Gresham College Lectures
Gresham College has been providing free public lectures since 1597, making us London's oldest higher education institution. This podcast offers our recorded lectures that are free to access from the Gresham College website, or our YouTube channel.
Episodes
2865 episodes
Writing a British Constitution - Clive Stafford Smith
Recently, the UK has got into a muddle over how to approach Scottish independence and Brexit. What can we learn from the U.S. which took much of its system from the theory behind the U.K. structure: the King as the Executive; a Legislature made...
•
42:35
The Modern Goddess - Ronald Hutton
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/0ZK1Y1QnFDgThis looks at how and why a particular form of the non-Christian divine feminine came to take over the Western European imagination f...
•
47:18
Who’s Afraid of Robots? - Victoria Baines
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/d6Ao4KmGXBcArtificial Intelligence is a very recent invention…or is it? Humans have been fascinated by intelligent machines for thousands of years. Some exist only in our collective imagi...
•
48:55
Women at the Piano: A History Through Images - Marina Frolova-Walker
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/f6Z9L2dnxSAThis lecture explores the emergence of the "femme au piano" genre in 19th-century French painting, depicted by artists like Ren...
•
52:24
The US Constitution: A Catalogue of Complaints about Britain - Clive Stafford Smith
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/wpF0oB9Mz-0The US Constitution, both in its structural element and the Bill of Rights, reflect a catalogue of colonial complaints about the Brit...
•
50:07
How Does Our Immune System Protect Us? - Robin May
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/JCTgxcPu78IThe human immune system rivals the brain in its complexity. Billions of cells coordinate their activity with amazing precision to pro...
•
40:20
Who's Minding the Store? Corporate Rules to Align Interests - Raghavendra Rau
This lecture will explore corporate governance mechanisms designed to address agency problems, including executive compensation, boards of directors, and shareholder activism. Additionally, it will examine how solutions addressing one agency pr...
•
1:01:05
Unwrapping Irving Berlin’s "White Christmas" - Dominic Broomfield-McHugh
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/LW0DLhTxfCEThis festive lecture explores the unusual roots of the song ‘White Christmas’ and its role in establishing the concept of the commerc...
•
54:07
Magical Mystery Tour: The Invention of The Beatles - Milton Mermikides
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/VeJxEXZfT2YThis lecture analyses the ‘psychedelic era’ of the Beatles, from Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band to Let it Be, a period of stagg...
•
58:49
Much Ado About Numbers: Shakespeare’s Mathematical Life and Times - Rob Eastaway
Shakespeare lived in a period of exciting mathematical innovations, from arithmetic to astronomy, and from probability to music. Remarkably, many of those innovations are mentioned, or at least hinted at, in his plays. Rob Eastaway will explore...
•
42:53
Messaging and Signals - Victoria Baines
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/pP3FzqYcMOAWe communicate when we have information to share. The development of signals from signs visible over short distances to wireless tran...
•
50:11
Houston, we have a problem: how the fossil fuel industry is risking our future - Myles Allen
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/6hEOINeTYTUAs the leaders of the oil and gas industry flew into Houston for CERAWeek, 2024, oil was over $80 per barrel and demand higher ...
•
50:53
Black Holes and Bangs - Chris Lintott
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/dvvOi_nUCRMSpace itself is wobbly. We exist on a choppy sea, its surface roiled by disturbances caused by the movements of black holes hundreds ...
•
45:56
How Inequality Affects Mental Health - Lade Smith
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/UzxyNc8vuNsTraditional risk factors for mental illness include genetics, perinatal factors, substance use, negative life events, trauma and orga...
•
50:07
Saints & Liars: The Stories of Americans Who Saved Endangered People from the Nazis - Debórah Dwork
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/Tt_xU005mikThis Lecture unveils the hidden history of Americans who risked their lives to save others during WWII. These intrepid people travell...
•
42:15
Why believe in Conspiracy Theories? - Peter Knight
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/EyU7TCE1QJQWith Brexit, the US presidential election and the Covid pandemic, conspiracy theories now seem to be everywhere. It’s commonly argued...
•
53:36
The Ancient History of Computers and Code - Victoria Baines
What links an ancient shipwreck to the textile mills of Northern England? Both contained forerunners of the computing we use today. Computer language and software also have a long history, featuring military research and the repurposing of earl...
•
46:42
The Convoluted Brain: Wrinkles and Folds - Alain Goriely
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/_Q_30OIPzXwThe human brain has a very distinct and complex appearance with valleys and ridges folding over themselves. The same convolutions are found in large mammals, but not in smaller...
•
49:42
The Health Gap: Achieving Social Justice in Public Health - Michael Marmot
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/leCxdECjyDMReducing health inequalities is a matter of social justice. Strategies must address the social gradient in health, and efforts should extend beyond healthcare to address ...
•
51:55
Why Writing Women Back into History Matters - Janina Ramirez
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/IJT3B9WZntcRediscovering remarkable historical figures such as the Birka Warrior Woman, Hildegard of Bingen, and King Jadwiga offers a fresh perspective to understand an era often dismiss...
•
50:41
The Origins of Modern Paganism - Ronald Hutton
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/sYqJomnunFgThe deeper exploration of Paganism begins with its roots in the Victorian and Edwardian eras, and the question of how ancient paganism was regarded then. It considers the mains...
•
46:40
Does the UK have a Water Crisis? - Carolyn Roberts
The management of water supplies, flooding and water pollution in the UK is currently the subject of great controversy, and public interest has never been higher. Following a short introduction by Professor Carolyn Roberts, this focused day wil...
•
2:18:19
Is Trump the same Nixon in 1968? - Luke A. Nichter
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/D3Lz-M1P9VkThe 1968 Presidential Election remains the most divisive in modern U.S. history, with Democrat Hubert Humphrey, Republican Richard Nixon, and independent George Wallace at the ...
•
46:34
What is a Puzzle Canon? The Divine Trickery of J.S. Bach - Milton Mermikides
Behind the sublime precision and expressive power of Bach’s music lies a mischievous spirit. From puzzle canons (where the performer must solve a riddle to reach the score), melodies that run upside-down and backwards against themselves, hidden...
•
46:48