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Gresham College Lectures
The Future of Immunity - Robin May
Our understanding of the human immune system today is vastly different from that of 50 years ago. This knowledge has led to immune-based therapies that would have seemed like science fiction to our grandparents: monoclonal antibodies, T-cell therapies, anti-cancer vaccines, precision immune suppression – the list is endless. In this lecture, we look to the future and ask, “What next for immunity?” This lecture was recorded by Robin May on the 11th of June 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Robin is Gresham Professor of Physic.He is also Chief Scientific Adviser at the Food Standards Agency...
2025-07-22
51 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Maths of Music (and the Music of Maths) - Milton Mermikides and Sarah Hart
This is the fourth lecture from the Gresham Festival of Musical Ideas.https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/series/musical-ideas-2025Professors Sarah Hart and Milton Mermikides reveal the deep connections between music and mathematics. Whether that’s the Euclidean rhythms that shape funky grooves, the set theory that maps every possible chord, or a live rendering of the geometric elegance of Gresham Professor Iannis Xenakis’s algorithmic compositions, this event will reveal how maths can help explain – and even inspire – the richness of musical experience.This lecture was recorded by Milton Mermikides and Sarah Hart on...
2025-07-18
43 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Evolution of Music - Milton Mermikides and Robin May
This is the first lecture from the Gresham Festival of Musical Ideas.https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/series/musical-ideas-2025Musical instruments have been found in the archaeological record from at least 40,000 years ago and despite the diversity of human civilization, we are yet to find a culture which lacks music. Other species also make ‘music’ – from a grasshopper’s chirp to a nightingale’s song – but is human music simply an extension of that evolutionary heritage? What can modern studies of genetics and anthropology tell us about the evolution of human musicality? Can neuroscience explain why music ev...
2025-07-18
49 min
Gresham College Lectures
Climbing Mount Groove: Music and Dance in the Brain - Milton Mermikides and Morten Kringelbach
This is the second lecture from the Gresham Festival of Musical Ideas.https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/series/musical-ideas-2025Why does a rhythm make us tap our feet—or even get up and dance? In conversation with Professor Milton Mermikides, neuroscientist Professor Morten Kringelbach reveals how the brain finds pleasure, meaning, and movement in music. Drawing on extensive brain imaging, analysis and real-world studies, the talk explores how music and dance engage our brain’s predictive systems—where just the right balance of familiarity and surprise creates joy. From funk to fugues, bossa to the Beatle...
2025-07-18
43 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Virtues of Music - Milton Mermikides and Melissa Lane
This is the third lecture from the Gresham Festival of Musical Ideas.https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/series/musical-ideas-2025This dialogue presents the what and why of Ancient Greek music, and its profound role in philosophy, society and the individual. Education without music was an impossibility in ancient Greece; virtue without music, equally so. One scholar (writing in the late twentieth century) compared the pervasive social presence and impact of the medium of mousikē in Ancient Greece to that of television. But with its participatory motor training and habituation, mousikē, was also a primary mode of...
2025-07-18
41 min
Gresham College Lectures
Remixing the Music of the Spheres - Milton Mermikides and Chris Lintott
This is the fifth and final lecture from the Gresham Festival of Musical Ideas.https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/series/musical-ideas-2025Professors Lintott and Mermikides present and discuss historical and contemporary musical representations of astronomical data including Pythagoras’s parallelism of tuning purity and celestial movement, Plato’s cosmic harmony in Timaeus, Kepler’s representations of orbital eccentricity as musical scales, Herschel’s blending of music and cosmology, and the tendency of stable planetary systems to ‘find’ harmonic ratios. The contemporary field of astro-sonification – using sound to represent, search and communicate to a diverse audience, astronomical p...
2025-07-18
43 min
Gresham College Lectures
Architecture of Enslavement, Colonialism and Independence: The Story of James Fort in Accra - Elsie Owusu
Accra’s James Fort is an iconic monument for Ghana and modern Africa. This lecture explores the fort's evolution -from its role as a trading post in the early European-African encounters, through its significance during the trans-Atlantic trade and enslavement, to its later use as a modern colonial prison in the post-independence era. It also explores its connection to Ghana's liberation movement, particularly its role in imprisoning Dr. Kwame Nkrumah and other political leaders during their resistance to British rule. Today, this monument represents the resilience, talent and creative potential of a sustainable future for Ghana and its youthful po...
2025-07-15
46 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Operatic Showstopper: ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ - Dominic Broomfield-McHugh
This lecture considers ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ from Carousel (1945). Perhaps Rodgers and Hammerstein’s most operatic song, it was originally written for Metropolitan Opera star Christine Johnson but has gone on to be recorded by artists as diverse as Elvis Presley and Marcus Mumford and sung at both the Last Night of the Proms and Liverpool Football Club.This lecture will include live performances by international soprano and Grammy Award winner Rebecca Evans CBE.This lecture was recorded by Dominic Broomfield-McHugh on 2nd of May 2025 at Conway Hall, London.Dominic Broomfield-McHugh is Gresham...
2025-07-11
47 min
Gresham College Lectures
Carbon Takeback: How We Will Stop Fossil Fuels from Causing Global Warming - Myles Allen
We have to stop fossil fuels from causing global warming – before the world stops using fossil fuels. There’s only one solution: safe and permanent disposal of one tonne of carbon dioxide for every tonne still generated by burning fossil fuels. But how do we achieve this without overheating the planet or stoking political conflicts? This lecture presents a simple answer: make carbon dioxide disposal a licensing condition of the sale and use of fossil fuels.This lecture was recorded by Myles Allen on 10th June 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Myles is the Frank Jack...
2025-07-08
48 min
Gresham College Lectures
Do Computers Get Sick? How Humans and Computers Fight Viruses - Robin May & Victoria Baines
Whether you are human or computer, viruses can ruin your day, so taking steps to avoid them is important. This lecture will ask whether there are similarities between human immunity and computer immunity? Can we use discoveries in one system to help protect against infections in the other? Might we one day take our laptops for regular vaccinations, or run a ‘software update’ on our own immune systems to avoid an emerging pathogen?This lecture was recorded by Robin May & Victoria Baines on 7th May 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Robin is Gresham Professor of Phys...
