Departmental news

The Department of History is co-hosting the event "Affirming the History of African and Caribbean People in Britain: Hakim Adi and A. S. Francis in Conversation", 31 October 2023, 13.00-14.30pm, in person at the University of Warwick.

Prof. Hakim Adi is an award-winning historian. He was the first historian of African heritage to become a professor of history in Britain when he was appointed Professor of the History of Africa and the African Diaspora at the University of Chichester in 2015. In 2018 he launched the world’s first online MRes in the History of Africa and the African Diaspora which trained many students including six currently engaged in PhD research. His latest publication is Africa and Caribbean People in Britain: A History (Allen Lane, 2023) which was shortlisted for the prestigious Wolfson History Prize in September 2023.

A.S. Francis is a PhD student at the University of Chichester, researching women’s involvements in Britain’s Black radical organisations during the 1960s-1980s, and the development of a Black women’s movement. In addition to this PhD research, Francis has recently published Gerlin Bean: Mother of the Movement (Lawrence Wishart 2023), celebrating the longstanding and far-reaching activism of Gerlin Bean. Francis is also a consultant to the Young Historians Project, member of the History Matters collective and co-founder of the History Matters Journal.

The next PhD Open Days will take place on Wednesday 25 October (virtual) and Wednesday 8 November (in-person) at the Department of Statistics, University of Warwick. Register here

WMG’s Cyber Security undergraduate degree has received recognition for its cutting-edge education after receiving full certification from the UK Government’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

The BSc Cyber Security at the University of Warwick offers a strong foundation in cyber security principles and practical skills, allowing graduates to make meaningful contributions in organisations by safeguarding sensitive information and defending against cyberattacks.

The course is one of only nine fully-certified undergraduate degrees recognised by the NCSC. This certification can help prospective students to make better informed choices when looking for a cyber security course. Employers will also recognise the degree and will benefit from recruiting employees who have had an opportunity to develop their skills in cyber security through a course which has high-quality teaching.

The BSc Cyber Security is the third programme at WMG to gain similar national recognition; both the MSc Cyber Security Engineering and the MSc Cyber Security Management are fully certified by the NCSC.

The University is also recognised by the NCSC as an Academic Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security Education (ACE-CSE) and an Academic Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security Research (ACE-CSR). This level of recognition demonstrates Warwick’s broader commitment to excellence in cyber security education and research, both nationally and in local communities.

Dr Harjinder Lallie, Associate Professor at WMG said: “Being one of only two institutions in the UK with five NCSC certifications underlines the commitment to a world-class cyber security curriculum and associated research programme.

“The upgrade from provisional to full certification has highlighted the effort and commitment the cyber security team have made to the education we offer and helps provide confidence to incoming students as well as employers about our commitment to quality.”

NCSC Deputy Director for Cyber Growth, Chris Ensor said: “The certification of the University of Warwick’s BSc Cyber Security degree by the NCSC demonstrates our shared commitment to responsibly developing the cyber security talent pipeline.

“Offering an NCSC-certified degree helps prospective students make better informed choices about the quality of courses available, and employers can be assured that graduates will be well-taught and have valued industry skills.”

Find out more about the BSc Cyber Security undergraduate degree here: www.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/wmg/education/undergraduate/cyber

Spiritualism and Italian Cultures XVIII-XX Centuries was an interdisciplinary conference organised by Bart Van den Bossche (KU Leuven), Fabio Camilletti (University of Warwick) and Gennaro Ambrosino (University of Warwick) in Leuven on 29-30 September.

The two-day conference examined the role and spread of Modern Spiritualism in Italian culture and literature since the second half of the 18th century. Modern Spiritualism and parapsychology, the discipline that seeks to explain supernatural events using scientific methods, originated in the United States in 1848 following the experiments of the Fox sisters. From the United States, spiritualism spread rapidly to Europe in the early 1850s, bringing with it the fashion for turning tables, invoking the spirits of the dead and communicating with them through mediumship. This phenomenon exerted a powerful influence on the European popular imagination, inspiring literary texts, occupying the pages of major periodicals and becoming the focus of scholarly debate.

