As the country’s youngest CEO, Thea Hunt, aged eight, from Wordsley, West Midlands, will provide a kid’s-eye view of history at English Heritage’s castles, forts and palaces across England, including Stonehenge and Hadrian’s Wall.

Thea kicks off her position today by unveiling English Heritage’s History Wish List – the top 25 history-inspired wishes as chosen by 1,066 children. Thea will be tasked with making a number of these wishes a reality for children this summer.

Children’s top 10 history wishes are:
1. Discover hidden treasure
2. Be a King or Queen for the day
3. Sit on a throne
4. Fire a cannon
5. Build a fort
6. Sword fight with your friends
7. Battle pirates
8. Conquer a castle
9. Put on a suit of armour
10. Fire an arrow in the air

As CEO, Thea will:

• Receive life membership of English Heritage
• Bring children’s historic wishes to life at sites across England
• Consult on English Heritage’s summer events programme
• Be a champion for kids across the country with the support of a special Round Table of seven children

As well as revealing their history wishes, almost a quarter of children surveyed (24%) declared that they’d like to travel back to Roman times with the age of the Vikings (20%) and the Victorian era (14%) their second and third choices respectively.

Over half of children (51%) said if they were King or Queen for the day, they would impose a homework ban on birthdays. This was more popular than having a day off school for St George’s Day (31%) and replacing PE lessons with sword-fighting (27%).

Emily Sewell, Head of Events at English Heritage, said: “We already run a huge programme of great family events across the country but we wanted to make it even better this summer and the best way to do that is to put children in charge. We asked them what they would most like to do at our sites and with Thea as our CEO, we’re going to make it all happen.

“Over 500 children applied for the role and we interviewed 50 very strong candidates. But Thea really stood out with her passion, energy and generosity – we’re extremely excited to have her on board.”

Thea’s passion for history began at the age of five and in her application, she revealed her history wish: “It would be great to take part in a knights’ tournament and feel how scary it really was charging to the opponent. I think there should be girl knights too because girls also have passion and drive and energy. That’s why I would like to be a knight for the day.”

English Heritage made Thea Hunt’s wish come true at Kenilworth Castle and now as Child Executive Officer, Thea will be helping other children with their history wishes this summer.

Thea Hunt, Child Executive Officer at English Heritage, said: ““Being able to audition at my local heritage site, Kenilworth Castle, really inspired me – I felt like a real-life Knight! I’m so excited to be English Heritage’s CEO and can’t wait to see the faces of children and their families when they’re doing the events from our History Wish List.”

To support Thea in her role, English Heritage has also appointed a special Round Table of seven children. This Round Table will help to make the History Wish List happen at English Heritage sites across the country including Dover Castle, Pendennis Castle in Cornwall, Audley End House and Gardens in Essex, and Belsay Hall, Castle and Gardens outside Newcastle.

Notes to editors:

Research conducted by OnePoll on behalf of English Heritage in June 2015. The 1,066 survey respondents were children aged 5 – 12 from across the UK.

English Heritage cares for over 400 historic monuments, buildings and sites – from world famous prehistoric sites to grand medieval castles, from Roman forts on the edges of empire to Cold War bunkers. Through these, we bring the story of England to life for over 10 million visitors each year. Registered charity no. 1140351. www.english-heritage.org.uk

The English Heritage History Wish List:
1. Discover hidden treasure
2. Be a King or Queen for the day
3. Sit on a throne
4. Fire a cannon
5. Build a fort
6. Sword fight with your friends
7. Battle pirates
8. Conquer a castle
9. Put on a suit of armour
10. Fire an arrow in the air
11. Climb to the top of a castle
12. Put your parents in the stocks
13. Fly a falcon
14. Try on some vintage clothes
15. Train to be a Roman Gladiator
16. Joust with a knight
17. Be a knight of a round table
18. Lead an army into battle (and live)
19. Step inside the Stone Age
20. Stand in Queen Elizabeth’s shoes
21. Meet Queen Victoria
22. Juggle with a jester
23. Join a Viking invasion
24. Dance to a historic tune
25. Play a medieval musical instrument

Thea’s prize package will include:
• Life Membership of English Heritage
• A weekend away with her family at one of English Heritage’s holiday cottages
• A party with her friends at her favourite English Heritage castle