Reith Lectures

The lectures were inaugurated in 1948 to mark the historic contribution made to public service broadcasting by Lord Reith, the corporation's first director-general.

Reith maintained that broadcasting should be a public service that aimed to enrich the intellectual and cultural life of the nation.

It is in this spirit that the BBC each year invites a leading figure to deliver the lectures.

The aim is to advance public understanding and debate about issues of contemporary interest.

[2] The youngest Reith lecturer was Colin Blakemore, who was 32 in 1976 when he broadcast over six episodes on the brain and consciousness.

The Reith Lectures are named in honour of John Reith, 1st Baron Reith , the BBC's first director-general