Professor Stephen Hawking - Black Holes

Black holes ain't as black as they are painted

Professor Stephen Hawking delivers the second of his BBC Reith Lectures on black holes.

• 28 mins

Kwame Anthony Appiah - Mistaken Identities

Creed

Philosopher Kwame Anthony Appiah says we overestimate scripture in our view of faith.

• 60 mins

Kwame Anthony Appiah - Mistaken Identities

Country

Philosopher Kwame Anthony Appiah argues against a mythical and romantic view of nationhood

• 60 mins

Kwame Anthony Appiah - Mistaken Identities

Colour

Philosopher Kwame Anthony Appiah argues for a world free of racial fixations.

• 43 mins

Kwame Anthony Appiah - Mistaken Identities

Culture

Philosopher Kwame Anthony Appiah asks us to give up the idea of western civilisation.

• 58 mins

Reith Revisited: Michael Sandel on Bertrand Russell

Michael Sandel revisits the inaugural Reith Lectures given by Bertrand Russell.

• 21 mins

Reith Revisited: Anand Menon on Robert Birley

Sarah Montague and Anand Menon revisit Robert Birley's Reith Lectures, Britain in Europe.

• 15 mins

Reith Revisited: Brian Cox on Robert Oppenheimer

Sarah Montague and Brian Cox reconsider Robert Oppenheimer's 1953 Reith lectures.

• 28 mins

Reith Revisited: Grayson Perry on Nikolaus Pevsner

Sarah Montague and Grayson Perry discuss Nikolaus Pevsner's lectures on 'English Art'.

• 15 mins

Reith Revisited: Angela Stent on George Kennan

A re-examination of George Kennan's 1957 Reith Lectures, 'Russia, the Atom and the West'.

• 14 mins

Hilary Mantel

The Day Is for the Living

Art can bring the dead back to life, argues the late novelist Hilary Mantel.

• 42 mins

Hilary Mantel

The Iron Maiden

How do we construct our pictures of the past asks Hilary Mantel.

• 42 mins

Hilary Mantel

Silence Grips the Town

The story of how historical obsession killed a Polish writer, told by Hilary Mantel.

• 42 mins

Hilary Mantel

Can These Bones Live?

Hilary Mantel on how historical fiction can make the past come to life.

• 42 mins

Hilary Mantel

Adaptation

Hilary Mantel on how fiction changes when adapted for stage or screen.

• 42 mins

Margaret MacMillan - The Mark of Cain

War and Humanity

Margaret MacMillan asks if war is an essential part of being human.

• 45 mins

Margaret MacMillan - The Mark of Cain

Fearing and Loving: Making Sense of the Warrior

Margaret MacMillan explores our complex relationship with the people who go to war.

• 44 mins

Margaret MacMillan - The Mark of Cain

Civilians and War

Margaret MacMillan examines the role of civilians as supporters and victims of conflict.

• 60 mins

Margaret MacMillan - The Mark of Cain

Managing the Unmanageable

Margaret MacMillan assesses attempts to constrain and justify conflict.

• 60 mins

Margaret MacMillan - The Mark of Cain

War's Fatal Attraction

Margaret MacMillan examines how we remember and represent war in art.

• 28 mins

Jonathan Sumption - Law and the Decline of Politics

Law's Expanding Empire

Jonathan Sumption argues that the law is taking over the space once occupied by politics.

• 57 mins

Jonathan Sumption - Law and the Decline of Politics

In Praise of Politics

Jonathan Sumption explains how democracy can accommodate opposing opinions and interests

• 42 mins

Jonathan Sumption - Law and the Decline of Politics

Human Rights and Wrongs

Jonathan Sumption argues that courts have usurped power via human rights law.

• 42 mins

Jonathan Sumption - Law and the Decline of Politics

Rights and the Ideal Constitution

Jonathan Sumption assess the pros and cons of written and unwritten constitutions.

• 42 mins

Jonathan Sumption - Law and the Decline of Politics

Shifting the Foundations

Jonathan Sumption argues against Britain adopting a written constitution.

• 42 mins

Mark Carney - How We Get What We Value

From Moral to Market Sentiments

Why have financial values come to be considered more important than human ones?

• 42 mins

Mark Carney - How We Get What We Value

From Credit Crisis to Resilience

Mark Carney assesses what lessons have been learnt from the 2008 financial crash.

• 57 mins

Mark Carney - How We Get What We Value

From Covid Crisis to Renaissance

Mark Carney looks at the tensions between economic and human values during the pandemic.

• 57 mins

Mark Carney - How We Get What We Value

From Climate Crisis to Real Prosperity

Mark Carney argues that the market can be redirected to alleviating climate change.

• 57 mins

Stuart Russell - Living With Artificial Intelligence

The Biggest Event in Human History

Stuart Russell asks how artificial intelligence could transform our world

• 58 mins