Dr Nicholas A. Bill

Get someone who looks at you the way I look at Barnes Wallis' marbles! (the ones owned by his daughter which he used to refine the 'bouncing bomb' for Op CHASTISE). Pop over to Denhams auction house (Horsham) on Wed 25th March to bid on the amazing Sir Barnes Wallis Collection!

@militaryhistori A lot of cheating can be sorted out by setting written and oral exams. But the bigger problem with tech is the way it is interfering with cognitive development from a very early age. First-years students at university have never known a world without an iPhone. Think about that!

On cheating at university via AI and the lecturer's response unherd.com/2026/03/how-ai…?

@PaulJSweeney I would like to think that a council with so many historically-significant buildings would have accredited conservation engineers to call upon in such circumstances, if not in-house. Do they plan on releasing their assessment report into the public domain?

I asked the First Minister for an assurance that conservation-accredited registered engineers with the right expertise would be brought in to assess the remaining elevation to Gordon Street for any possibility of its preservation or careful dismantling for future reinstatement. I also contacted Glasgow City Council’s Head of Building Control on Monday to introduce a conservation-accredited engineer and architect who have offered their support to assess the remaining structure, but we have yet to receive any response. It is therefore disappointing that Glasgow City Council, who have no in-house conservation-accredited engineers, have condemned this listed building to a full demolition within a matter of hours of the site being handed over, without first undertaking this prudent step, which has been the subject of a long-running campaign for reform in the Scottish Parliament. Like at the Ayr Station Hotel, elements of this iconic listed building which could be preserved may now be destroyed unnecessarily. I hope that Glasgow City Council will at least laser scan the surviving elevation to enable a faithful reinstatement and undertake a careful hand demolition process that can 'flat pack' as much of the surviving structure as possible if a retaining scaffolding cannot be erected to all or part of the façade.

@philmcraig Don't think that was the hedgehog they had in mind.

Given its key role in the battle against the U-boats I think Churchill would be delighted with the new banknotes.

@robert_lyman @spectator Absolutely, this situation didn't develop overnight, it's the product of sustained cut backs and poor strategic thinking over the last 30-40 years. The same can be said for many other problems we're currently facing.

So, ‘well-placed sources’ says the Chief of Defence Staff has "lost the confidence of No. 10." @spectator This might or might not be true. But what is absolutely true is that this ‘well-placed source’ (me, for the avoidance of doubt) says that he has lost confidence in the Prime Minister and that he should consider retirement. Chickens always come home to roost. All the flapping in the air at the moment is the sound of the UK’s defence chickens over the past 30-years doing precisely this.

What a depressingly predictable outcome. bbc.co.uk/news/articles/…

Oh yes, I love the Belfast, but just imagine her moored on the Thames as a museum ship...

Rather than a proposed Parliament building, I think you (@AntipodeEmpire) might find the picture is the Sydney Garden Palace, a purpose-built exhibition building constructed to house the Sydney International Exhibition in 1879 and lost to fire in 1882.

@C20Society It can be rebuilt (even it is just the facade), as we still have the knowledge, skills and the materials. But often there isn't enough will to do so, because we don't value our built heritage the same way other countries do.

Another week, another devastating fire in Glasgow, resulting in the very sad loss of the Category B listed Forsyth House (1851) on Union Street. Architectural heritage is irreplaceable - whether from the 20th century or any other period. Attitudes towards the care, protection and maintenance of our historic buildings must change.

Terrible images of yet another lost jewel of Glasgow's built heritage. There are many serious questions that need answering!

@HistoryPegg Not sorry to see the back of them, we're still living with their legacy here in Wales to this today! They still haven't resolved the coal tips, 60 years after Aberfan!

Mind blown. I knew there was very little coal mining left in the UK but just discovered there are only 2 specialist mines left employing less that 350 people. As someone who grew up on the edge of and lived within a coal mining area remembering coal mines been open and knowing people who worked on them. Just stunned really. #mining #coal

I think this should have had its own little train as well!

@militaryhistori It depends on the job and whether people are still capable. But the wider question they're not asking is why young people don't want to serve. I suspect they know the answers but don't want to admit them, so yet again they return to the generation that's already given to do more!

Military retirement at 55? A ridiculous, unjustified & self-inflicted loss of skilled personnel with their knowledge. An MoD rethink is needed. linkedin.com/posts/elisabet…?

@HistoryPegg Central banks, investment banks, pension funds, etc. If we default (or any major economy), the contagion would spread across the banking sector. It would be far worst than the GFC of 2008/09 when mortgage-backed securities went pear-shaped in the US due to bad lending practices.

Virtually no country in the world is debt free. So who the hell do They owe the debt to. I’m no economist but surely a world wide agreement not to pay your debt frees up the money you pay in debt to support your own country. (Perhaps I’m nieve)

@HistoryPegg The same can be said for research papers and books. Unless you happened to have finished something just at the right time for it to be topical, I do wonder how people can churn out a book on certain topics so quickly. The quality has to be compromised.

I do wonder how all these people that have multiple #podcasts have time to do the detailed research to deliver a quality product. Or are they just trying to maximise income not worrying about quality. Especially as there are already podcasts doing exactly what their “new” idea is. Cult of personality. Don’t get mugged off.

British engineering at its best!

I’m sorry, but this is just absolutely nuts! Politicians should just move out to allow the works to go ahead, which will be much safer for all involved and cost far less money. No different to when last building burnt down in 1834 and had to be rebuilt. bbc.co.uk/news/articles/…

Like the railways, these canals were not exactly an act of British benevolence. They were paid for by Indian revenue and built by Indian labour. Still, there is a reason why there are many statues and plagues honouring British military engineers still standing across India.

Absolutely, the Victoria Barracks should be preserved as a museum park! They are amongst the finest examples of colonial barracks still standing.

I really like these old diagrams, they demonstrate an intuitive understanding of structures that I think we've lost in the age of computer analysis. @DarrenMcLean_uk You may have seen the one on the RHS, used on the cover of Prof. Heyman's The Stone Skeleton.