In the late 1950s and 1960s, the south-west London suburbs of Richmond and Twickenham were a hotbed for innovation in popular music. What can the history of this very local music scene tell us about youth culture more broadly?
Category Archives: History
Teaching Culture: The Missionary Position
The attempt to civilize the uncultured masses is coming back into style. I look back to the Leavisite approach to popular culture, and its place in the history of English teaching.
Revisiting ‘Popular Culture and Personal Responsibility’
Revisiting a key moment in the early history of media education in the UK, and its legacy in print..
Decolonising the curriculum… again?
The call to ‘decolonise the curriculum’ isn’t new. But why does it seem that so little progress been made?
Revisiting youth subcultures
Looking back at Dick Hebdige’s classic book Subculture: The Meaning of Style, on the anniversary of its first publication forty years ago.
Introducing ‘Growing Up Modern’
Announcing my new writing project Growing Up Modern: Childhood, Youth and Popular Culture Since 1945.