A few months ago, I took to the streets and began filming a trailer for a television documentary called “Medicine’s Dark Secrets.” In it, I examined books made from human skin; explored the crypt of St Bride’s Church; and learnt how to tie nooses with the Ravenmaster at the Tower of London.

It was an exhilarating journey!

And now I need your help getting this project filmed.

As a medical historian, I have access to amazing collections. But these collections aren’t always accessible to the general public. The past, however, doesn’t just belong to historians. It doesn’t just belong to scholars. It belongs to you.

We will be launching a campaign through IndieGoGo at the beginning of March to raise money to film “Medicine’s Dark Secrets.” This will allow us to maintain the integrity of the project, so it doesn’t just become a voyeuristic journey into the past. I want this to be a true representation of medical history. Who were the people who died? And why did their bodies end up in the hands of the surgeons?

As a thank you for donating, I’ll be offering you a variety of premiums: from an anthropodermic bibliopegy t-shirt, a dvd of the show, all the way up to an opportunity to have tea and syphilis cupcakes with me at St Bart’s Pathology Museum.

I’m very passionate about the history of medicine, and I’m even more passionate about sharing this subject with you. Because of this, I will be waiving all fees during filming. I really want to see this project come to life, and I hope you do as well.

Please help me spread the word in March!

In the meantime, why don’t you have a look at the trailer?