Adam Ford

With an archaeological career spanning over 25 years Adam is the founder of DIG International and has led and participated in expeditions to the Caribbean, British Isles, Jordan, Syria, Turkey and Australia.

From Cold War bunkers in England to Bronze Age cities on the Euphrates, shipwrecks in remote Western Australia, to burials in Barbados, Adam has thrown his energy, enthusiasm and humour into unlocking the mysteries of the past.

Adam, who has directed excavations at the legendary site of Ned Kelly’s Last Stand and most recently the grim and infamous Pentridge Prison, was once asked why he chose archaeology. Adam replied:
‘I’ve had heatstroke, hypothermia and dysentery. I’ve been chased by camel spiders, walked on by scorpions and pestered by bugs big enough to ride. I’ve lived in some of the most remote locations in the world and suffered the backbreaking and frankly soul-destroying monotony of shifting tonnes of dirt with a shovel. But when you find pieces of the past that give a glimpse into lives lived by people we will never meet, but on whose shoulders we now stand… well that’s the kick, that’s why I’m an archaeologist.’

Adam reckons there’s no point in digging stuff up if the public don’t get to hear about what it all means, so he is delighted to raise the profile of history and archaeology through his TV series, ABC’s Who’s Been Sleeping In My House? and his books, My Life In Ruins, and the school reader Digging Up The Past. Adam is currently filming a new TV series, Lawless – Foxtel’s new flagship history series to be shown in 2017.

In acknowledgement of his work Adam was recently honoured by being elected Fellow of the prestigious, Royal chartered and learned Society of Antiquaries of London