Uninvited guests? Deploy the Kraken.
Tea must go on.”
Thanks to Raquel Burson-Silies for your cool suggestion.
Tag: Tea Page 1 of 2
The Great British Steam Off – where contestants compete to create unique contraptions and delicacies based on a steampunk sub-genre each week, judged by Lady Leith of Moreton-in-Marsh, and Viscount Hollywood of Smarton, Kent. The finalists slog it out in a tea duelling grand finale. The winner receives a round-the-world trip in the royal zeppelin.
The official “The Great British Steam-Off” poster!
No points given for noticing the unintentional typos.
Another take from our erlia meme, inspired by our Instagram follower @tales_of_the_chamaeleon.
“Choux in 8 minutes? Deploy the crème cephalopod!”
Nothing says elegance like precision-frothed vanilla custard under pressure.
This one is dedicated to Jill Rebryna; thanks for your suggestions.
Someone called it “AI crap.”
We called it an opportunity to sip tea in front of a collapsing timeline.
Elegance is the only reasonable response to digital outrage.
This post was assisted by Automaton Improvisation. Blame any errors on the temporal interference.
Facebook, 15th May 2025.
📜 Meme Explanation:
This meme is a witty response to the criticism often aimed at AI-generated art, in this case labelled dismissively as “AI crap.” Rather than engage in a defensive or angry rebuttal, the image portrays a refined Victorian gentleman in full steampunk regalia — top hat, goggles, and all — sipping tea with complete composure as lightning crackles and gears float in the collapsing fabric of time.
The caption “Someone commented: ‘AI crap’ — so naturally, I wore my finest temporal composure. Steampunk forever.” reframes the insult into an opportunity for dramatic elegance, turning the comment into a moment of theatrical defiance. The “finest temporal composure” line humorously suggests that, when time itself unravels (whether literally or in the heated arguments of the internet), the best thing one can do is remain poised, stylish, and unapologetically steampunk. It’s part of a larger trend in the steampunk community of meeting modern absurdity with anachronistic grace.
The Great Mint Tea Shortage!
Suspect is reportedly calm on the outside but screaming internally.
Further investigation required. Scone integrity may also be compromised.
Thanks to Daniel Glenn Lady for your inspiration.
This meme was created using lots of imagination from multiple human donors and a little Automaton Improvisation.
Facebook, 14th May 2025.
In this sepia-toned dispatch titled “Case #14B: The Great Mint Tea Shortage”, we bear witness to a moment of sheer steampunk crisis: a gentleman, visibly shaken, stares in horror at his teacup. The reason? No mint. Just a steaming vessel of disappointment.
The elaborate piping and brass kettle in the background hint at a complex tea-brewing system — now likely compromised. A watchful raven looks on, as if aware that this minor inconvenience may spiral into full-scale emotional ruin. After all, in the steampunk world, tea is more than a beverage — it’s the engine of civilisation.
The meme plays on the genre’s love of elevating the mundane to the melodramatic. Mint tea, often associated with calm and clarity, becomes the symbol of stability here — and its absence signals that something has gone terribly wrong.
Framed as “Case #14B”, this image introduces a delightfully absurd bureaucratic system for cataloguing minor catastrophes. It suggests there’s a whole archive of ridiculous crises still to be uncovered — a format ripe for expansion.
Whether read as a commentary on overreaction, an ode to herbal blends, or simply a love letter to overcomplicated beverage preparation, this meme resonates with the tea-loving time traveller in us all.
Genuinely chuffed — and maybe slightly overwhelmed — by how much love these steampunk memes have been getting!
You’ve turned my odd little hobby into a full-fledged timeline tangle.
So let’s make it official:
What chaos shall we illustrate next?
Drop your ideas, scenes, or phrases below
(Bonus points if they involve ravens, tea, or spontaneous combustion.)
This creation comes to you out of pure imagination with a little help from some very polite machines.
Facebook, 14th May 2025.
