Rob Holmes

Birder & Photographer

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

@PeterJRansome @SWTCarltonMarsh Thanks and very good! As they departed overnight, I suspect they had a Manic Monday powering north towards the Siberian tundra.

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

Wade like an Egyptian. This Curlew Sandpiper duo stopped off at @SWTCarltonMarsh yesterday evening en route to breeding grounds in the Taimyr Peninsula, northern Siberia, some 2,700 miles away. A rare treat to see them coming into their breeding finery locally.

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

Bar-tailed Godwit, the ultimate long-haul migrant. A flock of Barwits on a layover on coastal turf today were busy refueling on leatherjackets in preparation for a flight to high Arctic breeding grounds.

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

Thanks to those who re-tweeted my query. I'm pleased to report that Antonio, ANDURIÑA ringing group coordinator, has confirmed it was ringed in Galicia, NW Spain 🇪🇸. Antonio is preparing its life history which I'll share here in due course.

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

Can twitter birding sleuths do your thing? Spotted this c-r Common Sand at Covehithe, Suffolk, over the weekend. Metal ring on left tibia, too. I've perused https://t.co/a1lAHm9kjV and made contact with a Spanish scheme that uses the combination. Has anyone seen this bird before?

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

Whimbrel much in evidence this weekend en route to Scandinavian breeding grounds.

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

Wonderful to meet the inspiring @gilesduley today and briefly talk photography!

[Giles Duley @gilesduley]

Beyond excited to share this news. Olive is coming to London next week!
In over 20 years of documenting the impact of conflict no story has left me as moved or inspired as Olive’s❤️

London Sep 13th @frontlineclub

@GISH @RandomActsOrg @mishacollins

https://t.co/0XSmYNoA9b

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

@BLI_Jim Thanks Jim! Ken's polari delivery in Round The Horne is an innuendo masterclass.

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

“I can't stand innuendo. If I see one in a script, I whip it out immediately.”
The late, great Kenneth Williams.

[Michael Warburton @For_Film_Fans]

KENNETH WILLIAMS — who left us 38yrs ago today — interviewed on location in Snowdonia during filming of ‘Carry On Up the Khyber’ (1968).

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

@PeterJRansome Superb, Peter!

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

Easter brought the first wave of Willow Warblers, Blackcaps, Sand Martins and this snazzy Wheatear.

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

After a lean few years, the local Barn Owls are hunting well on the marshes at dusk.

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

Artemis II is a go for the moon!
Godspeed to the @NASAArtemis astronauts.
#ArtemisII #NASA

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

Fortunate to be driving through the Blyth Valley this morning just as the White-tailed Sea Eagle circled over towards Reydon. Alas, no photo, but here's one taken in Georgia in February.

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

G is for Goshawk #TheBrecks

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

A Major D Minor day. Wonderful to watch this male Lesser Spotted Woodpecker performing its butterfly-like display flight on a beautiful frosty morning in The Brecks.

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

.@DrBrianMay's hauntingly beautiful guitar solo in These Are The Days Of Our Lives is the perfect coda to Freddie's life and career #Queen
https://t.co/5GEzALEyXu

[A Queen Of Magic @aqueenofmagic]

The Final Four Seconds. By May 1991, the rumors about Freddie Mercury’s health were appearing in tabloids every day, but the band maintained a strict wall of silence. In reality, Freddie was fading. He was in constant pain, suffering from Kaposi's sarcoma, and his foot was in such bad condition that he could barely walk. Yet, he insisted on filming one last music video for the song "These Are the Days of Our Lives."

The shoot was a logistical nightmare designed entirely around Freddie’s frailty. He refused to let the world see him looking sick, so the directors shot the video in black and white to mask his pale complexion and the lesions on his skin. He had to spend hours in the makeup chair, and the shoot was done in short bursts because he only had the energy to perform for a few minutes at a time. The usually energetic showman, who once ran across stadiums, was now forced to stand mostly still, using subtle hand gestures to convey the emotion of the song.

The lyrics, written by Roger Taylor about his own children, took on a heartbreaking new meaning coming from Freddie: "Those were the days of our lives / The bad things in life were so few." But the defining moment comes at the very end of the video. As the song fades out, Freddie looks down for a moment, then raises his head to look directly into the camera lens—and by extension, into the eyes of his fans. He offers a soft, genuine smile, whispers the words, "I still love you," and snaps his fingers. Then, he walks out of the frame. It was the last time he was ever captured on film. He knew he was saying goodbye, and he chose to do it with a message of love, not self-pity.

#FreddieMercury #Queen

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

@CantleySteve 6.0E,2.5N 😎

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

Caucasian Lynx stalking East Caucasian Tur in the Greater Caucasus, Georgia.

[Rob Holmes @RobHolmes77]

Hawfinch, Dedoplistskaro, eastern Georgia. Wonderful to spend time listening and watching a foraging flock of this charismatic chunky finch.