Professor Chris Greenough

Profile

Biography

Following his degree in Modern Languages, Chris trained as a secondary teacher (at Edge Hill University!) and enjoyed 16 years in secondary education. He was Assistant Headteacher with whole-school responsibility for behaviour, safeguarding, child protection, wellbeing, and working with external agencies. He also had responsibility for CPD, teaching and learning, work-based learning, and quality. Alongside this extensive leadership portfolio, he was responsible for the strategic and operational elements of both pastoral and curriculum teams.

While working full-time, Chris gained his PhD from the University of Birmingham. He joined Edge Hill in January 2018 and obtained a Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching in Higher Education from Edge Hill University in 2019. He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

Research Interests

Chris Greenough is Professor of Social Sciences. He is primarily interested in equity, diversity, and inclusion. His research explores intersections between gender, sexuality, religion, and disability in society and culture. He is a specialist in queer theory and queer studies. He has published two monographs in the area of religion and sexualities: Undoing Theology (2018, SCM Press) and Queer Theologies: The Basics (2019, Routledge).

He also has research interests in wellbeing and safeguarding, and his third monograph reflects this, The Bible and Sexual Violence Against Men (2020, Routledge). Chris’s fourth monograph, Drag: The Basics (2025, Routledge, co-authored with Dr Mark Edward) explores the histories and activism associated with drag, including its representation in contemporary media and culture.

Chris has published numerous book chapters and journal articles on religion, gender, sexualities, drag, as well as the use, function, and impact of the Bible in the contemporary world. This includes recent work on incels and the Bible.

He is regularly invited to contribute to media pieces, including The Conversation. He has been interviewed on BBC Radio 4 and on NewsTalk Radio, Dublin.

Chris co-edited T&T Clark Handbook of Sexualities in the Bible and its Reception with Caroline Blyth (2026, Bloomsbury). He is also co-editor on Bible and Violence, (with Johanna Stiebert, Johnathan Jodamus, and Mmapula Kebaneilwe, a large, international 100+ chapter volume – forthcoming in 2026, Bloomsbury).

Recently, he has been keynote speaker at the Finnish Institute in Rome, as well as invited speaker at the Universities of Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield, and Chester. He has examined research degrees at the Universities of Oslo, Auckland, Manchester, Leeds, and Birmingham. 

Teaching

Chris’s professional experience and research interests inform his teaching across a range of modules. He teaches on undergraduate courses in the department of History, Geography and Social Sciences and works with postgraduate researchers at MRes and PhD level. He is a UK Council for Graduate Education Recognised Research Supervisor. Chris is Subject Lead for Social Sciences.

In 2025, he was invited to be part of the UK Quality Code Advice and Guidance writing group due to his commitment to inclusion in supporting students.

Chris’ commitment to EDI fuels his citizenship at Edge Hill. He is currently the Chair of the Institutional Athena Swan Self-Assessment Team, Chair of the EDI Committee in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, and member of the University EDI Steering Group.