Press release: new 2024-25 Lecture Programme announced

Space, pagans, the US constitution, and the mathematics of the brain all feature in the 2024-2025 Gresham College free lectures programme

A NEW programme of free lectures in central London this September will blast off with an exploration of space, before coming back down to earth for more than 100 talks on everything from music to finance. 

Gresham College, based in Holborn, organises the talks given by experts in their field including The Sky at Night presenter Professor Chris Lintott, Mathematics Professor Alain Goriely, and Professor Clive Stafford Smith, renowned human rights lawyer.  

The ten Gresham Professors and other invited speakers will cover a wide range of subjects, including an exploration of the furthest reaches of the galaxy, the geometry of the brain, and the showstopping effect of the song You’ll Never Walk Alone.  

Also on the agenda are lectures on how plants fight infections, how the devil gained horns, the case for a universal basic income, the current housing crisis, conspiracy theories, and an exploration of the UK’s unwritten constitution.  

The Beatles, Net Zero, sewage, and architecture – past and present – will also come under the microscope over the course of the year.  

All lectures are given by leading academics and world-renowned experts. They are completely free to attend, in person or online, in line with the vision of college founder Sir Thomas Gresham in the 16th century.  

Professor Martin Elliott is the Provost of Gresham and is looking forward to the new programme, which begins on Wednesday, 11 September.  

He said: “Gresham College is delighted to bring to you an exciting, eclectic and challenging series of lectures.  

“We are privileged to be able to attract some of the world’s best academic communicators to share their expertise with you.  

“The range of topics is vast, ranging from politics to plants, and the brain to The Beatles.  

“There is something for everyone, and we are confident that once seen, you will want to see more.” 

Browse all this year’s lectures

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This year’s themes 

Seeing the Universe:

Chris Lintott is a presenter of the BBC’s Sky at Night and Gresham Professor of Astronomy. 

His lectures will feature some of the latest developments in astronomy including, in April 2025, a look at the work of the LISA probe hours after it is due to fly past the DonaldJohanson asteroid.  

He launches the new academic year on Wednesday, 11 September, with A Mirror in the Sky, a look at how the Hubble Space Telescope has unpacked the origins of the skies.  

Other lectures will look at the foundations and mapping of the galaxy, and the make-up of the sun.  

“I want to use the lectures to share what is becoming a golden age of astronomy with as many people as possible, both in person and online,” he said.  

“Each lecture will include the latest observations from our fabulous new telescopes, and together we will explore how our understanding of how the Universe is changing.  

“Contemplating the cosmos is good for you – as I hope I can demonstrate!” 

Mathematics and the Brain: How Mathematics Changed The Way We Think About Ourselves: 

Joining Gresham College as its 34th Professor of Geometry is Alain Goriely, and he will make his debut with a series looking at the geometry of the brain.  

He will explore a range of challenging questions including whether a bigger brain is better, why is it so hard to conduct brain surgery, and if mathematics can help tackle diseases such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s.  

His first lecture is on Tuesday, 17 September, and is entitled The Big Brain: Size and Intelligence.  

Professor Goriely said: “I am thrilled to join Gresham College and share my passion for mathematics with a broader audience.  

“Understanding the brain through mathematical principles is a topic of endless fascination and discoveries.  

“My series will explore the intricate relationship existing between brain geometry, topology, and architecture on the one hand, and brain function in health and pathology on the other hand, hence demonstrating how mathematical insights can help us understand the complexities of the brain.  

“I look forward to engaging with the public and exploring these compelling topics together.” 

The UK’s Unwritten Constitution: Is It Worth the Paper It’s (Not) Written On:

Human rights lawyer Professor Clive Stafford Smith is Gresham’s new Professor of Law and is to give six lectures on contemporary legal human rights issues, and the impact of legal frameworks on society, drawing on his extensive experience and offering insights into the intersection of law, justice, and human rights. 

