Professor Richard Kirkland
Professor of Irish Literature & Cultural Theory
Research interests
- Culture
- Literature
Biography
Research Interests and PhD Supervision
My research is focused on the literature, culture, and politics of Ireland in the modern period of contemporary Northern Ireland, during the Irish Literary Revival of the early twentieth century, and in the context of the Irish in London. I have written four monographs and co-edited two collections of essays grouped around these areas.
I believe in the importance of comparative cultural analysis and so my work on Ireland has also led me to write on other areas of post-colonial literature and theory, as well as a wide variety of non-literary modes of cultural production such as film, television, news media, and popular culture. My latest book, Irish London: A Cultural History 1850–1916 was published by Bloomsbury in 2021.
My other work includes essays on post-conflict cinema in Northern Ireland, the DeLorean car for the Field Day Review, Gilles Deleuze and narratives of self-formation in the poetry of Medbh McGuckian, a reconsideration of the poetry of 1940's Northern Ireland, and the nineteenth-century phenomenon that was 'Dr Corry's National Diorama of Ireland'. I am a Fellow of the English Association.
I would be interested to hear from prospective research students working in areas related to twentieth and twenty-first century Irish culture.
Teaching
I teach across the modern period at King's including the following undergraduate modules: Introducing Literary Theories, 20th century Irish Literature, James Joyce and Ulysses, Modernist Poetry, Literature of World War One, Contemporary Irish Fiction. At MA level I teach a course on the Irish Literary Revival and a course on modern Northern Irish culture.
Research
King's Contemporary British History
The study of Contemporary British History goes back to the 1960s, and was consolidated with the establishment of the Institute of Contemporary British History in 1985 by (Sir) Anthony Seldon and (Lord) Peter Hennessy. The Institute moved to King’s College London in 2010, and the new King’s Contemporary British History builds on this by creating a larger and more diverse enterprise, building on that distinguished tradition.
News
Professor Richard Kirkland wins 2022 BAIS Book Prize
Professor Kirkland’s book, Irish London: A Cultural History 1850–1916 has won the British Association for Irish Studies (BAIS) book of the year prize.
English at King's is 6th in the UK in the QS World Rankings
English at King's College London is ranked 6th in the UK and 25th in the world in the 2018 QS World Subject Rankings.
Professor Josephine McDonagh is awarded a Supervisory Excellence Award
Supervisory Excellence Award for Professor Josephine McDonagh
Research
King's Contemporary British History
The study of Contemporary British History goes back to the 1960s, and was consolidated with the establishment of the Institute of Contemporary British History in 1985 by (Sir) Anthony Seldon and (Lord) Peter Hennessy. The Institute moved to King’s College London in 2010, and the new King’s Contemporary British History builds on this by creating a larger and more diverse enterprise, building on that distinguished tradition.
News
Professor Richard Kirkland wins 2022 BAIS Book Prize
Professor Kirkland’s book, Irish London: A Cultural History 1850–1916 has won the British Association for Irish Studies (BAIS) book of the year prize.
English at King's is 6th in the UK in the QS World Rankings
English at King's College London is ranked 6th in the UK and 25th in the world in the 2018 QS World Subject Rankings.
Professor Josephine McDonagh is awarded a Supervisory Excellence Award
Supervisory Excellence Award for Professor Josephine McDonagh