About

I am currently in the third year of doctoral research at University of Warwick; my PhD thesis is The Post-Industrial and Post-Colonial Condition in French literature since 2007. I left school at the age of 16 and trained as a printer, subsequently working in graphic design, advertising and as a musician, developing a passion for French language and culture while touring in France. In my 30s I attended university while working in publishing. More recently I have worked as a teacher, editor and translator. One notable project was the first English translation of cinematographer Georges Méliès’ autobiography.

Research

My research focuses on recent French literature and addresses these questions: how does the working class define itself in post-colonial and -industrial France?; how is this translated in literature?; and how does this relate to republican principles? My contention would be that those who have grown up in this society have no option but to transcend traditional categorisations of class and ethnic identity, and that this has been the catalyst for a distinctively assertive, radical and sometimes antagonistic literature. My starting point is the publication in 2007 of ‘Qui fait la France?’ by Les Indigènes de la République, a collective advocating for a committed literature which gives voice to those hitherto marginalised, both in society and particularly in the literary world, and seeks to re-frame the republican principle. Evidence would suggest that a significant number of recent novelists – predominantly of immigrant origin but unambiguously French – have a contemporary vision for liberté, égalité, fraternité.

Research Interests

• Contemporary French literature

• Political culture

• Representation of social class in cinema and literature

• Linguistics and vernacular translation

• Maghrebi-French literature

• Post-colonial theory in a contemporary context

Teaching

Graduate Teaching Assistant, FR121 The Story of Modern France, 2022-

Publications

• The Lost Autobiography of Georges Méliès (translator). www.georgesmelies.co.uk

Scholarships and Awards

October 2022 — March 2026: Midlands4CitiesLink opens in a new windowLink opens in a new window DTP scholarship (AHRC)

Qualifications

MA with Distinction, French by Research: The Representation of La Banlieue Française in Film and Literature since 1990 (University of Warwick, 2020)

PGCE in Post-Compulsory Education (University of Bedford, 2010)

BA Hons 1st Class, French and Politics (Oxford Brookes University, 2002)