Alice Roberts
Encyclopedia
Alice May Roberts is an English
anatomist
, osteoarchaeologist
, anthropologist, television presenter, and author.
Best known for her TV appearances in the BBC
series Coast
, Dr Alice Roberts: Don't Die Young, and The Incredible Human Journey
, she has also appeared as an expert osteoarchaeologist on the Channel 4
television series Time Team
and its spin-off show Extreme Archaeology, as well as presenting the BBC series, Digging for Britain
(2010).
in Westbury-on-Trym, in the north of Bristol. She was a medical student at University of Wales College of Medicine
(then part of the University of Wales
, now part of Cardiff University
) and qualified in 1997 as a medical doctor with a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MB BCh) having gained an intercalated
Bachelor of Science (BSc)
in anatomy
.
with the National Health Service
in South Wales for 18 months. In 1998 she left clinical medicine and worked as an anatomy demonstrator in the Anatomy Department at the University of Bristol
, becoming a lecturer there in 1999. She spent more than seven years working part-time on her Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
in paleopathology
, the study of disease in ancient human remains. She worked as Senior Teaching Fellow at the University of Bristol Centre for Comparative and Clinical Anatomy where her main roles were teaching clinical anatomy
, embryology
, and physical anthropology
, as well as researching osteoarchaeology
and paleopathology. She stated in 2009 that she was working towards becoming a professor of anatomy.
Since August 2009 has been a Visiting Fellow in both the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology and the Department of Anatomy of the University of Bristol
. She is currently the Director of Anatomy for the National Health Service
Severn Deanery Postgraduate School of Surgery, and is also an Honorary Fellow of Hull York Medical School
.
2001 episode, working on Anglo-Saxon
burials at Breamore
, Hampshire
. She has since served as a bone specialist and general presenter in many episodes, including the spin-off series Extreme Archaeology. In August 2006, the Time Team special episode Big Royal Dig investigated the archaeology of Britain's royal palaces, and Roberts was one of the main presenters for this programme. She is also one of the regular co-presenters of BBC geographical and environmental series Coast
.
Now a familiar face on British TV, Alice Roberts wrote and presented a BBC Two
series on anatomy and health entitled Dr Alice Roberts: Don't Die Young, which screened from January 2007. More recently, she presented a five-part BBC Two series on human evolution
and early human migrations
entitled The Incredible Human Journey, beginning on 10 May 2009. She is now working on a second series on human migration. In September 2009, she co-presented (with Mark Hamilton) A Necessary Evil?, one-hour documentary about Burke and Hare murders. In August 2010 she presented another one-hour documentary on BBC Four
, Wild Swimming, inspired by Roger Deakin
’s book Waterlog. Roberts presented a six-part BBC Two series on archaeology in August–September 2010, Digging For Britain
.
In March 2011 she presented a BBC documentary in the Horizon series entitled Are We Still Evolving? She also presented the series Origins of Us
, which aired on BBC Two
in October 2011, examining how the human body has adapted
through seven million years of evolution
. The last part of this series featured Roberts visiting the Rift Valley
. She also mentioned species related to homo sapiens, such as Homo Habilis
and Homo Neanderthalis. The programme mentioned how the Neanderthals might have used more sophisticated tools than was at one time believed.
in 1997 when she was a medical student and he was an archaeology student. She is a vegetarian and not religious.
Her conspicuous dyed red hair (its precise shade varies at different times from a comparatively subtle brown with mild copper tint to bright orange) was often commented on by viewers – in more recent TV appearances her hair colour has changed to a more natural look. She enjoys watercolour painting, surfing
, cycling, gardening and pub
quizzes. She owns an old lime green Volkswagen
van which has appeared in some episodes of Coast, and which she bought second-hand
from Mick Aston
, professor of landscape archaeology at the University of Bristol and lead archaeologist of the Time Team TV series.
Roberts is an organiser of the Cheltenham Science Festival
and school outreach programmes within the University of Bristol's Medical Sciences Division. In March 2007, she hosted the Bristol Medical School
's charity dance show Clicendales 2007, to raise funds for the charity CLIC Sargent
.
Roberts took her baby daughter with her when touring for the six-months filming of Digging for Britain.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
anatomist
Anatomy
Anatomy is a branch of biology and medicine that is the consideration of the structure of living things. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy , and plant anatomy...
