RI Christmas Lectures – Episode List

The Royal Institution have kindly posted many of their Christmas Lectures online as free webcasts (you’ll need to register). The lectures have been taking place since 1825, and on tv since 1966; the collection on the RI site is not complete but there are plenty to watch. If the need to register is putting you off, there are alternatives.

Because the RI site doesn’t yet have an easy way to browse all the lectures (edit: since compiling this, they have put up a much better list), for convenience we’ve collected the links that we could find below.

Some of the lectures are available to watch easily (via Flash, good quality) on the new RI Channel. To watch the older RI webcasts, you need Windows Media Player; they appear to work in both Firefox and Internet Explorer (but not Chrome). If you get an error loading a webcast page, refreshing/reloading the page will probably fix it. Some lectures are also available from other free sources online (YouTube etc) which we’ve also listed, as these may be higher quality, or a convenient alternative if you have trouble getting the RI webcasts to work. Some of the lectures are also available to buy on DVD directly from the RI. Hopefully they will continue to add from their archive to the RI Channel, which is much nicer to use all round.

If you’re after more depth, there’s an impressive thread on MetaFilter with a lot of further reading and related materials going all the way back to the start.

There are many gems here – scroll down and you may see some familiar names :)

Oh, and don’t discount the older lectures – most of the science is still perfectly relevant (and often more in-depth), and it is pretty clear that health and safety was not quite as strict – which results in some interesting/terrifying demonstrations.

1. 2011
   
   1. brain
   2. biology
   3. psychology
   Bruce Hood
   Meet Your brain
   1. What’s in your head? 2011/12/12
   2. Who’s in charge here anyway? 2011/12/15
   3. Are you thinking what I’m thinking? 2011/12/17
   1. RI homepage for the 2011 lectures
   2. RI channel page
2. 2010
   
   1. materials
   2. microstructure
   3. technology
   4. biology
   Mark Miodownik
   Size Matters
   1. Why elephants can’t dance RI2010/12/14
   2. Why chocolate melts and jet planes don’t RI2010/12/16
   3. Why mountains are so small RI2010/12/18
   1. RI homepage for the 2010 lectures
   2. RI channel page
3. 2009
   
   1. plants
   2. communication
   3. food
   Sue Hartley
   The 300-Million-Year War
   1. Plant wars 4oD RI 2009/12/05
   2. The animals strike back 4oD RI 2009/12/08
   3. Talking trees 4oD RI 2009/12/10
   4. Dangerous to delicious? 4oD RI 2009/12/12
   5. Weapons of the future 4oD RI2009/12/16
   1. RI homepage for the 2009 lectures.
   2. Teacher’s notes are also provided.
   3. RI channel page
   4. Channel 4’s 4oD still has these to watch for free (with adverts) in high quality.
4. 2008
   
   1. computing
   2. robotics
   3. electronics
   4. algorithms
   Christopher Bishop
   Hi-tech Trek: The Quest for the Ultimate Computer
   1. Breaking the speed limit RI 2008/12/06
   2. Chips with everything RI 2008/12/09
   3. The ghost in the machine RI 2008/12/11
   4. Untangling the web RI 2008/12/13
   5. Digital intelligence RI 2008/12/17
   1. RI homepage for the 2008 lectures
   2. RI channel page
5. 2007
   
   1. humans
   2. food
   3. genetics
   Hugh Montgomery
   Back from the Brink: The Science of Survival
   1. Peak performance 2007/12/05
   2. Completely stuffed? 2007/12/08
   3. Grilled and chilled 2007/12/11
   4. Fight, flight and fright 2007/12/13
   5. Luck, genes and stupidity 2007/12/15
6. 2006
   
   1. maths
   2. chaos
   Marcus du Sautoy
   The Num8er My5teries
   1. The curious incident of the never-ending numbers 2006/12/15
   2. The story of the elusive shapes 2006/12/16
   3. The secret of the winning streak 2006/12/18
   4. The case of the uncrackable code 2006/12/20
   5. The quest to predict the future 2006/12/22
   1. RI microsite for the 2006 lectures
7. 2005
   
   1. humans
   2. food
   John Krebs
   The Truth About Food
   1. The gourmet ape 2005/12/26
   2. Yuck or yummy? 2005/12/27
   3. You are what you eat 2005/12/28
   4. When food goes bad 2005/12/29
   5. Food for the future 2005/12/30
   1. RI microsite for the 2005 lectures
8. 2004
   
