Judging Panel

Dame Lynne Brindley

Dame Lynne Brindley has been the Chief Executive of the British Library since July 2000. She is the first woman and the first information professional to have held the post. Since her appointment Lynne has led a major strategic development and modernisation programme to ensure that the BL remains relevant, innovative and accessible in the 21st century.

Lynne came to the British Library from the University of Leeds where she was Pro-Vice-Chancellor. Previously she was a senior consultant with KPMG and has held leadership positions in information technology and knowledge management at Aston University and at the London School of Economics.

Lynne is active in high level international, European and national bodies concerned with media and information society initiatives, digital infrastructure and libraries, and cultural and public sector leadership. She is a member of the Strategic Advisory Board for Intellectual Property (SABIP) which has a remit to give Ministers strategic advice on IP issues and the Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC).

She was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the New Year Honours List 2008 for services to education and the British Library.

Lynne enjoys music and is a competent pianist and enjoys buying modern art, particularly abstract landscapes and ceramics with Cornish influences; she likes to walk in the Yorkshire Dales and on the Cornish coastal footpath.