John Henderson

John Henderson is a British classicist and author long associated with the University of Cambridge and King’s College, Cambridge. He taught in Cambridge’s Faculty of Classics for many years and became especially well known for work on Latin literature, classical art, and the culture of the ancient world.

His books range from scholarly studies of Roman authors to more accessible works for general readers. He co-wrote Classics: A Very Short Introduction with Mary Beard and has also written widely on writers such as Juvenal, Seneca, and Pliny, as well as on Roman history, satire, and visual culture.

What makes his writing stand out is its energy. Even when he is tackling difficult ancient texts, he has a reputation for making them feel alive, playful, and worth arguing with.