Revered classicist and art historian Dame Mary Beard has revealed she was the victim of vicious online trolling.
The Cambridge-based classicist, 69, who once said Kate Middleton had become a “motherly, doll-like, precious vessel”, said she had to report numerous death threats received on X, formerly Twitter.
Often described as “Britain’s best-known classic”, Mary has become accustomed to abuse on social media, which she regularly reports to the police to be proactive and avoid tragedies for herself and her family.
The television historian claimed her often controversial beliefs were not the reason for the abuse on social media, but simply the fact that she speaks out.
In a conversation with Radio schedules, she said: “When I first received abuse on Twitter/X, I thought it was because I said something to annoy them. So I stepped up and said, “You misunderstood me.
Cambridge professor Dame Mary Beard revealed she was receiving abuse and death threats online (seen with her OBE for services to classical scholarship after receiving the award in 2013).
“But I quickly realized it wasn’t the content that was the problem, it was just what I was talking about.
“I reported death threats because they cannot be ignored. If something happens to you or your children, there’s no point in telling the police afterwards, “Oh, I thought it wasn’t serious.”
Last year, the network said it was important to report gossip about the state of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s marriage because it would serve as a historical record of what people are talking about.
“I read they were getting divorced,” said the Cambridge classic.
“Maybe they are, maybe they aren’t, but it’s pretty much the same kind of gossip” (like in Roman times).
Promoting her new book, Emperor of Rome, she added: “Before anyone thinks I’m trivializing it, gossip is very important… from a historical point of view.”
Years before, Mary made headlines after claiming that the Princess of Wales had become a “motherly, doll-like, precious vessel”, but in 2018 she accepted ladyship from her husband, the Prince William.
She appeared to put her 2014 words behind her by offering to become the personal Latin tutor to the Prince and Princess of Wales’ three children as she collected her award at Buckingham Palace.
The mother of two regularly reports death threats on social media to prevent her family from being harmed.
In conversation with Radio Times, Mary revealed she was the victim of online trolling on social media.
The broadcaster, well known for its documentaries and appearances on the BBC, said it would do “anything” to ensure Princes George and Louis, as well as Princess Charlotte, grow up with an understanding of the ancient Roman language.
Speaking moments after receiving the honor for services to the study of classical civilization from William at Buckingham Palace, Dame Mary told the Press Association: “Well, I hope he was listening. Of course, he was very polite and said, “I’m going to have to ask you to teach them,” and I said, “Anything!”
She joked: “I didn’t really say, ‘Make the little bastards learn Latin…’ but I said let’s make them learn it because it’s very important.
“It’s important to know where we come from and where we come from, and for people to have access to some of the most extraordinary and influential literature in world culture.
“That kind of direct connection to something so influential written so long ago is, I think, terribly important.
“Of course, because it was a very happy and joyous time when we were friends, he left me with the strong impression that his children were going to learn Latin.
“But he had to do it. It would be rude of him – and I’m sure he wouldn’t – to say, “Well, we’ve looked into this and we really think it’s a waste of time.”
” Who did that ? In part, it was constructed. In part, she took a job that has its pros and cons.
His comments followed Hilary Mantel’s controversial comparison of Kate to a “window mannequin”.
The Booker Prize-winning novelist sparked outrage when she described the future queen as “shiny varnish” with a perfect plastic smile during a lecture at the British Museum last year.
The Cambridge University professor also previously said that she herself had “a republican touch” about her, but felt much more comfortable accepting the honor now that she was ” older and wiser.”
The 69-year-old said at the time: “If someone had told me at 23 that I would accept the title of Lady of the British Empire, I would have said: ‘Sorry, darling, that is not the aim of my policy.
“But I’ve grown older and wiser, and I think it seems a strange title – a mix of pantomime, because the ladies are walking around on stage, aren’t they? – and we no longer have an empire.
“It makes it quaint, charming and doesn’t have these political elements attached to it.”
The academic married art historian Robin Cormack in 1985. They have a daughter, Zoe, and a son, Raphael.