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Duncan Barrett

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Duncan Barrett

FRHistS
Barrett at a book-signing in 2022
Barrett at a book-signing in 2022
Born
Duncan Barrett

London
OccupationWriter and historian
GenreBiography, memoir
Notable worksThe Sugar Girls, GI Brides, Men of Letters, Blitz Kids
Website
lifewriters.uk

Duncan Barrett is a writer and historian, specialising in biography and memoir,[1][2] and a fellow of the Royal Historical Society.[3] After writing several books in collaboration with other authors, he published his first solo book, Men of Letters, in 2014.

Barrett also works as a journalist and podcast producer, and has previously worked as an actor and theatre director.

Education

[edit]

Duncan Barrett went to City of London School from 1994 to 2001,[4] before studying English at Jesus College, Cambridge,[5] where he served as the film editor of the student newspaper Varsity[6] and directed plays starring Joe Thomas[7] and Will Sharpe.[8] He trained at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, graduating in 2006.[9]

Books

[edit]

Barrett is the co-author of Star Trek: The Human Frontier, written with his mother Michèle Barrett and published by Polity in 2000.[10] He edited Vitali Vitaliev's travelogue Passport to Enclavia, published by Reportage Press in 2008.[11]

Barrett was the editor of Ronald Skirth's memoir The Reluctant Tommy, published by Macmillan Publishers in 2010.[12] The book was favourably reviewed by the Financial Times,[13] Socialist Worker,[14] and the Sunday Express.[15] However, it was criticized from the granddaughter of one of Skirth's fellow soldiers, who questioned its accuracy.[16] In a revised introduction to the paperback edition in 2011, Barrett defended the memoir, encouraging people to "read the book for yourself and make up your own mind who to believe."[17]

In 2012, Collins published The Sugar Girls,[18] a book co-written by Barrett with Nuala Calvi, telling the stories of women workers at Tate & Lyle's East End factories since World War II.[19] It was a best-seller.[20] In an article for History Workshop, Barrett wrote that, while their methodology was indebted to oral history, the book is a work of narrative non-fiction.[21] The authors were inspired by Jennifer Worth's Call the Midwife.[22] The book was accompanied by a blog, where Barrett and Calvi discussed broader issues of life and work in the East End of London during the period covered by the book, as well as posting photographs and audio clips of the women they interviewed.[23]

In 2021, Barrett and Calvi took part in a short film made by Thames Festival Trust called The Islanders, which also looked at the history of Tate & Lyle workers.[24]

In 2013, Barrett and Calvi's second book together, GI Brides, was published by Harper, based on interviews with British women who married Americans during the Second World War.[25] It was a Sunday Times best-seller.[26] The following year, a US edition of the book made The New York Times nonfiction bestseller list.[27]

In 2014, Barrett's first solo book, Men of Letters, was published by AA Publishing. The book tells the story of the Post Office Rifles during the First World War.[28]

Barrett and Calvi's third collaboration for HarperCollins, The Girls Who Went to War, tells the stories of women who served in the British Army, Royal Navy, and Royal Air Force during the Second World War. The book was published on 7 May 2015, and launched the following day to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day.[29] On 17 May 2015, it went into the Sunday Times bestseller list at number 6.[30]

In 2018, Barrett’s second solo book, Hitler’s British Isles, was published by Simon & Schuster, based on interviews he conducted with around 100 people who lived through the German occupation of the Channel Islands during the Second World War.[31]

In 2019, Barrett and Calvi published Zippy and Me, the autobiography of Rainbow puppeteer Ronnie Le Drew, with crowd-funding publisher Unbound.[32]

In 2024, Barrett and Calvi’s book The Sugar Girls of Love Lane was published by Simon & Schuster, a follow-up to The Sugar Girls focusing on Henry Tate’s original Liverpool sugar refinery.[33]

In 2025, Barrett and Calvi's book Blitz Kids was published by Headline to commemorate the 80th anniversary of VE Day.[34]

