Cultural Geography Blog

It's that time of year again for the launch of the Young Geographer of the Year category.  This annual competition is run by the Royal Geographical Society. The Young Geographer of the Year is the Society’s annual competition which recognises the outstanding work of the next generation of geographers. With its age ranges spanning the primary years to A Level, the competition encourages thoughtful and creative answers to the competition’s theme which is set each year. The Society encourages schools to run their own in-house competition and then send their top 10 entries into the international competition. The Young Geographer competition has been running for over 20 years and every year thousands of children across the world take part. 2025 competition The theme for the Young Geographer of the Year competition 2025 is: Understanding islands Let’s take a closer look at the World’s islands. It is estimated that our planet contains almost 670,000 islands, of which around 11,000 are p...

Last Sunday I went over to Norwich for a nice Sunday roast, and then to Norwich Castle. The long awaited keep restoration project has been delayed again and so it is still not open after around three years so far. I came across a piece which I hadn't seen before as it has been installed since my last visit, called 'An A-Z of Empire' by the Singh Twins that caught my eye. It's a light box with coloured panels offering an A-Z of Empire with some alternative facts and rhymes about places and events linked with colonialism. It would certainly make a talking point with groups. Here's a description from the Norfolk Museums service: The Singh Twins describe the concept of the jigsaw puzzle – a single image comprised of many separate but interlinked pieces – as symbolically representing the nature of colonial history as a global story; individual but interconnected narratives shaped by different experiences and viewpoints. The Singh Twins describe the purpose of the work a...

Thanks to Bob Lang for the tipoff via LinkedIn to this post. Dr. Paul Widdop shared the 2025 Sport and Soft Power ranking following 15 months of research. The full report can be read here. The study examines the relationship between sport and soft power, the outcome of which is a global ranking of the world’s most powerful countries in this regard. The ranking, which is based upon the involvement of sixty experts globally, consists of twenty-five countries that have been assessed as being successful in accentuating their attractiveness through sport. Undertaken over a period of twelve months, ten criteria were used as the basis for this ranking exercise. Here are the Top 25 countries. Source, report and methodology:  https://publika.skema.edu/sport-soft-power-ranking/

Apparently Cultcha is one of Feedspot's Top 40 Geography blogs , along with my LivingGeography blog. I'm not sure how they work these things out. There's one blog included where the most recent post is dated in 2018 - naming no names ;)

I've blogged over on LivingGeography previously about Thomas Vinterberg's Danish series which looks at a very plausible future. The BBC have acquired the rights to show the series. Families Like Ours (7 x 60 minute episodes) is set in Denmark in a not-too-distant future where rising water levels can no longer be ignored and the country needs to be evacuated.  As people disperse in all directions, they must bid farewell to what they love, what they know, and who they are. Slowly but steadily, everything changes. All property becomes worthless, all fortunes shift, and luck favours only a few. Those who can afford it travel to affluent countries while the less well-off depend on government-funded relocation to more challenging destinations. Families, friends and loved ones are separated. Some are overcome by hatred and division, while others nurture love and foster new beginnings. Against this backdrop the story introduces Laura, a high school student in love for the first time ...

Good to see this arrive, and put it on the shelves of the GeoLibrary.  Well, it was over a year ago that we started work on the 4th edition of the Collins textbook to support the teaching of the updated Cambridge iGCSE Geography specification (0460). I worked with an excellent authoring team - who stepped up early on when it was reduced from the original size. Over the weekend, author copies of the book finally arrived. It's always good to have the physical object in your hands.  The cover is a little 'minimalist' for my liking but is the style used for a range of books for other subjects published by Collins. There were a lot of people involved in the production of the book including the author team who stepped up when we lost two authors early in the process. There have been many hundreds of hours of working on edits and updates and several drafts and proofs.  The textbook will be accompanied by a Teacher Guide and a Workbook. These are due to be published in April I be...