   1. humans
   2. food
   Lloyd Peck
   To the End of the Earth: Surviving Antarctic Extremes
   1. Ice people RI 2004/12/16
   2. Ice life RI 2004/12/18
   3. Ice world RI 2004/12/20
   1. Also still available to watch on Channel 4’s 4oD, in much higher quality.
9. 2003
   1. space
   2. physics
   3. mars
   Monica Grady
   Voyage in Space and Time
   1. Blast off RI 2003/12/26
   2. Mission to Mars RI 2003/12/27
   3. Planet patrol RI 2003/12/28
   4. Collision course RI 2003/12/29
   5. Anybody out there RI 2003/12/30
   1. Also still available to watch on Channel 4’s 4oD, in much higher quality.
10. 2002
    
    1. materials
    2. technology
    3. chemistry
    Tony Ryan
    Smart Stuff
    1. The spider that spun a suspension bridge 2002/12/26
    2. The trainer that ran over the world 2002/12/27
    3. The phone that shrank the planet 2002/12/28
    4. The plaster that stretches life 2002/12/29
    5. The ice-cream that will freeze granny 2002/12/30
11. 2001
    1. biology
    2. genetics
    3. humans
    John Sulston
    The Secrets of Life
    1. What is life? 2001/12/26
    2. How do I grow? 2001/12/27
    3. What am I? 2001/12/28
    4. Can we fix it? 2001/12/29
    5. The future of life? 2001/12/30
12. 2000
    
    1. computing
    2. robotics
    Kevin Warwick
    Rise of the Robots
    1. Anatomy of an android 2000/12/26
    2. Hypersenses 2000/12/27
    3. Remote robots 2000/12/28
    4. Bionic body 2000/12/29
    5. I robot 2000/12/30
13. 1999
    1. physics
    2. chaos
    Neil F. Johnson
    Arrows of Time
    1. Back to the future YouTube 1999/12/26
    2. Catching the waves 1999/12/27
    3. The quantum leap YouTube 1999/12/28
    4. Edge of chaos YouTube 1999/12/29
    5. Shaping the future 1999/12/30
14. 1998
    1. humans
    2. food
    Nancy Rothwell
    Staying Alive: the body in balance
    1. Sense and sensitivity RI 1998/12/26
    2. Fats and figures RI 1998/12/27
    3. Chilling out RI 1998/12/28
    4. Times of our lives RI 1998/12/29
    5. Pushing the limits RI 1998/12/30
    1. RI channel page
15. 1997
    
    1. maths
    2. chaos
    Ian Stewart
    The Magical Maze
    1. Sunflowers and snowflakes 1997/12/26
    2. The pattern of tiny feet 1997/12/27
    3. Outrageous fortune 1997/12/28
    4. Chaos and cauliflowers 1997/12/29
    5. Fearful symmetry 1997/12/30
16. 1996
    1. history
    2. paleontology
    Simon Conway Morris
    The History in our Bones
    1. Staring into the abyss 1996/12/26
    2. The fossils come alive 1996/12/27
    3. The great dyings: life after death 1996/12/28
    4. Novelty and Innovation 1996/12/29
    5. Feet on the ground, head in the stars: the history of man 1997/12/30
    1. Also on YouTube
17. 1995
    1. geology
    James Jackson
    Planet Earth, An Explorer’s guide
    1. On the edge of the world 1995/12/26
    2. Secrets of the deep 1995/12/27
    3. Volcanoes – melting the earth 1995/12/28
    4. Puzzles of the continents 1995/12/29
    5. Waterworld 1995/12/30
18. 1994
    
    1. humans
    2. brain
    3. biology
    Susan Greenfield
    Journey to the Centre of the Brain
    1. The electric ape 1994/12/26
    2. Through a glass darkly 1994/12/27
    3. Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble 1994/12/28
    4. The seven ages of the brain 1994/12/29
    5. The mind’s I 1994/12/30
19. 1993
    
    1. physics
    2. particle
    3. space
    Frank Close
    The Cosmic Onion
    1. Beyond the Rainbow 1993/12/26 RI
    2. To the Centre of the Sun 1993/12/29
    3. Invaders from Outer Space 1993/12/30
    4. Anti-Matter Matters 1993/12/31
    5. An Hour to make the Universe 1993/12/31
    1. Only the first lecture is on the RI site, but happily all are available in higher quality from CERN.
20. 1992
    1. symmetry
    Charles J.M. Stirling
    Our World Through the Looking Glass
    1. Man in the mirror 1992/12/26
    2. In the hands of giants 1992/12/27
    3. The handed molecules 1992/12/28
    4. Symmetry, sensation and sex 1992/12/29
    5. Narwhals, palindromes and Chesterfield Station 1992/12/30
21. 1991
    