His series will focus on the differences between the United States, which has a written constitution, and the UK, which doesn’t, asking: which is better?  

Professor Stafford Smith's inaugural lecture, Human Rights Law: Bringing Power to the Powerless, will take place at 6pm on Thursday, 19 September, at Barnard's Inn Hall, London. 

Professor Stafford Smith said: “This series is based on the fact that I've spent half of my life in America and half of my life in Britain, and looking from the outside in always gives you a different perspective.  

“The US Constitution is not a perfect document, but it is the only thing that stands between a populist like one of our presidential candidates and the potential dissolution of democracy.  

“We will see in coming years, I suspect, that the UK needs a similar bulwark against those who would play on the Politics of Fear and Hatred, trying to ‘other’ people by blaming asylum seekers and those we label ‘criminals’ for society’s ills, when the true solutions to our challenges are complex.”   

Modern Paganism and Witchcraft: 

Ronald Hutton is Gresham Professor of Divinity and this academic year he is to explore the history of recent paganism and witchcraft. Topics will include how the devil got his horns, paganism in Victorian times, and the ancient druids' contribution to modern culture. 

His first lecture will ask ‘What is modern paganism?’ from 6pm on Wednesday, 18 September. 

Hutton is a prolific writer and broadcaster on the history of paganism.  

He said: “Paganism and pagan beliefs, including witchcraft, should be part of our study of religion and its history. 

“The pre-Christian religions of Europe were major components of human belief for thousands of years, and have left a rich heritage of literature, art and folklore for all subsequent periods including the present.  

“Modern Pagan religions, inspired by the ancient kind and embodying that heritage, have recently become an important dimension of contemporary spirituality, and this lecture series is devoted to exploring their nature, their history and their significance.” 

The Prehistory of IT:

Computers have been around for a lot longer than we realise, but not always as electrically-powered machines.  

In her series of lectures, Gresham’s IT Livery Company of Information Technology Professor, Victoria Baines, will explore the machines you never knew existed, some spanning hundreds of years.  

Highlights will include a look at how we owe Wi-Fi and GPS to a Hollywood actress, the earliest robots, and how present-day data thieves are loved by some and vilified by others.  

Her first lecture in the series will explore the link between an ancient shipwreck and northern England’s textile mills and their surprising role in developing computers. The Ancient History of Computers and Code is on Tuesday, 24 September. 

Professor Baines said: “I want people to feel like they have been part of an incredibly exciting process of the evolution of information technology. It didn't just start 30 or 40 years ago; it’s been going on for thousands of years. It just happened surreptitiously that we sometimes don’t notice we’ve been part of it.  

“We’ve had computers for thousands of years. In fact, computers used to be people, not machines.” 

Lawgivers in Political Imaginations:

The role of song in creating laws is the first topic in Gresham Professor Melissa Lane’s new series of lectures.  

The Princeton-based expert, who specialises in ancient political thought and ethics, will explore the roles Greek Lawgivers played in history and legend, revealing why they fascinated later political minds, and noting that some even set laws to music. 

Her Thursday, 26 September lecture sets the scene for a year of thought-provoking sessions covering the earliest days of lawmaking and how they resonate across the ages.  

She said: “For my second series as the Gresham Professor of Rhetoric, I'll be thinking about a powerful rhetorical trope, the figure of the lawgiver. 

“We'll be looking at lawgivers in political imaginations stretching from Hammurabi in the ancient Near East all the way to the revolution in modern Iran. 

“Thinking about lawgivers is a way to think about the transmission of ethics, the nature of cultural identity, and the basis for political authority.” 

What is Immunity Anyway? 

A series of lectures on immune systems across nature will make people think again about the role and diversity of Pathogens. 

They will be given by Robin May, Gresham College’s Professor of Physic.  

The series starts with a look at the immune mechanisms used by bacteria, amoebae, nematodes, and other microbial forms of life. This talk will take place on Wednesday, 2 October.  

