Lori Topper
@lipsticklori.bsky.social
Midlife work-in-progress human. Writer in search of a new project. Works in HE. Attempting to navigate perimenopause in style (51, bi, polyam, agender, she/they)
Reposted by Lori Topper
The best tribute to Dolly Parton is that she regularly and repeatedly refused to have anything to do with Piers Morgan
August 26, 2026 at 6:58 AM
The best tribute to Dolly Parton is that she regularly and repeatedly refused to have anything to do with Piers Morgan
Reposted by Lori Topper
I appreciate that Dolly Parton refused to participate in "dress respectability" and, by her own account, modeled her aesthetic after a town "tramp," who she thought was beautiful. She separated aesthetics from character and understood "classiness" to be about how you treat people, not how you dress.
August 26, 2026 at 7:02 AM
I appreciate that Dolly Parton refused to participate in "dress respectability" and, by her own account, modeled her aesthetic after a town "tramp," who she thought was beautiful. She separated aesthetics from character and understood "classiness" to be about how you treat people, not how you dress.
Reposted by Lori Topper
CALLING LONDONERS 📣
My friend has spent FIVE YEARS developing her play—a queer horror story—and she's hardly sold any tickets. She's travelling down from Leeds and I'm devastated 🥺
The Haunting of Verity Evans, The Hope Theatre, 25th–26th August.
I hope you'll join me! Please share if you can't!
My friend has spent FIVE YEARS developing her play—a queer horror story—and she's hardly sold any tickets. She's travelling down from Leeds and I'm devastated 🥺
The Haunting of Verity Evans, The Hope Theatre, 25th–26th August.
I hope you'll join me! Please share if you can't!
August 24, 2026 at 10:56 PM
CALLING LONDONERS 📣
My friend has spent FIVE YEARS developing her play—a queer horror story—and she's hardly sold any tickets. She's travelling down from Leeds and I'm devastated 🥺
The Haunting of Verity Evans, The Hope Theatre, 25th–26th August.
I hope you'll join me! Please share if you can't!
My friend has spent FIVE YEARS developing her play—a queer horror story—and she's hardly sold any tickets. She's travelling down from Leeds and I'm devastated 🥺
The Haunting of Verity Evans, The Hope Theatre, 25th–26th August.
I hope you'll join me! Please share if you can't!
Reposted by Lori Topper
In a world of men who think the only way to be a man is to stand on the necks of everyone else, be a Sam Neill.
July 13, 2026 at 12:38 PM
In a world of men who think the only way to be a man is to stand on the necks of everyone else, be a Sam Neill.
Reposted by Lori Topper
I hope this isn’t true. There are times when it’s more important to put country before party. This is one of them. Burnham’s longstanding commitment to a fairer voting system could transform our democracy & counter the dire threat of a Reform UK government elected on a minority of the vote
Greens suggest they will properly contest byelection in blow to Burnham
Statement follows speculation party would not field candidate in Makerfield or barely fight seat
www.theguardian.com
May 15, 2026 at 1:10 PM
I hope this isn’t true. There are times when it’s more important to put country before party. This is one of them. Burnham’s longstanding commitment to a fairer voting system could transform our democracy & counter the dire threat of a Reform UK government elected on a minority of the vote
Reposted by Lori Topper
We lost Douglas Adams 25 years ago today. This has made a lot of people very sad and has been widely regarded as a bad move.
May 11, 2026 at 2:35 PM
We lost Douglas Adams 25 years ago today. This has made a lot of people very sad and has been widely regarded as a bad move.
Reposted by Lori Topper
How can the BBC justify how much coverage they give other marches which are significantly smaller in size?
The bias is so obviously blatant.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/live...
The bias is so obviously blatant.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/live...
‘The tide is turning’, Green party leader tells crowd at march against far right – as it happened
Organisers claim half a million people are marching through central London, protesting against the rise of the far right
www.theguardian.com
March 29, 2026 at 9:48 AM
How can the BBC justify how much coverage they give other marches which are significantly smaller in size?
The bias is so obviously blatant.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/live...
The bias is so obviously blatant.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/live...
Reposted by Lori Topper
It brings me great pleasure to inform you the word "blurb" is named after a made-up woman named Belinda Blurb whose job is to tell everyone how great a book is
![The word blurb was coined in 1906 by American humorist Gelett Burgess (1866–1951).[2] The October 1906 first edition of his short book Are You a Bromide? was presented in a limited edition to an annual trade association dinner. The custom at such events was to have a dust jacket promoting the work and with, as Burgess' publisher B. W. Huebsch described it, "the picture of a damsel—languishing, heroic, or coquettish—anyhow, a damsel on the jacket of every novel".
