My research is primarily concerned with 18th- and 19th-century cultural and environmental history, with a specific emphasis on the history of the English Lake District. I am also especially interested in travel writing and topographical literature. My current research projects include Geospatial Innovation in the Digital Humanities: A Deep Map of the English Lake District (2015-2018), which is funded by the Leverhulme Trust. In addition, I co-edit the Digital Forum for the Journal of Victorian Culture.

I would welcome enquiries from students interested in writing dissertations and theses on topics that would fall under the following headings: history of travel and/or tourism; history of Cumbria and/or the English Lake District; historical geography; landscape history; history of national parks

I contribute to various team-taught undergraduate and postgraduate modules (including HIST100, HIST250, and HIST477), and I convene HIST434: 'Critical Heritage Studies' and HIST491: 'Heritage and Public History Placement'.

I am a Fellow of The Higher Education Academy.