Filling an important gap in the literature on occultism and (pseudo)science and their multiple interactions with Italian culture, the event provided an overview of the phenomenon, analysing it from different and complementary perspectives. While there is a great deal of studies on this subject in other European countries, there is no comprehensive contribution that examines the development and influence of this phenomenon in its entirety in Italy, with the exception of works dealing with the period between the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century and Camilletti's Italia lunare. Gli anni Sessanta e l'occulto (2018), which focuses on the 1960s. Italian Spiritualism acquired original and innovative patterns due to the political situation in which it spread, the cultural background of the peninsula and its close relationship with the Catholic Church, making it a unique case study to be studied.

Bringing together scholars from different disciplines and fields (literary studies, art history, history of science and medicine), the conference deliberately covered a wide period, taking into account not only the post-unification period, which, as already mentioned, marks the explosion of this phenomenon up to the First World War, but also the study of the 'supernatural' before the advent of Spiritualism and the Spiritualist literature of the second half of the 20th century and the first years of the 21st century.

The first day of the conference opened with Gennaro Ambrosino's analysis of the origins and spread of mesmerism in Italy between 1779 and 1853, focusing on the topoi and aspects that would later feed the Spiritualist rhetoric. Francesco Paolo De Ceglia (University of Bari "Aldo Moro") and Stefano Serafini (University of Padua) then analysed the Spiritualist movement in the second half of the 19th century. The former focused on the famous Italian medium, Eusapia Palladino, describing her career and the cultural context in which she became famous. The latter focused instead on the literary fortunes of Spiritualism from the 1850s to the 1890s and the relationship between science and the occult in this period. After lunch, the conference continued with Fabio Camilletti's lecture, which shed light on the Spiritualist elements in the works of the writer Pitigrilli and described the rise of Spiritualism in the 1940s and 50s. Simona Micali (University of Siena) focused on three novels from three different periods (the 1940s, the 1960s and the 2010s), analysing the different declinations and models of Spiritualism in the three authors (Landolfi, Buzzati and Zanotti). Finally, Corinne Pontillo (University of Catania) analysed the motif of "ghosts" in the literary works of the writer Alberto Savinio, who lived in the first half of the 20th century.

The second day opened with Stefano Lazzarin's (Università Jean Monnet, Saint-Etienne) analysis and close reading of Alberto Moravia's short story "Seduta Spiritica" (1960), which has often been neglected by scholars. Martina Piperno (Università di Roma "La Sapienza") proposed a necromantic reading of Ombre dal fondo by Maria Corti, looking at the relationship between philology and necromancy. The last two papers focused on the visual aspect of Spiritualism in Italian culture in the 21st century: Paola Cori (University of Birmingham) analysed the art installation of the Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan, with particular attention to Breath Ghost Blind (2021), which shows the phantom-like atmosphere of his works; Chiara Zampieri (KU Leuven) dealt with the literary motif of "ghosts in museums" in contemporary literature.

Overall, Spiritualism and Italian Cultures XVIII-XX Centuries was well attended throughout the day, with many lively discussions in the various panels. From early nineteenth-century Mesmerism to the Neapolitan Spiritualist Circle, which included the world's most studied and famous medium, Eusapia Palladino, from Buzzati's writings to Maurizio Cattelan's art installations, the conference was a unique and collaborative opportunity to explore Spiritualism in Italian culture and its influence on the popular imagination. As a result, a proposal for an edited collection is being prepared.

We are pleased to report that this year’s results of two national postgraduate student surveys show high levels of satisfaction amongst our postgraduate student community.

Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES) 2023

The overall satisfaction with the quality of the course remains high – 91% with 96% of our postgraduate taught students saying that they would recommend the University of Warwick. This was achieved with a response rate of 51.6% of the postgraduate taught cohort.

The top satisfaction scores in PTES were in:

• Teaching: 92% agreed that ‘staff are good at explaining things’ and 91% agreed that ‘the course is intellectually stimulating’.
• Resources: 96% agreed that they ‘have been able to access subject specific resources necessary for their studies when on campus.’
• Dissertation: 97% were ‘happy with the support received for planning their dissertation.’

There were also high scores received in the categories of Skills Development (88%), Organisation (87%) and Support (85%).

Postgraduate Research Experience Survey (PRES) 2023

The overall satisfaction amongst postgraduate research students was 85% with the top scores in:

• Supervision: 89% agreed that their ‘supervisor had the skills and subject knowledge to support their research.’
• Research skills: 91% agreed that their ‘skills in critically analysing and evaluating findings and results have developed during their programme.’
• Professional development: 89% agreed that their ‘ability to communicate information effectively to diverse audiences had developed during their programme.’

