Ruth Goodman (born 5 October 1963[1][2]) is a British freelance historian of the
early modern period, specialising in offering advice to museums and heritage attractions.[3]
She was born in
Cardiff and went to Westbury primary[5] school[6][7] and
Fearnhill School[8] in
Letchworth. "School...was rather pedestrian...I became a very poor student, simply going through the motions, and my academic record at both school and university indeed lacks lustre."[9]
Career
Goodman "couldn't get a job after university", so she trained for a job as railway ticket clerk for
British Rail, working at
Chester station for a short time.[10]
In 2007, the
Weald and Downland Living Museum Historic Clothing Project was founded by Hannah Tiplady, Head of Interpretation, consulted by Goodman and historical costumier Barbara Painter.[17]
In 2022, Goodman was featured in A Farm Through Time with brothers
Rob and Dave Nicholson,[18] a three-part series shown on
Channel 5 that explores how farming practices have changed over the years.[19] Prior to A Farm Through Time she had appeared with the brothers on one of their nightly ...on the Farm programmes at Cannon Hall Farm, discussing alcoholic brews from the past.
Personal life
She lives in Buckinghamshire[20][21] and is married to Tudor re-enactor and musician Mark Goodman[citation needed] (who participated[22] in one episode of Tudor Monastery Farm). Their two daughters, Eve[23] and Catherine have made appearances with their mother on television.[24]
As a result of her social history research, she has stopped using
detergents in her washing machine, never eats
factory farmed food and sometimes cooks on an open wood fire.[3] For a period of three months she followed a Tudor body cleansing regime, and no-one complained or noticed a smell.[26]
Publications
How to be a Tudor: A Dawn-to-Dusk Guide to Everyday Life (2016).
ISBN9780241973714
How to Behave Badly in Elizabethan England: A Guide for Knaves, Fools, Harlots, Cuckolds, Drunkards, Liars, Thieves, and Braggarts (2018).
ISBN9781782438496
How to Behave Badly in Renaissance Britain (2018).
ISBN9781782438526
The Domestic Revolution: How the Introduction of Coal into Victorian Homes Changed Everything (2020).
ISBN9781631497636