Benjamin Mark Iain Parris

My research focuses on the intersection between genre, socio-politics, cultural memory and the publishing industry, specifically within interwar British detective fiction. My work aims to destabilise popular conceptions of genre and Englishness through close readings and an emphasis on literary production, dissecting the canon in order to bring forgotten authors – such as John Dickson Carr and Anthony Berkeley Cox – to the fore.  

Outside of academia I am a freelance critic, writing for several Scottish and American-based journals and magazines. I also interview authors, many of whom tie to my research interest in detective fiction. Recently these include Val McDermid, Ian Rankin, Paula Hawkins, Richard Coles, Graeme Macrae Burnet, and Louise Welsh. 

I run local book clubs, most recently 'The Mysterious Affair at Topping & Co.: A Century of Scottish Crime Writing'.

• EN1003: Culture and Conflict, An Introduction to 19th and 20th Century English Literature (2024)
• EN3905: Crime and Passion in Popular Culture 2: Since 1900 (2025)