Journalism

[edit]

Barrett has written for The Guardian,[35] the Daily Express,[36] the Los Angeles Times, [37] Fox News,[38] and the Evening Standard.[39][40]

Podcasts

[edit]

Barrett co-produced the twelve-part podcast series D-Day: The Tide Turns[41] for Noiser Podcast Network, narrated by Paul McGann.[42] It was selected as one of The Economist's top 10 podcasts of 2024.[43]

Barrett wrote and co-produced the podcast series Titanic: Ship of Dreams,[44] also narrated by Paul McGann and featuring contributions from his brother Stephen McGann, whose great-grandfather Jimmy was a coal trimmer onboard the ship.[45] Also produced by Noiser, the series debuted in April 2025.[44] It received mostly positive reviews in The Times[46] and The Financial Times.[47] In the New Statesman, Anna Leszkiewicz praised Barrett's script as "arresting and immediate."[48] It was shortlisted for two British Podcast Awards,[49] and was chosen by The Atlantic as one of the 20 best podcasts of 2025,[50] as well as by Apple as a top 10 podcast of the year in both the United Kingdom and Ireland.[51]

In April 2025, Barrett chaired an event as part of HistFest at the British Library featuring Stephen McGann and Stephanie Barczewski.[52][53]

He has contributed scripts to other Noiser podcasts, including Short History Of...,[54] Real Dictators,[55] and Real Survival Stories,[56] and served as producer on Charles Dickens Ghost Stories[57] and Sherlock Holmes Short Stories.[57]

Teaching

[edit]

Barrett taught courses on memoir and life-writing in Lewes,[58] and at book festivals including the Jersey Festival of Words[59] and the Guernsey Literary Festival.[60]

In 2022, Barrett taught an online course for Domestika entitled "Writing a Non-fiction Book: Capture Real-life Experiences".[61]

Acting and directing

[edit]

Barrett previously worked as an actor and theatre director. In 2003, he played Berowne in Love's Labour's Lost.[62] In 2004, he directed All's Well That Ends Well at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.[63] In 2005 he played the title role in Shakespeare's Richard II at the festival.[64] He played Frederick in a production of Aphra Behn's The Rover at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2006.[65] Barrett is the director of the short film Exit Strategy (2010), adapted from Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida.[66] In 2007 he played John Walker in Eastern Angles' production of Arthur Ransome's We Didn't Mean to Go to Sea.[67] In 2011 he played W. T. Tutte in the BBC's Code-breakers: Bletchley Park's Lost Heroes and in 2012 he played Paul Winder in National Geographic's Locked up Abroad.[68]

Bibliography

[edit]
  • Skirth, Ronald; Barrett, Duncan (2011). The Reluctant Tommy (2011 ed.). Pan Macmillan Limited. ISBN 9780330513746.
  • Barrett, Duncan; Calvi, Nuala (2012). The Sugar Girls. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 9780007448470.
  • Barrett, Duncan; Calvi, Nuala (2013). GI Brides. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 9780062328052.
  • Barrett, Duncan (2014). Men of Letters. London: AA Publishing. ISBN 0749575204.
  • Barrett, Duncan; Calvi, Nuala (2015). The Girls Who Went to War. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 9780007501229.
  • Barrett, Duncan (2018). Hitler's British Isles. London: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 9781471166372.
  • Le Drew, Ronnie; Barrett, Duncan; Calvi, Nuala (2019). Zippy and Me: My Life Inside Britain's Most Infamous Puppet. London: Unbound. ISBN 9781783526987.
  • Barrett, Duncan; Calvi, Nuala (2024). The Sugar Girls of Love Lane. London: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 9781471148170.
  • Barrett, Duncan; Calvi, Nuala (2025). Blitz Kids: True Stories from the Children of Wartime Britain. London: Headline. ISBN 978-1-4722-8598-0.

