BBC Radio Podcasts from The Reith Lectures: Archive 1976-2012

Civil and Uncivil Societies

Niall Ferguson asks what constitutes a vibrant and independent civil society.

The Landscape of the Law

Niall Ferguson asks if different systems of law are key to economic success.

The Darwinian Economy

Niall Ferguson reflects on the causes and lessons of the global financial crisis.

The Human Hive

Niall Ferguson argues that institutions determine the success or failure of nations.

Eliza Manningham-Buller: Freedom

Ex-M15 boss Eliza Manningham-Buller discusses foreign policy in her third Reith Lecture.

Eliza Manningham-Buller: Security

Assessing the role of security and intelligence services in a democracy.

Eliza Manningham-Buller: Terror

Eliza Manningham-Buller reflects on 9/11 in the first of her Reith Lectures 2011.

Aung San Suu Kyi: Dissent

Aung San Suu Kyi examines what drives people to dissent in the second Reith Lecture 2011.

Aung San Suu Kyi: Liberty

Aung San Suu Kyi explores what freedom means in the first of the 2011 Reith Lectures.

The Runaway World

Prof Rees calls for the UK to stay at the forefront of scientific research and discovery.

What We'll Never Know

Professor Martin Rees explains where the limits of our scientific knowledge lie.

Surviving the Century

Does science have the answers to help us save our planet?

The Scientific Citizen

Prof Martin Rees asks who we should trust to explain the risks we face.

A New Politics of the Common Good

Professor Sandel makes the case for a moral and civic renewal in democratic politics.

Genetics and Morality

Professor Sandel considers how we should use our ever-increasing scientific knowledge.

Morality in Politics

Michael Sandel asks what role, if any, there is for moral argument in politics.

Markets and Morals

Prof Michael Sandel considers the expansion and moral limits of markets.

The Body Beautiful

Spence discusses how Chinese ideas of sport and athleticism have slowly evolved.

American Dreams

Spence explores the relationship between China and the US over two centuries.

English Lessons

Spence examines China's relations with the United Kingdom through three centuries.

Confucian Ways

Spence reflects on China's most enduring thinker, Confucius.

Global Politics in a Complex Age

Jeffrey Sachs calls for a new Enlightenment to help make globalisation work for all.

Economic Solidarity for a Crowded Planet

Jeffrey Sachs delivers the fourth of five lectures. He considers the challenges of poverty

The Great Convergence

Jeffrey Sachs talks about the need for international cooperation to achieve peace.

Survival in the Anthropocene

Sachs discusses China's emergence as an economic superpower and the effect on climate.

Bursting at the Seams

Jeffrey Sachs delivers the first of five lectures, recorded at The Royal Society in London

The Power of Music

Daniel Barenboim considers the difference between power and strength in music and in life.

Meeting in Music

Daniel Barenboim examines how music has the power to bring people together.

The Magic of Music

Daniel Barenboim argues that classical music can and should be accessible to all.

The Neglected Sense

Daniel Barenboim examines what he calls 'the neglected sense'; the ear.

In the Beginning was Sound

Musician and conductor Daniel Barenboim examines the physical phenomenon of sound.

Risk and Responsibility

In his final lecture, Lord Broers explores the responsibilities of the technologist.

Nanotechnology and Nanoscience

Lord Broers explores the origins and impact of nanotechnology.

Innovation and Management

Does modern innovation demand new approaches to product development?

Collaboration

In his second Reith Lecture, Lord Broers explores the origins of modern technologies.

Technology will Determine the Future of the Human Race

Lord Broers sets out his belief that technology will hold the key to the future.

I am Right; You are Dead

In his final Reith Lecture, Wole Soyinka examines the causes and impact of fanaticism.

A Quest for Dignity

Wole Soyinka explores the notion of dignity within a climate of fear.

Rhetoric that Binds and Blinds

In his third lecture, Wole Soyinka examines the power of political and religious rhetoric.

Power and Freedom

Wole Soyinka examines the difficulties in telling friend from foe in a climate of fear.

The Changing Mask of Fear

Wole Soyinka considers the nature of fear and its impact on individuals and society.

Neuroscience - the New Philosophy

Professor Ramachandran explores how neuroscience alters man's understanding of himself.

Purple Numbers and Sharp Cheese

Professor Ramachandran examines the phenomenon of synesthesia.

The Artful Brain

Professor Ramachandran examines the meaning of art from a neurological perspective.

Synapses and the Self

Professor Ramachandran examines how we 'see' and become conscious of our surroundings.

