She earned an English MA on Jacobean drama (specifically on the masques of Inigo Jones) at University College London in 1951.

She met Tony Benn over tea at Worcester College, Oxford, in 1948, and just nine days later he proposed to her on a park bench in the city.

In 1970, she wrote alongside Professor Brian Simon, Halfway There – the definitive study of the progress of comprehensive reform in the UK.

Benn played a significant role in her husband's political career, earning popularity among his colleagues who respected her views.

[4] She became increasingly frail during 2000, having developed spinal metastases, and died at Charing Cross Hospital, London, on 22 November 2000, aged 74.