Berkhamsted Castle

Adrian is a qualified Solicitor (England & Wales, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland), notary public (England & Wales) and licensed attorney (New York), and is currently a Deputy Director in the Government Legal Department responsible for a team of thirty legislative drafters. He has been a Council Member of the Law Society of England & Wales and President of the City of Westminster & Holborn Law Society, and for the decade until 2018 was the Treasurer and then the Chairman of the White Lion Society (the Society of Friends of His Majesty’s College of Arms). Adrian is also a Trustee of the Berkhamsted Local History & Museum Society and a Director / Trustee of Dacorum Heritage Trust, the Borough’s accredited museum service.

Wendy is a Berkhamsted Town Councillor representing Castle Ward since 2019 and had the honour of being elected as Mayor in 2022. She is the Town Council’s representative on the Trust. Wendy is also a Trustee of Eco Berko and active in a number of local volunteer organisations. She is passionate about protecting Berkhamsted’s heritage and helping to shape a sustainable future for its community.

Professionally, she was a business change and HR consultant for over 20 years, working in private, public and not for profit organisations.

Paul is a Chartered Quantity Surveyor who has lived in Berkhamsted with his family since 2006. He has been an active committee member of Berkhamsted Citizens Association since 2011 and served as Vice Chairman of the BCA for six years. Paul has been a Trustee of the Berkhamsted Castle Trust since 2024 and serves as the BCA’s representative on the BCT.

Paul has been involved in the project to restore the Rectory Lane Cemetery since 2009 and is still involved in the maintenance of this beautiful, green space in the heart of the town. He is also a Trustee of the Friends of St. Peter’s, the charity dedicated to maintaining the fabric of the parish church and the Court House.

Peter has now retired from his employment as a Vice President of Research with CA Technologies. During his employment he authored 3 books covering databases, Innovation and Automation/AI/Robotics. He is the author of over 20 scientific papers on topics ranging from cloud computing to automated vehicles. He has been awarded 2 USA patents with 7 pending.

Peter was elected as a Berkhamsted Town Councillor and initially represented the council as a trustee of the Castle Trust. Peter was also elected to Dacorum Borough Council and sat on the Planning Committee for several years. During his time as a Berkhamsted Town Councillor he was honoured to represent the town as Mayor. He now sits on Berkhamsted Castle Trust as an independent trustee. He also sits on the board of the Friends of St Peter Trust.

James began his career in heritage working on the English Heritage Resurvey of Historic Buildings (1984-1986) then becoming Director of Chiltern Open Air Museum (1986-2002) followed by Director of the UK Association of Building Preservation Trusts (2009-2014). As a heritage consultant, he has worked on major buildings across England, including the proposed National Poetry Centre in Leeds, the Palladium Theatre, the Ionic Villa in Regent’s Park and St Mary Le Strand. 

He is the author of books (for English Heritage, Chilterns National Landscape) on vernacular materials such as thatch and flint. He is currently researching the biography of father and son architects Charles and Noel Rew; Berkhamsted’s finest architects. Also in Berkhamsted, he led ‘Dead Space to Living Place’, a £1.25m NLHF funded restoration of the neglected Rectory Lane Cemetery, winner in 2021 of the Landscape Institute’s Excellence in Heritage and Culture and Excellence in Community Engagement and awarded a Green Flag annually since. 

He is now leading the campaign to save Castle Fields. As James went to School and now lives in Castle Street and attended events at the Castle from a young age, he has a deep personal interest in protecting and enhancing the Castle’s future.

Professor Jonathan Morris is the Director of Research Culture and Environment at the University of Hertfordshire, where he is also holds a Chair in Modern History.  He is also a Vice President of the Royal Historical Society and Chair of its Research Policy Committee. Jonathan co-founded the Heritage for Business unit at the University of Hertfordshire and directs the operations of the University’s Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funded Impact Acceleration Account.  Jonathan originally trained as an historian of modern Italy but is now recognised as one of the world’s leading historians of coffee.  His is the author of the acclaimed Coffee: A Global History and co-creator of the A History of Coffee Podcast series.

Richard is a former compliance manager with nearly 40 years of experience in banking and IT prior to taking early retirement. He has lived in Berkhamsted since 1987. Richard acts as treasurer for the Berkhamsted Castle Trust, the Berkhamsted Local History & Museum Society, The Smoult Trust, and serves as a trustee for the Beds & Herts Historic Churches Trust, managing the finances for their annual Bike ‘n Hike fundraising event. He conducts research and has authored two books about men from Northchurch who served in the First World War.