Martin Polley
@historymartin.bsky.social
Professor Emeritus @dmuleicester and former Director of @icshc_sports_history. Sport, arts, music, places, statues, plaques, heritage, and more. Member of Historic England's National Blue Plaque Panel
https://martinpolley.co.uk/
https://martinpolley.co.uk/
Reposted by Martin Polley
I was never blind to this stuff happening before and long-time followers will know my hatred towards AI knows no bounds - I talk about it often and have an AI-focused review due out in December - but it happening to one of my own books just takes the fucking cake
October 8, 2026 at 8:19 AM
I was never blind to this stuff happening before and long-time followers will know my hatred towards AI knows no bounds - I talk about it often and have an AI-focused review due out in December - but it happening to one of my own books just takes the fucking cake
Reposted by Martin Polley
This is not a real person! There are THIRTY TWO books here that 'Andrew V. Smith' has shat out in the last year alone, all of which have AI-generated covers and most borrow or straight up rip off titles from other more popular (and more importantly: human) works like my own
October 8, 2026 at 8:18 AM
This is not a real person! There are THIRTY TWO books here that 'Andrew V. Smith' has shat out in the last year alone, all of which have AI-generated covers and most borrow or straight up rip off titles from other more popular (and more importantly: human) works like my own
Book Launch: David Dee, Migrants, Minorities, and the History of British Boxing. @icshc.bsky.social is hosting the launch for Dave Dee's new book as one of @dmu.ac.uk @blackhistorymonth.org.uk - 21 October, 17.00-19.00. All welcome - booking details here: tinyurl.com/5n6jx5er
Book Launch - Migrants, Minorities, and the History of British Boxing
Join us in person to celebrate the launch of a book exploring migrants, minorities, and British boxing history!
tinyurl.com
October 6, 2026 at 2:28 PM
Book Launch: David Dee, Migrants, Minorities, and the History of British Boxing. @icshc.bsky.social is hosting the launch for Dave Dee's new book as one of @dmu.ac.uk @blackhistorymonth.org.uk - 21 October, 17.00-19.00. All welcome - booking details here: tinyurl.com/5n6jx5er
I've added pics of two sport-related beer bottles to the @kthabitproject.bsky.social @wellcometrust.bsky.social map of addictive sport sponsorship: a Shin Kicker from the Cotswold Olimpicks, and Sheffield Celebration Ale from the 1993 FA Cup semi-final. Visit now and add your own kickingthehabit.uk
Home - Kicking The Habit
Kicking the Habit explores ‘addictive’ sports sponsorship from the 1960s to today.
kickingthehabit.uk
October 1, 2026 at 10:16 AM
I've added pics of two sport-related beer bottles to the @kthabitproject.bsky.social @wellcometrust.bsky.social map of addictive sport sponsorship: a Shin Kicker from the Cotswold Olimpicks, and Sheffield Celebration Ale from the 1993 FA Cup semi-final. Visit now and add your own kickingthehabit.uk
New blog post: Olympic River martinpolley.co.uk/2026/09/29/w...
Olympic River – Martin Polley, Sports Historian
martinpolley.co.uk
September 30, 2026 at 8:22 AM
New blog post: Olympic River martinpolley.co.uk/2026/09/29/w...
Reposted by Martin Polley
And if you're heading in to Oxford city centre soon, here is our useful, but somewhat tongue-in-cheek article on how to avoid the filters. (Are we doing listicles right?)
oxfordclarion.uk/twelve-easy-...
oxfordclarion.uk/twelve-easy-...
Twelve easy hacks to beat Oxford’s Traffic Filters
Want to travel in Oxford, but worried about the traffic filters from Monday, 28 September 2026? We got you. Here's the tea on how you can avoid the traffic filters entirely, and still visit all your f...
oxfordclarion.uk
September 28, 2026 at 5:26 AM
And if you're heading in to Oxford city centre soon, here is our useful, but somewhat tongue-in-cheek article on how to avoid the filters. (Are we doing listicles right?)
oxfordclarion.uk/twelve-easy-...
oxfordclarion.uk/twelve-easy-...