2025-07-04
50 min
Gresham College Lectures
Illuminating the Dark Side of the Moon - Milton Mermikides
Now over 50 years old, Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon remains the perfect example of a concept album. Blending cyclical forms, jazz and modal harmony, experimental electronics, multi-layered guitars, studio techniques and haunting lyrics, this lecture will examine why this album has retained its popularity, critical success, and enduring influence. This lecture was recorded by Milton Mermikides on 12th June 2025 at Rich Mix, London.Milton Mermikides is Gresham Professor of Music.He is Associate Professor in Music at the University of Surrey, Professor of Guitar at the Royal College of Music and...
2025-07-01
52 min
Gresham College Lectures
Lawgivers in Modern Revolutions - Melissa Lane
How have lawgivers featured in modern revolutions? This lecture considers key moments in revolutions, including seventeenth-century Britain, eighteenth-century France and (what would become) the United States, and twentieth-century Iran. The appeal to lawgivers (including ancient ones from many cultures) in revolutionary visions and in consolidating new constitutions is a striking feature of modern politics.This lecture was recorded by Melissa Lane on 5th June 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Melissa Lane is Gresham Professor of Rhetoric.Melissa is also the Class of 1943 Professor of Politics, Princeton University and is also Associated Faculty in...
2025-06-27
50 min
Gresham College Lectures
Taking the Constitution into the Classroom - Clive Stafford Smith
The U.S. Constitution had to be formed through debate before it could be ratified. Mirroring this, a British constitution must emerge through debates held by the next generation. This lecture indicates schools are a good environment to foster this. For students, there are many contentious issues that tap into discussions at the heart of writing a constitution. Students being punished for swearing raises questions of limits to free speech. Students wishing to intervene when an unpopular peer is bullied would be empowered by constitutional duty obliging them to do so. Schools tend to be authoritarian institutions, benevolent or...
2025-06-24
37 min
Gresham College Lectures
A New Sky - Chris Lintott
The JWST is the most expensive and powerful telescope astronomers have ever constructed. Its launch in 2021 started a new phase in our exploration of the cosmos, with the observatory's golden mirrors producing instantly iconic images of the Solar System's giant planets, nearby star-forming regions and galaxies, and our distant universe. The lecture includes the latest news from its studies of the early universe, a place lit up by what appears to have been a much more spectacular burst of activity than anyone expected. This lecture was recorded by Chris Lintott on 28th May 2025 at Conway Hall, London
2025-06-20
44 min
Gresham College Lectures
Blind Spots & Bad Decisions: Why We Fall for Financial Traps - Raghavendra Rau
Why do smart people make dumb financial choices? This lecture explores the surprising link between our psychology and money mistakes. We will see how fear, overconfidence, and even our desire to be liked can cloud our judgment, especially when dealing with financial "experts". Learn how these psychological blind spots worsen conflicts of interest, and how to make smarter financial decisions, free from emotional influence.This lecture was recorded by Raghavendra Rau on 2nd June 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, LondonRaghu is the Mercers School Memorial Professor of BusinessHe is also the Sir...
2025-06-17
1h 08
Gresham College Lectures
The Moral Case for Stealing Data - Victoria Baines
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/hLBfAVyeMBsThroughout history, authorities have struggled to manage individuals’ urges to speak out against injustice and malpractice. IT has given us new means to obtain and publish data that others may wish to protect or even conceal. To some, those who hack and leak are heroes. To others, they are criminals. In an era of mass leaks and high-profile whistleblowing, who decides whether data thieves and hackers are to be protected or prosecuted? And are the old rules still fit for purpose in the digital age? This lecture wi...
2025-06-13
51 min
Gresham College Lectures
From Thin Air: Minimalist and process music from Africa to Arvo Pärt - Milton Mermikides
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/3ntebbsM4HwThis lecture delves into musical forms which rely on the most economical of materials and concepts. From Steve Reich’s adoption of rhythmic cycles and phasing in Ewe drumming to the expressive power of Estonian composer Arvo Pärt’s music, we explore how profound effect can emerge from such apparent simplicity. This lecture unpacks the processes behind celebrated minimalist works and reveals the quiet and elegant mechanisms underpinning their musical power. This lecture was recorded by Milton Mermikides on 1st May 2025 at Rich Mix...
2025-06-10
52 min
Gresham College Lectures
Modern Pagan Witchcraft - Ronald Hutton
This lecture was recorded by Ronald Hutton on 14th May 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Ronald is the Gresham Professor of Divinity.He is also Professor of History at the University of Bristol and a Fellow of the British Academy, the Royal Historical Society, the Society of Antiquaries and the Learned Society of Wales.The transcript of the lecture is available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/modern-pagan-witchcraftGresham College has offered free public lectures for over 400 years, thanks to the generosity of our supporters. There...
2025-06-06
44 min
Gresham College Lectures
From Machiavelli to Nietzsche: How Modern Thinkers Saw Ancient Lawgivers - Melissa Lane
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/VOGzTymAYnoFor many modern thinkers, the lawgiver has been important as a founder or re-founder of civic identity and cultural values. From Machiavelli on Moses; to Rousseau on Solon, Lycurgus, and the need for a lawgiver to make a true social contract possible; to Nietzsche and his followers seeking a lawgiver who can be also poet and prophet, this lecture will explore the figure of the lawgiver and how it has been a center of debate in modern political philosophy.This lecture was recorded by Melissa...
2025-06-03
43 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Troubled Brain: Ageing and Dementia - Alain Goriely
Diseases such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s are devastating neurological conditions that typically occur at old age and lead to systematic dementia and debilitating symptoms. The underlying mechanisms of these diseases are poorly understood. Yet, a striking feature of these conditions is the characteristic pattern of invasion throughout the brain, leading to well-codified disease stages associated with various cognitive deficits and pathologies. This lecture shows how mathematical modelling can be used to predict dementia’s progression by unravelling some of its universal features.This lecture was recorded by Alain Goriely on 13th May 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall...
2025-05-30
58 min
Gresham College Lectures
Divine Law, Human Prophet: Moses in Hebrew and Greek - Melissa Lane
This lecture was recorded by Melissa Lane on 6th March 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Melissa Lane is Gresham Professor of Rhetoric.Melissa is also the Class of 1943 Professor of Politics, Princeton University and is also Associated Faculty in the Department of Classics and Department of Philosophy. Previously she was Senior University Lecturer at Cambridge University in the Faculty of History and Fellow of King’s College, Cambridge.Having previously held visiting appointments at Harvard, Oxford, and Stanford, she will be Isaiah Berlin Visiting Professor in the History of Ideas in the Faculties of...
