Barbara Sichtermann

Barbara Sichtermann (born 1943) is a German writer, journalist, and non-fiction author. After attending a drama school in Bochum and gaining theater experience in the Ruhr region, she studied social sciences and economics at the Free University of Berlin. From 1978 onward, she worked as a freelance author; between 1987 and 2002, she wrote a weekly television criticism column for the newspaper Die Zeit. Her essays and non-fiction books address topics including women’s politics, gender relations, literature, and the media. Her biographical works include Agatha Christie: A Biography, Mary Shelley, and, with Ingo Rose, The Blue Curtain: Isadora Duncan. In 2015, she received the Theodor Wolff Prize for lifetime achievement. She also served for 25 years as a juror for the Grimme Prize and from 2010 to 2012 on the jury of the Capital Cultural Fund.