Bristol University is awarding Honorary degrees to two prominent people at today’s degree ceremonies in the Wills Memorial Building.
Ms Jenni Murray, OBE, broadcaster, presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour, journalist and author, will be honoured with the degree of Doctor of Laws at the 11.15 am ceremony.
Jenni was born and educated in Barnsley, she graduated from Hull University with a degree in French and Drama.
After joining BBC Radio Bristol in 1973 Jenni went on to become a reporter and presenter for BBC TV's South Today, in 1983 she joined Newsnight. In 1985 Jenni moved to Radio 4 as a presenter for Woman’s Hour, which she has presented regularly since 1987.
In 1999 Jenni was awarded an OBE for her contribution to radio broadcasting and in March 2004 Woman’s Hour won the Television and Radio Industries Club award for the best radio programme. Jenni is also author of The Woman's Hour: A History of Women Since World War II and Is It Me or Is It Hot In Here: A Modern Woman's Guide to the Menopause.
Jenni was a weekly columnist for The Daily Express from 1998 to 2000 and currently writes for various newspapers and magazines, including The Daily Mail.
Terry Pratchett, OBE, author, will be honoured with the degree of Doctor of Letters at the 2.30 pm ceremony.
Terry Pratchett was born in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire. After leaving school with five O-levels he joined the Buckinghamshire Free Press to begin a career in journalism. Whilst he was there he wrote his first book, The Carpet People.
In 1980 Terry started working on The Colour of Magic. This was to be the first in a sequence of novels set in the fictional Discworld, which are among his best-known works.
In 1998 Terry was awarded an OBE for his services to literature. Terry is one of the decade's best-selling living fiction author in Britain, with over twelve million sales. During the four years' existence of the British BookTrack's weekly bestselling chart, over 60 titles were constantly in the top 5,000 bestselling titles, and the author with the most titles in this listing is Terry with twelve, namely The Colour of Magic, Guards! Guards!, Pyramids, Soul Music, The Light Fantastic, Reaper Man, Interesting Times, Sourcery, Men At Arms, Equal Rites, Mort and Wyrd Sisters.