The intersection between African-American Poetry of the 1960s –specifically that written within the Black Arts Movement – and American Jazz music of the same period, with a particular focus on how these relate to the political and social currents of the Civil Rights Movement and Black Power.

Having studied English and American Literature at York and then Newcastle, I took my PhD at Fitzwilliam, where I was also President of the Middle Combination Room in 2014-15. Alongside academia I am a professional drummer, singer and choral conductor; dabble occasionally in web design; and have enjoyed previous lives as a fundraiser, volunteers' manager and arts administrator.

My research specialism is the intersection between African-American Poetry of the 1960s –specifically that written within the Black Arts Movement – and American Jazz music of the same period, with a particular focus on how these relate to the political and social currents of the Civil Rights Movement and Black Power. Wider areas of interest include Twentieth Century Literature, Jazz, and Postcolonial Theory, and my teaching concentrates on these areas as they arise within both the English and Music Undergraduate Triposes.