Musical Legacies of the Hanseatic League - Dr Geoffrey Webber

A lecture on the great musicians connected to the Hanseatic cities of Northern Germany. Not least amongst them was Dieterich Buxtehude of Lübeck, to whom the young J S Bach walked over 400 kilometres just listen to his organ improvisations.

The Postmodern Detective: Contemporary London Crime Fiction - Dr Jenny Bavidge

Have recent London crime stories abandoned their confidence in the interpretative abilities of the detective? Can we still believe in omniscient figures such as Dickens’ Inspector Bucket or Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes? Is London still a place where mysteries can be satisfactorily solved?

Human Livelihoods Depend on Wild Flowers - Dr Robin Probert

Dr Robin Probert explains why human livelihoods depend so much on wild plant diversity. He outlines the current threats to wild plants across the globe and how Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank Partnership works to conserve plants and make seeds available for habitat repair, re-introduction and research. Current work in the UK that aims to restore wildflower meadows and other threatened habitats is also highlighted.

Children's Self-Control and the Health and Wealth of their Nation - Professor Terrie Moffitt

What do a series of studies of children from birth in 1972 to the present tell us about self-control. The startling results suggest that it could be central to all markers of success or failure in life, including income, longevity and happiness. Professor Moffitt presents the findings and suggests how and why governments would be wise to take note.

Parliament and the Public: Strangers or Friends? - The Rt Hon John Bercow

The Speaker of the House of Commons addresses the questions of how the House of Commons can engage more effectively with the public which it serves and how modern technology can assist in this enterprise.

The Lost World of 1962 - Dominic Sandbrook

In this lecture, Dominic Sandbrook, the acclaimed historian of Sixties Britain, marks the 50th anniversary of the City of London Festival by looking back at Britain in 1962. Fifty years on, the Britain of Harold Macmillan, Acker Bilk, Jimmy Greaves and James Hanratty feels like a vanished world. But was life back then really so different?

Arthur Conan Doyle and London: "A Stout Heart in the Great Cesspool" - Richard Burnip

From the Sherlock Holmes stories to The Lost World this lecture examines some of the locations which formed such in important backdrop to Conan Doyle's life and work. It will also touch on some of his lesser known works and include the place which perhaps meant more to him than any other in London, and to which he returned in his writing throughout his life.

Privacy and Publicity in Family Law: Their Eternal Tension - The Rt Hon Sir Nicholas Wall

There is general agreement among non-family lawyers that family procedures should be more transparent. But exactly what role should the media play in matters of family justice?

Berlioz, the Grande Messe des Morts and the Absence of God - David Cairns

Leading Berlioz scholar and biographer, David Cairns, discusses Berlioz's Grande Messe des Morts Op. 5 (Requiem)in the context of Berlioz's ambiguous relationship to religion.

Literary London Crime: The Dark Eyes of London - Cathi Unsworth

London is a city of secrets, a shifting, seething mass of intrigue, venality and violence, in constant cultural flux. The perfect setting for crime fiction - but how does the modern writer decode this centuries' old conurbation? Cathi Unsworth investigates those authors who haunt certain regions of the capital and along the way she will also explore the cult writers who helped to shape these contemporary authors' visions and the clandestine vocabulary of the City of Slang.

What has the City ever done for us? - The Lord Mayor of London

The Rt. Hon. The Lord Mayor of London, Alderman David Wootton, examines the role, contribution and connections of the City and business - fundamental elements of our community.

Star Dust - Professor Carolin Crawford

Interstellar space is not truly a vacuum devoid of matter. Mixed into vast diffuse clouds of atomic gas are minute grains of silicate and carbonate materials known as ‘dust’, alongside complex molecules deep in the cold hearts of nebulae. We shall look at how we can detect and observe this tenuous material, through the processes by which dust scatters and absorbs visible light, and emits its own infrared glow. This interstellar matter is of fundamental importance to us all, as it is the reservoir from which all planets form... and any lifeforms living on those planets.

Crime in Dickens’ London: ‘This ain’t the shop for justice’ - Dr Tony Williams

From his childhood acquaintance with London, when he feared he might become ‘a little robber or a little vagabond’, Charles Dickens was fascinated by crime. His novels all include criminal activity of some kind as he investigates criminal psychology and the causes of crime. Dickens lived through a period of considerable development in society’s treatment of criminals: the foundation of the Metropolitan Police in 1829, the Detective Force in 1842, the same year as the New Model Prison opened at Pentonville; the ending of transportation and of public executions; the word ‘penology’ was first used in 1838, the year he began to publish Nicholas Nickleby. Dickens engages with these issues very fully, both in his fiction and in his journalism, as this talk will explore.

Innovation in the Social Sciences - Professor Sir Roderick Floud

Innovation is seen as the key to economic growth. But is this true of innovation in services, which now employ 75% of us, as well as in manufacturing industry? This lecture explores innovation in the “knowledge industries” through the development of the subject of economic history over the past 50 years.

Illuminated Psalter Manuscripts - Dr Sally Dormer

Psalters containing the 150 Psalms were immensely popular medieval manuscripts, used by a wide array of patrons for liturgical, scholastic and devotional purposes. This lecture explores how the Psalms inspired a rich tradition of literal, historical and interpretative illustration, from the 9th to the 14th centuries, across Europe.

Regulating the Regulators - The Baroness Deech of Cumnor DBE

How should regulation be carried out? What is the position of quangos? What general principles should govern regulation and who should do the regulating?