Dr Claudia Rei, Deputy Head of Department (Teaching & Learning) said:

“We value student feedback as we want to deliver the best teaching and learning possible. So, we’re very pleased to see such encouraging results. We also want to make further improvements in the future and are already looking at ways to address some of the areas where our scores could have been higher such as Engagement and Assessment in PTES and Support in PRES. We also encourage students to submit their feedback to us throughout the year.”

Further information about the two postgraduate student surveys can be obtained from the University's webpages for PTESLink opens in a new window and PRESLink opens in a new window.

Examples of how we have responded to student recently can be found on our webpage We have acted on your feedback: Postgraduate TaughtLink opens in a new window and Postgraduate ResearchLink opens in a new window.

If you are a student of the Department of Economics, you may submit feedback to us at any point via the Student Feedback FormLink opens in a new window.

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WMG at The University of Warwick, Solihull Council, National Highways, Transport for West Midlands, ZF, Aurrigo, Syselek and Liftango have successfully secured £300,000 to deliver a project looking into the feasibility of a self-driving shuttle service in the West Midlands.

The project will explore how a new automated transport link between Blythe Valley Business Park, near Shirley, and the new HS2 rail station in Solihull could operate in the future. The feasibility study will consider all aspects of the technology required in order to provide a safe and reliable automated public transport service between these important commercial centres. The proposed route would use the existing road network travelling along the M42 from Junction 4 and utilise the new Junction 5a currently under construction.

As a world-class research institution with leading capabilities in the verification and validation of safety assurance of self-driving technologies, WMG will apply its Operational Design Domain (ODD) based Safety Assurance research methodologies to the specific project challenges.  

This project is part of the wider Midlands Future Mobility (MFM) initiative, led by WMG. The MFM vision is to achieve zero road incidents, net-zero emissions and inclusive transport in the West Midlands. MFM enables stakeholders from across mobility to address the interlinked challenges of technology, policy, and behaviour to realise the vision.

Cllr Ken Hawkins, Solihull Council Cabinet Member for Environment & Infrastructure, said: “Connected Automated Vehicle (CAV) technology has the potential revolutionise the way we get around our towns, cities and rural areas. Working with our partners we are excited to be undertaking this latest project.

“We’ve already carried out a series of successful pathfinder trials here in Solihull, using our own automated shuttle, and have led the way in showing how it is possible to practically and safely incorporate automated vehicles into our existing transport infrastructure. We are now taking the next step and undertaking the vital feasibility work necessary in order to start thinking about more ambitious deployments and establishing new commercial public transport services.

“The outcomes from the study are likely to inform self-driving mobility challenges not just here in Solihull but nationwide.”

Jonathan Smith, Midlands Future Mobility Programme Manager said: "The business case for scaling new mobility solutions is complex. It involves a granular understanding of the use case, safety, users, operations, and infrastructure. This project brings together a group of diverse experts to apply state of the art research and knowledge to address this question. Of critical importance is that the outcomes of this feasibility will inform mobility business cases both in the Midlands and the UK as a whole."

More information about this project

Partners: Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council (Lead), Aurrigo, Syselek (Uk) Ltd, Liftango Ltd, ZF Services UK Limited, West Midlands Combined Authority, Highways England, University of Warwick

Grant awarded: £300,000 (£197,664 from Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles’ Commercialising Connected and Automated Mobility programme and balance is made up by the commercial partners).

Find out more about WMG’s Validation and Verification research here: Verification and Validation (warwick.ac.uk)

Note to editors

Media contact:

Annie Slinn

Communications Officer (Sciences)

Annie.Slinn@warwick.ac.uk

Gabbie Lau

WMG Marketing and Communications Executive

Gabbie.Lau@warwick.ac.uk

• The Department is deeply saddened by the passing of Professor Nick Crafts, who died on 6 October 2023 after a long illness.
• Nick was a brilliant economist and one of the world’s leading economic historians, who will leave an enduring legacy. He was also the founding Director of the CAGE Research Centre.
• A book of condolence was opened for any colleagues who wished to share reflections or memories.
• Tributes are shared below, and also here.

