Cultural Geography Blog

Warning: includes a rude word....

I've been following Keir Clarke since the early days of Google Earth and he has always shared fascinating map links, many of which I have shared here and on my other blogs. His latest (ish) is a game he has been developing called Scrambled Maps. Go here to give it a go.

  Nick Drake committed suicide fifty years ago this year.  This month in fact. Mackenzie Crook has released a picture book which is called 'If Nick Drake came to my house'. In a couple of weeks' time I am going to the Cambridge Union to hear him speak about it. I'm looking forward to it very much. Mackenzie was on the One Show a few days ago talking about the book and his love of Nick Drake's music. Listen to this Nick Drake track to get a flavour of his particular melancholy tone...

Encountering cultural differences  is one of the benefits of attending overseas events. When in Rome (or Palermo or Helsinki) and all that.... I've been fortunate to have that opportunity due to ERASMUS+ - I sincerely hope that the UK will reconsider the decision to  One of the aspects of visiting cities is to explore them culturally. Last week, I had the chance to go back to Europe to attend the Practical Pedagogies Conference. I've blogged more about that over on the LivingGeography blog. These markings are important in German beer cellars. This one was called the Schreckenskammer. The beers are served in small 20cl glasses with plenty of froth. As each one is placed on the table, a mark is made on a beermat. The glasses are called stange glasses. Unless you say otherwise, a new glass will be placed on the table to replace any empty glass. Once you've had enough, place the beermat on top of the glass to signal you are ready to pay. It's also worth bearing in mind tha

A cross-posting from my LivingGeography blog. I was heading for London on Wednesday to stay overnight so that I could get an early Eurostar train to Brussels. In the evening, I was due to go to an EXPLORE session as part of the RGS's exploration festival. I noticed that the Irish band  Clannad were playing at the Royal Albert Hall . It was to be their final concert. I was introduced to Clannad by their singles Newgrange and Theme from Harry's Game, from the album 'Magical Ring'. I also played their first few albums quite a lot including Dulaman (seaweed). In 1983-4 they produced the music for an essential series for me at the time: 'Robin of Sherwood'. Michael Praed played Robin, and a second series saw him replaced by Jason Connery.  The album has just been rereleased onto Spotify with a whole extra album of 'lost' music, which is mostly excellent. I saw Clannad quite a few times during the early to late 1980s when they were touring following this peri

One of my favourite musicians is Aimee Mann . She has been a regular part of my listening life for over 30 years. Her first band and success was with 'Til Tuesday but she has had a long solo career... with her soundtrack to 'Magnolia' and recent albums being highlights. Today, she posted this message on Instagram which has resulted in quite a lot of excitement. Aimee Mann’s ’80s new wave band ‘Til Tuesday will reunite for their first show in 33 years (it’s billed as their first show with the original lineup in 35 years)  I spent the day with all her music on Spotify... 

 As per the previous post, here's a bit of TD with an Earth-related video projection they used...

Earlier this week I headed for the Barbican to see Tangerine Dream again. This time it was the 50th anniversary of Phaedra. A really excellent evening with a long semi-improvised session. Someone shot a video of one of my favourite tracks from the evening. Not great quality but you can see the energy and interactions between Thorsten and the others, and you have the inevitable people who use the evening as a pub crawl... sit down for the duration!

An RGS-heavy day today alongside my teaching. This post is a cross-posting from my dedicated RGS blog - please go and check it out if you haven't already.   It shares all the news linked to my role as Vice President: Education. This curriculum review will be one of the things I'm interested in for the next year or so. Joined a very interesting Zoom call followed by some emails related to the opening of the RGS' request for your thoughts as part of the 'call for evidence' of the Francis Curriculum Review. That request is now open as of lunchtime today. New on the RGS website is this call for your thoughts ahead of the Curriculum and Assessment Review for England, which is being chaired by Becky Francis. At the moment, the review is in a phase where they call for evidence. This evidence will inform later stages of the consultation. The Government has launched an open call for evidence to inform its curriculum and assessment review for England, which is being chaired

