About | Rosie Wilkin

My Story

I have been involved in re-enactment since I left school in the early 1990’s, so I have gained a huge amount of knowledge and experience - and collected a lot of kit over the years (a garage full, and some in the house - whoops!).

The first group I was with (Norwich Sveiter) was a Viking Combat group, and the first bit of kit I ever made was a chain-mail glove - of course we call it just 'maille' nowadays ;-). (I actually wanted to be 'Robin of Sherwood', but The Vikings was the only group in the area at the time!) After I decided that I couldn't, wouldn't, and indeed shouldn't do combat - they got me interested in having a go at making stuff, and then doing the serious research to make sure the stuff I made was historically accurate!

Of course, my favourite historical period is Late Anglo-Saxon (c. 899-1066 C.E.), because of the variety of actual manuscripts that have been digitised so you can view them online. But there wasn't much call, at that time for Late Anglo-Saxon persons. Mostly the only action you saw was being thrown over the shoulder of a burly Viking (but that was fun at the time - and I was a bit younger then!)

Then came the big moment when all those people who didn't want to do the combat, but still wanted to be involved, decided to act.... And 'Living History' was born - and I was in there straight away. 'Living History' is what we call teaching and demonstrating crafts, and showing the daily lives of the average person. I love finding out how things work and how they were made and why, etc., etc. And I love being able to demonstrate the things I've learned and pass it on.

Early morning trip to the porta-loo at a weekend re-enactment event. It was so very wet! You can see the tide mark and the depth of mud on the bottom of my dress and yes, I am wearing modern boots because my 'proper' shoes were still drying by the fire! (2000)

And so, over the years, I've studied Pagan Anglo-Saxon burial excavations to recreate the clothes they wore. I've studied scientific analyses of food remains on cooking pots, and dye-stuffs on fabrics, for tasting sessions and bespoke costumes respectively. I've helped skin a deer, learnt how to process flax in the Cotswolds, and slept on a beach! I've learned to read (and speak) Old English to study the beautiful manuscripts produced through the influence of King Alfred - he got scribes to translate religious and medical works (including errors, mistakes, miss-translations, and miss-identifications) its been absolutely fascinating! And I'm still going.

Through helping to run a group within The Vikings (Ulfstahm) for a few years, I was able to develop a business. This was called 'Rosie and Glenn's Historical Costumes and Living History' - it did exactly what it said on the tin! The road has been a bit bumpy, but my business has now developed into what you see here - 'History Visits'. And it's going from strength to strength. I've had the pleasure of working at so many places - West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village as mentioned, local Women's Institutes, Moyses Hall and the Cathedral in Bury St. Edmunds, Time and Tide Museum Great Yarmouth, Gressenhall Museum and Workhouse In Dereham, schools up and down the country (though I do limited school events at present), and many more. Long may it continue (with your help ;-) xx).

And I still keep up with the re-enactment groups. Currently I'm a member of the 'Friends of West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village', their costumed group 'Stowacynn', The English Companions, 'The Medieval Siege Society', and the 'Norwich and Norfolk Medieval Association' (NANMA). You can guess my interests are Anglo-Saxon and Medieval history, right ;-) !

Radio Norfolk Interview with Roy Waller

On Wednesday the 30th of January 2007, I was interviewed for Radio Norfolk’s ‘Phone Book Challenge’ by Roy Waller.

Here I am, dressed as a Pagan Anglo-Saxon (from roughly 550 C.E.) chatting to Roy in my kitchen. I had Roy also get dressed up – as a later Christian Anglo-Saxon (around 900 C.E) with the typical ‘seax’ knife on his belt. We had a little joke about "which side do you dress, sir."!

Roy's challenge was to:

get dressed up;
make and taste a herbal cough medicine using honey, pepper and dill seed. (It actually did make us cough!);
drink from a mead-horn and recite a pledge.

To finish up, we stood outside on Holt Road trying to get bibbed at by passing cars. It wasn't a very busy day, so we didn't get much get attention, but it was fun!

CBBC 'My Story' - Anglo-Saxons

In July 2017, my son and I were involved in some filming for a CBBC production called ‘My Story’. They did an episode about the Anglo-Saxons which was filmed at West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village and as I was working there at the time, I got involved. The show followed a youngster and her Mum finding out about what life might have been like for the Anglo-Saxons. They both were so enthusiastic, getting involved in all of the activities!

There were several other re-enactors and their families involved - doing pottery, talking about the crops, and forging an arrow-head. For my part, I cooked a stew using purple carrots, which no-one ate because it was 'scary'! I didn't mind, it WAS very different looking to soup out of a tin!

Along with my son, I was involved in the section of the show about archery. There were 7 other kids of differing ages, dressed in really good costumes shooting at the targets. My son was so impressed that he hit the target - he was only 7 years old at the time, about the age when a real Anglo-Saxon would start learning to shoot! I remember one young lad had just broken his leg, and in order to keep him in the show, he had his cast all wrapped up and braced. It was great, because in one scene where he's running, you can really see that his leg is not right - there is existing archaeological evidence that the Anglo-Saxons looked after their disabled folk.

Overall, my son said that he was very pleased to have missed 3 days of school* to do the filming, but it was a bit boring – mostly waiting around for everything and everyone to be ready! There’s a lot of organisation that goes into making TV programs that people just don’t realise ;-).

(*It was 3 days right at the end of Summer term!)

Gallery

Representing West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village on their outreach program in 2007.

Acting test with 'The Vikings' in 1994.

Health and Safety in 1996. Yes, it's chicken! And look at all that iron, oooh...

(I know better now ;-) )

Glenn using the pole lathe he made for the group, with the help of Ian and Rob. From the Ulfstahm archive, 1999

Saxon 'Geteld' tent and cart me and Glenn made (with the help of members of Ulfstahm) and some of our kit.

Ulfstahm archive 1999.

Norwich Sveiter in 1993, I believe, so long ago its on Polaroid!

When we were allowed to shoot sharp arrows...

Our Viking tent and display from 2006. Glenn made the frame (spot the fox) and I sewed the canvas.

The Ulfstahm banner / windsock.

Glenn and I attended a Battle of Bosworth re-enactment in 1997. Wow, that was an experience!

Always fun being thrown over the shoulder - look at his grin!