Other lectures explore the speed at which cells respond to pathogens, how vaccines work, and what happens in plants when they are under attack from diseases.  

Professor May, who is now in his third year with Gresham College, is also Chief Scientific Adviser at the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Professor of Infectious Disease at the University of Birmingham.  

He said: “This series is relatively close to my academic background, but in my day job I am only concerned with humans whereas this series is about immunity across all species.  

“The overarching aim is to open people's eyes to the fact that while we think of immunity as being a very human-specific thing, there are all sorts of immune systems: in plants, bacteria and single-celled ameboma.  

“Towards the end of the series, I will have a lecture on how in the future we might be able to harness that. For example, producing antibodies vaccines in plants using what we know from biology, and improving computer virus detection.” 

Exploring Human Behaviour in Finance: 

A series exploring the psychological aspects of finance is coming to Gresham College courtesy of Raghavendra Rau, our Mercers’ School Memorial Professor of Business.  

The first, on Monday, 21 October, looks at a hidden truth when it comes to money: there are agency problems that can lead to risky choices, hidden fees, and fraud.  

The series continues with explorations of hidden traps in the insurance and loan markets, and conflicts in the investments markets.  

Professor Rau is the Sir Evelyn de Rothschild Professor of Finance at Cambridge Judge Business School. He is a past president of the European Finance Association, and a past editor of Financial Management. 

He said: “Last year’s series was on the big ideas of finance. Five of the six have Nobel Prizes associated with them, and these are the way everyone in finance thinks about finance. We assume these ideas are correct.  

“This year’s series builds on last year, specifically information. We don’t have enough, and we are unaware of just badly we are unaware of conflicts of interest, and situations where people are going to take us for a ride. 

“We will look at conflicts of interests between financial intermediaries and ourselves, banks, insurance companies, investment advisors, all these guys.  

“We will look at our behavioural biases, our psychology of fear, of fear of downturns or greed when markets go up, or overconfidence, confirmations, all those other issues. And then how can we, knowing all these things, take better decisions?” 

How Net Zero?  

During the recent General Election, the topic of Net Zero was raised several times. Some political parties wanted to abolish work on reducing carbon emissions, while others wanted to take the country in a different direction.  

Scientists think that if global warming can be limited to a below 2ºC increase impacts on the planet would be serious, but not likely catastrophic.

Over the course of the year, Myles Allen, Gresham’s Frank Jackson Foundation Professor of the Environment, will explore some of the issues involved in trying to meet the needs of 10 billion people while also reducing their carbon dioxide emissions.  

The first lecture, on Tuesday, 1 October, will explore a third way forward for the planet, something Professor Allen says would appeal to the broadest possible coalition. 

Professor Allen has worked for MIT and the UN Environment Programme in Kenya and is currently director of the Oxford Net Zero initiative. 

Worlds of Music:

The Beatles, JS Bach, Jimi Hendrix, and Pink Floyd will all be celebrated in the Worlds of Music lecture series, which will be given by Professor Milton Mermikides.  

Each of the lectures in this series aim to shine a light on the moments which have shaped and enriched our musical landscape, including the Magical Mystery Tour era of the Fab Four, the way in which music gives film and TV shows emotional impact, and an exploration of how Jimi Hendrix created magic on his guitar.  

It also looks at JS Bach’s mischievous compositions including looping works, melodies that turn upside down and backwards, and the puzzles in his music.  

Professor Mermikides said: “Have you ever wondered why the music you love affects you so deeply?  

“In this series we will look at a range of groundbreaking artists and genres and explore what is happening beneath the surface to create such a transformative inner world. 

“This series explores a selection of wonders of the musical world: artists, pieces, and genres of particular invention, revolution and cultural collision.  

“From African Drumming to Arvo Pärt and Bach to The Beatles, we shine a light on these moments which have shaped and enriched our musical landscape, demonstrating the endless diversity and expressive potential of music.” 

