Dianne Murphy 📚🇳🇿🇮🇪

Co-Founder & Programme Designer @ThinkReadHQ | Intervention is only successful if students catch up completely | @IFERIorg AdGp | Instructivist | DI fan | Alfie

[Dianne Murphy 📚🇳🇿🇮🇪 @ThinkReadTweet]

Following on from our @researchEDHome presentation (https://t.co/Wb5dEDEFGx) The Bridge Over the Reading Gap, we have written a series of blog posts to answer the questions we didn’t have time to answer #researchED #ThinkingReading 👇🏻

[Dianne Murphy 📚🇳🇿🇮🇪 @ThinkReadTweet]

Many in the reading & @researchED1 communities will be sad to hear of Geraldine’s passing. She was respected, smart & knowledgeable - readily engaging in conversations about the advancement of the science of reading. I always found her very encouraging and amazingly constant. RIP

[Reading Reform Foundation @RRForg]

Geraldine Carter died on 17 May, aged 87. Many will remember her as kind, generous, wise, funny, and always ready with insight, encouragement or challenge. (1/5)

[Historic Vids @historyinmemes]

One of the most touching photographs from more than 73 years together shows Prince Philip in 2003 dressed in a Queen’s Guard uniform. As Queen Elizabeth II walked past him, she burst into laughter at the sight.

This photograph was taken during a ceremonial inspection at Windsor Castle in 2003, when Prince Philip surprised Queen Elizabeth II by appearing in the uniform of the Grenadier Guards as part of the regiment’s anniversary celebrations. As the Queen walked past him during the event, she reportedly burst into laughter at the unexpected sight of her husband standing rigidly in full ceremonial dress, complete with the towering bearskin hat. The image quickly became one of the most beloved candid royal photographs because it revealed a rare moment of humor and warmth within a relationship usually seen through the lens of strict public formality.

By the time the photograph was taken, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip had already been married for more than 55 years, eventually reaching a historic 73-year marriage before Philip’s death in 2021. Royal biographers often noted that Philip was one of the few people capable of making the Queen genuinely laugh in public, and the photograph has endured because it captures that side of their relationship so naturally. Beyond the uniforms, ceremonies, and traditions tied to the monarchy, the moment reminds people that their bond was built not only on duty, but also on companionship, teasing, and a lifetime of shared familiarity.

[🎸 Rock History 🎸 @historyrock_]

The Rolling Stones' legendary guitarist Ronnie Wood is celebrating his 79th birthday today 🎂🎸

[🌸🎵 Beautiful Melody 🎶💖 @Ducnghia16]

Nobody who never listened to Joan Baez before is prepared for that voice. Joan's voice is so incredibly clear and soft, yet it hits you like a hammer when you hear it for the first time. It still gives me goosebumps after all these years.

Joan Baez - 500 Miles (1965)

[Natasha Porter OBE @NPorter_]

Kids who end up in prison come from a small number of hyper-local areas. It’s a no brainer that more work should be done in these areas to work out what exactly is wrong and how to fix it.
Simultaneously we need to rethink YOIs, starting with how we train and support officers.

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

In 1970, a 23-year-old physics student at Imperial College London found himself at a life-altering crossroads.

Brian May was deep into his doctoral research on cosmic dust—specifically the zodiacal dust cloud, the tiny particles that drift through the solar system and scatter sunlight. His PhD was well underway, and a promising academic career in astrophysics lay ahead.

But there was another path calling him.

May was also the lead guitarist of a newly signed rock band named Queen. With a record deal secured and tours on the horizon, the band’s momentum was building fast. Faced with an impossible choice between the guitar and the telescope, May made his decision: he paused his studies and bet everything on music.

Queen’s ascent was meteoric. By the mid-1970s, they had become a global phenomenon. Timeless anthems like “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “We Will Rock You” exploded onto the charts, while May’s iconic homemade guitar, the Red Special, helped define the band’s legendary sound. Stadiums sold out worldwide, and millions of albums flew off the shelves.

Yet throughout his rock stardom, May never fully let go of his scientific passion. Even at the height of Queen’s fame, he stayed connected to astrophysics—reading journals, attending lectures when possible, and maintaining contact with his former supervisor, Professor Michael Rowan-Robinson, who had once told him: “You can always come back and finish.”

