Appalachia and the Hillbilly in the American Imagination
Dr Antony Harkins,
Western Kentucky University, USA
Date: 18th of February 2026
Time: 20:00
Venue: Zoom
The Appalachian region in the United States comprises the range of mountains stretching from north Georgia up to the state of Maine. It has been celebrated as an area of natural beauty and long-distance walks as well as a major centre of bluegrass music. However, it is also a very misunderstoodarea as evidenced by JD Vance’s Hillbilly Elegy.
About the speaker:
Anthony Harkins is a professor of history at Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, Kentucky and a scholar of U.S. popular culture history, particularly representations of rural America.
Image attribution - "Shenandoah Valley 2016.09.15 (41)" by NealVickers is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
OTHER EVENTS
On Findings of a Large Roman Fort in Wales in 2024
Guided Walk Around Chesham – LIVE
A painting of Chesham in 1750
The Unlikely Spies of Medieval Europe
Date: 20th of May 2026
Time: 20:00
Venue: Zoom
Speaker: Prof Jenny Benham, Medieval History, School of History, Archaeology & Religion, Cardiff University
Spies were a common feature of political, diplomatic and courtly life in the period of early medieval Europe. In this article, Jenny Benham explores some interesting contemporary representations of spies, in both literature and art. These stories and images reveal key features of the culture and practices surrounding these so-called ‘little birds’ who listened to and passed on important secret information.