    1. biology
    2. evolution
    Richard Dawkins
    Growing Up in the Universe
    1. Waking up in the universe RI1991/12/26
    2. Designed and designoid objects RI 1991/12/27
    3. Climbing Mount Improbable 1991/12/28?
    4. The ultraviolet garden RI 1991/12/29?
    5. The genesis of purpose RI 1991/12/30?
    1. Wikipedia page for the lecture series – includes summaries.
    2. The RI site is missing the third lecture, but high-quality versions of all 5 lectures are on youtube.
22. 1990
    1. physics
    2. space
    3. cosmology
    Malcolm Longair
    Origins
    1. The grand design 1990/12/26
    2. The birth of stars and the great cosmic cycle 1990/12/27
    3. Origins of quasars 1990/12/29
    4. The origin of galaxies 1990/12/30
    5. The origin of the universe 1990/12/31
23. 1989
    1. music
    2. physics
    Charles Taylor
    Exploring Music
    1. What is music? 1989/12/26
    2. The essence of an instrument 1989/12/27
    3. Science, strings and symphonies 1989/12/28
    4. Technology, trumpets and tunes 1989/12/29
    5. Scales, synthesizers and samplers 1989/12/30
24. 1988
    
    1. technology
    2. history
    Gareth Roberts
    The Home of the Future
    1. The home of the future 1988/12/26
    2. Home safe home 1988/12/27
    3. Electronics for pleasure 1988/12/28
    4. Home smart home 1988/12/29
    5. Mixers, meters and molecules 1988/12/30
25. 1987
    1. physics
    2. lasers
    John Meurig Thomas, David Phillips
    Crystals and Lasers
    1. Introducing the characters 1987/12/26
    2. Architecture of crystals 1987/12/27
    3. Semiconductors, superconductors and catalysts 1987/12/28
    4. Constructing a laser 1987/12/29
    5. Applications of a laser 1987/12/30
    6. Lasers and the human body 1987/12/31
26. 1986
    1. biology
    2. genetics
    Lewis Wolpert
    Frankenstein’s Quest: Development of Life
    1. First Take an Egg… 1986/12/
    2. The Medium and the Message 1986/12/
    3. The Right Stuff 1986/12/
    4. Genes and Flies 119869/12/
    5. Chain of Command 1986/12/
    6. Growing Up and Growing Old 1986/12/
27. 1985
    1. communication
    John David Pye
    Communicating
    1. No man is an island 1985/12/26
    2. Animal talk 1985/12/27
    3. The bionic bat 1985/12/28
    4. The pace of technology 1985/12/29
    5. The integrated body 1985/12/30
    6. Computers 1985/12/31
28. 1984
    
    1. molecular biology
    2. genetics
    Walter Bodmer
    The Message of the Genes
    1. We’re All Different 1984/12/
    2. The Spice of Life 1984/12/
    3. Genetic Engineering 1984/12/
    4. Bodies and Antibodies 1984/12/
    5. Normal Cells and Cancer Cells 1984/12/
    6. When Will Pigs Have Wings? 1984/12/
29. 1983
    1. physics
    Leonard Maunder
    Machines in Motion
    1. Driving Forces1983/12/27
    2. Gathering Momentum 1983/12/28
    3. Vibration 1983/12/29
    4. Under Control 1983/12/30
    5. Fluids and Flight 1983/12/31
    6. Living Machines 1984/01/01
30. 1982
    
    1. senses
    2. navigation
    3. polarisation
    4. human physiology
    5. proprioception
    Colin Blakemore
    Common Sense
    1. Making Sense 1982/12/29
    2. The Sound of Silence 1982/12/30
    3. The Sixth Sense, and the Rest 1982/12/31
    4. Where Am I? 1983/01/01
    5. Vive La Difference 1983/01/02
    6. The Enchanted Loom 1983/01/03
31. 1981
    1. technology
    2. history
    Reginald Victor Jones
    From Magna Carta to Microchip
    1. Principles, Standards and Methods 1981/12/28
    2. The Measurement of Time 1981/12/29
    3. More and More About Less and Less 1981/12/30
    4. Onwards to the Stars 1981/12/31
    5. Measurement and Navigation in War 1982/01/01
    6. Some Impacts of Measurement on Life, and Can We Take It Too Far? 1982/01/02
32. 1980
    1. biology
    David Chilton Phillips, Max Perutz
    The Chicken, the Egg and the Molecules
    1. What are chickens made of? 1980/12/26
    2. Machine tools of life 1980/12/27
    3. Muscle power 1980/12/28
    4. Eggs, genes and proteins 1980/12/29
    5. Haemoglobin: the breathing molecule 1980/12/30
33. 1979
    E.M. Rogers
    Atoms for Engineering Minds: A Circus of Experiments
34. 1978
    
    1. maths
    2. geometry
    3. art
    Erik Christopher Zeeman
    Mathematics into Pictures
    1. Linking and knotting 1978/12/26
    2. The nature of mathematics 1978/12/27
    3. Infinity and perspective 1978/12/28
    4. Games and evolution 1978/12/29
    5. Waves and music 1978/12/30
    6. Catastrophe and psychology 1978/12/31
35. 1977
    
