Andy Leask
@andyleask.bsky.social
Writer, educator, gamer, nerd.
Head of English - lover of literature, games and coffee, with a penchant for dabbling in edtech.
https://www.rookerypublications.com/
Head of English - lover of literature, games and coffee, with a penchant for dabbling in edtech.
https://www.rookerypublications.com/
Reposted by Andy Leask
You should read this.
Had an absolute blast with this Time Out exclusive:
'Die Hard' screenwriter @stevenedesouza.bsky.social ranking 10 'Die Hard'-inspired action flicks www.timeout.com/news/10-die-...
'Die Hard' screenwriter @stevenedesouza.bsky.social ranking 10 'Die Hard'-inspired action flicks www.timeout.com/news/10-die-...
10 ‘Die Hard’ clones ranked by the screenwriter of ‘Die Hard’
Yippee-ki-yay! Steven E de Souza sorts the ‘Die Hards’ from the try hards
www.timeout.com
December 26, 2025 at 3:27 PM
You should read this.
Reposted by Andy Leask
"The product of writing isn't words" is a phase that is going to stay with me when studying LLMs with anyone.
Essentially, I think that LLM-generated dialogue only makes sense if you believe that the product of writing is words.
But the product of writing isn't words, any more than the product of justice is prisoners, or the product of love is weddings. The product of writing is meaning.
But the product of writing isn't words, any more than the product of justice is prisoners, or the product of love is weddings. The product of writing is meaning.
I had five fascinating conversations for this RPS piece, gathering perspectives on genAI chatbots in games, as seen in Where Winds Meet. Thanks to @meghna.bsky.social, @pyrofoux.bsky.social, @maxkreminski.bsky.social, and @chrisgardiner.bsky.social www.rockpapershotgun.com/horrible-bor...
December 26, 2025 at 1:54 PM
"The product of writing isn't words" is a phase that is going to stay with me when studying LLMs with anyone.
Reposted by Andy Leask
I've seen this going around today and it's beautiful, so here's a gift link.
Opinion | Martin Scorsese: ‘Rob Reiner Was My Friend’
www.nytimes.com
December 25, 2025 at 6:17 PM
I've seen this going around today and it's beautiful, so here's a gift link.
Reposted by Andy Leask
I Photoshop Paddington into a movie, TV show, or pop culture until I forget: Day 1746
December 25, 2025 at 8:36 AM
I Photoshop Paddington into a movie, TV show, or pop culture until I forget: Day 1746
Merry Christmas!
Day 25 of the #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
La Cascada, Honduras, light roast
A good one to finish on. Not my favourite, but a good light roast with hints of fruit and a nice syrupy mouthfeel.
Day 25 of the #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
La Cascada, Honduras, light roast
A good one to finish on. Not my favourite, but a good light roast with hints of fruit and a nice syrupy mouthfeel.
December 25, 2025 at 10:34 AM
Merry Christmas!
Day 25 of the #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
La Cascada, Honduras, light roast
A good one to finish on. Not my favourite, but a good light roast with hints of fruit and a nice syrupy mouthfeel.
Day 25 of the #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
La Cascada, Honduras, light roast
A good one to finish on. Not my favourite, but a good light roast with hints of fruit and a nice syrupy mouthfeel.
Day 24 of the #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Fazenda Ismenia, Brazil, Dark Roast
It's a good thing there's 25 coffees this year, as this would have been a disappointing finish. Harmless enough, but not getting any of the toffee/raisin notes.
Fazenda Ismenia, Brazil, Dark Roast
It's a good thing there's 25 coffees this year, as this would have been a disappointing finish. Harmless enough, but not getting any of the toffee/raisin notes.
December 24, 2025 at 8:05 PM
Day 24 of the #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Fazenda Ismenia, Brazil, Dark Roast
It's a good thing there's 25 coffees this year, as this would have been a disappointing finish. Harmless enough, but not getting any of the toffee/raisin notes.
Fazenda Ismenia, Brazil, Dark Roast
It's a good thing there's 25 coffees this year, as this would have been a disappointing finish. Harmless enough, but not getting any of the toffee/raisin notes.
Reposted by Andy Leask
'On the "bitter cold" Christmas Day of 1830, Mary Ann Macham arrived in North Shields, the northern English fishing port that would become her unlikely home; the endpoint of a 4,000-mile journey filled with fear, courage and a superhuman determination to be free.'