Professor Mermikides is the son of a CERN nuclear physicist, and himself a composer, guitarist, technologist, academic and educator in a wide range of musical styles and has collaborated with artists and scientists as diverse as Evelyn Glennie, Tim Minchin, Pat Martino, Peter Zinovieff, John Williams and Brian Eno.  

And that’s not all!

Visiting Professors and other guest speakers will give lectures across the academic year.  

They include the Provost of Gresham Professor and retired cardiothoracic surgeon, Martin Elliott, and The Lord Mayor of London.  

Among other guests, Rob Eastaway will speak on the mathematics of Shakespeare, Matt Qvortrup on charismatic leadership, and Liza Fior on the value of our public spaces.  

As part of a Politics and Mythmaking series, Peter Knight will speak about conspiracy theories.  

Showstoppers: 

Some of the most famous tunes in showbusiness form a series of lectures by Dominic Broomfield-McHugh, Gresham College’s Visiting Professor of Film and Theatre Music.  

It starts on Thursday, 17 October, with a focus on Stephen Sondheim’s Send In The Clowns, a favourite for singers such as Frank Sinatra, despite having some surprising origins.  

The series continues over the course of the year with sessions on other popular songs including I Am What I Am, White Christmas, and You’ll Never Walk Alone. The latter will include a performance of the song by Grammy Award winner Rebecca Evans.  

Cities: Collective Action Versus Private Markets:

Since 1960, the average age of house buyers has risen by more than 10 years, while the multiple of income needed to clear a mortgage has increased many times. It means a record number of people are renting homes, often in substandard accommodation.  

Is there a solution?  

Professor Martin Daunton will unpack the dilemma facing millions of people in his lecture on Tuesday, 22 October, the first in his series looking at modern life.  

Other lectures across the year look at the problems caused by sewers, and whether civic pride can be restored to Victorian levels.  

Professor Daunton is Gresham College’s Visiting Professor of Economic History and Emeritus Professor of Economic History at the University of Cambridge. 

He said: “I'm not going to give a historical lecture. It's will use history to explain where we are now, and what possibilities there are, using history as a way of thinking creatively.” 

Prof Daunton continued: “Housing has been overly financialised. People are using housing not simply as somewhere to live but as an asset which goes up and up in value.  

“The lecture is about changing attitudes to housing, about it being a financial asset rather than being for use. It’s about the way in which the mortgage market operates as a result, and it’s to argue that housing is a long-term investment which should be within the social market.” 

ENDS 

Notes to Editors 
Gresham College lectures are always free to attend and have been since the college was founded in the 16th century. Lasting no more than an hour, the lectures are given by some of the finest minds in the academic world, including the ten Gresham Professors. They are aimed at everyone – no academic background is needed.  

The academic year runs from September to the end of June. Most lectures take place at its home in Barnard’s Inn Hall in Holborn and are broadcast live on YouTube.  

In-person tickets are available on Eventbrite one month in advance of each lecture but press tickets are available in advance of this upon request.  

For more information or to arrange an interview with a Gresham Professor please contact: Phil Creighton press@gresham.ac.uk Images are available on request. 

About Gresham College 
Gresham College has been providing free, educational lectures – at the university level –since 1597 when Sir Thomas Gresham founded the college to bring Renaissance Learning to Londoners. Our history includes some of the luminaries of the scientific revolution including Robert Hooke and Sir Christopher Wren and connects us to the founding of the Royal Society. 

Today we carry on Sir Thomas's vision. The College aims to stimulate intellectual curiosity and to champion academic rigour, professional expertise and freedom of expression. 

To see all lectures, and explore our archive of more than 2,500 past lectures, log on to: www.gresham.ac.uk   

Gresham College is a registered charity in England and Wales (Charity no. 1039962) and a limited company (Company no. 2953431)