    1. physics
    2. space
    3. mars
    Carl Sagan
    The Planets
    1. The Earth as a planet 1977/12/26
    2. The outer solar system and life 1977/12/27
    3. History of Mars 1977/12/28
    4. Mars before Viking 1977/12/29
    5. Mars after Viking 1977/12/30
    6. Planetary systems beyond the sun 1977/12/31)
    1. Also on Youtube
    1. Carl Sagan needs little introduction and is famous (particularly in the US) for his Cosmos television series
36. 1976
    
    George Porter
    The Natural History of a Sunbeam
    1. light
    2. polarisation
    3. photosynthesis
    4. explosions
    5. carbon cycle
    6. origin of life
    7. energy
    8. fuel
    1. Lecture 1 missing
    2. Light and life 1976/12/26
    3. A leaf from nature 1976/12/27
    4. Candles from the sun 1976/12/28
    5. Making light work 1976/12/29
    6. Survival under the sun 1976/12/30
    1. These lectures are listed on the RI site as 1-5, but are in fact lectures 2-6.
37. 1975
    
    1. biology
    2. human physiology
    Heinz Wolff
    Signals from the Interior
    1. You as a engine 1975/12/26
    2. Pipes, pumps and flows 1975/12/27
    3. Spikes and waves 1975/12/28
    4. Probes, sondes and sounds 1975/12/29
    5. Looking through your skin 1975/12/30
    6. Signals from the mind 1975/12/31
38. 1974
    
    Eric Laithwaite
    The Engineer Through the Looking Glass
    1. symmetry
    2. chirality
    3. mirrors
    4. illusions
    5. physics
    6. linear accelerators
    7. gyroscopes
    8. magnetic levitation
    9. invention
    1. Looking glass house 1974/12/26
    2. Tweedledum and Tweedledee 1974/12/27
    3. Jam yesterday, jam tomorrow 1974/12/28
    4. The Jabberwock 1974/12/29
       Also on YouTube: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
    5. The time has come, the walrus said 1974/12/30
    6. It’s my own invention 1974/12/31
    1. Prof. Eric Laithwaite was an electrical engineer at Imperial College, with an interest in magnetic levitation
39. 1973
    
    1. zoology
    2. communication
    David Attenborough
    The Language of Animals
    1. Beware RI 1973/12/26
    2. Be mine RI 1973/12/27
    3. Parents and children RI 1973/12/28
    4. Episode 4 seems to be missing
    5. Foreign languages RI 1973/12/29
    6. Animal language, human language RI 1973/12/30
    1. If you grew up in the UK Sir David probably needs little introduction, as his BBC shows inspired several generations to a love of the natural world
    2. Essential watching, if only for the porcupine in the RI lecture theatre…
    3. RI channel page
40. 1972
    1. physics
    2. electrical engineering
    3. communication
    G.G. Gouriet
    Ripples in the Ether: The Science of Radio Communication
    1. How It All Began 1972/12/31
    2. Getting Rid of the Wires 1973/12/01
    3. The Sound of Broadcasting 1973/12/02
    4. Pictures with and without Wires 1973/12/03
    5. But Electronics Aren’t Coloured 1973/12/04
    6. Vision of the Future 1973/12/05
    1. BBC Research engineer Geoffrey G. Gouriet gave a series of lectures on Radio and Television broadcasting
    2. Unfortunately not available
41. 1971
    
    1. physics
    2. music
    3. sound waves
    4. musical instruments
    Charles Taylor
    Sounds of Music: the Science of Tones and Tune
    1. The science of tones and tunes 1971/12/26
    1. Charles Taylor was a physicist interested in X-ray crystallography
    2. The lectures involves demonstrations of various ad-hoc musical instruments (a saw, drinking straws, garden hose) and discussions of their physics
    3. Any following lectures are not on the RI site, but the same lecturer returned to give the 1989 lectures.
42. 1962
    
    1. physics
    2. chemistry
    3. materials
    Lawrence Bragg
    Concerning the nature of things
    1. Solids, liquids and gases 1962/12/26
    2. Atoms and molecules 1962/12/27
    3. Oil, soap and detergent 1962/12/28
    4. Opposites attract 1962/12/29
    5. Rubber and plastics 1962/12/30
    6. Crystals and gems 1962/12/31
    7. Give and take 1962/12/31
    1. The RI says these were given by Lawrence Bragg in 1962, reprising his father’s (William Bragg) 1923 christmas lectures. They’re short but sweet.
    2. Bragg also gave the 1961 Christmas Lectures on Electricity, but these aren’t available. The text of his Nobel acceptance lecture on X-ray crystallography is here
    3. A very nice set of old-school physics and materials science lessons. Any science graduate should know this stuff!