🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
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rossbrooks.co.uk
🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
@rossbrooks.co.uk
14K followers 11K following 620 posts
Historian #histsci #queerhistory. Working on my first book, Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life (Yale University Press, August 2026). Trekkie. Classical music. Seaside living (near Brighton). He/him. rossbrooks.co.uk. Agent: www.philippasitters.co.uk.
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rossbrooks.co.uk
🌈 Dr Ross Brooks @rossbrooks.co.uk · 8d
My first book, Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life, will be published by Yale University Press on 11 August (UK) and 8 September (US). Please help spread the word! 🙏

UK: yalebooks.co.uk/book/9780300... @yalebooks.bsky.social 🏳️‍🌈📚🐵

US: yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300... @yalepress.bsky.social 🏳️‍⚧️ 🗃️🦋
Jacket design for Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life: A History of Sex and Science by Ross Brooks. It features a historic, drawn image of a gynandromorph gypsy moth, with distinctive female patterning on its left side and male on its right. Against a black background, the image and text (title and author's name) are brightly rendered in a spectrum of colours resonant of the Progress Pride Flag.
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
theul.bsky.social
Happy LGBT+ History Month from your libraries!

You'll find lots of displays across University of Cambridge Libraries and Archives. Here are some highlights from the Haddon Library, the English Faculty Library and the Casimir Lewy Library.
A display of books for LGBT+ History Month at the Haddon Library in Cambridge A display of books for LGBT+ History Month at the English Faculty Library in Cambridge A display of books for LGBT+ History Month at the Casimir Lewy Library in Cambridge
February 6, 2026 at 3:06 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
bodhumslib.bsky.social
Happy LGBT+ History Month!🌈

To celebrate, we've decked out our staircase with various pride flags and we think it looks wonderful 🤗

Keep your eyes peeled for further updates from us as we celebrate this month!
A photograph of the Humanities Library with three LGBTQ+ pride flags hanging by the staircase. In the centre is the Transgender flag, on either side of it are Progress Flags.
February 6, 2026 at 4:48 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
aquadan1.bsky.social
Still buzzing from the amazing Exploring Queerness in Natural Symposium at @linneansociety yesterday, what a day! So many great talks and chats, and the most warm and joyous atmosphere of any conference I've ever been at...
Slide saying Exploring Queerness in Natural History Connor and Dani presenting, they're both wearing blazers and laughing Connor and Dani in front of a slide asking why our view of nature so biased Photo of a pregnant seahorse giving birth
February 6, 2026 at 7:26 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
wordsbyhadley.bsky.social
I had the pleasure of interviewing astrophysicist turned activist @drcarpineti.bsky.social for the latest digital cover of Vada Magazine, to coincide with this year's @lgbthm.bsky.social theme of science and innovation. 🌈 🔭 @prideinstem.bsky.social vadamagazine.com/features/dr-...
February 3, 2026 at 9:57 AM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
linneansociety.bsky.social
We had a wonderful time yesterday at Exploring Queerness in Natural History.

We're writing up it up to share in a future blog post, but for now here are some pictures of our fantastic curators @aquadan1.bsky.social and Connor Butler, the lunchtime zine-making, and our afternoon panellists.
Dani and Connor presenting at the Linnean Society, they are both smiling. In the backround is a historic chair and portrait of Carl Linnaeus. Close up of someone cutting out a picture of a bird for a zine page. In the background are a colourful array of pens and materials to make a collage A group of people, all smiling, on the stage together at the Linnean Society
February 6, 2026 at 2:09 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
dukepress.bsky.social
In their new book "Sex Isn't Real," Beans Velocci traces the history of current high stakes attempts to define sex and to create a world devoid of trans life. Read a Q&A about their bold argument on the blog today. buff.ly/hB1k4Cw
Cover of Sex Isn't Real: The Invention of an Incoherent Binary by Beans Velocci. The cover features a mesh grid pattern in an off white against a black background. The title is written large in a serif font in the center of the cover. Each word is a different color— ‘sex’ is a light orange; ‘isn’t’ is a grey blue; ‘real’ is a teal. The subtitle is directly below in white. The author’s name is above the title also in white.
February 4, 2026 at 2:02 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
canopyrobin.com
Really inspiring to hear @rossbrooks.co.uk speak about what he's learnt writing his new book. You should all preorder it ;)
Ross standing at the front of a crowded lecture theatre
February 5, 2026 at 7:49 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
theironroom.bsky.social
#LGBTplusHM26 To mark LGBT+ History Month, we bring you this 1976 edition of Gladrag - magazine of the Birmingham Gay Liberation Front who fought for inclusivity and representation for Birmingham’s LGBT+ community. Ref: LF 22.85 #LibraryofBham #birminghamlgbt
Front cover of Gladrag magazine. Text at the top reads Gladrag – Birmingham Gay Liberation Front. Date of the magazine - January 1976 is in the bottom left corner. The price of the magazine - 10 p is shown in the bottom right. A photograph of a protest march in the middle of the front cover. Procession of people – big banner with the text - Birmingham Gay Liberation Front on it.
February 4, 2026 at 10:15 AM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
bigissue.com
Right now, there will be schools across the UK preparing to celebrate LGBT+ History Month. In other schools, there will be silence.
Schools must not treat LGBT+ History Month with silence
www.bigissue.com
February 4, 2026 at 9:03 AM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
archive.org
🎉 Welcome to the Public Domain, FIDDLESTICKS (1930)! 🐸🎶

🎬 Meet Flip the Frog in his very first cartoon—created by animator Ub Iwerks, who previously animated STEAMBOAT WILLIE and later formed his own studio.

