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Brian Groom

@GroomB

Ex-Financial Times Assistant Editor. Ex-editor Scotland on Sunday. Author of 'These Isles', 'Northerners: A History' and 'Made in Manchester'.

 Saddleworth
Joined March 2010
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Photo by Brian Groom (@GroomB)Photo by Brian Groom (@GroomB)Photo by Brian Groom (@GroomB)Photo by Brian Groom (@GroomB)Photo by Brian Groom (@GroomB)Photo by Brian Groom (@GroomB)Photo by Brian Groom (@GroomB)Photo by Brian Groom (@GroomB)Photo by Brian Groom (@GroomB)Photo by Brian Groom (@GroomB)
OUT NOW: 'These Isles: A People's History of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales' (@HarperNorthUK). Previous books 'Northerners: A History' (2022), 'Made in Manchester: A People's History of the City That Shaped the Modern World' (2024).
Image from Brian Groom (@GroomB)
Image from Brian Groom (@GroomB)
Image from Brian Groom (@GroomB)
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The Haunt, 1969, by L.S. Lowry (The Lowry).
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I saw Lowry once, c.1969, sitting on a bench outside Manchester Town Hall with a brown paper parcel on his knee.
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Signed lots of copies of 'These Isles: A People's History of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales' at Imperial War Museum North in the summer.
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OBR chart on real household disposable income growth over the decades. Just wow
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Two boys on a doorstep, Kilkenny, south-east Ireland, 1965, photo by Edwin Smith, English photographer (1912-71).
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Boxer Len Johnson, barred from contesting the British title because of the colour of his skin, set to become the first black person honoured with a statue in Manchester. bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c6jd…
Len Johnson: Site revealed for Manchester boxing statue

Len Johnson: Site revealed for Manchester boxing statue

Manchester could get its first Black city-centre statue after years of campaigning.

bbc.co.uk
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'These Isles' is 40% off the cover price today in HarperCollins' Halloween sale, using code SPOOKY40 at checkout. harpercollins.co.uk/products…
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Figures on the Seashore, painting by John Duncan Fergusson, 1874-1961, Scottish colourist (Perth and Kinross Council).
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Brian Groom retweeted
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Brian Groom@GroomBFeb 25
THESE ISLES: Sophia Jex-Blake (1840-1912), physician, teacher and feminist, led the pioneering ‘Edinburgh Seven’, the first women admitted to study medicine in the UK. 1/9
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Brian Groom@GroomBOct 24
More reader comments on THESE ISLES: 'This is a brilliant read folks .. much recommended.' 'A great book.' 'I have all three books and have found them interesting informative and entertaining.'
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Susie Dent
@susie_dent31 Oct 2024
Still one of my favourite stories.
Susie Dent (@susie_dent) profile pictureSusie Dent
@susie_dent31 Oct 2017
The ‘h’ in ‘ghost‘ is a historical hiccup. William Caxton, having first practised his trade in Flanders, brought Flemish typesetters back to England to help set up his printing press - they lobbed an ‘h’ into English ‘gost’ because their own native word was ‘gheest’.
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Brian Groom@GroomB31 Oct 2021
The Haunt, 1969, by L.S. Lowry (The Lowry).
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Brian Groom@GroomB31 Oct 2023
Byker, Newcastle upon Tyne, 1970s, by Sirkka-Liisa Konttinen.
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Brian Groom@GroomB31 Oct 2023
Pit brow lasses, or coal mine surface workers, in Wigan, Lancashire, 19th century.
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Brian Groom@GroomB31 Oct 2024
Sefton Park, by Liverpool photographer Anita Smith.
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Brian Groom@GroomB31 Oct 2023
Figures in a Northern Town, by Allen Tortice (b.1948).
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Brian Groom@GroomB31 Oct 2025
Manchester, 1977, photo by John Bulmer.
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Finlay McLaren@fin_lay24Oct 30
For those not on Facebook: Brian Blessed’s tribute to Sir Patrick Stewart.
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How much do you really know about Scotland? Join leading historian Murray Pittock and acclaimed author Brian Groom for a fascinating journey through Scotland's history, identity and nationhood. Thursday 19th November, 6.30pm. Tickets £12. Book now: standrewsbookfestival.org
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Brian Groom@GroomBAug 7
My books 'These Isles', 'Made in Manchester' and 'Northerners: A History' all lined up for Father's Day in June at the excellent Waterstones Oldham.
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Starlings coming home to roost under Aberystwyth pier, Wales, 2017, photo by Barbara Fuller.
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