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ "Duncan Barrett". Bookreporter.com. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  2. ↑ "Duncan Barrett". The Historical Writers' Association. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  3. ↑ "List of Current Fellows" (PDF). Royal Historical Society. May 2026.
  4. ↑ "Duncan Barrett Writes 'The Sugar Girls'". John Carpenter Club. 10 February 2012. Archived from the original on 19 August 2014.
  5. ↑ Skirth & Barrett 2011
  6. ↑ Barrett, Duncan (14 November 2003). "Neo, but hardly classical" (PDF). Varsity. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
  7. ↑ "Troilus and Cressida". Camdram. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  8. ↑ "The Spanish Tragedy". Camdram. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  9. ↑ The Alumni Newsletter, Central School of Speech and Drama[permanent dead link], Summer 2008
  10. ↑ Dornemann, Rudi (29 December 2013). "Star Trek: The Human Frontier". Rain Taxi. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  11. ↑ Vitaliev, Vitali (2008). Passport to Enclavia. Reportage Press. ISBN 978-0955830297.
  12. ↑ Skirth & Barrett 2011, p. xiv
  13. ↑ Gibbs, Jonathan (1 May 2010). "The Reluctant Tommy". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 11 December 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  14. ↑ Basketter, Simon (20 April 2010). "The Reluctant Tommy: British soldier who became an anti-war saboteur". Socialist Worker. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  15. ↑ Barrett, Duncan (11 April 2010). "Great War hero who vowed not to kill, even if it meant sabotage". Express.co.uk. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  16. ↑ "Reluctant Tommy book 'clearly fictional'". The Times. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  17. ↑ Skirth & Barrett 2011, p. xxiii
  18. ↑ Barrett & Calvi, Duncan & Nuala (2012). The Sugar Girls. London: Collins. p. 340. ISBN 9780007448470.
  19. ↑ Nicholls, Matt (23 February 2011). "Sweet! Tate & Lyle lives celebrated". Newham Recorder.
  20. ↑ "The Sunday Times Bestsellers". The Sunday Times (Culture). 8 April 2012.
  21. ↑ Barrett, Duncan (11 March 2012). "Oral History & Creative Non-Fiction: Telling the Lives of the Sugar Girls". History Workshop. Retrieved 11 March 2012.
  22. ↑ "Call The Midwife". The Sugar Girls. 19 February 2012. Archived from the original on 5 December 2014.
  23. ↑ "The Sugar Girls". The Sugar Girls. Archived from the original on 3 February 2012.
  24. ↑ Thames Festival Trust (6 October 2021). The Islanders: The Sweet Life. Retrieved 26 May 2026 – via YouTube.
  25. ↑ Barrett, Duncan; Calvi, Nuala (2013). GI Brides. Harper. p. 359. ISBN 9780007501441.
  26. ↑ "The Sunday Times bestsellers". Sunday Times Culture section. 15 September 2013.
  27. ↑ "Combined Print & E-Book Nonfiction - Best Sellers - Books". The New York Times. 30 November 2014. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  28. ↑ Silverman, Anna (30 July 2014). "The postmen sent to fight in Europe: new book explores life in Post Office Rifles". Newham Recorder. Retrieved 9 August 2014.
  29. ↑ "VE Day party for The Girls Who Went To War". The Newham Mag. 23 April 2015.
  30. ↑ "The Sunday Times Bestsellers". The Sunday Times (Culture). 17 May 2015.
  31. ↑ Milton, Giles (3 June 2018). "Review: Hitler's British Isles". The Times. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  32. ↑ Clevett, Louis (1 April 2024). "Rainbow Puppeteer Ronnie le Drew Talks About Bringing Zippy to Life Ahead of His Nottingham Show". LeftLion.
