Series: The Q&A  Q&A: Mary Beard  'My parents hid from me the
idea that some people didn't believe women equal to men' Mary
Beard Mary Beard: 'When was I happiest? I'm always happiest
now.' Photograph: Karen Robinson  Mary Beard was born in 1955
and raised in Shrewsbury. She read classics at Newnham College,
Cambridge, and later became professor of classics and a fellow
of Newnham College. Her books include Pompeii, which won the
2008 Wolfson History Prize and was made into a documentary.
Her television series Meet The Romans was broadcast on BBC2
last year. Her new book is Confronting The Classics. She is
married with two children and lives in Cambridge.  When were you
happiest? I'm always happiest now.  What is your greatest fear?
Being dead, or losing a child.  What is your earliest memory?
The fierce dog that stood between me and the outside lavatory in
my first house.  Which living person do you most admire, and
why? I have lots of heroes and heroines, mostly unsung and
including my husband.  What is the