Duncan J. D. Smith FRGS (born 1 December 1960) is a British travel writer, photographer, historian, and explorer.
Smith was born in Sheffield, Yorkshire, England in 1960. Both his parents were librarians. His maternal grandfather was P.G.M. Dickinson, former Archivist of the County and Borough of Huntingdon. Dickinson rediscovered the town charters of Huntingdon in 1941. [1] Smith’s Scottish great grandfather was Alexander James Smith, who was instrumental in establishing Chivas Regal as a global brand in the early twentieth century. [2] Smith’s great great grandfather was Henry Doman, the nineteenth century Lymington poet and friend of Coventry Patmore. [3] His great great great grandfather was Professor Charles Spooner of the Royal Veterinary College. [4]
Educated in Sheffield, Smith simultaneously ran his own private museum. [5] He then attended Birmingham University and studied Ancient History and Archaeology. Between 1985 and 2003 Smith worked in the publishing industry, during which time he wrote five local history books about Sheffield and Yorkshire, four of them with his late father Trevor Smith. [6] His book Yorkshire: A Portrait in Colour (1995) published by The Dovecote Press remained in print for over fifteen years. [7]
Since 2003 Smith has worked as a travel writer, photographer, historian, and explorer. [8] He favours travelling off the beaten track in search of unusual places and people. His European findings are being self-published in an original series of books called Only In Guides under his The Urban Explorer imprint. [9] Volumes include Berlin, Boston, Budapest, Cologne, Dubrovnik, Edinburgh, Hamburg, Krakow, London, Munich, Paris, Prague, Seville, Trieste, Vienna and Zurich. Smith has also written for magazines such as Timeless Travels and Hidden Europe. [10]
Smith’s travels also encompass parts of Africa (including Ethiopia), the Middle East (including Syria and Jordan), and Asia (Sri Lanka). [11]
In 2010 Smith was made a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.
Smith has been described as “the thinking man’s exploratory investigator”. [12]
South & West Yorkshire Curiosities (with Trevor Smith) (1992)
North & East Yorkshire Curiosities (with Trevor Smith) (1993)
Yorkshire – A Portrait in Colour (1995)
Sheffield Curiosities (with Trevor Smith) (1999)
More Sheffield Curiosities (with Trevor Smith) (2000)
Only in Vienna (2005)
Only in Budapest (2006)
Only in Prague (2008)
Only in Berlin (2008)
Only in Munich (2009)
Only in Hamburg (2010)
Only in Cologne (2011)
Only in Zurich (2012)
Only in Paris (2013)
Only in London (2015)
Only in Edinburgh (2016)
Only in Boston (2018)
Only in Krakow (2019)
Only in Seville (2021)
Only in Dubrovnik (2022)
Only in Trieste (2023)
Only in Marseille (2025)
Malcolm IV, nicknamed Virgo, "the Maiden" was King of Scotland from 1153 until his death. He was the eldest son of Henry, Earl of Huntingdon and Northumbria and Ada de Warenne. The original Malcolm Canmore, a name now associated with his great-grandfather Malcolm III, he succeeded his grandfather David I, and shared David's Anglo-Norman tastes.
Trevor John Francis was an English footballer who played as a forward for a number of clubs in England, the United States, Italy, Scotland and Australia. In 1979 he became Britain's first £1 million player following his transfer from Birmingham City to Nottingham Forest. He scored the winning goal for Forest in the 1979 European Cup final against Malmö. He won the European Cup again with the club the following year. At international level, he played for England 52 times between 1976 and 1986, scoring 12 goals, and played at the 1982 FIFA World Cup.
Coventry Kersey Dighton Patmore was an English poet and literary critic. He is best known for his book of poetry The Angel in the House, a narrative poem about the Victorian ideal of a happy marriage.
The Glenlivet distillery is a distillery near Ballindalloch in Moray, Scotland, that produces single malt Scotch whisky. It is the oldest legal distillery in the Highlands of Scotland. It was founded in 1824 and has operated almost continuously since.
Earl of Coventry is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of England. The first creation for the Villiers family was created in 1623 and took its name from the city of Coventry. It became extinct in 1687. A decade later, the second creation was for the Coventry family and is still extant.
The River Rivelin is a river in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England.
The Old Curiosity Shop is one of two novels which Charles Dickens published along with short stories in his weekly serial Master Humphrey's Clock, from 1840 to 1841. It was so popular that New York readers stormed the wharf when the ship bearing the final instalment arrived in 1841.
The Earl or Mormaer of Lennox was the ruler of the region of the Lennox in western Scotland. It was first created in the 12th century for David of Scotland, Earl of Huntingdon and later held by the Stewart dynasty.
Brian Cass is the managing director of Huntingdon Life Sciences, a contract research organisation company based in Huntingdon in the United Kingdom and New Jersey in the United States. Before moving to Huntingdon Life Sciences, Cass was the managing director of Covance Laboratories Ltd. He was appointed a CBE in 2002.
Carnaby is a small village and civil parish on the A614 road in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately 2 miles (3 km) south-west of Bridlington town centre.
Keith Andrew Senior is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played for the Sheffield Eagles and the Leeds Rhinos in the Super League. A Great Britain and England international representative centre, he is considered one of the greatest players of the Super League era.
Keith Mumby, also known by the nickname of "Sir Keith", is an English former rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, who most famously played for Bradford Northern between 1973 and 1993, and Sheffield Eagles and Wakefield Trinity, as a toe-end style goal-kicking fullback, or centre.
Daniel Quilp is one of the main antagonists in the novel The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens, written in 1840. Quilp is a vicious, ill-tempered and grotesque dwarf and is the villain of the story. Quilp is as near as Dickens ever came to creating a monster. Actors who have portrayed him include Hay Petrie, Anthony Newley, Patrick Troughton, Trevor Peacock, and Toby Jones.
Great Douk Cave is a shallow cave system lying beneath the limestone bench of Ingleborough in Chapel-le-Dale, North Yorkshire, England. It is popular with beginners and escorted groups, as it offers straightforward caving, and it is possible to follow the cave from where a stream emerges at a small waterfall to a second entrance close to where it sinks 600 yards (549 m) further up the hill. It lies within the Ingleborough Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Capel Bond was an English organist and composer.
Simon Trevor Stead is a former motorcycle speedway rider and team manager. He earned 11 international caps for the Great Britain national speedway team. From 2019, he has been joint manager of the Great Britain team with Oliver Allen.
Sir Ian Fife Campbell Anstruther, of that Ilk, 8th Baronet of Balcaskie and 13th Baronet of Anstruther, Hereditary Carver of the Sovereign, Hereditary Master of the Royal Household in Scotland, Chief of the Name and Arms of Anstruther FSA was a baronet twice over. He inherited substantial property interests in South Kensington and wrote several books on specialised areas of 19th-century social and literary history.
Charles Heavysege was a Canadian poet and dramatist. He was one of the earliest poets to publish in Canada. He is known for his critically acclaimed play Saul.
The Yorkshire Cup competition was a knock-out competition between rugby league clubs from the county of Yorkshire. The actual area was at times increased to encompass other teams from outside the county such Mansfield, Coventry, this season's appearance of Newcastle, and even last year's appearance of London (in the form of Acton & Willesden. The competition always took place early in the season, in the Autumn, with the final taking place in December
Foxwood School was a Comprehensive school in Seacroft, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It opened in 1956 and closed 40 years later in 1996.
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