Reposted by Martin Polley
What happened last time Manchester City were convicted of serious financial charge - the 1905 illegal payments scandal…
podcasts.apple.com/ee/podcast/m...
podcasts.apple.com/ee/podcast/m...
Manchester City Guilty! The 1904/05 Scandal
Podcast Episode · It Was What It Was : The Football History Podcast · 24 September 2024 · 56min
podcasts.apple.com
September 26, 2026 at 6:20 AM
What happened last time Manchester City were convicted of serious financial charge - the 1905 illegal payments scandal…
podcasts.apple.com/ee/podcast/m...
podcasts.apple.com/ee/podcast/m...
Huge thanks to the staff of the Western Art Print Room @ashmoleanmuseum.bsky.social for hosting me for an archival research trip today. Fantastic service with interesting chats thrown in.
September 23, 2026 at 4:43 PM
Huge thanks to the staff of the Western Art Print Room @ashmoleanmuseum.bsky.social for hosting me for an archival research trip today. Fantastic service with interesting chats thrown in.
Reposted by Martin Polley
Ditto 30,000 roles in universities in the past three years.
I think it's absolutely mad that today there's a *national news story* about 400 oil platform workers losing their jobs, and the government being blamed.
25% of the UK TV industry lost their jobs in the last 4 years and we never hear a peep about it!
Some jobs are 'real jobs' I guess.
25% of the UK TV industry lost their jobs in the last 4 years and we never hear a peep about it!
Some jobs are 'real jobs' I guess.
September 22, 2026 at 9:55 AM
Ditto 30,000 roles in universities in the past three years.
The programme for this term's public webinars from @parkesinstitute.bsky.social is now live, starting with @brunssen.bsky.social on 'The Making of “Jew Clubs”: Performing Jewishness and Antisemitism in European Football and Fan Cultures', 29 Sept, 18.00 UK time www.southampton.ac.uk/parkes/news/...
Performing Jewishness and Antisemitism in European Football and Fan Cultures
Join The Parkes Institute for an online talk from Dr Pavel Brunssen titled ‘The Making of “Jew Clubs”: Performing Jewishness and Antisemitism in European Football and Fan Cultures’.
www.southampton.ac.uk
September 22, 2026 at 9:01 AM
The programme for this term's public webinars from @parkesinstitute.bsky.social is now live, starting with @brunssen.bsky.social on 'The Making of “Jew Clubs”: Performing Jewishness and Antisemitism in European Football and Fan Cultures', 29 Sept, 18.00 UK time www.southampton.ac.uk/parkes/news/...
Call for chapter proposals for a book on Sport and Politics in Twenty-First Century Britain, edited by Adam Burns & Adam Dickson. Full details: adb.webador.co.uk/chapter-prop...
Chapter Proposals | ADB History & Politics
adb.webador.co.uk
September 16, 2026 at 11:54 AM
Call for chapter proposals for a book on Sport and Politics in Twenty-First Century Britain, edited by Adam Burns & Adam Dickson. Full details: adb.webador.co.uk/chapter-prop...
Reposted by Martin Polley
Superb exposition from William Pettigrew of how slave trading (let alone the whole plantation complex that depended on it) was “enmeshed in the processes that produced the nation we know today”. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/comm...
Freedom-loving Britain was at the heart of the 18th century slave trade – and this register proves it | William Pettigrew
Register of British Slave Traders reveals how deeply the trafficking of Africans was embedded in the country’s politics, economy, institutions and culture
www.theguardian.com
September 15, 2026 at 7:03 AM
Superb exposition from William Pettigrew of how slave trading (let alone the whole plantation complex that depended on it) was “enmeshed in the processes that produced the nation we know today”. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/comm...
Reposted by Martin Polley
'A “larger, fewer grants” model that concentrates research on established UK institutions would be a “huge mistake” and could risk hampering Andy Burnham’s ambition to drive prosperity across the nation, academics have warned.'
Not to mention its impact of researchers who are female and/or black.
