Efram Sera-Shriar

Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein Review - IGN Review: Guillermo del Toro’s Netflix film Frankenstein, starring Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, and Mia Goth, is a crowning achievement for the beloved genre director and one of the most effective adaptat...

This review has really turned me off from seeing del Toro's Frankenstein. I'm sure the film will be good, but man, the review ... 🤢

www.ign.com/articles/gui...

Creatures buried in soil for over a century burst back to life in Toronto waterfront A project to restore coastal wetland leads to astonishing discoveries of a host of life: seeds and plant scraps, as well as water fleas, worms, larvae and plankton

This almost sounds like the storyline of a Lovecraftian tale. What these workers ultimately set into motion is the awakening of Cthulhu...

Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn!

www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...

This headline is deeply misleading. Not least, we have a funded-research group devoted to horror studies at the University of Copenhagen, and there are similar groups all over Europe and North America. Some are even called centres. Why misrepresent what is otherwise good news for the field?

Next week, I'm doing an interview on horror games, moral panic and censorship. I've decided to talk about Atari's "Halloween" (1983). It was deemed too violent and realistic for young gamers, and might send impressionable minds down nefarious paths.

Try it here👇
www.retrogames.cz/play_1177-At...

Session Thirty Seven: Video Game Gothic We are especially excited to announce that our first Gothica session of the 2025/26 academic year will be Video Game Gothic with our special guest speaker Dr Efram Sera-Shriar on Zoom on Thursday 2…

I'm delighted to be delivering a talk on 23 Oct 2025 btwn 5–6.30pm (BST) for @gothicauob.bsky.social

My talk is titled: ‘Battling Satan in Your Underpants: Censoring Capcom’s Ghosts ‘n Goblins Videogame during the Age of American Satanic Panic’

Details 👇
uobgothica.wordpress.com/2025/10/06/s...

I just got recognised by the Toronto Blue Jays as one of their top fans. 💕 I guess five decades of fandom finally paid off. Now with my fellow blue-feathered friends we wait in anticipation of game 3, where Toronto will hopefully sweep the dislikable Yankees.

I'm preparing my seminar on the History Environmentalism and for the class I'm going to talk about everyone's favourite early 90s environmental champion, Captain Planet.

There is no team in sports that I detest more than the NY Yankees. I don't just want my beloved Toronto Blue Jays to beat them in the ALDS, I want them to eviscerate the Yankees. Go Jays Go! ⚾

This racist idea is stolen almost verbatim from the work of Robert Knox in the mid 19thC. There is a line in the "Races of Men" (1850) that argues virtually the same thing in nearly the same language.

Paranormal Technology

We've reached the month of Halloween. Why not fill your days with spooky-themed podcasts to pass the time? Here's one with me talking all about "paranormal technology" with the venerable and charismatic, Dallas Campbell.

open.spotify.com/episode/44Jn...

CFP: A Time of Monsters The monster has been here all along. It is a historical constant that manifests in wildly different ways across time, place, and culture. Whatever form it takes, the monster claws at categories; it un...

Our new CFP is up and it is monstrous.

Nineteenth-Century Gothic Afterlives - CNCSI Nineteenth-Century Gothic Afterlives Free and Online One-Day Halloween Workshop Friday 31st October, 10.45 am  ̶  5.00 pm (Central European Time) Registration is required. Sign up here.    The Centre ...

October is the best month for some monstrously fun entertainment. On Halloween @cncsi.bsky.social will be hosting a chillingly-good online workshop: Nineteenth-Century Gothic Afterlives. I hope you can join us. It will be a real screamer! 👻

Details👇
cn-csi.com/event/hallow...

I'm super excited about my upcoming talk for @gothicauob.bsky.social. The full title for my talk is: "Battling Satan in Your Underpants: Censoring Capcom’s Ghosts ‘n Goblins Videogame during the Age of American Satanic Panic"

My beloved Toronto @bluejays.com won their first pennant in 10 years last night. Is this the year we finally make it back to the World Series? That's the dream! 🥳

We are currently open to receiving proposals for themed issues with @advancesjournal.bsky.social, which is published through Taylor and Francis, and is the official journal of @incsa.bsky.social. If you have ideas for a collection, email me.

Details👇
in-csa.com/themed-speci...

count von count from sesame street is sitting on a table with a can of tissues in front of him . ALT: count von count from sesame street is sitting on a table with a can of tissues in front of him .

Where does Dracula go to water ski? Lake Eerie! 🥁

Even the Count enjoyed that one... 😂

a cat wearing glasses and a bow tie is sitting on a laptop ALT: a cat wearing glasses and a bow tie is sitting on a laptop

I've just submitted a major grant application. Fingers crossed for some success.

I'm delighted to be speaking ONLINE about Japanese and British science in the 19thC @royalsociety.org on 18 November 2025 with my amazing collaborators Bernie Lightman and Yoshi Kikuchi

Full details here: cassyni.com/events/RGh39...

a cat holding a sign that says help ALT: a cat holding a sign that says help

Hey historians of science - do any of you know what happened to digital collection of Francis Galton's archive? I can no longer find it online. Has it been removed? Is this Google's AI messing up my searches?

Book Prize 2026 Open We are delighted to announce that the Social History Society annual Book Prize has reopened and is seeking nominations. The prize is now in its eighth year and is awarded to the best book in Social…

📢 The Social History Society Book Prize 2026 is now open for nominations!

Now in its 8th year, the prize celebrates the best books in social history & cultural history✨

More information here: socialhistory.org.uk/2025/09/24/b...

It says a lot that after my lecture on the Scientific Revolution today, the historical figure most people wanted to chat about was John Dee and not Newton, Boyle or Bacon. I guess it was my discussion on his scrying mirror and healing crystal that grabbed their attention.

Cool library! You should just tell people that you are H. Jon Benjamin, skip the middle man, as it were.

Today feels like a good day to reshare this wonderful woodcut from Punch, "Spiritualism Made Useful" (1877). It was made by George du Maurier, who was one of the periodical's more prolific artists.

a picture of isaac newton with a man standing in front of a tree ALT: a picture of isaac newton with a man standing in front of a tree

Another year, another lecture on the Scientific Revolution... At least this year we are going to be analysing the Epic Rap Battle between Newton and Nye featuring Weird Al. Silver lining!

True story, but over a slightly longer timeline... 😂

a cat is holding an umbrella in the rain with a dog behind it . ALT: a cat is holding an umbrella in the rain with a dog behind it .

Today alone, I've been invited to give two very different online talks later this semester. I've agreed to both. When it rains it pours.

I spent much of today weaving a discussion about the cover of J.N Maskelyne's "Modern Spiritualism" (1876) into a chapter for my new book. If you are unfamiliar, the cover features an image of the medium Mrs. Guppy being carried by spirits across London's skyline - a feat many believed to be real.

This is a wonderful carte-de-visite of a spirit photograph featuring the fab Victorian psychic duo of Mrs Guppy and Charles Williams from around 1892. The pair, along with Frank Herne, regularly collaborated during seances, especially in the 1870s. Their main manifestations were spirit apports.

I did!

Small Grants The Social History Society maintains a Small Grants Fund to support research, events and activities by members of the Society. We give priority to activities and research that would otherwise remai…

📢 Reminder: the deadline for the Social History Society Small Grants is coming up soon!

💷 Up to £1000 available to support research, events & activities in social & cultural history

🗓️ Apply by 1 October for events Dec–Apr
🔗 socialhistory.org.uk/funding/smal...
✨Apply today!