Justin David Pollard (born 30 January 1968) is a British

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

television producer A television producer is a person who oversees one or more aspects of a television show, television program. Some producers take more of an executive role, in that they conceive new programs and pitch them to the television networks, but upon acce ...

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles, genres and techniques to communicate ideas, to inspire feelings and emotions, or to entertain. Writers may develop different forms of writing such as novels, short sto ...

and

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value in ways that generally entail beyond the minimal amount of risk (assumed by a traditional business), and potentially involving values besides simply economic ones. An entreprene ...

. He is best known for his work on such films as '' Elizabeth'' and ''

Pirates of the Caribbean ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' is a Disney media franchise encompassing numerous theme park rides, a series of films, and spin-off novels, as well as a number of related video games and other media publications. The franchise originated with Wa ...

'' and TV series including ''

Vikings Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...

'' and ''

The Tudors ''The Tudors'' is a historical fiction television series set primarily in 16th-century England, created and written by Michael Hirst and produced for the American premium cable television channel Showtime. The series was a collaboration among ...

''.

Biography

Pollard is a popular historian, historical consultant and screenwriter working in the field of feature films, television and print. He was born in

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

and was educated at St Albans School and

Downing College, Cambridge Downing College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge and currently has around 950 students. Founded in 1800, it was the only college to be added to the university between 1596 and 1869, and is often described as the oldest of ...

, where he graduated with honours in

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

and

anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...

. After college he worked for a year as an archaeologist at the

Museum of London London Museum (known from 1976 to 2024 as the Museum of London) is a museum in London, covering the history of the city from prehistoric to modern times, with a particular focus on social history. The Museum of London was formed in 1976 by ama ...

on the excavation of

Thomas Becket Thomas Becket (), also known as Saint Thomas of Canterbury, Thomas of London and later Thomas à Becket (21 December 1119 or 1120 – 29 December 1170), served as Lord Chancellor from 1155 to 1162, and then as Archbishop of Canterbury fr ...

’s old monastery of

Merton Priory Merton Priory was an English Augustinian priory founded in 1114 by Gilbert Norman, Sheriff of Surrey under King Henry I (1100–1135). It was situated within the manor of Merton in the county of Surrey, in what is today the Colliers Wood ...

. During that time he also developed an educational programme for schools visiting the Surrey Heath Archaeological and Heritage Trust in Surrey for which the Trust was awarded the Graham Webster Laurels at the British Archaeology Awards for their contribution to education in archaeology. Leaving the Museum of London in 1990, Pollard moved into documentary production initially as a researcher, and then a writer and producer. His television credits include development and scripting for the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

's '' QI'',

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

's ''

Time Team ''Time Team'' is a British television programme that originally aired on Channel 4, Channel 4 from 16 January 1994 to 7 September 2014. It returned in 2022 on online platforms YouTube and Patreon. Created by television produce ...

'', including writing the Christmas special ''Time Team's History of Britain'', script editing

Bob Geldof Robert Frederick Zenon Geldof (; born 5 October 1951) is an Irish singer-songwriter and political activist. He rose to prominence in the late 1970s as the lead singer of the Irish rock band the Boomtown Rats, who achieved popularity as part ...

's ''Geldof in Africa'', and developing '' Terry Jones' Barbarians''. He has also written the 3x1 hour history of the Egyptian New Kingdom for the BBC and Lion Television, ''Egypt’s Golden Empire'', which was nominated for an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

. As well as these he has written and produced documentaries on everything from

cannibalism Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is also well document ...

amongst the Dongria Kondh in India to the career of

Vlad the Impaler Vlad III, commonly known as Vlad the Impaler ( ) or Vlad Dracula (; ; 1428/31 – 1476/77), was Voivode of Wallachia three times between 1448 and his death in 1476/77. He is often considered one of the most important rulers in Wallachian hi ...

, for broadcasters including

, ITV,

National Geographic Channel National Geographic (formerly National Geographic Channel; abbreviated and trademarked as Nat Geo or Nat Geo TV) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by the National Geographic Global Networks unit of Disney Enter ...

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

, A&E,

Discovery Channel Discovery Channel, known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery, is an American cable channel that is best known for its ongoing reality television shows and promotion of pseudoscience. It init ...

, Canal+,

ZDF ZDF (), short for (; ), is a German public-service television broadcaster based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. Launched on 1 April 1963, it is run as an independent nonprofit institution, and was founded by all federal states of Germany ( ...

S4C S4C (, ''Sianel Pedwar Cymru'', meaning ''Channel Four Wales'') is a Welsh language free-to-air public broadcast television channel. Launched on 1 November 1982, it was the first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speakin ...

and

ITN Independent Television News (ITN) is a UK-based media production and broadcast journalism company. ITN is based in London, with bureaux and offices in Beijing, Brussels, Jerusalem, Johannesburg, New York City, New York, Paris, Sydney and Washin ...

