Sheila Watson is Associate Professor of Museum Studies in the School of Museum Studies, University of Leicester, UK, where she has worked since 2003. Before she joined the department she was a museum practitioner, managing projects and exhibitions and encouraging community engagement with the institutions in which she worked. Her research is based around how people understand and use the past, in particular the ways in which emotions affect understanding and drive narratives in museums and other heritage sites. She has published widely on community engagement, heritage, museums and emotions.