Blog

The legacy of the vampire character is a revealing case study, tracing the ways in which tropes and genres are influenced by societal changes and cultural trends throughout history. Explore how the characterisation of vampires has evolved over the last two centuries.

In a world where Love Island shenanigans and “celebrity” sex exposés dominate headlines, and where “Netflix and Chill” requires no explanation, it’s difficult to imagine that the “Birds and the Bees” conversation continues to stand the test of time.

At AM, the annual debate over what constitutes a Christmas film has been raging. Does it have to be Christmas throughout the narrative? Does Christmas have to be integral to the plot? Does Die Hard count? Vincente Minnelli’s 1944 musical Meet Me in St Louis is a personal favourite, but one that I have struggled to convince my Editorial colleagues is a bone fide Christmas classic, taking place as it does throughout a whole year, but featuring Judy Garland’s iconic and undeniable rendition of ‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas'.

December 10 is Human Rights Day; it celebrates the proclamation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) by the United Nations. Certain to find a grand celebration of the Declaration I delved into our resources but was instead side-tracked by a page from "Union Jack" in Service Newspapers of World War Two.

As Development Editor for Ethnomusicology: Global Field Recordings, I was fortunate to attend recent events celebrating the launch of our online resource at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music.

Prester John, the fictional Asian Christian ruler, dwelt within the western medieval psyche for centuries and is the subject of numerous letters and art representing the period. How, with so little physical evidence for his existence, did his legend persist?

What did the British public think of the Royal Family in 1966? As Olivia Colman takes over the role of Queen Elizabeth II from Claire Foy in the new season of The Crown, documents from Mass Observation Online show how the public viewed their monarch's transition to middle age.

With the focus of a new semester, it’s always an exciting time to hit the road and talk to academics across the country about all things humanities and social sciences. The fact that it’s also conference season again means I have the privilege of exposure to fascinating lectures, great conversations with the academic community, and the opportunity to share the latest news from Adam Matthew Digital.

With the focus of a new semester, it’s always an exciting time to hit the road and talk to academics across the country about all things humanities and social sciences. The fact that it’s also conference season again means I have the privilege of exposure to fascinating lectures, great conversations with the academic community, and the opportunity to share the latest news from Adam Matthew Digital.

I’m not sure if it was the Bake Off Final or my excitement for Bonfire Night that drew me to the brilliantly titled play ‘Guy Fawkes: A Gingerbread Tragedy’.

This Monday, 28th October, marks the hundredth anniversary of the National Prohibition Act becoming law in the United States. Also known as the Volstead Act, the Act prohibited “intoxicating beverages”, regulated the manufacture, sale and transport of alcohol whilst ensuring a supply of alcohol for industry and science. It defined “intoxicating liquors” as “any such beverages which contain one-half of 1 per centum or more alcohol by volume”, a surprisingly low limit for many.

Food & Drink in History is a treasure trove of culinary surprises, with a whole host of curious recipes and fascinating, occasionally hair-raising ingredients (search for millipedes, I dare you).

The newly published Food and Drink in History: Module I is a real treasure trove of content for students and researchers, from a vast range of cookbooks, to documents charting the development and influence of staple brands, to anthropological research into African food cultures. A highlight that I’ve found particularly fascinating to delve into is the collection of MAF files (Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries – then known as Ministry of Food) sourced from The National Archives, UK.

Over one hundred and fifty years since its first appearance in print, Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management remains an archetypal text in the field of domestic and culinary arts, not simply for its extensive recipes and household management tips, but also for its creation of a persona of domestic excellence that persists, albeit in different guises, to this day. Included within Adam Matthew’s newly released resource, Food and Drink in History: Module I, is a near-complete run of the monthly instalments in which this famed text first appeared.

On the 4th October 1883, the Orient Express embarked on its inaugural journey from Paris to Constantinople. I have taken this opportunity to delve into Leisure, Travel & Mass Culture to explore the fascinating stories and experiences that surround this train.

To mark the 50th anniversary of the last-recorded album of The Beatles, Abbey Road, take a look into Popular Culture in Britain and America 1950-1975. Read how one case of The Beatles “gold records” was confiscated by customs officials following unpaid import duty in 1964. Discussions on whether to sell or destroy these awards continued within the department, and with the bands management company, for the next four years.

This week sees the opening of London Design Festival, an annual event ‘held to celebrate and promote London as the design capital of the world and as the gateway to the international creative community.’

Yank, the Army Weekly now available via the second module of Adam Matthew Digital’s Service Newspapers of World War Two, offers today’s researchers an insight into the life of the serving American between 1942 and 1945. The magazine’s different editions, New York, British and Far East reveal shared experiences, as well as those unique to the different theatres of war.

Ethnomusicology: Global Field Recordings which published last month is Adam Matthew’s first predominantly audio collection; produced in collaboration with the UCLA Ethnomusicology Archive and featuring materials from University of Washington’s Ethnomusicology Archive.

The resource includes hundreds of field recordings from all over the world; from Brooklyn hip hop, to European religious music, to Javanese gamelan. It’s been an exciting 18 months working on this project and getting to listen to music from around the globe.

On September 6^th, 1620, a group of pilgrims left Plymouth aboard a ship called the Mayflower, bound for a new life in what was then the British colonies of America. Almost 400 years on from one of the most well-known events from America’s colonial beginnings, it feels fitting that, here at Adam Matthew, work on our long-running Colonial America resource has finally reached its conclusion with the publication of Module V: Growth, Trade and Development.

Allow me to make something clear: I will find any excuse to treat myself to baked goods, and the return of the Great British Bake Off to our TV screens this week was as good an excuse as any to tuck in.

What on earth is a 'short snorter'? Assessing material for our newly released resource America in World War Two several years ago, I found myself faced with the archival catalogue of the National WWII Museum in New Orleans and this very question.

I am continually losing socks. There is no rhyme or reason to it. I don’t think I can even blame the washing machine because occasionally I will notice in the evening that, while I may have started my day with two socks on, I am now definitely only wearing one.

Love it or hate it, Love Island fever has undeniably swept through the nation for yet another summer and with the infamous dating reality show now gearing up to the final next week it seems appropriate to take a moment to step back in time and see how our eighteenth century predecessors went about ‘cracking on’.