2025-05-28
44 min
Gresham College Lectures
Does Net Zero Mean the End of Livestock Agriculture? - Myles Allen
This lecture was recorded by Myles Allen on 29th April 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Myles is the Frank Jackson Foundation Professor of the Environment.Myles is also is currently Director of the Oxford Net Zero initiative. He was awarded the Appleton Medal and Prize by the Institute of Physics in 2010, and in 2022 a CBE for services to climate change attribution, prediction and net zero. In 2023, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society.The transcript of the lecture is available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/do...
2025-05-23
51 min
Gresham College Lectures
What Rights and Duties are Missing from the U.S. Constitution? - Clive Stafford Smith
This lecture was recorded by Clive Stafford Smith on 10th April 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Clive is the Gresham Professor of LawHe is the founder and director of the Justice League a non-profit human rights training centre focused on fostering the next generation of advocates. He also teaches part time at Bristol Law School and Goldsmiths as well as running a summer programme for 35 students in Dorset, his home. He has received all kinds of awards in recognition of his work, including an OBE by Queen Elizabeth II for “services to humanity” in 2000. He has...
2025-05-22
45 min
Gresham College Lectures
The 2025 Annual Lord Mayor's Event - Alastair King
This lecture was recorded by Alderman Alastair King on 14th April 2025 at Guildhall, London.Alastair King is the 696th Lord Mayor of the City of LondonHis civic responsibilities began when he was first elected as Common Councillor for Queenhithe Ward in 1999 – giving him over 24 years’ uninterrupted service; he was appointed Deputy for the Ward in 2006and elected Alderman in 2016 – serving as Aldermanic Sheriff 2022-23.He sits on the Governing Bodies of the Bridewell Royal Hospital, the Samuel Wilson Loans Trust, Morden College and Emanuel Hospital. A Liveryman of 11 City Livery Companies, Alastair also s...
2025-05-22
57 min
Gresham College Lectures
How Does Surveillance Work? - Victoria Baines
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/Y9JR7El863kOur alert systems for identifying safety and security threats have evolved over time. As the threat from wild animals diminished, the perceived threat from other humans increased. To defend our territories and our livelihoods, we began to gather intelligence on our enemies, in the hope that being forewarned would give us an advantage. This lecture explores our use of technologies that have allowed us to keep a closer watch, and the ingenious methods that have been used to counter them. This lecture w...
2025-05-14
50 min
Gresham College Lectures
Why Are Cities Going Bankrupt? - Martin Daunton
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/G_SpC_BV4jAIn the late nineteenth century, Joseph Chamberlain transformed Birmingham with municipal enterprise and urban improvement, but in the last few years, local authorities have been facing serious financial difficulties, and some of the largest, such as Birmingham, have faced the equivalent of bankruptcy. This lecture will ask why British cities have lost the confident civic pride of the Victorian era and are now struggling to provide basic services from a limited financial base. Most importantly: What can be done to regenerate British towns and...
2025-05-09
1h 00
Gresham College Lectures
Modern Druids - Ronald Hutton
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/qz9a4zXIFz0The ancient Druids have long represented some of the most striking and controversial figures in ancient and medieval literature. In this lecture, we will look at the many different ways in which the modern imagination has been inspired by them, both as heroic ancestors and as demonic villains against whom civilisation can be defined. It traces the appearance of different kinds of Druidry as a part of Paganism, and suggests what the particular contribution of that Druidry to modern culture may be.This...
2025-05-06
54 min
Gresham College Lectures
How Do Vaccines Work? - Robin May
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/PcNoOjT30VYVaccination has changed the world, saving millions of lives and enabling us to eradicate a lethal disease for the first time in human history – not to mention their critical role in ending the Covid-19 pandemic. This lecture explores how a vaccine actually works, why mRNA vaccines are truly groundbreaking and why we can’t simply vaccinate against everything. This lecture was recorded by Robin May on 26th March 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Robin is Gresham Professor of Physic.He is a...
2025-05-02
50 min
Gresham College Lectures
Asteroid Adventures - Chris Lintott
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/H8nG29pO_y4Asteroids were for years considered 'celestial vermin' - objects which got in the way of more interesting fodder for astronomers. Now, they are central to our Solar System's story, representing the building blocks from which planets are made, and capable of telling us the history of the last five billion years. This lecture considers two missions - Lucy, which flies past asteroid Donald Johnson in April 2025, and OSIRIS-ReX, which recently returned from threatening near-Earth asteroid Bennu bearing samples of this unusual world. ...
2025-04-28
47 min
Gresham College Lectures
The LGBT+ Showstopper: ‘I Am What I Am’ - Dominic Broomfield-McHugh
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/-TsWDdeQK34Composed by Jerry Herman of Hello, Dolly! fame, ‘I Am What I Am’ first appeared in the Broadway musical La Cage aux Folles (1983). As well as gaining importance as a gay anthem during the AIDS crisis, the song has gone on to become a hit for several Black divas including Gloria Gaynor and Shirley Bassey. This lecture was recorded by Dominic Broomfield-McHugh on 3rd of April 2025 at Conway Hall, London.Dominic Broomfield-McHugh is Gresham Visiting Professor of Film and Theatre Music. He is also...
2025-04-25
44 min
Gresham College Lectures
Documentary Photography in Apartheid South Africa - Tamar Garb
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/9tcRtGh7hkMThis lecture looks at debates and dialogues that characterise realist photography in Apartheid South Africa (1948-1994) examining the tensions between advocacy, propaganda and the ‘struggle’ on the one hand and the poetics of everyday life on the other. Figures from Ernest Cole and David Goldblatt to Zanele Muholi and Lebohang Kganye will be examined. This lecture was recorded by Tamar Garb on 25th March 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Tamar Garb is Durning Lawrence Professor in the History of Art. Her research inte...
2025-04-22
58 min
Gresham College Lectures
Just Ask The Axis: Jimi Hendrix unpicked - Milton Mermikides
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/rKoYL4yrNsgDespite being cited as one of the most creative and influential guitarists of all time, and his tragically short life, Jimi Hendrix’s playing and composing are yet to be fully analysed. This lecture will demystify his diverse influences and reveal the full range of his extraordinary invention in terms of sonic sculpting, rhythmic feel, fretboard navigation, harmony, and composition. We explore this dazzling creativity from his early playing as a sideman to the Isley Brothers, the Experience albums, the iconic Band of Gypsys project, to th...