. Apart from producing documentaries, Pollard runs a company that provides historical and script consultancy for historical feature films and television dramas. He has worked with Indian director Shekhar Kapur and was historical consultant on his features '' Elizabeth'', '' The Four Feathers'' and '' Elizabeth: The Golden Age''. He has developed other history-based features for directors, including

Gillies MacKinnon Gillies MacKinnon (born 8 January 1948) is a Scotland, Scottish film director, screenplay, writer and painting, painter. He was born in Glasgow and attended the Glasgow School of Art where he studied mural painting. Following this he became an a ...

Sam Mendes Sir Samuel Alexander Mendes (born 1 August 1965) is a British film and stage director, producer, and screenwriter. In 2000, Mendes was appointed a CBE for his services to drama, and he was Knight Bachelor, knighted in the 2020 New Year Honours ...

Jan de Bont Jan de Bont (; born 22 October 1943) is a Dutch former cinematographer, film director, and film producer. He is best known for directing the action films ''Speed (1994 film), Speed'' (1994) and ''Twister (1996 film), Twister'' (1996). As a direct ...

and

Neil Jordan Neil Patrick Jordan (born 25 February 1950) is an Irish filmmaker and writer. He first achieved recognition for his short story collection, ''Night in Tunisia (short story collection), Night in Tunisia,'' which won the Guardian Fiction Prize in ...

. He was the historical consultant on

Joe Wright Joseph Wright (born 25 August 1972) is an English film director. His motion pictures include the period drama adaptations '' Pride & Prejudice'' (2005), ''Atonement'' (2007), '' Anna Karenina'' (2012), and '' Cyrano'' (2021), the action thrill ...

's film, ''

Atonement Atonement, atoning, or making amends is the concept of a person taking action to correct previous wrongdoing on their part, either through direct action to undo the consequences of that act, equivalent action to do good for others, or some othe ...

'' and has worked on two films with

Johnny Depp John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Johnny Depp, multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for ...

- ''

Alice in Wonderland (2010 film) ''Alice In Wonderland'' is a 2010 American Gothic film, Gothic dark fantasy Adventure film, adventure film directed by Tim Burton from a screenplay written by Linda Woolverton and produced by Walt Disney Pictures. The film stars Mia Wasikowska ...

'' directed by

Tim Burton Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and producer. Known for popularizing Goth subculture, Goth culture in the American film industry, Burton is famous for his Gothic film, gothic horror and dark fantasy films. ...

, '' Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'' directed by

Rob Marshall Robert Doyle Marshall Jr.http://www.alumni.cmu.edu/s/1410/images/editor_documents/alumnirelations/getinvolved/alumniawards/all_honorees_2018june1.pdf (born October 17, 1960) is an American film and theater director, producer, and choreographer. ...

and

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' (, ) is a 19th-century French literature, French Epic (genre), epic historical fiction, historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published on 31 March 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. '' ...

directed by

Tom Hooper Thomas George Hooper (born 5 October 1972)''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005''. 5d: 2485. is a British-Australian filmmaker. Known for his work in film and television he has received numerous accolades includ ...

. In television he is the historical consultant for the

MGM Television Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television, formerly known as MGM/UA Television, is the television studio arm of the American film studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), specializing in broadcast syndication and the production and distribution of television sh ...

History Channel History (formerly and commonly known as the History Channel) is an American pay television television broadcaster, network and the flagship channel of A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney General Entertainme ...

drama

and has recently worked on all four series of the Showtime hit ''

'' starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers and ''

Camelot (TV series) ''Camelot'' is a fantasy television, fantasy historical drama television series created by Michael Hirst (writer), Michael Hirst and Chris Chibnall for Starz. An Irish-Canadian co-production, the series is based on the Arthurian legend, and stars ...

'' starring Joseph Fiennes for Starz (TV network). Pollard is a columnist for

History Today ''History Today'' is a history magazine. Published monthly in London since January 1951, it presents authoritative history to as wide a public as possible. The magazine covers all periods and geographical regions and publishes articles of tradit ...

, Engineering & Technology and BBC History Magazine and a contributor to the QI books and Annuals including ''

The Book of General Ignorance ''The Book of General Ignorance'' is the first in a series of books based on the final round in the intellectual British panel game '' QI'', written by series-creator John Lloyd and head-researcher John Mitchinson,

''. His latest book '' World of the Vikings'' was released in November 2015. Pollard was also one of the founders of the crowdsourcing publisher Unbound stepping back in 2014. He is a Fellow of the

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society (RHS), founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the H ...

and the

Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

Feature films

* '' The Pope's Exorcist'' starring

Russell Crowe Russell Ira Crowe (born 7 April 1964) is an actor and film director. Russell Crowe filmography, His work on screen has earned him List of awards and nominations received by Russell Crowe, various accolades, including an Academy Award, two Gold ...

