![Gerard O'Grady](https://profiles-cardiff.imgix.net/attachments/7587?w=200&h=200&auto=format&crop=faces&fit=crop&q=90")
Professor Gerard O'Grady
- Media commentator
- Available for postgraduate supervision
Teams and roles for Gerard O'Grady
Professor
Professsor
Overview
I am a member of the Centre for Language and Communication Research
My main research interest is in exploring how speakers manage the relationship between grammar and prosody in their conversational interactions. My research and teaching is inspired by my Systemic Functional Linguistic background and I am the co-editor of the Routledge handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics. At Cardiff I founded the research group Linguistics in Cardiff (LinC) and have run successful summer schools and other events. https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/research/explore/research-units/linguistics-in-cardiff
In addition I lead a international group of scholars in the area of Information Structure and have organised three roundtables at Cardiffl. The results of our most recent meeting are expected in 2027.
As well as being an active researcher I am the founding editor of the book series Key Concepts in SFL (University of Toronto Press) and welome relevant proposals.
I am a regular invited and plenary speaker and if you are interested in hearing more about my current work I will be giving a plenary at the 50th International Systemic Linguistics Conference at Glasgow Univeristy in July 2025.
I serve on the University Senate until 31/06/2026 .
Publication
2024
- O'Grady, G. 2024. Caroline Gentens, Lobke Ghesquière, William B. McGregor and An Van linden (eds.), Reconnecting form and meaning: In honour of Kristin Davidse (Studies in Language Companion Series 230). Amsterdam and Philadelphia: John Benjamins, 2023. Pp. 305 + vii. ISBN 9789027212993. [Book Review]. English Language & Linguistics (10.1017/S1360674323000618)
- O'Grady, G. 2024. Theme in spoken language: when a tone group is not a clause. Journal of World Languages 10(1), pp. 76-101. (10.1515/jwl-2023-0043)
- O'Grady, G. 2024. Hector's death. A systemic socio-semantic analysis of Alice Oswald's Memorial. In: Luporni, A. et al. eds. A Life in Style. In Honour of Donna R. Miller. Bologna: Universita di Bologna, pp. 55-64.
2023
- O'Grady, G. 2023. Syllable and syllable onsets - Japanese and English. In: Wang, B. and Ma, Y. eds. Theorizing and Applying Systemic Functional Linguistics. New York: Routledge, pp. 70-96.
- Davidse, K., Njende, N. and O'Grady, G. 2023. Specificational and Presentational There-Clefts: Redefining the Field of Clefts. Palgrave Pivot.
- O'Grady, G. and Bartlett, T. 2023. The language dynamic. Equinox.
2022
- O'Grady, G. 2022. Review of Gussenhoven & Chen (2020): The Oxford handbook of language prosody [Book Review]. Functions of Language 29(2), pp. 237-246. (10.1075/fol.00035.gra)
- O'Grady, G. 2022. A metafunctional analysis of two televised U.K. political interviews with Boris Johnson and Keir Starmer. In: Feldman, O. ed. Adversarial Political Interviewing: Worldwide Perspectives During Polarized Times'. Springer, pp. 149-170., (10.1007/978-981-19-0576-6)
- Kimps, D. and O'Grady, G. 2022. Overlapping reactions during tag questions. Word 68(3), pp. 253-276. (10.1080/00437956.2021.2003539)
2021
- O'Grady, G. 2021. Intonation and exchange: A dynamic and metafunctional view. Lingua 261, article number: 102794. (10.1016/j.lingua.2020.102794)
- Bourgoin, C., O'Grady, G. and Davidse, K. 2021. Managing information flow through prosody in it-clefts. English Language and Linguistics 25(3), pp. 485-511. (10.1017/S1360674321000216)
2020
- O'Grady, G. 2020. Is there a role for prosody within register studies? And if so what and how?. Language Context and Text 2(1), pp. 59-92.
2019
- Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. 2019. Language characterology and textual dynamics: a crosslinguistic exploration in English and Scottish Gaelic. Acta Linguistica Hafniensia 51(2), pp. 124-159. (10.1080/03740463.2019.1650607)
- O'Grady, G. 2019. SFL and critical discourse analysis. In: Thompson, G. et al. eds. The Cambridge Handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics. Cambridge Handbooks in Language and Linguistics Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 462-484.
