It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our esteemed Fellow Emerita, Celia Sisam, who died on Wednesday 26 March 2025, in the Isles of Scilly at the age of 98. Celia retired there during the academic year 1985–86, concluding a distinguished career dedicated to the study and teaching of English language and literature.
Celia became a Fellow of St Hilda's College in 1957. According to the Principal’s Report in the 1985–86 Chronicle, she was "a brilliant and effective tutor, and in her own work she combined meticulous scholarship in the language field with a wide and sympathetic knowledge of Old and Middle English Literature." Her contributions to the College were immeasurable, and in the Senior Common Room, she was a kindly and reassuring presence. Both her permanent colleagues and every guest of the SCR, including temporary visitors from overseas, benefited from her friendliness and generosity. In the Governing Body, she consistently ensured that the College upheld its commitment to the highest academic standards and prioritised the interests of its junior members.
A Life in Scholarship
Celia’s academic journey was shaped by her rich intellectual heritage. Her grandparents emigrated to the North Island of New Zealand in the mid-nineteenth century, and both her parents were born and raised there. Her father, Kenneth Sisam FBA, a Rhodes Scholar, brought the family to Oxford, where Celia was born on Boars Hill. She was educated at the Dragon School, where she excelled in Latin and Greek, before moving on to Oxford High School and then Lady Margaret Hall. Initially reading Classics, she later switched to English, specialising in the medieval period under the guidance of Dorothy Everett, a distinguished medievalist.
During the Second World War, she played hockey and cricket for the University and took part in the ‘Dig for Victory’ campaign in the LMH gardens. After a year of research on the early Middle English Lambeth Homilies under J.R.R. Tolkien—who, deep in The Lord of the Rings, encouraged his students to work independently—she unexpectedly secured an Assistant Lectureship at Queen Mary College, London. Her years there were formative, as she taught a generation of talented students, including future professors in London and Cambridge. She also served as Warden of the college’s women’s hostel before returning to LMH as a Research Fellow.
Her father had taught her how to work with medieval manuscripts, and their collaboration led to her first major research project, an edition of The Salisbury Psalter, published by the Early English Text Society. She later co-edited The Oxford Book of Medieval English Verse with him, cementing her reputation as a meticulous scholar of early Middle and late Old English texts and manuscripts.
St Hilda’s and Beyond
At St Hilda’s, Celia played a key role in College governance, helping to redraft the By-Laws alongside Miss Major. As the College expanded, she took on numerous responsibilities, from serving on the English Faculty Board to playing an active role in the Building Committee. Ever practical, she kept a pair of ‘Dean’s trousers’ by her bedside, ready to quell nocturnal revelries when necessary.
A strong advocate for change, Celia supported Oxford colleges in becoming co-educational and campaigned vigorously for St Hilda’s to do the same. She remained disappointed that the College did not seize the opportunity when the time was right.
A Lasting Legacy
Celia’s commitment to education extended beyond her own scholarship. In 1987, she made a generous gift to St Hilda’s in memory of her father, helping to establish a bursary fund to support students from New Zealand. Together with an earlier bequest from Maureen Chute Raymond, the fund provides financial grants at the Principal’s discretion, with a particular focus on enabling students from New Zealand to study at the College. Over the years, the bursary has supported both undergraduate hardship grants and graduate scholarships.
Retirement and Reflection
Retirement to her beloved home in the Scilly Isles brought many joys: travelling, including visits to her relations in New Zealand; working for the local museum, particularly in the botany section; tending a windswept garden that kept her in vegetables and flowers year-round; and enjoying life on the water, whether boating or fishing. She remained connected to her academic field through her membership of the Early English Text Society’s Council, which brought her back to Oxford each June.
Celia’s legacy at St Hilda’s and in the wider scholarly world is profound. Her intellectual rigour, kindness, and generosity of spirit will be remembered by all who had the privilege of knowing her. Our thoughts are with her family, friends, and former colleagues.