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28 Years Later

A cross posting from my Geography in/on Film  blog. Last weekend I headed for Norwich to catch an opening weekend screening of '28 Years Later' - the third in the series of films by Danny Boyle (and others) which started with the classic '28 Days Later'. It explores Britain 28 years after the release of monkeys that have been infected with a 'Rage' virus. This turns people into 'zombies' but not the slow moving ones in the usual films.... 28 Days later (the best in my son's opinion, released in 2002) and 28 Weeks later (released in 2007). 28 years later takes place in a community living on Holy Island, which is partially protected by the causeway which is covered over at high tide. There are quite a few scenes on Holy Island and there have already been people visiting it as it was a location in the film, so this will do the tourist industry on the island some good. They have apparently launched a 'Visit if you Dare' campaign - thought I co...
Recent posts

How big is Glastonbury?

Always good to have little map 'experiments' / projects like this appearing. Glastonbury's gates opened yesterday. Glastonbury is big. Fifteen years ago today, I was there... in the heat, working with the Geography Collective in the Greek Kids Zone. I've blogged about it before - search the blog for 'Glastonbury'. This map shows you how big, although from my experience it felt quite a lot larger than it is shown here. I think there are other areas still beyond what is shown here - whether car parking or additional camping and the security zone. It's made by Geoffrey Prytherch. Here's Ely compared to the site. And here's one of my images from up near the letters... at night, it looks pretty awesome too. This was sunset on the 24th of June. Image: Alan Parkinson - shared on Flickr under CC license

Psycho Killer at 50

A new video for the classic Talking Heads track 'Psycho Killer'. Looking forward to seeing David Byrne play live once again in 2026....

International Geography Training

The latest batch of sessions organised by Richard Allaway and Matt Podbury have now been made available on their website. There will be six online workshops between the end of August 2025 and May 2026, which can be booked individually or as an ‘any three’, ‘any four’ or ‘all six’ bundle. Each workshop consists of two 90-minute sessions and then the opportunity to have a 30-minute one-on-one meeting with either Richard or Matt to focus on your specific topic of interest and questions. The workshops will happen on Saturdays, so most of you will not need to find cover for your classes. They will run from 10h00 CET to 13h30 CET, so you have enough time for a lie-in and a lazy breakfast, and everything is finished in time for a late lunch. Saturday 30th August 2025 – Surviving the first months as a DP Geography Teacher Saturday 27th September 2025 – Adapting to the new CIE IGCSE Geography 0460 Syllabus Saturday 1st November 2025 – Making it matter for your students Saturday 29th November 20...

Vote for Rayburn please

A request to cast a vote for Rayburn Tours in the Best School Tour Operator (Large) category of the UK School Travel Awards if you can please, particularly if you have travelled with them with your school.  I work for them in Iceland as a Field Studies Tutor and we are all proud to work for this family firm which is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year. This would certainly add to the celebrations. The voting form can be accessed here. Thanks very much :)

New in the wardrobe

I own quite a few items of clothing from Simon Carter. This is a clothing brand which was started in 1985, so is 40 years old this year. They feature quirky prints which are made in small runs often based on early printing blocks and designs. My brother in law has a shirt which I've borrowed a few times over the years. It was created in 2004 according to this piece in the Charles Close Society newsletter.  I've been looking for one for at least 15 years! Charles Close was a former President of the Geographical Association. The Ultimate Novely Suit Under this headline of 29 January reported that designer Simon Carter had teamed up with Ordnance Survey to produce shirts and suits decorated with OS mapping of the North Norfolk coast ‘with the addition of a few cheekily placed “Carter” locations’. He also offers a bespoke service tailoring clothes with maps of the wearer’s choice. The garments are apparently available from House of Fraser and, although £400 for a suit is beyond his...

RIP Sebastião Salgado

I was sad to hear of the passing of the photographer Sebastião Salgado earlier this week: the Brazilian photographer and photojournalist. His work was amazing, and he took the time to explore several themes which were geographical in nature, whether the exploitation of mineral resources, the Amazon rain forest ('Amazonia') or the experiences of migrant labour. One of his most impressive projects was the book 'Genesis'. Between 2004 and 2011, Salgado worked on 'Genesis', aiming at the presentation of the unblemished faces of nature and humanity. It consists of a series of photographs of landscapes and wildlife, as well as of human communities that continue to live in accordance with their ancestral traditions and cultures. This body of work is conceived as a potential path to humanity's rediscovery of itself in nature. He was also the subject of a film made by Wim Wenders.