REF 2021 Impact Case Study: A House Through Time: Shaping a flagship TV series to achieve critical and financial success and inspiring the public to engage with house history
Research on house history conducted by Professor Deborah Sugg Ryan led to her influential role as consultant historian and ‘super contributor’ to all three series of BBC Two’s A House Through Time. Her research shaped the programme, contributing to the broadcasting success and global reputation of UK based production company [text removed for publication]. The series brought critical acclaim and huge audiences averaging 2.73m and up to 4.16m, influencing the brand success of BBC Two. The series stimulated enquiries from British adults seeking to connect their stories of home and family with place and nation. It increased public interest and brought new audiences for house history to genealogy websites, archives and libraries. Through engagement on social media, it built and preserved the house history knowledge base for professional and non-professional historians.