Events & Information

Centuries of Celebrity: Re-Contextualizing the Meaning of Fame

The Centuries of Celebrity conference took place on Friday 27th June. We would like to thank all of the speakers and delegates who helped to make this a highly successful event.

The conference attracted about fifty delegates from the UK and abroad who listened to papers on celebrity that covered topics as diverse as Mother Teresa and the Valois Burgundian Court. The conference aimed to open up the concept of celebrity to a broader historical view than it is usually accorded and the general consensus was that this had been achieved. The day ended with a wine and cheese reception where the lively debate continued. A conference publication is in preparation - please check back here for further details.

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The Graduate School at the University of East London
Docklands Campus – Friday 27th June 2008

Whilst the concept of celebrity has traditionally been perceived as a phenomenon of the twentieth century, this conference seeks to reconsider its production and consumption across a broader historical timeframe.  Centuries of Celebrity is an interdisciplinary conference which opens up a dialogue between participants in relation to the meaning and value of fame across the centuries and in so doing re-examines what it means to be famous. 

Registration

Follow this link to register for the conference. The conference is a one-day conference with catering. Delegates will be expected to make their own travel and accommodation arrangements.

Programme

(room numbers in bold)

10.00-10.30	Registration with tea/coffee and pastries EBG.14
10.30-10.35	Welcome from conference organising group
10.35-11.15	Plenary from Su Holmes (East Anglia): What's New? - Histories of Television fame and the ‘Here’ and ‘Now’. - Chair: Alan White EBG.06
11.30-12.45	Global Icons – Chair: Julia Dane Gëzim Alpion (Birmingham): The Saint Without Faith: Mother Teresa’s ‘Double Life’ Amanda B Moniz (Michigan): The ‘Patriot of the World’: Crafting Fame in the late Eighteenth-Century Atlantic World Andrew F Wilson (Derby): The Dianic Mysteries – Cults, Conspiracies and the Appeal of the ‘Queen of Hearts’   EBG.06
12.45-1.30	Lunch EBG.14
1.30-2.45	National Heroes – Chair: Julia Banister Catherine Baker (University College London): Popular Music and the ‘Soldier Hero’ in post-conflict Croatia Eveline Gerdina Bouwers (European University Institute, Florence): National Heroes in Divided Societies: Commemorating Alfieri and Luther in Italy and Germany, c.1800-1850. Tal Zalmanovich (Rutgers): ‘Woman Pioneer of Empire’: The Making of a Colonial Celebrity   EBG.06
2.55-4.05	Representations – Chair: Helen Powell Catherine Hindson (Bristol): The Material Objects of Late Nineteenth-Century Female Celebrity David Humphrey (Royal College of Art): By Invitation Only - joining the 'A list' at the Valois Burgundian Court, 1364-1476. Anna Notaro (Jordanstone College of Art & Design): ‘Back to the Future’ – The Long History of the Virtual Idol   EBG.06
4.05-4.30	Tea/coffee
4.30-6.00	Mediation and Tabloidization – Chair: Alan White Neil Washbourne (Leeds Metropolitan): The Concept of Radio Celebrity in the 1930s’ UK Rob Leurs (Utrecht): The ‘Star of Evil’ – Serial Killer Marc Dutroux as Media Representation Ting Wang (Leeds): Mass Media and Celebrity Culture – Does China Face a New Cultural Revolution? Caroline Bainbridge (Roehampton): ‘They’ve Taken Her!’ – The case of Kate McCann   EBG.06
	Drinks, nibbles and networking EBG.14

To download the programme, click here.

To download the conference poster, click here.

Travel and Accommodation Details

The University of East London's Docklands Campus is best accessed by public transport and has its own station, Cyprus, on the Docklands Light Railway. It is a short journey from London City Airport and central London railway stations. For more information about location and travel links, please click here for UEL travel information.

Cyprus station is about three stops from the ExCEL conference centre where there are a number of reasonable hotels, bars and restaurants, and we advise that you book rooms there. Please click here to go to the ExCEL hotels web page.

Car parking availability on campus is strictly limited and we strongly recommend you travel by public transport if at all possible. Disabled car parking bays will be available for blue-badge holders, and in addition a small number of ordinary spaces which will be allocated on a first-come first-served basis. If you do wish to drive, please contact us as soon as you can.

Further Information

Please contact: J.Riddle@uel.ac.uk

or

Janet Riddle
Graduate School
University of East London
Docklands Campus
University Way
London
E16 2RD

Conference organising group: Julia Banister (Southampton), Julia Dane (East London), Helen Powell (East London) & Alan White (East London)

UEL HOMESEARCH