From Slavery in Virginia to Freedom in the North East of England
How an enslaved woman fled America and found safety in the North East of England
www.bbc.co.uk
December 23, 2025 at 8:02 AM
'On the "bitter cold" Christmas Day of 1830, Mary Ann Macham arrived in North Shields, the northern English fishing port that would become her unlikely home; the endpoint of a 4,000-mile journey filled with fear, courage and a superhuman determination to be free.'
Day 23 of the #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Kiamwangi, Kenya, light roast
Perfection. Light, but with a syrupy mouthfeel, with blackcurrant notes. Great coffee.
Kiamwangi, Kenya, light roast
Perfection. Light, but with a syrupy mouthfeel, with blackcurrant notes. Great coffee.
December 23, 2025 at 10:28 AM
Day 23 of the #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Kiamwangi, Kenya, light roast
Perfection. Light, but with a syrupy mouthfeel, with blackcurrant notes. Great coffee.
Kiamwangi, Kenya, light roast
Perfection. Light, but with a syrupy mouthfeel, with blackcurrant notes. Great coffee.
Day 22 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Las Nieves, Colombia, medium roast
Very nice flavour profile: hints of blackcurrant and orange, but the mouth feel is a little thin for me, leaving it a little too acidic to be perfect. Highly potable though!
Las Nieves, Colombia, medium roast
Very nice flavour profile: hints of blackcurrant and orange, but the mouth feel is a little thin for me, leaving it a little too acidic to be perfect. Highly potable though!
December 22, 2025 at 1:10 PM
Day 22 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Las Nieves, Colombia, medium roast
Very nice flavour profile: hints of blackcurrant and orange, but the mouth feel is a little thin for me, leaving it a little too acidic to be perfect. Highly potable though!
Las Nieves, Colombia, medium roast
Very nice flavour profile: hints of blackcurrant and orange, but the mouth feel is a little thin for me, leaving it a little too acidic to be perfect. Highly potable though!
Reposted by Andy Leask
Has anyone got a #ttrpg project they’d like me to shoutout in the next Secret Passages newsletter? There’s one going out tomorrow so it have a #Kickstarter campaign about to launch or close, let me know!
December 21, 2025 at 5:55 PM
Has anyone got a #ttrpg project they’d like me to shoutout in the next Secret Passages newsletter? There’s one going out tomorrow so it have a #Kickstarter campaign about to launch or close, let me know!
Reposted by Andy Leask
‘everyone in gamedev is using AI’ the business dumdums are using it to generate decks and write bad copy. They think it’s good because they think their basic lore ideas make a good game. that’s it that’s who is using AI
December 21, 2025 at 7:30 PM
‘everyone in gamedev is using AI’ the business dumdums are using it to generate decks and write bad copy. They think it’s good because they think their basic lore ideas make a good game. that’s it that’s who is using AI
Day 21 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
El Archangel, Bolivia, medium roast
Bit of a grower this one. It's a nice, nutty, chocolatey coffee, if a little too dark roast flavoured for my current tastes. Didn't get any of the fruity notes, which is disappointing.
El Archangel, Bolivia, medium roast
Bit of a grower this one. It's a nice, nutty, chocolatey coffee, if a little too dark roast flavoured for my current tastes. Didn't get any of the fruity notes, which is disappointing.
December 21, 2025 at 8:14 PM
Day 21 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
El Archangel, Bolivia, medium roast
Bit of a grower this one. It's a nice, nutty, chocolatey coffee, if a little too dark roast flavoured for my current tastes. Didn't get any of the fruity notes, which is disappointing.
El Archangel, Bolivia, medium roast
Bit of a grower this one. It's a nice, nutty, chocolatey coffee, if a little too dark roast flavoured for my current tastes. Didn't get any of the fruity notes, which is disappointing.
Reposted by Andy Leask
This was my biggest tweet over in the bad place. It will live here now. 🧙♀️🎄
December 11, 2024 at 2:40 AM
This was my biggest tweet over in the bad place. It will live here now. 🧙♀️🎄
Day 20 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Ichuga, Kenya, light roast
Unsurprisingly I love this one, too. Blackcurrant notes in a Kenyan light roast, yes please!
Ichuga, Kenya, light roast
Unsurprisingly I love this one, too. Blackcurrant notes in a Kenyan light roast, yes please!
December 20, 2025 at 2:52 PM
Day 20 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Ichuga, Kenya, light roast
Unsurprisingly I love this one, too. Blackcurrant notes in a Kenyan light roast, yes please!
Ichuga, Kenya, light roast
Unsurprisingly I love this one, too. Blackcurrant notes in a Kenyan light roast, yes please!
