Ian Cooper
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icooper.bsky.social
Ian Cooper
@icooper.bsky.social
5.4K followers 2.2K following 9.2K posts
Principal Engineer, speaker, gamer, geek. Tattooed, pierced, and bearded. The 'guv' on https://github.com/BrighterCommand Line Editor at Chaosium for QuestWorlds: https://github.com/ChaosiumInc/QuestWorlds

#Tech - tech posts
#TTRPG - rpg posts
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Ian Cooper
tupped.bsky.social
When you drift through some unheralded point in your 40s, you start accumulating actuarial risks.

The odds of illness, heart attack, or the chances losing of a parent go up.

But there is another risk- particularly acute for men.

There is a risk you will lose your capacity for joy.
December 14, 2025 at 8:50 AM
icooper.bsky.social
The other day, I forgot my phone at home. I was in an area I knew had access to funds. No biggie.

And it was good to think, in idle moments, overconsumed.

What struck me, though, was my inability to look up answers to the questions my thoughts created.
December 14, 2025 at 10:09 AM
icooper.bsky.social
A tragedy that we have allowed hate to triumph at the BBC. The damage to the brand is coming from within the house.

A good man, who stood on principle.
robinince.bsky.social Robin Ince @robinince.bsky.social · 5d
Very sad that I felt I had no choice but to resign from The Infinite Monkey Cage - a victory for the transphobes and other bigots - I did it because so much of the media has chosen to believe the kind and empathetic people are a fiction - they are real and so often unrepresented.
This is the saddest day of my professional life. Today is not only the final recording of the latest series of The Infinite Monkey Cage, it is my last ever Monkey Cage. I never thought that I would have to leave the show. I always imagined going on until | dropped dead under the studio lights due to a brain aneurysm caused by my final attempt to understand notions of quantum gravity or the shock of being told about fly maggot infestations in the sacks of macaque monkeys. I resigned in September, after sixteen years of dedication to the show, A show that I named and helped develop over all those years. Unfortunately, my opinions outside the BBC have been considered problematic for sometime, whether it has been voicing support for the trans community, criticism of Donald Trump, numerous other outlandish opinions, including once gently criticising Stephen Fry. These things were considered to conflict with being a freelance BBC science presenter In a recent meeting where BBC Studio executives again voiced problems with me, I realised my choices. Obedience and being quieter to remain making Monkey Cage, or 'Resign and have the freedom to speak out against what I believe are injustices'. • I chose the latter. It broke my heart. I love this show and I love the audience, and it is because of the audience in particular, that this decision was so difficult to make. I kept thinking about all the extremist voices promoting hate and division. They are being given so many platforms, while voices that represent kindness, open mindedness, empathy seem to be scarcer and scarcer. I felt I couldn't pamper myself with the luxury of silence. One of my many privileges is that I am able to resign and I can speak out even if it is to the detriment of my career. I have thought a lot about my heroes, Sinead O Connor, James Baldwin, Audre Lorde, and so many more. I think of Sinead's words, "the job of an artist is to be themselves at any cost". James Baldwin said prejudice was really just a word for cowardice. Audre Lorde, viewing her life, wrote that her only regrets were her silences. I think of my father as I resign, he brought me up to believe in fairness , justice and kindness. Though my heart is broken, it is also full of fire. I apologise to our incredible listeners for my departure, your love of the show means a great deal. I am so sorry to let you down. I hope that you can understand my reasoning. I have to accept that I am not what the current BBC expects of their freelance presenters. Despite this I should add that I have always worked far more than my contracted hours to try and ensure the show was always the best it could be, as well as making myself accessible and responsive to the audience wherever and whenever I met them. Every night, we have recorded, I have been filled with determination to make the best show possible. This was not "just a job" I hope that with my departure I can be a better ally to the LGBTQ community, to the neurodivergent community, to activists fighting against those who aim to brutalise society, to those currently in prison on hunger strike, and to all those who fight for a more inclusive world. From many conversations, I know there are many Monkey Cage listeners who support these communities and activists too. The strawberry is dead. Long live the strawberry. B
December 13, 2025 at 10:27 AM
icooper.bsky.social
For those of you still on V9 of Brighter, our bug fix release 9.9.13 fixes an issue where the stale offset sweeper was not running and clearing stale offsets. (Fix also in 10.0.3)
December 11, 2025 at 11:30 AM
icooper.bsky.social
I scroll through social media, and I see someone talking about advice for prepping - and I naively think, oh, someone with some tips on how to get ready for their weekly D&D game.

