Bernard Porter


Bernard John Porter is a British historian and academic. He is Emiritus Professor of Modern History at Newcastle University.
Porter read history at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. After receiving his BA, MA, and PhD from Corpus, he took a position as a research fellow at his old college before moving to the University of Hull to become a senior lecturer in modern history. Since 1992, he has been an Emeritus Professor at Newcastle. He is perhaps best known for his most recent book, Absent-Minded Imperialists, published in 2004 which sparked a historiographical debate with John Mackenzie on the place of imperialist sentiment within British popular culture.

Personal life

He lives in Stockholm, Sweden. He is fond of art, architecture, cricket, classical music, and science fiction books. He is a fellow of the Royal Historical Society.