A cross-posting from my GeoLibrary blog which has hundreds of books recommended and with some information about where they might be used, and why they deserve a shelf on the GeoLibrary. This book is on the Booker longlist . It's a fiction book, but is packed with geography. It's about four astronauts and two cosmonauts in the International Space Station. The author said of the book that she wanted to write a 'space pastoral' The book follows one day, and the orbits they trace over the world. In between their routine jobs and exercise, we hear about them and their families and their thoughts as they stare down on the earth below - tracking the path of a super-typhoon with their privileged view of the world below. There are some truly wonderful passages, and it's definitely a geography book. The descriptions of each landscape and country as they appear are really beautiful. The section here is part of a chapter - they are all very short and this helps you subdivide t

You wait ages for an album about Amelia Earhart and then two come along at once. The new album from Public Service Broadcasting: "The Last Flight"  comes out in early October and some tracks are already out. I'm looking forward to seeing some of them being played at the end of October. Meanwhile Laurie Anderson has released her own version of that last flight and it's very different to the PSB one, and excellent. It's the usual mix of recordings, sound and vocal effects and electronic music, and is a lot more accessible than some of Laurie Anderson's work. Available on the usual streaming services.

Spotify leads me to all sorts of new places musically. Through a series of links, I came across a 'genre' of electronic / ambient music linked to place... Here's a description of one of my discoveries: Warrington-Runcorn New Town Development Plan 's new album, Your Community Hub, compellingly continues his sonic exploration of the New Towns movement. The issues the councillors, planners, and architects set out to solve still resound and echo throughout society. For the latest instalment in this unique project, Gordon Chapman-Fox turns his laser eye to focus on Community and the Community Centres that populated Warrington and Runcorn in order to provide all the facilities people needed within a five minute walk from their home. These planning ideas predated the current discussions of fifteen minute cities by fifty years. Those intervening years have seen a decline in our community centres and services: handy access to a GP or dentist, Post Offices, youth clubs, local sh

  I was sorry to hear this evening of the passing of Norman Ackroyd on Monday: one of our very greatest landscape artists. He was a remarkable printmaker and artist . He shared the laborious process of making his etchings in several documentaries. Listen to this programme with Robert MacFarlane. RIP the great artist Norman Ackroyd (1938-16.09.24): etcher-magician who conjured weather & light from metal & acid; his work constitutes one of the great visual records of this archipelago’s edges. We travelled together—& I made this programme with him: https://t.co/Y5licHxpcP pic.twitter.com/8bQDR95Fph — Robert Macfarlane (@RobGMacfarlane) September 18, 2024 Here's the first part of a documentary on his method featuring some of his art...

This piece of music is important to me... 

A new(ish) resource which can be accessed and used by members of the Geographical Association. I am considering adding a section of this to my teaching this year. Sycamore Gap is a significant landmark in Northumberland where three distinct features combined: a natural and dramatic dip in the physical landscape about halfway along the 80-mile run of Hadrian’s Wall, itself an ancient monument and reminder of the power of the Roman Empire, and until recently, a lone, 300-year-old Sycamore tree. The site has UNESCO designation and is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. Arguably, it will still be known as Sycamore Gap because of its story. The tree has stood for hundreds of years, perfectly framed by the landscape, thrilling locals and visitors alike until it was deliberately cut down, under cover of darkness, sometime between the evening of 27 September 2023 and the following morning.  The loss of the tree has caused an outcry and reaction of public grief. These materials are designed to help

The Max Richter album ' Sleep' is one that I've listened to many times. His new one is always going to appeal to my inner geographer as it is called 'In a Landscape'. I can also confirm that it is excellent and relaxing and an excellent soundtrack for a few hours spent writing.

