DO WE NEED HEROES?

From Wonder Woman to Obi Wan Kenobi, David Attenborough to the Suffragettes, we all love heroes - but what exactly makes a hero? Mary Beard meets one-time Children’s Laureate - and Stormzy’s favourite - author Mallorie Blackman. She’s created a few heroic characters in her time - but her heroes aren’t perfect, they’re people who manage to overcome obstacles to do what’s right. But if our modern day heroes are a bit complicated, they’re nothing compared to ancient ones. We go on a whistle stop tour of some of the strange and un-heroic antics of ancient Greek heroes - from Odysseus who triumphs at the expense of a lot of people, to Theseus who abandons his girlfriend on an island, to Hercules and Medea who both kill several members of their family. In Ancient Greece a hero is someone who achieves greatness, but also someone who goes too far - in short, they’re complicated! Expert in ancient heroes, Simon Goldhill thinks heroes help us question what’s actually normal for humans - perhaps we need heroes because they teach us about ourselves?