Dr Nadine Leese

In September 2023, I will be travelling to Stockholm to give a research seminar for the Military History section at the Swedish Defence University, thanks to a generous invitation by my colleague Professor Steve Murdoch. In this session, I will look back at the War Widows’ Stories project and its work to date to reflect particularly on the methodologies we have employed over the past few years, f…

Here you can find a list of selected keynotes and research seminars, previous and upcoming. I have made available presentations and abstracts where possible. If you would like more information, please get in touch. Here you can find a list of selected keynotes and research seminars, previous and upcoming. I have made available presentations and abstracts where possible. If you would like more inf…

This list provides you with selected conference papers past and present. I have made available presentations and abstracts where possible. If you would like more information, please get in touch. This list provides you with selected conference papers past and present. I have made available presentations and abstracts where possible. If you would like more information, please get in touch.

Military Welfare History Network Conference, 7 July 2023, University College Dublin. In the public imagination, a war widow is a woman whose husband was killed in active service, during battle. Yet, this description only applies to a minority of today’s war widows, a diverse group of women who face complex circumstances following the death of their spouse. Few sources document their experiences, …

These bespoke, commissioned workshops focus on various aspects of academic career and skills development, including social media, impact, and general early-career guidance. If you are interested in hosting a workshop for your researchers, please get in touch.

This guide was commissioned for Sage Research Methods: Doing Research Online (2022). It explains the varied reasons that might compel you to start a research blog, from building research communities to developing research in progress, reaching out to nonacademic audiences, and communicating your research more creatively. It then helps you determine your target audience(s), be they […]

Please click here to access the final version of this article, published by Oxford University Press in the Journal of Victorian Culture on 10 November 2020. Below you can find a pdf of the the Accepted Manuscript of the article.  Abstract The death of a husband had adverse economic effects for the majority of Victorian women, but […]

Please click here to download a free e-print of the final version of this article, published by Taylor & Francis in the Journal of Gender Studies on 11 September 2020. Below you can find a pdf of the the Accepted Manuscript of the article.  Abstract The widow was a much-satirised figure throughout the Victorian era, but […]

This workshop enables researchers to familiarise themselves with innovative approaches and methods that can make for exciting new ways of conceptualising, designing, and carrying out their arts and humanities research in partnership with non-academic partners and audiences; at the same time, the workshop will also facilitate both critical and pragmatic appraisals of the processes and consequences…

On Armistice Day 2019, Will Davies visited us at the first ever exhibition of the War Widows’ Quilt at The Queen’s House, Greenwich, where it was installed from 7-11 November 2019. Will spoke to representatives of the War Widows’ Association who had contributed to the quilt, as well as to lead artist Lois Blackburn […]

Made by John Felix, this film tells the story of the War Widows' Quilt, a moving, important new memorial to the lives of Britain's war widows. Made from armed forces shirts by over ninety war widows and their family members, this beautiful and moving piece of art tells many individual stories of love, loss, and grief while also shining a light on the ongoing history of war widowhood in the UK.

On 9 November 2019, the Daily Express devoted a double-page spread to the first-ever exhibition of the War Widows’ Quilt at the Queen’s House, Greenwich. Giles Sheldrick, Chief Reporter, interviewed women who contributed to the quilt, representatives of our partner organisation The War Widows’ Association of Great Britain, lead artist Lois Blackburn, and me […]

On Sunday, 11 November 2018, after the two-minute silence at 11.00AM, you’ll be able to listen to a feature on women and war that I recorded for BBC Radio Scotland’s Sunday Morning with … . Presented by Ricky Ross, the feature is a conversation between Ricky, Christine Morgan, who’s son Marc was killed by […]

War Widows’ Stories captures the lives of war’s forgotten women past and present through oral history, participatory arts, public events, and archival research. The British public commonly imagine war widows to be elderly women who lost their husbands as a result of active combat in the Second World War, surrounded and supported by family, friends, the armed forces, and the state. While this appl…

I have been awarded one of the Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) Leadership Fellows grants. Centred around War Widows’ Stories and starting in September 2018, the Fellowship will allow me to substantially develop the project through further research on the history of war and by continuing my work with the war widows’ community and museums in an effort to raise public awareness of the…

  I’m excited to announce that I’ve been selected for one of the British Academy’s Rising Star Engagement Awards (BARSEA). These awards are granted to “some of the most promising and talented academics in the UK” and “are designed to encourage wider engagement with the humanities and social sciences within and beyond academia”. With an application en…

I’m Senior Lecturer in English Literature & Cultural History at Liverpool John Moores University and a BBC New Generation Thinker. I specialise in literary and cultural histories of women, gender, and feminism in Britain from the nineteenth century to the present day, women’s writing, and widowhood. I also provide support, training, and development for postgraduate […]

Researching your prospective employer is key to any good job application and interview. I've collated three key tips that will give you the edge over those who simply stick to departmental websites.

Last month I hosted a half-day workshop for PhD researchers at the University of Birmingham in which I discussed the best ways to prepare for the academic job market (without losing your mind, or not finishing your PhD). You can find the full advert for this workshop below as well here. If you would like […]

I’m thrilled to to be giving a two-hour workshop on social media to doctoral researchers at the University of Greenwich on 10 February 2017. If you’re interested in having me facilitate a similar training session for your colleagues or students, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me via email, or by leaving a comment on […]