This paper discusses some of the key methodological challenges emerging from the AHRC project
Reframing Vivien Leigh: Stardom, Archives and Access, led by PI Dr. Lisa Stead at the University of Exeter. This
twenty-month project examined how the legacies of screen star Vivien Leigh are archived and curated by a range
of public ...
This paper discusses some of the key methodological challenges emerging from the AHRC project
Reframing Vivien Leigh: Stardom, Archives and Access, led by PI Dr. Lisa Stead at the University of Exeter. This
twenty-month project examined how the legacies of screen star Vivien Leigh are archived and curated by a range
of public institutions in the South West of England, taking audiences behind the scenes of local archives and
museums. The paper reflects on how researching within rural heritage centres and volunteer run archives
encourages the introduction of new voices and new case studies within women’s film history, by encompassing
the archival labour of a network of volunteers, amateurs and professionals within a broader heritage sector whose
historical actions and choices produce alternative kinds of women’s film history. It reflects in turn on the
challenge involved in finding new ways to present these histories in interactive, digital and physical forms for
audiences beyond the academy and to make meaningful impact from this kind of research.
