Cambridge Computing: The First 75 Years covers the 'halcyon' years of Roger Needham's reign and the expansionist eras of his successors, Robin Milner, Ian Leslie and Andy Hopper. The story begins with Charles Babbage and his 'magical machines' and includes Alan Turing, whose 'Universal Turing Machine' defined the theoretical basis of computability. The central theme of the book is the 75-year history of the Computer Laboratory.

The 21st-century Computer Laboratory, housed in the striking William Gates Building, is internationally recognised today as a leading school of computer science, engaged in teaching and ground-breaking research and as a nursery for computer entrepreneurs. Groups of academics work on a wide diversity of topics: artificial intelligence, computer architecture, digital technology, graphics and interaction, natural language and information processing, programming, logic, and semantics, security and systems.