日本大学法学部准教授。ロンドン大学東洋アフリカ学院(SOAS)客員研究員。研究分野は言語学習。担当教科は歴史で、特に国際的視野に立った日本史を扱う。

日本やアジアの歴史に関する多くの研究も行なっており、織田信長に仕えた弥助についての世界で初めての論文を発表している。

本書『信長と弥助』は初の著作にあたる。2019年4月にGeoffrey Girardとの共著、African Samurai: The True Story of Yasuke, a Legendary Black Warrior in Feudal Japanを米国にて刊行予定。イギリス出身、日本在住。

「アフリカン・サムライ」への推薦の言葉

“A rich portrait of a brutal age”.

—Kirkus Reviews

“A gripping tale of politics, war and religion that reads like an adventure story”.

—Dave Rear, author of A Less Boring History of the World

“The time has come for history to embrace the amazing story of Yasuke. In African Samurai words flex their muscles and pay tribute to a man of physical strength and combat skills. The writing is seductive and the reader sees the world through Yasuke’s eyes. There is much to learn about the wonder of his life, and his story is a sharp blade cutting into invisibility”.

—E. Ethelbert Miller

“This book is not only the best account in English of Yasuke, the famous African samurai. It’s also a delightful introduction to the vibrant and multicultural world of Asian maritime history. Written novelistically, with a light scholarly touch… Exciting and informative!

—Tonio Andrade, author of The Gunpowder Age

“Rarely do I read a book that challenges my worldview of history, but African Samurai certainly alters my understanding of African and Japanese history. African Samurai gripped me from the opening sentence — a unique story of a unique man, and yet someone with whom we can all identify”.

—Jack Weatherford, author of Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World

“African Samurai sounds like a novel, a freaking amazing novel. But Yasuke is real, and Lockley and Girard bring him and his world to life with incredible research and style. Yasuke may have lived in the 1500s, but he is a hero for our modern world. Seriously…when is the movie?””

—Bret Witter, #1 New York Times bestselling co-author of The Monuments Men

テレビ

• NHK BS4K「Black Samurai 信長に仕えたアフリカン侍・弥助」出演（2021年3月30日）、NHKオンデマンドはこちら

掲載記事

• 信長が愛した黒人侍｢弥助｣の謎　世界人気沸騰｜伊東潤✕ロックリー・トーマス (文藝春秋digital, July 27, 2021)
• The True Story of Yasuke, the Legendary Black Samurai Behind Netflix’s New Anime Series (TIME, April 30, 2021)
• INTERVIEW: The history detective (ACUMEN, The magazine of the British Chamber of Commerce in Japan, March/April 2020)
• アフリカ出身の侍がいた　戦国時代の数奇な人生、ハリウッド映画へ (BBC News Japan/20 January 2020)
• アフリカ人の侍「弥助」YASUKE に魅せられた英国人(英国ニュースダイジェスト November 21, 2019)
• Yasuke: an African samurai in Japan(BBC World Histories Magazine, October/November 2019)
• African samurai: The enduring legacy of a black warrior in feudal Japan (CNN/Mon May 20, 2019)
• Author reveals the story of Japan’s first foreign-born samurai (Kyodo News London/Tue, April 9, 2019)

イベント・講演

• 2020年春講座 NHK文化センター千葉教室「英語で学ぶ　外国人がほんとに知りたい日本の文化と歴史」を担当します (2020/02/27)
• Meet the Author at Tokyo American Club (2020/01/29)