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In which there are the Two Towers or three towers all towering over Tolkien's boyhood
- The chimney at Edgbaston Waterworks, built 1862, was probably partly a model for Tolkien's Minas Ithil (Tower of the Moon, later Minas Morgul). The chimney was designed to look like the bell towers of renaissance Italy, which were most strongly influenced by Islamic architecture in Spain and West Asia and North Africa. To be even more specific, ( Read more... ) -
In which the arts funding that is about to die, salutes you
- A multilingual poetry speaking-tube called the Poetry Periscope, which will also be visiting Birmingham and Durham.
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In which there are Shakespeare in Arabic calligraphy and a Flaneurs June challenge walk
- From the Well Said art exhibition at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-Upon Avon. This work is artist Soraya Syed's interpretation of Henry IV Part Two, Act 4, Scene 5, in Arabic calligraphy on an English-style crown that is lit to cast a far-reaching shadow. Ironic that the female Islamic calligrapher was given a quote about the ( Read more... ) -
In which there are various status quos and remixes thereof
- Quote of the [current reading]: Al Ewing, current writer of superhero comics The Ultimates amongst other notable work (New Avengers, 2000AD &c), "Science and exploration feels like something very positive, a general good - it helps mitigate some of those moral concerns. I think an emphasis on expanding knowledge makes the team a lot more ( Read more... ) -
In which there are a mobile library, and whirling dervishes
- Village women reading, with Mustafa Güzelgöz and his mobile library, Turkey, 1940s-60s.
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In which Muslim women have always been muhaddithat - scholars of the Hadith (Black History Month)
[Full text of article posted below for archiving purposes ( Read more... ) -
In which I've got them on my list
The following is a basic list, in no particular order, of Islamophobic arsehaberdashery which will as-close-to-automatically-as-it's-possible-to-get remove you from my inner List of People Whose Inane Chatter I Will Barely Tolerate (O HAI, MI BBs!!1!!) and add you to the more general list of people who I will merely cut ( Read more... )
