Dr Ursula Clayton

Dr Ursula Clayton is Assistant Professor (Teaching-focussed) in Early Modern and Shakespeare Studies in the Department of English and Comparative Literary Studies, and teaches on the English and Comparative Literary Studies program. Ursula was awarded a Warwick Award for Teaching Excellence and a Butterworth Award in 2021, and became a WIHEA Fellow in 2022.

Research Interests

My research explores the figure of the parasite in Shakespeare and early modern culture, tracing how ideas of parasitism took shape across literary, scientific, and socio-political discourses. I am completing my first monograph on this work. Alongside this, I focus on widening access to Higher Education for people affected by forced migration. Grounded in social justice, my research shows how universities can design inclusive, locally responsive interventions—such as innovative pathway courses centred on Shakespeare Studies—that create meaningful and scalable change for displaced learners.

Teaching and Supervision

In 2025/6, I will convene the 'Single-Text Deep Dive Study: Hamlet' module, as well as the ECLS Department’s 'Academic Enrichment' programme. I co-convene 'Shakespeare and Early Modern Dramatists' with Prof. Paul Botley and teach 'Shakespeare: Text and Performance, Now and Then' with Dr. Steve Purcell.

I welcome supervision inquiries from postgraduate students working in Shakespeare Studies or on pedagogical research relating to refugees and asylum seekers.