Dr Helen Frisby on Victorian funeral customs, traditions of death and burial, sineaters and being an independent researcher

What's the episode about?

In this episode, hear Dr Helen Frisby discuss Victorian funeral customs, traditions of death and burial, sineaters and being an independent researcher whilst working in professional services in a university.

Who is Helen?

Dr Helen Frisby obtained her PhD on Victorian funeral customs from the University of Leeds in 2009.

Helen is a Visiting Research Fellow at the Centre for Death & Society, University of Bath, Secretary of the Association for the Study of Death & Society (ASDS) and a Council Member of the Folklore Society.

She continues to research, publish and speak on the history and folklore of death, dying and bereavement, including appearances on the History Channel and BBC Radio. Helen’s book Traditions of Death and Burial was published in 2019. Other recent research, with the University of Bristol, investigates the informal occupational culture of frontline cemetery staff.

Helen is also Researcher Development Manager at UWE Bristol, with particular expertise in academic writing, qualitative research methods and postgraduate researcher wellbeing.

Here are some of the references that Helen mentioned:

● Ronald Hutton ‘The English Reformation and the Evidence of Folklore’ Past and Present 148 (1) pp.89-116.

● Ronald Hutton The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999.

● Brian Parsons The Evolution of the British Funeral Industry in the 20th Century: From Undertaker to Funeral Director. Bingley: Emerald Publishing, 2018.

Helen’s favourite popular culture depiction of the Sin Eater is the film The Order(US Title)/The Sin Eater (UK title)

How do I cite the episode in my research and reading lists?

To cite this episode, you can use the following citation:

Frisby, H. (2022) Interview on The Death Studies Podcast hosted by Michael-Fox, B. and Visser, R. Published 1 July 2022. Available at: www.thedeathstudiespodcast.com, DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20161061

What next?

Check out more episodes or find out more about the hosts! Got a question? Get in touch.