Sarah Connell is the byline of the Who Shares My Birthday Cultural History desk. The desk writes our profiles of political leaders, monarchs, military commanders, judges and lawyers, religious figures and philosophers: the people whose decisions and ideas shaped nations and beliefs.

Every profile on this desk places a life in its historical setting, explains what changed because of that person and sets out both their achievements and the criticism they faced. Facts, dates and quotations are checked against published reference sources before a profile goes live, and each one follows the same written editorial standard used across the site. It favours clear explanation over jargon, so that readers with no background in a subject can follow why a reign, a war or a court ruling still matters.