Creator of Oxford vaccine made into Barbie doll

Dame Sarah Gilbert has been honoured by toy company Mattel by having a Barbie doll created in her likeness after she led development of the life-saving Oxford-AstraZeneca jab.

Dame Sarah, who was one of the co-creators of the vaccine, said she found the gesture “very strange” initially, but hoped that it would inspire more young girls to consider careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (Stem).

The professor said that she hoped that “children who see my Barbie will realise how vital careers in science are to help the world around us.”