Day 19 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Sitio Serra, Brazil, Dark roast
Another banger! Two great coffees for the first day of the holidays. Smooth, creamy, chocolatey, another light flavoured dark roast. Yumbo!
Sitio Serra, Brazil, Dark roast
Another banger! Two great coffees for the first day of the holidays. Smooth, creamy, chocolatey, another light flavoured dark roast. Yumbo!
December 19, 2025 at 2:11 PM
Day 19 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Sitio Serra, Brazil, Dark roast
Another banger! Two great coffees for the first day of the holidays. Smooth, creamy, chocolatey, another light flavoured dark roast. Yumbo!
Sitio Serra, Brazil, Dark roast
Another banger! Two great coffees for the first day of the holidays. Smooth, creamy, chocolatey, another light flavoured dark roast. Yumbo!
Reposted by Andy Leask
Hard no to this: French publisher Harlequin has told translators that their work will now be done by AI. They can ‘revise’ AI translations at much lower rate. It’s a subsidiary of Harper Collins so treat this as a test for rollout elsewhere
"Bradage de la traduction, plan social invisible : Harlequin passe à l’IA"
Faites tourner, parce qu'il va falloir se battre encore plus. :/
#traduction #IA #Harlequin #ATLF
Faites tourner, parce qu'il va falloir se battre encore plus. :/
#traduction #IA #Harlequin #ATLF
December 18, 2025 at 9:48 PM
Hard no to this: French publisher Harlequin has told translators that their work will now be done by AI. They can ‘revise’ AI translations at much lower rate. It’s a subsidiary of Harper Collins so treat this as a test for rollout elsewhere
Reposted by Andy Leask
"I refuse." This is it. There's no reason we should accept a narrative of an already settled future which marginalizes humans and individual agency. No one wants this. No one asked for it.
"This promise of an AI future, is really just a collective anxiety that wealthy people have about how well they're gonna be able to control us in the future."
- @tressiemcphd.bsky.social with an absolute mic drop moment about AI bullshit.
Incredible words.
Listen to all of it!
- @tressiemcphd.bsky.social with an absolute mic drop moment about AI bullshit.
Incredible words.
Listen to all of it!
December 19, 2025 at 1:21 PM
"I refuse." This is it. There's no reason we should accept a narrative of an already settled future which marginalizes humans and individual agency. No one wants this. No one asked for it.
Day 18 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar (a day late thanks to end of term shenanigans)
La Secreta, Colombia, medium roast
Delicious. My favourite so far, exactly what I like: blackcurranty, marmaladey, delicious and light.
La Secreta, Colombia, medium roast
Delicious. My favourite so far, exactly what I like: blackcurranty, marmaladey, delicious and light.
December 19, 2025 at 12:06 PM
Day 18 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar (a day late thanks to end of term shenanigans)
La Secreta, Colombia, medium roast
Delicious. My favourite so far, exactly what I like: blackcurranty, marmaladey, delicious and light.
La Secreta, Colombia, medium roast
Delicious. My favourite so far, exactly what I like: blackcurranty, marmaladey, delicious and light.
Reposted by Andy Leask
This is ridiculous. There clearly has not been a 660% increase in terrorism
in the UK over the past year.
How much is it costing the criminal justice system to arrest and prosecute all these people for the crime of wearing a t-shirt or holding a placard?
news.sky.com/story/terror...
in the UK over the past year.
How much is it costing the criminal justice system to arrest and prosecute all these people for the crime of wearing a t-shirt or holding a placard?
news.sky.com/story/terror...
Terrorism arrests soar by 660% after Palestine Action ban
Official figures show 1,630, or 86%, of the 1,886 arrests for terrorism-related activity in the year to the end of September 2025 were linked to supporting the group.
news.sky.com
December 18, 2025 at 1:45 PM
This is ridiculous. There clearly has not been a 660% increase in terrorism
in the UK over the past year.
How much is it costing the criminal justice system to arrest and prosecute all these people for the crime of wearing a t-shirt or holding a placard?
news.sky.com/story/terror...
in the UK over the past year.
How much is it costing the criminal justice system to arrest and prosecute all these people for the crime of wearing a t-shirt or holding a placard?
news.sky.com/story/terror...
#PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Day 16 - La Fila, Honduras, Light Roast - nice and tasty, definite blackcurrant notes.
Day 17 - Gutierrez, Bolivia, Medium Roast - unpleasant. Sour, bitter, not for me. Interestingly this is the 1st one pact emailed about to say I could get it on subscription: no thanks!
Day 16 - La Fila, Honduras, Light Roast - nice and tasty, definite blackcurrant notes.
