For someone whose life has been shaped by teaching, research, and a deep love of the past, returning to study at University of Cambridge Professional and Continuing Education (PACE) felt like a natural next step. Born and raised in Austria, she moved to the UK in 1989 and spent nearly three decades teaching German before retiring from the classroom to pursue the subject that had always captured her imagination: history.
Since 2016, she has built a remarkable career as an independent food historian, bringing the culinary world of the past to life. Her work spans television appearances - including Walking Tudor England with Professor Emerita Susannah Lipscomb and the French series Secrets d’Histoire - international speaking engagements, and research commissions for Historic Royal Palaces. Her first monograph, Eating with the Tudors, became a bestseller in both the UK and US and is now in its third print run. Alongside this, she contributes regularly to Tudor Places magazine, has recreated a full 1533 Tudor menu for 24 guests, and continues to share her expertise at conferences across Europe and the United States.
In 2025, she completed a Master of Arts with distinction in Early Modern History at the University of East Anglia, and she is now awaiting the outcome of her PhD proposal. She is also writing her second book, A Tudor Garden in Your Own Backyard, due for release in 2027.
Despite her achievements, her desire to keep learning remains central. “I have always wanted to research and work in history, but this choice wasn’t open to me in my younger years,” she said. “Now, as a mature student, I finally have the means and time to follow my dreams.”
She recently joined the weekend course A Question of Attribution: Finds, Fakes, and Forensics in the Museum World. Her motivation was simple: the freedom to pursue her interests wholeheartedly. “I am always keen to expand my knowledge and gain wider perspectives that may help my academic research,” she explained.
Cambridge was an easy choice, recommended by others and close to home, but the experience exceeded expectations in unexpected ways. One moment stood out in particular. “I have a ridiculously long list of unusual food intolerances, and I was taken aback that the chef was always happy to cook something extra for me,” she said. “It made me feel normal, and I didn’t need to eat in my room.”
As a self‑employed historian with grown‑up children, balancing study with life comes naturally. What she values most is the intellectual stimulation and the community of fellow mature learners. “The mature brain needs constant stimulation to keep it running at full capacity,” she said. “Any PACE course helps improve skills, broadens horizons, and introduces me to like‑minded people.”
Looking ahead, she hopes to begin her PhD at UEA this autumn, and she’s certain that more Cambridge PACE courses will follow. The experience has also shifted her perspective. “I had no idea just how many mature people are keen to expand their horizons later in life. Very encouraging.”
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