Alice Prochaska is a historian and has published on labour, social and culinary history, and archives. She was Principal of Somerville College Oxford 2010–17 and before that pursued a career in archives and library administration (University Librarian at Yale, 2001–2010; Director of Special Collections, the British Library, 1992–2001). 

Among various voluntary commitments, she chairs the Institute of Historical Research Trust and is deputy chair of the Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission, and chaired the Sir Winston Churchill Archive Trust, 2010–20.