2025-04-18
49 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Case for Basic Income - Guy Standing
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/cjJSWgvHZKwThis lecture puts forth the ethical and economic case for a basic income, enabling financial security and therefore a better quality of life for all. Financial insecurity affects one’s ability to make rational decisions – studies show it even lowers short-term IQ – making it even harder to improve one’s circumstances in the long run. Furthermore, unlike means-tested social assistance schemes like Universal Credit, a basic income does not involve a severe ‘poverty trap’ and thus, contrary to critics, increases the incentive to take low-paying jobs. This lecture inclu...
2025-04-15
34 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Turbulent Brain: Rhythms and Waves - Alain Goriely
Despite its quiet appearance, the brain is the seat of complicated wave dynamics. Indeed, cognitive processes are carried out through communications between neurons, leading to synchronisation and oscillations at different frequencies that can be recorded. Together, these oscillations also create waves that propagate through different regions. Apart from this electrical activity, the brain is also the siege of slow chemical waves that can cause migraine and mechanical waves arising from trauma. In this lecture, we will study the influence of all these waves on brain function.This lecture was recorded by Alain Goriely on 18th March 2025 at...
2025-04-11
56 min
Gresham College Lectures
Banned Books and Freedom of Expression - Rachel Potter
The right to free expression is severely threatened in many places in the world, yet it has also never been so passionately defended. This lecture focuses on the recent history of banned literature. It considers the changing nature of literary censorship, arguments in defence of free expression, why literary writers have so frequently pushed the boundaries of the acceptable, and the impact of technology on censorship and free speech.This lecture was recorded by Rachel Potter on 12th March 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Rachel Potter is Professor of Modern Literature at the University of...
2025-04-04
45 min
Gresham College Lectures
Trust Issues: When Financial "Experts" Have Other Plans - Raghavendra Rau
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/0jSUfa0LQAoThis lecture examines agency problems in various relationships, including between investors and fund managers, and within financial intermediaries. This lecture was recorded by Raghavendra Rau on 3rd February 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, LondonRaghu is the Mercers School Memorial Professor of BusinessHe is also the Sir Evelyn de Rothschild Professor of Finance at Cambridge Judge Business School.The transcript of the lecture is available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/trust-issues-when-financial-experts-have-other-plans
2025-04-01
58 min
Gresham College Lectures
Carbon Offsetting: Does It Really Work? - Myles Allen
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/MB73qh4pIYMOffsets, politely called carbon credit markets, are essential to many net-zero strategies, yet remain highly controversial. They seem an efficient solution for “unavoidable” emissions – but who decides what is unavoidable? This lecture will discuss several plans to achieve our climate goals, from emission compensation schemes to tackling fossil fuels by planting trees.This lecture was recorded by Myles Allen on 4th March 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Myles is the Frank Jackson Foundation Professor of the Environment.Myles is also is...
2025-03-28
51 min
Gresham College Lectures
Is the First Amendment the greatest right of all? - Clive Stafford Smith
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/W5EKhMWdjP4In this lecture we will discuss a hierarchy of rights. Is the American First Amendment the most important of all, given its five foundational rights – no establishment of religion; free exercise of religion; freedom of speech and the press; the right peaceably to assemble; the right to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. How might this apply to the UK?This lecture was recorded by Clive Stafford Smith on 27th February 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Clive is the Gresham Pr...
2025-03-21
59 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Biggest Cosmic Map - Chris Lintott
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/TRCkgDWKTdYMapping the stars is, perhaps, the oldest of astronomical pursuits, but it has been perfected by the European Space Agency's Gaia mission, which is providing an exquisitely precise map showing the positions and movements of the nearest two billion stars. Starting with a history of mapping the cosmos, this lecture describes the new and dynamic history of our Milky Way galaxy that results, and will move to explaining the dynamic and growing nature of our galaxy.This lecture was recorded by Chris Lintott on 26th...
2025-03-18
45 min
Gresham College Lectures
Data: A Love Story for the Ages - Victoria Baines
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/7mW52bW23goIt has become something of a cliché to say that data is the new oil. That isn’t the full story. For centuries it has proved itself to be infinitely re-usable. It has enabled the creation and reinforcement of collective memory. It has been documented in innumerable formats, from maps to databases, taxonomies, and infographics. We make sense of the world through the technology we use to process and visualise data. This lecture is an exploration of our enduring love for it.This lec...
2025-03-14
50 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Return of the Horned God - Ronald Hutton
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/IAilwM_WdbIUntil the nineteenth century, the favourite ancient pagan gods in Western culture were those related to human qualities and activities. During that century, especially in Britain, attention switched to a horned divinity associated with the countryside and wild nature, usually personified as the Greek Pan. This lecture explores how and why this happened, and the impact on British culture, when the full subversive potential of this deity as a force for personal liberation became realised. It also shows how the image subsequently evolved from a classical...
2025-03-11
45 min
Gresham College Lectures
Green Immunity – How Do Plants Fight Infection? - Robin May
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/Et8_myknHq8Most of us rarely think about plant immunity. But, like us, plants can distinguish between different pathogens, trigger a ‘bespoke’ immune response and retain a memory of past infections to boost future immunity. However, plant immune systems also exhibit enviable features like the ability to inherit immunological memory from a parent, or to warn distant individuals of an impending pathogen attack. This lecture investigates how they do all of this and more without a single white blood cell.This lecture was recorded by Robin May...
2025-03-11
45 min
Gresham College Lectures
Unwritten Laws? Legacies from Antigone and Lycurgus - Melissa Lane
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/gQdabAQT3JwSophocles’ Antigone refers to “unwritten laws,” as does Thucydides’ Pericles. From the late fifth century BCE, the idea that laws are more effective when learned by memory and observation than when put into writing, forms a distinctive current in political reflections. Plutarch would even claim that the Spartan lawgiver Lycurgus had prohibited the writing down of his laws. This lecture will present Greek authors’ reflections on the interplay between writing and orality remain relevant to debates about ethical formation today. This lecture was recorded by Melissa...
2025-03-04
46 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Value of Public Space - Liza Fior
As we navigate towns and cities, public spaces are all around us. These offer a respite from our often-busy routines. Public spaces are more than just the leftover areas between buildings; they depend on how interests are designed and negotiated, and its success is measured by the interactions that take place in it: the passage of the sun, the root of trees, and even the way they are used by children. However, these areas are constantly threatened by the way local and commercial funding invest in it.Using recent projects, primarily in London and North America, this lecture...
2025-02-28
36 min
Gresham College Lectures
The UK’s Generational Wealth Gap - Mike Brewer
The UK's income inequality has remained stable since the 1990s, but household wealth has nearly doubled, mainly driven by soaring house prices. This has widened the wealth gap between generations, with younger people less likely to own homes. Furthermore, weak income growth since the mid-2000s has disproportionately affected younger cohorts. This lecture unpacks these economic trends to reveal how they have created tensions between generations by exacerbating disparities in their respective living standards.This lecture was recorded by Mike Brewer on 18th February 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Mike is Interim Chief Executive of...
