Louisa Pickard

Thesis title:

Bathroom to Bedroom: interpreting early modern bodily functions. My project title is: Performing Periods: uncovering the shame surrounding menstruation in early modern arts.

Research Area

English Language and Literature
Languages and Literature

Publications

Prisoners of the Womb: Pregnant Prisoners in William Shakespeare's 'The Winter's Tale' and 'Measure for Measure' (Cahiers Elisabethiens, 2025).

Conferences

Britgrad Annual Conference 2023:

Prisoners of the Womb: Pregnant Prisoners in William Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale and Measure for Measure

Scholarships and Awards

Midlands4Cities AHRC Doctoral Training Partnership (2024-present)

Music Scholar at The University of Birmingham (2017-2021)

Background and Education

I completed my BA at The University of Birmingham in 2021, achieving a first class in my dual honours English Literature and French degree. During this time, I completed an Erasmus year in Montpellier, France, and spent my final year specialising in women's literature, fairy tales, and maternity.

I then undertook the Shakespeare Studies MA from 2022-2023 at The Shakespeare Institute in Stratford-Upon-Avon, and was awarded a Distinction. Here, my research built upon my interests in women's studies and the female body, such as pregnancy, gossip, and the objectification of women, as explored in early modern performing arts.

Teaching

Following my BA degree, I worked as a lectrice at the Université de Paul Valery III in Montpellier. There I taught undergraduate English Literature, Language and History classes, supervised final year dissertations and ran supplementary language exchange events.

A year later, following my MA in Stratford, I was invited to return to Montpellier to teach for a second year. Alongside this, I was also welcomed into the IRCL (Institue de recherche sur la Renaissance, l'age Classique et les Lumieres). I worked with members of the department on Shakespearean research and submitted to their journal Cahiers Elisabéthiens.