Stephen Broadberry, Bishnupriya Gupta, Tim Hatton and Tim Leunig write about their colleague and friend:

Nick Crafts was the most distinguished British economic historian of his generation. He was born in 1949 at Nottingham, England and educated at Trinity College Cambridge, where he graduated as the top student in the Economics Tripos in 1970. After just a year of graduate studies he took a lectureship at Exeter before moving to Warwick in 1972 and then on to University College Oxford in 1977, where he was lecturer and praelector. He became professor of economics at Leeds from 1989 to 1995 and then professor of economic history at the LSE from 1995 to 2005 after which he returned to Warwick until his retirement in 2019.

Nick was an early observer of the Cliometrics Revolution that was sweeping across the United States at the time of his visiting assistant professorship at Berkeley, and he was one of the pioneers in applying the approach in Europe, establishing an annual Quantitative Economic History Conference in Britain. He established a worldwide reputation on the basis of important contributions in many areas of economic history, but perhaps his most important and far-reaching work was his radical reinterpretation of the First Industrial Revolution, which occurred in Britain between the mid-eighteenth and mid-nineteenth centuries and marks the first transition to sustained economic growth. As such, it lies right at the heart of the discipline of economic history.

His path-breaking book, British Economic Growth during the Industrial Revolution , first published in 1985 and reprinted 4 times, presented a radically different view of the Industrial Revolution as a more gradual process than previously believed. This book also set the British experience firmly in a European context, an important methodological contribution, which continues to affect the way that European economic history is written today. Crafts demonstrated convincingly that earlier writers had exaggerated the growth rate of industrial production and hence of total national output during the Industrial Revolution. From this he was able to demonstrate that the British economy must have been richer and more developed in 1700 than previously thought. As well as dramatically changing our view of the Industrial Revolution itself, this view also cast an entirely new light on earlier periods of economic history. If Britain was already quite developed on the eve of the Industrial Revolution, then this opened up the possibility of earlier episodes of growth and development, and encouraged a whole new wave of research on early modern and medieval economic history, the effects of which are still being felt in the discipline to this day.

He later made important contributions to our understanding of the development of the British economy from the late nineteenth century to the end of the twentieth century. Much of this work is summarised in his book Forging Ahead, Falling Behind and Fighting Back British Economic Growth from the Industrial Revolution to the Financial Crisis (CUP 2019). With an endogenous growth framework in the background he stressed that the potential for growth varies widely, both across countries and over time, so that slow growth in in one era may represent better performance, relative to potential than another. Key elements in achieving or falling short of potential are the effects of the institutional environment on incentive structures for innovation and investment.

Within this framework he argued that British growth faltered rather than failed in the late nineteenth century and that growth potential was greater in the United States due to its large market size and a configuration of its factor endowments that favoured directed technological change in progressive sectors. The two World Wars were major setbacks and, although from 1950 to 1973 the British economy grew faster than ever, it fell short of its potential. This was partly a penalty of the early start and partly the result of polices, which from the 1930s onwards, included tariff protection, a complicated tax system with high marginal tax rates, the nationalisation of large swathes of industry and misdirected R&D effort. Although growth subsequently slowed, relative to potential, economic performance improved due to three key elements. One was the reforms undertaken by the Thatcher governments (1979-90) that included tax reform, industrial deregulation and privatisation of state enterprises and the reduction of the power of trade unions. Another was the rapid adoption of ICT. And the third, stressed elsewhere in his work, was the competition-enhancing effect of Britain’s membership of the EU from 1973.

Nick was a masterful lecturer. In his lectures he dissected often conflicting and confusing literatures to provide a clear analytical roadmap for students with limited economics. Unlike many, he wanted to give big first year lectures that most faculty try to avoid. As well as lecturing his own students, Nick gave many other talks, ranging from visiting American students, to public lectures, to groups in the City. No matter the group, he would always describe attendees as "punters". They had paid in time, and sometimes in money, to hear him speak, and as such he always took his responsibilities to them seriously. He set high standards for those attending, as well as for himself. After a lecture on the Gold Standard he remarked "The punters didn't like that one. They never do. But you can't say you have studied economic history if you don't know how the Gold Standard worked." Nick was, as many former students can testify, a Gold Standard lecturer.

Nick was very heavily involved in economic policy throughout his career, and was unrivalled in the way that he used economic history to inform his policy conclusions. He was a Research Fellow at the Centre for Economic Policy Research from 1985, serving as Director of the Human Resources Since 1900 Programme between 1989 and 1991. From 2010 until his retirement in 2019, Nick was the founding Director of CAGE, an ESRC-funded research centre at Warwick. In recognition of his achievements he received many high honours. He was elected to a Fellowship of the British Academy at the young age of 43 and in the Queen’s Birthday Honours of 2014 he was appointed Commander of the British Empire (CBE) for services to economics. He also served as President of the Economic History Society, President of the Royal Economic Society, and was Fellow of the Economic History Association and Fellow of the Cliometric Society.