2025-02-28
50 min
Gresham College Lectures
Why Does Britain Have a Water and Sewage Crisis? - Martin Daunton
The discharge of raw sewage into rivers, and the financial problems of major water companies, have become serious political and social concerns for the public. British cities have faced similar challenges in the past, most notoriously with the ‘Great Stink’ in London in 1858 that led to the construction of Bazalgette’s sewer. Consequently, many cities took utilities into public ownership in the late nineteenth century in what is termed ‘gas and water socialism’. Why did this happen, and why were utilities returned to private ownership in the later twentieth century? The lecture will conclude by assessing the success or failure of...
2025-02-27
58 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Hidden Risks of "I Know Something You Don't" - Raghavendra Rau
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/7pvF4FdbYWUThis lecture explores how information asymmetry leads to adverse selection and moral hazard, with a focus on their presence in financial markets and institutions such as insurance and credit markets. It will examine how regulations intended to solve a particular set of issues might exacerbate problems, potentially resulting in financial crises or other disastrous events.This lecture was recorded by Raghavendra Rau on 20th January 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, LondonRaghu is the Mercers School Memorial Professor of BusinessHe...
2025-02-21
56 min
Gresham College Lectures
Is Your Money Safe? Unveiling Hidden Conflicts in Finance - Raghavendra Rau
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/gWJmpSO4WZIFinance involves a group of people attempting to make rational decisions on valuation, but people are complicated. People can be self-interested, they can make mistakes, or, in stark contrast, they can act altruistically. This lecture will introduce the concept of agency problems in the finance sector, focusing on the conflicts that arise between different groups of stakeholders. It will discuss examples of fraud, insider trading and other types of human behavior that can reduce the public's trust in the markets.This lecture was recorded...
2025-02-14
54 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Connected Brain: Network and Communication - Alain Goriely
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/bKMV8i9Mq40The brain is mostly organised in small modular regions connected to each other. Typically, each region performs different cognitive tasks, from image processing to language. This organisation leads us to model the brain as a network, the ‘brain connectome’. This fundamental view of the brain has become a central paradigm for neurosciences linking topological properties of networks to brain functions. This lecture presents ideas from graph theory to study this network and understand the way that the brain learns and operates.This lecture was...
2025-02-11
56 min
Gresham College Lectures
Breaking the Fourth Wall of Sound: The Paradox of Screen Music - Milton Mermikides
Sound and music hold a strange and powerful role in film, TV and video games, aiding narrative and emotional impact. They can even exist in the world of ‘the film’ – heard by the characters – or in the world of the audience. Music can even break the fourth wall, travelling through and blurring these conventionally separate worlds. By examining films through history from Blazing Saddles, Elf, The Truman Show to Birdman, we explore this ‘fantastical gap’ and its transformative effect on the audience.This lecture was recorded by Milton Mermikides on 16th January 2025 at Rich Mix, London.Milton M...
2025-02-07
54 min
Gresham College Lectures
‘Is it in Pevsner?’: A Short History of the ‘Buildings of …' Series - Charles O'Brien
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/LUyFLOUi-D4This lecture traces the history of this famous series by Sir Nikolaus Pevsner, starting from its conception in 1947. It describes the research and writing of the original forty-six volumes for England and the extension of the books to Scotland, Wales and Ireland. It then assesses their significance alongside a reflection on the 2024 achievement of the full updating of the English series.This lecture was recorded by Charles O'Brien on 5th December 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Charles O’Brien FSA is Listing and Ar...
2025-02-04
58 min
Gresham College Lectures
Writing Laws: Hammurabi to Solon - Melissa Lane
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/t6kkq6dI6hcWhen and why do written laws emerge in ancient societies? This lecture will consider these questions in light of evidence including the law code of Hammurabi; the earliest attestation of written laws in Greek (found in Dreros on Crete); and the full-blown commitment to written laws by the Athenian lawgiver Solon. Such cases will be used to explore how writing bears on the the functions of law more generally, in light of debates in contemporary legal philosophy. This lecture was recorded by...
2025-01-31
42 min
Gresham College Lectures
Touching the Sun - Chris Lintott
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/pXoU-nZmhn8Despite its familiarity, the Sun is a very different presence from the friendly yellow circle in children's paintings. Our star is a broiling mass of plasma, with its powerful magnetic fields, twisted by its rotation, capable of producing dramatic events of spectacular beauty and power. Using results from NASA's Parker Solar Probe - the fastest moving human-made object ever - and ESA's Solar Orbiter, this spectacular lecture takes a new look at the mysteries of the Sun, and its effects on the Earth. This lecture...
2025-01-24
52 min
Gresham College Lectures
Science-based Targets, Greenwashing and Brownscraping: Net Zero in the Private Sector - Myles Allen
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/lQBdqGrfWKUOver half the world’s largest companies have a net zero strategy. But what stops “Science-based Targets” from becoming box-ticking exercises too often immune to environmental scrutiny? Instead of decarbonizing companies and financial portfolios, this lecture will discuss the need to focus on decarbonizing products and services themselves so that companies must explain how they plan to stop what they sell from causing global warming. This lecture was recorded by Myles Allen on 14th January 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Myles is the Frank J...
2025-01-22
56 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 up of the House of Commons balanced by the House of Lords; and the judiciary? And what role should the judiciary play? Have the British got confused about the notion of ‘Parliamentary Supremacy’, deciding that this meant that Parliament was supreme not just to the King, but to the judiciary too?This...
2025-01-17
42 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 from the beginning of the nineteenth century. This was a great goddess representing the natural world, or the moon and stars, or both. It traces the development of belief in the importance of this being, and her impact not only on creative literature but upon the developing disciplines of ancient history and archaeology. It also confronts the problem of the different kinds of...
2025-01-15
47 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 imagination, in art and literature. Others have seen the light of day as mechanical marvels, although a few were later exposed as elaborate frauds. The robots of today might not be what our ancestors imagined. This lecture argues that the relationship between humans and machines has always been complex, and that we still can’t decide whether we real...
2025-01-10
48 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 Renoir, Van Gogh, and Matisse. What suddenly made this topic so popular, and what does it tell us about the role of women in music-making at the time? Tracing the genre's roots from the Italian Renaissance clavichord depictions to Vermeer’s Dutch domestic scenes, and 18th-century harpsichord portraits. Discover how the piano became a middle-class status symbol and how modernists of the 1910s-20s reinterpreted it...
