Meredith Hooper has the rare, possibly unique, distinction of being selected as a writer in Antarctica by three government programmes - the US National Science Foundation Artists & Writers Program, twice; by the British Admiralty, travelling on HMS Endurance; and by the Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions. She has written a range of books and articles on Antarctica (general market, academic, children's). The Ferocious Summer was published in last August. Meredith Hooper is a UK Trustee of the Brussels-based International Polar Foundation, a Trustee of the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust and served as a juror on the British Antarctic Survey's Artists & Writers Programme. She was awarded the Antarctica Service Medal by the US Congress in 2000. Meredith was born in Australia and has been living in the UK since taking up a scholarship at Oxford to do post-graduate research.