Dan Snow on a mission to create love of history at Palace Theatre
Television historian Dan Snow is looking forward to meeting some of the many people who have helped him build his successful career, as he embarks on a one-man tour of the UK.
Dan Snow: An Evening With ‘The History Guy’ is at the Palace Theatre, Newark, on Sunday, June 3 as part of a summer tour that runs until mid-July.
The broadcaster explained that making television programmes could be a lonely business.
"You sit by yourself and think, ‘Is anyone watching?’ That’s why doing live events is a huge treat because you get to meet people," he said.
"It is an enormous boost to the confidence to know there are people out there following what you do. The tour is the first time I’ve done this in an organised way where we have been able to build a proper show.
"It’s a great chance to meet people and say thank you to those on whom my career depends. I’m really looking forward to it."
Dan Snow is known for his infectious enthusiasm for his subject — something that he always tries to pass on to his audiences.
"History is not all about dead kings, old libraries and dust. It’s everything. It’s your parents’ eyes meeting across a crowded room and why we are who we are and why we are speaking English and why it’s acceptable for women and men to mingle together.
"I hope people walk out of the theatre saying that they had a really good time. I also hope they leave having thought deeply about the past of their town, their country and their world."
Local history will play a large part in this new tour, and at Newark Dan will be talking about the town’s unusual fortifications.
"I love history. It’s everywhere. It’s everything that ever happened to anyone who has ever lived on this planet," he said.
"It also means that I’m never bored on a train journey. As you travel, you see names that echo from the past. Every place has a history – wasn’t there a siege in the Civil War there?"
"There is so much history out there it’s ridiculous. I find the stories people send me fascinating."
"The first question I’m always asked at events is, ‘What’s the best place you’ve ever been to?’ Perhaps weirdly, I just love this country — there is so much character and history here. Wherever you go in Britain, there are so many stories."
Dan also believes it is vital children learn about history at school.
"I try and help children to think about history in the best possible way. I give them a sense of why we bother studying the past. It affects the present," he said.
Even downtime is history time in the Snow family.
"We go on holiday and visit historic sites. The children are more manageable when you are doing stuff with them," Dan said.
"My dad is fantastic on the heritage side. I inherited that from him. He has relentless energy and was always taking us to different places as children.
"Now I’m inflicting it on my own children. Two weeks ago, I took my two-year-old daughter to HMS Victory. It was just another day in the office for her."