2025-01-07
52 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 British system as well as centuries of evolution in the law. In general terms, contrary to the slightly complacent attitude of the British legal authorities. This lecture will demonstrate, most of the original complaints still hold true. This lecture was recorded by Clive Stafford Smith on 7th November 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Clive is the Gresham Professor of Law
2025-01-03
50 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 protect us from infection. Immune cells can respond to millions of different pathogens within seconds and yet rarely respond to a false alarm. This lecture explores how cells achieve this, what happens when they go wrong and how you can keep your own immune system in top condition.This lecture was recorded by Robin May on 27th November 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.
2024-12-31
40 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 problem might create another. This lecture was recorded by Raghavendra Rau on 5th November 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, LondonRaghu is the Mercers School Memorial Professor of BusinessHe is also the Sir Evelyn de Rothschild Professor of Finance at Cambridge Judge Business School.The transcript of the lecture is available from the Gresham College website:https://www.gresham.ac...
2024-12-27
1h 01
Gresham College Lectures
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 commercial Christmas song. It will explain how the song’s release during the summer months hints at how its potential as an enduring seasonal classic was not anticipated, and then examine how the music and lyrics helped it to resonate in a time of war. The lecture will also consider Berlin’s patriotism and his active role in the Second World War. This lecture...
2024-12-24
54 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 staggering musical invention and experimentalism. We explore the mechanics behind the magic, untangling the layers of harmony, melody, lyrics, structure and technology, and how these all combine in ways both accessible and ground-breaking. This ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ pulls back the curtain on these timeless tracks, illuminating the craft of their transporting effects.This lecture was recorded by Milton Mermikides on 12th Septembe...
2024-12-20
58 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 the surprising ways in which mathematical ideas connect with Shakespeare and reveals that the playwright could be as creative with numbers as he was with words. Along the way you will discover surprising new mathematical insights on the Elizabethan world.This lecture was recorded by Rob Eastaway on 9th October 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Rob Eastaway is...
2024-12-17
42 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 transfer of billions of data-heavy messages worldwide is full of surprising characters, none more so than the Hollywood starlet who made Wi-Fi and GPS possible and received public recognition only in the final few years of her life. This lecture traces the development of technologies for messaging and signals, from wireless to wired and back again.This lecture was recorded by Victoria Baines on 29...
2024-12-13
50 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 than ever. There was little discussion of “transitioning away from fossil fuels” as agreed at COP28 in Dubai. In the run-up to COP29, this lecture will set out the critical need to change the narrative, so those with the ability and resources to solve the climate problem have less incentive to shuffle responsibility onto those (like you) who do not.This lecture was recor...
2024-12-10
50 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 of millions of light-years away. The detection of these 'gravitational waves' by observatories such as LIGO is a story of scientific persistence and precision engineering, resulting in a completely new way of looking at the cosmos. The lecture will highlight the latest results from LIGO's observing run, discuss the nature of black holes - the most mysterious of astronomical objects - and explain...
2024-12-06
45 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 organic disorders. Yet, more recently, it has been found that higher rates of mental illness are also seen in minoritised and marginalised groups. This lecture outlines the different types of discrimination – personally mediated, structural/institutional and internalised – and the evidence linking these with an increased risk of mental illness.This lecture was recorded by Lade Smith on 21st November 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.SDr Shub...
2024-12-03
50 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 travelled the globe to aid victims of Nazi Germany and its allies, often staying to rescue as many as possible when the victims’ peril turned lethal. Discover the stories of these individuals, particularly women who embraced the independence and transformative impact of their relief efforts. This lecture highlights how luck, timing, and spontaneous decisions shaped their fates, urging us to reframe the way we think ab...
2024-11-29
42 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 that the internet has fuelled their popularity, leading to a loss of faith in mainstream media, science, democracy and even truth itself. But what if the rise of conspiracy theories is a symptom rather than the cause of a collapse of trust in civic institutions?This lecture was recorded by Peter Knight on 14th November 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Pet...
2024-11-27
53 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 ones. This observation suggests that size and geometry play a role. Yet, these beautiful shapes have defied a complete description or understanding. This lecture will address questions stemming from this picture: How do these shapes emerge? How are they arranged? Simple mathematical models can help us understand the emergence of these beautiful patterns during development a...
2024-11-19
49 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 mainstream views of that paganism in that period, which veered between regarding it as a religion of ignorance, tyranny and bloodshed, and one of great artistic and literary achievements that prepared the way for Christianity. It goes on to show how new ideas about it developed amongst radicals, which preserved the admiration for the accomplishments of ancient paganism while...
2024-11-08
46 min
Gresham College Lectures
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 will include three debates in which experts will discuss contrasting views on the nature of a specific problem, and how it might be solved. Audience involvement will be encouraged through questions. The First Panel Discussion will explore water supply in the context of climate change; The Second Panel Discussion will question the threat and response to threat of flooding in the UK...
2024-11-05
2h 18
Gresham College Lectures
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 symbols, endless loops, to the embedding of numbers and names into the music, this lecture explores Bach’s ingenious trickery. Unravelling this thread, enhances an appreciation – and sense of humanity and playfulness – to his transcendent music.This lecture was recorded by Milton Mermikides on 23rd October 2024 at LSO St Lukes, London.Milton Mermikides is Gresham Professor of Music.
2024-11-03
46 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Sondheim Showstopper: ‘Send in the Clowns - Dominic Broomfield McHugh
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/gtCsGQ14nU0This lecture examines ‘Send in the Clowns’, probably the most commercially successful song written by the revered Stephen Sondheim. Yet it confounds the expectations of a showstopper by being written for an actress of limited singing ability, the late Glynis Johns. This lecture reflects on how it works in the context the musical A Little Night Music and explores how it came to be covered by major singers including Frank Sinatra, Judy Collins and Sarah Vaughan. How has a song of limited vocal range and abstract lyri...
2024-10-25
52 min
Gresham College Lectures
Is the Public Lecture Dead? - Martin Elliott
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/wiAFxEnq8t4Gresham College has been delivering public lectures since 1597 through times of great social, political and technological change. Its commitment to deliver lectures for free to the general public has led to intermittent financial challenges to its generous sponsors. The arrival of the internet, mobile devices and social media have offered both opportunity and further challenge.In an era supposedly characterised by shorter attention spans, and greater competition for that attention, what space is left for the public lecture and what is its purpose? Why d...
