Mark R. Frost

Dr. Mark R. Frost is an Associate Professor of Public History at University College London (UCL), specializing in war, empire, and decolonization in modern Asia, and their intersections with popular memory. He joined UCL in 2020 after roles at the Asia Research Institute (Singapore), University of Hong Kong, and University of Essex. Educated at the University of Oxford (First Class Honours) and the University of Cambridge (PhD, 2002), Frost has pioneered public history initiatives such as the award-winning Singapore History Gallery (2006–2015) and authored Singapore: A Biography (2009), winner of the Asia Pacific Publishers’ Gold Medal.

His research explores transnational memoryscapes, wartime legacies, and colonialism’s cultural impacts. Current projects include the War Memoryscapes in Asia Partnership (WARMAP) and Living with Violent Heritage in post-war Sri Lanka. Frost has also produced documentaries like Scene Unseen (2021), examining music and memory, and co-developed historical films such as I Remember the Fall of Singapore (2017).

Frost’s academic contributions span colonial governance, humanitarianism, and transnational networks. His awards include the CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title (2010) for his biography and a documentary prize at BKK Docs (2022). He supervises PhD students focusing on public history, war remembrance, and European colonialism in Asia, including notable works on the East India Company in the Persian Gulf and the Special Operations Executive in Malaya.

His publications bridge historiography and public engagement, with recent works on Asia’s WWII memory boom and geocultural power dynamics. Frost’s interdisciplinary approach integrates museum curation, film, and scholarly writing to interrogate how historical narratives shape contemporary identities.