Summary
I am a specialist in modern British and Irish history, with a particular emphasis on the Northern Ireland ‘Troubles’. My PhD, awarded by the University of Edinburgh in 2020, explored British media representations of the conflict and its impact on the everyday experiences of Irish people living in Britain. I am in the process of preparing a monograph entitled Through the Lens of the British Media: the ‘Troubles’, and have articles in Media History, The Irish Review, and Studia Hibernica. I have also just embarked on new research, investigating the realities and misconceptions of connections between migrants and terrorism by analysing the IRA’s bombing campaign in English cities during the ‘Troubles’. This project will explore the reality of IRA sleeper cells in Britain and consider the extent to which – confronted with hostility and suspicion – Irish migrants were drawn into sympathy and support for the IRA. I am particularly interested in the processes underpinning radicalisation and deradicalisation. In addition to my own research, I am the co-founder and editor of Writing the ‘Troubles’, a blog exploring the interpretative and conceptual issues that arise when researching the conflict in Northern Ireland.