This sepia-toned image, titled “Meme Investigation Ongoing. Suspects: You Lot.”, is both a meta-moment and a tribute to the ever-growing community around your steampunk meme universe.
In the scene, a dignified gentleman — complete with top hat, pince-nez, and teacup — sits in a leather chair, gazing thoughtfully at a wall filled with past meme posters. Among them are familiar favourites like “Time Rift? Again?”, “Oh Dear,” and “Keep Calm and Blame It on Time Travel.” This parody of a detective’s case board reimagines meme creation as a kind of ongoing chrono-conspiracy — with you, the viewer, clearly implicated in the digital mischief.
The humour plays on the trope of the “meme detective” while affectionately acknowledging the audience’s role in the chaos. It’s a fourth-wall-breaking wink that invites further interaction. The caption on Facebook leans into that sentiment, recognising the audience not just as passive viewers but as co-conspirators in an expanding timeline tangle of steampunk absurdity.
By visually referencing earlier memes, this piece also functions as a self-aware milestone — marking the moment when your fictional memeverse begins to loop in on itself. It’s both an inside joke and a call to action: suggest more nonsense. Tea is optional, but strongly encouraged.
Just another perfectly reasonable morning commute through Parallel Steampunk London.
Steam-powered buses hiss down cobbled lanes, conductors look alarmingly composed, and no one can quite remember where the fog ends and the timetable begins.
Fuelled by tea. Guided by fog.
A big thanks to David Radlett for suggesting the bus.
Facebook 7th August 2025.
Observed anomaly:
The transport system appears fully operational — if mildly whimsical. Steam-powered buses rumble down cobbled lanes. Conductors maintain an air of severe professionalism. Goggles are issued but not explained. Timetables remain theoretical.
The fog appears sentient.
Meme context:
This image was created in response to a reader comment on the post:
“You wake up in a parallel steampunk London — what’s the first thing you notice?”
Their answer:
“The steam-powered buses with conductors. Possibly goats — maybe even the descendants of our late pet pygmy goats, Patsy, Purdy and Edgar.”
We opted to explore a slightly more conventional version of that reality. Goats may yet arrive.
The slogan “Fuelled by tea. Guided by fog.” nods to two essential British exports: determination and utter confusion. It’s a wry summary of steampunk logistics — where the engine may sputter, but the vibe stays impeccable.
When the signal fails, summon the feathered broadband. Reliable, reusable, and never asks for a password.
“Lost all communications? Post a raven. Sip something restorative.”
Facebook, 12th May 2025.
This meme playfully combines steampunk aesthetics with modern digital woes — specifically, losing internet or mobile signal.
In the image, a well-dressed Victorian gentleman sips tea calmly while a pigeon (styled as a stand-in for a raven) perches nearby with a scroll. In the background, a sparking, gear-filled communication contraption has clearly failed. The top text asks, “Lost all communications?”, and the bottom advises: “Post a raven. Sip something restorative.”
The joke hinges on the absurd juxtaposition of 19th-century solutions to 21st-century problems. When your high-tech device fails — a relatable modern frustration — the suggestion is to revert to a whimsical steampunk alternative: sending a message via bird (like a raven or pigeon), and calmly drinking tea.
The accompanying Facebook caption drives the humour further:
“When the signal fails, summon the feathered broadband.
Reliable, reusable, and never asks for a password.”
This line mocks our dependence on Wi-Fi and passwords, suggesting instead a feathered creature with perfect uptime and zero digital barriers. It pokes fun at both modern connectivity issues and Victorian-era eccentricity — the very essence of steampunk humour.
🧭 Meme Entry: Sabotage on Deck Three?
Facebook Caption: One problem at a time. Finish your biscuit.
Believe it or not, AI helped with this sketch without any artisans being harmed.
First posted 6th May 2025.
🖼️ Image Description:
In a richly detailed, Victorian-style etched illustration, a woman in late 19th-century attire stands with an air of calm resolve, holding a delicate teacup and a biscuit mid-dunk. She wears a high-necked dress with intricate embroidery and a pendant watch on a chain. Her expression is completely composed — almost bored.
