Currently Professor of Public History at the University of Manchester and Director of Hillgate Films, David has been described as one of Britain’s foremost historians, specialising in military history, empire and slavery.
His particular focus on black British history was explored in his award-winning book and TV documentary by the same name, Black and British: A Forgotten History. Alongside his literary and broadcast work, David has written for numerous publications and is a key academic contributor to the Oxford Companion to Black British History.
Other TV credits include Britain’s Forgotten Slave Owners, The World’s War, The Secret Windrush Files, Extra Life- a Short History of Living Longer and the landmark BBC arts series Civilizations. He also presented the long-running BBC history series A House Through Time.
In 2019, he was awarded an OBE for services to History and to community integration. He is a recipient of the BAFTA Special Award, the British Academy's Presidents Medal and the Norton Medlicott Medal For Services to History. He is a Fellow of the British Academy, The Royal Society of Literature, The Royal Society of Arts and the Royal Historical Society. And it was announced recently that he will be hosting an in-conversation event with President Barack Obama at the O2 Arena in London in September.
Addressing graduating students in the Great Hall at the Wills Memorial Building, David said: “Every generation is astonished by the moment when you start to be the leaders of your society and every generation goes through the world, rises up through their career with a thought in their mind.
“The thought is when are the grown-ups going to arrive? At some point you need to accept one of two things. One of these things must be true. Either there are no grown-ups, and they are never going to turn up or the other is that you have become the grown-ups because of the work and the dedication and those thousands of hours that you expended here on your studies.
“Because of the journey that you're about to embark upon, because of the springboard into life your studies here will bring you - you will become the grown-ups, and you will work out there ain’t no one coming. It's down to you. You face a world that my generation did not. Your generation will shape this new epoch, whatever it is going to be, whatever it is going to be called, and you will shape it because you have much, much more power than you realise. You will inherit this nation. You will inherit its future.”
At the ceremony Dr Marie-Annick Gournet, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Reparative and Civic Futures), said: “Here at this University, we are on our own journey to confront our historic links to the transatlantic trade in enslaved Africans and the urgent need for reparative justice. It is challenging work, and it should be. David’s work reminds us that confronting the past isn’t about tearing down - it’s about building up, by telling the whole story.
“He shows us that truth-telling isn’t about shame - it’s about dignity. It isn’t about erasing history - it’s about completing it. And when we engage in that work bravely and honestly, we don’t weaken our institutions - we make them stronger, fairer, and more relevant to the world we serve. He has also been a powerful advocate for increasing diversity in academia and media. He’s spoken candidly about the isolation of being one of the few Black historians in British television, and about the importance of representation; not as a box to tick, but as a vital part of understanding our shared history.”
Following the graduation ceremony, David joined a panel event hosted by Professor Evelyn Welch, Vice-Chancellor and President and Dr Gournet which considered how collective leadership can be used to see real change – listening and responding to the voices of Black communities in Bristol. David shared his invaluable reflections on leadership and what it requires of us all before Professor Welch and Dr Gournet reflected on progress made so far at the University, both in relationship to leadership and to its ongoing Reparative Futures programme.