Thirty-six years after stepping away, in 2006, May decided the time had finally come. He reached out to Rowan-Robinson, and together they revived the long-dormant project. Though the field had moved forward and his original data needed updating, his early observations still held real scientific value.

Balancing his ongoing music career with late-night research sessions, May updated his work, incorporated new findings, and refined his analysis. In 2007, at the age of 60, Imperial College London officially awarded him a PhD in astrophysics—not an honorary title, but one earned through rigorous research and peer review.

Dr. Brian May had finally completed what he started more than three decades earlier.

His journey is a powerful reminder that passion has no expiration date. Whether on stage under stadium lights or studying the dust between the planets, Brian May proved it’s never too late to finish what you began.

[Dianne Murphy 📚🇳🇿🇮🇪 @ThinkReadTweet]

@EmSilverwood91 Same with A. Maybe even older. Blonde and bald ☺️

[Dianne Murphy 📚🇳🇿🇮🇪 @ThinkReadTweet]

@EmSilverwood91 Such a lovely photo, Em 💕 Captures such a lot - an adoring mum, a contented baby.

And he was a baldy baby! Love baldy babies. #mumtotwobaldies

And The Dumper is such a loser. Look what he missed out on 🙄 You and F xx

[Scotland's Stories - Graeme @StoryScotland]

Have you ever heard the phrase "Ne'er cast a cloot till May is oot"?

Even if you have, it might not mean what you think.

It's an old Scottish saying that pops up loads this time of year on social media, although last year, a few folk got confused.

[Thinking Reading @ThinkReadHQ]

The scale of the problem of students leaving secondary school unable to read is an unnecessary tragedy. We can do something about the students who can’t yet read. They do not have to be outside, looking in, unable to access the curriculum. It's never too late and we can help.

[Thinking Reading @ThinkReadHQ]

Teaching reading effectively is one of the cheapest, most useful things we can do as a society. It is central to social justice and it is life changing. We can help.

[Dianne Murphy 📚🇳🇿🇮🇪 @ThinkReadTweet]

It’s so frustrating that they can fly on a flight out of the UK but not inbound 🤷🏼‍♀️

[Dianne Murphy 📚🇳🇿🇮🇪 @ThinkReadTweet]

Please sign this petition 👇🏼

Allow small pets to travel in the cabin on flights entering the UK.

Allow airlines to offer an in-cabin travel option for small, fully documented pets entering the UK, in line with international standards for other countries. https://t.co/SQwhLIGmQU

[Thinking Reading @ThinkReadHQ]

Students with significant reading problems at secondary school are more likely to be:

Agitated
Frustrated
Aggressive
Withdrawn
Anxious
Depressed

Fix the reading and see the changes: better behaviour, improved self-esteem, better attendance, exam ready & confident.

[Thinking Reading @ThinkReadHQ]

We provide a 3 year package of ongoing support, guidance & training after the programme is implemented, to ensure that Thinking Reading is embedded, operating effectively & remains sustainable even where there is staff turnover. This includes access to our training platform, webinars, research articles, & email & telephone support.

[Alex Quigley @AlexJQuigley]

🎉 BOOK GIVEAWAY 🎉

To celebrate the successful publication of ‘Literacy Essentials for every Teacher’ I’m giving away 3 copies on my social media platforms (LinkedIn, X & Facebook).

Simply Like and/or comment in the thread to be enter.

I’ll be drawing winners l Sun 18th May

[Thinking Reading @ThinkReadHQ]

Low attainment is a function of schooling, not ‘lack of ability’. 

Read more in our blog ‘Six Ways to Help Struggling Readers in Your Classroom’ https://t.co/Z90Hf0CSS7 (5 min read).

[Thinking Reading @ThinkReadHQ]

Data is collected during every Thinking Reading lesson, so it's easy to calculate the average reading gains per lesson, and the ratio gain (RG) of progression for every month in the programme.  Some case studies..

[Mario Nawfal @MarioNawfal]

In 1851, physicist Léon Foucault hung a pendulum from the ceiling of the Panthéon in Paris and proved the Earth was rotating, just by watching it swing.

No satellites or computers needed. Just a weight on a wire.