Equally, there is something for the straightforward history and current affairs enthusiast, including Dr Paul Maddrell’s Modern Germany: Recovery from Ruin, 1945-present and The Soviet Security State, 1917-present modules. 

In Dr Pete Yeandle’s Victorian Values Reconsidered, I learned about the Northern British newspaper editor W T Stead (1849-1912) who promoted a sensationalist, “anti-establishment” activist journalism. I’d previously thought that this was pioneered a little later by Californian newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst (1863-1951) who inspired Orson Welles’ film, Citizen Kane.  

I was intrigued to discover that an aged Stead and the young Hearst met and wrote to each other. I wanted to discover what this relationship was like and whether it created the modern US and UK media. With its overwhelming headlines, “populist” politicians, popular fury at government and the power of narrative commanded by a small oligarchy, the period of my research and writing (February 2024 to April 2025) was a very rich time to be examining this relationship! 

The teaching varies in style, lecturer to lecturer. However, they all stress that self-study and research is vital. The Pilkington Library is a great resource for this.   

The lower floor of the Library is a great place for silent study, but if you’re working collaboratively, upstairs is a more colourfully lit, informal study space.   

The Articles Plus section on the Library’s website has digitised a truly incredible number of journal articles, but if there’s something you require that the library does not have, inter-library loans can be a real lifeline – as they proved for me.