Eric Ives studied at London University and Yale, and has held academic posts at the Universities of Birmingham, and Liverpool. He returned to Birmingham and in 1984 was elected Professor of English History. He was subsequently elected  Dean of Arts, then Pro-Vice-Chancellor (responsible for academic affairs). He finally returned to teaching as Head of the Department of Modern History. He was presented by the Queen with the Order of the British Empire in 2000 for services to History and the University of Birmingham. His most recent books include The Life and Death of Anne Boleyn (Wiley-Blackwell, 2004), The First Civic University: Birmingham 1880-1980 (University of Birmingham, 2000), and Henry VIII (OUP, 2007).  Lady Jane Grey: a Tudor Mystery, will be published by Wiley-Blackwell in October 2009.