The Real Robin Hood

**The Real Robin Hood** is the 5th episode of Season 2 of Expedition Unknown.

## Plot Synopsis

Gates travels the English countryside on a mission to learn if Robin Hood was a real man and if he's the hero from the legends or a murderous outlaw. He visits London's British Library, explores tunnels and caves beneath Nottingham, and joins historians in search of Hood's grave, first in Kirklees Priory, Yorkshire, and lastly at a churchyard in Loxley, where researchers believe an outlaw named Roger Godberd who was the real Robin Hood is buried.

## Historical Context

"Robin Hood. Meet the world's first superhero. He's been a fixture of folklore since the 1300s and his popularity shows no signs of waning. But with so many stories, one simple question remains strangely elusive - was Robin Hood a real person? Was there a vigilante in Sherwood Forest who stole from the rich and gave to the poor?"

- Josh Gates

## Summary

Josh begins his journey in London and goes to the British Library. He meets Karen Limper-Hertz, a curator, who shows him some of the early Robin Hood ballads from medieval times. Josh then goes to Nottingham where he meets the sheriff, Jackie Morris who tells him Robin Hood escaped the Nottingham Castle dungeons through tunnels. Josh goes to the castle and meets researcher, Tim Pollard. They go into the dungeon and find old caves where Robin may have escaped.

Josh then meets with Peter Hammond, an archaeologist, at the Paul Smtih clothing store. Beneath the building is a hand-dug cave. They meet Dr Lukasz Bonenberg, a scientist, who is making a 3D rendering of the caves and the spider-web like passages connecting to it. This means Robin Hood could've once escaped through passages. Josh goes to Sherwood Forest and meets Ade Andrews who plays Robin Hood. Ade tells Josh about true parts of the legend and shows him the Major Oak, from the fairytale story. Ade introduces him to Wolf and Friar Tuck his "Merry Men" and Wolf teaches Josh how to use a bow and arrow.

From there, Josh goes to Kirklees Priory and meets with David Hepworth, a historian. Kirklees is known for having Robin Hood's grave and being the place where he died. The prioress bled Robin after he was injured but took to much blood causing Robin to die. Robin supposedly shot one final arrow and wherever it landed was his resting place. David and Josh go to a grave that is supposedly Robin Hood's and investigate it using GPR. They meet Thomas Graut-Javes, a GPR expert and find an anomaly in the grave. However, it isn't a grave because the soil above it was never disturbed.

David and Josh use an old map of Kirklees to search for more possible locations of Robin's burial. He goes up in a World War II-era plane to search and tag locations. Once back on the ground Josh goes back to Kirklees and meets Rob, an expert archer. Josh, Rob, and David go to the building where Robin would've died and Rob shoots five arrows from there. They get a 400-foot search diameter and meet back with Tom to use the GPR. They don't find any burials or disturbances in the area.

Josh's final stop is a churchyard in Loxley where he meets historian, Robert White. They find the grave of Roger Godberd, who is thought to be the historical basis for Robin Hood. They share many similar story elements and old church records show the grave may have been moved from Kirklees Priory. Robert and Josh use a Ferro Scanner and find a disturbance under the stone that may be a real body.

## Final Words

"My travels have carried me across England chasing down the many sights and stories associated with the Robin Hood legends. I languished in the dungeons of Nottingham Castle, soared over the British countryside, and fired arrows with the Merry Men of Sherwood Forest. I've recreated Robin's final moments and searched underground for his remains. I've even explored the possibility that the greatest hero of the English language may in fact be the villain of his own story. I've been able to confirm that many of the important elements of the Robin Hood ballads are not only possible but almost certainly true. But was Robin Hood a flesh-and-blood man? The events of his day seem too clearly reflecting in the ballads to be pure fiction. Perhaps there was a little of Godberd in him, along with dozens of other bandits that roamed the forests. And though they were important in forming the Robin Hood legend the most important authors of his story have been you and me. His story may have begun in the 12th Century, but it continues to grow today, with Robin always becoming what we need him to be. And no matter what lies ahead, we can rest assured that Robin Hood will be there to save us."

- Josh Gates

## Notes & Trivia

* *This is where you can put notes and trivia, anything that is interesting or strange can be included here*

## Quotes

* "This is a very dangerous city to be an American in."
* "Hard to believe they have this, very, very rare and original Robin Hood mouse pad."
* "I feel like you look like a badass warrior. I look like an extra in a Monty Python sketch."
* "Have we alerted everybody in this area of the forest. Children, families, squirrels, anybody?"
* "That is my entire daily caloric intake in that one bite. And I don't care."
* "I literally cannot fit my fat American face in this thing."

## References

1. ↑ https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BOTY4MDY2MzQ5M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNjExMzc5ODE@.\_V1\_.jpg