Helen Geake facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Helen Geake
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Geake in 2012
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| Born | 1967 (age 57–58) Wolverhampton, England
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| Alma mater | University of York |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | Norwich Castle Museum Portable Antiquities Scheme |
| Thesis | The use of grave-goods in conversion-period England c.600–c.850 A.D. (1995) |
| Doctoral advisor | Martin Carver |
Helen Mary Geake is a British archaeologist and a specialist in finding "small finds." These are tiny objects discovered during archaeological digs. Many people know her from the popular TV show Time Team, where she was a key member. She was born in 1967.
Contents
Helen Geake's Early Life and Education
Growing Up and School
Helen Geake was born in Wolverhampton, England, in 1967. She grew up in Bath and went to the Royal High School there. She first trained to be a secretary.
Studying Archaeology
Helen became very interested in archaeology by reading books and going to talks by archaeologist Mick Aston. This led her to study medieval archaeology at University College London. Later, she earned her doctorate (DPhil) at the University of York. Her studies focused on Anglo-Saxon burial sites, especially those from around the same time as the famous ship burial at Sutton Hoo. Her main research looked at how people used "grave-goods" (items buried with the dead) in England between about 600 and 850 AD. She finished her research in 1995.
Helen Geake's Career in Archaeology
After finishing university, Helen worked at the Norwich Castle Museum as an assistant keeper of archaeology. She then joined the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS). This scheme helps record archaeological finds made by the public.
She first worked for the PAS as a finds liaison officer for Suffolk. This meant she helped people in Suffolk report their archaeological discoveries. Later, she became an adviser for objects found from after the Roman period, working from Cambridge University. In 2014, she started advising the PAS's volunteer recorders from the British Museum. As of 2024, she is the finds liaison officer for Norfolk and the PAS's adviser for early-medieval finds.
Helen is also part of the Department of Archaeology Advisory Board at the University of York. She was also a member of the council for Rescue: The British Archaeological Trust, which works to protect archaeological sites. In January 2003, she became a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London, which is a special honor for people who study ancient things.
Helen Geake on Television
Helen Geake first worked on the TV show Time Team in 1998 as a digger. She sometimes appeared as an expert on Anglo-Saxon history. From 2006 to 2010, she became one of the main presenters on the show.
In 2012, Helen appeared in three episodes of Britain's Secret Treasures. Before that, she was also an Anglo-Saxon expert in National Geographic specials. These included Saxon Gold: New Secrets Revealed (2011) and Saxon Gold: Finding the Hoard (2010).
Helen Geake in Politics
Helen Geake has also been involved in politics. She ran for the Green Party in the Bury St Edmunds area in the 2015 and 2017 general elections. In both elections, she came in fourth place.
In May 2019, Helen was elected to the Mid Suffolk district council. She was one of two Green Party councillors for the Elmswell & Woolpit area. She ran again in the 2019 general election and received many more votes, increasing her share significantly. She did not seek re-election to the Mid Suffolk district council in May 2023.
Helen Geake's Personal Life
Helen Geake is married to Angus Wainwright. He is an archaeologist for the National Trust in the East of England. They have two sons and a daughter. Helen is also a cousin of the late John E. Geake, who was an astronomer. An asteroid called 9298 Geake is named after him.
Images for kids
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Geake in 2012
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Geake looking at small finds during a Time Team excavation in Lincoln's Inn Fields
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Helen Geake with Tony Robinson at Sutton Hoo June 2024
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Geake with Stewart Ainsworth while filming an episode of Time Team in 2007