* ''

Mulan (2020 film) ''Mulan'' is a 2020 American Fantasy film, fantasy Action film, action Drama (film and television), drama film produced by Walt Disney Pictures. Directed by Niki Caro from a screenplay by Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver, Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, ...

'' directed by

Niki Caro Nikola Jean Caro (born 20 September 1966) is a New Zealand film, television, and music video director and screenwriter. Her 2002 film ''Whale Rider'' was critically praised and won a number of awards at international film festivals. She directe ...

* ''

Mary Poppins Returns ''Mary Poppins Returns'' is a 2018 American musical fantasy comedy film directed by Rob Marshall, with a screenplay written by David Magee and a story by Magee, Marshall, and John DeLuca. Loosely based on the book series ''Mary Poppins'' by P ...

'' directed by

* '' Dracula Untold'' starring Luke Evans (actor) * '' A Little Chaos'' directed by

Alan Rickman Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman (21 February 1946 – 14 January 2016) was an English actor and director. Known for his distinctive deep, wikt:languid#Etymology 1, languid voice, he trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and b ...

* ''

Les Misérables (2012 film) is a 2012 epic period musical film directed by Tom Hooper from a screenplay by William Nicholson, Alain Boublil, Claude-Michel Schönberg, and Herbert Kretzmer, and is based on the stage musical of the same name by Schönberg, Boublil, a ...

'' directed by

* '' Mary Queen of Scots (2013 film)'' directed by Thomas Imbach * '' Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'' directed by

starring

* ''

'' directed by

starring

* '' Red Tails'' produced by

George Lucas George Walton Lucas Jr. (born May 14, 1944) is an American filmmaker and philanthropist. He created the ''Star Wars'' and ''Indiana Jones'' franchises and founded Lucasfilm, LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic and THX. He served as chairman ...

* ''

Agora The agora (; , romanized: ', meaning "market" in Modern Greek) was a central public space in ancient Ancient Greece, Greek polis, city-states. The literal meaning of the word "agora" is "gathering place" or "assembly". The agora was the center ...

'' directed by

Alejandro Amenábar Alejandro Fernando Amenábar Cantos (born 31 March 1972) is a Chilean-Spanish film director, screenwriter and composer. He has won nine Goya Awards—including Best Director for his 2001 film '' The Others''—and two European Film Awards amon ...

(2009) * '' The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas'' directed by

Mark Herman Mark Herman (born 1954) is a British film director and screenwriter, best known for writing and directing the 1996 film '' Brassed Off'' and the 2008 film '' The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas''. Film critic Paul Wells offers this assessment of He ...

* ''

'' directed by

starring

Keira Knightley Keira Christina Knightley ( ; born 26 March 1985) is an English actress. Known for her work in independent films and Blockbuster (entertainment), blockbusters, particularly Historical drama, period dramas, she has received List of awards and no ...

* '' Elizabeth: The Golden Age'' directed by Shekhar Kapur * '' The Four Feathers'' directed by Shekhar Kapur * '' Elizabeth'' directed by Shekhar Kapur starring

Cate Blanchett Catherine Élise Blanchett ( ; born 14 May 1969) is an Australian actor and producer. Regarded as one of the best performers of her generation, she is recognised for Cate Blanchett on screen and stage, her versatile work across stage and scre ...

Television series

* '' Those About to Die''. Drama set in ancient Rome directed by

Roland Emmerich Roland Emmerich (; born 10 November 1955) is a German-American filmmaker. Emmerich is widely known for his science fiction and disaster films and has been called a "master of disaster" within the movie industry. His films, most of which are Eng ...

Amazon_Prime_Video Amazon Prime Video, known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service owned by Amazon. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced or co-produced by ...

* '' History: The Interesting Bits''. Animated history TV series for

National Geographic (American TV channel) National Geographic (formerly National Geographic Channel; abbreviated and trademarked as Nat Geo or Nat Geo TV) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by the National Geographic Global Networks unit of Disney Enter ...

and Curiosity Stream * '' Vikings: Valhalla'' Drama spin-off from

Vikings (2013 TV series) ''Vikings'' is a historical drama television series created and written by Michael Hirst. A co-production between Canada and Ireland, the series originally premiered on the History Channel on March 3, 2013. The series concluded with its broadc ...