Day 17 - Gutierrez, Bolivia, Medium Roast - unpleasant. Sour, bitter, not for me. Interestingly this is the 1st one pact emailed about to say I could get it on subscription: no thanks!
December 17, 2025 at 7:15 AM
#PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Day 16 - La Fila, Honduras, Light Roast - nice and tasty, definite blackcurrant notes.
Day 17 - Gutierrez, Bolivia, Medium Roast - unpleasant. Sour, bitter, not for me. Interestingly this is the 1st one pact emailed about to say I could get it on subscription: no thanks!
Day 16 - La Fila, Honduras, Light Roast - nice and tasty, definite blackcurrant notes.
Day 17 - Gutierrez, Bolivia, Medium Roast - unpleasant. Sour, bitter, not for me. Interestingly this is the 1st one pact emailed about to say I could get it on subscription: no thanks!
Day 15 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
El Cabildo, Colombia, medium roast
This was OK. Slight apricot hints, but quite a thin flavour that was a little disappointing.
El Cabildo, Colombia, medium roast
This was OK. Slight apricot hints, but quite a thin flavour that was a little disappointing.
December 15, 2025 at 7:10 AM
Day 15 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
El Cabildo, Colombia, medium roast
This was OK. Slight apricot hints, but quite a thin flavour that was a little disappointing.
El Cabildo, Colombia, medium roast
This was OK. Slight apricot hints, but quite a thin flavour that was a little disappointing.
Day 14 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Santa Rosa, Brazil, dark roast
Nice; I'm getting the chocolate flavours, big style, and maybe a hint of cherry in the aftertaste. Not too bold for a dark roast, at all.
Santa Rosa, Brazil, dark roast
Nice; I'm getting the chocolate flavours, big style, and maybe a hint of cherry in the aftertaste. Not too bold for a dark roast, at all.
December 14, 2025 at 12:01 PM
Day 14 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Santa Rosa, Brazil, dark roast
Nice; I'm getting the chocolate flavours, big style, and maybe a hint of cherry in the aftertaste. Not too bold for a dark roast, at all.
Santa Rosa, Brazil, dark roast
Nice; I'm getting the chocolate flavours, big style, and maybe a hint of cherry in the aftertaste. Not too bold for a dark roast, at all.
Day 13 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Fazenda Reis, Brazil, dark roast
Another regular on the subscription, this is lovely with date and caramel flavours.
(No pact insert today: I somehow lost it between the kitchen and living room!)
Fazenda Reis, Brazil, dark roast
Another regular on the subscription, this is lovely with date and caramel flavours.
(No pact insert today: I somehow lost it between the kitchen and living room!)
December 13, 2025 at 9:55 AM
Day 13 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Fazenda Reis, Brazil, dark roast
Another regular on the subscription, this is lovely with date and caramel flavours.
(No pact insert today: I somehow lost it between the kitchen and living room!)
Fazenda Reis, Brazil, dark roast
Another regular on the subscription, this is lovely with date and caramel flavours.
(No pact insert today: I somehow lost it between the kitchen and living room!)
Day 12 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
El Durazno, Honduras, medium roast
Not a huge fan. A little too acidic, and I'm realising that coffees with strawberry notes aren't for me.
El Durazno, Honduras, medium roast
Not a huge fan. A little too acidic, and I'm realising that coffees with strawberry notes aren't for me.
December 12, 2025 at 6:58 AM
Day 12 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
El Durazno, Honduras, medium roast
Not a huge fan. A little too acidic, and I'm realising that coffees with strawberry notes aren't for me.
El Durazno, Honduras, medium roast
Not a huge fan. A little too acidic, and I'm realising that coffees with strawberry notes aren't for me.
Day 11 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Kiaguthu, Kenya, Light Roast
Love this one. It's a regular on my subs list, I think I have had it three or four times this year. Not a surprise, but it's a deliciously blackcurranty flavour.
Kiaguthu, Kenya, Light Roast
Love this one. It's a regular on my subs list, I think I have had it three or four times this year. Not a surprise, but it's a deliciously blackcurranty flavour.
December 11, 2025 at 9:39 PM
Day 11 of my #PactCoffeeAdventCalendar
Kiaguthu, Kenya, Light Roast
Love this one. It's a regular on my subs list, I think I have had it three or four times this year. Not a surprise, but it's a deliciously blackcurranty flavour.
Kiaguthu, Kenya, Light Roast
Love this one. It's a regular on my subs list, I think I have had it three or four times this year. Not a surprise, but it's a deliciously blackcurranty flavour.