About

I am a design historian, author, and artist based in Hereford, England.

My academic research focuses on design for Shakespeare. Having previously concentrated on the costume design practices of today, I am now developing new work on the people who supplied costumes, props, and furniture to London’s playhouses during the early modern period. I am Senior Lecturer in Research and Innovation (Drama) at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. My first book, Shakespeare in Elizabethan Costume: ‘Period Dress’ in Twenty-First-Century Performance, was published by Bloomsbury in 2022. It is available here.

I share my fascination with design by collaborating with arts and heritage organisations, and by creating edible art inspired by historical textiles, objects, and costumes. I have worked with the British Library, London Museum, Jane Austen’s House, Milton’s Cottage, David Parr House, The MERL, Reading Museum, Crawford Art Gallery, and Leighton House on various biscuit art projects. I speak about my work regularly: in addition to radio interviews and YouTube videos, I give public talks and lectures on a range of subjects.

Top-left photograph by Rebecca Knowles.