* ''

Watchmen (TV series) ''Watchmen'' is a 2019 American Superhero fiction, superhero Drama (film and television), drama Limited-run series, limited series written as a sequel to the 1986 DC Comics series Watchmen, of the same title created by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbon ...

'' American superhero drama television series for

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

Paramount Television Studios Paramount Television Studios, formerly the second incarnation of Paramount Television, was the television arm of American film studio Paramount Pictures, a division of Paramount Global, founded on March 4, 2013, by its predecessor, Viacom, fol ...

* ''

''. Drama series starring

Travis Fimmel Travis Fimmel (born 15 July 1979) is an Australian actor. He is known for his role as Ragnar Lothbrok in the History Channel television series ''Vikings'' (2013–2017). He also starred in HBO science fiction series' '' Raised by Wolves'' as M ...

for

* ''

Peaky Blinders (TV series) ''Peaky Blinders'' is a British Historical drama, period crime drama television series created by Steven Knight. Set in Birmingham, it follows the exploits of the Peaky Blinders crime gang in the direct aftermath of the World War I, First World ...

''Created by

Steven Knight Steven Knight (born 5 August 1959) is a British screenwriter, producer, and director for film and television. He wrote the screenplays for the films ''Closed Circuit (2013 film), Closed Circuit'', ''Dirty Pretty Things (film), Dirty Pretty Thi ...

* '' QI'' (Series 3 onwards). 16-part comedy panel show hosted by

Stephen Fry Sir Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director, narrator and writer. He came to prominence as a member of the comic act Fry and Laurie alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring in ''A Bit of ...

for BBC1 * ''

Will (TV series) ''Will'' is a historical fiction television series about the life of William Shakespeare in his early 20s. The series was ordered for a first season, consisting of ten episodes, on May 18, 2016. It premiered on TNT on July 10, 2017, and concl ...

''produced by Shekhar Kapur * ''

Britannia (TV series) ''Britannia'' is a British historical fantasy Drama (film and television), drama television series created by Jez Butterworth and Tom Butterworth. The show was the first co-production between Sky UK and Amazon Prime Video and stars Kelly Reilly ...

'' written by Jez Butterworth. * ''

'' (Series 1 to 4). Drama series starring Joseph Fiennes for Starz (TV network) * ''

'' (Series 1 to 4). Drama series starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers for Showtime * '' Alexandria: The Greatest City'' for Channel 4 * '' The Gunpowder Plot: Exploding The Legend'' for ITV4 * '' Geldof in Africa'' for BBC1 * '' Terry Jones' Barbarians''. Series for BBC * '' Seven Ages of Britain''. 7 hour series for Channel 4 presented by

Bettany Hughes Bettany Mary Hughes (born May 1967) is an English historian, author, and broadcaster, specialising in classical history. Her published books cover classical antiquity and myth, and the history of Istanbul. She is active in efforts to encourag ...

* '' Ancient Discoveries''. 3x1 hr history series for S4C/ A&E * '' $100 Ride''. 13-part travel series narrated by

Alexei Sayle Alexei David Sayle (born 7 August 1952) is an English actor, author, stand-up comedian, television presenter and former recording artist. He was a leading figure in the British alternative comedy movement in the 1980s. He was voted the 18th g ...

for National Geographic. * '' Egypt's Golden Empire''. 3 hr documentary series for BBC/PBS/DDE. * ''

History of Britain'' for Channel 4 * ''

Live from York'' for Channel 4 * ''

series VII'' for Channel 4 * ''

Live'' for Channel 4 * '' Royal Secrets'' for TLC

Bibliography

* ''Seven Ages of Britain'', 2003. * ''Alfred the Great: The Man Who Made England'', 2005. * ''The Rise and Fall of Alexandria: Birthplace of the Modern World'' with Howard Reid, 2006. * ''The Interesting Bits: The History You Might Have Missed'', 2007. * ''The Story of Archaeology: In 50 Great Discoveries'', 2007. * ''Charge! The Interesting Bits of Military History'', 2008. * ''Secret Britain: The Hidden Bits of Our History'', October 2009. * ''Wonders of the Ancient World: Antiquity's Greatest Feats of Design and Engineering'', 2009. * ''Boffinology: The Real Stories Behind Our Greatest Scientific Discoveries'', October 2010. * ''Buses, Bankers & the Beer of Revenge: An Eccentric Engineer Collection'', November 2012. * ''World of the Vikings'', November 2015. *

Personal life

Pollard married

BAFTA The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...

nominated TV researcher and producer Stephanie Farr on 18 November 2000. They have two children. Stephanie was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer in 2014 and died in 2023.

Biography

Feature films

Television series

Bibliography

Personal life

References

External links