David Hendy

Don’t know why, but it’s my favourite spot

I am at this very moment sitting at that very desk!

Oh, lovely!

I’ve never been, but I’m thinking of having a day trip some time while I’m here.

Thanks Steve. Whereabouts are you based, then?

Almost three-quarters of my way through my Writer-in-Residence time at the magnificent @gladlib.bsky.social .

Today: scribbling red ink all over chapter 2… 5000 words to cut…

“He takes nothing too seriously except his dogs”.

And there is the problem with the English aristocracy. There, in plain sight, is their repulsive privilege.

I bet it’s a brilliant piece of writing - always is with @henrymance.ft.com.

But off with their heads, I say.

Some people seem to be surviving austerity quite well…

In a world of lies, we need the BBC more than ever. This week could be our last chance to save it | Polly Toynbee As the public consultation on the BBC nears its end, the right will be out in force to undermine it. But its supporters can do their bit – with this guidance, says Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee

‘All those who care about the BBC’s future should hurry and send in their response before 10 March.

Despite strong public support for the national broadcaster, you can bet battalions of enemies driven by the right will be out in force to undermine it.’

This is a life and death story for the UK – so why is it being brushed under the carpet? | Aditya Chakrabortty The news that healthy life expectancy is in decline in Britain exposes a serious truth about the state we’re in, says Guardian columnist Aditya Chakrabortty

The story of Moira, a nurse.

Just one of the 345,000 British people who were killed by Tory austerity…

Oh how interesting! How great it would have been to meet your dad!

British newspaper journalism 2026:

The Daily Telegraph publishes a fabricated - ENTIRELY fabricated - story in order to pursue its fanatical defence of private education.

This IPSO adjudication against the Telegraph is quite something

Confirms their story titled: ‘We earn £345k, but soaring private school fees mean we can’t go on five holidays’ was completely fabricated, with the family involved non-existent and stock pictures used

www.ipso.co.uk/rulings/0210...

Minab school bombing: how the worst mass casualty event of the Iran war unfolded – a visual guide A strike on Shajareh Tayyebeh school during the US-Israeli bombing campaign killed up to 168 people. The Guardian has pieced together the incident and its aftermath using verified footage and images f...

The story of the Israeli-American bombing of a school…

Very sad to hear from his wife that Kenith Trodd passed away on Sunday. A brilliant, fearless maker of tv and film, including a long and lively partnership with Dennis Potter. It was an honour to know him and interview him about his illustrious career. www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/14...

Just Nick Robinson casually asking a guest on BBC Today if protests against the war 'should be allowed to go ahead' or 'ought to be banned in this country'.

RIP to hundreds of Iranians and one American vacation

An aerial photo shows three diggers excavating the ground for graves. More than 65 graves are already dug. Those not yet dug are marked out by chalk.

Not a single US newspaper will publish this photo. No news channel will broadcast it.

The graves are being prepared for more than 80 young children killed in the US/Israeli strike on the school in Minab, Iran on Saturday.

(📸 Middle East Observer)

Hm, well here’s one ‘Dave’ who’s 63 and who embraces all cultures and thinks Britain is a better place for immigrants!

I would argue that sending an unsolicited email to call a woman unserious and unprofessional for the crime of being unavailable for an interview within a specific time frame is a great example of coded misogyny. Four-letter slurs are not necessary for the rhetoric to qualify.

Smearing Sussex (and Me): Responding to Nigel Biggar’s Latest Attack in The Spectator The University of Sussex, Feb 2026, taken by the author. Alan Lester The Spectator has published an article by Nigel Biggar smearing the University of Sussex as repressing students who ‘don&#…

Fantastic blog by my former colleague @alanlester.bsky.social forensically refuting the disgraceful attacks on the University of Sussex by the disgracefully ignorant Nigel Biggar.

If you’re interested in protecting academic freedom please do read and share

Smearing Sussex (and Me): Responding to Nigel Biggar’s Latest Attack in The Spectator The University of Sussex, Feb 2026, taken by the author. Alan Lester The Spectator has published an article by Nigel Biggar smearing the University of Sussex as repressing students who ‘don&#…

The Spectator published this attack on me & colleagues just as the High Court is considering Sussex’s request for review of the Office for Students fine. It accuses us of ‘repressing’ our students. The magazine ignored my request for to reply. Please disseminate.

alanlester.co.uk/blog/smearin...

‘Is university still worth it?’ is the wrong question The graduate earnings premium isn’t really measuring what most people think

Turns out (says @jburnmurdoch.ft.com) it's not so much an oversupply of graduates in the UK (the same would be true of other similar countries but it's not) as an undersupply of the kind of jobs that a better-performing, more productive economy would supply.

My first public talk about my next book. At @gladlib.bsky.social on Tuesday 3rd March - two weeks today.

See the thread featured below for details of tickets

An image of writer David Hendy, stood with his arms crossed. Text above his head reads 'The Secrets, Lies, and Tangled Lives of Britain’s Wartime Propagandists with David Hendy'. The text below reads '4 free tickets available for young people aged 16 to 14. Tuesday 3rd March 7pm - 8pm'.

🚨 Calling all young historians! 🚨

As part of our Engagement and Learning programme, we are pleased to offer 4 free tickets to young people aged 16-24 to David Hendy's talk: The Secrets, Lies, and Tangled Lives of Britain’s Wartime Propagandists.

So, I’d say it is very much the job of journalists here to say explicitly that Farage is lying - and ask WHY he is lying…

I’ve no desire to defend the Johnson government, but Farage is wrong. It was made clear from the start that the vaccine didn’t prevent you getting infected, nor prevent you from passing Covid on. It was explained, explicitly, repeatedly, that it’s value was it ameliorated the impact of an infection

Camaraderie and Conflict at the Coalface A brief history of ‘the workplace’ on the BBC – to celebrate twenty years of The Apprentice.

A recent piece by me for the BBC:

Two decades of The Apprentice - and how the BBC has reflected life in the British workplace

As told through a whistle-stop tour of the TV and radio archives...

100% to this and next in thread
bsky.app/profile/hpsv...

BBC international editor Jeremy Bowen: ‘I do this to tell people what the hell is happening’ The veteran correspondent on the future of the Middle East, why impartiality matters — and his ‘long view’ on Britain’s national broadcaster

Lunch with the FT: Jeremy Bowen

I spoke to the BBC's international editor about Israel, impartiality, and whether Gaddafi farted through interviews: www.ft.com/content/b139...