TV PhD was born from a partnership between the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), part of UK Research and Innovation, which funds internationally outstanding independent researchers across the whole range of the arts and humanities, and The TV Foundation, the Festival’s charity with a mission is to identify and nurture the next generation of talent from all backgrounds.
TV PhD, now in it’s third year, gives AHRC-funded PhD students the chance to participate in a programme of exclusive sessions, and receive training to help them to develop skills, make contacts and increase their knowledge of the television industry, as well as benefiting from a Edinburgh TV Festival pass.
This year’s 15 successful candidates, including Pauline Harding, were selected following an application process and a series of interviews delivered over Zoom during the UK-wide lockdown and are drawn from a wide range of institutions and have a diverse range of specialisms including mindreading, library music and fashion. Pauline’s part-time research focuses on constructions of the past at archaeological sites in Buganda, Uganda, where landscapes have been redefined in accordance with notions of myth, spirit and dream.
The centrepiece of the TV Festival is the agenda-setting James MacTaggart Memorial Lecture, which this year will be delivered by Historian, Broadcaster, Writer and Filmmaker David Olusoga - himself a TV Foundation schemes alumnus having been amongst the Festival’s TV25 (now Ones to Watch) in 1998. Previous key-note speakers include Dorothy Byrne, Ted Turner, Armando Iannucci, Rupert Murdoch, Dennis Potter, Jon Snow, Elisabeth Murdoch and Michaela Coel.
According to Paul Meller, Associate Director (AHRC):
This is a fantastic opportunity for AHRC-funded students, either with plans to work in the TV industry or whose research focuses on that industry. This year the selected students will have the unique opportunity to access the full digital programme, including specific sessions and training, and hopefully the physical festival next year. It’s wonderful to see such a breadth of subject disciplines represented in the cohort which will in time enrich our broadcast landscape.
The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funds world-class, independent researchers in a wide range of subjects: history, archaeology, digital content, philosophy, languages, design, heritage, area studies, the creative and performing arts, and much more.
This financial year the AHRC will spend approximately £98 million to fund research and postgraduate training, in collaboration with a number of partners. The quality and range of research supported by this investment of public funds not only provides social and cultural benefits and contributes to the economic success of the UK but also to the culture and welfare of societies around the globe.
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