Meet the team

Inspirational Thinker

Icelandic artist Björk Guðmundsdóttir. I have loved her since the 90s – and I’m still bowled over by her tremendous talent. A visionary and a master of her many crafts, be it singing, song writing, producing, performing, fashion, digital media etc. She is absolutely, unapologetically her authentic self. She transcends boundaries and inspires me to take risks artistically: “If you want to make something happen that hasn’t happened before, you’ve got to allow yourself to make a lot of mistakes. Then the real magic will happen.”

Inspirational Thinker

Achille Gaggia (Italian coffee genius) – he took 2 traditional materials (hot water & coffee) and by doing something different (passing water through the grounds, not pouring it on) made the perfect drink.  Love the way he thought differently about basic materials.

Inspirational Thinker

Nellie Bly. Bly was a pioneering and progressive journalist, and adventurer renowned for her ‘Stunt Girl’ reporting in the late 19^th century. Enraged by an 1885 article entitled ‘What Girls are Good For’, the fearless and inventive Bly challenged societal norms and advocated for change through her investigations into the deplorable conditions within mental asylums (feigning insanity to get herself admitted), poverty and political corruption in Mexico and working conditions in a Pittsburgh factory. She also went around the world in just 72 days – presumably because she wasn’t reluctant to ask for directions…

Inspirational Thinker

Cicero – Famous for lots of things – and a flawed character in many ways, but what impresses me most is the fact he stuck to his principles under huge pressure to change and in the end paid the ultimate price for his beliefs. I like to think if he was alive today he’d be precisely the kind of inspirational politician we’re so sorely lacking.

Inspirational Thinker

Christopher Hitchens (author and journalist) – incredibly clever but also brave, honest, funny and prolific. Open minded and not afraid to change his mind. He educated me, challenged me (had to re-read lots of his sentences!), made me laugh, made me cross. Always made me think.

Inspirational Thinker

Jeremy Bentham – Bentham founded the theory of utilitarianism, which favours “the most happiness for the most people.” Bentham extrapolated from this relatively uncontroversial position to argue for women’s rights, the abolition of slavery, an end to capital punishment, and one of the earliest documented animal rights defences in Western philosophy. Bentham’s faith in the soundness of his theory and his dedication to logical induction allowed him to boldly pave the way for radical civil rights theories our political foundations to this day. (Footnote: Bentham’s even more radical thoughts on mortality influenced his decision to dedicate his preserved body to UCL. London based fans of his can still visit the macabre display, complete with a reconstructed wax head and the original skeleton shrouded in his 18^th century wears).

Inspirational Thinker

Taylor Swift. For 18 years she has continually reinvented her music style and her image, while maintaining her authenticity. Despite public scrutiny, media backlash and public feuds, she has shown remarkable resilience. I admire her ability to navigate these experiences with grace, and turn them into empowering narratives in her music, which resonates with millions. Her decision to re-record her early albums, after losing control of her original masters, is a bold statement on artistic ownership and intellectual property.

Inspirational Thinker

Catherine Hall. Hall is a British academic and Chair of the Center for the Study of the Legacies of British Slavery. She and colleagues created an online database tracing journeys made by slave ships across the Atlantic, tracking their impact and the ongoing legacy of slave-ownership on British society. I admire how Hall’s work focuses on histories that are ‘hidden in plain sight’ – seeking to move beyond the obvious and find new truths in the everyday.

Inspirational Thinker

Philip K Dick (science fiction author) – was incredibly creative and the ultimate ‘out of the box’ thinker. He was able to conjure up incredible and realistic story lines set far into the future. Read Ubik now! (Luckily this hasn’t been butchered by a film director yet!)

Inspirational Thinker

Bob Mortimer – I think we all lose our imagination when we become ‘grown ups,’ Bob Mortimer is the perfect antidote to this. He can improv like no other, thinks outside the box, and always serves it with a heavy dose of silliness. It’s so natural it’s like he isn’t even thinking!

Inspirational Thinker

Dian Fossey – Primatologist and Conservationist.  Often controversial in her methods of protection and education of mountain gorillas but her determination, bravery and strong-held beliefs I find truly admirable.

