Martha Lane Fox

Co-Founder of lastminute.com, Internet Boom Star of the 1990s

Martha Lane Fox

Co-Founder of lastminute.com, Internet Boom Star of the 1990s

Martha Lane-Fox is the Internet boom star of the 1990s. She is co-founder of Lastminute.com and came to epitomise the new breed of internet entrpreneurs in London. After her BA in ancient and modern history at University of Oxford, Martha founded Lastminute.com together with Brent Hoberman and loated it on the stock market two years later. In 2003 she stood down as Managing Director of her company, remaining non-executive director. She co-founded and chairs Lucky Voice, a private karaoke bar group, revolutionising the karaoke industry and in 2003 she took over the day-to-day running of business of Selfridges. In 2009, she was appointed the UK Government's Digital Inclusion Champion to head a two year campaign to make the British public more computer literate. By the beginning of 2011 the Race Online 2012 campaign had over 1000 partners pledging to reach almost two million adults. In 2010 her government role was expanded when it was announced that she would set up a new Digital Public Services Unit within the Cabinet Office. In June 2010, the new Government asked Lane Fox to expand her role as UK Digital Champion advising how online public services delivery can help to provide better, and more efficient services as well as getting more people online. She was invited to sit on Cabinet Office's Efficiency and Reform Board. In November 2013 she resigned as UK Digital Champion. Martha was made a CBE in the New Year Honours List 2013. In March 2013, she was appointed a crossbench peer in the House of Lords, becoming the youngest female member, taking the title Baroness Lane-Fox of Soho. In 2015 Lane Fox founded Doteveryone, a think tank focused on championing responsible technology for all. In addition to Doteveryone, Lane Fox is a House of Lords crossbench peer, Chancellor at the Open University and a board member at Twitter. She is a Non-Executive Director at Chanel, Donmar Warehouse and the Queen's Commonwealth Trust. Lane Fox previously held posts at Channel 4, Marks & Spencer and charities including her own grant-giving foundation, Antigone.

About Martha Lane Fox

Martha Lane-Fox is the Internet boom star of the 1990s. She is co-founder of Lastminute.com and came to epitomise the new breed of internet entrpreneurs in London.

After her BA in ancient and modern history at University of Oxford, Martha founded Lastminute.com together with Brent Hoberman and loated it on the stock market two years later. In 2003 she stood down as Managing Director of her company, remaining non-executive director.

She co-founded and chairs Lucky Voice, a private karaoke bar group, revolutionising the karaoke industry and in 2003 she took over the day-to-day running of business of Selfridges. In 2009, she was appointed the UK Government's Digital Inclusion Champion to head a two year campaign to make the British public more computer literate. By the beginning of 2011 the Race Online 2012 campaign had over 1000 partners pledging to reach almost two million adults. In 2010 her government role was expanded when it was announced that she would set up a new Digital Public Services Unit within the Cabinet Office. In June 2010, the new Government asked Lane Fox to expand her role as UK Digital Champion advising how online public services delivery can help to provide better, and more efficient services as well as getting more people online. She was invited to sit on Cabinet Office's Efficiency and Reform Board. In November 2013 she resigned as UK Digital Champion.

Martha was made a CBE in the New Year Honours List 2013. In March 2013, she was appointed a crossbench peer in the House of Lords, becoming the youngest female member, taking the title Baroness Lane-Fox of Soho.

In 2015 Lane Fox founded Doteveryone, a think tank focused on championing responsible technology for all. In addition to Doteveryone, Lane Fox is a House of Lords crossbench peer, Chancellor at the Open University and a board member at Twitter. She is a Non-Executive Director at Chanel, Donmar Warehouse and the Queen's Commonwealth Trust. Lane Fox previously held posts at Channel 4, Marks & Spencer and charities including her own grant-giving foundation, Antigone.

Topics

  • Fighting for a Fairer Internet
  • The digital world is having a mid-life crisis
  • The Good, The Bad and The Internet