In this case, the jacket proclaimed "YES, this is a 'BLURB'!" and the picture was of a (fictitious) young woman "Miss Belinda Blurb" shown calling out, described as "in the act of blurbing." The name and term stuck for any publisher's contents on a book's back cover, even after the picture was dropped and only the text remained.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:xymlowc32o3pc6g2xalek4s4/bafkreieugzwvjwchmqn4y6jhr5isznq6q4vfsnsbbafxht75qgxmumchaa)
March 29, 2026 at 2:53 PM
It brings me great pleasure to inform you the word "blurb" is named after a made-up woman named Belinda Blurb whose job is to tell everyone how great a book is
Reposted by Lori Topper
We all know this is fascism.
What's something that experts/practitioners in your field universally agree upon, but that remains a "hot take" among the general public?
March 29, 2026 at 2:37 PM
We all know this is fascism.
Reposted by Lori Topper
If I were the government, I would simply be less incompetent www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
Mandelson was offered highly classified briefing before he finished vetting process
Newly released documents suggest Foreign Office may have begun to brief Mandelson before vetting was completed
www.theguardian.com
March 11, 2026 at 4:06 PM
If I were the government, I would simply be less incompetent www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
Reposted by Lori Topper
This is blackout poetry to me
February 14, 2026 at 2:26 PM
This is blackout poetry to me
Reposted by Lori Topper
It's devastating to me how much public money is being wasted in the British legal system purely on maintaining maximally destructive stances on human rights in service to the political ideology of the regime.
February 13, 2026 at 11:29 AM
It's devastating to me how much public money is being wasted in the British legal system purely on maintaining maximally destructive stances on human rights in service to the political ideology of the regime.
Reposted by Lori Topper
If The Bible had been written in the North of England Noah’s Ark wouldn’t have made the edit.
It’s already rained for more than 40 days and 40 nights this year and we’re only on day 43
It’s already rained for more than 40 days and 40 nights this year and we’re only on day 43
February 12, 2026 at 11:06 PM
If The Bible had been written in the North of England Noah’s Ark wouldn’t have made the edit.
It’s already rained for more than 40 days and 40 nights this year and we’re only on day 43
It’s already rained for more than 40 days and 40 nights this year and we’re only on day 43
People who’ve met me recently don’t know that for a long time my specialist subject was the history of the bra. After I completed my MA at London College of Fashion, I kept up the research for 10 years but decided to draw that era to a close last year.
However, I’ll do one final talk…
However, I’ll do one final talk…
February 13, 2026 at 3:09 PM
People who’ve met me recently don’t know that for a long time my specialist subject was the history of the bra. After I completed my MA at London College of Fashion, I kept up the research for 10 years but decided to draw that era to a close last year.
However, I’ll do one final talk…
However, I’ll do one final talk…
Reposted by Lori Topper
2008: Epstein is convicted of procuring a minor for prostitution
2018: Despite that conviction, [files indicate] he was invited by Rowling’s team - along with a guest of his choosing - to the Broadway opening of Harry Potter and the private after-party
Protecting women and children, is it?
2018: Despite that conviction, [files indicate] he was invited by Rowling’s team - along with a guest of his choosing - to the Broadway opening of Harry Potter and the private after-party
Protecting women and children, is it?
JK Rowling's team invited Jeffery Epstein to the deathly hallows play and to a Harry potter dinner.
www.justice.gov/epstein/file...
www.justice.gov/epstein/file...
www.justice.gov/epstein/file...
www.justice.gov/epstein/file...
www.justice.gov
February 1, 2026 at 5:38 PM
2008: Epstein is convicted of procuring a minor for prostitution
2018: Despite that conviction, [files indicate] he was invited by Rowling’s team - along with a guest of his choosing - to the Broadway opening of Harry Potter and the private after-party
Protecting women and children, is it?
2018: Despite that conviction, [files indicate] he was invited by Rowling’s team - along with a guest of his choosing - to the Broadway opening of Harry Potter and the private after-party
Protecting women and children, is it?
Okay, let’s try this writing thing again. lipsticklori.substack.com/p/twenty-six...
Twenty Sixteen
Is 2026 the new 2016? I think not.
lipsticklori.substack.com
January 16, 2026 at 9:12 PM
Okay, let’s try this writing thing again. lipsticklori.substack.com/p/twenty-six...
