Welcome

I am not usually the type of person who enjoys or does well in formal introductions, and I'm not sure how to come across as professional. I have no professional or academic qualifications in History - not even an 'O' Level. Being dyslexic, education in the 1970's/80's was hard. However, I am extremely passionate about Leicester's History. I was one of those kids at school who enjoyed what I was doing at the time. If I was interested in it, I would take notice, but if I wasn't, I would pay it no attention. Even my pre-school Nursery Teacher, Mrs. Rule, called me a 'Dizzy Blonde'. I was always getting myself into scrapes, and she was forever having to chase after me. 

I was looking through some old things the other day, and I found my school report from Abington High School. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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It did finally improve and by the end of the term the 'Excellent' box was ticked. 

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I have invested a great deal of time over the past twenty years researching my family tree. During my research, I found out that my great grandfathers were Freemen of the Town of Leicester. 

I am the author of two books - 'Joseph: The Life, Times & Places of the Elephant Man' and 'Peppermint Billy and the Toll Gate Murders of 1856'. 

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For four years, I worked as a Verger at Leicester Cathedral. The week of Richard III's reburial, I was part of the floral team responsible for the displays inside and outside the Cathedral. I assisted Royal florist Rosemary Hughes.

One of the most memorable moments from my time at Leicester Cathedral was being a part of the Royal procession for Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip on Maundy Thursday in 2017.

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In addition to local radio interviews and newspaper articles relating to my research on Joseph Merrick, I also appeared alongside Michael Portillo in his new documentary series 'Hidden History of Britain' which aired on Channel 5 in April 2018.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                     

 

 

                                           The late, great British actor Julian Sands

 

 

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​In April 2019, I made an astonishing discovery - I found the final resting place of Joseph Carey Merrick. Even though Joseph's skeleton is located at the Queen Mary Medical College in London, Joseph's remains were given a Christian funeral and were buried at the City of London Cemetery and Crematorium. In June 2019, cemetery officials placed a brass plaque on Joseph's grave. This discovery not only lead to a BBC Inside Out documentary on the discovery, but further led to a campaign to raise money to have a statue erected of Joseph Merrick in his hometown of Leicester. As a result of all this, I earned a seat on the red sofa on BBC Breakfast.

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