ADVENTURER and historian Dan Snow is the great great grandson of British Prime Minister David Lloyd George, the son of presenter Peter Snow, and nephew of newsreader Jon Snow.
With such a pedigree it was hardly surprising that he should also have a career broadcasting.
“It is a fun heritage to have. I am proud of it. David Lloyd George was the first working class prime minister,’’ said Dan, who admits that it was his father who first got him interested in history, but he stresses no pressure was put on him in his choice of career.
“My father had a fantastic ability to make complex ideas simple, now I’m trying to do that.
“It was not a given that I would go into television but my father and uncle gave me a headstart. It is a privilege,’’ said Dan.
The History Guy, as he has been dubbed, is heading for Swindon for an intimate Evening With Dan Snow, where he will recount some of his adventures and reveal some historical facts and stories about individual towns on his UK tour.
“I am doing my bit, particularly in this era of fake news, to show why history is relevant to politics now,’’ said Dan. “I talk about flash points of the local area and the background video highlights the stories. Swindon is rich in history with the GWR and the railways.’’
Dan is a regular on BBC’s The One Show. “I love it on the show. I go around the country telling stories,’’ he said. He was asked to join the BBC events team for their coverage of the Battle of Britain 75th anniversary celebrations. “That was a highlight of my career,’’ he said.
The historian has worked on a number of programmes with his dad, including Battlefield Britain, for which they won a BAFTA.
Away from the past, Dan is very much a man of today eager to explore the wilder places on this planet. He joined Steve Backshall and Kate Humble for a fortnight on the deserted Isle of St Kilda.
“I loved it, with truly special wildlife. It was a real wilderness. It was a magical two weeks’ camping,’’ said Dan.
In 2013 he joined a team being filmed canoeing down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. They were recreating the epic trip by John Wesley Powell through uncharted territory and rapids in 1869. “That was wonderful but scary at times. The Grand Canyon was simply amazing.’’
Dan has always kept fit and when he was studying history at Oxford University he became one of the Oxford Blues rowing in the Boat Race. Later he went on to commentate on the famous race. “It was tricky commentating, difficult thinking of things to say and I felt sorry for the last boat. It was emotional,’’ said Dan.
The historian has his own online TV channel called History Hit TV. He says his big plan it to be his own boss, and together with his subscribers, broadcast his adventures.
Dan is married to Lady Edwina Grosvenor and they have three children, Zia, Wolf and Orla. “I encourage them to get in the spirit of things but I will also give them advice,’’ he said.
An Evening with Dan Snow comes to Swindon’s Wyvern Theatre on Tuesday, July 10 at 7.30pm. tickets are £28.50 from 01793 524481 or visit swindntheatres.co.uk
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