Catherine Clarke

This is the dream. We need to share photos of train snacks on last day of term / teaching.

Totally. To add to the list: M&S mini ham and/or smoked salmon pinwheels.

It certainly does - this 'surfacing' and intrusion is exactly what I'm interested in - I must have a look.

IF YOUR ADVENT CALENDAR HAS 12 DOORS, IT IS NOT AN ADVENT CALENDAR

This is a great example! The Thebaid and Lucan's Pharsalia are touchstone texts for many of the medieval and early modern representations of civil war, of course.

Senate House viewed from the Russell Square side, looking up at the central stone tower. Grey sky, some lights glowing in windows.

Senate House first thing this morning, Thursday 4 December. #SenateHouse #London #Bloomsbury

I have to confess I've not seen this - and I really should! Adding to my viewing list!

I have to confess that, much as I loved Buffy, I could never get on board with the Angel spin-off...

We should do it together!

Foods it is not physically possible to eat just one of:
- Mince pies
- Frazzles
- Salt and vinegar chipsticks
- Mini sausage rolls
- Pigs in blankets
This list is not exhaustive

My kids are 15 and 10. I think I just need the 10-year-old to be teeny bit older, and then we'll watch the entire run together. Looking forward to it!

When I was working on medieval civil conflict, many of the analogies and metaphors I looked to were (unsurprisingly) from Lucan, the Pharsalia. Definitely a touchstone for many of these 12th-century texts.

The Hellmouth in Buffy is such an interesting example! Maybe not exactly civil war (though Sunnydale is a battleground between humans and demons), but perhaps it has something to say about other kinds of social division / rupture (generational divides, for example).

The publicity poster for Guillermo del Toro’s 2006 film Laberinto del Fauno or Pan’s Labyrinth centres on the image of a huge dead tree trunk, split in two, which, as we later learn in the film, is the gateway to a deep cleft in the earth – a dark and strange underground world. Set against the backdrop of the Spanish Civil War, del Toro’s film is permeated with images of ruptured earth, splits in the ground, the land literally tearing itself apart to reveal dark and disturbing phenomena within. Whilst the film does include direct representations of violence and atrocity, del Toro’s use of metaphor and the alienating, unsettling power of the fantastic offers a far more powerful and affecting evocation of the trauma of civil conflict. Writing civil war is a challenging and difficult project. Civil war is a traumatic experience for both individuals and communities, which resists simple narrative and exceeds the conventions of direct historiographical representation. Whilst direct accounts of the chaos and horror of civil war can be reductive and simplifying, the trauma of civil conflict is often displaced to emerge through metaphor and symbolism. The disturbing experience of civil war can even impact on language itself, affecting style, structure, and voice and leaving perhaps unexpected traces in textual memorials.

Set in the Spanish Civil War, Del Toro's film leans into magic realism and imagery of fantastical, disturbing intrusions from beneath earth. I wrote on this for Anglo-Norman Studies (Boydell & Brewer). What do you think? Do you know other examples of this disturbing imagery of civil conflict? 3/3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udF6MfqJ5JQ

I've spent quite a bit of time analysing representations of civil war in medieval texts. As we see in the chapter, this image of fissures and ruptures in the earth - with strange and distburing sights beneath - occurs a lot. One perhaps surprising analogy for me is the 2006 film Pan's Labyrinth. 2/3

#TimeTravelAdvent #Day4, and we're inside the 12th-century civil war or 'Anarchy'. I wanted to share another perspective on Henry of Huntingdon's vision of the earth ripped open and hell broken loose. In civil war, even the ground beneath your feet is torn apart... #AHistoryOfEnglandIn25Poems 1/3

This event sounds so lovely! Wish I could be there...

Me on the Zoom screen, with Rafal's copy of the book

Speaking this evening to Rafal Boryslawski and colleagues at the University of Silesia, Katowice. A great conversation which enabled me to think about my new book in new ways. And just look at all those post-it notes in Rafal's copy! ❤️ Thank you. #AHistoryOfEnglandIn25Poems

It's #Day3 of our #TimeTravelAdvent with #AHistoryOfEnglandIn25Poems and... WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT WILLIAM...
#AdventCalendar #ReadAlong #history #medieval #poetry #WilliamTheConqueror

Thanks so much! I hope you enjoy the book, and looking forward to having you with us at the webinar!

What's particularly exciting about our suite of new @ihr.bsky.social 'Discovery Courses' is the '2+1' model: two days of expert teaching, including guest lecture & fieldtrip, plus a free optional add-on day of guided research in the @ihrlibrary.bsky.social, with bespoke advice & support. #training

What can we do with a poem, where can close reading take us? In this free webinar, we’ll explore some new ways into close reading #poetry, with @cathamclarke.bsky.social responding to her new book A History of England in 25 Poems (Penguin Allen Lane, 2025)
englishassociation.ac.uk/adventures-i...

I'm looking forward to being part of these sessions honouring an important mentor and influence on my research, Prof Edward James: speaking on 'Underground Imaginaries' in the 'Britain and Ireland' session & chairing 'Fantasy, Science Fiction and the Medieval'. Thanks, Simon, for organising! #EdFest

Our IHR Summer Schools have been incredible inclusive events for historians of all kinds - really looking forward to meeting everyone interested in London history this year!

A banner image advertising the course 'Archaeology for Local History: Living in a Material World' with several photographs of maps and archaeological sites.

Want to use archaeology in your local history research? In my new @ihr.bsky.social 'Discovery' short course (29 April-1 May 2026) you will learn where to locate and how to use records of surveys, excavations and finds in your area. Plus a visit to the @antiquaries.bsky.social library and...

Townscape and Architecture in History Discovery Course 2

#Skystorians!

Interested in the development of urban spaces? Want to engage with the historic built environment in your research and unsure where to start? Then maybe this could be for you?

We can offer architectural terminology for the terrified, buildings, boundaries and use of space [cont.]

Ah yes, the BAD Godric...

I definitely agree with this. But he was probably a bit cocky too...

I'm glad it brought back those memories! And thank you so much for joining us for #TimeTravelAdvent! ❤️🙏

How might this resource be useful?

Well, it is to us: using it, we have been able to pin down the military careers of landholders - if you are lucky enough to have a family you can trace to the 15th century with a distinctive name - and might be helpful for #Genealogy #LocalHistory, etc. 🗃️