- O'Grady, G. and Bartlett, T. 2019. Linearity and Tone in the unfolding of information. Acta Linguistica Hafniensia 51(2), pp. 192-221. (10.1080/03740463.2019.1668621)
- Walker, L. et al. 2019. Supporting evidence-informed policy and scrutiny: a consultation of UK research professionals. PLoS ONE 14(3), article number: e0214136. (10.1371/journal.pone.0214136)
- Kimps, D., Davidse, K. and O'Grady, G. 2019. English tag questions eliciting knowledge or action: a comparison of the speech function and exchange structure models. Functions of Language 26(1), pp. 86-111. (10.1075/fol.18019.kim)
2018
- Van Praet, W. and O'Grady, G. 2018. The prosody of specification: Discourse intonational cues to setting up a variable. Journal of Pragmatics 135, pp. 85-100. (10.1016/j.pragma.2018.07.013)
2017
- Lawrence, N. S., Chambers, J., Morrison, S. M., Bestman, S., O'Grady, G. N., Chambers, C. D. and Kythreotis, A. P. 2017. The Evidence Information Service as a new platform for supporting evidence-based policy: a consultation of UK parliamentarians. Evidence & Policy 13(2), pp. 275-316. (10.1332/174426416X14643531912169)
- O'Grady, G. 2017. Theme and prosody: redundancy or meaning making?. English Text Construction 10(2), pp. 274-297. (10.1075/etc.10.2.05ogr)
- O'Grady, G. N. 2017. Intonation and SFL: the way forward.. In: Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. N. eds. The Routledge Handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics. Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics London and New York: Routledge
- O'Grady, G. N. and Bartlett, T. 2017. Looking ahead: SFL in the 21st Century.. In: Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. N. eds. The Routledge Handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics. Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics London and New York: Routledge
- Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. N. 2017. Introduction: reading SFL.. In: Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. N. eds. The Routledge Handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics. Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics London and New York: Routledge
- Bartlett, T. 2017. Context in systemic functional linguistics: towards scalar supervenience?. In: Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. N. eds. The Routledge Handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics. Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics London and New York: Routledge, (10.4324/9781315413891-35)
- Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. eds. 2017. The Routledge handbook of systemic functional linguistics. Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics. Abingdon and New York: Routledge.
- O'Grady, G. 2017. 'I think' in televised political debate. International Review of Pragmatics 9(2), pp. 269-303. (10.1163/18773109-00901006)
2016
- O'Grady, G. 2016. Given/New: what do the terms refer to? A first (small) step. English Text Construction 9(1), pp. 9-32. (10.1075/etc.9.1.02ogr)
2014
- O'Grady, G. 2014. An investigation of how intonation helps signal information structure. In: Bowcher, W. L. and Smith, B. A. eds. Systemic Phonology: Recent Studies in English. Functional Linguistics Sheffield: Equinox Publishing, pp. 27-52.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2014. The use of key in projecting face threatening acts in televised political debate. Text and Talk 34(6), pp. 685-711. (10.1515/text-2014-0025)
2013
- Fontaine, L. M., Bartlett, T. A. M. and O'Grady, G. N. eds. 2013. Systemic functional linguistics: Exploring choice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2013. Choices in Tony’s Talk: Phonological paragraphing, information unit nexuses and the presentation of tone units. In: O'Grady, G. N., Bartlett, T. A. M. and Fontaine, L. M. eds. Choice in Language: Applications in Text Analysis. Functional Linguistics Sheffield: Equinox Publishing, pp. 125-157.
- O'Grady, G. N., Bartlett, T. A. M. and Fontaine, L. M. eds. 2013. Choice in language: Applications in text analysis. Functional Linguistics. London and Oakville: Equinox.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2013. Introduction: choice in language. In: O'Grady, G. N., Bartlett, T. A. M. and Fontaine, L. M. eds. Choice in Language Applications in Text Analysis. London: Equinox Publishing, pp. 1-28.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2013. Key concepts in phonetics and phonology. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
2011
- O'Grady, G. N. 2011. The unfolded imagining of Ségolène Royal. Journal of Pragmatics 43(10), pp. 2489-2500. (10.1016/j.pragma.2011.02.007)
- O'Grady, G. N. 2011. A review of 'Culture and gender of voice pitch: a sociophonetic comparison of the Japanese and the Americans' by Ikuko Patricia Yuasa [Book Review]. Journal of Sociolinguistics 15(4), pp. 548-550.
2010
- O'Grady, G. N. 2010. D. Robert Ladd. 2008. Intonational phonology [Book Review]. Functions of Language 17(2), pp. 272- 294. (10.1075/fol.17.2.08ogr)
- O'Grady, G. N. 2010. A grammar of spoken English discourse: The intonation of increments. Bloomsbury Studies in Theoretical Linguistics. London: Continuum.
