October 11th, 2007

Blog entry from Dr. Kate Fowkes, Professor of Media and Popular Culture Studies

Greetings from Oxford, England! It's hard to believe that we (meaning myself, my husband, and three High Point students) have been here for an entire month. The students have settled in to their classes here at Oxford Brookes University and take a film class with me as well. Since we're in England, we feel well within our right to study some Hitchcock films. Yep, he WAS British and yep, we watched Psycho! Ouch! In general, the students report that they're making friends and "having a blast!"

It's predictably rainy and gloomy much of the time (with some glorious exceptions) but that's what makes it green and beautiful here so there shall be no whining (or as the British might say, no "whinging"). Despite the steady and seemingly world-wide encroachment of strip malls and highways and big box stores (is THAT what we call "progress?") the English countryside remains green and positively bucolic. Even from the main highway, one is treated to a vision of placid fields, often dotted with sheep and cows and rabbits.

Oxford itself is beautiful and historic and oh-so atmospheric. I am communing with the ghosts of J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis while I work on a book about Fantasy film which will include discussions of Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia, not to mention the Harry Potter movies. We haven't visited the hall at Christ's Church yet where they film the dining hall sequences for Harry Potter, but we hope to one of these days. Just for fun!

Well, that's all for now. But I'll write again in a few weeks. No photos though, as I'm sure I'll be quite a bit too chubby from all the bangers and mash!

Cheers,

Dr. Fowkes