Iris Murdoch was an Irish-born British writer and philosopher. In addition to her philosophical works, Murdoch published several novels which explored morality and sexuality. In 1995 Murdoch was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. She died, aged 79, in 1999.

Some of her more well-known books are The Black Prince and The Sea, the Sea. She was portrayed by Kate Winslet and Judi Dench in the film, Iris.

• 1948: Murdoch starts as a fellow at St. Anne's College, Oxford, where she taught philosophy until 1963.
• In 1954, she published her first novel, Under the Net
• 1987: Murdoch was made a Dame of the British Empire
• 1995: She begins to suffer from Alzheimer's disease
• 1999: Iris Murdoch dies

• 1954: Under the Net

• 1973: The Black Prince

• 1977: The Fire and the Sun: Why Plato Banished the Artists

• 1978: The Sea, the Sea

• 1995: Jacksons Dilemma