Nick’s retirement from Warwick in 2019 was marked by a gathering of the great and the good for a two-day soirée that included keynote lectures and research presentations by many of Nick’s former graduate students, now distinguished academics in their own right. After retiring from Warwick Nick moved to a part-time position at Sussex, where he continued to teach and research. Sadly, his retirement was all too brief and he died on 6th October 2023 after a lengthy illness. Over 50 years of energetic teaching and research he reshaped British economic history and hugely influenced generations of economic historians. He will be sadly missed.

Individual tributes follow:-

Professor Bart van Ark, Professor of Productivity Studies at the Alliance Manchester Business School (AMBS) at the University of Manchester, writes:

Nick was a great intellectual, scholar and teacher in economic history. Amongst his many contributions to the profession, Nick has been instrumental in helping the academic and policy communities around the world better understand the importance of productivity for long-term economic growth. His numerous articles, books and contributions to conference, workshops and seminars, on the topic have left a long-lasting mark on work at the Groningen Growth and Development Center, The Productivity Institute and that of many others. Personally, I have much enjoyed co-editing with him the volume on Quantitative Aspects of Post-War European Economic Growth (1996), as part of two-year long project by the CEPR during the 1990s. He will be dearly missed.

Professor Sir Charles Bean, Professor of Economics at the London School of Economics, writes:

Nick was an erstwhile colleague at LSE, an occasional co-author, but a long-time friend whose wit and wisdom will be sorely missed by us all. I feel honoured to have known him.

Dr. David Bholat writes:

Professor Crafts was an iconic economic historian. I had the pleasure of making his acquaintance while at the Bank of England. He very kindly accepted an invitation to participate in a seminar on the interwar gold standard. More recently, he participated in another conference on AI. In both instances, these seminar contributions resulted in peer-reviewed publications for which I was the editor. As these examples indicate, Professor Craft's intellectual range was vast. He wrote clearly and persuasively, combining a fine-tuned analytical framework with detailed fidelity to empirical data. He will be missed, but he will continue to powerfully shape generations of scholars to come.

Professor Jutta Bolt, Professor of Global Economic History, University of Groningen, writes:

I'm truly sorry to hear about the passing of Nick Crafts, one of the world's most prominent economic historians. His contributions to our understanding of economic development and history were invaluable. His work will continue to inspire and educate generations to come. My deepest condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues during this difficult time.

Fiona Brown CAGE Research Manager until 2019, writes:

I worked with Nick for 10 years or so on CAGE. They were good times. He was an inspiring director who, together with Sascha, had the foresight to develop CAGE into a leading ESRC research centre. A kind and thoughtful man who always had time to listen and encourage. I am so sorry to hear of his death and send my condolences to Barbara and his family. RIP Nick.

Dame Frances Cairncross, Chair of the CAGE Advisory Board, writes:

Nick Crafts was one of the most thoughtful and innovative economists of the past half century. His work to unite history with economics gave his work a depth and originality that few economists of his generation achieved. Warwick was lucky to have him for as long as it did.

Professor David Chambers, Invesco Professor of Finance at Cambridge Judge Business School, writes:

Nick was inspirational as a teacher, PhD supervisor and co-author. You always knew you had to be on your game when you were interacting with him. He was also incredible good fun away from work - to share a pint with and talk about cricket. I will forever be grateful for the time he invested in me and the encouragement he gave me to pursue my academic career.

Alison Cottrell, CB, writes:

Nick was a great teacher and a great person; he brought economics, past and present, to life, and will be really missed by so many people. Sending thoughts and condolences to all of Nick's family at this very sad time.

Mandy Eaton writes:

Nick was a fantastic colleague who I worked with for many years. My condolences go to Barbara and his family.

Harald Edquist, Master Researcher, Macroeconomics at Ericsson Research, Stockholm, writes:

I was most saddened to hear of Nick Crafts passing. I met Nick Crafts the first time at a conference in Groningen. We shared the interest of understanding how major technologies affect productivity development. It was always interesting to listening to him and he had a great sense of British humour. My deepest sympathy goes to his family.