  33. ↑ Molyneux, Jess (28 April 2024). "Liverpool's 'sugar girls' and the lost factory where workers 'loved every minute'". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  34. ↑ Molyneux, Jess (8 May 2025). "Liverpool's 'Blitz Kids' more than 80 years on as nation marks VE Day". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  35. ↑ "Duncan Barrett". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  36. ↑ Duncan Barrett (11 April 2010). "Great War Hero Who Vowed Not to Kill, Even if it Meant Sabotage". Daily Express. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  37. ↑ Duncan Barrett (20 October 2014). "Op-Ed: British war brides faced own battles during 1940s". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  38. ↑ Duncan Barrett (11 February 2016). "GI brides: They came to the U.S. 'for the love of an American serviceman'". Fox News. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  39. ↑ Duncan Barrett (4 June 2015). "Love and War in the WRNS by Vicky Unwin - review". Evening Standard. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  40. ↑ Duncan Barrett (15 March 2018). "Pie and Mash Down the Roman Road by Melanie McGrath - review". Evening Standard. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  41. ↑ "D-Day: The Tide Turns". Noiser. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  42. ↑ Paul McGann (4 June 2024). "D-Day: The Tide Turns". Noiser Podcasts (Podcast). Noiser. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  43. ↑ "The best podcasts of 2024, as picked by The Economist". The Economist. 15 November 2025. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  44. 1 2 "Titanic: Ship of Dreams". Noiser. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  45. ↑ McCann, Fiona (13 April 2025). "Titanic stories: actor Stephen McGann on his great-uncle, who was on the last lifeboat". Irish Times. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  46. ↑ Marriott, James (24 April 2025). "Titanic: Ship of Dreams review". The Times. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  47. ↑ "Titanic: Ship of Dreams podcast adds new perspectives to a familiar story — review". Financial Times. 28 April 2025. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  48. ↑ Leszkiewicz, Anna (23 April 2025). "How the Titanic sank". New Statesman. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  49. ↑ "RESULTS 2025". British Podcast Awards. Retrieved 10 January 2026.
  50. ↑ "The 20 Best podcasts of 2025". The Atlatnic. 23 December 2025. Retrieved 10 January 2026.
  51. ↑ Cridland, James (19 November 2025). "Apple Podcasts: Best of 2025 (Global)". Podnews. Retrieved 10 January 2026.
  52. ↑ "HistFest 2025". HistFest. Retrieved 4 February 2026.
  53. ↑ British Library (2 July 2025). HistFest: Titanic: Ship of Dreams with Stephanie Barczewski, Stephen McGann and Duncan Barrett. Retrieved 26 May 2026 – via YouTube.
  54. ↑ "Short History Of..." Noiser. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  55. ↑ "Real Dictators". Noiser. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  56. ↑ "Real Survival Stories". Noiser. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  57. 1 2 "Charles Dickens Ghost Stories | A Christmas Carol". Noiser. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  58. ↑ "Right to Write". The Lewesian. No. 52. January 2026. p. 55.
  59. ↑ "Home-grown talent to feature at Festival of Words". Bailiwick Express News Jersey. 21 August 2018. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  60. ↑ "Duncan Barrett: Memoir Writing Workshop". Guernsey Arts Commission LBG. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  61. ↑ "Online course - Writing a Non-fiction Book: Capture Real-life Experiences (Duncan Barrett)". Domestika. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  62. ↑ "Love's Labours Lost". Camdram. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  63. ↑ "All's Well That Ends Well". Camdram. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
  64. ↑ "The Edinburgh festival 2005 – Reviews – Theatre 'R' – 8 out of 258". Edinburgh Guide. Retrieved 12 April 2012.[dead link]
  65. ↑ Dunlop, Bill (11 August 2007). "The Rover". Edinburgh Guide. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
  66. ↑ "Exit Strategy". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  67. ↑ Homan, Hugh (4 July 2008). "We Didn't Mean to go to Sea". The Stage. Archived from the original on 5 September 2008.
  68. ↑ "Duncan Barrett". IMDB. Retrieved 12 January 2026.
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