Mary Beard is one of Britain’s best-known classicists – a distinguished professor of classics at the University of Cambridge and fellow of Newnham College. She has written numerous books on the ancient world, including the 2008 Wolfson Prize-winner ‘Pompeii: The Life of a Roman Town’. In addition, Beard has presented the highly-acclaimed TV series ‘Meet the Romans and Rome – Empire without Limit’, as well as documentaries on Pompeii, Caligula and Julius Caesar, and is a regular broadcaster and media commentator.  

Beard is also classics editor of the Times Literary Supplement and writes a thought-provoking blog, ‘A Don’s Life’. In 2015 she published the critically-acclaimed ‘SPQR – A History of Ancient Rome’ and more recently ‘Women & Power’, examining the silencing of women across the millennia. Her books are translated into many languages and she has a significant following all over the world. She was a presenter for the landmark BBC TV ‘Civilisations’ series and wrote an accompanying book. In addition, she hosts the BBC’s TV arts show ‘Inside Culture’ and has been awarded the J Paul Getty medal for her contribution to the arts.  

Beard is a Fellow of the British Academy and was made an OBE in the New Year’s Honours List 2013 for services to classical scholarship. She was awarded the further honour of Dame in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List 2018.