Not to mention its impact of researchers who are female and/or black.
‘Larger, fewer grants’ could harm Burnham’s regional agenda
Changes to grant system suggested by Chris McDonald could ‘mistakenly’ further concentrate funding in the golden triangle, academics warn
www.timeshighereducation.com
September 15, 2026 at 6:13 AM
'A “larger, fewer grants” model that concentrates research on established UK institutions would be a “huge mistake” and could risk hampering Andy Burnham’s ambition to drive prosperity across the nation, academics have warned.'
Not to mention its impact of researchers who are female and/or black.
Not to mention its impact of researchers who are female and/or black.
Congratulations to @bbc5live.bsky.social commentator John Murray for his well-deserved honorary degree from @dmu.ac.uk @icshc.bsky.social www.dmu.ac.uk/about-dmu/ne...
BBC
One of the country
www.dmu.ac.uk
September 15, 2026 at 8:27 AM
Congratulations to @bbc5live.bsky.social commentator John Murray for his well-deserved honorary degree from @dmu.ac.uk @icshc.bsky.social www.dmu.ac.uk/about-dmu/ne...
Reposted by Martin Polley
Taking the knee:
Howard Bryant on the lessons and legacy of Colin Kaepernick's quiet protest
www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/s...
Howard Bryant on the lessons and legacy of Colin Kaepernick's quiet protest
www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/s...
Colin Kaepernick knelt 10 years ago. America responded with a clear warning to Black people | Howard Bryant
A decade after Kaepernick’s quiet protest shook the NFL, his exile looks less like an aberration than a blueprint for the culture war that followed
www.theguardian.com
September 2, 2026 at 7:44 AM
Taking the knee:
Howard Bryant on the lessons and legacy of Colin Kaepernick's quiet protest
www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/s...
Howard Bryant on the lessons and legacy of Colin Kaepernick's quiet protest
www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/s...
New book alert: Football and Fascism in the Iberian Peninsula by Daniele Serapiglia & Juan Martin Simon, published by Peter Lang in their Sport, Culture & Society series: football and ideology, propaganda, national promotion, and resistance in Franco's Spain and Salazar's Portugal.
August 24, 2026 at 1:22 PM
New book alert: Football and Fascism in the Iberian Peninsula by Daniele Serapiglia & Juan Martin Simon, published by Peter Lang in their Sport, Culture & Society series: football and ideology, propaganda, national promotion, and resistance in Franco's Spain and Salazar's Portugal.
Reposted by Martin Polley
This whole thread, but especially this part.
"We're going to steal the intellectual property of your faculty, then demand those faculty find use cases for our lying theft machine."
"We're going to steal the intellectual property of your faculty, then demand those faculty find use cases for our lying theft machine."
It feels like industry is waiting for universities to come up with ideas about how they can use Ai and all I can think is: it is not my job to make your business more profitable.
August 21, 2026 at 9:37 PM
This whole thread, but especially this part.
"We're going to steal the intellectual property of your faculty, then demand those faculty find use cases for our lying theft machine."
"We're going to steal the intellectual property of your faculty, then demand those faculty find use cases for our lying theft machine."
Reposted by Martin Polley
This iconic Fabian Todorovic cartoon is still one of the best I’ve seen at illustrating the remarkable amount of space we surrender to cars, leaving little space left for everyone and everything else. The text added later makes the bonus point that many drivers still manage to complain about it.
August 20, 2026 at 7:22 AM
This iconic Fabian Todorovic cartoon is still one of the best I’ve seen at illustrating the remarkable amount of space we surrender to cars, leaving little space left for everyone and everything else. The text added later makes the bonus point that many drivers still manage to complain about it.
Reposted by Martin Polley
Hey I'm teaching a course "AI, Creativity & Slop" to first-year students this fall which includes readings in lit/philosophy, history + cog sci/comp sci. Does anyone have recs - essays they love in any of these areas - to help me finalize the syllabus? Would really appreciate any suggestions, thx!
