Alys

MOTHER VERA wins the Grierson Documentary Award at London Film Festival! 💫💫💫 @CecileEmbleton

Hello all of you out there, friends and readers, who might wonder what and where FIFA, the world governing body of football/soccer, came from and what it gets up to in the here and now. Here is the direct link to my book “What is FIFA For?”, due out March 31st but available at 25% discount if you get a pre-order in before the end of this week, Friday midnight February 20th 2026! waterstones.com/book/what-is-f… Just enter “FEB26” at the checkout to redeem the offer to receive 25% off RRP. It’s a short read but I hope you find it interesting and informing! Alan Tomlinson, Author, What is FIFA For?

FIFA WORLD CUP 2026 - GET READY With the men’s football FIFA World Cup around the corner - 11th June to 19th July 2026, that’s an unprecedented five-and-a-half weeks for the tournament being jointly hosted by the US, Mexico and Canada, though massively dominated by the US - books and commentaries will soon be pouring from the press including of course from the insatiable social media. It’s hard to write about FIFA at the moment without mention of the president of the world governing body, Gianni Infantino, and his dependence upon Donald Trump from the early days of the US president’s first term of office. It was in June 2018 that the ‘United Bid’ beat Morocco, by 134 to 65 votes, in FIFA’s contest for the hosting rights for 2026; a tournament in which 48 national teams would eventually be slated to participate. So the upcoming World Cup will be about much more than the football itself. Politics and culture have been to the fore of bids for the biggest global sporting spectacles for decades. The debates on this forthcoming bloated edition of the most prominent sporting spectacle of our time have already begun! And to understand such debates we surely need to know a bit more about FIFA. My own contribution to these debates is a short book, What is FIFA For? It’s due out at the end of March 2026. FOR MORE DETAILS, SEE: bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/trade/what-is-…

@LucyLethbridge @LissaKEvans Hi Lucy. Yes, it was a really lovely and thoughtfully written review. Thanks so much! ✨

@LissaKEvans @alystomlinson I reviewed it in The Tablet a few months ago. I hope you saw it @alystomlinson??

A decade ago, my photographer niece, @alystomlinson took an award-winning pic of a Belarusian nun. They stayed in touch and over several years, Alys co-directed a barely-funded, yet rich and extraordinary documentary about Vera -and today it’s been BAFTA longlisted!.

@eyeonaxis_ Nun riding in the snow, Belarus, early 2020s (from the film, Mother Vera, directed by @alystomlinson and Cecile Embleton)

More than a decade ago, my photographer niece, @alystomlinson took a pic of a Byelorussian nun, Vera. They stayed in touch. Now, years later, Alys has co-directed a really extraordinary documentary about this woman, and it's showing at selected cinemas. theguardian.com/film/2025/aug/…

After two decades in a Belarusian Orthodox monastery, Vera reflects on her unexpected path to nunhood. Shot in breathtaking black and white, Mother Vera is a deeply meditative portrait of a woman confronting the shadows of her past. Q&A 5 Sep bit.ly/MVbdh

As Photo London turns 10, seven photographers tell us the story behind their portraits wallpaper.com/art/exhibition…

Alys Tomlinson (@alystomlinson) spent two years exploring the islands of Sicily and Sardinia documenting the #costumes and #masks worn in mountain villages, to celebrate ancient festivals. The extraordinary creations are captured in the book Gli Isolani (The Islanders 2022).

Well done, that @guardian notification writer

Here's our statement on the results of the 2024 presidential election:

@holgakim @CecileEmbleton Thank you 💫 xx

@alystomlinson @CecileEmbleton Congratulations Alys!

MOTHER VERA wins the Grierson Documentary Award at London Film Festival! 💫💫💫 @CecileEmbleton

Excited that ‘Mother Vera’ will have its UK Premiere at @BFI London Film Festival - screenings on October 13th & 16th / tickets go on general sale 17th September at 10am 💫✨💫✨💫✨ bit.ly/3MFjbgc @CecileEmbleton

@JennyLewisPhoto So depressing

The #EMULSIVE interview 212: I am @alystomlinson and this is why I shoot film Read on at: emulsive.org/interviews/fil… #shootfilmbenice, #filmphotography, #believeinfilm

@LissaKEvans I remember that well! 😂😂

Over 35 years ago, I had my little nieces to stay for a weekend. There were treats galore - Haagen-Dazs, #StarlightExpress, Kensington Gardens etc but the bit they liked best (& still remember, the beasts) was when I tripped over a pile of bin bags outside the Science Museum…

@LissaKEvans Completely agree! 💫💫💫

A review - from a wonderful writer - that has made me blush with pleasure...

@JanDunning1 @OxonBookAwards @scholasticuk @AnneClarkLit Wowee! Fantastic news, congratulations 🥳 💫🙌🏻

I can hardly believe it - somehow #MirrorMe has won the @OxonBookAwards 2024 in the YA category! 🎉🎉🎉The shortlist was stellar, I’m totally in shock. Thank you SO much to the lovely readers who voted, and huge congratulations to all! ❤️❤️📚📚@scholasticuk @AnneClarkLit #ukya

@LissaKEvans What were the questions?

A first for me - I cut the ribbon and declared a library OPEN! This is the beautiful new library at St Agnes RC, in Cricklewood. Added bonus: the best questions I’ve ever had, from the Year 4 class…