The Colosseum

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Collaboration comes in many forms. Keith and I had often dreamed up plans to write a book together. It is a sad irony that this, our only joint venture, is the product of a strange form of collaboration in which one of the parties is no longer around to share the fun – or the blame. When Keith died in March 2004, he had already done a considerable amount of work towards a book on the Colosseum, which I agreed to continue and complete. Despite the circumstances, over the last six months, I have tremendously enjoyed the debates and dialogues I have had with him, through his notes and rough drafts.

In the process, many of our friends have lent a hand: in particular, Nigel Cassidy, Chloe Chard, Robin Cormack, William Harris, Henry Hurst, Christopher Kelly, Martin Millett, Helen Morales, Hilary Perrott, Walter Scheidel, Andrew Wallace-Hadrill and Sophia Whitbread. The staff of the British School at Rome expertly arranged permits to visit ‘closed’ areas of the Colosseum, provided a marvellous Roman library and an agreeable base in the city. Peter Foskett of The Daniel Connal Partnership (Colchester office) kindly tackled the provisional cost of the Colosseum’s foundations – despite our unusual and amateur specification. At Profile, Peter Carson, Penny Daniel, Andrew Franklin, Trevor Horwood and Amelia Rowland made light work of the final stages of writing, editing and publication.

In bringing The Colosseum up to date I have been helped by all the old suspects – as well as by Ruth Killick, Valentina Zanca and, especially, Debbie Whittaker.