Full short ➡️ archive.org/details/Fidd...

#PublicDomainDay #CopyrightFree
February 3, 2026 at 6:03 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
canopyrobin.com
It's so cool seeing this logo I designed being used everywhere today! Happy LGBT+ History Month everyone! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️
canopyrobin.com Robin Hayward 🌳 🏳️‍⚧️ @canopyrobin.com · Nov 8
Immensely proud to share that I am the designer of the official badge for LGBT+ History Month 2026.

Last night, @lgbthm.bsky.social revealed that the 2026 theme for the month will be 'Science and Innovation', so get ready to learn about some amazing queer scientists next year!
Robin holding a sheet of pin badges with their design The LGBT plus History Month 2026 logo – an eruption of rainbow colours from a conical flask containing pink, white, blue, and brown fluids . At the top, the flask is fizzing yellow with purple bubbles . The overall effect reflects the colours of the intersex -inclusive Progress Pride Flag .
February 1, 2026 at 7:08 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
notchesblog.bsky.social
New on NOTCHES: Sexuality in Modern German History by Katie Sutton. Sutton examines how sexual 'norms' have shaped key forces in modern German history, including nationhood, citizenship, fascism, and memory culture.

🔗Link: wp.me/p6JJ6S-4ST

#QueerHistory #GermanStudies #Gender #Germany
Sexuality in Modern German History
A deep look at shifting views about ‘normal’ and nonconforming sexuality across two centuries, and how these shaped people’s behaviours, politics, and lives.
wp.me
February 3, 2026 at 1:10 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
grindrod.bsky.social
As it’s LGBTQ+ History Month I thought I’d share some bits from my new book Tales of the Suburbs: LGBTQ+ Lives Behind Net Curtains (out in mid March) just to give a flavour of what was going on beyond the privet…
Cover of Tales of the Suburbs: LGBTQ+ Lives Behind Net Curtains by John Grindrod
February 1, 2026 at 11:59 AM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
tomhulme.bsky.social
*drum roll*

Here is the cover for my book, which will be published by @cornellupress.bsky.social on 15 April 2026!

I thought it would be nice to share a bit of info on who these men were and how their lives and interests inspired the design...
A book cover, showing the title 'Belfastmen: An Intimate History of Life before Gay Liberation' by Tom Hulme. It is lavender coloured with yellow text, and shows two men sat on a bench, c. 1935.
February 2, 2026 at 4:26 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
echomikeromeo.bsky.social
Happy abseiling lesbians day to all who celebrate!!!
workingclasshistory.com Working Class History @workingclasshistory.com · 5d
#OtD 2 Feb 1988 4 lesbians abseiled into the UK House of Lords in protest at the homophobic section 28. In 2017, 4 other lesbians climbed onto the Houses of Parliament in order to put up a blue plaque commemorating the 1988 action stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9181...
February 2, 2026 at 6:06 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
sachacoward.bsky.social
First set of queer history tours of The British Museum are kicking off this Friday evening!
Would be lovely to have you along.
I'm keeping in all the messy bits...

www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/queer-to-s...
Queer To Stay: LGBTQ+ History Tour of The British Museum
Sacha is a queer historian, author and tour guide. Join him for an LGBTQ+ history tour of the British Museum!
www.eventbrite.co.uk
February 2, 2026 at 1:57 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
manchesterup.bsky.social
Every February we mark LGBT+ History Month, celebrating the rich and complex stories and histories of queer people.

Our new reading list brings together books that uncover hidden lives, and place queer people where they have always been: at the heart of social, political, and cultural history.
February 2, 2026 at 1:23 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
carolinederry.bsky.social
Just in time for LGBT+ History Month, my new article is available open access.
It looks at the 1921 census as a site of lesbian activism, and its importance today - and hopefully even manages a little bit of optimism!

#LGBTplusHM
#lgbthm26
Messages to the future? Lesbian subversion of official categories in the 1921 UK census
This article considers how Britain’s 1921 census can be a source for histories of lesbian activism. It explores evidence that the census returns were a site of lesbian resistance and considers the ...
www.tandfonline.com
February 2, 2026 at 1:52 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
benpaites.bsky.social
Americans! You can now buy my book through Barnes & Noble!

