 She was the first woman to become not only chairman of the Royal Opera House, but also from 1996–2003, as chairman of the Policy and Resources Committee, she was effectively leader of the City of London Corporation.She served on a number of boards of educational and cultural institutions in recent years, including Birkbeck, University of London and Imperial College London.She is a trustee of the Imperial War Museum, and as a global trustee of the Urban Land Institute.