Dian Fossey made it her life’s work to help preserve mountain gorillas in Rwanda.  She overcame wars, took on poachers and at most times, lived a remote, impoverished life.

The original footage of her interacting with the gorillas has fascinated me for many years.  I have watched the film Gorillas in the Mist so often I have lost count how many times.

Inspirational Thinker

I am frankly a little obsessed with the fantastic(al) science of keeping planes in the air and bringing spacecraft back to earth – and will never tire of the story of Apollo 13 and the flight controllers in Houston who made sure the crew got back home alive, three days after the infamous “Houston, we’ve had a problem” and one day after I was born. Brilliant minds in impossible circumstances.

Inspirational Thinker

JK Rowling (author) inspires me as an exceptionally successful individual who, in all the fame and success, continues to do what she loves surrounded by her family

Inspirational Thinker

Alison Lapper, an artist who was born without arms and truncated legs.  She has led a fulfilled life despite being severely disabled.  She put herself through university, raised a son, and established a successful career as an artist.  She is independent, outspoken and challenges narrow-minded attitudes towards disability.

Inspirational Thinker

Mary Seacole (British- Jamaican business woman & pioneering nurse) – funded her own trip to the Crimea during the war to help wounded soldiers, setting up the ‘British Hotel’ to provide comfortable quarters for convalescent officers. A contemporary of Florence Nightingale, she was often rebuffed and glossed out of history due to the colour of her skin. I really admire her determination, diligence and bravery to make a difference in the face of such prejudice.

Inspirational Thinker

Sophie Scholl – One of Germany’s most famous, and youngest, anti-Nazi activist. What I find most impressive about Sophie Scholl is the clarity and vigour with which she denounced the German crimes against humanity at a time when the Nazi state still had a firm grip on power. Her life story taught me that if a 20 year old student was brave enough to call the regime for what it was, willing to rebel against it, even if it means death by guillotine – then there was little excuse for the rest of the population to stay silent. The story of Sophie Scholl embodies the collective responsibility that still shapes German identity today.

Inspirational Thinker

Herbert Spencer (Philosopher and Sociologist) – Spencer coined the popular phrase ‘survival of the fittest’ that was later popularised by Darwin. This all-encompassing expression applies more today than it ever has, whether it’s animals fighting back from the edge of extinction or businesses competing for customers.

Inspirational Thinker

Matthieu Ricard (Buddist Monk and Author).  A humanitarian who has done much to share the benefits of eastern philosophy with western audiences. The impact of his contribution is perfectly captured by Marcel Proust: “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes”.

Inspirational Thinker

I like the story of how Edwin Land invented the instant photograph – his young daughter got upset that she could not see instantly a photograph he had just taken which then led to him developing polaroid film and cameras. He was always inventing new things through the perfect use of lateral thinking and reframing. Steve Jobs was a huge fan so I guess that’s the best endorsement!

Inspirational Thinker

Hans Rosling – His TED talks and bestselling book Factfulness are inspirational gems and I’d recommend them to stats lovers and non-lovers alike. He was an enthusiastic and engaging storyteller and master of using the evidence and imaginative data visualisation to help explain the world – as it is, not how we suppose it might be.

Inspirational Thinker

Donna Tartt is an inspirational thinker because of her unique writing style that blends literary fiction with suspenseful plots. Her works have captivated me with their vivid settings, complex characters, and philosophical themes. She continues to inspire me to push the boundaries of what is possible in contemporary literature and has also inspired me to be bolder in life. Her willingness to take risks and explore difficult themes within her narratives has shown me the power of being true to oneself and standing up for what one believes in. Tartt’s commitment to her craft and her fearlessness in pursuing her passions have taught me to take risks, embrace challenges, and pursue my own goals with courage and determination.

Inspirational Thinker

Michael Grossman is a renowned Health economist; his groundbreaking model revolutionised the way we understand health behaviours. The model conceptualises health as a form of human capital that individuals invest in through their choices, such as diet, exercise, and healthcare. His innovative approach not only provided a new framework for health-related decisions but also significantly influenced public health policies.

