Nesta Pain (1905–1995)

Nesta Pain was the working name of Florence Nesta Kathleen Pain, née Taylor, born to a prominent family in the Wirral peninsula in northwest England. She attended West Heath Girls' School in Kent, and then earned a first-class degree in classics at the University of Liverpool, followed by a year of doctoral studies in comparative philology at Oxford University. In 1926, she married Cord Pain, with whom she had a daughter. In 1942, during World War II, Nesta left her husband and moved to London under the Blitz with her daughter, then aged 15. She joined the staff of the BBC, where her work considerably enlarged the range of programming during her nearly 30 years at the organization. She was a woman who moved between genres, media, and nations.
A key member of the Features Department, Nesta's strong historical interest inspired her to create numerous programs that used the letters and language of the period to bring real-life incidents and characters to life. Her television work, from 1956 onwards, included producing and directing documentaries on Queen Victoria, Byron, and Nelson.
She also wrote books, including The King and Becket (1964); Empress Mathilda: Uncrowned Queen of England (1978); George III at Home (1975); and works on many other topics including insects, Louis Pasteur, and the science of dieting (slimming).


She also wrote short plays and several son et lumiere productions, as well as tapes for the Science Museum.