internet. And 'Dr' does open a few more doors than 'school teacher'. There are a lot of errors, and then some 'oh, actually it was a test' going on. If I can check the facts and see what that leaves I can go from there. If the facts are correct and the English is correct then...

The computer bit is impossible unless it is all true. I don't understand computers, but no one alive could explain how messages from 2109 or could be transmitted so its all a bit moot.

I'm starting with the easily verifiable stuff which should be much easier for me than for Trinder as I have the

messages and their language the way he does. Especially not when Oxford profs disagree with him.

The main archival finding, that of the dates of Tomas' degree at Brasenose, was published in a book in 1909, so not delving through Tudor manuscripts.

Next steps: look at Trinder's degree!

willing to help him 30 years after Trinder graduated. Trinder only has an undergraduate (so quite general) degree that he did thirty years earlier. Undergraduate degrees are worth a lot (not least from Oxbridge) but I just can't see that his education would have given him the skills to analyse the

There is a research group on FB but they're led by a fella who took against me so I'm barred. Looks like I'm on my own. (Last I saw they had a remote viewer looking for the book... meanwhile I was wandering around Oxford looking like a weirdo!)

If you've any tips or contacts?

I'm stuck as I'm a pukka academic researcher in another life so hate claiming anything without a serious grounding and lots of sources, but people are rushing out podcasts and YouTube videos at a rate of knotts.. and they all just regurgitate the same thing.

I have seen a reference that says it was 'replaced in the 19c' but I need to follow up on that as I'm not sure if it was replaced like for like or if the inscription disappeared. The version in TVP differs from that in the records... interesting!

I am a bit disappointed it was fiction as it fitted so well with other high strangeness stories and now puts big question marks over those. However, the tell was the emergingly obvious narrative arc - something most high strangeness tales are conspicuously missing!

I think my first step is to contact the various archivists directly and find out if they have records of requests for material in the 1980s... records of records.

Oxford is nice though!

*I realise all Oxon grads have an 'MA' but every academic knows this is an undergrad degree in reality

PhD and extensive experience with Rare Books and Manuscripts in a variety of archives including the British Library.

So it seems unlikely the material could have been accessed to perpetrate a hoax. But equally unlikely to have been easily accessed to prove the messages.

Needs more digging.

home college. These are relatively easy to access now as they have been digitised and catalogued, but even today to access 16c manuscript materials you need a not insubstantial fee and specialist training. Specialist training beyond the average undergrad.

I cannot access them easily and I have a

is physically attached to Brasenose by a short passage and I looked in there as well and they were equally confused.

One would assume that if every doorway, mantel and stairway doesn't have a carved inscription above it, the odd one that did would stick in the mind! The buildings aren't that huge.