Public Lectures at the University of York

Every term, the University organises free public lectures on a wide variety of topics and aimed at a general audience. Some require tickets (available from the Communications Office) but most do not. Where tickets are needed, this is indicated in the publicity.
We distribute information on upcoming lectures to interested members of the public at the start of each academic term (October, January and April). If you would like to receive a free copy of this leaflet either by email or by post, please join our mailing list. Updated lecture details are also available here on our web pages. As they are updated frequently, they may publicise lectures which we were unable to include in the leaflet.
If you have an accessibility need, please contact us at publiclectures@york.ac.uk or 01904 322622, and we will make every effort to accommodate you.
The majority of lectures are held on the University's Heslington West and Heslington East campus. There is a regular bus service and the campus is easily accessible by bicycle. Car parking is available in the Pay&Display car parks, which are free after 6pm. Please note however space in the Heslington East car park is limited. More information on reaching the University together with maps and additional parking information can be found on our Information for Visitors webpages.
Upcoming events
The relentless march of the microchip
Professor Steve Furber from the University of Manchester will discuss research which aims to build a computer to accelerate our understanding of how the brain works and which will provide a platform for the investigation of the important issues that face the microchip industry in the near future.
Where now for Labour?
The Rt Hon David Blunkett MP will deliver the 2012 School of Social and Political Sciences Lecture on the topic 'Where now for Labour?'.
Are there really many worlds?
A public debate between Professor James Ladyman (Bristol University) and Professor David Wallace (Oxford University)
Innovation for a smarter planet
In this IBM Lecture, Distinguished Engineer and Master Inventor, Professor Andy Stanford-Clark, will introduce technology which is helping to make the planet smarter.
Where it all began: The Big Bang
Professor Carlos Frenk will open this year's York Festival of Ideas with a talk on the biggest metamorphosis of all - that of the universe as a whole, from the simplicity of the Big Bang to the complexity of the universe of galaxies, stars, and the planet on which we live.
Anthony Horowitz in conversation
Author, Anthony Horowitz, will discuss his writing in conversation with the University of York's Director of the Humanities Research Centre, Professor Judith Buchanan.
Rock and Roll Politics
Author Alex Preston debates 'Rock and Roll Politics' with Helen Boaden, BBC News Group Director
Viva la Revolution!
In conversation with Dave Musgrove, Editor of BBC History Magazine, Historian Derry Nairn will present his new book Viva La Revolution!
Great Discoveries in Medicine
William and Helen Bynum give an account of the evolution of medical knowledge and practice from ancient Egypt, India and China to today’s latest technology
Jung Chang
Best-selling author Jung Chang in conversation
Ovid and After
Professors Judith Buchanan and Hugh Haughton discuss how the lively and strange tales of Ovid’s Metamorphoses find their way into the thought and character of many later literary works
The Mind of the Fraudster
Martin Vander Weyer talks about 1920s City of London fraudster Gerard Lee Bevan — a financier of impeccable credentials who went to the bad when markets turned against him
The City of London
Sir Nicholas Kenyon (Barbican, London) celebrates the wide variety of architecture found within the Square Mile
Cracking the Egyptian Code
Andrew Robinson reveals a gripping tale of a race to unlock the secrets of a great but neglected civilization
Meet the Scientists ... who mummified Alan
In this Meet the Scientist event, members of the public will have an opportunity to meet the scientists behind the Channel 4’s award-winning documentary Mummifying Alan: Egypt’s Last Secret.
Heritage cities public debate
Public debate on the conflict between heritage cities, cutting edge architecture and economicand cultural development