James Richard Evans (born 17 December 1975) is an English historian, author and television producer.

Education

Evans grew up in

Epsom Epsom is a town in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain ...

and was educated at

Whitgift School Whitgift School is an independent day school with limited boarding in South Croydon, London. Along with Trinity School of John Whitgift and Old Palace School it is owned by the Whitgift Foundation, a charitable trust. The school was prev ...

. Evans attended Oriel College,

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

. and studied History graduating in 1998. He went on to do doctoral studies at Oriel College where he wrote a D.Phil on the national question in the new state of

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

after World War I.

Career

Since university he worked on producing multiple television historical documentaries as well as helping to write the accompanying books for the series. His first major book, ''Merchant Adventurers: The Voyage of Discovery that Transformed Tudor England'' (2013) used the primary source of a story he came across during a television project. It tells the story of the failed 1553 voyage to reach China and the

Spice Islands In the culinary arts, a spice is any seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance in a form primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for ...

of the

Company of Merchant Adventurers to New Lands The Company of Merchant Adventurers to New Lands was an early joint stock association, which began with private exploration and enterprise, and was to have been incorporated by King Edward VI in 1553, but received its full royal charter in 1555. I ...

and the principals,

Richard Chancellor Richard Chancellor ( – ) was an English explorer and navigator; the first to penetrate to the White Sea and establish Anglo-Russian relations, relations with the Tsardom of Russia. Life Chancellor, a native of Bristol, was brought up in the ...

, Sebastian Cabot and Sir

Hugh Willoughby Sir Hugh Willoughby (fl. 1544; died 1554) was an English soldier and an early Arctic voyager. He served in the court of and fought in the Scottish campaign where he was knighted for his valour. In 1553, he was selected by a company of London ...

. It was published in the US as ''Tudor Adventurers: An Arctic Voyage of Discovery: The Hunt for the Northeast Passage''. In July 2017 his second book ''Emigrants: Why the English Sailed to the New World'', was published by

Weidenfeld & Nicolson Weidenfeld & Nicolson Ltd (established 1949), often shortened to W&N or Weidenfeld, is a British publisher of fiction and reference books. It has been a division of the French-owned Orion Publishing Group since 1991. History George Weidenfeld ...

. In July 2017 Evans was interviewed by

Dan Snow Daniel Robert Snow (born 3 December 1978) is a British Popular history, popular historian and television presenter. He is an ambassador of the Electoral Reform Society (ERS). Early life and education Born in Westminster, London Dan Snow is the ...

for Dan Snow's History Hit Podcast.

Publications

* * * *

Personal life

He lives in North London with his wife and three children.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, James People educated at Whitgift School Alumni of Oriel College, Oxford 1975 births English historians Television producers from London People from Camden Town Living people