John Brown
@johnbrown1325.bsky.social
Post-Brexit Brit, now also Belgian. Pianist, singer & accordionist, occasional pretend Scotsman. Cats, music, gardening, science, birds, etc.
The man who invented the Wheatstone Bridge (beloved of A Level physics students in Britain, at least it was 40 years ago) also invented the concertina (beloved of sailors, according to Captain Pugwash)
Charles Wheatstone - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
January 14, 2026 at 5:35 PM
The man who invented the Wheatstone Bridge (beloved of A Level physics students in Britain, at least it was 40 years ago) also invented the concertina (beloved of sailors, according to Captain Pugwash)
Dreamt I was the accompanist for a singer and woke up panicked I couldn’t remember the chords for the introduction
January 14, 2026 at 5:08 AM
Dreamt I was the accompanist for a singer and woke up panicked I couldn’t remember the chords for the introduction
Just watched Casablanca for the first time
•Brilliant film: the plot moves so fast
•Ingrid Bergman is beautiful (and beautifully lit)
•Everyone is so thin. Is it all the ciggies?
•It’s full of quotes!
•The music!
•So many actors who had fled the nazis
•To think it was made before the end of the war
•Brilliant film: the plot moves so fast
•Ingrid Bergman is beautiful (and beautifully lit)
•Everyone is so thin. Is it all the ciggies?
•It’s full of quotes!
•The music!
•So many actors who had fled the nazis
•To think it was made before the end of the war
January 11, 2026 at 8:55 PM
Just watched Casablanca for the first time
•Brilliant film: the plot moves so fast
•Ingrid Bergman is beautiful (and beautifully lit)
•Everyone is so thin. Is it all the ciggies?
•It’s full of quotes!
•The music!
•So many actors who had fled the nazis
•To think it was made before the end of the war
•Brilliant film: the plot moves so fast
•Ingrid Bergman is beautiful (and beautifully lit)
•Everyone is so thin. Is it all the ciggies?
•It’s full of quotes!
•The music!
•So many actors who had fled the nazis
•To think it was made before the end of the war
Reposted by John Brown
Looking for something to do this weekend? Then try your hand at predicting what will happen in 2026.
50 questions - simply say how likely each is to occur, on a range of 0% (won't happen) to 100% (will definitely happen).
Any question can be skipped.
www.edrith.co.uk/p/2026-forec...
50 questions - simply say how likely each is to occur, on a range of 0% (won't happen) to 100% (will definitely happen).
Any question can be skipped.
www.edrith.co.uk/p/2026-forec...
2026 Forecasting Contest
A forecasting contest for 2026, featuring UK politics and global events.
www.edrith.co.uk
January 10, 2026 at 10:53 AM
Looking for something to do this weekend? Then try your hand at predicting what will happen in 2026.
50 questions - simply say how likely each is to occur, on a range of 0% (won't happen) to 100% (will definitely happen).
Any question can be skipped.
www.edrith.co.uk/p/2026-forec...
50 questions - simply say how likely each is to occur, on a range of 0% (won't happen) to 100% (will definitely happen).
Any question can be skipped.
www.edrith.co.uk/p/2026-forec...
I thought learning to play left hand on the accordion was tough: now my brain is trying to cope with chords in the right hand on a button accordion
a man and a woman are standing next to each other and the woman says my fingers are finging
Alt: a man and a woman are standing next to each other and the woman says my fingers are finging
media.tenor.com
January 9, 2026 at 9:10 PM
I thought learning to play left hand on the accordion was tough: now my brain is trying to cope with chords in the right hand on a button accordion
No snowpocalypse yet where I am, although it is snowing now. 5-10cm predicted this morning. And windy so probably drifting too. I have my walking boots in the car just in case I get caught out
January 7, 2026 at 7:58 AM
No snowpocalypse yet where I am, although it is snowing now. 5-10cm predicted this morning. And windy so probably drifting too. I have my walking boots in the car just in case I get caught out
Can’t decide if this would be amazing or terrifying.
Volcanoes in the Auvergne might wake up earlier than expected
Volcanoes in the Auvergne might wake up earlier than expected
Les volcans d’Auvergne pourraient se réveiller plus tôt que prévu - RTBF Actus
Le Massif central s’étend sur 85.000 km², soit 15% du territoire de la France continentale. La rencontre entre les Alpes...
www.rtbf.be
January 5, 2026 at 5:04 PM
Can’t decide if this would be amazing or terrifying.
