Dr Maria Mellins

Email: maria.mellins@stmarys.ac.uk
Tel: 020 8240 4194

About Research Media

Biography

Maria teaches on Film and Screen Media, and Criminology and Sociology degrees. The modules she delivers include Crime in the Media; Bodies, Gender and Sexuality; Screen Cults and Identity, and the Dissertation.

Maria is currently in the final stages of completing the Independent Stalking Advocacy Caseworker training (ISAC) with Paladin National Stalking Advocacy Service. This underpins her undergraduate and postgraduate teaching in the areas of gender-based violence, stalking, homicide prevention, and the representation of these crimes in the media.

In terms of research, Maria is currently writing on the subject of stalking and the minimisation of women’s fear. The research presents the need to recognise and raise awareness of the factors involved in high-risk cases, including escalation upon relationship separation, and finality. Her research podcast, Murder and Society covers issues concerning the representation of female homicide victims in the press, victim-blaming, and ‘cautionary tales’ in Drug Facilitated Sexual Assault (DFSA) cases.

Previously, Maria has written a number of sociological monographs, research papers, articles including her book, Vampire Culture (Bloomsbury, 2013), which is a non-fiction book that draws on her PhD in the area of subcultures: media, gender and crime.

Maria is supervising PhD students in the areas of crime, media, fairy tales and gender.

Research

Selected publications

• ‘Stalking: Addressing Risk and Minimisation of Women’s Fear’ in Murder and True Crime in the Media (Forthcoming, 2021) Edited by Maria Mellins.
• Murder Society Podcast (2019) Series 1 is available on all podcast providers.
• 'Mermaid Spotting: the Rise of Mermaiding in Popular Culture,' in Beasts of the Deep. Sea Creatures and Popular Culture. John Libbey Publishing (2018).
• Maria Mellins and Peter Howell, Introductions to the Monster Collection of Frankenstein,Dracula and Dr Jeckyll and Mr Hyde, Audible, 2017.
• Returning Eden (Crooked Cat, 2016).
• Maria Mellins & Brigid Cherry (ed.) ‘Subverting Fashion’, Special Edition of Clothing Cultures Journal (Intellect 2.2)
• Vampire Culture. (Bloomsbury Publishing, 2013)
• ‘The Fangtasia Experience: True Blood Fans, Commodification and Lifestyle’, in Brigid Cherry, True Blood: Investigating Vampires and The Southern Gothic. I.B. Tauris (2012)
• ‘Negotiating the Punk in Steampunk’.Co-authored with Brigid Cherry, The Intellect Journal of Punk and Post Punk (2011)
• ‘Fashioning a Morbid Identity. Female Vampire Fans and Subcultural Style’ in B. Cherry, P. Howell & C. Ruddell (ed) Twenty-First-Century Gothic, Cambridge Scholars (2010)
• ‘Dressing up as Vampires: Virtual vamps – negotiating female identity in cyberspace’, Networking Knowledge, Journal of MeCCSA PGN. 1(2) (2007)
• Interview on BBC World News (Oct 2013) 
• Interview on Jo Good Show BBC London Radio (Oct 2013)