Bettany

 Bettany Mary Hughes OBE FSA (born May 27, 1967) is an English historian writer, broadcaster and author, specialising in classical history. Her books published focus on mythology and classical antiquity as well as the history of Istanbul. She is involved in promoting the teaching of classics in UK public schools. Hughes was appointed OBE in 2019.In 2010, she delivered the Hellenic Institute's Tenth Annual lecture "Ta Erotika: The Things of Love", and in 2011, gave the Royal Television Society's Huw Wheldon Memorial Lecture, in which she argued that history on television is flourishing and enjoying an exciting new golden age. She was the chair of the Orange Prize for Fiction in 2011, the UK's only annual prize for writing entirely by women. Hughes is patron of The Iris Project which promotes teaching Latin and Greek in UK public schools. She is also an honorary patron of Classics For All, a national campaign to get classical languages and ancient civilisations back in state schools. She is an advisor to the Foundation for Science, Technology and Civilisation which seeks to encourage large-scale collaborative initiatives between East and West