I've just finalised the plans for a session for GCSE and 'A' Level teachers and students later this month as part of the programme of events offered by the GA Gloucester Branch. It's an upate of a session I created for the GA Oxford Branch last year. I explore some of the ways that teachers and students can research case studies they need to remember for exams to make them come to life a little more, and ensure they are a little more authentic, contemporary and relevant, as well as memorable for the exam when it comes to revising. Why not sign up? This will be one of my Worldly Wednesdays....

  I spent two days last week at Rayburn Tours' HQ in Derby. I work as a Field Studies Tutor (FST) for Rayburn, and go out twice a year or so to help students and teachers interpret the amazing landscape and culture of Iceland. After some delay because of COVID etc., the company was keen to gather us all together to meet each other face to face and allow us to meet and take us through some updates that would help us with our work. One of the sessions that we had as a group of Field Study Tutors was from Dr. Rhian Meara. Rhian has been researching the story of Heimaey , and the eruption that took place in 1973. Most papers and stories refer to the eruption and have a series of bullet points 'telling the story' except they miss out the 'actual' stories of those who experienced it, many of whom still live on the island. A series of papers have either been published or are being prepared for publication by Rhian. You can also hear Rhian talking along with Cath Rule and R

The GA and the RGS will both be 'in the room' when the curriculum review discussions related to geography take place. The GA is collecting responses from teachers, who may not be in the room, but will be impacted by the decisions made by the review group.  The RGS is going to be doing something similar as the picture on the consultation becomes a little clearer. The Geographical Association wants to hear your views on the geography National Curriculum and GCSE and A level content and assessment. Steve Brace, GA Chief Executive, says  ‘We want as many teachers as possible to share your views about which aspects of the current geography curriculum, its GCSEs and A levels are working well – and where you’d like to see changes’. Click this link to go the form where you can enter your thoughts. Fill in the form by the 20th of September.

  I was asked to provide some feedback on the GCSE results which came out today on behalf of the Royal Geographical Society. This became a press release from the RGS , which was also responding to a new survey on the way that climate change is taught. The Guardian also picked it up for their GCSE blog which was live for the morning as students received their results. Scroll down to 11.13 to read my comments.

  By the start of September 2025 and the new academic year, a full suite of resources will be available for Primary Geography on the Oak National website.   These will all be free to download. There are 6 units for each of years 1-6. 36 units all fully resourced with slide decks, worksheets, quizzes and videos. All units have been approved by Oak and will be appearing on the website in the next month. They have been developed from an original model produced by Paula Owens and Julia Tanner by a team of writers and reviewers and a production team at the Geographical Association. I am very pleased to have been part of the Oak Primary team. I wrote one unit, and helped shape a number of others through working as a reviewer. Some of my images were also used in units. Curriculum Explainer Our curriculum nurtures pupils’ personal and everyday geographies, sparking their curiosity about the world, and guiding them to explore places and processes beyond their existing knowledge.  Our curriculu

A cross-posting from my relatively new blog: 'At the Home of Geography'.   This is a blog to share work around my work as Vice President:Education of the Royal Geographical Society. The GA's Fieldwork Festival during June has ended, but fieldwork can carry on at any time of course, and we hope that your summer travels may well involve some 'fieldtrips' AKA family holidays, or personal travels. These may be in the local area or further afield. Check out the detailed page on the RGS website which contains a wealth of resources for those planning fieldwork. One issue for teachers when consultations take place is to have ideas for fieldwork which are low cost (ideally free) and can be carried out in the local area. In terms of having ideas for fieldwork. The sharing of ideas in this area are particularly helpful. The RGS has added a useful form to their website. The form can be used to tell us about the fieldwork that you are undertaking, and help share examples of fre

A cross posting from my GCSE Natural History blog. It's almost exactly 14 years since I went to Latitude festival with the Mission:Explore team. This followed an earlier visit to Glastonbury in the same year. We were working in the children's area running our missions, entertaining young people amongst the festival goers with our subversive take on the festival and its surroundings. Once we'd finished our shift, we were free to enjoy the music. On the 2nd evening, I headed over to the tent where Jonsi from Sigur Ros was going to be performing that evening. I caught a set from American band Yeasayer who were excellent. I then noticed someone wandering in a familiar tasselled jacket and realised it was Jonsi, and had a brief conversation with him. It was just after the launch of his 'Go' album, which remains one of my favourites. Later that evening he gave the most amazing performance in this tent, and I was up front as the music unfolded.  For a taster, catch the tra

