Dr Sara Lodge

Twitter friends, please forgive me. I’m going to be a bore this month, because my new book The Mysterious Case of the Victorian Female Detective launches on Sept 24th. 🎺 📢 Watch this space for trailers, giveaways, & signed copies. Bowled over by the kind reception already.

Ahead of the Government’s so-called “reset” review of the water sector landing on Monday, I’ve noticed a growing effort to pin the blame on the regulator, Ofwat. That’s a deep misdiagnosis of the problem. Here’s why: Yes, Ofwat has failed, and repeatedly. It’s been weak,…

Funeral today for @ProfSJJames. So much love in the room. He was a community. A shelf of books that hold one another in place. May we all lead just good, creative, sociable, & caring lives. His name will long be spoken, pints raised, plays acted, & words wrought in his memory.

Thank you SO much to everyone on here who has been kind about my promotion. I’m really touched. If I haven’t responded individually, please accept a hug. I had great fun on Monday talking to @EnfieldSoc about Charles Lamb & Thomas Hood. Great to dust off these punny woodcuts.

I’m pleased to announce that St Andrews have fiiinnnallly made me a Professor. 23 years at St As. 30 yrs teaching UGs. 4 books & over 40 academic articles 100k+ words of journalism, radio etc It’s a relief. But it takes *too long*, esp for women. Let’s change that together.

I can’t wait to be in the west of Ireland, where I’m talking about Victorian female detectives at the beautiful Liss Ard. lissardestate.ie Please do come & join us for drinks, fine dining, & lots of debate.

Lecturer Karen Solie’s most recent collection, “Wellwater,” was shortlisted for the 2025 Forward Prize. This prestigious award highlights the best new collections in the UK and Ireland, awarding a £10,000 prize. The winner will be announced 25 Oct 2025. Congrats, Karen!

we need leaders who will lead us out of the fossil-fuel economy. now.

HMRC does not know how much tax UK billionaires pay, says parliamentary committee. Committee can't probe tax abuse by the rich, they hide behind 'confidentiality'. Empower parliament, make tax returns of wealthy and corporations publicly available. independent.co.uk/news/uk/politi…

“At the root of the issue is land ownership. Most land within national parks is privately owned & particularly in the uplands, used for grazing by farm animals. In Dartmoor, just 7.5% of land is publicly owned & conservation is seen as secondary to economic interests” Spot on👇

Less than a month to go until our 9 August event when you can hear @MylesDungan1 and @LearNonsense discussing different aspects of 19th century life with common themes of crime, propaganda and sensationalist journalism! Tickets via our website westcorkhistoryfestival.org

Quick heads-up to my friends on here who work in the BL. If you need to access a restricted item you will need to RESEND a reference letter from yr university to the Manuscripts department. Even if you’ve been approved for 20 yrs. The cyber attack erased all our credentials. 😢

England’s reservoirs at lowest level for a decade, experts call for hosepipe bans. No new reservoirs built since 1989. Over a trillion litres a year lost to leaks. Water companies paid out £85bn in dividends. No regulator/Govt had a national plan. theguardian.com/environment/20…

"Environment Agency insider alleges ‘cover-up’ over sewage sludge on farmland." WHAT?! The @EnvAgency bending over backwards to avoid confronting industry about the scale and extent of their insidious environmental decimation, surely not? theguardian.com/environment/20…

A friend visited. I made a cake. In these trying times, there is much comfort in chocolate & in friendship.

Tickets now on sale for Chiswick Book Festival! Come see lots of well-known & well-loved writers, like @PetrocTrelawny & @reetacbbc & @DalrympleWill . And me. I’m speaking there too, & I’d love a crowd of happy hecklers. All proceeds to charity. So you can do good & get lit.

My favourite thing about this country is that 'you can't take money from millionaires, they might leave' is considered a more valid and compelling argument than 'you can't take money from disabled people, they might die'.

Kew Gardens. The Temperate House. Translucent petals, stems, and shadows. Lots of inspiration for possible stained glass compositions in the Autumn.

Check our very exciting schedule out! It’s truly global in scope and subject matter.

Our event is now live! Conference tickets available here onlineshop.st-andrews.ac.uk/conferences-an…. Postgraduate students and people on temporary contracts go free! Early bird tickets £50 till 20th July! Book now!

We discovered a huge 12,000 ng/l of PFOA in the River Wyre near a discharge outlet from the chemical plant. Now, investigations by the EA & UK Health Security Agency have found elevated levels of the forever chemical, classed by the WHO as a group 1 carcinogen, in local soils.