, osteoarchaeologist
Bioarchaeology
The term bioarchaeology was first coined by British archaeologist Grahame Clark in 1972 as a reference to zooarchaeology, or the study of animal bones from archaeological sites...
, anthropologist, television presenter, and author.
Best known for her TV appearances in the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
series Coast
Coast (TV series)
Coast is a BBC documentary series first broadcast on BBC Two television in 2005. A second series started on 26 October 2006, a third in early 2007 and a fourth in mid-2009...
, Dr Alice Roberts: Don't Die Young, and The Incredible Human Journey
The Incredible Human Journey
The Incredible Human Journey is a five-episode science documentary and accompanying book, written and presented by Alice Roberts. It was first broadcast on BBC television in May and June 2009 in the UK. It explains the evidence for the theory of early human migrations out of Africa and subsequently...
, she has also appeared as an expert osteoarchaeologist on the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
television series Time Team
Time Team
Time Team is a British television series which has been aired on Channel 4 since 1994. Created by television producer Tim Taylor and presented by actor Tony Robinson, each episode features a team of specialists carrying out an archaeological dig over a period of three days, with Robinson explaining...
and its spin-off show Extreme Archaeology, as well as presenting the BBC series, Digging for Britain
Digging for Britain
Digging For Britain is a television series on archaeology made by 360 Production for the BBC, starting in August 2010. It is presented by Dr Alice Roberts....
(2010).
Early life and education
Roberts was born in Bristol in 1973 and attended The Red Maids' SchoolRed Maids' School
The Red Maids' School is an independent school for girls in Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol. The school is a member of the Girls' Schools Association and a MyDaughter school.-History:...
in Westbury-on-Trym, in the north of Bristol. She was a medical student at University of Wales College of Medicine
University of Wales College of Medicine
The University of Wales College of Medicine was a medical school based in the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff, that formed a part of the University of Wales...
(then part of the University of Wales
University of Wales
The University of Wales was a confederal university founded in 1893. It had accredited institutions throughout Wales, and formerly accredited courses in Britain and abroad, with over 100,000 students, but in October 2011, after a number of scandals, it withdrew all accreditation, and it was...
, now part of Cardiff University
Cardiff University
Cardiff University is a leading research university located in the Cathays Park area of Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom. It received its Royal charter in 1883 and is a member of the Russell Group of Universities. The university is consistently recognised as providing high quality research-based...
) and qualified in 1997 as a medical doctor with a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MB BCh) having gained an intercalated
Intercalation (university administration)
Intercalation, in the context of university administration, is a period when a student is officially suspended from studying for an academic degree. The grounds for intercalation to be granted are varied, though most commonly they are on compassionate or medical grounds...
Bachelor of Science (BSc)
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
in anatomy
Anatomy
Anatomy is a branch of biology and medicine that is the consideration of the structure of living things. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy , and plant anatomy...
.
Academic career
After graduating in 1997, Roberts worked in clinical medicine as a junior doctorJunior doctor
Junior doctors in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland are those in postgraduate training, starting at graduation with a medical degree and culminating in a post as a Consultant, a General Practitioner, or some other non-training post, such as a Staff grade or Associate Specialist...
with the National Health Service
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
in South Wales for 18 months. In 1998 she left clinical medicine and worked as an anatomy demonstrator in the Anatomy Department at the University of Bristol
University of Bristol
The University of Bristol is a public research university located in Bristol, United Kingdom. One of the so-called "red brick" universities, it received its Royal Charter in 1909, although its predecessor institution, University College, Bristol, had been in existence since 1876.The University is...
, becoming a lecturer there in 1999. She spent more than seven years working part-time on her Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
in paleopathology
Paleopathology
Paleopathology, also spelled palaeopathology, is the study of ancient diseases. It is useful in understanding the past history of diseases, and uses this understanding to predict its course in the future.- History of paleopathology :...
, the study of disease in ancient human remains. She worked as Senior Teaching Fellow at the University of Bristol Centre for Comparative and Clinical Anatomy where her main roles were teaching clinical anatomy
Anatomy
Anatomy is a branch of biology and medicine that is the consideration of the structure of living things. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy , and plant anatomy...
, embryology
Embryology
Embryology is a science which is about the development of an embryo from the fertilization of the ovum to the fetus stage...
, and physical anthropology
Physical anthropology
Biological anthropology is that branch of anthropology that studies the physical development of the human species. It plays an important part in paleoanthropology and in forensic anthropology...