Professor Peter J Hammond writes:

Nick's extensive publications make him a giant in economic history, with special emphasis on Britain and Europe. But not being a historian myself, I was much less aware of the details than I should have been. Around the time when I arrived at Warwick in 2007, Nick was an Associate Chair of the department. He was also working hard on securing funding for CAGE, as he was about to become its founding director. Like many, perhaps even most members of the department, CAGE has helped finance some of my research. From 2006 to 2009 he chaired Section S2 (Economics and Economic History) of the British Academy which, from my personal experience, he left in very good shape when he stepped down. Of course, I met Nick frequently until he moved to Sussex quite recently. He always greeted me with a broad smile that was usually followed by some light hearted and enjoyable conversation. So, while others will properly recognize the excellent quality and quantity of Nick's academic output, including his prolific lecturing activity, my main awareness of Nick stems from his tremendous contributions as an administrator. There he seemed to achieve some sort of ideal where the important things got done, and done very well, with no doubt a lot of work on his part, but with almost no fuss that was discernible by those not directly involved. Nick, you have finally completed all your administrative burdens; may you rest in peace.

Professor Richard Harris, Professor of Economics, Durham University, writes:

I knew Nick for many years, and especially enjoyed working with him when we were both members of the advisory group for the "Future of Manufacturing" project run by the Government Office for Science/BIS in 2012-13. Not only very knowledgeable but also generous with his time. I am saddened to learn he is no longer with us to collaborate on future work. My condolences to his family and immediate friends; we shall all miss him.

Professor Jonathan Haskel, Professor of Economics at Imperial College Business School, Imperial College, London writes:

Dear Crafts family, I was so sorry to hear of Nick's passing. You will have seen from the messages how much the profession owed him and loved him. He was an inspiration to me and so many others: we shall all miss him very much. I hope you can take some comfort from the memory of such a wonderful man.

Yours, Jonathan

Ben Odams writes:

I met Nick at a fringe event at a party conference a few years ago. His precision and accessible style really hit home on the various topics which were discussed. It inspired me to read more of his work - rediscovering books I had read as undergraduate. He was a classic example of a public intellectual and he will be missed. RIP

Professor Nicole Simpson, W Bradford Wiley Professor of Economics at Colgate University, writes:-

For many decades, Professor Crafts would graciously teach a series of lectures for Colgate University's undergraduate economics students during their study abroad program in London. We were so very fortunate to have a preeminent British economic historian teaching our students each year. He taught generations of our students, often at the very start of their semester in London. We are deeply saddened by his death; his legacy will be long remembered at Colgate.

Dr Christian Soegaard writes:

Dear Nick. It was wonderful to have you as colleague for all these years. Rest in Peace!

Jane Snape CAGE Project Manager, writes:

Nick possessed a remarkable ability to make all team members feel valued. I will miss his knowledge, kindness and sense of humour. My thoughts are with Barbara and family.

Dr Brian Varian, Lecturer in Economics, Newcastle University Business School, writes:

I would like to express my sincere condolence for your loss. I was taught by Professor Crafts when I was a masters student at the London School of Economics. His lectures were as captivating as they were brilliant. As I myself now lecture in economic history, I cannot possibly forget the standard that Professor Crafts set, and I cannot imagine anyone ever really attaining it. When I went on to do my PhD in economic history, Professor Crafts greatly encouraged my research, even when it challenged some of his own—the mark of a real scholar. I am so glad to have known him and to have been in his classroom.

Dr John Geoffrey Walker writes:

I'm so sorry to hear this. He was a lovely man, always pleased to see me, and a great drinking companion. I learned a great deal from him. I've rarely seen him in the last few years but I'll miss him now that I won't see him again.

Related articles

•  Nicholas Crafts@70 – news feature about the 2-day academic conference held in 2019 to celebrate Professor Crafts’ 70^th birthday.
• “Nick Crafts is the most distinguished British economic historian of his generation.” Tim Hatton reviews Forging Ahead, Falling Behind and Fighting Back: British Economic Growth from the Industrial Revolution to the Financial Crisis (Crafts, 2019) for EH.net
• NIESR Tribute - In Memory of Professor Nick Crafts CBE FBA - NIESR

A series of videos have been developed to highlight the department's research culture.

Our department commits to a positive research culture and to highlight this Dr Sue Burrows and Dr Reza Kashtiban were granted funding from the University's Research Culture Forum with the idea of developing videos of some of our researchers.