Frankenstein Discussion – Caroline Devlin, Jody Cooksley & Patricia Pulham
Chaired by Matt Pinches from Guildford Shakespeare Company
IVy Arts Centre, University of Surrey
In an age where Artificial Intelligence is growing ever more powerful, 200 years on
Mary Shelley's gothic thriller about a being created without thought for its future,
still has the power to shock and provoke.
From 20th Oct Guildford Shakespeare Company will be premiering a new stage adaptation of Shelley's novel by director and writer Caroline Devlin.
Join us for a special panel discussion with Caroline, author Jody Cooksley and Patricia Pulham from Literature and Languages at the University of Surrey, to explore the blending of Mary Shelley's terrifying original text with a 21st century understanding of Artificial Intelligence and its endless possibilities.
ABOUT the Panel
Patricia Pulham
Patricia Pulham is Professor of Victorian Literature and currently President of the British Association for Victorian Studies (BAVS). At Surrey, Patricia is Head of the School of Arts, Humanities and Creative Industries.
Her latest book, The Sculptural body in Victorian literature: Encrypted Sexualities (2020) was published by Edinburgh University Press in their Critical Studies in Victorian Culture series and republished in paperback in 2022.
JODY COOKsLEY
Jody Cooksley is the author of four novels and a writer of all kinds. A journalist and communications consultant, she studied nineteenth-century literature at Oxford Brookes and has a Masters in Victorian poetry. Her chilling historical gothic, The Small Museum, won the 2023 Caledonia Novel Award. Its companion novel, The Surgeon’s House (2025) is another gothic crime. Both explore the boundaries between science, medicine, morality and monsters. Jody loves dark stories, everything gothic, psychological fiction and historic crime. She is originally from Norwich and now lives in Surrey with her husband, sons and giant cats.
Caroline Devlin
Originally from the north of Scotland, Caroline trained at The Drama Centre London. An actress for 18 years she then moved into directing. Her work ranges from Shakespeare to new writing, embracing large scale venues, open air and site specific as well as studio based pieces. For Guildford Shakespeare: Jekyll and Hyde, The Tempest, As You Like It, Henry V (OffWestEnd OnComm Award Winner), The Legend Of King Arthur, The Winter’s Tale, King Lear, Henry V, Othello, Macbeth, The Merry Wives of Windsor (The Public Reviews pick of 2012), Richard III and Hamlet. Other work as a Director: The Twits (Hello Little People); The Delights of Dogs and Problems Of People (OnComm Commendation, Old Red Lion and Edinburgh Fringe); Jekyll and Hyde (CreationTheatre); In Extremis (Kean Productions); and R-3 with her own company, Centre Five Productions, (OffWestEnd Award nominated for Best Director); Beautiful Bodies (Leicester Square Theatre); Eunuchs in my Wardrobe (Edinburgh Festival); Amaretti Angels (British Actors Guild). As Writer: The Legend of King Arthur (GSC), Jekyll and Hyde (Creation Theatre); R-3 (Co-written, Centre Five Productions) The Spirit of Scotland, The Sand and the Oyster (Toured with Actors from The London Stage). Caroline is a board member of Actors From The London Stage and is currently writing a play based on the life of Mary Seacole.
