Our tutors

This finally bore fruit around the time I took up a lecturing post at Durham University’s Department of History, when my first novel, The Lion and the Lamb, was published by Hodder and Stoughton. A second novel, At the Ruin of the World, followed, and I am currently – when I have time! – working on my third. Alongside my history teaching, it was a joy to deliver guest lectures and seminars on creative writing in Durham’s Department of English Studies, and in one of the university colleges (St Cuthbert’s Society). Not being one to stay in the ivory tower of academia, I’ve also spoken at literary festivals and appeared several times on BBC Radio, talking about everything from Roman midwinter to medieval hermits, and apocalyptic myths to ancient university students.

When Eleanor and I began our own family, I made the switch from university to one of London’s leading independent schools. There, I spent several years as a teacher of History and Politics, from Year 7 through GCSE to A-Level. A bonus was that this allowed me to indulge in my third great passion. There are few things I love more than inspiring students to develop the same lifelong interest in the fascinatingly complex and dramatic world of politics.

Having taught at both university and school level, I have seen the student experience on both sides of the fence. While at Durham University I served as an admissions officer, each year reading hundreds of personal statements and deciding who should receive offers. Put simply, I know what makes a good application. This helped me guide my own sixth form students at every stage of their UCAS applications. I feel immense pride in helping my tutees develop their academic skills and personal confidence, deciding what they want to study at university, and guiding them towards their exciting future. To get that message from a tutee to say they’ve just got an offer from Oxford is a wonderful feeling.

I am also a TEFL-qualified teacher, with particular experience helping non-native speakers improve their English, whether through coaching Chinese students or working as a professional translator of German academic writing. This is something that plays into every area of my tutoring: in essay-based subjects like English, History and Politics, clarity and fluency of communication are critical. Whether a native or a non-native speaker, nobody is born able to do this; it is a craft, and, like any craft, it can be learned.

Finally, I was a professional archaeologist in my youth — do ask me how I once discovered a 5000-year-old skeleton…

I then took up a post at Durham University, first in the English Department and then in the History Department. For several years, John and I had the pleasure of both being Associate Professors in the same department, where we collaborated in our teaching and research. Several years later, I moved to a new post in Environmental History at Bath Spa University.

During my time at Cambridge, Oxford and Durham, I worked closely with with secondary schools, providing university taster sessions for sixth formers (with Teach First’s Higher Education Programme at Oxford, the Sutton Trust at Cambridge and the Student Recruitment Network at Durham). I also visit primary schools to deliver creative writing and history workshops. During lockdown, I led a creative writing programme on forests and trees in collaboration with Seven Stories, The National Centre for Children’s Books in Newcastle.

Over the years I have taught students from all backgrounds and of many ability levels across different subjects, and have learned to adapt my teaching style in a way that remains friendly, encouraging and inspiring. This was recognised with an award for excellence in teaching from Durham University (nominated by the students) as well as a fellowship in the Higher Education Academy. Having worked on admissions at both Oxford and Durham, I know what the most competitive universities in the country look for when it comes to applicants, from written personal statements, to interviews.

With my other hat on, I have extensive experience as a BBC broadcaster and public speaker. In 2013, I was chosen as a BBC New Generation Thinker in a national competition to find young academics with the potential to turn their research into broadcasts for radio and TV. As soon as I was let loose in Broadcasting House and placed behind a microphone, I was hooked on making learning fun and engaging. These days, I appear on radio programmes on Radio 3 and Radio 4, as well as podcasts and occasionally the telly. You can check out my website here: eleanorbarraclough.com

My many academic adventures fed into my first book, Beyond the Northlands: Viking Voyages and Old Norse Sagas, a globe-trotting exploration of the Viking world. As a non-fiction writer, I often write and review for national newspapers and magazines. In my capacity as an author I have spoken at literary and historical festivals across the UK, including two appearances at Hay where I was selected as one of their Top 30 at 30 (’30 young novelists, scientists, philosophers, performers and activists who are astonishing and inspiring to join us in Hay. These writers and thinkers will help imagine and shape the world in the next 30 years’). My new book should be out in 2024: watch this space!