Alison Weir Tours

Dr Alison Weir is the top-selling female historian in the United Kingdom since records began in 1997. She had a career in the Civil Service before her first book, Britain`s Royal Families, came out in 1989. She has since published 35 books, including The Six Wives of Henry VIII, The Princes in the Tower, Lancaster and York, Elizabeth the Queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry VIII: King and Court, Mary Queen of Scots and the Murder of Lord Darnley, Katherine Swynford, The Lady in the Tower: The Fall of Anne Boleyn and three volumes of her England's Medieval Queens quartet. Alison's historical novels include the Six Tudor Queens and Tudor Rose series, all of which were Sunday Times bestsellers. Her books have sold more than 3 million copies worldwide. Four have been chosen as Book of the Week on BBC Radio 4. Alison is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and Sciences and an Honourary Life Patron of Historic Royal Palaces. She has been a guest historian on many historical tours for English Heritage, and developed and led a Tudor Tapestry Tour for the Smithsonian Institute in April 2010 before setting up Alison Weir Tours Ltd. later that year (See www.alisonweir.org.uk).



After leaving Oxford, Sarah Gristwood worked as a journalist specialising in the arts and women's issues, and contributing to The Times, the Guardian, the Independent and the Telegraph. Arbella, her biography of Arbella Stuart, the first cousin of Elizabeth I and heir to her throne, was the first of her books to feature on the Sunday Times bestseller list. Other books since include Elizabeth and Leicester; Blood Sisters, an acclaimed study of the royal women who brought the Tudor dynasty into being; Game of Queens, a book about female rulers in the sixteenth century; and The Tudors in Love, a ground-breaking account of how courtly love shaped the Tudor Dynasty. She has also written about early-twentieth-century figures from Beatrix Potter to Virginia Woolf, and Audrey Hepburn to Winston Churchill. She frequently appears on television discussing both historical topics, and the modern Royal Family.  Her most recent book is the acclaimed Secret Voices: A Year of Women's Diaries.


After graduating in history from Emmanuel College, Cambridge and completing a postgraduate qualification at the Polytechnic of North London, Julian joined the staff of London's National Army Museum. During his time there he curated numerous exhibitions and was spokesperson to the media on all matters of British Army history. He also made three expeditions to Bosnia during the civil war there to collect information and also acquire items for the museum.   Julian left the museum to pursue a career in writing, guiding and lecturing – battles and castles are his speciality! He worked alongside Alison Weir on English Heritage’s Tours Through Time programme, and in 2009 was appointed Development Officer of the Battlefields Trust, the UK Charity dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of Britain’s historic battlefields. He is now a Trustee. Julian, who is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a visiting lecturer on the archaeology of conflict at the University of Winchester, talks and writes extensively on many aspects of British history. He is the author of numerous books and articles on Britain's military history, most recently as a contributor to 'Historic Battlefields in 500 walks' (San Diego, 2023) and as editor of the Battlefields Trust's special 2023 publication on the sieges and battles of the Barons' Wars. He has contributed numerous articles to BBC History, History Revealed and Tudor Places Magazines and has just begun writing for BBC Who Do You Think You Are Magazine. Julian also writes scripts for historical multi-media and audio tours including guides to Culloden Battlefield, the Household Cavalry Museum, the D-Day Story, Winchester City Museum, the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum, and Quirky Cambridge.


Dr Nicola Tallis graduated from Bath Spa University with a first class BA Hons. degree in History. She has an MA in Public History from Royal Holloway College, University of London and was awarded a PhD by the University of Winchester for her thesis examining the jewellery collections of the queens of the Wars of the Roses and early Tudor queens of England. Some of her jewellery research was included into the catalogue of the 2024 Six Lives exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery. Nicola has worked as a curator, researcher, and lecturer, and is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. She has made numerous television and radio appearances, including on BBC’s Who Do You Think You Are?, Channel 5’s The Vikings and The Gunpowder Plot, and Channel 4’s Frankie Boyle’s Farewell to the Monarchy. Nicola is the author of five books, and her latest, Young Elizabeth: Princess. Prisoner. Queen. was Book of the Week in The Times and the subject of a new two part documentary by History Hit, due to be released in May. Nicola has also recently signed a new book contract for an exciting new project which will be released in 2028. 


Dr Michael Jones is a fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a member of the British Commission for Military History. He is a leading military historian, with specialist interests in battle psychology and French history. He is a member of several distinguished societies in both the UK and France, including the Royal Historical Society and La Société d'Histoire et d'Archéologie de Bretagne. Michael's first book, The King's Mother, a biography of Lady Margaret Beaufort, was shortlisted for the prestigious Whitfield Prize. He has published nine books since, covering numerous topics from Agincourt and Bosworth to Stalingrad. Michael has worked extensively with veterans of the Second World War. He is also the author, with Philippa Gregory, of The Women of the Cousins' War and, with Philippa Langley, of The King's Grave: the Search for Richard III; his other titles include 24 Hours at Agincourt; After Hitler; and Bosworth 1485: Psychology of a Battle. His most recent work is an acclaimed study of the life of the Black Prince. Michael has been a consultant to a number of TV programmes, including Channel 4’s Richard III: Fact or Fiction, the History Channel’s Warriors series, the National Geographic’s Mystery Files and Russia Today’s The Children of Stalingrad. HHe has also been interviewed on the BBC’s Today programme and appeared on Melvyn Bragg’s In Our Time. He also has years of experience in guiding historical tours.



