137: Dan Clark

Nostalgia Interviews with Chris Deacy

My guest this week is Dan Clark, e-Learning Manager at the University of Kent who begins the interview by talking about the power that technology has in learning and teaching. We talk about our experiences during lockdown of rapid change and how technology can make things happen.

Dan discusses how and when he is able to stay away from technology because it is a massive part of his day job. We talk about the days before the internet when we would find things via a paper trail and the important role of physical products.

Dan is from Cheshire and he talks about his Lake District connection and why it is such a magical place for him. Cornwall was his ‘go to’ place as a child where there was a different pace of life, and this leads to us discussing the notion of counterpoint.

We learn why music is important to Dan. He talks about his earliest musical memories relating to travelling to Oban, Scotland, in 1987, including ‘Brothers in Arms’ by Dire Straits. He was given an electric guitar on his 15th birthday and has since played his own music. Dan formed a band at the end of secondary school and grew up at a time when the Manchester music scene was huge.

We talk about school reunions and the rose tinted view of past experiences and how our perceptions of the past are shaped by our experiences.

We learn how Dan entered his current profession as a learning technologist. He studied Media and Cultural Studies for his degree at Manchester, is presently doing a PhD and is fascinated to find those threads in his journey from having done ‘A’ level Sociology.

Dan reveals that he has never had a fixed career plan and we speak about the difference between personal, academic and career goals. He talks about the tutors at Manchester who inspired him in terms of how the past is represented. Dan talks about his running predilections, too, which started in later years and how it is good from a wellbeing sense.

Dan talks about always having had a nostalgic disposition and how he looks back to think about how he got to where he is now. He talks about health anxieties and how they can be turned to a positive outcome, and how the past makes us who we are.

Towards the end of the interview, Dan brings up his interest in abandoned buildings which he photographs, including a TB sanatorium in Cheshire. It led him to appear on Ghost Hunting with Girls Aloud in 2005 – and we learn what the band thought about Dan’s obsession.

Finally, Dan discusses what his older self would tell his younger self and he tells us about his recurring dream. At the end, Dan reveals why he looks back more than he looks forward.

Please note: Opinions expressed are solely those of Chris Deacy and Dan Clark and do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the University of Kent.