Department of Archaeology
Ryan John Ellis
Research project
Research Title: Resilient Traces: Investigating the contested heritage significance of recent military colonial legacies – the example of former RAF Changi, Singapore.
Supervisors: Prof. John Schofield Dr Megan Wang (Royal Air Force Museum London).
Summary of research project:
Over 50 years after the Royal Air Force departed, traces of former RAF Changi remain inscribed on the landscape in the form of buildings and street names. The flying field is now Singapore’s major international airport, whilst many associated mementoes and archives survive around the globe. Active social media sites typically document people’s memories of Changi and the attachment they still feel for it. This is also true of hundreds of other former British military establishments, including RAF bases, across the world.
Within the context of prevailing and often contested colonial narratives and discourse, and working with the Royal Air Force Museum London, this project will assess new ways to establish heritage significance of these resilient traces in a postcolonial context. To address these questions, I am using a mixed-methods approach that combines archival research, field survey, and oral histories to assess the heritage significance of these resilient traces.
Funding: Collaborative Doctoral Award with the Royal Air Force Museum London. This work was supported by the Arts & Humanities Research Council (grant number AH/R012733/1) through the White Rose College of the Arts & Humanities.
Profile
Prior to joining the Department of Archaeology at the University of York, I worked as the Head of Storytelling at the Royal Signals Museum. Situated alongside the Royal School of Signals at Blandford Camp in Dorset, the Museum traces the complex history of the British Army’s Royal Corps of Signals from its origins in the Royal Engineers to the present age of sophisticated digital warfare.
In this role, I captured more than 200 hours of oral history testimony. My interviews span a wide range of topics, from the daring exploits of the Special Operations Executive in the Second World War to the 2021 emergency Non-combatant Evacuation Operation from Afghanistan. I was also responsible for spearheading the organisation’s innovative partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies via Bloomberg Connects. In 2024, in recognition of this output, I featured on the inaugural BBC History Extra ‘30 under 30’ list.
Enthusiastic about safeguarding and promoting Cold War history and heritage, I currently serve as Vice Chair of The Cold War Network. The Cold War Network CIC is a UK-based platform that facilitates collaboration and knowledge exchange among individuals and organisations with an interest in the Cold War era. This includes those who own, manage, or curate a Cold War site or collection or engage in related research. It is responsible for organising National Cold War Heritage Week, presently funded by the National Lottery Community Fund.
I am also a member of the Youth Advisory Board at the National Museum of the Royal Navy and attend the organisation’s Collections, Research, Learning and Access Committee. We help support diversity of perspective within strategy development and provide guidance on how the Museum can engage with all communities to deliver its objectives.
Before my career in heritage, I spent two years as a parliamentary staffer at the Senedd Cymru/Welsh Parliament in Cardiff. I graduated from Swansea University with a BA (Hons) History and Politics and a MA Modern History. I also hold a MSc Museum Studies from the University of Leicester.
Further information and social media links can be found at www.ryanjohnellis.com.
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