About Nick

Dr Nick Barratt obtained a PhD in history from King's College London in 1996, editing the 1225 Exchequer pipe roll and several Exchequer receipt rolls from the 1220s. His thesis became the cornerstone for his academic work on medieval state finance and fiscal history. A full list of journal articles and contributions to conference proceedings volumes can be provided on request. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

Nick started work in television for BBC as a specialist archive researcher for a number of programmes, including House Detectives. His main claim to fame was as the genealogical consultant leading the team of researchers for the first four series of Who Do You Think You Are, though many of the celebrities he worked on from 2003-2007 have appeared in subsequent series. He has gone on to present or appear on other shows such as Hidden House Histories, Secrets from the Attic, So You Think You’re Royal, Live the Dream as Seen on Screen and Missing Millions.

In 2007 Nick incorporated his company Sticks Research Agency, which has continued to provide expert research and heritage services, consultancy and written content for private, academic and corporate clients with particular emphasis on genealogy, house and property history, heritage action plans and web content. You can find out more details from the website www.sra-uk.com

As an author, Nick has written several books from guides such as The Who Do You Think You Are Encyclopedia of Genealogy (2008) and Tracing the History of Your House (2002) to general history books that include Lost Voices from the Titanic (2010), Greater London: the Story of the Suburbs (2012), The Forgotten Spy (2015) and The Restless Kings (2018). He was also a weekly columnist for the Telegraph and acted as Editor in Chief for genealogy magazine Your Family History.

In 2016 Nick was made an Honorary Associate Professor of Public History at the University of Nottingham in recognition of his work in the field. He is currently an academic fellow at the University of Dundee where he supports the Centre for Archive and Information Studies, and in 2023 was granted visiting academic status at the Knowledge Media Institute, part of the Open University. Other roles include President of the Hampshire Genealogical Society, and Nick was previously President of the Family History Federation and committee member for the Community Archive and Heritage Group.

Nick lectures on a range of subjects including family, house and local history in the digital age; protest and democracy through the centuries; and aspects of medieval history, in particular Magna Carta and the reigns of Henry II, Richard I and John. A full range of Nick’s talks, fees, availability and advance speaking programme can be provided on request.