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A Mobile Museum to your venue

As an archaeologist from the Museum of London, now retired to the Exeter area of Devon, I am offering to bring to schools and societies a range of prehistoric, Roman and later objects for the audiences to examine, whilst telling their stories in Workshops and powerpoint Talks. At schools my aim is to support teaching and curriculum schedules by exciting the imaginations of students, teachers and others, to show how history is reconstructed from ‘evidence’.

A selection of the objects and a summary of the talks is shown on the following pages.

My career

As a City of London archaeologist from the 1960’s onwards, I searched for how the ancient City began in Roman times almost 2000 years ago, and grew to its present vast size. I have excavated Roman baths, houses, streets, the basilica and forum and city defences. Also, I sought for the lost Saxon city (that was later found near Westminster), and excavated medieval and later houses, streets, churches and a royal palace in the City of London. Through this I became involved with fascinating historical personalities, from Queen Boudica of the Iceni tribe who destroyed London in AD 60-61, to, Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick the Kingmaker in the 15th century, whose house I excavated near St. Paul’s Cathedral, and the Tudor royal palace of Baynards Castle with associations with Queens Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I.

In London I also discovered Roman, medieval and later shipwrecks in the River Thames, and on retiring from the Museum of London have have carried out research on many historic ships to reconstruct our maritime past. These include a 3,500 year old boat from Dover; Henry VIII’s Mary Rose sunk in 1545 in a battle against the French; the English warship Anne sunk in 1690 in another sea battle against the French; and East India Company treasure ships of the 17th and 18th centuries. I was involved successfully in taking the Ministry of Defence to the High Court for not protecting a World War 2 sunken merchant ship, SS Storaa, as a maritime war grave. Currently (2014-5), I am writing books on my adventures in archaeology, and seeking protection for the wreck of the World War I hospital ship Anglia, sunk off Folkestone in 1915 with the loss of over 160 lives.

I have a Doctorate in archaeology from Oxford University, and am a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London to which one is elected. Also, I, and have written books and many articles.

Speaking experience

I have considerable international speaking experience at schools, universities, societies, museums and conferences. I was a Foyles Lecture Agency speaker; and in 2008 won the national ‘Presentation of Heritage Research Award’ sponsored by English Heritage and the other national heritage bodies of the UK and the Irish Republic. Also, I have appeared on television and radio, and have given many talks at the Shipwreck Museum, Hastings – a museum that I founded in 1986.