Daniel Blackie

I am a disability historian and author, with David Turner, of the open access book Disability in the Industrial Revolution. I am also a qualified and experienced teacher who’s created and taught many courses on disability studies and history at Finnish universities.

A firm believer that the world would be a better place if everyone knew a little more disability history, I am keen to raise public awareness of the subject and really enjoy this side of my work.

Over the years, I’ve spoken at schools; written, recorded, and featured in podcasts; given media interviews; written blog posts, and co-organised an exhibition at the National Waterfront Museum, Wales, ‘From Pithead to Sickbed and Beyond’, that looked at disability in the British coal industry, 1780–1948. I also contributed to the ‘Silent History of Disability’ (‘Vammaisuuden vaiettu historia’) project, a major public history initiative, generously supported by the Kone Foundation.

I am always open to new collaborations and like working with other people to promote disability history, so if you have any ideas and feel I might have something to contribute, please do get in touch!

Bluesky: @danielblackie.bsky.social

Select Open Access/Free-to-Read Publications

• D. Blackie & A. Moncrieff, ‘Update: Disability History’, The Historian: The Magazine of the Historical Association (2026). Note: requires free registration to access!
• D. Blackie, J. Kuuliala, R. Miettinen & G. Perk, 'Blind Visionaries and Cheese-Eating Sceptics: The Place of Lived Religion in Disability History', Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research (2025).
• D. Blackie & A. Moncrieff, 'State of the Field: Disability History', History (2022).
• D. M. Turner & D. Blackie, 'Disability and Political Activism in Industrialising Britain, c. 1830–1850', Social History (2022).
• E. Geerts, J. Hoegaerts, K. Hens, D. Blackie (editors), ‘Dis/abling Gender in Crisis Times’, Special issue of Tijdschrift voor Genderstudies (2022).