My Favorite Historians

As you can definitely tell, I'm really into history and watching YouTube videos.  I also like sharing any documentary I watch with others whether or not it's in a classroom setting or a library setting.  I really hope that someone out there will get use out of what I post on this blog.

Today, I'm going to talk about my favorite historians.  If you need a filler in the classroom, especially in a history class, look up these historians.  Now in no particular order:

Lucy Worsley: I love her enthusiasm for history and how she presents each of her documentaries.  I love how she throws herself into costumes in order to better participate in each series she presents.  My first experience with her was in her series Harlots, Housewives, and Heroines.  I really wish I could find that series on YouTube again as it was one of my favorites.  Other one I really enjoyed as Suffragettes, I wish YouTube wouldn't have taken that one down either.  I would use Fit to Rule and the First Georgians in a classroom setting, even if it's a 20 second clip or you're doing research for a lecture.  I am pleased to see her being introduced to American audiences through her royal series.

RECOMMENDED:  1) Jane Austen: Behind Closed Doors for an English Literature class, 2) Six Wives with Lucy Worsley, 3) The First Georgians: The German Kings Who Made Britain.

Suzannah Lipscomb: I was introduced to her through Time Time, the British edition.  I enjoyed how she played off of Tony Robinson and how she explained the finds the Time Team was making.  I saw her again in Henry and Anne.  Then she did a series on the Six Wives of Henry VIII with Dan Jones, I would combine their interpretation with Worsley's and Starkey's interpretation in a lecture.  She is thoughtful narrator and participates in historical experiments.  Her Hidden Killers series is excellent. 

RECOMMENDED:  1) Elizabeth I, and 2) any of her hidden killers of the home series.

Helen Castor:  I discovered her through Medieval Lives: Birth, Marriage and Death series which was immediately followed up by She Wolves.  I find her a thoughtful narrator and writer.  I would use Medieval Lives for lecture material.  She did a program on Joan of Arc which was fabulous and presented a different view of the saint, which YouTube took down.  Her voice is also very soothing to the ear.  England's Forgotten Queen: the Life and Death of Lady Jane Grey was excellent, I liked how she explored each day of the nine day's queen.  She offers a fresh perspective on the story.  She also needs to team up with Lucy more like she did in their series on Versailles.

RECOMMENDED:  1) England's Forgotten Queen: The Life and Death of Jane Grey, 2) Joan of Arc: God's Warrior, 3) Medieval Lives: Birth, Marriage and Death.

Dan Jones:  He is both a journalist and historian and I like his speaking style. I was introduced to him through Britain's Bloodiest Dynasty.  Then through Secrets of Great British Castles.  He's one the of newest historians I've seen lately.  He teamed up with Suzannah Lipscomb to produce Henry VIII and his Six Wives.  Secrets of Great British Castles is available on Netflix.

RECOMMENDED: Secrets of Great British Castles

Bettany Hughes:  I stumbled onto this historian on YouTube and her Ancient Worlds series.  She researches and works with Ancient history.  I enjoyed her episode about the Minotours Island.  She did several series on the various Greek gods as well as a series on great minds of the ancient world.  She provides good research materials for lectures.

RECOMMENDED:  Ancient Worlds Series, especially the episode on Athens and Alexandria.