2009
- O'Grady, G. N. 2009. A comparative case study of the construal of the persona of three accused of being the 'worst of the worst'. Critical approaches to Discourse Analysis across Disciplines 3(1), pp. 58-79.
2007
- O'Grady, G. N. 2007. Facets of a female politician: representations of Ségolène Royal, French presidential candidate, in British broadsheet newspapers. Discussion Paper. Cardiff University: Cardiff Humanities Research Institute. Available at: http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/chri/researchpapers/humanities/papers1-10/Paper2.html
2005
- O'Grady, G. N. 2005. The intertwining of lexis, grammar and context. Journal of Research and Culture, pp. 25-49.
2004
- O'Grady, G. N. 2004. The importance of engaged reading. Journal of Research and Culture, pp. 33-63.
2003
- O'Grady, G. N. 2003. Discourse Intonation and read aloud text: How intonation helps hearers contextualise unfamiliar monologue. Journal of Research and Culture, pp. 55-74.
Articles
- O'Grady, G. 2024. Caroline Gentens, Lobke Ghesquière, William B. McGregor and An Van linden (eds.), Reconnecting form and meaning: In honour of Kristin Davidse (Studies in Language Companion Series 230). Amsterdam and Philadelphia: John Benjamins, 2023. Pp. 305 + vii. ISBN 9789027212993. [Book Review]. English Language & Linguistics (10.1017/S1360674323000618)
- O'Grady, G. 2024. Theme in spoken language: when a tone group is not a clause. Journal of World Languages 10(1), pp. 76-101. (10.1515/jwl-2023-0043)
- O'Grady, G. 2022. Review of Gussenhoven & Chen (2020): The Oxford handbook of language prosody [Book Review]. Functions of Language 29(2), pp. 237-246. (10.1075/fol.00035.gra)
- Kimps, D. and O'Grady, G. 2022. Overlapping reactions during tag questions. Word 68(3), pp. 253-276. (10.1080/00437956.2021.2003539)
- O'Grady, G. 2021. Intonation and exchange: A dynamic and metafunctional view. Lingua 261, article number: 102794. (10.1016/j.lingua.2020.102794)
- Bourgoin, C., O'Grady, G. and Davidse, K. 2021. Managing information flow through prosody in it-clefts. English Language and Linguistics 25(3), pp. 485-511. (10.1017/S1360674321000216)
- O'Grady, G. 2020. Is there a role for prosody within register studies? And if so what and how?. Language Context and Text 2(1), pp. 59-92.
- Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. 2019. Language characterology and textual dynamics: a crosslinguistic exploration in English and Scottish Gaelic. Acta Linguistica Hafniensia 51(2), pp. 124-159. (10.1080/03740463.2019.1650607)
- O'Grady, G. and Bartlett, T. 2019. Linearity and Tone in the unfolding of information. Acta Linguistica Hafniensia 51(2), pp. 192-221. (10.1080/03740463.2019.1668621)
- Walker, L. et al. 2019. Supporting evidence-informed policy and scrutiny: a consultation of UK research professionals. PLoS ONE 14(3), article number: e0214136. (10.1371/journal.pone.0214136)
- Kimps, D., Davidse, K. and O'Grady, G. 2019. English tag questions eliciting knowledge or action: a comparison of the speech function and exchange structure models. Functions of Language 26(1), pp. 86-111. (10.1075/fol.18019.kim)
- Van Praet, W. and O'Grady, G. 2018. The prosody of specification: Discourse intonational cues to setting up a variable. Journal of Pragmatics 135, pp. 85-100. (10.1016/j.pragma.2018.07.013)
- Lawrence, N. S., Chambers, J., Morrison, S. M., Bestman, S., O'Grady, G. N., Chambers, C. D. and Kythreotis, A. P. 2017. The Evidence Information Service as a new platform for supporting evidence-based policy: a consultation of UK parliamentarians. Evidence & Policy 13(2), pp. 275-316. (10.1332/174426416X14643531912169)
- O'Grady, G. 2017. Theme and prosody: redundancy or meaning making?. English Text Construction 10(2), pp. 274-297. (10.1075/etc.10.2.05ogr)
- O'Grady, G. 2017. 'I think' in televised political debate. International Review of Pragmatics 9(2), pp. 269-303. (10.1163/18773109-00901006)
- O'Grady, G. 2016. Given/New: what do the terms refer to? A first (small) step. English Text Construction 9(1), pp. 9-32. (10.1075/etc.9.1.02ogr)
- O'Grady, G. N. 2014. The use of key in projecting face threatening acts in televised political debate. Text and Talk 34(6), pp. 685-711. (10.1515/text-2014-0025)
- O'Grady, G. N. 2011. The unfolded imagining of Ségolène Royal. Journal of Pragmatics 43(10), pp. 2489-2500. (10.1016/j.pragma.2011.02.007)
- O'Grady, G. N. 2011. A review of 'Culture and gender of voice pitch: a sociophonetic comparison of the Japanese and the Americans' by Ikuko Patricia Yuasa [Book Review]. Journal of Sociolinguistics 15(4), pp. 548-550.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2010. D. Robert Ladd. 2008. Intonational phonology [Book Review]. Functions of Language 17(2), pp. 272- 294. (10.1075/fol.17.2.08ogr)
- O'Grady, G. N. 2009. A comparative case study of the construal of the persona of three accused of being the 'worst of the worst'. Critical approaches to Discourse Analysis across Disciplines 3(1), pp. 58-79.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2005. The intertwining of lexis, grammar and context. Journal of Research and Culture, pp. 25-49.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2004. The importance of engaged reading. Journal of Research and Culture, pp. 33-63.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2003. Discourse Intonation and read aloud text: How intonation helps hearers contextualise unfamiliar monologue. Journal of Research and Culture, pp. 55-74.