Looking forward to hearing the 4th instalment of Robert Reed channelling early period Mike Oldfield with the help of the mighty Simon Phillips.

Excellent to see that the greatest sporting event is coming to the UK again in 2027. The world’s biggest bike races, the Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, will both take place in the UK in 2027, marking the first time both the men’s and women’s Grand Départs will take place in the same country (outside France). England, Scotland, and Wales are all set to host stages of this famous event in 2027, making it the largest free sporting spectacle in British history with millions expected to line the streets for the return of the Tour de France, and to witness the first ever staging of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift in the UK. The men’s Tour de France will begin in Edinburgh, Scotland. Further route details for both the men’s and women’s 2027 Grand Départs will be announced in the Autumn, with the focus on maximising the opportunity to showcase Britain’s diverse landscapes alongside the nation’s enthusiasm for cycling and inspiring as many people as possible through ...

This looks like a rebrand of a site I've used for a while. Videos have been filmed from cars driving through cities around the world. You can listen to music on the local radio station or in the car, and also opt to hear the background sounds as well, which include the engine and street noise, sat-nav instructions etc. This site has more cities and different versions of the city in some cases, with multiple videos. I put Reykjavik on the screen during an Open Day at my school and enjoyed watching a car following familiar roads from trips there. There are some fascinating cities to drive through.  Think about the impression that you get from the views of one vehicle.  Which part of the city has been chosen to represent the city? Does the route go past the 'nicest' parts or the Central Business District?  Has it been selected to avoid the busiest intersections where the car might end up standing still for some time in queues? Can you work out where in the city it is with th...

Here’s a song that I made using SUNO: a tool which Matt Podbury introduced me to at Practical Pedagogies which uses AI to write a song in whatever style you want, and on a theme.  This was to go alongside one of my favourite lessons, when we explore the story of the Ever Laurel and the 29000 bath toys fell into the North Pacific in 1992 and revealed some of the workings of ocean gyres and their role in concentrating ocean plastics, to which the bath toys added as they disintegrated over the decades since. Of course the frogs, turtles and beavers are always left out of the narrative...  Enjoy the Electronic beats of ‘Rubber Duck Boom’. Sing along to the chorus! Listen on Suno

LOVE is a piece by the American artist Robert Indiana. You may have seen it in a number of locations. I saw one installation of LOVE in New York for the first time in 2019 - close to MOMA - on the corner of 6th Avenue and 55th Street in Manhattan. It was a popular place for a photo opportunity. The image LOVE was first created in 1964 in the form of a card which Robert Indiana sent to several friends and acquaintances in the art world.  In 1965, he was invited to propose an artwork to be featured on the Museum of Modern Art's annual Christmas card. He chose a blue green variant of the image. It has also appeared on US postage stamps. LEGO has now released a version of the sculpture, and it was a gift for my wife this year. It is a good build and looks nice when completed. Just got to work out where to put it... Images: Alan Parkinson

I'm heading for Iceland again in April, and have made a start on updating my notes for the group I will be taking.  I do this for each group that I take, and also have a chat with the group leader to ensure that I pitch my explanations and talking on the coach (and in situ) correctly. There is plenty of street art in the city of Reykjavik (and of course in other parts of the country). I've added a few images that I've taken below. These are mostly off the street called Laugavegur.  I know roughly where they are, but am going to try to map them and then piece them together to make a nice map. Images: Alan Parkinson Guide to Iceland has produced an illustrated list of their own favourites.  This is not easy to navigate as each icon needs to be clicked on. I've produced a Google Form where you can enter the location of your favourite street art.  If you know the What3Words address that would be an additional extra. The form link is here: It would be good to eventually h...

During the Easter holidays I am going to Paris for the first time in a good few years.  What are your must see attractions to do in the city of lights? We'll be staying in the Montparnasse area of the city. I intend to visit a few places of geographical and cultural interest of course: - Galleries including Louvre, D'Orsay etc. - Place de Saint Sulpice - location for Georges Perec's legendary observations which I have written about many times before and shall be taking along for a photo opportunity on Perec's bench - Seine wanderings - some film location spotting e.g. Amelie locations around Montmartre I'm going to have a look at visiting Notre Dame too if possible. Image: Paris from above, taken by me on the way somewhere... Romania I think....

