Originally hailing from Manchester, Matthew obtained a BA (Hons) in English Literature and Philosophy at the University of Sheffield before being awarded his MA and PhD in English Literature from the University of Manchester. Between 2010-2015 he taught at the Universities of Manchester and Salford and was the 2014 LHRI-Brotherton Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Leeds. Matthew took up the position of Teaching Fellow in Contemporary and Postcolonial Literatures at Leeds (2015-2017) before joining the University of Kent as a Lecturer in Postcolonial Literature in 2017.
Matthew is a fellow of the Higher Education Academy. Between 2023-2025, he was an Associate Editor at the Journal of Postcolonial Writing and is currently an Editorial Board Member at Literature, Critique and Empire Today.
He is a member of several international and local academic networks, namely the Postcolonial Studies Association, the Environmental and Climate Mobilities Network, Kent's Centre for the Global Study of Empire, the Kent Animal Humanities Network, and the Centre for Indigenous and Settler Colonial Studies (based at the University of York). In 2014, he co-founded the Northern Postcolonial Network with academics from the Universities of Manchester, Salford and Sheffield.
At Kent, Matthew leads the University's collaboration with the Charles Wallace India Trust, hosting an annual Fellowship for Indian creative writers. His previous leadership roles include: Director of Graduate Studies (Taught Programmes), Director of the Centre for Colonial and Postcolonial studies, Deputy Director of Research, and Senior Tutor.
Matthew has published extensively on postcolonial, late-twentieth century and contemporary literatures. His co-authored book, Global Literature and the Environment (Routledge, 2024) explores the links between the climate crisis and colonialism, examining prose, poetry and plays that connect readers to the localised impacts of ecological emergencies.
Matthew's previous book, Post-War British Literature and the "End of Empire" (Palgrave Macmillan, 2016), explores British responses to imperial decline, focusing on decolonisation, Americanisation, and immigration to Britain.
He has published articles and book chapters on refugee narratives, eco-dystopian literature, and contemporary art as well as book reviews for a variety of academic journals. His articles have also appeared in The Independent, Newsweek, The Wire and The Conversation.
His current project, which has received funding from the British Academy and the AHRC, explores literary depictions of climate-induced migration. He is working in collaboration with the Gatwick Detainees Welfare Group and a network of scholars across the UK, South Africa and Canada.
Matthew has designed, convened and delivered teaching on colonial, postcolonial and Indigenous literatures and film; modernism; post-war and contemporary British literatures; literary theory; ecocriticism; and contemporary art. Indicative modules are:
Undergraduate:
Matthew has a track record of supervising home and international PhD students, both externally-funded and self-funded. This includes an AHRC-CHASE Collaborative Doctoral Award project in collaboration with IncomindiosUK (the British Chapter of the International Committee for the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas).
He would consider PhD proposals that relate to any of his research interests.
Matthew was the University of Kent’s nominated trustee at the Powell-Cotton Museum (2023-25), assisting specifically with the ‘Decolonisation and Practice’ initiative.
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