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Brunel University School of Arts appoints Lost, Sopranos and Buffy expert to Chair in Film and TV

Pennsylvannia-born Professor Lavery comes to Brunel University from Middle Tennessee State University. He is the prolific author of more than 100 published works on such long-running shows as “Twin Peaks,“ “The X-Files,“ “Seinfeld,“ “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,“ “The Sopranos“ and “Lost.“

He has had four books published in the past year including the co-authorship of “Unlocking the Meaning of Lost: An Unauthorized Guide“ (Sourcebooks 2006; www.unlockinglost.com)
with two more forthcoming, including one on Joss Whedon, the creator of “Buffy,“ and another on the short-lived “My So-Called Life,“ which he describes as “a failed show, but it was much loved. It was the most realistic show about teenagers that has ever been on TV.“

Professor Lavery will be the convenor of the first academic conference devoted to the Mafia-drama series “The Sopranos,“ planned for 2007. The show finishes its run in America, and Britain, next year.


“I'm much more of a fan than most scholars,“ he said. “These shows that I write about, I love. I may not be as obsessed with them as some of the fans of “Lost“ - who are just insane.

“I study this stuff because I love it. I can't tell you how 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' changed my life. So, I admit to not being an objective scholar.“

He was the co-organiser of a major international conference on “Buffy“ in 2004 and 2006 and co-edits the e-journal “Slayage: The Online International Journal of Buffy Studies“ and he will oversee the relaunch of “Intensities: The Journal of Cult Media,“ a Brunel University School of Arts publication.

Professor Lavery writes an entertaining blog called The Laverytory at: http://thelaverytory.blogspot.com

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