Examined Life: Dr Darren Freebury-Jones (BA 2010, MA 2012, PhD 2016)

Dr Darren Freebury-Jones (BA 2010, MA 2012, PhD 2016) is a triple Cardiff alumnus and a popular Shakespeare lecturer in Stratford-upon-Avon. His passion has led to some surprising discoveries about the world of literature. He explains why he chose to dedicate himself to the Bard, and the lessons he’s learned along the way.  

I owe a lot of my career choices to playing the Big Bad Wolf in a school production of Red Riding Hood at the age of ten or eleven. That was my first introduction to theatre and to engaging audience members, and performance remains a key aspect of who I am. I was also deeply influenced by great teachers. Teachers such as Jamie Beynon, who introduced me to Shakespeare’s King Lear in college, and lecturers like Professor Martin Coyle and Professor Richard Wilson at Cardiff University; their passion for the subject truly inspired me to try and become the best teacher I can be. 

Some of my happiest memories were at Cardiff University. It felt like a golden time, watching the sunlight bounce off statues in Gorsedd Gardens during the summer months, or padding over crisp leaves beside the museum in winter. I did my BA, MA, and PhD in the School of English, Communication, and Philosophy, so the University was an intrinsic part of growing up for me.  

It felt strange when I started teaching English literature seminars during my PhD on Shakespeare, the very same seminars I had been taught in. It felt like I was watching the ghosts of my past glide among the throngs of fresh-faced students on Colum Road. I felt a real empathy with those students, but I also recognised that each individual had different learning preferences and styles. I found it remarkable when my eminent supervisor, Professor Martin Coyle, told me that every day he was still learning, and so I approached teaching from the angle that I, just like my students, was continually learning.  

I was overwhelmed with emotion during my last seminar. Over three years I had encountered very different groups of students; I had had the privilege to watch individuals grow and develop, voices once hushed or tentative now offering valuable contributions to group discussions. I had little time to reflect on that final session, however, because once it concluded, I jumped in my car and drove to a job interview. I got the job. It was for an e-learning company, specialising largely in online medical courses. As a Shakespeare scholar, I spent two years wondering what I was doing at that company. It didn’t seem to make sense. How did this act fit into the overall narrative of my development? 

Of course, the pieces tend to make sense with the benefit of hindsight: once jagged and irreconcilable, the jigsaw now fits perfectly. I learned so much working for that company about the realities of office life and the benefits of collaboration. I learned a lot about different forms of education, and I learned a lot about myself. My evenings were largely devoted to boosting my publications list, working towards my desired career, taking refuge in the aphorism that ‘too light winning makes the prize light’.  

Lessons on digital pedagogy were invaluable when it came to getting my dream job as a Shakespeare lecturer in Stratford-upon-Avon. I have been blessed with opportunities to meet students and teachers from all over the world who visit Shakespeare’s hometown, and I’ve been able to travel the world and talk about my love for Shakespeare. I get to see that spark ignite in students, a spark I recognise in myself from when university lecturers introduced me to new Shakespeare plays, characters, or ideas.  

I am very proud of the contributions I have made to the field of early modern authorship attribution studies. I’ve recently ascertained that the tragedy of Locrine, which has been attributed to Shakespeare, was actually written by his rival, Robert Greene! This kind of textual analysis is incredibly time-consuming and difficult, but I enjoy dedicating myself to it and it is worth it when you’re recognised publicly. I have been in several peer-reviewed academic journals but also in newspapers like The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Times, and The Independent, for contributing to our understanding of dramatists working during a golden time of literature. It feels great to bring these discoveries to the attention of both academic and general readers. 

Looking at the positives of the current global situation, I think it’s an incredibly exciting time in terms of digital pedagogy. I am discovering new platforms for high-quality education and certainly learning a lot about the ways in which I can adapt my delivery for different mediums. The pandemic has afforded me more time for reflection in terms of thinking about what kind of a lecturer I am. I’ve also been able to spend more time with family, with my partner Emma, and observe the ways in which my little boy Oliver is continually learning every day.  

I hope that I continue to develop as an educator and make major contributions to our understanding of early modern literature. Whenever I enter a lecture theatre, I take all the lessons Cardiff University taught me inside, particularly the ability to recognise that one is always, always learning.