HISTORIAN

Wendy Beckett

1930 - 2018

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Wendy Mary Beckett (25 February 1930 – 26 December 2018), better known as Sister Wendy, was a British Catholic religious sister and art historian who became known internationally during the 1990s when she presented a series of BBC television documentaries on the history of art. Her programmes, such as Sister Wendy's Odyssey and Sister Wendy's Grand Tour, often drew a 25 percent share of the British viewing audience. In 1997 she made her debut on US public television, with The New York Times describing her as "a sometime hermit who is fast on her way to becoming the most unlikely and famous art critic in the history of television." Beckett was formerly a member of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. Read more on Wikipedia

Her biography is available in 17 different languages on Wikipedia. Wendy Beckett is the 549th most popular historian (up from 551st in 2024), the 272nd most popular biography from South Africa (up from 275th in 2019) and the 2nd most popular South African Historian.

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Among HISTORIANS

Among historians, Wendy Beckett ranks 549 out of 561. Before her are Christopher Clark, Gábor Kósa, Peter Heather, Oliver Grau, Andreas Umland, and Irfan Habib. After her are Janusz Kurtyka, Stephen Turnbull, Adam Tooze, Allan Lichtman, Stephen Kotkin, and Peeter Järvelaid.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1930, Wendy Beckett ranks 636. Before her are Leila Seth, Sally Ann Howes, K. Balachander, Joan Sims, Allison Hayes, and Timothy Findley. After her are Basu Chatterjee, Tom Mboya, Indrani Rahman, Ronnie Corbett, Bill Brock, and Grace Ogot. Among people deceased in 2018, Wendy Beckett ranks 584. Before her are Denis Ten, Harry Anderson, Maryon Pittman Allen, Samuel Bodman, Andreas Kappes, and Mark E. Smith. After her are Eric Bristow, Mathilde Krim, Carlos Ezquerra, Margaret Heckler, Robert Bergland, and Pete Shelley.

Others Born in 1930

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In South Africa

Among people born in South Africa, Wendy Beckett ranks 272 out of 454. Before her are Moira Lister (1923), Moses Sithole (1964), Letta Mbulu (1942), Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri (1937), Miriam Stockley (1962), and Tatjana Schoenmaker (1997). After her are Caster Semenya (1991), Aaron Mokoena (1980), Quinton Fortune (1977), Robbie Hunter (1977), Naledi Pandor (1953), and John Moshoeu (1965).

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Among HISTORIANS In South Africa

Among historians born in South Africa, Wendy Beckett ranks 2. Before her are Griselda Pollock (1949).

South African born Historians

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