Key Takeaways
- Dame Stephanie Shirley has died aged 91.
- Shirley founded Freelance Programmers in 1962, a groundbreaking software company employing mostly women.
- After retiring from business in 1993, she gave away most of her fortune to causes in science, technology and the arts.
Dame Stephanie “Steve” Shirley, the refugee-turned-software magnate who transformed Britain’s technology sector and expanded opportunities for women in computing, has died aged 91.
The news of her passing was confirmed by her official team, who said she died on Saturday, August 9, following a short illness.
Dame Stephanie Shirley Dies
In a statement on her website, Shirley’s team described her as a woman who was “determined to live ‘a life worth saving.’”
They added: “She fulfilled that promise many times over – pioneering innovation, championing causes close to her heart, and transforming countless lives through her generosity and vision.”
Ryan Campbell, CEO of Prior’s Court, the residential school for young people with complex autism founded by Shirley, paid tribute to her influence.
“Steve will forever be the inspiration for what we do,” he said.
The statement concluded: “Though she will be deeply missed, Steve’s spirit, courage, and remarkable legacy will continue to inspire, shaping the future for generations to come.”
Shirley Broke Barriers in Tech
Born Vera Buchthal in Dortmund, Germany, in 1933, Shirley was five years old when she was put on a Kindertransport train to Britain in 1939 to escape Nazi persecution.
She arrived unaccompanied and was taken in by a foster family in the English countryside.
Shirley excelled in school and pursued mathematics at a time when few women entered the field.
In 1962, frustrated by the limited opportunities for women in technology, she founded a software company, Freelance Programmers, from her dining table.
The business, later known as F International, grew into a powerhouse employing more than 8,500 people.
The majority of workers were women, many of whom worked from home decades before remote work became mainstream.
Freelance Programmers earned a reputation for delivering complex software for large corporate and government clients, most notably programming the black box flight recorder for the Concorde.
11th Wealthiest Woman in Britain
When her company floated on the London Stock Exchange in the early 1990s, Shirley’s personal fortune soared, briefly making her one of the wealthiest women in Britain.
At one point reportedly worth around $200 million and ranked the 11th richest woman in the country.
But instead of taking all of the money for herself, she handed a substantial portion of the proceeds to her staff, an act that created around 70 millionaires overnight.
“It is part of my philanthropy to give back to the staff and share with the staff,” she explained.
The impulse, she said, was rooted in the 1970s recession, when the company nearly collapsed.
“I relied on these freelancers to keep up a facade of high-level activity when we were hanging on by our fingernails,” Shirely added.
She also believed deeply that “the staff were the company,” an attitude that was far from common in corporate culture at the time.
Shirley’s Philanthropy
After leaving the corporate world in 1993, Shirley dedicated herself entirely to philanthropy, giving away most of her fortune to causes she cared about.
Autism became her chief focus, inspired by her late son Giles, who died aged 35 in 1998.
Beyond autism, Shirley was a driving force behind numerous charitable ventures in technology and science education, particularly those aimed at women and underrepresented groups.
Named a Dame Commander in 2000 for services to IT and philanthropy, Shirley’s influence continues to be felt across the tech industry and beyond.
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Kurt Robson is a London-based reporter at CCN, specialising in the fast-moving worlds of crypto and emerging technology. He began his career covering local news in Cornwall after graduating from Falmouth University with First Class Honours in Journalism. There, he cut his teeth on everything from council meetings to missing swans.
He quickly rose through the ranks to become a frontline journalist at several of the UK’s leading national newspapers. Over the years, he has interviewed musicians and celebrities, reported from courtrooms and crime scenes, and secured multiple front-page exclusives.
Following the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kurt shifted his focus to technology journalism—just ahead of the AI boom. With a natural curiosity and a trained eye for emerging trends, he has found a new rhythm in reporting on innovation.
At CCN, Kurt's work focuses on the cutting edge of crypto, blockchain, AI, and the evolving digital world. Drawing on his background in people-first reporting and his deep interest in disruptive tech, Kurt delivers stories that are insightful, entertaining, and human-centric.
