The British Graduate Shakespeare Conference

My name is Ella Hawkins, and I’m currently completing an MA in Shakespeare and Theatre at the University of Birmingham’s Shakespeare Institute. During the course of my studies, I’ve been fortunate enough to be involved with one of the most important events in the Shakespeare and Renaissance scholarship calendar: I was Chair of BritGrad 2016!

The British Graduate Shakespeare Conference – ‘BritGrad’, for short – has been an annual event at the Shakespeare Institute since 1999. The conference is run by students, for students, and gives postgraduates from all over the world an opportunity to share their research in Shakespeare’s hometown of Stratford-upon-Avon.

Professor John Jowettgiving the opening plenary presentation of BritGrad 2016 in the Shakespeare Institute’s lecture hall

This year’s BritGrad took place over three action-packed days. 92 delegates and 8 plenary speakers came together for a programme of 24 student panels and 8 plenary presentations. Some…