Behind her, the airship’s mechanical interior has erupted into chaos. A tangle of thick, writhing pipes and cables has exploded in sparks, clearly suggesting sabotage or malfunction. Despite this dramatic event, the woman remains unfazed, fully focused on the critical matter of tea and biscuits.
Text at the top reads: “Sabotage on Deck Three?”
Below: “One problem at a time. Finish your biscuit.”
Hashtags at the bottom include: #airshiplife #steampunghumor #biscuitfirst #shipboardmanners
🧐 Meme Explanation:
This meme is a celebration of steampunk stoicism and utterly misplaced priorities — in the best way possible.
Faced with what appears to be a catastrophic mechanical failure aboard an airship, our character chooses calm, civility, and biscuit protocol over panic. The phrase “One problem at a time” underscores the absurd but relatable sentiment: yes, sabotage is happening — but first, the tea ritual must be completed.
Like earlier entries in the series, this image exaggerates British manners to the point of parody, poking fun at the cultural impulse to remain composed even in the most ridiculous of emergencies. It also subtly satirises modern burnout culture — where crises pile up, yet we’re still told to “stay calm and carry on”… or at least finish our snack.
The disclaimer “AI helped with this sketch without any artisans being harmed” playfully acknowledges the AI-generated nature of the artwork, reinforcing the Automaton Improvisation aesthetic that runs throughout this meme series.
🕰️ Meme Entry: Spontaneous Time Rift?
Original post date: 5th May 2025
Facebook caption: Spontaneous Time Rift? Terribly inconvenient. Sip faster.
🖼️ Image Description:
A finely dressed Victorian gentleman sits in a poised yet unbothered manner, holding a delicate teacup mid-sip. Behind him, an intricately etched swirl of temporal chaos unfolds — pocket watches spiral through the air, architectural elements twist impossibly, and streams of time coil like smoke. Despite the obvious vortex of time unravelling in the background, the man remains entirely composed, focusing solely on his tea.
The artwork is rendered in a richly detailed Victorian illustration style, with sepia tones enhancing its antiquated charm. The text at the top reads “Spontaneous Time Rift?” while the caption at the bottom deadpans: “Terribly inconvenient. Sip faster.”
🧭 Meme Explanation:
This was one of the earliest entries in what would later evolve into the Captain’s Log meme series — though at the time, there was no Jenkins, no official log, just an absurd scenario handled with excessive British decorum.
The humour lies in the calmly exaggerated understatement. Faced with a spontaneous rupture in the very fabric of time — something that should elicit panic — the gentleman’s only concern is maintaining his tea ritual. The phrase “Sip faster” pokes fun at a stiff-upper-lip attitude in the face of utter disaster, a recurring theme in steampunk and British satire.
It set the tone for future memes: refined individuals responding to bizarre catastrophes with impeccable manners and mildly annoyed expressions. A visual and textual blueprint for the kind of absurd resilience that would soon define life aboard the airship.
Original post.
Always finish your tea…
Believe it or not, AI helped with this sketch without any artisans being harmed
Facebook 29th April 2025.
This one went viral, clocking up a thousand reactions.
This meme humorously juxtaposes British composure with a dramatic scene. The central figure is a well-dressed gentleman with a moustache and goggles, calmly holding a teacup while a large airship behind him is on fire and crashing. The detailed, old-fashioned art style adds to the absurdity of the situation, emphasising his nonchalant demeanour.
The text plays on British stereotypes, with the top line asking, “PANIC? IN THIS OUTFIT?” and the bottom line insisting, “ABSOLUTELY NOT. FINISH YOUR TEA.” The humour lies in the extreme composure of the man amidst chaos, making it relatable to those who strive to maintain normalcy in stressful situations. Overall, it highlights a dry, understated humour through the contrasting reactions to disaster.