I refer to this picture and the associated quotes quite a lot in my teaching. It was taken on 14th February 1990 - 35 years ago today. The picture was remastered in 2020. The one I often show was taken by the Cassini Spacecraft in 2013 as it approached Saturn. Here's an animation I show...

Måke Califørnia Great Ægain Find out about a crowdsourcing effort to raise the funds for Denmark to buy California. Check out the story of the satirical crowdfunding effort. I've signed the petition and am happy to throw in a few quid...

I saw this book yesterday in Hatchards, and was immediately drawn to the cover, which is excellent, and even before I picked it up I knew that it would be perfect for one of my favourite topics. Publishers' blurb We live in a manufactured world. Unless you are floating naked through space, you are right now in direct contact with multiple manufactured products. How often do we stop to think: where do the things we buy actually come from? There exists a nearly invisible, awe-inspiring global system of manufacturing that enables virtually every aspect of our existence. The things we surround ourselves with take surprising and often byzantine journeys to reach us – be it the thousands of litres of water needed to make a single pair of jeans or the components of our smartphones travelling over six times around the world to reach us. From mega-factory floors, engineering laboratories and seaports to distribution hubs, supermarkets and our own homes, Tim Minshall traces these journeys to...

As you (hopefully) know, I launched a new weekly Substack newsletter in the first week of 2025.  You can subscribe to it here. This has led to me exploring some other Substacks, as they are sometimes Recommended to me or appear in feeds. Will Fry has an excellent Substack called Changing Places .  There are a few recent posts which have attracted my attention. The first I shall mention is about Old Spitalfields Market. This is a place that I know quite well having passed through it quite a few times in recent years. If I have meetings or events in London, one of my favoured places to stay is the Premier Inn Hub on Brick Lane. This places you right in the middle of the district, but is quiet and sound-proofed and once you step through the doors, the hubbub and activity of Brick Lane is gone. Old Spitalfields Market has undergone quite a change in recent years.  There are also two posts which are relevant to my Geography in/on Film Blog on the representation of London in f...

  I've submitted a proposal for a session for GeoNight. I enjoyed presenting last year and had some good people turn out to watch my session. Details are here for those who are interested. If you'd like to propose a session the form is here. The international "Night of Geography", promoted by EUGEO and IGU , will be held on April 4th 2025. The GeoNight is an initiative proposed for the first time by the CNFG (French National Geographical Committee) at a National scale in 2017. From 2018 onwards, the initiative has expanded internationally, first in Europe, thanks to EUGEO, and then even beyond, thanks to the IGU. This website has been created and is managed by Massimiliano Tabusi and Arturo Gallia. My proposed talk is about my experiences in, and of, Iceland.

The Prince Charles Cinema is an important institution in London's cultural life. Sitting just off Leicester Square it is a very popular independent cinema which has far more interesting programming than the other usual cinema chains. A 38 degrees petition has been started to save it , and at the time of posting it is approaching 150 000 signatures. Details here from the PCC themselves. The Prince Charles Cinema is not only a popular and successful local independent business with a large, loyal community of fans, but culturally important as perhaps the UK’s most famous cinema. We are renowned throughout the industry for our programme of over 850 films a year, spanning the history of cinema, across just two screens.We are one of the last remaining independent cinemas in central London, receiving no public funding and attracting over 250,000 customers a year at a time when the industry is struggling. As a significant local landmark, we act as an anchor institution for the Leicester S...