Britain in the 20th Century: A new consensus? 1990-2001 - Professor Vernon Bogdanor

To what extent was there a new political consensus in Britain in the 1990s, and were the policies of the New Labour government, elected in 1997, an extension of Thatcherism or a repudiation of it?

Lyme Disease: Is it safe to walk in the park? - Professor Patricia Nuttall

A consideration of the likelihood of being bitten by a tick carrying the Lyme Disease spirochaete, Borrelia burgdorferi. The disease was first described in the 1970s but it is now recognised in temperate regions across much of the northern hemisphere. The reasons for the seemingly prolific spread of the disease, and the prospects of controlling it, will be discussed. Yes, it is safe to walk in the park, but there are some provisos...

The Art of Rhetoric - Simon Lancaster

Most people fear giving speeches, almost as much as the rest of us dread listening to them. The lectern has a cruel capacity to render even the mighty vulnerable. Fortunately there is a science to the art of public speaking and it dates back to Ancient Greece. Simon Lancaster will open up a veritable treasure trove of ancient rhetorical devices and help you discover how to become a master in the language of leadership.

Drawings in Anglo-Saxon Manuscripts - Dr Sally Dormer

Medieval drawings are frequently viewed as the poor cousins of fully-painted miniatures. But in England, an appreciation of drawing persisted throughout the Middle Ages. Based within the late 10th and early 11th centuries, this lecture proves that drawing was more than an expedient alternative to full paint.

Home Office Mathematics - Professor Bernard Silverman

The Chief Scientific Adviser is the head of Home Office Science, which provides scientific advice and support to the whole range of the Home Office's work as the lead government department for immigration and passports, drugs policy, crime, counter-terrorism and police. Many aspects of our scientific work involve mathematics, and in this talk a selection will be presented. These show not only how mathematics is used by one particular government department, but also how wide is the range of topics where mathematical thinking and methods are important.

Baroque Violin: The Challenge of the Solo - Christopher Hogwood & Pavlo Beznosiuk

Pavlo Beznosiuk, one of the world's leading baroque violinists, explains and demonstrates the challenge of music for solo violin; works by Nicola Matteis and Heinrich Biber lead to a discussion and performance of the famous Chaconne from Bach's Solo Partita in D minor. Can such a work be satisfactorily analysed or does "music begin where words leave off"?

The Inconsistent Sun - Professor Claudio Vita-Finzi

Changes in the Sun's output can endanger health, power supplies and satellite systems. To prepare adequately for such events and to make judicious use of solar energy we need to investigate the Sun's 4.7 billion year history.

The Legal Profession: Regulating for independence - Baroness Ruth Deech

Britain’s legal profession is renowned the world over for its skill and independence. But should there be self regulation or should the profession be regulated by external bodies composed of lay members? What difference will the Legal Services Act 2007 make, and should we continue to have a divided profession, barristers and solicitors?

Large telescopes and why we need them - Professor Carolin Crawford

An investigation through history and to the present-day and beyond, of the the science driving the need for such large telescopes as the Extremely Large Telescope or the Square Kilometre Array. We will also look at the many scientific and engineering challenges are involved in the design and construction of such large telescopes and their mirrors.

The Making of Medieval Illuminated Manuscripts - Dr Sally Dormer

Illuminated manuscripts are some of the most beautiful artefacts to survive from the Middle Ages. Their production involved transforming animal skins into parchment; copying texts; painting and gilding minatures; and binding folios between boards, a process that reveals much about medieval scribal and artistic practice.

The BBC: Defending the public interest - Baroness Deech

The BBC is an important source of value and truth not just within the UK but around the world through the World Service. How, then, should the Corporation be regulated if it is to maintain its position as a fair and independent source of news and entertainment?

Britain in the 20th Century: Thatcherism, 1979-1990 - Professor Vernon Bogdanor

Margaret Thatcher’s governments encouraged the spread of ownership in Britain and 'Thatcherism' seemed for a time to be in accordance with the trends of social change. So why did it come to an end? What was the cost? How should we judge her leadership of the nation today?

Mathematics and Sport: Final Score - Professor John D Barrow

From league tables to game-set-match, an investigation of the mathematics behind scoring systems in sport.

Malaria: Twenty-first Century Threat - Professor Frank Cox

Malaria afflicts some 250 million people of whom over a million, mostly children, die each year. But in 1955 the World Health Organization announced a plan to eradicate it. What went wrong? Will Malaria ever be beaten? What is being done about it?

Brain Reconstruction - Professor Jack Price

Is brain reconstruction going to be the next biomedical breakthrough, or is it just a biological impossibility? Professor Jack Price details the latest advances in this field of neuroscience, as well as covering the conceptual and regulatory obstacles that researchers face.

The New Normal: Rebalancing Our Priorities - Professor Ken Costa

It is time for the banking and financial sectors to stop apologising and start changing. But how? Professor Costs outlines three key themes for change needed in order to estable a "New Normal" for how we operate in the commerical and financial world: a re-ordering of our priorities, the respect the ethical, and the creation of a better spirit in which to carry out business.

The Roman Denarius and the Euro: A precedent for monetary union? - Dr Andrew Burnett

A look at the way the Roman Empire has sometimes been used as an historical precedent for the European Union, and specifically the way that the integration of the Roman monetary system has been seen as a (sometimes justifying) precedent for modern European monetary union.