Phantoms in the Brain

Professor Ramachandran discusses the functionality of the brain in relation to neurology.

Licence to Deceive

Onora O'Neill asks how we decide when to trust those who inform us about the wider world.

Trust and Transparency

Onora O'Neill examines how transparency and trust are related.

Called to Account

Onora O'Neill examines the quest for more accountability in government and institutions.

Trust and Terror

Onora O'Neill examines extreme situations where danger and terror undermine trust.

Spreading Suspicion

Onora O'Neill asks whether there real evidence of a crisis of trust in society.

New Directions

Professor Kirkwood argues that the longevity revolution has reached a turning-point.

Making Choices

Professor Kirkwood discusses meeting the challenge of an older population.

Sex and Death

Professor Tom Kirkwood explores the connections between sex and death.

Thread of Life

Professor Tom Kirkwood looks at a revolution in the life sciences.

Brave Old World

Professor Tom Kirkwood explores the revolution in the human aging process.

Poverty & Globalisation

Dr Vandana Shiva examines the impact of globalisation on the lives of ordinary people.

Health & Population

Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland examines issues surrounding health in developing countries.

Business

Sir John Browne examines the role of business in delivering sustainable development.

Biodiversity

Tom Lovejoy argues that biological diversity lies at the heart of sustainable development.

Governance

Chris Patten examines how governance affects sustainable development.

Democracy: London

Professor Giddens examines one of the most powerful ideas of the 20th century.

Family: Washington DC

How do changing roles within the family promote democracy and economic development?

Tradition:Delhi

Professor Giddens looks at the links between tradition and fundamentalism.

Globalisation:London

Professor Anthony Giddens examines the ways globalisation has affected our lives.

Can there be an end to war?

John Keegan considers how the causes of war are to be addressed and conflict resolved.

War And The Individual

John Keegan considers the impact of battle on those who fight them.

War and the State

John Keegan explores the evolving relationship between war and the nation state.

The Origins Of War

John Keegan explores the origins of warfare, when combat first became purposeful.

War And Our World

Military historian John Keegan explores the impact warfare has had on modern times.

An Ordinary Brilliance: Parting the Waters, closing the wounds

Professor Williams explores solutions to prevent racism and reconcile racial tensions.

The War Between The Worlds

Professor Williams examines the impact of racialised science on attitudes to race.

The Distribution Of Distress

Professor Williams examines the interaction of race and class in society.

The Pantomime of Race

Professor Williams explores 'racial voyeurism' and the denial of racial experiences.

The Emperor's New Clothes

Professor Patricia Williams assesses the effect of social blindness about colour and race.

The World Wide Web

Professor Jean Aitchison looks at the way we use language.

A Web Of Words

Professor Jean Aitchison examines the word-learning ability inbuilt in humans.

Building the Web

Professor Jean Aitchison explores how and why language develops so quickly in children.

A Web Of Deceit

Professor Jean Aitchison examines the origin of language in the human species.

A Web Of Worries

Professor Jean Aitchison examines what troubles us about how our language is changing.

Cities For A Small Planet

Richard Rogers considers the practical steps needed to create more sustainable cities.

London, the Humanist City

Richard Rogers examines some of the economic, social and ecological problems London faces.

Sustainable Architecture

Richard Rogers examines the ways in which buildings can enhance the public sphere.

Sustainable Cities

Richard Rogers explores how cities can be socially divisive and environmentally hazardous.

The Culture of Cities

Richard Rogers explores both the civilising and brutalising aspects of urban life.

Home: our Famous Island Race

Marina Warner looks at myths of national identity and asks: what is home ground?

Cannibal Tales: The Hunger for Conquest

In her penultimate lecture Marina Warner asks: who are the real cannibals?

Beautiful Beasts: The Call of the Wild

From King Kong to the teddy bear, Marina Warner examines the changing value of the animal.

Little Angels, Little Devils: Keeping Children Innocent

Marina Warner examines the various depictions of children in myths and stories.

Boys Will Be Boys

Marina Warner examines the threads linking ancient myths and modern machismo.

Monstrous Mothers

In her first lecture, Marina Warner examines the role of the 'she-monster' in myth.

Gods That Always Fail

Edward Said considers how far an intellectual should participate in the public sphere.

Speaking Truth To Power

Edward Said asks the basic question for the intellectual: how does one speak the truth?

Professionals and Amateurs

Edward Said examines amateur intellectuals and their influence on society.

Intellectual Exiles

Edward Said considers intellectuals as people on the margins of their own society.

Holding Nations And Traditions At Bay

Edward Said explores the role of intellectuals from different cultures and backgrounds.

