Public - Page 21 of 28 - The Museum of English Rural Life

In the Aftermath of Empire: Postcolonial Careering of Former Colonial Experts

This seminar examines former British colonial officials and staff with post-independence careers in overseas development, including some with links to the University of Reading. Many continued to work in former colonial territories, including for international agencies such as the Food and Agriculture Organization. These histories help to deepen understanding of how the last generation of […]

STEVEN CLAYDON – THE OUTSIDE IN AT THE MERL

Photograph of an Installation by Steve Claydon

As part of a major new commission for Reading International, artist and curator Steven Claydon has created three sculptural installations for the galleries of The Museum of English Rural Life. Objects from Claydon’s personal collection, gathered from across the world, and new sculptural works have been introduced into the displays to explore how we attach […]

READING FILM TRAIL

The London Short Film Festival (LSSF) has curated a special visual film trail responding to Reading’s waterways, heritage and communities for the Reading on Thames festival. Renowned as “the best short film festival in the world!”, the London Short Film Festival has been recognised as the premiere UK showcase for cutting edge homegrown and international […]

The Lake District: Wordsworth’s Legacy

‘Grasmere’ by Birket Foster, taken from Black’s Picturesque Guide to the English Lakes (1866), p.57 - for Adam Line's seminar on Wordsworth's Legacy

The MERL Seminars: Land and Folk Land and folk have often been portrayed romantically. They routinely play a part in stories of nationhood and identity. Our understandings of them are deeply rooted in the past yet still brought regularly to the fore in contemporary explorations of the countryside. This series of talks and discussions offers […]

“In the Churchway Paths to Glide”: Corpse Roads and Their Folklore

An image of a church and graveyard, for Stuart Dunn's seminar on corpse roads

Wheat and Rush, Weave and Ritual

Laughter comes when we get caught off guard: The Country Show photographic project

A photograph of a man in a black tank top with sunglasses and a flat cap, with his hands behind his head. In the foreground an open tap covers his crotch.

Cobbett in Conversation: From Rural Rides to Nature Writing

Black and white photograph of a woman sitting on a horse for the MERL seminar on William Cobbett and Rural Rides.

LADYBIRD IN FOCUS: WOMEN

Women - ladybird in focus exhibition. Image shows woman on left speaking to a man on the right.

Who is your favourite female character in Ladybird Books? From the 1950s to the 1970s Ladybird Books were published on a huge range of subjects and, hidden within these volumes, distinct gender roles for women are portrayed and cemented. As a product of their time, Ladybird Books give an intriguing insight into post-World War Two […]