August 17, 2026 at 5:30 PM
Hey I'm teaching a course "AI, Creativity & Slop" to first-year students this fall which includes readings in lit/philosophy, history + cog sci/comp sci. Does anyone have recs - essays they love in any of these areas - to help me finalize the syllabus? Would really appreciate any suggestions, thx!
New blog post: my speech from the July unveiling of the new Historic England Blue Plaque for Frank Soo at 11 Lightwood Road, Buxton, Derbyshire. martinpolley.co.uk/2026/08/14/f...
Frank Soo: A Blue Plaque in Buxton – Martin Polley, Sports Historian
martinpolley.co.uk
August 14, 2026 at 2:36 PM
New blog post: my speech from the July unveiling of the new Historic England Blue Plaque for Frank Soo at 11 Lightwood Road, Buxton, Derbyshire. martinpolley.co.uk/2026/08/14/f...
New book alert: Rulebreakers & Ghost Runners by @runyoung50.bsky.social , out now with @bloomsburybooksuk.bsky.social. Holmes explores the long history of women who 'broke the rules, broke records and broke barriers' when the athletics establishment barred them from distance events.
August 14, 2026 at 9:04 AM
New book alert: Rulebreakers & Ghost Runners by @runyoung50.bsky.social , out now with @bloomsburybooksuk.bsky.social. Holmes explores the long history of women who 'broke the rules, broke records and broke barriers' when the athletics establishment barred them from distance events.
Football City, event on London's football past and present featuring @joshbland13.bsky.social @oritgat.bsky.social and Simon Inglis @playedinbritain.bsky.social, hosted @ltmuseumfriends.bsky.social on 10 Sept: thehttps://www.ltmuseum.co.uk/whats-on/talks/football-city-london-and-beautiful-game
Football city: London and the beautiful game | London Transport Museum
Join us for a panel discussion on how London shapes and is shaped by football.
www.ltmuseum.co.uk
August 12, 2026 at 2:30 PM
Football City, event on London's football past and present featuring @joshbland13.bsky.social @oritgat.bsky.social and Simon Inglis @playedinbritain.bsky.social, hosted @ltmuseumfriends.bsky.social on 10 Sept: thehttps://www.ltmuseum.co.uk/whats-on/talks/football-city-london-and-beautiful-game
Reposted by Martin Polley
Greece is burning. Spain is burning. Sicily, Wales, Türkiye, Canada, the US— the entire planet is engulfed in flames.
Decades of warnings ignored. Decades of corporate denial exposed. The science was right all along: our home is on fire.
We need immediate, radical climate action.
Decades of warnings ignored. Decades of corporate denial exposed. The science was right all along: our home is on fire.
We need immediate, radical climate action.
August 2, 2026 at 10:19 AM
Greece is burning. Spain is burning. Sicily, Wales, Türkiye, Canada, the US— the entire planet is engulfed in flames.
Decades of warnings ignored. Decades of corporate denial exposed. The science was right all along: our home is on fire.
We need immediate, radical climate action.
Decades of warnings ignored. Decades of corporate denial exposed. The science was right all along: our home is on fire.
We need immediate, radical climate action.
Reposted by Martin Polley
So it's farewell to the History subject area at the University of Hertfordshire, not the first nor the last to go. One of the best departments in the country, just extinguished like a snap of the fingers. Think of the waste. (1/2)
August 2, 2026 at 10:46 AM
So it's farewell to the History subject area at the University of Hertfordshire, not the first nor the last to go. One of the best departments in the country, just extinguished like a snap of the fingers. Think of the waste. (1/2)
Reposted by Martin Polley
Given that we are all upset today about Anthropic-shredding-books, I’ll add that I address this here, and it’s part of the same infrastructure threatening the preservation and profession of history but people don’t want to talk about that if the same industry is paying for their research.
July 30, 2026 at 12:36 AM
Given that we are all upset today about Anthropic-shredding-books, I’ll add that I address this here, and it’s part of the same infrastructure threatening the preservation and profession of history but people don’t want to talk about that if the same industry is paying for their research.