Book sections
- O'Grady, G. 2024. Hector's death. A systemic socio-semantic analysis of Alice Oswald's Memorial. In: Luporni, A. et al. eds. A Life in Style. In Honour of Donna R. Miller. Bologna: Universita di Bologna, pp. 55-64.
- O'Grady, G. 2023. Syllable and syllable onsets - Japanese and English. In: Wang, B. and Ma, Y. eds. Theorizing and Applying Systemic Functional Linguistics. New York: Routledge, pp. 70-96.
- O'Grady, G. 2022. A metafunctional analysis of two televised U.K. political interviews with Boris Johnson and Keir Starmer. In: Feldman, O. ed. Adversarial Political Interviewing: Worldwide Perspectives During Polarized Times'. Springer, pp. 149-170., (10.1007/978-981-19-0576-6)
- O'Grady, G. 2019. SFL and critical discourse analysis. In: Thompson, G. et al. eds. The Cambridge Handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics. Cambridge Handbooks in Language and Linguistics Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 462-484.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2017. Intonation and SFL: the way forward.. In: Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. N. eds. The Routledge Handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics. Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics London and New York: Routledge
- O'Grady, G. N. and Bartlett, T. 2017. Looking ahead: SFL in the 21st Century.. In: Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. N. eds. The Routledge Handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics. Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics London and New York: Routledge
- Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. N. 2017. Introduction: reading SFL.. In: Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. N. eds. The Routledge Handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics. Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics London and New York: Routledge
- Bartlett, T. 2017. Context in systemic functional linguistics: towards scalar supervenience?. In: Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. N. eds. The Routledge Handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics. Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics London and New York: Routledge, (10.4324/9781315413891-35)
- O'Grady, G. 2014. An investigation of how intonation helps signal information structure. In: Bowcher, W. L. and Smith, B. A. eds. Systemic Phonology: Recent Studies in English. Functional Linguistics Sheffield: Equinox Publishing, pp. 27-52.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2013. Choices in Tony’s Talk: Phonological paragraphing, information unit nexuses and the presentation of tone units. In: O'Grady, G. N., Bartlett, T. A. M. and Fontaine, L. M. eds. Choice in Language: Applications in Text Analysis. Functional Linguistics Sheffield: Equinox Publishing, pp. 125-157.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2013. Introduction: choice in language. In: O'Grady, G. N., Bartlett, T. A. M. and Fontaine, L. M. eds. Choice in Language Applications in Text Analysis. London: Equinox Publishing, pp. 1-28.
Books
- Davidse, K., Njende, N. and O'Grady, G. 2023. Specificational and Presentational There-Clefts: Redefining the Field of Clefts. Palgrave Pivot.
- O'Grady, G. and Bartlett, T. 2023. The language dynamic. Equinox.
- Bartlett, T. and O'Grady, G. eds. 2017. The Routledge handbook of systemic functional linguistics. Routledge Handbooks in Linguistics. Abingdon and New York: Routledge.