Chillingbourne is the fictional town featuring in the classic film 'A Canterbury Tale' (1946) made by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. It is the town where the characters emerge onto the train platform by mistake and encounter 'the glue man'.  The design work was completed by Alfred Junge. Brief biography from a website. Although German by birth, Alfred Junge (1886-1964), contributed most significantly to filmmaking in the British context, arguably becoming the most influential and important art director of his day. Junge discovered his artistic sensibility in his teens by trying his hand at all aspects of theatrical design in local productions in his native Germany, eventually going on to do set design work for the German State Theater and the Berlin National Opera. Establishing his reputation as a visionary craftsman, Junge accompanied the seminal German film director E.A. Dupont to England in the late 1920s to join the prestigious ranks of British International

  My wife went to Margate last weekend and got me this postcard from Turner Contemporary, as she knew I'd been working on a resource based around Fish and Chips. She was there to see Nile Rodgers and Chic do a gig at Dreamland. The postcard features an instantly recognisable drawing by the illustrator  Olivier Kugler. It shows the global spread of Fish and Chips. It relates to a commission for some art to be placed in 2021. The background: The commission shares everyday stories of migration connected to Kent’s most celebrated high street food. For the ‘Kent Fish & Chips’ Project Kugler and Humphreys have interviewed owners, staff and customers at Fish & Chips shops across Kent. Migration and displacement are central themes. Fish & chips can be traced back to Huguenot and Jewish arrivals in the UK and people from all over the world continue to be central to the farming and fishing industries and the high street shops. Featured Fish & Chip shop owners are: Beach Buoy

"I'm just bull-jiving... It's what we do in Virginia..." There are several musicians who have been part of my life for decades. One of them is Bruce Hornsby. It was 1986 and I was training as a teacher when I bought the first album by Bruce and the Range from a music shop in Hull. The album included the song 'The Way It Is', which was heavily played on the new MTV, which was used to fill late night TV schedules for a while. I first saw him in the late 1980s in Manchester with 'The Range', and it was apparent that he played alternative arrangements of songs, and improvised, as well as being so familiar with the music that he would respond to requests in most shows. Over thirty years later, he still does the same in various formats, including solo and with the 'Noisemakers'. I've seen him as often as I can... his last UK show was at the London Palladium and I was there. A few weeks ago, I went to see him perform at the Royal Festival Hall as

The first single from the new album by Public Service Broadcasting is now out... and it's wonderful... Can't wait until the tour in October.

  Thanks to Alasdair Monteith for a link to a new resource from the FT's Education support: FT for Schools. It has an excellent illustration as well by Darrel Rees. Geography class: Inside the mind of a Nimby https://t.co/Ipfbm3CokH — FT for Schools (@ft4s) July 8, 2024 It's written by Julian Baggini, who wrote a book which was one of the key inspirations for my EverydayGeographies conference theme with his exploration of life in the "most average postcode" in the UK: S66 where I grew up.  This would be good for those studying the 'A' level Changing Places topic. Also good on indigenous connections with landscapes such as rivers in New Zealand and the importance of a sense of place and belonging. I can see myself returning to this one for a number of different topics. Also (re) introduced me to the late Roger Scruton's idea of oikophilia Perhaps the most interesting element of Scruton’s brand of conservatism was his emphasis on the love of home, what he

