English Department postgraduate named BBC New Generation Thinker 2014

Posted on 27 May 2014

An English Department postgraduate has been named one of ten New Generation Thinkers for 2014 by BBC Radio 3 and the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC).

Sophie Coulombeau

Sophie Coulombeau, a PhD student in the Department of English, was selected from among hundreds of academics who are at the start of their careers and are passionate about communicating modern scholarship to a wider audience.

Researching the relationship between personal naming and identity formation in 18th century English literature, Sophie submitted a proposal for a radio programme about the history of the English practice whereby women adopt their husband’s surnames on marriage - and of women who bucked the trend.

Sophie will now spend a year workingwith Radio 3 presenters and producers to develop her research into broadcasts. She will also have an opportunity to develop her ideas for television, including collaborating with BBC Arts to make short films for BBC Arts Online (www.bbc.co.uk/arts).

Read the full article on the University website.