if you are busting for some more Romans, Charlotte and I give you Nero and the story behind Nero Fiddling While Rome burned on Instant Classics. tinyurl.com/cv7e9m92

In the heart of Liverpool at Ma Boyle’s drinking their local beer 〜Ma’s Liverbrid bitter “That’s boss that, la!”

Something new for the blog today. On how I have been approaching the subject of why to choose Latin with my pupils this year. adastrapermundum.com/2025/10/24/a-n…

Can you believe the manager had left me out of the squad for the previous 5 games 🤷‍♂️

JESS PHILLIPS Some years ago I was on the BBC2 lunchtime political tv show with Jess Phillips. During the show she was asked how she had proceeded to take up the issue we were discussing with the government. She replied that she had written to PM Theresa May asking for a meeting,

If you bring a knife/ axe or similar weapon to school, you should be permanently excluded. Anything less is a horrendous dereliction of the duty of care to the rest of the school community. It also teaches everyone else: bring in a weapon and you will be excluded. Not doing so