running this madhouse
meet the team
ALINA
NOWOBILSKA
ALEX
CHURCHILL
Alina grew up in East London with Polish parents, which is why she lives in Warsaw now but still sounds like a mockney Guy Ritchie film extra. Her passion is Polish history (in case you hadn't noticed) and bringing to light the stories of all victims of the holocaust. Her masters thesis was on the first arrivals of Polish political prisoners at Auschwitz. She also gets excited about ancient history, China, dogs, motorbikes, house plants and cake. Don't talk to her about boats. She won't listen.
Alex is a 20th Century military historian who somehow also ended up researching royals too. Her biggest historical grudge is against the Duke of Windsor, because his diaries are excruciatingly self-involved and she sulks having to transcribe them. She actually likes boaty history, She also likes her cats, more than people, Chelsea, and designing/ making cocktails. The queen of the Stalin fan club hates her. When she grows up she wants to be an astronaut, or own a pet T-Rex.
Steve
Smith
One day a beardy weirdo contacted us in the middle of lockdown with a shiny cartoon. We said we loved it and he basically hired himself. Since then he's given us epic branding and drawn 1000s of the weirdest requests imaginable. If you saw our shit graphics for the first episodes you'll see this was a good thing. When Steve isn't drawing he likes luring innocent people to Leicester, aeroplanes and collecting awful souvenirs. He still has a beard and he is weird but so are we so it worked out fine.
(ADMIRAL) CHRIS SAMS
Chris is our pet ginger and so he counts towards our diversity quota. He loves all things boaty, especially the German navy, but gets uncomfortable when Hitler arrives. He has unrealistic expectations of marrying Kaiser Wilhelm II's daughter, who died in 1984. When he's not doing history he likes Star Wars, building orc battle fleets and gaming. Form an orderly queue ladies. He also loves fried chicken so much that he can eat an entire KFC family bucket on his own.
charly
white
Having published sexy cookbooks in her incarnation as a fabulous baker, during lockdown Charley plunged fully down her nerdy history rabbit hole. She's our resident early modern diva, and will bitch slap anyone who bad mouths Barbara Villiers, or says anything nice about Oliver Cr*mwell. She's an expert in Hollywood history, teaches film theory, and is passionate about golden age movies. When she's not historianning she's a massive Bowie fan, loves a glass of Prosecco and her two amazing cats.
BETH
WYATT
Beth loves historical films and television, she's currently in the midst of PhD, and is passionate about engaging with people about history. When she's not being a nerd, she unexpectedly does a wicked rendition of Blink 182 at Karaoke.
NINA
HARKRADER
ANDREW
DORMAN
Andy Dorman is a specialist in the British Army in Ireland in the 18th and 19th centuries. Elsewhere he enjoys roasting key figures in British history and kicking the shins of any Oliver Cromwell statue he finds. When he's not trying to decipher impossible bureaucratic handwriting in musty old books, Dorman is a budding stand-up comedian.
Based in Brooklyn, Nina is obsessed with the history of buildings and how we interact with them. Her passion is the Victorian era, and she is especially interested in learning about women and how the interacted with things like workhouses, and group homes. Her proudest possession is a life-size cut out of Brunel, and when she's not reading and writing, she is being owned by two delinquent house bunnies who have taken over.
KIT
CHAPMAN
Kit is a master of taking complicated science history and making it fun. He wrote an amazing book on the periodic table and another on how Formula 1 technology could save the planet. He's now working on a new book about alchemy. When he's not being an historian, Kit likes hanging out with his perverted tortoise, and making creepy 3D printed heads to scare tourists with. His best HH quote is: "This would be hilarious if all these people hadn't died."
Locky recently finished a PhD in developing tactics on the Western Front during WW1. He spends his days guiding at home and abroad, lecturing in East Anglia, and has provided one of the greatest quotes on History Hack when he said: "It's that boring bit of history where nothing happens in between the dinosaurs and the French Revolution."
Andy
lock
JOSHUA
PROVAN
Josh Provan (History Hack Jesus) specialises in military history in the 18th and 19th centuries, but he's our utility player too. He never got slung a rabbit hole he didn't like. Check out his episode on the history of the Hawaiian monarchy. He's been squirrelling away doing research on what we hope will be a new type of show for HH, now we just need to raise some money. When he's not nerding, Josh can be found dispensing sage advice or surfing.
Andrew
holmes
Jonny
dyer
Andrew Holmes is a specialist in the First World War and has co-authored three books with Alex, one about Chelsea FC in the war and one each on the Somme and Passchendaele. He enjoys guiding, and is an amazing battlefield photographer, on whatever front he can get to.
Away from history, Holmes is a massive Star Wars collector/enthusiast, and likes beer. He's also getting really into the Vikings...
Jonny produced a prize-winning MA thesis on WW1, and is now working on a PhD. He has a particular love for the Italian Front, and helped research/co-author books with Alex and Holmes during the centenary period. Away from history, he does the best drunken impression of Kate Bush we've ever seen, and is on a mission to prove that a man can survive on nothing but beer and stinky cheese.
CAROLYN
DAY
Carolyn is a professor who specialises in the history of medicine and the 18th/19th century. She has written a book about the history of TB and fashion, and is currently working on a special biography of a princess you probably haven't paid any attention to. She loves exploring Europe, wishes she could live in Edinburgh and when she's not working on history, she is an awesome cook who makes all of the amazing things.
HEATHER
KLEM
SAM
JOLLEY
Heather started off as a superfan and became part of the HH family. Based in Ohio, her biggest passion is ancient history, and top her bucket list is one day visiting Rome. She's also an officer of the Great War Group for North America, and is enjoying learning all about something completely new. Away from history, she will kill you if you harm an animal, loves the outdoors and exploring, and has a massively weird obsession with bubble waffles.
Sam is Napoleon's biggest fan. She knows that he was an arsehole, but she doesn't care. She therefore loves all things French and if you touch her croissant she will break your fingers. By day she is a curator at the Royal Logistics Corps Museum and a rep for the Napoleonic and Revolutionary War Graves Charity. The chances are you will never be higher in her affections than either macaroons, or her cat. Who is admittedly awesome.
LOVELY CLIVE
KATE
SPOONER
Clive is the founder of cockney masterpiece theatre in our virtual pub, the Mary Rose. He has many historical interests, ranging from novel uses for goose feathers to an obsession with Nestor Makhno. His daughters think it's bizarre that he hangs around with us, but we love him.
Kate's historical interests are really broad, and she's a regular down the pub where she enjoys plucking stories from all over history and anywhere in the world. She is particularly interested in the history of Gibraltar, where she is based. When she is not hanging out with the HH gang, she loves horses.
ADAM
You won't hear Adam on any episode, but he's part of the HH family. He's basically a smutty mascot who's always ready with a gross new analogy or saying whenever we need one. When he's not spending all of his holiday and cash on doing history things, he's on a never ending quest to create the best cheese toastie in history.