Professor Tracy Borman studied and taught history at the University of Hull and was awarded a PHD in 1997. She went on to a successful career in heritage and has worked for a range of historic properties and national heritage organisations, including the Heritage Lottery Fund, The National Archives and English Heritage.She is Chief Historian at Historic Royal Palaces, the charity that manages Hampton Court Palace, the Tower of London, Kensington Palace, Kew Palace, the Banqueting House, Whitehall and Hillsborough Castle and she is Chief Executive of the Heritage Education Trust. Tracy is the author of a number of highly acclaimed books, including Thomas Cromwell: The Untold Story of Henry VIII's Most Faithful Servant; Henrietta Howard: King's Mistress, Queen's Servant; Elizabeth's Women: The Hidden Story of the Virgin Queen; Matilda, Queen of the Conqueror; Witches: A Tale of Sorcery, Scandal and Seduction; The Story of the Tower of London; The Private Lives of the Tudors; Henry VIII and the Men Who Made Him; Crown and Sceptre: A New History of the British Monarchy, and Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I. She has also published a trilogy of novels: The King's Witch, The Devil's Slave and The Fallen Angel. Tracy often appears on television and radio, and is a regular contributor to history magazines, notably BBC History. She is a trustee of The Buccleuch Living Heritage Trust and The National Archives Foundation, as well as a Patron of Lavenham Library, the Friends of Marble Hill House and the Chalke Valley History Festival, and Patron (Historical) of the Vectis Archaeological Trust. In 2017, she was awarded an honorary degree (DLit) from the University of Hull; in 2020, she was made an Honorary Fellow in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at Queen Mary University of London; and in 2021, she was made an Honorary Professor at Bishop Grosseteste University in Lincoln. She was awarded an OBE for services to heritage in The King's Birthday Honours 2024. She is also a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.


Dr Elizabeth Norton is an historian, specialising in the Tudor period and queenship. She is the author of the critically acclaimed 'The Lives of Tudor Women' and biographies of four of Henry VIII's wives. Her new book, 'The Women Who Ruled the World' will be released in September 2025 and she is currently working on an academic biography of Jane Seymour. She regularly appears on television, including the BBC's 'The Boleyns, A Scandalous Family' on which she also acted as consultant. 



Lauren Johnson is a public historian and author of works including the critically acclaimed Shadow King: The Life and Death of Henry VI. Lauren graduated with a First Class degree in History and an MSt in Medieval Historical Research from Wadham College, Oxford University. Her thesis explored the impact of the Wars of the Roses on women. She is currently studying for an AHRC-funded Collaborative Doctorate with Manchester Metropolitan University and the National Archives investigating ‘Refugees, Religion and Diplomacy in Early Modern Europe’. With a passion for restoring marginalised narratives to our History, she has worked in heritage since 2008 and acted as Historical Consultant for creative and heritage producers including Historic Royal Palaces, Wellcome Library, Sky History, Dante or Die and Royal Shakespeare Company.



Helen Castor is an acclaimed medieval and Tudor historian, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and a Fellow Commoner of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge. Her books include the prize-winning Blood & Roses, She-Wolves: The Women Who Ruled England before Elizabeth, and Joan of Arc, dubbed ‘a triumph of history’. She has presented a range of radio and television programmes for the BBC and Channel 4, including documentaries based on She-Wolves and Joan of Arc. Her new book, The Eagle and the Hart, tells the story of the tumultuous reigns of Richard II and Henry IV.



Professor Kate Williams is the author of ten historical books, including Rival Queens: The Betrayal of Mary, Queen of Scots, and The Royal Palaces. She is CNN's Royal Historian and has presented many TV shows, including Restoration Home, Inside Versailles and Secrets of the Royal Palaces. There is nothing she loves more than a dusty document.



Siobhan Clarke has worked for Historic Royal Palaces for 25 years, delivering tours and lectures on the palaces of Hampton Court, Kensington, the Tower of London and the Banqueting House, Whitehall. Siobhan has featured on BBC radio and PBS Television's ‘Secrets of Henry VIII's Palace’. She lectures for the Smithsonian and is an accredited lecturer for the Arts Society. Her published work comprises: ‘A Tudor Christmas’ with Alison Weir (Jonathan Cape, 2018). ‘The Tudors: The Crown, the Dynasty, the Golden Age’ with Linda Collins (Andre Deutsch, 2019). ‘King and Collector: Henry VIII and the art of Kingship’ with Linda Collins (History Press, 2021). ‘Gloriana: Elizabeth I and the art of Queenship’ with Linda Collins (History Press, 2022).


John Marston has had over fifty years' experience in the travel industry, and he will accompany the tour in the role of Travel Director to ensure that all guests have information on hotels, restaurants, schedule timings, local information and baggage handling etc.. John has worked for major commercial companies including Land Rover, Jaguar Cars and L'Oreal Cosmetics, arranging world-wide travel for groups of between forty to over four hundred. His experience has included planning and booking trips, and personally escorting these groups. For Land Rover, John was in charge of their major U.S. dealer group, looking after a party of fifty executive guests and their partners, and arranging visits to London, Eastnor Castle in Herefordshire, the Duke of Atholl's estate at Pitlochry in Scotland, and Gleneagles Hotel in Perthshire, Scotland. This was just one of many launch programs that John has organised; his priority has always been to give the highest standard of personal attention to guests' needs. John's wife Jo Marston accompanies AWT's tours; her role is to look after guests' pastoral needs and support the team.
 
Alison Weir Tours Ltd.
Company Registration No. 07276807.
Registered Office: 2nd Floor, 16-17 Wardour Mews, London, W1F 8AT