And then, after investigating, I discover they are talking about the end times...
December 11, 2025 at 9:19 AM
icooper.bsky.social
Brighter team meeting is live: www.youtube.com/live/396IugH...
Brighter Catch Up
YouTube video by Ian Cooper
www.youtube.com
December 10, 2025 at 11:08 AM
icooper.bsky.social
We have pushed 10.0.3 of Brighter. Mostly bug fixes, but includes support for TickerQ as a scheduler, and EF integration for the MongoDb Outbox. Thanks to all our existing and new contributors: www.nuget.org/packages/Par...
Paramore.Brighter 10.0.3
The Command Dispatcher pattern is an addition to the Command design pattern that decouples the dispatcher for a service from its execution. A Command Dispatcher component maps commands to handlers. A…
www.nuget.org
December 9, 2025 at 11:00 AM
Reposted by Ian Cooper
jwmuk.bsky.social
Liminal from @thetweedmeister.bsky.social
The Dee Sanction from @paulbaldowski.bsky.social
Swords of the Serpentine from @pelgranepress.bsky.social & @kevinkulp.bsky.social
Questworlds: Pioneer Space from @chaosium.bsky.social & @icooper.bsky.social
carlfnelson.bsky.social carlfnelson.bsky.social @carlfnelson.bsky.social · 13d
If you wanted to run say, four different games that weren't Dungeons & Dragons in hopes of showing people the breadth of the TTRPG hobby, what games would you run for them? Assume that they are sort of familiar with 5E.
December 6, 2025 at 9:57 AM
Reposted by Ian Cooper
snowden.st
Currently dorking out over this graph about child mortality with my brother. Just mind boggling to take in.
chart of child mortality in history, roughly 48% for all societies across the globe…until the 20th century, where it plummets to 4%
December 2, 2025 at 5:00 AM
icooper.bsky.social
Look, we also voted for Brexit, and Boaty McBoatface, but my faith in the wisdom of the British people has been given a lift:

www.theguardian.com/film/2025/de...
British public’s verdict is in: Die Hard is not a Christmas movie
Survey also reveals Britons’ favourite festive film, views on tear-jerkers and family cinema trips
www.theguardian.com
December 1, 2025 at 11:37 PM
Reposted by Ian Cooper
ajeffschiller.bsky.social
Barely a day left in this thing, which means I'll be shutting up pretty soon, one way or another!
5463/214/25hours to go
November 30, 2025 at 7:34 PM
icooper.bsky.social
Catching up on Mystery of Aaravos S4, whilst doing laundry.

It appears that in order to let us know that Claudia’s Elf boyfriend annoying they have made him…

Australian.
November 30, 2025 at 4:59 PM
icooper.bsky.social
If you are at Dragonmeet, I will be signing #QuestWorlds books:

11:00AM - 1:00 PM
3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
November 29, 2025 at 9:43 AM
icooper.bsky.social
For those asking, we will have hardback QuestWorlds at Dragonmeet, and I will be signing copies
November 28, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Reposted by Ian Cooper
butserancientfarm.co.uk
New on the blog this week!

