Oxbridge Academic Programs - The Oxford Tradition

General Sir Michael Rose. KCB CBE DSO QGM. Sir Michael is one of the most highly decorated British soldiers of the 20th century. He was Adjutant General of the British Army, Aide-de-Camp General to Queen Elizabeth II, and Commander of the United Nations Protection Force that operated in Bosnia. He was originally commissioned into the Coldstream Guards, was selected for service in the Special Air Service (SAS) and then commanded the 22nd SAS Regiment. He served in Malaysia, Oman, Germany, Northern Ireland, and the Falkland Islands. He now directs Control Risks Group, a private security and consulting company and writes on peacekeeping issues and challenges to global security.

Baba Brinkman. Baba has written and performed original rap and spoken word poetry for over a decade. His transformation of Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales into a hip-hop epic was met with critical acclaim that included his recruitment to Cambridge University’s English Faculty for his innovative and inventive approach to literature. He holds a BA (Hons) from Simon Fraser University and an MA from the University of Victoria and, as a thoughtful and engaging lyricist, he explores the differences and similarities between rap music and literary poetry. He founded Babasword Productions in 2004 for the creation and promotion of educational, literature-based entertainment; in 2007 he established the indie record label Lit Fuse Records, and in 2008 formed the hip-hop group Mud Sun.

Professor Andrew Motion. Professor Motion is the former Poet Laureate of England, a post renowned for its other previous holders such as William Wordsworth, Lord Tennyson, and Ted Hughes. He is a Professor of Creative Writing at Royal Holloway, University of London, and the author of acclaimed biographies and anthologies of poetry, including Philip Larkin: A Writer’s Life (1994) and Keats (1998). In 2006 he published his autobiography, In the Blood: A Memoir of My Childhood, and in 2007 he wrote The Five Acts of Harry Patch, dedicated to the last surviving soldier to have fought in the trenches of the First World War.

Lord Saye and Sele. (Nathaniel Fiennes) A member of the House of Lords and the 21st member of the Fiennes family to bear the title, Lord Saye and Sele addresses us in his ancestral home, Broughton Castle. Built in 1300, this magnificent building was a location for the Oscar-winning film Shakespeare in Love. Notable relatives include actors Ralph and Joseph Fiennes, the explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes, and Susannah Fiennes, the Prince of Wales’ official artist. At the home of this most prominent of British families, participants experience a piece of English heritage firsthand.

Tony Benn. One of the best known and most controversial figures in British politics, Tony Benn retired from Parliament in 2001 after 50 years in the chamber, making him the longest serving Labour MP in British history. He was a Cabinet minister for two Labour governments and was President of the Council of European Energy Ministers. A member of the National Executive Committee of the Labour Party for 35 years and former Chairman, Mr Benn offers our students a fascinating perspective on British history and the relationship between Britain and the United States.

Professor Lynda Mugglestone. Professor Mugglestone is the News International Lecturer in Language and Communication at Oxford University and Vicegerent, Fellow and Tutor at Pembroke College. Her research interests include the history of the English Language, especially in the 19th century, and the cultural, social, and linguistic history of dictionaries. She is widely published, having written such books as Talking Proper: The Rise of Accent As Social Symbol and Lost for Words: The Hidden History of the Oxford English Dictionary.

Don Winslow. Novelist, military historian, theater director, screenwriter, actor, and former private investigator, Mr Winslow is also a founding faculty member of Oxbridge Academic Programs. In individual class workshops and a presentation before the group as a whole, Mr Winslow reads excerpts from his many novels (which include The Power of the Dog, The Winter of Frankie Machine and The Dawn Patrol), discusses the art of writing experientially, and offers his unique perspectives on transferring the written word from the page to the stage, the small screen, and the cinema.

Professor Christopher Andrew. Professor of Modern and Contemporary History at Cambridge University, a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, former Visiting Professor of National Security at Harvard University, frequent BBC commentator, and the President of Corpus Christi College, Professor Andrew is one of the world’s foremost experts on British, US, and Soviet intelligence services. Much of his recent research draws upon the unique collection of documents and notes that the defector Vasili Mitrokhin stole from his KGB masters and brought to the West. A perennial favorite with our students, he talks about the role of intelligence agencies in the post-Cold War era.

Dr Helen Kidd. A renowned Oxford poet, Dr Kidd is a lecturer in English Studies at Oxford Brookes University, a tutor at Ruskin College, Oxford, and was a member of The Oxford Tradition’s teaching faculty for over 20 years. As a poet, she performs readings and holds workshops throughout Europe. She has published many volumes of poetry, including Sleight of Foot in 1996, The Paper City in 1997 and Ultraviolet Catastrophe in 2003. In 2005, Blue Weather was released to much acclaim, having won the 2003/4 Cork Manuscript Prize. She is also co-editor of The Virago Book of Love Poetry and, as a scholar in her own right, has published on feminist theory and criticism, contemporary poetry, and the literature of the British Isles and the Caribbean.

Capt. Jonny White. Capt. White is a former commander and member of C-Squadron, Royal Dragoon Guards, a regiment of the British Army that was established in 1689 and has fought with distinction in most campaigns to date. Educated at Sandhurst, he has served in England, Germany, Northern Ireland, Canada, and Oman. He has worked closely with intelligence agencies and Special Forces, and has taught university undergraduates as a Territorial Army officer. With experience of military training, armor deployment and strategy, the Northern Ireland peace process, and Middle Eastern politics, Capt. White addresses the students on the role of mobile armor in modern warfare and how today’s military operates.

Dr Anna Eriksson. A lecturer and fellow at King’s College London, Dr Eriksson is a Cambridgetrained criminologist specializing in the judicial and social issues surrounding Northern Ireland’s recent past. Swedish and originally educated in Australia, she undertook her Master’s and PhD at Cambridge University’s Institute of Criminology, while at the same time teaching on The Cambridge Tradition, after which she lectured at Monash University in Australia. Her research interests include restorative justice, conflict resolution, and victimology, all of which feature in her recent book, Justice in Transition: Community Restorative Justice in North Ireland.

Dr David Mulford. Dr Mulford is the United States Ambassador to India, having in the past held a number of private and public sector positions. He was Chairman International and Member of the Executive Board for Credit Suisse First Boston in London, England, and a senior investment advisor to the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency, whose responsibilities included managing the investment of Saudi oil revenues. In the US government, he has served as Assistant Secretary for International Affairs and as Undersecretary for International Affairs for the Department of the Treasury. He has been awarded the Légion d’Honneur by the President of France and The Alexander Hamilton Award by the Secretary of the United States Treasury.

Dr Sophie Pickford. Dr Pickford is a Director of Studies and Supervisor at Jesus and Girton Colleges, Cambridge University, where she also holds a Research Associate post in Art History. As an undergraduate at King’s College, she graduated first in her year, winning the Rylands Prize for her outstanding work before joining St John’s College as a Benefactor’s Scholar to begin her doctoral research in French Renaissance art and domestic culture. She has competed for Cambridge University in sailing and water polo, and her sporting interests extend to serving as the sports photographer for Varsity, Cambridge’s student newspaper. She has since established her own photography studio and her photographs have appeared in the national media.