NHS England is rolling out software to run our health records from Palantir – a US spy-tech firm that has supported mass deportation in the US and enabled genocide in Gaza. One of Palantir’s founders is also openly against the NHS. notopalantir.goodlawproject.org/email-to-tar...
Say no to Palantir in the NHS
NHS England is rolling out software to run our health records from Palantir - fight back
notopalantir.goodlawproject.org
January 16, 2026 at 2:03 PM
NHS England is rolling out software to run our health records from Palantir – a US spy-tech firm that has supported mass deportation in the US and enabled genocide in Gaza. One of Palantir’s founders is also openly against the NHS. notopalantir.goodlawproject.org/email-to-tar...
Reposted by Lori Topper
Just watched the new Knives Out and I think it's really important you know that the scene in the Seminary's Gym is filmed in the same place Rick Astley filmed the music video for Never Gonna Give You Up.
I saw the window tracery and immediately made my friends pause the film so I could tell them.
I saw the window tracery and immediately made my friends pause the film so I could tell them.
December 29, 2025 at 1:11 PM
Just watched the new Knives Out and I think it's really important you know that the scene in the Seminary's Gym is filmed in the same place Rick Astley filmed the music video for Never Gonna Give You Up.
I saw the window tracery and immediately made my friends pause the film so I could tell them.
I saw the window tracery and immediately made my friends pause the film so I could tell them.
Sad news, but what a wonderful body of work he leaves is with. www.vogue.com/article/mart...
Photographer Martin Parr, Chronicler of the Beauty and Banality of British Life, Dies at 73
The British photographer has passed away, leaving behind a humorous—and highly saturated—legacy.
www.vogue.com
December 7, 2025 at 7:11 PM
Sad news, but what a wonderful body of work he leaves is with. www.vogue.com/article/mart...
Reposted by Lori Topper
December 4, 2025 at 4:08 PM
Reposted by Lori Topper
If we can only have art from people who "aren't in it for the money" that means we can only have art from privileged middle-class dilettantes. Making art being a viable career is responsible for nearly all worthwhile art, and if it's not a viable career any more we will get drastically less of it.
December 4, 2025 at 3:13 PM
If we can only have art from people who "aren't in it for the money" that means we can only have art from privileged middle-class dilettantes. Making art being a viable career is responsible for nearly all worthwhile art, and if it's not a viable career any more we will get drastically less of it.
Reposted by Lori Topper
Zack Polanski with the truth.
“They went for pensioners, they went for the disabled, and now they’re going for people fleeing war and conflict. I am furious — this government should hang their heads in shame.”
Zack Polanski on Labour’s new immigration reforms on Newsnight.
Zack Polanski on Labour’s new immigration reforms on Newsnight.
November 18, 2025 at 11:28 AM
Zack Polanski with the truth.
Reposted by Lori Topper
I like it when anyone criticises London, and Sadiq posts something saying, “we are all multilingual and bisexual”
September 23, 2025 at 7:21 PM
I like it when anyone criticises London, and Sadiq posts something saying, “we are all multilingual and bisexual”
Reposted by Lori Topper
Reposting a day late. Mostly because the rejection sensitive dysphoria played me hard yesterday and I wanted to see how people felt about the piece first. Thank you to so many of the wonderful comments and emails so far! ☺️
🛋️ We’ve refurbished & redecorated… and our blog’s back! A new home for big ideas in Research Culture 🎉
First through the door is our very own @emilyennis.bsky.social . Her first post for Celebrate Bisexuality Day 🩷💜💙 explores what research culture can learn from living in the in-between…
First through the door is our very own @emilyennis.bsky.social . Her first post for Celebrate Bisexuality Day 🩷💜💙 explores what research culture can learn from living in the in-between…
September 24, 2025 at 7:45 PM
Reposting a day late. Mostly because the rejection sensitive dysphoria played me hard yesterday and I wanted to see how people felt about the piece first. Thank you to so many of the wonderful comments and emails so far! ☺️
Reposted by Lori Topper
Cats say a £22bn investment in Dreamies and new Catnip technologies will boost Britain's economy in the next few years
Microsoft says its new £22bn investment in the UK's AI sector should boost Britain's economy in next few years
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
AI could boost UK economy by 10% in 5 years, says Microsoft boss
Boss Satya Nadella said it was the biggest investment the firm had made outside of the US.
www.bbc.com
September 17, 2025 at 8:30 AM
Cats say a £22bn investment in Dreamies and new Catnip technologies will boost Britain's economy in the next few years