Bristol24/7 Man of the Year: David Olusoga

Bristol24/7’s man of the year goes to a person whose work has seen him unearth the hidden story of a single house in Redcliffe and form part of a defence in the history-making trial of the ‘Colston 4’.

David Olusoga’s ground-breaking work as a public historian, presenter and filmmaker has retraced the stories from Britain’s untold past and delved into themes as far-reaching as empire, race, slavery and contemporary culture for three decades.

The year of 2021 has possibly been Olusoga’s most impressive yet, from hosting and producing award-winning television programmes, to authoring acclaimed books and even giving expert evidence in a landmark trial.

Most recently, the 51-year-old’s appearance in Bristol Crown Court as a witness called by the defence of the four people accused of toppling Edward Colston’s statue catapulted him onto the pages of national publications, and into the minds of Bristolians.

David Olusoga gave evidence on the fourth day of the Colston 4 trial at Bristol Crown Court – photo by Martin Booth

Facing the jury, his evidence eloquently mapped the tumultuous history of the transatlantic slave trade in Britain, and the violence and brutality against people of colour that came hand in hand.

He spoke of the legacy of Colston’s active involvement in slavery, a figure he called “the elite of the elite” within the Royal African Company which monopolised the slave trade in the 17th century.

Olusoga, however, has been shedding a light on untold segments of Britain’s past well before the witness statement he gave at December’s trial.

While Bristol has been Olusoga’s hometown since the 90s, he began life in Gateshead having moved when he was five from Lagos, Nigeria.

As a young man, Olusoga’s studies of the history of slavery at the University of Liverpool and broadcast journalism at Leeds Trinity University lead him to the realisation of the “near invisibility” of black people in British media and history books.

Since that moment, he has embarked on a life-long, decolonising mission to retell history through a lens which acknowledges the unspoken, and often uncomfortable, realities of the past.

Going onto to lecture as a professor of public history at The University of Manchester, he has been at the forefront of discussions about the role of statues following black Lives Matter demonstrations last year.

For many people, he came into the spotlight through his decades of ground-breaking documentary and film-making.

From beginning his television career behind the camera as researcher on BBC’s Western Front, he has gone on to produce and present Bafta award-winning programs delving into the fascinating “forgotten histories” of Britain.

Series 3 of A House Through Time traced the lives of the residents of an 18th-century house in Redcliffe – photo courtesy of BBC

Olusoga’s A House Through Time brought the past to life through the in-depth exploration of single houses and the lived experiences of the people who stayed there.

Its third incarnation traced the lives of the residents in 10 Guinea Street, an 18th century house in Redcliffe built by a sea captain and funded by the fortunes made from slave trading.

His book, Black and British: A Forgotten History, which excavates the whitewashed black history of Britain, was this year published in the form of an illustrated children’s book to shine a light on neglected stories in an accessible way.

His achievements have culminated in numerous awards. This December, it was revealed that he would be the 39th recipient of the prestigious President’s Medal in recognition of his contribution to the humanities and social sciences.  He called it an”extraordinary and unexpected honour”.

During his statement at the Colston 4 trial and with a sheepish look on his face, Olusoga told the courtroom his television career has landed him nominations for “every significant television award available in the UK”.

Beyond his formal accolades, perhaps the most profound outcome of Olusoga’s work is his humanisation of history.

His ideas are encompassed when he said: “Our national history cannot be national if, in the near future, one in three young adults feels their stories remain untold, if this country’s long global history of empire and interconnections is marginalised and if the historical reality of race is rendered almost invisible.”

Main photo by Martin Booth

Read more: David Olusoga called as an expert defence witness in Colston 4 trial

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