Thread by @leicesterucu

It would be hard to beat the brazen effrontery of Portsmouth's spinmeisters. However, this extract from the VC's response to @JudithJesch and all our medievalist colleagues at Nottingham, protesting the axing of 1000+ years of English language and literature, wins hands down ...

https://twitter.com/hl_murray/status/1360613011740913666

Regarding a point Prof. Jesch made about the Midlands Viking Symposium (but ignoring other aspects of collaboration with Leicester mentioned in the letter), the VC (apparently) performs yet more casuistical gymnastics claiming that Leicester is committed to medieval scholarship

... except not in English (apparently):

In regard to the Midlands Viking Symposium, I have been informed of its work by your colleague Dr Christina Lee. Please be assured that our University remains committed to medieval scholarship ...

and to the continuation of our Medieval Research Centre and we have made investments into this area to protect and enhance its work.'

Really? Just like you have decolonized the curriculum in English, History and Law? Here's some background on 'our Medieval Research Centre'. Established in 1996, through the initiative of Prof. Greg Walker @gregmw4, Prof. Phillip Lindley and Prof. Elaine Treharne @ETreharne ...

the MRC has always been housed in and primarily financed (it mainly runs on good will) by English at Leicester, with at least one co-director from English. After the departure of Profs. Walker and Treharne, Dr Anne Marie D'Arcy acted as co-director for 10 years ...

succeeded by Dr Phil Shaw in 2018. However, current plans, as stated by the VC in a letter released to the alumni in advance of the 'consultation process', involve making all 4 medievalists redundant (though Management seems unclear how many are there: 3 or 4?) ...

This will involve ... wait for it ... 'the downsizing of the Medieval Research Centre' when 'Shaping for Excellence' reaches its endgame. We kid you not! Beat that for sheer brazen economy with the truth!

Needless to say, there is not a medievalist in the land, or indeed, worldwide, likely to fall for this one, and certainly not our learned colleagues and friends at the University of Nottingham.