Sensational scholars? Academics on TV

But is it possible for a scholar to manage the difficult balance between academic credibility and popular accessibility?

University of Exeter theologian, Professor Francesca Stavrakopoulou hosted the BBC documentary series Bible’s Buried Secrets, and regularly appears as an expert on TV programmes such as the BBC’s Big Questions. On Saturday 6 July at 11.15am in the Alumni Auditorium (Streatham Campus) she will talk about her experience of being an academic on TV.

Professor Stavrakopoulou’s research is on ancient Israelite and Judahite religions, and portrayals of the religious past in the Hebrew Bible.

She studied Theology at the University of Oxford, where she also completed her doctorate and spent a further three years teaching and researching in Oxford.  Her first post was as a Junior Research Fellow at Worcester College and then as the Career Development Fellow in the Faculty of Theology, before joining Exeter’s department of Theology and Religion in 2005. Professor Stavrakopoulou is also a Programme Director for the University’s Liberal Arts programme.

To attend register online, it is a free event and open to the public. The event forms part of the Andrew Stratton Convocation Lecture series and is on Saturday 6 July at 11:15am in the Forum buildings Alumni Auditorium, University of Exeter.