Bettany Hughes

From HVS Award PR: “I am indeed entirely thrilled by the decision of the jury of the European Award for Raising Public Awareness on Cultural Heritage, which is named after the late Portuguese cultural activist Helena Vaz da Silva. This is a most wonderful surprise and I am truly honoured both by the choice and by the association with Helena Vaz da Silva. This inspires me to re-double my efforts to strive to support, celebrate and save Europe’s heritage”.

From Creative Session news item: “In the early 1990s during my first meeting at the BBC, a producer said to me: ‘Nobody is interested in history anymore; nobody watches history TV programmes anymore; and, last but not least, nobody wants to be lectured by a woman. I think it is fair to say that this producer was proven wrong! We understand the world by telling relevant stories. Making television programmes requires an incredible exercise of comprising ideas into its essence. It is a very challenging yet very reinvigorating way of telling our shared stories. It give us an unrivalled opportunity to reach brand-new audiences. From Prehistory onwards, Europe has not been an institution, it is a space where ideas can be exchanged and nourished without borders or boundaries. Heritage and history help us to remember and to think better. ‘To peace and to life’ feels to me a pretty good motto for the European Year of Cultural Heritage. What should be given to Europe is peace and life.”

Bettany Hughes

Historian, author and broadcaster (United Kingdom)