2024-10-22
51 min
Gresham College Lectures
Human Rights Law: Bringing Power to the Powerless - Clive Stafford Smith
This first lecture looks at the power that is given to advocates in a country that has a constitutional structure like the US. I have brought The American Constitution powers an American lawyer in ways unavailable to the British. I will illustrate this difference from my own experience of bringing 88 cases against the President of the US. I have thus far lost just one.This lecture was recorded by Clive Stafford Smith on 19th September 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Clive is the Gresham Professor of LawHe is the founder and director o...
2024-10-01
36 min
Gresham College Lectures
What is Modern Paganism? - Ronald Hutton
What is modern Paganism, and how does it relate to witchcraft, Druidry and other phenomena? This lecture is designed to answer that question, and in doing so to provide an overview of the different traditions that make up Paganism today. It will show what they have in common, and what makes each one unique. It will suggest the ways in which Paganism differs from other religious traditions and what it has especially to offer the modern world. It will also address the question of its relationship with ancient paganism.This lecture was recorded by Ronald Hutton on 18...
2024-09-23
45 min
Gresham College Lectures
Does having a big brain make your smarter? - Alain Goriely
Watch the Q&A session here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFCDvsq6N5gFor centuries scientists have tried to identify what is special about the human brain. How do we approach this problem from a mathematical standpoint? The first hypothesis is that bigger is better, in some sense. In this introductory lecture, scaling laws and simple ideas from statistics will be used to study this problem, both in humans and animals, as well as uncover some basic principles that govern brain size and test hypotheses connecting intelligence to size in humans and animals..
2024-09-20
55 min
Gresham College Lectures
A Mirror in the Sky - Chris Lintott
The first lecture in the series considers the most famous telescope of all, the Hubble space telescope. A project more than forty years in the making, Hubble overcame an initial disaster with a misshapen mirror to drive a revolution in every part of astronomy, providing iconic views of everything from a comet crashing into Jupiter to a surprisingly vibrant, distant Universe. This lecture focuses in particular on what Hubble has revealed about the life - and death - of stars.This lecture was recorded by Chris Lintott on 11th September 2024 at Conway Hall, LondonChris...
2024-09-17
44 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Stories We Make Up & The Stories That Make Us - Bernardine Evaristo OBE
Many decades ago, as a young graduate from drama school, I was presented with a stark choice – either to shape my story myself, through writing, or to feel aggrieved at the detrimental narratives circulating about people like me in Britain at that time. I chose the latter, and in this talk I will talk about how story-making is a conscious act of speaking ourselves into being - drawing on literature, theatre and the visual arts.This lecture was recorded by Bernardine Evaristo on 25th June 2024 at LSO, St Luke's Church LondonThe transcript of th...
2024-09-06
35 min
Gresham College Lectures
Connect To Prosper – The Power Of Networks
An annual talk delivered by the President of Gresham College, The Rt Hon the Lord Mayor of the City of London.Cities are networked networks of connectivity and information sharing. They create, often indirectly, communication, transportation, commercial, and intellectual networks. For the City of London, expanding and changing networks develop its strengths. Over 40 learned societies, 70 universities, and 130 research institutes surround the City of London, creating a network of knowledge connections among science, technology, engineering, arts, mathematics, and finance. In this annual lecture, Professor Michael Mainelli, President of Gresham College, Honorary Life Fellow, and Lord Mayor of...
2023-11-22
1h 17
David Gresham Records Podcast
John Lennon interview by David Gresham (June 1969)
This controversial interview was conducted by legendary Springbok Radio DJ David Gresham in June 1969 with Beatles Icon John Lennon. The reason for this interview taking place was that sometime earlier on John Lennon had made an alleged remark something to the effect of "The Beatles are bigger than Christ". Due to this alleged statement, South African Broadcasting Corporation (owner of all broadcasting at the time, including the country's national commercial radio station Springbok Radio) banned all forms of music by the Beatles outright. In June 1969 when Gresham was in London & had mentioned this to Lennon's manager, they were absolutely...
2023-07-12
03 min
Gresham College Lectures
Populism, Aristotle and Hope
The Annual Sir Thomas Gresham Lecture 2023The period from 1988 to 2003, was one of extraordinary optimism. Every year the number of democracies increased, human rights improved, violent conflict reduced, there were fewer refugees and there was less global poverty. It was an era of triumph for the western liberal Democratic model for the United States and the politics of the centre ground.But the next 11 years was disrupted by series of humiliating shocks to the west – the fiasco of the Iraq war, the global financial crisis, and the emergence of social media all contributed to...
2023-06-09
1h 13
Gresham College Lectures
The Mathematical Life of Sir Christopher Wren
Christopher Wren, who died 300 years ago this year, is famed as the architect of St Paul’s Cathedral. But he was also Gresham Professor of Astronomy, and one of the founders of a society “for the promotion of Physico-Mathematicall Experimental Learning” which became the Royal Society.This lecture explores some of Wren’s mathematical work on curves including spirals and ellipses and the mathematics behind his most impressive architectural achievement – the dome of St Paul’s.A lecture by Sarah Hart recorded on 7 March 2023 at David Game College, London.The transcript and downloadable...
2023-03-09
59 min
Gresham College Lectures
Christopher Wren’s Cosmos
Sir Christopher Wren was one of the most remarkable Gresham Professors of Astronomy. Though best known today as the architectural mastermind behind the rebuilding of London after the Great Fire, Wren’s appointment to the Gresham chair in 1657 stemmed from his enthusiasm for turning his gaze well above London’s skyline and focussing his attention on the heavens above.This lecture will consider Wren’s contributions to astronomy and how Wren’s appreciation of and contributions to art and design, and science and engineering, were fully integrated in his life and made him a polymath on a par with...
2023-03-01
58 min
Gresham College Lectures
The Maths of Coins and Currencies
People have used money – and made counterfeits - for thousands of years. Archimedes came up with a clever way of finding out if you’ve been cheated by a goldsmith. Making coins with the right proportions of the right metals presented a huge mathematical challenge for Fibonacci and other mathematicians in the middle ages.This lecture will discuss mathematical elements of coin design, denominations, and why former Gresham Professor of Astronomy Sir Christopher Wren favoured decimal coinage.A lecture by Professor Sarah HartThe transcript and downloadable versions of the lect...
