Who we are and what we do
Live History is a team derived from multiple disciplines, both in and outside of heritage, that formed to educate and entertain the populace, bridging the gap between populist and academic history.
We have been providing professional historical consultants, speakers, tour guides and actors to outside organisations since 2022, in addition to providing our own range of events, school workshops and tour experiences in the UK, primarily (but not exclusively) set in the North-West of England.
Operating within Chester, Lancaster and Carlisle, we promote local history among locals and tourists alike through our immersive, award-winning tours. Whether this be virtually as Audio Tours or in-person on Costumed Walking Tours, people can visit historic buildings and sites on route, uncovering both local and national history by way of roleplaying, historical characters guiding them.
Regionally, Live History also provides Key Stage 1 & 2 School Workshops, whether in a historic city or within school itself, throughout the UK. In the twenty-first century, the UK heritage industry often struggles to secure the funding it needs - our Events aim to bring people together to collectively raise money to conserve these incredible sites to keep them alive for future generations.
In Chester, we have previously worked with organisations like the Grosvenor Museum, Chester Heritage Festival, Chester Civic Trust and Chester Archaeological Society, among others. In 2024, we were historical consultants for Hasbro's new Monopoly board and, in 2025, provided historians for the Amazon Prime series, 'My Haunted Project.'
In Lancaster, we worked with Lancaster's High Street Heritage Action Zone in 2023 to launch tours of the Mill Race and, in 2025, provided Story Tours for Lancaster City Museum, in addition to making appearances on Lancaster Day, organised by Lancaster BID.
By working together with others, we can accomplish great things for the heritage industry. Please feel free to explore this website for more details of what we do and Contact Us to hire us privately for your own projects and events.
To find out how Live History came into being, just keep scrolling...after all, who doesn't like a good origins story?
Our Story
Live History began in 2011 as an online group called the Historiographers of Facebook, with its members continuing to share historical news and heritage events.
Since then, the group's online community grew whilst the group's founder Tom Hudson visited the city of Chester for the first time in 2014 and was blown away by its architecture, not to mention its parading Romans.
Four years later, Tom moved northwards with his wife and set about finding a new job, first volunteering as a guide at Hoghton Tower before joining the Romans he had previously encountered in Chester, later helping them to co-write a Medieval Tour just before the coronavirus outbreak lockdowns began.
During this time, Tom dreamed of having his own tour one and so, in December 2021, made the decision to leave the Romans to pursue his own Tudor & Stuart Tour of Chester, which launched in February 2022.
Following consultation with friends within the heritage industry, the Historiographers Heritage was born.
In December of that year, Tom went on to launch a second tour closer to his home in the form of the Georgian & Regency Tour of Lancaster whilst the first Tudor school workshops at Stanley Palace were created.
The plan was to have tours that covered the entire North-West, from the Welsh border to the Scottish one.
In the autumn of 2023, the Historiographers Heritage branched out into self-guided audio tours before Tom was admitted to A & E for an emergency gallbladder removal.
Whilst off work for three months in 2024, Tom managed to research and write a Chester Viking Tour for a friend to launch that summer.
Once he had returned to work, Tom set about branching out into other tours across the two cities.
Nevertheless, the name seemed to be a bit of a mouthful for anyone other than academics and so the group briefly became Love History? So Do We? in 2024 before settling on Live History.
Finally, people knew what the group did and now so do you.
In 2026, after five years of planning, Live History now has tours in Carlisle too as the group continues to create memorable experiences that both educate and entertain.
For information on the team itself, please keep scrolling.
Meet The Team
Tom Hudson
With more than a decade's worth of experience in the heritage industry, Tom now works as a self-employed tour guide, actor and historian.
When not working, he is very much a family man and a history geek visiting places of historic interest, conducting independent research and writing.
He has a history degree from Kingston University and a postgraduate certificate in architectural history from the University of Oxford.
From producing detailed social and architectural histories of buildings to commentating jousting and teaching archery across Kent and Sussex, Tom now lives in the north west though his work still takes him all over the UK.
Mike Farley
Mike Farley was born in Chelmsford, Essex in 1967 and raised in the village of Mountnessing. His historical interests were stirred from an early age by his parents and nurtured at school.
His working career has taken in stints as a professional actor and comedian appearing at some of London’s most prestigious theatres and clubs, as well as a number of appearances at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (1987-89). Mike was also lucky enough to work at various times with such luminaries as Richard O’Brien, Judie Tzuke, Tony Robinson, Cherie Lunghi, Jeremy Swift from Ted Lasso, as well as the late lamented legend, Ed Bishop!
Since becoming a full-time professional Henry the VIII in June 2004, Mike has appeared on numerous TV shows including BBC 1’s ‘Children in Need’, ‘The One Show’ and “Have I Got News For You”, to name but a few.
You can find out more about Mike at www.goodkinghal.co.uk
Jessica Faulkner
Jessica is a Tudor historian focusing primarily on the lives of the six wives of Henry VIII. She has been researching into immense detail the life of Henry’s second wife, Anne Boleyn.
In 2023, Jess launched her podcast, the Tudor Herstory, focusing on the lives of women in the Tudor period. Jess is best known as Unholytudor which she has been posting under for eight years.
Follow Jessica on Instagram and listen to her fascinating Tudor Her Story series of podcasts, highlighting the lives of women in the Tudor period.
Mike Lockley
Mike trained as an actor and works professionally in film, tv, theatre and anywhere else that will have him whenever the opportunity should present itself!
When he is not performing himself, however, he also teaches drama to regular groups of children and adults across the North West and is also an award winning writer and theatre director.
Since 2009, Mike has been conducting walking tours in both Chester and Liverpool, initially running Ghost Tours around England's most haunted city and, more recently, becoming involved in tours covering such fascinating topics as the Roman and Viking Chester allowing Mike to indulge in his passions for performance and horrible (and not so horrible) histories!!"
David Atkinson
David is a Green Badge Tourist Guide to Chester and North Wales, and regularly leads the Dark Chester tour around his home city. He also works as a freelance writer and as a Visiting lecturer at the University of Chester.
He loves sharing stories from his home patch and welcoming new friends from all over the world. His daughters may now be teenagers but he’s happy telling stories to children (and grown ups) of all ages as part of the Chester Family Tour.
You can find more about David at www.atkinsondavid.com."