Dan Dodds

Dan Dodds is a new face for the 2004 series of Time Team. He's an archaeologist with a wealth of experience and has gained a reputation for his quick wit and even faster trowelling.

When did you first get interested in archaeology?
As a kid I never wanted to be an archaeologist, I always wanted to be a vet. I had a particularly bad careers interview at school and they told me I was too stupid to be a vet. I grew up in a town on Hadrian's Wall and my best mate's dad was an archaeologist. To earn some extra beer money I started working for him as a Sunday job. By the time I was 17 it was pretty much a full time job.

Did you do a degree in archaeology?
I moved about as far as I could away from home in the borders of the north east and did my degree in Bournemouth.

What happened after your degree?
I worked on what is called 'the circuit', which means that I worked for about 13 different archaeology companies over the following years. I also managed to do a bit of foreign archaeology, including a big stint in Turkey, which was probably the best thing I've ever done, and some work in Israel, which was probably not the best thing I've ever done.

Outside Time Team where do you work now?
I'm stuck to a desk now. I work for Oxford Archaeology now, who are probably the biggest quality archaeological contractors in Europe.

How did you get involved in Time Team?
I was surfing the web and saw an advert on an archaeological website. I fired off an e-mail to see what it was all about and two scary interviews later here I am.

Which programme has been your favourite?
Loch Migdale in Scotland. It was a beautiful place, the archaeology was excellent and the local barmaids were very pretty.

What's the best part of doing Time Team?
The best part is meeting such good people, but not seeing them every day like you would in a normal job, when you would grow to hate them.

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