Jonathan Foyle
Jonathan Foyle is a British architectural historian, broadcaster and advocate for heritage sites. He is also an artist.
Background
Foyle grew up in Market Deeping in Lincolnshire and attended The Deepings School. He has a Master of Arts from the Courtauld Institute of Art, and later worked for a year surveying the architectural details and structure of Canterbury Cathedral. He then became Curator of Historic Buildings for Historic Royal Palaces for eight years. During this time Foyle produced a thesis on the early history of Hampton Court and received a doctorate from the University of Reading in 2002. He also has an honorary degree in Conservation and Restoration from the University of Lincoln.Career
Foyle has written many scholarly papers and additionally contributed articles for a number of newspapers and popular magazines.He is perhaps best known as a communicator on history. He has taught and lectured in Britain and around the world and has appeared and presented a number of television broadcasts.
Since 2002, he has presented films for Channel 4, the BBC, the History Channel, ITN, Lion and Discovery Channels. In 2009 he presented a series on Henry VIII as art patron. In 2010 he presented a television series Climbing Great Buildings.
In 2007 Foyle accepted the position of Chief Executive of World Monuments Fund Britain, the UK arm of a global charity, which aims to secure imperilled architectural sites for future generations.
Television
BBC One
Inside Out, reporter on Gloucestershire’s pyramidsThe One Show, reporter on historic architectureBBC Two
Climbing Great Buildings, presenter, 15-part series, along with climber Lucy CreamerThe People’s Museum, reporterHistory Mysteries, series co-presenterMeet The Ancestors: The Lost Palace Of Hampton Court, specialistBBC Four
People’s Palaces: The Golden Age Of Civic Architecture 2 x 1 hour, presenterHenry VIII: Patron Or Plunderer? 2 x 1 hour, presenterChannel 4
Time Team Special: Henry VIII's Lost Palaces, specialist contributorTime Team Special: The Arcadian Garden, specialist contributorTime Team Special: The Royal Palaces: Buckingham Palace, specialist contributorTime Team, specialist contributor, including Kew Palace, Syon House, Greenwich Palace, Queenborough Castle, Hunstrete House, Chenies ManorHistory Channel US
Lost Worlds: The Pyramids, investigatorLost Worlds: The Sphinx, investigatorLost Worlds: The Vikings, investigatorLost Worlds: Henry VIII, investigatorFive
County Secrets 10-part series, presenterHistory Channel UK
Hidden House History, co-presenterProfessional history
- 2007–present chief Executive, World Monuments Fund Britain
- 2003–2007 freelance historian, teacher, presenter, consultant
- 1996–2003 curator of Historic Buildings, Hampton Court and Kew Palaces, Historic Royal Palaces
- 1995–1996 assistant to the Surveyor of the Fabric, Canterbury Cathedral
Publications
- The Architecture of Canterbury Cathedral Scala
- ‘Conservation areas in China: the case of the Juanqinzhai in Beijing’ with Henry Tzu-Ng
- ‘Some examples of external colouration on English brick buildings, c. 1500–1650’
- 'A Reconstruction of Thomas Wolsey's Great Hall at Hampton Court Palace'
Illustrations for:
- ‘Interpretations of the Rebuilding of Canterbury Cathedral, 1174–1186: Archaeological and Historical Evidence’