David Rogers is going to spend the 15th of July on a special fund raising effort. Here's the inspiration for his charity effort. How many times can I get up and down Pen y Fan in 24 hours? David said: "Pen y Fan and Bannau Brycheiniog as well as the Preseli Hills are where I learnt how to navigate and explore the mountains. I became comfortable being uncomfortable in all sorts of weather. I am therefore really excited to return to the area for my next challenge. On the 15th July I will be seeing how many times I can summit Pen y Fan in 24 hours. I’ll be at Love Trails for the weekend, so it made sense to tie the two together. 6.1km 440m Per lap. This is a solo adventure to raise money and awareness for bigmoose and training for the 250km ultra of Why We Run in September this year. How can you help: donate - let’s help save more lives Talk - check in with your friends and family. Don’t judge. Don't give advice. join in - Heckle me via social media or come along for a lap o

 In this National Fieldwork Festival month, it's good to have a new alternative for you in the shape of Salaam Geographia's Urban Fieldwork experience. Link below: https://salaamgeographia.com/2024/06/17/sg-launching-gcse-a-level-urban-fieldwork-experience/ From the link you can access the Google Form to register your interest. Learning walks will take place for students from September 2024 to July 2025. Launching a new fieldwork experience: ‘Unveiling Southall’s Diverse Urban Tapestry‘Secondary schools (GCSE and A Level) welcome to witness community and expand on place and space knowledge. ​ Discover diversity in dynamic places within West London such as Southall, West Ealing and Ealing Broadway.​ Register interest here: https://forms.gle/Ytz2aVczaK1d7FRa9 ​ Dates available in July 2024.

A good piece in a recent Observer on the power of fish and chips.  It's written by Daniel Gray, and I have his new book 'Food of the Cods' Heart of the batter: my lifelong love affair with fish and chips https://t.co/eRTpnvexrD — The Guardian (@guardian) June 2, 2024   Fish and chips are an integral feature of daily life, and British culture. A chippy tea on Friday was an integral part of my life growing up - we were lucky to have an excellent chippy called the XL Fisheries close to where we lived.   Well worth a read...

Last week, I headed down to South London to present once again for the Prince's Teaching Institute. It's always a pleasure to do this. I've spoken in a number of locations including Harrogate and Cambridge previously. It was a really good morning and I enjoyed my time down in Bromley at the Primary Hub meeting for a group of schools - which had also attracted some secondary school teachers. My talk was on mapping for Primary geographers. Here's my slide deck. There was a lot of supporting material, but I hope I got across my message that there is more to mapping than OS sheets and four figure grid references. As Jack Dangermond said in this piece here , "maps are the language of geography".

Macondo is the fictional village which is the location for the main action in Gabriel Garcia Marquez's classic 'One Hundred Years of Solitude'. “Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice.” Now the village of Aracataca , which is the basis for the village is poised for an influx of new tourists as a result of a new Netflix adaptation which is going to be appearing soon.  It will have 16 episodes. This Guardian article explores the impact on Marquez's hometown in Colombia. Some locals feel betrayed that the series was not filmed there. Instead, it was shot in the industrial city of Ibagué, 430 miles to the south. “We’re disappointed that Netflix decided not to film here, but we all know that anyone inspired by the series will have to come to Aracataca, as the heart of Macondo lies here,” said Robinson Mulford, a local high-school teacher.

  This has been getting a lot of coverage... a cultural "sense of place" offering for cultural geographers... Leon Mallett's version of another song, but with plenty of East Anglia references. You can find the full version of the song online.

  The ERAS tour is heading for the UK soon, and there's plenty of geography to be had in exploring the economic and environmental impact of the tour and associated music as well as the interesting cultural implications of the event: the demographics of a typical crowd etc.  The tour is said to have a major impact on an entire country's economy when it comes into town. The first date is next week in Scotland, and it continues through June in Wales and Liverpool for several days, then returns to Wembley Stadium in August. Liverpool is rebranding itself as Taylor Town. The University of Liverpool will host Tay Day, which it describes as a "symposium for fans, students and academics to engage with the cultural phenomenon that is Taylor Swift". It will take place on 12 June and see academics from across Europe speaking on topics such as Swift's place in feminism. It is sold out. I've been putting together some ideas for a while now, and half term is as good a tim