April Girling

A fun weekend of theatre trips starting with Macbeth at the Tobacco Factory in Bristol and ending with Uncanny.

I loved studying Milton straight away, I was just convinced (until 3rd year) that I wanted to teach secondary. Unfortunately for my current students that means they have to listen to me talk about Milton whenever possible (we move onto Austen in a couple of weeks so they'll be free of it soon).

Found what I think was my first uni assignment (definitely the first time I wrote anything on Milton-- a CV for one the characters from Paradise Lost, I obviously picked Satan). Very funny to look back on and little did I know that nearly 9 years on I would be writing about Milton for my PhD.

A post-lecture trip to the cathedral. I love Worcester cathedral and I feel like this is the first time I've been in ages apart from graduation.

Happy birthday 🎉

It's been a great few days at BSECS. I presented a paper on Eden and Restoration politics in Lucy Hutchinson's Order and Disorder and attended some excellent panels (I especially enjoyed the panel on mock epics and grand epics this morning).
#BSECS2026

Despite only 3 students showing up (lots of cold/flu and assignment deadlines) that's my final class of the semester finished! Now just to draft my conference paper before Christmas🎄.

Still utterly obsessed with Oscar Wilde so there was no way I was missing this. I also met Stephen Fry (who better to play Lady Bracknell) and got to show him my tattoo of Wilde.

Oh no! My brother will be right too, no doubt, though a little more tact would be nice.

Sometimes your siblings really humble you. My brother gets married in 2 years time, it's already been agreed that I won't be getting/needing a plus one on my invitation.

Slowly making my way through some more Tolkien.

Looks great, thanks!!

I have literally never felt older, this is all I keep seeing online and I have absolutely no idea what it means.

After dark tour of The Commandery (despite having lived in Worcestershire my whole life I've never visited The Commandery in the day).

Pleased to say that my paper has been accepted for #BSECS2026! I'll be discussing Eden as a micro- and macrocosm in Lucy Hutchinson's Order and Disorder.

#EarlyModern

Very grateful for the student who stayed behind to tell me that their classmates are always quiet during seminars and it's nothing to do with me specifically! Obviously looked a little frazzled today.

"His chamber was a room where it is said the two young princes, King Edward the Fifth and his brother, were murdered in former days."
(Lucy Hutchinson, Memoirs).

Day trip to The Tower.

Not one of my students (who was in year 8 during the first year of covid) joking that their friend was old because they were in year 11 at the time. I didn't dare mention that I was in my third year of uni...

Class consensus from today's session on The Duchess of Malfi:
Antonio is about as useful as a chocolate teapot.

Prep for session 2 is taking me back to my A-levels.

That definitely could have gone better but at least that's the stress of the first class out of the way.

Contract has been signed and the introductory session is ready to go. All set to teach my first class on Monday (as module leader!).

I completely get verifying your age but these all seem like fairly terrible options, no?

I've just been offered my first set of teaching hours!

When I have to work on an article draft instead of having a cuddle on the sofa.

Reunited for the week 🐾.

Great talk from Dr Stephen K Roberts this morning @stuarthistoryfest.bsky.social. Looking forward to attending another talk tomorrow but back to writing my chapter on Paradise Lost in the meantime.
#EarlyModern

Loads of beds inside and a cat house a mere few steps away but this is where he decides to sit. I'm sure it's nothing to do with the fact it's right next to the fish pond.

No doubt he'll be back. If only cats showed up every time we were sad.