Stephen Owen

I have an enduring interest in history, the arts, mythology and rugby union and these increasingly have become my areas of expertise over the years. I am currently researching early Roman Britain, specifically the period 43-61, encompassing the Roman campaign in modern day Wales, the significance of the Druids and the causes and course itself of the revolt of Queen Boudicca and the Iceni against Rome during 60-61 AD. With this in mind, I am well placed to write features about this period, and Roman Britain in general, as well as the perspective of the ancient British, their beliefs and their mythology. I have researched at length the significance of the Druids in ancient Celtic society, the many gods and goddesses worshipped by the Celts, and the rivalry between Roman imperialism and Druidism in the ancient world. I am actually beginning a novel which takes as its focus the revolt of the Iceni against Rome and the clash between Rome and the Druids, with a view to publication in the longer term. I specialise in linking historical biography with myth and legend, namely short biographies of such figures as Dick Turpin who although he was an historic personality, has developed a completely different image in folklore. My historical and artistic interests merge in biographies of such figures as the Marquis de Sade, who perhaps is one of the most controversial writers of the modern age, and Nikolaus Pevsner, the architectural and art historian who masterminded the epic Buildings of England. My involvement with the Sealed Knot, the historical reenactment society of the Englsih Civil War, gives me a sense of authenticity when writing about another of my areas of specialist interest, the British Civil Wars and Monmouth Rebellion. I have a strong interest in rugby union and have written at length about Bath Rugby, my local premiership club based in Bath, England which dominated the amateur era but has struggled in the professional era. Two feature articles were published in the Bath Chronicle, a local newspaper with wide coverage.