Volcanoes in the Auvergne might wake up earlier than expected
Volcanoes in the Auvergne might wake up earlier than expected
Just finished last year’s sloe gin, just in time to bottle this year’s
January 4, 2026 at 5:23 PM
Just finished last year’s sloe gin, just in time to bottle this year’s
Take your mind off everything with a fabulous ceilidh in Brussels in Friday January 30th, while supporting an excellent charity. Once again I’ll be pretending to be a Scotsman while playing the accordion
Ceilidh in the Kitchen
Fri 30. January at 18:30 - 22:30
fienta.com
January 3, 2026 at 11:57 AM
Take your mind off everything with a fabulous ceilidh in Brussels in Friday January 30th, while supporting an excellent charity. Once again I’ll be pretending to be a Scotsman while playing the accordion
So busy photographing the snow I didn’t notice the dramatic sky
January 3, 2026 at 11:09 AM
So busy photographing the snow I didn’t notice the dramatic sky
Very glad that #thetraitors has started again as my accordion playing improves significantly since I practise instead of watching it
January 2, 2026 at 8:48 PM
Very glad that #thetraitors has started again as my accordion playing improves significantly since I practise instead of watching it
Just had my second ever hen harrier sighting, just a few kilometres from my first, a few years ago
December 31, 2025 at 2:36 PM
Just had my second ever hen harrier sighting, just a few kilometres from my first, a few years ago
While making a list of songs by Robert Burns for a future gig I was trying to type The Birks of Aberfeldie.
First autocorrect gave me The Burka of Aberfeldie, then The Birkenstocks of Aberfeldie…
First autocorrect gave me The Burka of Aberfeldie, then The Birkenstocks of Aberfeldie…
December 28, 2025 at 6:02 PM
While making a list of songs by Robert Burns for a future gig I was trying to type The Birks of Aberfeldie.
First autocorrect gave me The Burka of Aberfeldie, then The Birkenstocks of Aberfeldie…
First autocorrect gave me The Burka of Aberfeldie, then The Birkenstocks of Aberfeldie…
In Brussels and like Scottish dancing? Here’s a great event which always sells out quickly so book early! I’ll be playing the accordion 🪗 🏴
Full Circle - [Social] Ceilidh! ft. The Hoggies
fullcircle.eu
December 28, 2025 at 9:00 AM
In Brussels and like Scottish dancing? Here’s a great event which always sells out quickly so book early! I’ll be playing the accordion 🪗 🏴
It’s such a good app
‘It brings you closer to the natural world’: the rise of the Merlin birdsong identifying app
Merlin has been trained to identify the songs of more than 1,300 bird species around the world
www.theguardian.com
December 28, 2025 at 7:53 AM
It’s such a good app
My energy going into 2026
December 27, 2025 at 10:13 PM
My energy going into 2026
Pluribus is excellent TV
December 27, 2025 at 10:02 PM
Pluribus is excellent TV
Einstein’s special law of space/time: a baby’s toys will expand to fill the available space, no matter how many times they are cleared away
December 26, 2025 at 9:50 AM
Einstein’s special law of space/time: a baby’s toys will expand to fill the available space, no matter how many times they are cleared away
Made the stuffing (thanks Delia), picked up the turkey (panic in the butcher’s as some orders wrong) and the cheese / cold meats order (very well organised). Just the bread order and tomorrow’s cougnous* to go and that’s it until cooking the turkey tomorrow
*Brioche in the form of a baby Jesus
*Brioche in the form of a baby Jesus
December 24, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Made the stuffing (thanks Delia), picked up the turkey (panic in the butcher’s as some orders wrong) and the cheese / cold meats order (very well organised). Just the bread order and tomorrow’s cougnous* to go and that’s it until cooking the turkey tomorrow
*Brioche in the form of a baby Jesus
*Brioche in the form of a baby Jesus
Reposted by John Brown
The 2025 Headline of the Year Nominees
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December 22, 2025 at 11:48 PM
The 2025 Headline of the Year Nominees
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I held my own grandmother’s immigration records in my hand (in the Belgian national archives: she was a refugee to Britain, and never left)
I think we need a mega thread of everyone's craziest archive stories.
December 22, 2025 at 8:14 PM
I held my own grandmother’s immigration records in my hand (in the Belgian national archives: she was a refugee to Britain, and never left)
Found this in the back of some music. Quite tempted; If Not Funny I’ll Refund Your Money!
It dates from some time after 1988, but I wonder how much of the material would still work (if it ever did)
It dates from some time after 1988, but I wonder how much of the material would still work (if it ever did)
December 22, 2025 at 11:30 AM
Found this in the back of some music. Quite tempted; If Not Funny I’ll Refund Your Money!
It dates from some time after 1988, but I wonder how much of the material would still work (if it ever did)
It dates from some time after 1988, but I wonder how much of the material would still work (if it ever did)
If I ever catch up on my ironing I won’t have enough space for all my shirts
December 21, 2025 at 9:55 AM
If I ever catch up on my ironing I won’t have enough space for all my shirts