Still can’t quite believe this… 😭🫢😵‍💫

www.barnesandnoble.com/w/50-lgbtq-f...
50 LGBTQ+ Finds from the Portable Antiquities Scheme|Paperback
The LGBTQ+ community is made up of a range of different sexualities and gender expressions. Although the terms we use to categorize this diversity did not exist in the past, that doesn’t mean that div...
www.barnesandnoble.com
January 31, 2026 at 4:36 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
joannaredfeather.bsky.social
“Brooks radically exposes us to the hidden queerness of Georgian and Victorian science—and shows how nature has always been more sexually diverse than we’ve been told.”

This book sounds like a great read! Looking forward to it!

🏳️‍🌈🌍
rossbrooks.co.uk 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks @rossbrooks.co.uk · 8d
My first book, Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life, will be published by Yale University Press on 11 August (UK) and 8 September (US). Please help spread the word! 🙏

UK: yalebooks.co.uk/book/9780300... @yalebooks.bsky.social 🏳️‍🌈📚🐵

US: yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300... @yalepress.bsky.social 🏳️‍⚧️ 🗃️🦋
Jacket design for Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life: A History of Sex and Science by Ross Brooks. It features a historic, drawn image of a gynandromorph gypsy moth, with distinctive female patterning on its left side and male on its right. Against a black background, the image and text (title and author's name) are brightly rendered in a spectrum of colours resonant of the Progress Pride Flag.
February 1, 2026 at 11:12 AM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
erinacean.bsky.social
Apparently it's International Zebra Day: I was looking up Lord Walter Rothschild and his zebra-drawn carriage and discover that he was by no means unique in endeavouring to tame zebras to drive or ride: rarehistoricalphotos.com/riding-zebra...
When People Tried to Domesticate Zebras: Odd Photos from 1890-1940 - Rare Historical Photos
While it’s possible to tame individual zebras, this species was not a good candidate for domestication. Photographs of people riding zebras.
rarehistoricalphotos.com
January 31, 2026 at 1:49 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
earthdotcom.bsky.social
Snow Moon 2026: When to see February’s full moon #EarthDotCom #EarthSnap #Earth
Snow Moon 2026: When to see February’s full moon
The February 2026 Snow Moon appears on February 1 and reflects winter’s history, science, and seasonal meaning.
www.earth.com
January 31, 2026 at 3:39 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
joshlukedavis.com
omg yessss! I'm so happy this has a date AND a rather fabulous cover 🥳🌈🦋
rossbrooks.co.uk 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks @rossbrooks.co.uk · 8d
My first book, Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life, will be published by Yale University Press on 11 August (UK) and 8 September (US). Please help spread the word! 🙏

UK: yalebooks.co.uk/book/9780300... @yalebooks.bsky.social 🏳️‍🌈📚🐵

US: yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300... @yalepress.bsky.social 🏳️‍⚧️ 🗃️🦋
Jacket design for Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life: A History of Sex and Science by Ross Brooks. It features a historic, drawn image of a gynandromorph gypsy moth, with distinctive female patterning on its left side and male on its right. Against a black background, the image and text (title and author's name) are brightly rendered in a spectrum of colours resonant of the Progress Pride Flag.
January 30, 2026 at 8:13 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
rami.spaceaustralia.com
This looks great and would make a fantastic edition to your bookshelves and reading list for 2026. 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

Love this cover art too!
rossbrooks.co.uk 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks @rossbrooks.co.uk · 8d
My first book, Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life, will be published by Yale University Press on 11 August (UK) and 8 September (US). Please help spread the word! 🙏

UK: yalebooks.co.uk/book/9780300... @yalebooks.bsky.social 🏳️‍🌈📚🐵

US: yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300... @yalepress.bsky.social 🏳️‍⚧️ 🗃️🦋
Jacket design for Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life: A History of Sex and Science by Ross Brooks. It features a historic, drawn image of a gynandromorph gypsy moth, with distinctive female patterning on its left side and male on its right. Against a black background, the image and text (title and author's name) are brightly rendered in a spectrum of colours resonant of the Progress Pride Flag.
January 30, 2026 at 7:41 PM
Reposted by 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks
jjinsing.bsky.social
I often use @rossbrooks.co.uk articles in my teaching materials and have been waiting for a book for years! Excited to see this happening, congrats!!
rossbrooks.co.uk 🌈 Dr Ross Brooks @rossbrooks.co.uk · 8d
My first book, Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life, will be published by Yale University Press on 11 August (UK) and 8 September (US). Please help spread the word! 🙏

UK: yalebooks.co.uk/book/9780300... @yalebooks.bsky.social 🏳️‍🌈📚🐵

US: yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300... @yalepress.bsky.social 🏳️‍⚧️ 🗃️🦋
Jacket design for Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life: A History of Sex and Science by Ross Brooks. It features a historic, drawn image of a gynandromorph gypsy moth, with distinctive female patterning on its left side and male on its right. Against a black background, the image and text (title and author's name) are brightly rendered in a spectrum of colours resonant of the Progress Pride Flag.
January 30, 2026 at 1:14 PM