Representations of the Intellectual

Edward Said examines the definition and role of intellectuals in the modern world.

The Evolution of Utopia

Steve Jones argues that humans may be as near to biological utopia as we will ever get.

Cousins Under the Skin

Steve Jones examines the ways in which science has been used to support prejudice.

The Economics of Eden

Steve Jones examines the correlation between genetic change and economic development.

In God's Image

Dr Steve Jones explores the power and consequences of natural selection.

Change or Decay

Dr Steve Jones explores the importance of mutation in species and individual development.

A Message From Our Ancestors

Dr Steve Jones explores what genetics can tell us about what it means to be human.

A Community of Communities

Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks explains why faith survives.

Fundamentalism

Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks assesses the explosive mix of religious revival and nationalism

Paradoxes & Pluralism

Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks explores the language of religion and community.

The Family

Dr. Jonathan Sacks explores the religious institution of marriage in society.

The Demoralisation of Discourse

Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks explores how objective standards influence our ethics.

The Environment of Faith

Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks argues that religion is the best moral framework for society.

Towards the Light

Jacques Darras explores how Medieval Irish monks hold the key to a United Europe.

Remembering the Somme

Jacques Darras explores the memories of the Somme and the lessons learnt from WW1.

Highways of Freedom

Jacques Darras suggests a new age of mobility and a revival of the 'Grand Tour' of Europe.

The Golden Fleece

Jacques Darras explains how multiculturalism is not a modern concept.

The Time Traveller

Jacques Darras explores the embodiment of democracy within the civic squares of Europe.

The Paradox of Gorbachev's Reforms

Professor Geoffrey Hosking analyses how democracy can evolve after a totalitarian regime.

Religion and the Atheist State

Professor Geoffrey Hosking analyses the détente between the Soviet state and the Church.

The Flawed Melting Pot

Professor Geoffrey Hosking discusses the national aspirations of the Soviet peoples.

A Civil Society In Embryo

Professor Geoffrey Hosking investigates the embryonic state of a civil Soviet society.

The Return Of The Repressed

Professor Geoffrey Hosking investigates the communal amnesia found in Soviet society.

A Great Power in Crisis

Professor Geoffrey Hosking analyses how a 'glasnost' affects the Soviet economy.

Stand Up and Be Misunderstood

Professor Alexander Goehr stresses why society must fight to save the symphony.

Let the People Sing

Professor Alexander Goehr explores the creation of 'community' music by modern composers.

A Licence for Licence

Professor Alexander Goehr explores how avant-garde music lost its edge.

Past and Present

Professor Alexander Goehr diagnoses the pressures of contemporary music-making.

An Orchid In the Field of Technology

Professor Alexander Goehr judges the effect of recorded sound on our perception of music.

The Old Warhorse

The composer Alexander Goehr discusses rise and fall of the Symphony.

Lions Under the Throne

Lord McCluskey concludes his lectures on the state of the British legal system.

An Enormous Power

Lord McCluskey argues against the enactment of a Bill of Rights in the United Kingdom.

Trusting the Judges

Lord McCluskey argues for the more unambiguous adjudication.

Hard Cases and Bad Law

Lord McCluskey argues ultimate responsibility for legislation lies with Parliament.

The Clanking of Medieval Chains

Lord McCluskey examines how judges come to their conclusions.

The Chill and Distant Heights

Lord McCluskey questions the role judges perform in sentencing criminals.

Markets, States & Economics

David Henderson considers the wider context of market states and economics.

DIYE plus the Lobbies: Counting the Cost

David Henderson examines how influential economists really are.

Orthodox Economists versus the People

David Henderson explores the role of international trade on economics.

Needs, Centralism & Autarchy

David Henderson considers the contrasts between different economic processes.

Soap Opera in High Places

David Henderson examines the leading elements of do-it-yourself economics.

The Power of Do-it-Yourself Economics

David Henderson examines the power of do-it-yourself economics.

The Freedom of the Will

Professor John Searle examines the evidence for and against the existence of free will.

A Changing Reality

Professor John Searle explores the limitations of human behavioural science.

Walk to Patagonia

Professor John Searle analyses how our mental activities can produce our behaviour.

Grandmother Knew Best

Professor John Searle examines the discipline of cognitive science.

Beer Cans & Meat Machines

Professor John Searle considers whether a digital computer can be taught to think.

A Froth on Reality

Professor John Searle examines the connections between the mind and the brain.

Participation - the Sole Bond

Sir Douglas Wass makes the case for a more autonomous Royal Commission.

Opening Up Government.

