Biography:
I was born in the depths of the Cold War (1954)a late product of the post-war baby boom. My family,on my father's side were herring fishermen, who by 1914 had achieved a measure of prosperity, as a result of the Herring boom. I horrified my grandfather by deciding to follow a career in teaching, after briefly nursing a belief that I might join the Merchant Navy as a Radio Officer. I graduated in 1976 from the University of East Anglia, with a 2.1 in History with English Lit. I then secured a PGCE from Phillipa Fawcett College of Education, situated in genteel Streatham, just up the road from Brixton. To my great surprise I immediately secured a teaching post in my home county of Suffolk. I spent 8 years pushing back the boundaries of ignorance in South Suffolk, after which I became, after
more...I was born in the depths of the Cold War (1954)a late product of the post-war baby boom. My family,on my father's side were herring fishermen, who by 1914 had achieved a measure of prosperity, as a result of the Herring boom. I horrified my grandfather by deciding to follow a career in teaching, after briefly nursing a belief that I might join the Merchant Navy as a Radio Officer. I graduated in 1976 from the University of East Anglia, with a 2.1 in History with English Lit. I then secured a PGCE from Phillipa Fawcett College of Education, situated in genteel Streatham, just up the road from Brixton. To my great surprise I immediately secured a teaching post in my home county of Suffolk. I spent 8 years pushing back the boundaries of ignorance in South Suffolk, after which I became, after being approached by a friend, a Producer/Researcher for an independent film company, Praxis films, making 3 documentaries screened on Channel 4, two dealing with the Fishing Industry in Grimsby, and one dealing with Hull Dockers. This was an exciting time in my life, but as the competition for Channel 4 commissions intensified, and Praxis began to fill in by making Promotional Films for Scunthorpe Council - quite a challenge I bailed out and entered Higher Education. The great thing about my media experience, was that it hugely expanded my research skills, including stints at Companies House, and the collection of 50+ oral interviews (of up to 2 hours) for the fishing programmes.
Whilst still a teacher I had been an active member of the East Anglian History workshop,, based at the University of Essex, and had began a research degree at UEA. The latter was still incomplete 10 years after the initial registration, quite common in those halcyon days. The need for alternative employment led me to opt for the quick completion of an MPhil, shortly after my arrival at Edge Hill in 1990. From then on I developed an interest in Historiography to complement my interest in the 1930s - the subject of my MPhil. was: Revolutionary Socialism to Radical Patriotism, the British Labour Left 1931 1945. The interest in the 1930s was largely the product of a childhood watching films from the period on Sunday afternoons, as a consequence of which I developed a love for the clothing of the time, and spent many weekend at Brick Lane market in the East End (of London) searching for period clothes. I bought a great suit from an old Jewish trader who, when I asked what size it was told me 'It's your size'. So, this is me....enjoy....or not.
