Hello, and welcome to the GhostOfClayton twice fortnightly blog. Are you sitting comfortably, then I shall begin.

It's a beautiful morning here in the quiet little village of Aquis-of-the-Romans, and I'm feeling a little surprised. "Why are you feeling a little surprised?", I hear you ask. Allow me to explain.

The Aquis-of-the-Romans History Society are a very active group, meeting every other month to listen to an expert talk knowledgably about one subject or another. A few meetings ago, they were short of a speaker. I had been doing some research into a rectangular earthworks called Countess Close that was situated on the edge of the village. At one time, Countess Close had been mistaken for a Roman Fort by a number of Antiquaries of the day including none less that William Stukeley, and that, combined with the known presence of an adjacent Romano-British ladder settlement along the escarpment on which Aquis-of-the-Romans stands, very much caught my interest.

For completeness�s sake, I will say that Countess Close was examined by archaeologists, who subsequently discounted any Roman involvement with its construction. However, I did the lecture, and thus the Aquis-of-the-Romans History Society were saved the need to find (a) someone who knows what they're talking about, and ( a fee to pay that individual . . . and I got the opportunity to bore a captive audience about Romans, and listen to the sound of my own voice for an hour. Everybody's happy. So, crisis averted, I returned to OfClayton Towers to enjoy a cuppa and put my feet up in front of the telly.

Bear with me, we're getting to the bit where I tell you why I should feel surprised. A few days ago, the History Society contacted me again. Would I give a lecture on "Using Wikipedia for Historical Research" at the November meeting? They would normally go for, as I mentioned before, an expert who can talk knowledgably. Now, I can talk knowledgably, it is my job to do so, but there is a world of difference between the ability to talk knowledgably, and being knowledgeable. Trust me! As to being an expert . . . the guest lecturers are usually professionals in their field, archaeologists, museum curators, etc. This leaves me with a question. Why did they want me, with no historical qualifications whatsoever, to lecture? Perhaps they enjoyed the last lecture I gave. I hope so.

Or maybe they were short of a speaker and knew I didn't charge a fee.

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