Helen Geake


Helen Mary Geake is a British archaeologist and small finds specialist. She was one of the key members of Channel 4's long-running archaeology series Time Team.

Early life and education

Geake was born in Wolverhampton in 1967 but grew up in Bath. She originally trained as a secretary. However, reading archaeology books and attending lectures by Mick Aston led her to study medieval archaeology at University College London. Subsequently, she took a DPhil at the University of York in Anglo-Saxon cemeteries contemporary with the spectacular ship burial at Sutton Hoo.

Career

After university she worked as assistant keeper of archaeology at Norwich Castle Museum before joining the Portable Antiquities Scheme, first as their Finds Liaison Officer for Suffolk and then as Finds Adviser for post-Roman objects, based at Cambridge University. In 2014 she became the PAS's adviser to its voluntary finds recorders, based at the British Museum.
Geake is a member of the Department of Archaeology Advisory Board at the University of York and previously acted as a regional member of the Council of Rescue: The British Archaeological Trust.
In January 2003 she was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London.

Television

She first worked for Time Team in 1998 as a digger, and took part occasionally thereafter as an Anglo-Saxon specialist. She joined the frontline team of presenters, for the 2006 series and continued until 2010.
In 2012 Helen appeared in three episodes of Britain's Secret Treasures having previously appeared as an Anglo-Saxon specialist in National Geographic specials titled Saxon Gold: New Secrets Revealed and 'Saxon Gold: Finding the Hoard'.

Politics

Geake stood for the Green Party in the Bury St Edmunds constituency at the 2015 General Election; she came fourth with 7.9 per cent of the vote. In the 2017 General Election she came fourth with 4.2 per cent of the vote. She was again the Green candidate at the 2019 general election, where she polled 9,711 votes, an increase of 7,000 votes or 11.5% from the 2017 election.

Personal life

Geake is married to Angus Wainwright, the National Trust archaeologist for the East of England, with two sons and a daughter, and lives in Woolpit, Suffolk. She is a cousin of the late John E. Geake, after whom the asteroid 9298 Geake is named.

Selected publications