Sarah is an engaging and versatile public speaker, who is experienced at sharing her knowledge of medieval and early modern culture with all kinds of audiences, from children to academics. She appears regularly on television and radio and has given many talks and readings at festivals, galleries, museums, conferences, history groups, and society meetings. She has also directed over twenty-five cultural events with The Liverpool Players.

Recent and Upcoming Events

14 September 2025, ‘The Staithes Mermaids’, Staithes Arts and Heritage Festival. Tickets.

10 September 2025, ‘The Mermaids of Staithes: Sea, Superstition, Egg-Broth and Loss in a Yorkshire Legend‘, for the Viktor Wynd Museum and The Last Tuesday Society. Tickets.

1 May 2025, Ferens Art Gallery, ‘Ruined by a Mermaid’s Curse: The Sea, Superstition, and Loss in a Yorkshire Legend from Staithes’ at Sirens: Women and the Sea Symposium, part of the Sirens: Women and the Sea exhibition.

13 February 2025, ‘Japanese Merfolk and the Strange Case of the Feejee Mermaid’, Viktor Wynd Museum.

3 August 2024, Williamson Art Gallery and Museum, ‘Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: A Medieval Treasure’. Opening Talk launching Into the Wyld.

22 July 2024, Royal Albert Hall, Proms 5, Schoenberg’s Pelleas and Melisande and Zemlinsky’s The Mermaid. BBC Radio 3 Live Coverage (interval contributor).

14 June 2024, ‘Mermaids of the British Isles and Ireland: Sirens of Sin and Salvation’, for Imaginative Landscapes and Otherworlds 2024: The Liminality of Water and Aqueous Realms. Hosted by Canterbury Christ Church University and University of Exeter.

5 June 2024, ‘Medieval Mermaids: Sirens of Shipwreck, Salvation and Folklore’, Talk for The Last Tuesday Society/Victor Wynd Museum.

Past Events

Talks and events 1998-2023 are listed here.