Our experimental archaeologist @experimentalkearns.bsky.social has shared a highlight from her recent trip to Italy, where she came face to face with the Copper Age legend himself, Ötzi the Iceman... ❄️
www.butserancientfarm.co.uk/blog/2025/11...
Frozen in Time: Coming Face to Face with Ötzi the Iceman — Butser Ancient Farm
This week, our Experimental Archaeologist Therese Kearns shares a highlight from her recent trip to Italy, where she came face to face with Ötzi the Iceman.
www.butserancientfarm.co.uk
November 28, 2025 at 10:30 AM
Reposted by Ian Cooper
thewhalergirl.com
Hey all, do I have any UK based concept artists following me (or who knows anyone) who would be up for a long term 22 month contract working on Dragonwilds at Jagex? Remote with a very occasional day in office in Cambridge. Development experience and fantasy genre work is a must. Mid level role.
November 27, 2025 at 12:43 PM
Reposted by Ian Cooper
allenholub.bsky.social
Let’s talk about “Move fast and break things.” First of all, Facebook itself changed its motto to “Move fast with stable infrastructure” in 2014. So much for breaking things, at least if you’re a soulless corporate behemoth.
1/12
November 22, 2025 at 5:31 PM
Reposted by Ian Cooper
hyperlexic.bsky.social
when we say “Glorantha is mean to be Bronze Age” this is what we mean.
snakehead.bsky.social Prof. R. Romulus Snakehead @snakehead.bsky.social · 24d
Thinking of the Helmand Culture woman from Shahr-e Sukhteh in Iran with the sick ass golden artificial eye again.
Artist's rendition by Shirojikimattari on tumblr
November 24, 2025 at 5:32 AM
icooper.bsky.social
Might I suggest a new industrial strategy for the UK, transition our economy to become world leaders in tabletop.
A report from the Guardian with Games Workshop’s profits of £135 million and noting its star performance in the FTSE 100
November 20, 2025 at 9:56 AM
Reposted by Ian Cooper
chaosium.bsky.social
Order from Chaosium.com by the below dates to receive by Christmas!

🇺🇸: 12 Dec
🇨🇦: 9 Dec
🇬🇧: 12 Dec
🇪🇺: 15 Dec
🇦🇺: 12 Dec
🌍: 1 Dec

There's always risk of delays, so early ordering is better! We do appreciate people buying direct, and remember when you do you get the PDF instantly.
November 20, 2025 at 5:48 AM
icooper.bsky.social
I think that Labour MPs must make a stand and call for a leadership election to oust Starmer and his far right cronies from the Labour Party.

And we must go to the streets to protest this.
nadiawhittomemp.bsky.social Nadia Whittome MP @nadiawhittomemp.bsky.social · Nov 17
So the solution is… to join in?

I'm afraid the “dark forces” are calling from inside the house at this point.
November 17, 2025 at 5:33 PM
Reposted by Ian Cooper
zackpolanski.bsky.social
The Labour Government reeling off the same far-right talking points on immigration. And look who is celebrating. The far-right.

There is a political alternative that won’t ever scapegoat those fleeing war, persecution and torture

join.greenparty.org.uk
Mahmood furious over asylum seeker taxi bills. Overton window has been obliterated
November 16, 2025 at 10:28 AM
Reposted by Ian Cooper
genesisoflegend.bsky.social
A friendly reminder to my friends and colleagues; the kickstarter campaign for Apocalypse World: Burned Over is going strong and now is a good chance to show your support to @megueyb.bsky.social and @lumpley.bsky.social

www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
Apocalypse World: Burned Over
The 3rd edition of the groundbreaking original.
www.kickstarter.com
November 17, 2025 at 12:02 PM
Reposted by Ian Cooper
chaosium.bsky.social
Want to play a Duck? After appearing as a location and then counters in Greg Stafford's 1975 board war game White Bear and Red Moon ("Ducks, Ducks, and More Ducks"), as #TTRPG creatures Ducks first appeared in @chaosium.bsky.social's first edition of #RuneQuest (1978).
November 17, 2025 at 6:57 AM
icooper.bsky.social
It’s a day to be very glad that I left the Labour party and joined the Greens.

Amazed tha no one can see the echoes of the Holocaust in the principle of seizing refugees jewellery on arrival, to fill the public coffers.

We voted progressive; we got ethno-nationalism.
November 17, 2025 at 9:51 AM