Peter Russell

After spending a few years in Chicago, I moved to Vancouver BC, where I finished a BA in History, played and sang in a variety of bands, and did jobs from retail to management to construction to shipping & receiving. I did an MA in European Studies in Dublin, Ireland in 2003-4, and I'm currently working on a PhD in contemporary history (thesis title: Human Rights and Foreign Policy: Western Involvement in Yugoslavia, 1989-1995) at the University of Melbourne, to be completed next year. When I'm trying to avoid working on my thesis, I spend entirely too much time doing music and photography.

Update 2013: The thesis was completed in late 2009, and as of early 2011 I could officially add 'PhD' to my name, if I were so inclined. I spent 2010 to 2012 doing sessional (adjunct) lecturing in history, politics, and European Studies at a number of universities around Melbourne, whilst also getting married and adjusting to life with a new son. Having concluded by 2012 that the chances of getting an ongoing gig at a university were largely non-existent, I'm now in the process of getting qualified to teach high school history and drama (back to being a student and having no money - yay!).

I recall trying to knock out the ceiling tiles in the high hallway outside the bandroom while hacky-sacking with (if memory serves) Mark Riebe, Tom Otter, Rich Quinlan, and several others.