Film Showing - Crossbones: ethnography and gender in the graveyard of the outcast dead

5 May 2026

On the evening of Thursday 16 April 2026, Gender Studies MLitt alumna Kathryn Herschell previewed their film ahead of presenting at the Twenty Seventh Cemeteries Colloquium in York.

Kathryn noted “I'm going to be presenting at the Twenty Seventh Cemeteries Colloquium, an interdisciplinary forum discussing cemetery scholarship, in York on 8 May. My End of Degree Project for my MLitt was a short film exploring the experiences of visitors to Crossbones, an unconsecrated burial site that’s now a memorial garden in London. Using video, site-recorded audio, photographs and music, alongside an accompanying zine and tactile art pieces, my film uses multi-sensory engagement to convey an embodied experience of the space, while considering the centrality of gender in the story of Crossbones.

Having screened the film for the first time earlier this month, I’m looking forward to sharing it with a wider community, and hope to explore some opportunities for future collaborations focusing on creativity and accessibility.”

There is an unconsecrated graveyard in central London. It was in use from the mid 1700s to the mid 1800s and is best known as the burial place of the sex workers of early modern Southwark. Today, it's a volunteer-run memorial garden that people can visit for free.

If you are interested in attending the Colloquium please see The Cemetery Research Group's website.