Christopher Brendan Reginald Pelling is the Regius Professor of Greek

Regius Professor of Greek (Oxford)

The Regius Professorship of Greek is a professorship at the University of Oxford in England.Henry VIII founded the chair by 1541. He established five Regius Professorships in the University , the others being the Regius chairs of Divinity, Medicine, Civil Law and Hebrew.-List of holders:* John...

, Faculty of Classics at Christ Church, Oxford

Christ Church, Oxford

Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...

. He is President of the Hellenic Society

Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies

The Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies, known as the Hellenic Society, was founded in 1879 to advance the study of Greek language, literature, history, art and archaeology in the Ancient, Byzantine and Modern periods....

 and is a representative for the Society at the Institute of Classical Studies Advisory Council.

His research interests range over Greek and Latin historiography

Historiography

Historiography refers either to the study of the history and methodology of history as a discipline, or to a body of historical work on a specialized topic...

 and biography

Biography

A biography is a detailed description or account of someone's life. More than a list of basic facts , biography also portrays the subject's experience of those events...

, and also over other areas of Greek literature

Greek literature

Greek literature refers to writings composed in areas of Greek influence, typically though not necessarily in one of the Greek dialects, throughout the whole period in which the Greek-speaking people have existed.-Ancient Greek literature :...

, especially tragedy.

Biography

In the 1970s Pelling was a Senior Scholar at Christ Church and then spent twenty-nine years as Fellow and Praelector

Praelector

A praelector is a traditional role at the colleges of the University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford. The role differs between the two universities.At Cambridge, a praelector is a fellow of a college...

 in Classics at University College, Oxford

University College, Oxford

.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...

. He broke new ground through applying literary analysis to historical texts, ranging from Tacitus to Plutarch. At the same time, he was a generous tutor, well regarded by students. He returned to Christ Church in 2003 when he became Regius Professor

Regius Professor

Regius Professorships are "royal" professorships at the ancient universities of the United Kingdom and Ireland - namely Oxford, Cambridge, St Andrews, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Dublin. Each of the chairs was created by a monarch, and each appointment, save those at Dublin, is approved by the...

 of Greek.

Radio and TV appearances

• 2008-01-07, BBC Radio 3
  BBC Radio 3
  BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
  
  , The Essay – Greek And Latin Voices

Chris Pelling (series co-anchor) explores how Thucydides

Thucydides

Thucydides was a Greek historian and author from Alimos. His History of the Peloponnesian War recounts the 5th century BC war between Sparta and Athens to the year 411 BC...

's work on the Peloponnesian War

Peloponnesian War

The Peloponnesian War, 431 to 404 BC, was an ancient Greek war fought by Athens and its empire against the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta. Historians have traditionally divided the war into three phases...

 furthers people's understanding of contemporary warfare, from Vietnam to Iraq.http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2007/11_november/29/essay.shtml

• 1997-12-16, BBC 2, Timewatch
  Timewatch
  Timewatch is a long-running British television series showing documentaries on historical subjects, spanning all human history. It was first broadcast on 29th September 1982 and is produced by the BBC, the Timewatch brandname is used as a banner title in the UK, but many of the individual...
  
   - In Search of Cleopatra

External links

• Business card at Oxford University
• Bryn Mawr Classical Review Book review for Characterization and Individuality in Greek Literature