2022-10-14
59 min
Gresham College Lectures
Inigo Jones and the Architecture of Necessity
Inigo Jones is the architect best-known for the Banqueting House on Whitehall, one of the icons of British state architecture. He is less well known for the domestic buildings, the ‘architecture of necessity’ commissioned by the early Stuart monarchs and their consorts, most of which have been demolished and forgotten. New research into Jones's work for the early Stuarts throws new light on architecture and court life especially in the 1630s in the lead up to Civil War.A lecture by Professor Simon Thurley.The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the...
2022-06-20
1h 01
Gresham College Lectures
Darwin, Breeding and Barnacles
Following the Beagle voyage, Darwin settled down to a quiet married life, relying on correspondence to gather facts. He wrote thousands of letters as he gathered facts to support his still-secret theory. Long before anyone had heard of evolution, Darwin produced four enormous books on barnacles, which helped establish his credentials (even his most committed opponents acknowledged that he couldn't be ignored). And the books were also Darwin's attempts to answer some complex questions about sex that will recur throughout the lectures.A lecture by Jim Endersby 5 October...
2020-10-05
59 min
Gresham College Lectures
The City of London - Culture, Creativity and the Culture Mile
The 2020 Annual Lord Mayor's Gresham event will explore the value of culture for The City of London.The City of London is not only a great place to do business but also has a rich and vibrant cultural offer making it a great place to live, learn, work and visit. It is home to a year round programme in the Square Mile led by the City of London Corporation's Cultural & Visitor Services. Culture Mile, which stretches from Farringdon to Moorgate, is led by the City Corporation in partnership with the Barbican, Guildhall School...
2020-01-09
1h 02
Gresham College Lectures
100 Years of Women in Law
A Gresham lecture that Delahunty gave in November 2017 was one of the first public identifications of the exodus of experienced women from the self-employed Bar - and gave a call for action. That loss affects the number of women who take Silk and that, in turn, drains the pool from which judges are largely drawn. In 2018 the Bar Council and Specialist Bar Associations acknowledged the issue and a "Retention of Women at the Bar' survey was launched. It's time to look at the results and test how the legal profession has responded to the...
2019-11-28
58 min
Gresham College Lectures
Sir Thomas Gresham and the Tudor Court
This lecture will explore Gresham's service to the crown during the turbulent politics of mid-Tudor England. Gresham served three Tudor monarchs, and his career exemplifies the reliance of the Tudors on the intellectual gifts and financial capital of 'new men' in an age of religious transformations and expanding government and warfare. But his public career was dependent on the court itself, and the personal relationships he forged both with the preeminent statesmen of the age and with Queen Elizabeth herselfA lecture by Alexandra Gajda 14 NovemberThe transcript and downloadable...
2019-11-14
51 min
Gresham College Lectures
Sir Thomas Gresham 1519-2019
THE 2019 SIR THOMAS GRESHAM ANNUAL LECTUREA special illustrated lecture will be presented by Dr John Guy to commemorate the 500th Anniversary of the birth of the College's founder and benefactor Sir Thomas Gresham. Information will be provided about a new biography.A lecture by Dr John Guy, Author of 'Gresham's Law: The Life and World of Queen Elizabeth I's Banker' 13 June 2019The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/thomas-gresham-1519-2019
2019-06-13
56 min
Gresham College Lectures
Gresham's Exchange
'Go to the Exchange, crave gold as you intend.'' (William Haughton, Englishmen for My Money, 1598). Sir Thomas Gresham's first great contribution to the life of London was the Royal Exchange, the purpose-built merchants' bourse which opened in 1567. Why did Gresham finance and build it? What did Londoners (and others) do there? And what does the Exchange tell us about Gresham's ambitions both for himself and for London?A lecture by Professor Stephen Alford, University of Leeds 8 May 2019The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are...
2019-05-08
36 min
Gresham College Lectures
500 Years of Mathematics: Are We Living in a New Golden Age?
Much has happened in the 500 years since the birth of Thomas Gresham, and mathematics is no exception. Most mathematicians were then in awe of the Greeks and felt little had been done since. But the start of modern mathematics soon followed, marked by the solution of the cubic equation. Mathematics has grown explosively since then and we are now in an age of great discovery. The last 500 years of progress in maths will be reviewed, to see where it is going next and ask whether we are truly living in a mathematical Golden Age.A lecture...
2019-04-30
59 min
Gresham College Lectures
Gresham's Bequest to Samuel Pepys and John Evelyn
The valuable bequest of Sir Thomas Gresham to the development of scientific interest in seventeenth-century England can be traced through the testimony of Samuel Pepys and John Evelyn - not only great diarists but also 'particular friends'.A lecture by Margaret Willes, Independent Writer and Scholar 11 March 2019The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/gresham-pepys-and-evelynGresham College has been giving free public lectures since 1597. This tradition continues today with all of our five or so public lectures...
2019-03-11
38 min
Gresham College Lectures
How Astronomy Changed our View of the Cosmos: from Gresham to the 21st Century
Thomas Gresham lived from 1519 to 1579. The first telescope was designed in 1608 in the Netherlands, and first pointed at the heavens by Galileo a year later. The greatest discoveries since the pre-telescope era have been that of the existence of many other planets around distant stars, and the vastness of the universe. So much has happened since Gresham's era, yet many of the questions about our cosmic origins still remain.A lecture by Joseph Silk, Gresham Professor of Astronomy 6 March 2019The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham...
2019-03-06
54 min
Gresham College Lectures
Gresham's World: Global Traffic, Trade, and the Metamorphosis of England
Global trade and traffic, many of Gresham's contemporaries would say, had altered sixteenth-century England beyond recognition, from its food, fashion, and language, to the look and feel of its cities and neighbourhoods. How did its subjects respond to this transformation? Using contemporary print and theatre, this lecture will discuss how England and Englishness was defined, even as the boundaries between the home and the world became increasingly diffuse.A lecture by Nandini Das, Professor of English Literature, University of Liverpool 6 February 2019The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from...
2019-02-06
46 min
Gresham College Lectures
Evolution since Sir Thomas Gresham: How Changes Over The Past Five Centuries Have Moulded Evolution
In celebrating 500 years since the birth of Sir Thomas Gresham, Professor Jones will examine how changes since the sixteenth century have affected the evolution of human beings and that of the animals and plants around us. Professor Jones will deal with the accelerating shifts in plants, animals and humans as they cope with human activities, from gold-mining to global warming, and will speculate about where life might be on Gresham's six- hundredth anniversary.A lecture by Steve Jones, Visiting Professor of Genetics 29 January 2019The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are...
2019-01-29
53 min