Greg Jenner (born 1982) is a British author and public historian with a particular interest in communicating history through pop culture and humour.

Early life

Jenner studied a History & Archaeology BA and Medieval Studies MA at

The University of York , mottoeng = On the threshold of wisdom , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £8.0 million , budget = £403.6 million , chancellor = Heather Melville , vice_chancellor = Charlie Jeffery , students ...

Career

Jenner has worked as an historical consultant on the anarchic ''

Horrible Histories ''Horrible Histories'' is an educational entertainment franchise encompassing many media including books, magazines, audio books, stage shows, TV shows, and more. In 2013, Lisa Edwards, UK publishing and commercial director of Scholastic Corpor ...

books A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physic ...

and television shows. Jenner has accredited the success of ''Horrible Histories'' to a non-patronising approach to children’s television. Jenner has written for '' GQ'' magazine and has appeared as a guest on ''

Richard Herring's interview podcasts ''Richard Herring's Leicester Square Theatre Podcast'' (or ''RHLSTP'' ()) and ''Richard Herring's Edinburgh Fringe Podcast'' are two related comedy podcasts, created and hosted by British comedian Richard Herring. Hosted on The British Comedy G ...

'' and on the ''Art Detective'' podcast. He also featured on the

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC's ...

programme ''

Great Lives ''Great Lives'' is a BBC Radio 4 biography series, produced in Bristol. It has been presented by Joan Bakewell, Humphrey Carpenter, Francine Stock and currently (since April 2006) Matthew Parris. A distinguished guest is asked to nominate the pe ...

'' discussing

Gene Kelly Eugene Curran Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American actor, dancer, singer, filmmaker, and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style and sought to create a new form of American dance accessibl ...

. He has appeared more than once as a guest on '' QI'' spin-off podcast ''

No Such Thing as a Fish ''No Such Thing as a Fish'' is a weekly British podcast series produced and presented by the researchers behind the BBC Two panel game '' QI''. In the podcast each of the researchers, collectively known as "The ''QI'' Elves", present their favou ...

''. and has also made appearances on the

Simon Mayo Simon Andrew Hicks Mayo (born 21 September 1958) is an English radio presenter and author who worked for BBC Radio from 1982 until 2022. Mayo has presented across three BBC stations for extended periods. From 1986 to 2001 he worked for Radio ...

and the Steve Wright shows on

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...

. Jenner featured as an expert on the ''Inside Versailles''

BBC2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream a ...

television programme, as well as for the ''

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...

'' newspaper, discussing historical accuracy in television programmes. As of September, 2019, Jenner began to present the

BBC Sounds BBC Sounds is a walled garden streaming media and audio download service from the BBC that includes live radio broadcasts, audio on demand, and podcasts. The service is available on a wide range of devices, including mobile phones and tabl ...

podcast, ''You’re Dead To Me''. Each episode sees him to talk to both a historian and comedian about a historical figure or time period. As well as streamed a radio edit version is broadcast on BBC Radio 4. Jenner spoke out against proposals for changes to the national curriculum proposed by then Education Secretary

Michael Gove Michael Andrew Gove (; born Graeme Andrew Logan, 26 August 1967) is a British politician serving as Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations since 2021. He has been Member of Par ...

Publications

Jenner is the author of several books: * ''A Million Years In A Day: A Curious History of Daily Life, From The Stone Age To The Phone Age'' in which he described how routines and habits today had their genesis in the past as well as highlighting contrasts in every day routines through the ages. * ''Dead Famous: An Unexpected History of Celebrity from Bronze Age to Silver Screen'' was released in 2020. * ''Ask a Historian: 50 Surprising Answers to Things You Always Wanted to Know'' was released in 2021.

Personal life

Jenner is a supporter of

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...

. He is

teetotal Teetotalism is the practice or promotion of total personal abstinence from the psychoactive drug alcohol, specifically in alcoholic drinks. A person who practices (and possibly advocates) teetotalism is called a teetotaler or teetotaller, or is ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jenner, Greg 1982 births Living people 21st-century British historians Alumni of the University of York 21st-century British male writers