Papers of Professor Christine Fell (1938-1998), Professor of Early English Studies at the University of Nottingham; 1965-1997

This collection comprises publications and some personal papers of Christine Fell. The collection constitutes a very small fraction of the records that Professor Fell would have created during her life. The collection contains:

Correspondence and other items concerning visiting Chinese scholars to the Department of English at the University of Nottingham. 1987-1995 (PCF 1);

Correspondence and other papers collected by Christine Fell concerning Honorary Degrees given by the University of Nottingham. Includes speeches made by Christine Fell and honorary graduates at degree ceremonies. Graduates include Ian McKellan, actor, and Vigdís Finbogadóttir, President of Iceland. 1978-1993 (PCF 2);

Reviews of published works by Christine Fell, and an artist's drawing for the front cover of 'Egil's Saga'. 1975-1988 (PCF 3);

Offprints and photocopies of short publications, articles and reviews by Christine Fell. 1965-1997 (PCF 4);

Miscellaneous papers collected by Professor Christine Fell. 1990-1997 (PCF 5)

Series of photographs collected by Christine Fell, principally of visiting Chinese scholars; c.1987-c.1989 (PCF 6)

Christine Elizabeth Fell was born in 1938. She was educated at Royal Holloway College, London (B.A. degree in English) and University College, London (M.A. in Scandinavian Studies). After teaching at Ripon, Aberdeen and Leeds, she was appointed Lecturer in the Department of English Studies at Nottingham in 1971, and was promoted to Reader in 1976. She became Professor of Early English Studies in 1981 and held the post of Pro Vice-Chancellor from 1985 (senior Pro Vice-Chancellor from 1988). She became head of the English Department in 1990. Christine Fell was a Fellow of both the Society of Antiquaries and the Royal Historical Society. She was President of the Viking Society for Northern Research 1980-1982, appointed Knight of the Falcon [an Icelandic honour] in 1991, and awarded the Order of the British Empire in 1997.

Christine Fell's first publication was a scholarly edition of the Icelandic saga of the Anglo-Saxon saint Dunstan. Other monographs included 'Edward King and Martyr' (1971), a translation of 'Egils Saga' (1975, reprinted in paperback 1985), and 'Women in Anglo-Saxon England' (1986). She contributed many papers and lectures to conferences and societies, and had many articles published. She was joint editor of the periodical 'Saga-book of the Viking Society' from 1976-1984, and was on the editorial board of 'Nottingham Medieval Studies' from 1977-1982. She wrote the script for the soundtrack in Old English and Old Norse for the Jorvik Viking Centre in York in 1984. Fell continued throughout her career to explore the cultural and linguistic contacts of the English and Scandinavian worlds in the Middle Ages.

The collection has been divided by document type into series. Within these series, items have been arranged chronologically.

Accessible to all registered readers.

Copyright in all Finding Aids belongs to the University of Nottingham.

In the Reading Room, King's Meadow Campus:

Typescript catalogue, 16 pp.

Online:

Catalogue available through website of Manuscripts and Special Collections, Manuscripts Online Catalogue.

Good

Reprographic copies can be supplied for educational use and private study purposes only, depending on access status and the condition of the documents.

Identification of copyright holders of unpublished material is often difficult. Permission to make any published use of any material from the collection must be sought in advance in writing from the Keeper of Manuscripts and Special Collections (email mss-library@nottingham.ac.uk).

The collection was deposited with The University of Nottingham's Department of Manuscripts and Special Collections in April 1999.