Natural Historian

Prof. Phil Manning is Chair of Natural History and Director of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Ancient Life at the University of Manchester (UK). Phil is a Fellow of the Explorer’s Club (New York), a Fellow of the Geological Society (London) and is also a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

        Prof. Manning and his team continue to undertake field-based research in the Hell Creek and Morrison Formations of South Dakota, Wyoming and Montana, but his fieldwork also includes sites in South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, and the UK. In 2020 he was awarded the Sorby Medal by the Yorkshire Geological Society for his distinguished research contributions to the geosciences. Prof. Manning has spent 30+ years working as a curator and/or museum consultant around the globe. He has researched, designed and help build exhibitions on the evolution of life on Earth, which are often-focussed on natural history (including ‘Walking with Dinosaurs’ that was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 2000). Prof. Manning has written, presented and been co-producer on multiple television documentaries for National Geographic Channel, BBC, History Channel and other networks around the globe. In 2015 he was a contributor to film ‘Dinosaur 13’ that was awarded the Emmy for Outstanding Science and Technology Programming at the 36th Annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards held in New York.              He continues to play an active role in public outreach for the University of Manchester, contributing to open-days, public lectures and workshops. He has authored books for children, also popular science books and is a regular contributor to public speaking events around the world, promoting the public engagement of science.