Having gained a BA in English at Worcester College, Oxford, I went on to complete an MA in Theatre (Playwriting) at Royal Holloway, University of London, where I stayed to write my doctoral thesis. My first book, Heritage, Nostalgia and Modern British Theatre: Staging the Victorians, was published by Palgrave in 2011.
Since taking up a lectureship in the Department of Theatre Film and Television at York in 2008, I have been teaching on the BA and MA courses in Writing, Directing and Performance, with texts ranging from Victorian comedy to contemporary political drama. I have also taught extensively on the adaptation of Victorian novels to stage, film and television.
My research interests include neo-Victorian plays and performances, and adaptations and appropriations of Victorian and neo-Victorian fiction on stage and screen. The teaching of Victorian drama has led to a research interest in Arthur Wing Pinero and the early work of George Bernard Shaw. I also have a developing specialism in theatre and its relation to empire and imperialism, and in Sherlock Holmes, adaptation and fandom in the 21st century.