Posted on 27 May 2014
Sophie Coulombeau, a PhD student from York’s Department of English and Related Literature and the Centre for Eighteenth Century Studies, was selected from among hundreds of academics who are at the start of their careers and are passionate about communicating modern scholarship to a wider audience.
Researching the relationship between personal naming and identity formation in 18th century English literature, Sophie submitted a proposal for a radio programme about the history of the English practice whereby women adopt their husband’s surnames on marriage - and of women who bucked the trend.
Sophie will now spend a year working with Radio 3 presenters and producers to develop her research into broadcasts. She will also have an opportunity to develop her ideas for television, including collaborating with BBC Arts to make short films for BBC Arts Online (www.bbc.co.uk/arts).
Sophie said: “I’m delighted and grateful to have been selected as a New Generation Thinker, and very excited about developing my ideas for radio and television. The excellent public engagement culture I’ve encountered at York has left me in no doubt of the importance for today’s academics of being able to communicate research to the public, so I feel very lucky that I’ll have this opportunity to improve my skills in this respect.”
Following a six-month selection process, ten winners were chosen from a group of 60 finalists by a panel of judges including producers from BBC Radio 3, BBC Television Arts and academics from the Arts and Humanities Research Council.
Matthew Dodd, Head of Speech programming, BBC Radio 3, said: “Selecting this year’s New Generation Thinkers has been a stimulating experience. The huge range of dynamic researchers who aspire to bring their work to a broadcast audience made the choice of our final ten a very tough series of decisions. Nurturing new talent across the arts is a key part of Radio 3 and Hay Festival is a fitting place to announce this year's participants. We’re confident that the New Generation Thinkers 2014 will introduce listeners to charismatic new voices and compelling stories from contemporary research."
Professor Rick Rylance, Chief Executive Arts and Humanities Research Council, said: “Once again we are delighted with the success of this year’s scheme. As ever, the work presented by this year’s winners allows us to celebrate the value of arts and humanities research in our everyday lives. I look forward to hearing their programmes with enthusiasm. I'm also delighted that, as the AHRC continues to work with the BBC, two other research councils — Economic and Social Research Council and Medical Research Council — have joined us this year to cover an even broader range of projects.”
New Generation Thinkers
New Generation Thinkers was launched in November 2010 at Radio 3's Free Thinking Festival of Ideas. The New Generation Thinkers scheme invites applications from academics at an early stage of their career who are passionate about communicating modern scholarship to a wider audience. Since 2010, 30 academics from across the UK have presented documentaries on Radio 3, taken part in discussion programmes and made taster films for BBC Arts Online. Listeners can hear contributions from previous New Generation Thinkers on Radio 3's Free Thinking programme and via the Free Thinking website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0144txn
BBC Radio 3
Radio 3 broadcasts classical music, jazz, world music, arts and over 25 new drama programmes a year. As the home of classical music, Radio 3 features more live classical music programming than any other and is the home of the BBC Proms, broadcasting every Prom live and over 600 complete concerts a year. The station is the most significant commissioner of new musical works in the country and is committed to supporting new talent, from composers to writers and new young performers, through schemes such as New Generation Artists and of course, New Generation Thinkers.
Arts and Humanities Research Council
The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funds world-class, independent researchers in a wide range of subjects: ancient history, modern dance, archaeology, digital content, philosophy, English literature, design, the creative and performing arts, and much more. This financial year the AHRC will spend approximately £98m to fund research and postgraduate training in collaboration with a number of partners. The quality and range of research supported by this investment of public funds not only provides social and cultural benefits but also contributes to the economic success of the UK. www.ahrc.ac.uk
About BBC Arts
There is more arts on the BBC than ever before across TV, radio and online. BBC Arts is giving the British public a front row seat at some of the most exciting cultural events across the UK – offering the audience access, nationally and globally, to the greatest writers, performers and thinkers in a way that no one else can.
BBC Arts Online, www.bbc.co.uk/arts, captures the best arts programming across the BBC and is an open space for arts journalism, comment, opinion and debate. Recent arts highlights on television include The First Georgians: The German Kings Who Made Britain (BBC Four), The Story of Women and Art (BBC Two), imagine... (BBC One) and the recent launch of BBC Arts at … (BBC Two).
Media Enquiries
Danielle Moore-Chick, AHRC: 01793 416021; d.moore-chick@ahrc.ac.uk
Madeleine Castell, BBC: 07753 309065; madeleine.castell@bbc.co.uk
For more information about York’s Department of English and Related Literature, visit: http://www.york.ac.uk/english/
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