There's a lot of geography in this news item from the BBC News on the controversies surrounding beach cabanas on Australian beaches. Cabanas are small gazebo like structures, which offer some shade from the strong sun without blocking out any breeze, and allow people to stay on the beach for longer, and more safely, during the Australian summer. However, the number of these structures is causing some problems and there are contrasting views on them. They are also known as beach tents. The beach is of tremendous cultural significance to Australians, so this is being taken seriously. There is the notion of turning a public space into a series of private enclaves, preventing easy access and egress to the sea, and potentially preventing lifeguards from operating effectively. The Prime Minister is against them. This ABC Australia piece gives a local perspective, and also has a lovely drone shot of a beach covered with cabanas, along with this image from Grace Nakamura. Image: Grace Na...

  A tip-off via BlueSky. Tree.FM will play the sound of a random forest. Good for escaping or relaxing. Click to be taken to another forest if you fancy a change. People around the world recorded the sounds of their forests, so you can escape into nature, and unwind wherever you are. Take a breath and soak in the forest sounds as they breathe with life and beauty! And while you are here, why not help to grow what keeps us alive? Climate change and governments are destroying our forests. Let’s leave some trees for our grandchildren to climb and make the steps to restore our planet.

Thanks so much for coming along to read this blog, which I started back in 2007, when I was teaching the Cultural Geography unit of the groundbreaking and much missed OCR Pilot GCSE Geography. This blog has now reached a rather nice milestone. It's taken a while.

It's 35 years since I started listening to Bob... and he's a powerhouse live...

Thanks to Rafael De Miguel González , President of EuroGeo for the tipoff to a newish AI tool to explore how 'ready' a particular area is for becoming a 15 minute city.  He recently met the architect of the idea: Carlos Moreño. 15 min city AI is a nice free AI tool. It explores a range of amenities including transportation connections, healthcare and entertainment, and how accessible these are from each part of the area within 15 minutes travel time.  It would perhaps be a good basis for starting to look at '15 minute cities' and students could then carry out local fieldwork to 'ground truth' the accuracy of the tool. Ely scores 75% , which is quite a good score.  You can see its rating below and the reasons why it scored as it did. How well does your local place score? 

Nosferatu was my first film seen at the cinema this year: the latest from Robert Eggers. I've seeen all his previous films, and he set the tone for his output with 'The Lighthouse'. Nosferatu was an atmospheric retelling of the Dracula story, particularly the unofficial silent film made in 1922. There are a few maps, including one of Transylvania , which is never named, but shown.  The lighting, costumes etc are excellent at providing the atmosphere, particularly Count Orlok. The film particularly comes to life when Willem Dafoe arrives, as an alchemist.  There is also an excellent scene on the ship carrying Orlok to his new home, and crashing into the dock with thousands of live rats carrying the plague. The film is described as being "fuelled by folklore". Willem Dafoe is interviewed here. The Independent gave it five stars. Source:  https://jacobin.com/2024/12/nosferatu-robert-eggers-film-review The trailer is here:

A Christmas Day  TV highlight was the first new Wallace and Gromit film for many years. At their fastest rate, the 200-person production team for "Vengeance Most Fowl" produced two minutes of film per week. Vengeance most Fowl brought back Feathers McGraw, and managed to fit in a great many film references and nods to other programs and earlier scenarios. It was a wonderful achievement. There were some comments on AI as well. Norbot is described as an AI villain. "I love the fact that we have technology.  We have to just sometimes ask: is it always enhancing our lives and our relationships, or is it somehow diminishing them in some way?" Nick Park

  2025 is a time to take stock. We are a quarter of the way through the century, and the last few years have been a bit of a roller coaster ride for the planet, and not in a good way. Whatever you are up to, don't forget to sign up to my new Substack, which is now available for you to read. For years, this blog had an option to subscribe using Feedburner. This sent an email digest of posts to anyone who subscribed. Blogger removed that option, and there hasn't been anything to replace it, so I'm hoping that my new Substack will fill that gap. I've started my new Substack account, and you can visit it now. Wednesday will be the day that I publish each new weekly update. This will include a number of features: blog digest update on projects some nice images And other elements as the year progresses...