Duncan Wheeler

DPhil, Wolfson College

Duncan is a PRS whose thesis title is 'Creative and Created Women in Golden-Age
drama and Modern-Day Cinema'. His research attempts to undermine the
much-vaunted claim that 17th century Spanish theatre is monolithically
conservative by focussing on the role of women in cinema of the last twenty
years and Golden-Age theatre.

Duncan graduated from Wadham College with a BA in Philosophy and Spanish in 2004
and received his M.St. from St Catherine's College in 2005. He spoke at the Sub-Faculty
Research Seminar in 2005 and this paper provided the basis for an article 'We are living
in a material world and I am a material girl: Diana, Countess of Belflor materialised on
the page, stage and screen' that will be published in the Bulletin of Hispanic Studies.

Duncan is particularly interested in performance and worked alongside other members of

the Sub-Faculty as Assistant Director on three entremeses by Cervantes for the Edinburgh
Film Festival and has published a review of a theatrical production of Don Quixote for
the specialist journal Comedia Performance. Recently, Duncan has given papers at the
AHGBI conference in Liverpool and at a day symposium on Lope de Vega in UCL,
London. In June 2006, he spoke on Schindler's List at the International Forum for
European Cinema in Swansea. In October 2006, Duncan was invited to chair a panel at
the 'Queering Migrations on Screen' conference organized by the IGRS in London. He
gave a paper titled 'Is there a performance tradition of Golden-Age drama in Spain?: the
comedia on the Spanish stage (1939-2006)' at the sub-faculty research seminar in
December 2006. He is also currently co-translating a book on Spanish 17th century
festivals for Ashgate Publishers. Asides from Spanish, he is also working on a long-term
book project on the history of heavy metal, punk and reggae music in Birmingham.

Duncan's studies are assisted by the AHRC.