Sir Douglas Wass examines the effect on government of more public access to information.

Critical Opposition - Part of the Policy

Sir Douglas Wass examines the executive power of Parliament.

The Privileged Adviser

Sir Douglas Wass asks which Civil Service reforms would strengthen it and which weaken it.

Cabinet: Directorate or Directory?

Sir Douglas Wass analyses the effectiveness of the British Parliamentary Cabinet.

United Thoughts & Counsels

Sir Douglas Wass examines what we mean by 'government'.

A Talent For Conviction

Irish literary critic Denis Donoghue explores societies' need to over analyse art.

The Anxious Object

Denis Donoghue evaluates the destruction of raw art by interpretation.

A Cherishing Bureaucracy

Denis Donoghue analyses how the categorisation of art is destroying its mystery.

The Parade of Ideas

Denis Donoghue examines how critics influence society's perception of art.

The Domestication of Outrage

Irish literary critic Denis Donoghue evaluates how the creation of art can be a mystery.

The Zealots of Explanation

Denis Donoghue explores how and why people destroy the mystery of art.

Who's Moving the Goal Post?

Professor Laurence Martin explores the future of strategic defence.

Not For the Sake of Their Blue Eyes

Professor Laurence Martin debates the disarmament and arms control of countries.

Conflicts of the Third World

Professor Laurence Martin explores the conflicts of strategic policy over the Third World.

Shadow Over Europe

Professor Laurence Martin explores the strategic nuclear balance of countries.

Plausibility and Horror

Professor Laurence Martin explores the strategic limitations of nuclear weapons.

If You Knows of a Better 'ole...

Professor Laurence Martin questions how nations protect national security.

Let's Kill All the Lawyers

Sir Ian Kennedy analyses how consumerism regulates the medical profession and health care.

The Doors of Mental Illness

Sir Ian Kennedy explores the the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness.

If I Were You, Mrs B

Sir Ian Kennedy reviews the ethical judgements used by the medical profession.

Suffer the Little Children

Sir Ian Kennedy reviews how he believes the National Health Service could be improved.

The New Magicians

Sir Ian Kennedy explains why he believes modern medicine has taken the wrong path.

The Rhetoric of Medicine

Professor Sir Ian Kennedy analyses the role of the doctor in the modern world.

In Search of Pax Africana

Professor Ali Mazrui explores how Africa's location holds the key to its destiny.

Patterns of Identity

Professor Ali Mazrui explains the significance of the size and fragmentation of Africa.

The Burden of Underdevelopment

Professor Ali Mazrui examines the burden of Africa's economic underdevelopment.

A Clash of Cultures

Professor Ali Mazrui explores the conflicts between African and Western cultures.

The Cross of Humiliation

Professor Ali Mazrui examines injustices that have been inflicted on the African people.

The Garden of Eden in Decay

Professor Ali Mazrui examines the crisis of living standards in Africa.

The In-Dwelling Christ

Reverend Dr Edward Norman considers the importance of spirituality within Christianity.

Not Peace, but a Sword

Edward Norman explores the religious politics in his lecture 'Not Peace, but a Sword'

The Imperialism of Political Religion

Reverend Edward Norman explores the Imperialism of Political Religion.

A New Commandment - Human Rights

Reverend Edward Norman contemplates if human rights are the newest form of Commandments.

Ministers of Change

Reverend Norman explores who the 'Ministers of Change' are in society.

The Political Christ

Reverend Edward Norman examines the politicisation of Christianity.

The Social Order

Professor A H Halsey evaluates the bond of fraternity found in the British Society.

Between the Generations

Professor A H Halsey examines the relationship between generations in a nuclear family.

The Rise of Party

Professor A H Halsey traces the growth of organisations in Britain's society.

The Reconstitution of Status

A H Halsey explores the changing concept of 'Status' in British society.

Class-Ridden Prosperity

Professor A H Halsey investigates the class-ridden structure of Britain's Society.

To Know Ourselves

Professor A H Halsey explores the fluctuating characteristics of the British identity.

Madness and Morality

Professor Blakemore explores how society attempts to regulate the behaviour of its members

A Burning Fire

Colin Blakemore explores the evolution of speech and language.

A Child of the Moment

Neurobiologist Colin Blakemore explains how the brain creates and stores memories.

An Image of Truth

Neurobiologist Colin Blakemore explains how the mind creates sight and perception.

Chang Tzu and the Butterfly

Neurobiologist Colin Blakemore discusses why humans need to sleep.

The Divinest Part of Us

Neurobiologist Colin Blakemore explores the historic concepts of the brain.