William Hoff
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willjfhoff.bsky.social
William Hoff
@willjfhoff.bsky.social
PhD candidate at the University of Melbourne on Wurundjeri Country 🖤💛❤️ Researching Robin Hood, the politics of performance, and early modern medievalism 🌳🏹🎯
Stumbled across this fun project - 3D recreation of the Rose Playhouse c.1595, where the first Robin Hood play "George a Greene" was performed in 1593-94, along with the Huntington plays in (probably) April-May 1598 🌳🏹🎯 Watch the fly-though here 👇
reconstructingtherose.tome.press/chapter/5-th...
July 22, 2025 at 2:45 AM
From Philip Henslowe's diary/account book/notebook, recording the commission of "The Downfall of Robert, Earle of Huntington" from Anthony Munday in February 1598 🏹 Very last entry: "layd owt vnto antony monday the 15 of febreary 1598 for a playe boocke called the first parte of Robyne Hoode"
July 16, 2025 at 12:53 AM
This is perfect for procrastinating from writing a difficult third chapter 😂🔥✨️ @maklelan.bsky.social
April 22, 2025 at 3:53 AM
Reposted by William Hoff
‘Okay which one of you accidentally added Robert Cecil to the chat?’
March 24, 2025 at 9:16 PM
Chuffed that my review of the new and really rather important collection "Historians on Robin Hood" is out today via @northernhistory.bsky.social 🔥 Thanks to the team for sending me the book to comb through (and already wear out!) 🌳🏹🎯 Link here: doi.org/10.1080/0078...
March 3, 2025 at 10:24 PM
Reposted by William Hoff
I'm enjoying all the clever "calling yourself a king doesn't make you a king" posts, but also thinking that from a medieval perspective, that is kind of exactly how it starts, so...
February 20, 2025 at 10:11 PM
Getting back into social media with the reminder that, no matter what happens in A24's "The Death of Robin Hood", we have a dirty 'tache for the first time in over 30 years, and that's a win 🔥🌳🏹🎯
February 19, 2025 at 8:46 AM
Reposted by William Hoff
EXTENDED CFP! We've had a great deal of interest in our conference at University of Melbourne in December, and seen lots of panel and paper proposals come through, but we want more! Ignore the deadline on website, we'll accept submissions up to 28 Feb.

conference.anzamems....
February 18, 2025 at 1:28 AM
Reposted by William Hoff
Hi everyone, can you help one of my students with her MA dissertation? Amy is exploring the motivations, influences & ambitions of those who practice history (from professionals to amateurs, paid to hobbyist). Fill in her survey to add your experience (& please share): forms.office.com/e/mFNv6tAqxn
Microsoft Forms
forms.office.com
January 21, 2025 at 3:26 PM
I'm doing it - I'm plugging my Instagram 😂 If you're there and interested in Robin from his medieval origins to movies, come by and I promise I'll post more this year 🤞 Search "True History of Robin Hood" on Insta 📸 Snippet from today's post... 🌳🏹🎯
January 13, 2025 at 7:56 AM
Starting the new year with a lovely surprise - the first citations to my work in other works! 💚 In the excellent new collection "Historians on Robin Hood" ed. Stephen Rigby. Buried amongst some very good company here - a totally normal experience for some, but nice for my list of firsts! 😊
January 3, 2025 at 8:45 AM
It's only bloody Christmas 🪓🎄👑⭐️
December 22, 2024 at 7:33 AM
Reposted by William Hoff
Ynterviewer: Kan you explayne thys gap yn your resume?

Dante Alighieri: Yn the middle of thys journeye of lyfe Ich founde myselfe yn a shadowye woode, for...
December 21, 2024 at 7:31 PM
There's surely a missing tradition (but probably as ephemeral as it gets) about Much the Miller's Son - why Robin Hood's third of three primary named merries is the son of a miller, enough to bear repeating in later C15 lit 🤔
Murder at the Medieval Mill

Medieval millers were not always well liked and it’s not uncommon to read in criminal court records that a miller had been killed. This person leaving a windmill sure looks like they regret doing something nefarious at the mill with the mallet they're holding. 🧵1/5
December 13, 2024 at 9:37 AM
Reposted by William Hoff
Vlado Chernozemski, who assassinated King Alexander I of Yugoslavia, belonged in his youth to a club that was devoted to a game of regicide.

In the game, known as "chess," contestants subtly maneuver into a position that allows them to topple the opponent's monarch.
December 10, 2024 at 3:43 PM
Reposted by William Hoff
this is what it must have felt like to hear Robin Hood stories in 1370
MSNBC is reporting that the backpack that the Midtown shooter ditched in Central Park was full of Monopoly money
December 8, 2024 at 12:48 AM
Yes I did detour on day one of my lovely honeymoon in Hobart to find the building Errol Flynn was born in 🏹 But there was a community historical society christmas market across the street, so win bloody win ✌️
December 7, 2024 at 9:49 AM
There's a Robin Hood Christmas movie begging to be made. A snowy, cosy medieval aesthetic with a theme of radical kindness? ✨️Begging✨️ to be made.
Happy St. Nicholas Day Eve! Don't forget to leave out your shoes and watch out for the Krampus!

Did you know that St. Nicholas is the Patron Saint of Thieves? For the 50th episode of Into the Greenwood we're going to do a holiday special and look at how he intersects with the Prince of Thieves! 🏹🎅
December 6, 2024 at 1:10 AM
Reposted by William Hoff
This, from a country whose economy has, for more than 20 years, been substantially subsidised by the benefits flowing from connection to a major movie franchise associated with a piece of fantasy literature...
This statement in particular is horrifying and clearly not true: “Real impact on our economy will come from areas such as physics, chemistry, maths, engineering and biomedical sciences.”
December 4, 2024 at 1:37 AM
With a PSA to clarify that this is referring to both sides of the argument - both are 100% correct 100% of the time, who knew? 😂
Historians like to think they're critical thinkers until Richard III has them shipping like 2011 tumblr. Two documentaries in 12 months? "Will no-one rid me of these troublesome boys?" 👑
December 3, 2024 at 10:26 PM
Historians like to think they're critical thinkers until Richard III has them shipping like 2011 tumblr. Two documentaries in 12 months? "Will no-one rid me of these troublesome boys?" 👑
December 3, 2024 at 9:05 PM
Reposted by William Hoff
Genuinely makes me sad that history is filled with so many incredible fascinating stories yet the most popular history show on Netflix is some dipshit looking at old civilisations and just going "looks like they used secret technology or magic to build this"
December 1, 2024 at 9:50 PM
Actual quote from my PhD application 💀🏹
“ROBIN HOOD WAS ORIGINALLY A YEOMAN AND WHILE THERE IS DEBATE ABOUT THE EXACT DEFINITION, IT WAS UNAMBIGUOUSLY NOT NOBILITY, SO THE TRANSITION FROM COMMONER TO ARISTOCRAT DEFANGS ANY CLASS COMMENTARY AND ATTEMPTS TO REPLACE IT WITH THE CRUSADES PROVE PROBLEMATIC AND…”
December 1, 2024 at 8:27 AM