SCORES of people got a 'history hit' as award-winning TV presenter and historian Dan Snow gave a talk at Winchester College.
The event, on Friday, February 2, was organised by the Hampshire History Trust and saw Dan captivate the audience with his tales of adventure and opinions on great moments in history, as well as giving the crowd a teaser of his new show, Shackleton: The Story of Endurance, a three-part documentary that retraces one of the greatest stories of polar exploration.
Dan became a patron of the trust, which also organises Winchester's Heritage Open Days event, last year, and his talk was held to promote this year's events and the trust's membership friends scheme.
He said he was delighted to be in Winchester, surrounded by so much history, and honoured to be part of the trust in such a history-rich county.
He said: "It is great to connect people in this historical county with their history. To many people, London is where all the action is, but Winchester is a fascinating medieval city in an amazing county that is rich in history. These types of events help people connect with where they live and gives them pride. When you come from somewhere amazing, you are more likely to go on to do amazing things."
Dan, who lives in Exbury, is well known for his many contributions to historical programmes and his work has been seen across various television series including Dan Snow on Lloyd George: My Great-Great-Grandfather, Pompeii: The Discovery with Dan Snow and Locomotion: Dan Snow’s History of Railways. Dan started his History Hit Podcasts (@historyhit) in 2015 and it has become the UK’s number-one history podcast covering a range of exciting and interesting topics. Dan was awarded an MBE in 2019 for his extraordinary impact on history education.
After his talk, he answered questions from the audience on a range of subjects, including whether or not statue should reflect modern-day thinking, how to inspire youth into history and what moments in time he would most like to have witnessed firsthand.
Richard North, from Hampshire History Trust, thanked Dan for his time and said the trust would like to hold more similar events, especially after last summer's successful talk from historian Alice Loxton.
He added: "It is the 30th year for Heritage Open Days, so there will be an excellent programme of events this year."
SEE ALSO: Dan Snow made patron of Hampshire History Trust
Hampshire History Trust was set up to promote and advance the rich and diverse history and heritage of the county and to run free and low-cost educational projects for the public benefit.
Hampshire History Trust (HHT) organises Winchester Heritage Open Days (WHODs) every year. WHODs is a 10-day FREE festival of history and heritage centred on Winchester but also extending into surrounding towns and villages. It also runs a podcast channel Hampshire HistBites which offers everyone the opportunity to delve into the past.
This year's Heritage Open Day event takes place from September 6 - 15 with the theme of 'Routes, Networks and Connections', celebrating the movement of people and ideas throughout time.
For more go to hampshirehistorytrust.com.
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