, as well as researching osteoarchaeology
Bioarchaeology
The term bioarchaeology was first coined by British archaeologist Grahame Clark in 1972 as a reference to zooarchaeology, or the study of animal bones from archaeological sites...
and paleopathology. She stated in 2009 that she was working towards becoming a professor of anatomy.
Since August 2009 has been a Visiting Fellow in both the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology and the Department of Anatomy of the University of Bristol
University of Bristol
The University of Bristol is a public research university located in Bristol, United Kingdom. One of the so-called "red brick" universities, it received its Royal Charter in 1909, although its predecessor institution, University College, Bristol, had been in existence since 1876.The University is...
. She is currently the Director of Anatomy for the National Health Service
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
Severn Deanery Postgraduate School of Surgery, and is also an Honorary Fellow of Hull York Medical School
Hull York Medical School
The Hull York Medical School , is a medical school in England which took its first intake of students in 2003. The school was opened as a part of the British Government's attempts to train more doctors, which also saw Brighton and Sussex Medical School, Peninsula Medical School and University of...
.
TV career
A presenter on various science documentary programmes, Roberts first appeared on television in the Time Team LiveTime Team
Time Team is a British television series which has been aired on Channel 4 since 1994. Created by television producer Tim Taylor and presented by actor Tony Robinson, each episode features a team of specialists carrying out an archaeological dig over a period of three days, with Robinson explaining...
2001 episode, working on Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
burials at Breamore
Breamore
Breamore is a village and civil parish near Fordingbridge in Hampshire, England. The toponym is pronounced "Bremmer", not "Bree-moor" as might be supposed. The parish includes a notable Elizabethan country house, Breamore House, built with an E-shaped ground plan...
, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
. She has since served as a bone specialist and general presenter in many episodes, including the spin-off series Extreme Archaeology. In August 2006, the Time Team special episode Big Royal Dig investigated the archaeology of Britain's royal palaces, and Roberts was one of the main presenters for this programme. She is also one of the regular co-presenters of BBC geographical and environmental series Coast
Coast (TV series)
Coast is a BBC documentary series first broadcast on BBC Two television in 2005. A second series started on 26 October 2006, a third in early 2007 and a fourth in mid-2009...
.
Now a familiar face on British TV, Alice Roberts wrote and presented a BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
series on anatomy and health entitled Dr Alice Roberts: Don't Die Young, which screened from January 2007. More recently, she presented a five-part BBC Two series on human evolution
Human evolution
Human evolution refers to the evolutionary history of the genus Homo, including the emergence of Homo sapiens as a distinct species and as a unique category of hominids and mammals...
and early human migrations
Early human migrations
Early human migrations began when Homo erectus first migrated out of Africa over the Levantine corridor and Horn of Africa to Eurasia about 1.8 million years ago, a migration probably sparked by the development of language Early human migrations began when Homo erectus first migrated out of Africa...
entitled The Incredible Human Journey, beginning on 10 May 2009. She is now working on a second series on human migration. In September 2009, she co-presented (with Mark Hamilton) A Necessary Evil?, one-hour documentary about Burke and Hare murders. In August 2010 she presented another one-hour documentary on BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
, Wild Swimming, inspired by Roger Deakin
Roger Deakin
Roger Stuart Deakin was an English writer, documentary-maker and environmentalist.Deakin was born in Watford, Hertfordshire. Educated at Haberdashers' Aske's and Peterhouse, Cambridge, where he read English, Deakin first worked in advertising as a copywriter and creative director...
’s book Waterlog. Roberts presented a six-part BBC Two series on archaeology in August–September 2010, Digging For Britain
Digging for Britain
Digging For Britain is a television series on archaeology made by 360 Production for the BBC, starting in August 2010. It is presented by Dr Alice Roberts....
.
In March 2011 she presented a BBC documentary in the Horizon series entitled Are We Still Evolving? She also presented the series Origins of Us
Origins of Us
Origins of Us is a British television series documentary series shown on BBC Two. It is about human evolution and is presented by Alice Roberts.It consists of three episodes, each an hour long.*Episode 1: air date 17 October 2011 - Bones...
