Mary Beard is marvellous

[TheYuleLogLady]

i love her. i want to go to pompeii and sare a botle of wine with hr.

ha ha, you will need to take more than one bottle.

Oooh, I once worked with her for a few years (not closely, but still = small claim to fame) and she is absolutely lovely. Really friendly and sweet and nothing too much trouble. :)

She really is marvellous, isn't she? I LOVED that programme.

I've been to Pompeii twice and I didn't spot a single willy. Apparently DD did.

She taught me a long time ago. At the time i found her very intimidating, but that was my extreme youth and shyness(!). She was actually lovely.
I loved the programme tonight, and it very much had her 'essence'.

next time i go back to school i shall do classics.

Hi ladies.. glad you liked it (I was terrified about what people would think).
So lets raise a glass (or two) to the ancient world, Mary

It was one of the few programmes I can remember watching in recent times where I've been glued to the sofa for the duration and not pratting around on the laptop or getting drinks while half-watching.

It made me want to reread the Robert Harris book. And to go there again.

Yes, loved the programme (and Pompeii Book and indeed blog in TLS). Husband read classics (taught by her) and interest reignited by her recent work.

What, Mary is here? On MN? Respect...

I didn't watch as am busy working, but caught DH watching it. And thought how fucking ACE to have a normal intelligent middle aged woman on telly for once. Will iplayer soon. Mary, love your column, come.and find the academics threads, if you're not there already?

Excellent programme. A nice introduction, I hope it gets a bit more science-y later on. There must be so many tests that you can do on those bones. Ditto the poo in the sewers - we had a teaser about what might be discovered by analysis, but no detail yet.

Mary? Here? Really? Hurrah!

it was superb, even better than I was expecting.
So nice to have a tv presenter who is not either a pompous middle aged man or a young woman flirting with the camera.

I want to ask about the brothel though. Presumably the prostitutes were slaves, so what was going on in them was effectively rape? Do we have any reason to think anything else?

Mary if that's really you can I just say I thought last night's programme was absolutely FABULOUS and I speak as someone who generally watches utter shite. And can I second WillSelf and say how bloody brilliant/refreshing it was to have a 'grown-up' real-life intelligent woman teaching me things. It made me feel good to be female. Thank you. (Sorry if that sounds wanky but it's true).

I loved it! wanted to watch csi but got stuck there instead.
I really liked the presenter, sooo refreshing seeing a mature woman without much (any?) makeup.
I want to be like her when I grow up!

Ooh, I'm looking forward to this - will watch it on Iplayer when DH sorts it out as we don't have a TV.

I have Mary Beard's column to thank for my PhD, as I'd never have got up the nerve to apply for postgrad study if I'd not been reading it. She makes academia sound fun!

Anyone know if this will be repeated please?

There was though a lot of shite on the programme last night !

Seriously, I loved it too - so much better than a lot of the recent archaeology programmes (made the for US market?) that just keep repeating the same stuff over and over after every add break in case you have a 2 minute memory. I usually end up shouting at the telly.

Brilliant - thanks Mary!

TwolfBySea - I looked as I missed it & not being in the UK I can't access the iPlayer.

It's repeated tomorrow at 9pm on BBC2 Scotland - which I'd no idea I could get. Found it on Channel 990 on my antiquated (and life-saving) digibox.

Mary Beard is also great on R4 'In Our Time'. First time I managed to listen to the programme the whole way through was because she was on it.

I hope they let her make lots more tv.

That's why I won't have seen it on the schedule then Monica! I'm in Scotland so there we go, didn't miss it at all!

Looking forward to it now. (I'm thinking from what people have said she is focussing on all the naughty things Romans drew all over the place!)

Another huge Mary Beard fan here. Fantastic programme. Great presenter. I heart Pompeii, and I want to go there.

Yes -- it's me. Thought I should add that there were two reasons I decided to do the programme...1. it was a great chance to remind people that the ancient world is really interesting (books are one way, but you get a hell of a lot bigger audience on tv). But 2) I had banged on for ages about how middle aged women didn't get near documentary presenting, whereas the whole thing was filled with middle aged men (think Starkey and Schama for a start). So when the offer came, it would have been hypocritical to turn it down.
Thank heavens it worked!

You're up early Mary! Thank you for a fabulous show.

I watched it with my 11 year old, he loved it espiecally when you talked about willies and poo. Seriously though, it made it come alive for him and he can't wait until he studies latin now.

Oh no!!! I told DH on Sunday to record this (I was working Tuesday night), and I bet he forgot, I hope it will be repeated - it looked really interesting!!

It's on Iplayer, kara.