Inspirational Thinker

Michel de Montaigne (Renaissance philosopher). He wore his genius lightly. He used small observations from his everyday life (about wine, his pet cat, his declining sexual appetite) as a stepping stone to address the ‘what it is to be human’ stuff.

Inspirational Thinker

Paracelsus – Renaissance Swiss Physician. Before him, European medicine treated ancient Greek and Roman texts as gospel, ignoring accuracies. He had the courage to show the cracks in this entire philosophy. But what I love about him is what he did next, when he had to suggest a new system of thinking. He suggested a quasi-scientific approach which kicked off the fields of medical science, clinical diagnosis, and toxicology, but also went down strange routes about elemental fairies, gnomes, and salamanders. Proof that true reform is messy, but worth it.

Inspirational Thinker

Terence Conran’s influence is to be found everywhere – in homes, shops, museums and restaurants. His belief in intelligent design showed us that everyday objects – everything from lights and kitchen equipment to furniture – could be efficient to use as well as pleasing to live with, and that these benefits could be accessible to all: when he first opened Habitat in the early 1960s, the range was deliberately conceived to be within the reach of anyone on a teacher’s salary.

Inspirational Thinker

Theodor Suess Geisel (Dr. Seuss) (children’s author and educationalist) for being ahead of his time in tackling contentious issues through his children’s stories such as environmentalism, consumerism and racial equality.  He also helped tackle illiteracy by challenging the status quo of children’s reading books using dull and formulaic stories

Inspirational Thinker

Vasily Grossman (author and journalist) – I have always admired Grossman for his courage to tell the truth despite the persecution he endured from the Soviet regime. His innate belief in the power of human kindness in the face of adversity is even more striking given the events he witnessed as a war correspondent with the Red Army.

Inspirational Thinker

Steve Jobs (co-founder of Apple) – a major technology visionary and design perfectionist.  The daily use of my iPhone and iPad has profoundly changed the way I interact with the world!

Inspirational Thinker

Emperor Vespasian was underestimated at many times in his life. Through hard work and insight, he proved those who thought less of him wrong. His humble beginnings from the lower rungs of the patrician class belied the gravity of the man, and his carefulness and awareness of tenuous situations made his rise laborious but lasting once obtained. All the time, he was changing the traditional image of the emperor. He approached his work with an earthy humour and common sense unusual in someone of his rank, demonstrating a fearlessness of going against the grain. A mighty general and brilliant strategist, he returned Rome to its former glory, leaving behind some of the most incredible architecture still seen in the world today – the Flavian Amphitheatre (otherwise known as the Colosseum).

Inspirational Thinker

Chris Barton, who alongside Dhiraj Mukherjee, Philip Inghelbrecht and Avery Wang created Shazam; the music recognition software.

 Even before Smartphones I remember dialling 2580 on my phone and holding the phone to the music I wanted identified, and waiting for a text from Shazam to send me the title and artist of the song.  When the app came about it made it even easier to identify any song you hear on the radio/in a shop/TV, and when using in combination with Spotify, I can identify and download a song I hear that I like within minutes.  The Shazam app has been downloaded over 1 billion times in 190 countries and was bought by Apple Inc in Dec 2017 for a reported £300 million.

Inspirational Thinker

Emmeline Pankhurst (suffragete). She’s a distant relative, and my mum was a feminist – no surprise I learned about her from an early age. Courageous, challenging, driven by a strong sense of justice

Inspirational Thinker

Jim Telfer, (Rugby Forwards Coach on the 1997 British & Irish Lions tour of South Africa). Jim delivered an inspirational speech to the underdog Lions who went on to win the series. Actions may have won the battle but his choice of words and delivery certainly helped to win the war!

Inspirational Thinker

David Attenborough (naturalist and broadcaster) inspires because he’s a pioneer. He brought the splendour of the natural world into our homes over many years.  I doubt anyone on the planet has experienced so many unique events. Certainly no-one will ever be able to again.