, which aired on BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
in October 2011, examining how the human body has adapted
Adaptation
An adaptation in biology is a trait with a current functional role in the life history of an organism that is maintained and evolved by means of natural selection. An adaptation refers to both the current state of being adapted and to the dynamic evolutionary process that leads to the adaptation....
through seven million years of evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
. The last part of this series featured Roberts visiting the Rift Valley
Rift Valley
In order of specificity, Rift Valley can refer to:*a rift valley in general*the Great Rift Valley*the Rift Valley fever*the valley of the East African Rift*Rift Valley Province, Kenya and border with Uganda...
. She also mentioned species related to homo sapiens, such as Homo Habilis
Homo habilis
Homo habilis is a species of the genus Homo, which lived from approximately at the beginning of the Pleistocene period. The discovery and description of this species is credited to both Mary and Louis Leakey, who found fossils in Tanzania, East Africa, between 1962 and 1964. Homo habilis Homo...
and Homo Neanderthalis. The programme mentioned how the Neanderthals might have used more sophisticated tools than was at one time believed.
Personal life
Roberts lives near Bristol with her daughter and husband, whom she met in CardiffCardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
in 1997 when she was a medical student and he was an archaeology student. She is a vegetarian and not religious.
Her conspicuous dyed red hair (its precise shade varies at different times from a comparatively subtle brown with mild copper tint to bright orange) was often commented on by viewers – in more recent TV appearances her hair colour has changed to a more natural look. She enjoys watercolour painting, surfing
Surfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...
, cycling, gardening and pub
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
quizzes. She owns an old lime green Volkswagen
Volkswagen Type 2 (T3)
The Volkswagen Type 2 was the third generation of the Volkswagen Transporter and was marketed under various nameplates worldwide – including as the Transporter or Caravelle in Europe, Microbus in South Africa and as the Vanagon in North and South America.Larger and heavier than its...
van which has appeared in some episodes of Coast, and which she bought second-hand
Second-Hand
Second-Hand was a 2005 Romanian film directed by Dan Piţa.-Plot summary:The film's plot surrounds the romantic involvement of two contrasting characters: Petre , a Mafioso, and Andreea , a young violin player. The pair meet and fall in love...
from Mick Aston
Mick Aston
Professor Michael Antony 'Mick' Aston is a prominent English archaeologist. As an academic, he has taught at a number of universities across the United Kingdom, and has helped popularise the discipline amongst the British public by appearing as the resident academic on the Channel 4 television...
, professor of landscape archaeology at the University of Bristol and lead archaeologist of the Time Team TV series.
Roberts is an organiser of the Cheltenham Science Festival
Cheltenham Science Festival
The Cheltenham Science Festival is one of the UK's leading science festivals, and is part of Cheltenham Festivals: also responsible for the Jazz, Music and Literature Festivals that run every year.-Introduction and History:...
and school outreach programmes within the University of Bristol's Medical Sciences Division. In March 2007, she hosted the Bristol Medical School
Bristol Medical School
Bristol Medical School was a medical institution which existed from 1833 to 1893. It later became amalgamated with University College, Bristol the predecessor institution to the University of Bristol....
's charity dance show Clicendales 2007, to raise funds for the charity CLIC Sargent
CLIC Sargent
CLIC Sargent is charity in the United Kingdom that was formed by the merger of Sargent Cancer Care for Children and Cancer and Leukaemia in Childhood in 2005. The charity specializes in providing support for children with cancer....
.
Roberts took her baby daughter with her when touring for the six-months filming of Digging for Britain.
External links
- Alice Roberts' personal website
- Alice Roberts' Facebook page
- University of Bristol, Department of Anatomy
- Channel 4 – Time Team biography
- Channel 4 – Extreme Archaeology biography
- 'Alice's Inspiration' – BBC Science Week 2009 interview
- Interview with Alice Roberts for the Journal of Unlikely Science
- Journey of Mankind Genetic Map - the science behind the BBC Documentary 'The Incredible Human Journey' with Dr Alice Roberts
- Roberts interviewed by Robert LlewellynRobert LlewellynRobert Llewellyn is an English actor, presenter, and writer. He is best known as the mechanoid Kryten in the hit sitcom Red Dwarf, and for his role as presenter of Scrapheap Challenge.-Early career:...
on CarpoolCarpool (web series)Carpool is a web series presented by English actor and comedian Robert Llewellyn. In each episode he interviews a guest while giving them a lift in an eco-friendly car . The guests are often well-known British television personalities such as Jonathan Ross or Ade Edmondson...
, 25 September 2009