Aquila - Bug Camouflage
My dog Pam once sniffed at what looked like a dead leaf — until it fluttered off. It was a Comma Butterfly, and that moment sparked this piece on insect disguise. I also enjoyed introducing young readers to assassin bugs, which stack dead ants on their backs as camouflage.
Aquila - Mudlarking
Aquila ranks among the finest children's magazines around, so it was a treat to share my mudlarking obsession with its young readers — and all the treasures waiting in the thick Thames mud. Better still, Sean Lewis drew a brilliant portrait of me, capturing the thrill I feel when something catches my eye in the foreshore.
Viking Sagas
Viking Sagas brings the old Norse tales back to life as recorded in the Icelandic Sagas. I was delighted to write about my favourite Viking, a man who hedged his bets — praying to Jesus on dry land but trusting only Thor at sea.
Book of Spells
How do you track down a stray pig? What would bring a wandering lover home? This bookazine holds the answers.
History of Paganism
A bookazine charting the remarkable story of Paganism. My contributions span Roman religious practice through to the modern pagans breathing new life into the old faiths.
Salem Witch Trials
A bookazine exploring the unsettling chain of events behind history's most famous witch trials. My articles covered the alleged bewitching itself and the central figures caught up in it.
The Search for the Historical Jesus
Written for All About History, this piece asks whether Jesus actually existed (almost certainly yes) and what we can know about him. I weighed up every available source to build a picture of the historical Jesus. Controversial? You bet...
Thames Treasure Hunters
This was my very first mudlarking article. It traces the long history of people scouring the foreshore — not always by choice — and the objects they have pulled from the mud. Expect fossil mammoth teeth, Roman pottery and, rather less pleasantly, a surprising quantity of used condoms.
Bronze Age
A bookazine covering every side of Bronze Age life. My articles look at how bronze technology developed and how trade worked across the ancient world, alongside the weapons that shaped Bronze Age warfare and the real story behind the Bronze Age Collapse.
Erik the Red
A cover story on the legendary life of Erik the Red, drawn from the sagas and illuminated by archaeology. Discover how he turned a frozen wilderness into an appealing place to settle — simply by calling it "Greenland."
Across these pages the subjects range widely — from Viking sagas and Bronze Age trade to the Salem witch trials and the search for the historical Jesus. Each piece began as a commission for a children's magazine, a history title or a bookazine, and each one digs into the sources to tell the story as clearly as possible.