Since 2002, Matthew Armitage has operated an important industrial archaeological site in Banbury — Tooley’s Boatyard, Britain’s oldest continuously working boatyard. He helped to establish a trust to secure a long-term lease, preserving it as a living heritage site.
His book, Forging Ahead: A History of Tooley’s Boatyard, combines research and lived experience to tell the story of Britain’s oldest working boatyard — a reflection on endurance, craft, and the life of the waterways.
Matthew Armitage is a writer examining how the story of Britain is written in its land. His forthcoming book, The Origins of Britain, follows the thread of human memory from the Ice Age to the Norman Invasion – exploring how the landscapes we inherit still carry the presence of those who came before us.
A former field archaeologist, Matthew draws on years spent working on sites across Britain, excavating and interpreting the remains of past lives. His experience in the field – combined with a lifelong interest in landscape and memory – informs his writing, bringing the textures of real discovery to his exploration of Britain’s ancient past.
Tooley’s Boatyard, Banbury
Since 2002, he has operated an important industrial archaeological site – Tooley’s Boatyard in Banbury, Britain’s oldest continuously operated boatyard. He helped to establish a trust and secure a 150-year lease, ensuring its preservation as a working boatyard and heritage site. Under his care, Tooley’s endures as a place where history is not preserved behind glass but lived – a working reminder of Britain’s industrial past, alive through craft, learning, and community.
His book, Forging Ahead: A History of Tooley’s Boatyard, tells the story of the yard’s two centuries at the heart of Britain’s waterways. Drawing on archival research and his own experience running the site, the book traces Tooley’s journey from the age of horse-drawn narrowboats through decline and revival to its place today as a centre of traditional canal skills and craftsmanship. It is both a detailed history and a personal reflection.
He has shared his passion for preservation through his TEDx talk, From Waterways to the Stars: Preserving Our Past for Our Future, and has appeared on BBC’s Countryfile, Great Canal Journeys, and other TV programmes. Across his work – whether writing, research, or heritage – he explores how the stories of place and memory connect the past to the present, and why preserving them still matters.