Keith Westcott Speaker | Technology & Enterprise & Lifestyle & New Speakers & Adventure

Keith Westcott

Not quite Indiana Jones, though even the research required to make archaeological discoveries of National importance, can be exciting.

Leaving school at fifteen for a plumbing apprenticeship, Keith complemented a tough road to the top with exciting hobbies. Whilst founding successful businesses (and failing with some), the stresses which accompany creating multimillion-pound businesses was balanced by racing motorbikes (MotoX), playing lead guitar in rock bands and deep-sea diving on shipwrecks.

Volunteering however, was always at the forefront of Keith’s wish to ‘give something back’ to the trade, which led to many industry roles including becoming a British Standards Institute Industry ‘Chair’ and representing the UK as a ‘Principal Expert’ within the EU. From a charitable perspective, Keith spent a year as a Trustee and Director for a Care Home for adults with learning disabilities. Away from the adrenalin rush of dangerous sports, a deep interest in historical research had developed from reading the often-tragic accounts of why the ships he planned to dive, had been wrecked. Great whilst it lasted, the distance to dive sites out in the North Sea Farne Islands, Tobermory in the Sound of Mull to Plymouth’s Fort Bovisand, became too much. With such rich history on his doorstep deep-water dives were substituted with days out in the countryside, with a metal detector!

Fast forward to 2022… Keith is now a member of TV’s Time Team, for him, a dream scenario. Having unearthed an English Civil War Hoard, a spell in the dock at Crown Court would become the last of a 1000-year-old ‘Common Law and with the coins housed in the Ashmolean Museum, incredibly, they are now linked to a 17th C British Monarch. Rather than be overwhelmed by such an important find, in 2017, Keith set out to search for, and discovered, one of Britain’s Largest Roman Villa’s. Not content with dabbling, Keith writes the first ever course and teaches, Metal Detecting for Archaeological Projects at the University of Oxford. This pioneering course won the prestigious 2019 Archaeology Training Forum Awards, followed by £50,000 of Historic England funding resulting in the creation of the research and educational, Institute of Detectorists.

Watch Keith in action here.

Testimonials from Teachers

Your talk was fascinating and well-paced, bringing in a range of information including careers advice and Higher Education options as well as the core archaeological aspects of your work. You brought to life artefacts with stories of their origin and you made the world of detecting seem accessible and exciting. Thank you!

– Mrs G M Richards, Head of General Studies, Royal Grammar School Guildford

Oxford University’s Department for Continuing Education was very happy indeed to offer this course as part of our academic programme, and proud to advocate for responsible metal detecting, as well as for the embedding of archaeological methods in metal detecting practice. We certainly look forward to planning future courses with the Association of Detectorists

– Dr Toby Martin, Departmental Lecturer in Archaeology, University of Oxford

Many thanks again for your excellent lecture and your contributions at our panel discussion session on Saturday. We very much valued your views and very informative first-hand experiences of the realities, the audience was fully engaged and benefitted greatly. What a great afternoon! We send many thanks to you for giving up your Saturday afternoon.

– Robin Densem, Hon Chair, RESCUE the British Archaeological Trust.