- Fontaine, L. M., Bartlett, T. A. M. and O'Grady, G. N. eds. 2013. Systemic functional linguistics: Exploring choice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- O'Grady, G. N., Bartlett, T. A. M. and Fontaine, L. M. eds. 2013. Choice in language: Applications in text analysis. Functional Linguistics. London and Oakville: Equinox.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2013. Key concepts in phonetics and phonology. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
- O'Grady, G. N. 2010. A grammar of spoken English discourse: The intonation of increments. Bloomsbury Studies in Theoretical Linguistics. London: Continuum.
Monographs
- O'Grady, G. N. 2007. Facets of a female politician: representations of Ségolène Royal, French presidential candidate, in British broadsheet newspapers. Discussion Paper. Cardiff University: Cardiff Humanities Research Institute. Available at: http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/chri/researchpapers/humanities/papers1-10/Paper2.html
Research
Research interests
My chief research interests are:
- exploring the communicative functions of intonation: notably how intonation is used in conjunction with syntactic cues to help segment the speech signal into semantic units analogous to the orthographic units of clause, sentence and paragraph, and how tonality and tonicity choices project information as given or new. My main publications in this are: (2025) monograph Information Structure in Spoken English: A Systemic Functional View (University of Toronto Press;(2023) monograph with Kristin Davidse and Ngum Njende Specificational and Presentational There-Clefts: Redefining the Field of Cleft. (Palgrave)
- examining the concept of dynamism in language as it unfolds both synchronically and diachronically. My main publication in this area is (2010) monograph. A Grammar of Spoken English Discourse: The Intonation of Increments. Bloomsbury (Originally published by Continuum in the series Studies in Theoretical Linguistics)
- describing how affect and emotion are realised linguistically; and
- developing a model of language as a stratified bio-social semiotic. My main publication in this area is the (2023) monograph with Tom Bartlett The Language Dynamic (University of Toronto Press).
- Applying my theoretical interests to the study of political speech and media representatoins of political speech in order to illustrate how events are construed, relationships enacted and ideas backgrounded and foregrounded. I have publishedl articles on these topics in journals such as Journal of Pragmatics, International Review of Pragmatics, Text and Talk as well as writing the chapter CDA and SFL in the Cambridge Handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics.
I am currently working on an editing a volume The Management of the Information Flow of Naturally Produced Speech: A Functional View which will be a state of the art representation of Information Structure theory applied to naturally produced speech in various languages. I expect it will be published in 2027.
With Tom Bartlett we are working on producing a second edition of our Routledge Handbook of Systemic Functional Linguistics which is due to appear in 2027. Tom and I are working on a follow up monograph to The Language Dynamic.
Funding obtained
Full funding £6133 has been obtained from the journal Language Learning to host a multi-institution Round Table "New Theoretical Perspectives above below and across the clause" on September 4 and 5 2014 at Cardiff University. The papers were published in English Text Construction.
With Professor Kristin Davidse I received 400000 Euros for the project: Putting specificational there-clefts on the map: a data-based investigation of their grammar, semantics, prosody and pragmatics from the FWO.
Teaching
I currently teach or teach on the postgraduate module Phonetics and Phonology, the year 2 undergraduate phonetics/phonology modules Sounds of Speech and the year 2 foundational grammar module Sound Structure and Meaning.
I have previously taught a Year 3 module Sound in Action which explored how prosody contributed to the managment of discourse,
I have taught on the UG modules History of English and Introduction to Language and Society,
Prior to coming to Cardiff I have taught UG and PG modules on Pragmatics, Stylistics and Grammar at other Universities in the UK and abroad.
I am frequently invited to run workshops at various summer schools and institutes on how to code intonation and how to analyse the meaning created by the varying grammatical and intonational choices
Biography
I come from an SFL tradition and work mostly with spoken data in order to examine how the interplay of lexico-grammatical features and prosody signals textual and interpersonal meaning.
With Tom Bartlett (Cardiff) and Rebekah Wegener (Aachen) I edit the book series Key Concepts in SFL
https://utppublishing.com/series/key-linguistics
I am on the editorial board of the journals Functions of Language and Text and Talk
Supervisions
- Systemic Phonology
- Spoken Information Structure
- Communicative Dynamism
- Intonation
- Textual and Interpersonal Grammars
- Critical investigations of media texts (spoken and written)
- The semiotics of sound
- The realisation of emotion/affect linguisitically
Current supervision
Matt Coombes
Ali Langner
Emma Collier
Ngum Njende
Contact Details
OGradyGN@cardiff.ac.uk
+44 29208 74903
John Percival Building, Room 3.59, Colum Drive, Cardiff, CF10 3EU
+44 29208 74903
John Percival Building, Room 3.59, Colum Drive, Cardiff, CF10 3EU