History@Portsmouth

University of Portsmouth's History Blog

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Research in Focus

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Researching memories of D-Day: A student podcast

By on September 1, 2022 in Employability, Learning in Focus, Public History, Research in Focus

Recently, the internationally-renowned museum, The D-Day Story, published on their website a podcast recorded in 2021 by three second year History students, Joshua Bown, Angus Grieve and Shannen Smylie. The students worked with the museum’s archives as part of their assessment for the ‘Working with the Past’ module, coordinated by Mike Esbester. The second-year module encourages students to work with our local community partners where possible and produce work that has a benefit to them and the organisation they are working with. To hear the podcast, go to the D-Day Story website here.

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‘More diverse and culturally inclusive’: Post-war immigration and its impact on British culture

By on August 26, 2022 in Learning in Focus, Research in Focus

In this blog, recent BA (Hons) History with Politics graduate Phil Matthews reflects on the impact immigration has had on British culture in the post-Second World War era. Phil, who wrote the blog as part of his assessment for the second year module ‘Working with the Past’, coordinated by Dr Mike Esbester, describes how many aspects of British culture changed as a result of mass immigration into the country in the latter half of the twentieth century. Britain, Phil notes, transformed into a multi-ethnic society and benefitted massively from immigrants bringing their own country’s cultures with them. The twentieth century normalised the multi-cultural society that we live in today, Phil […]

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Bridging the gap between the academic and non-academic worlds: Engaging the public in academic research

By on July 12, 2022 in Learning in Focus, Public History, Research in Focus

In this blog Reiss Sims, who has just gained a first-class degree in History at Portsmouth (well done, Reiss!), discusses a project he worked on last year with some of his fellow History students for the module ‘Working with the Past’, coordinated by Dr Mike Esbester. As part of their project, the students looked into how academic historians take their work ‘out of the academy’ and into the public realm. Reiss and his fellow students interviewed our Dr Karl Bell, who researches all things supernatural, to find out how he has tried to engage the wider public in the history he studies. Last year, as part of our assessment for […]

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Breakup of Britain

Differential fees for overseas students

By on June 13, 2022 in Learning in Focus, New Publications, Research in Focus

In this new post, Senior Lecturer Jodi Burkett shares a podcast in which she discusses a chapter she has written for the edited collection The Break-up of Greater Britain (MUP, 2021). Jodi’s research focuses on the cultural and social impacts of the end of the British Empire, with a particular focus on national movements like the National Union of Students, and in this podcast she reveals how the different fees charged to overseas students caused significant anger among the student community in the late-1960s. Increasing tuition fees for University students has been a way for governments to save money since, at least, the late 1960s. While most students didn’t have […]

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What’s in a name?: Etymology of Istanbul through the Ages

By on March 31, 2022 in Research in Focus

On Wednesday 9 February Dr Gemma Masson (University of Birmingham) presented a paper in our History Research seminar series on the history of the development and changes to the name of the city of Istanbul.  As well as explaining the constructions of these names, the paper placed developments in the city’s name within the context of their times. If you missed the paper, a recording can be viewed here.  You will need to input the password 2yqXH4S+.

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‘An hour or two of welcome relaxation’: The cinema business in wartime Britain

By on March 29, 2022 in Research in Focus

On 12 January 2022 our own Dr Rob James, Senior Lecturer in Cultural and Social History, presented at the first History research seminar of the new year (Happy New Year everyone!) with a thought-provoking paper on the effect of world war on the cinema trade in Britain. If you missed the paper, the recording is available here (you will need to the password Q64&W$?2). In the seminar, Rob discussed how, during both the First and Second World War, the film industry was faced with a wide range of challenges that, in the worst-case scenario, threatened its continued existence. Rob explained that cinema trade personnel responded to the challenging wartime circumstances by […]

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