Talks & lectures

The 'full English' refers not to our technological, cultural or military achievements. No - we live in a country where the 'full us' proudly refers to the first meal of the day. And yet here, in that country's capital, truly excellent breakfast opportunities can be hard to find among the flavourless chains and…

The hardworking staff at Edinburgh's universities are let out for the night to share their tales about the weird, wonderful, and often very funny, world of research.

An evening of stand-up comedy and science, with Simon Watt, Bright Club, Helen Arney and some of Glasgow's funniest academics.

SATURDAY 28 SEPTEMBER Weekend events from 10am In the fraught atmosphere of the Cold War, Benjamin Britten’s pacifism, socialist leanings and homosexuality cast him as an outsider. Likewise, his tonal, communicative music was viewed as suspicious by his avant-garde contemporaries. We look at his remarkable work in…

SUNDAY 29 SEPTEMBER Weekend events from 10am In the fraught atmosphere of the Cold War, Benjamin Britten’s pacifism, socialist leanings and homosexuality cast him as an outsider. Likewise, his tonal, communicative music was viewed as suspicious by his avant-garde contemporaries. We look at his remarkable work in the…

SATURDAY 28 – SUNDAY 29 SEPTEMBER Weekend events from 10am In the fraught atmosphere of the Cold War, Benjamin Britten’s pacifism, socialist leanings and homosexuality cast him as an outsider. Likewise, his tonal, communicative music was viewed as suspicious by his avant-garde contemporaries. We look at his…

To celebrate the launch of Nick Haynes new book, Fiona Hyslop MSP (Cabinet Secretary for Cultural and External Affairs) and Ian Walford (Chief Executive, Historic Scotland) talk about the old school campus.

The 2009 Beer Writer of the Year shares his vast knowledge of the golden stuff, looking back to the time of the George Inn in South London – otherwise known as the choice pub of the Bard himself – as illuminated in Brown's latest book, Shakespeare's Local. Ticket price includes a ha' pint of some specially brewed Bookworm…

The prestigious Caine Prize, described as Africa's leading literary award, is awarded annually for African creative writing. The £10,000 Prize is awarded for a short story by an African writer published in English, whether in Africa or elsewhere. Join us for an evening of readings from the shortlist, which will be…

Learn more about creepy crawlies on this bug spotting bonanza for National Insect Week.

Choreographer and solo performer Gerhart Bonher on the making of Im (Goldenen) Schnitt I.

The children's book illustrator sits down with Vivian French to talk about the more than 200 books he's illustrator. Suitable for all ages!

An opportunity to enjoy some fine cheese and wine in the company of artists from Dumfries & Galloway and discuss things such as the Scotland-England border sculpture.

To round off our weekend celebrating all things London, join us for an evening in conversation with China Miéville. The multi-award-winning author of The Scar, The City & the City, Embassytown and London's Overthrow uncovers some of London's neglected visionary literary voices. These include Somerset Maugham…

Improve your Mandarin Chinese conversation in a small group with an experienced tutor.

'Dickensian' and 'Victorian' are two adjectives regularly attached to descriptions of 19th-century England - the former because Charles Dickens (1812-1870) covered the territory in his novels, the latter because Queen Victoria, born in 1819, reigned from 1837 to 1901. Their lives ran in parallel. Dickens married in…

Jane Austen's 'Pride and Prejudice' appeared anonymously 200 years ago, made everyone laugh and was thought much too clever to be the work of a woman. In our times it has been filmed and televised so many times that we are in danger of forgetting the book, the splendour of the words on the page and the story behind the…

Claire Tomalin concludes her five-part lecture series in the week of the Women's Prize for Fiction with a study of one of the great voices of the Enlightenment - Mary Wollstonecraft. Wollstonecraft died in childbirth in 1797 at the age 38, but in her short life she fired the opening shots in the long battle for sexual…

Claire Tomalin celebrates the man who had the luck to live through Civil War, Restoration, plague, fire, Dutch wars and the revolution of 1688. Throughout his life he spent time as a student, civil servant, MP and naval administrator. He used his knowledge to make an unparalleled record of England in the 17th century…

Thomas Hardy is unique in being equally famous as a novelist and a poet. A physically frail country boy, he set himself on a long and effortful path to achieve success. It took him to London, which he explored thoroughly and persistently. As a result his life was divided between Dorset, where his family and his…

Listen to a classic jazz album on a top-range sound system in company, and hear insights into its musical context and how it came to be made.

An evening of spirited discussion centred on how creativity and the arts has engineered change in the LGBT community. Booking is essential.

Science and religion are often seen as at odds with each other when it comes to providing explanations of life and the universe. This conference examines how the two can be integrated to be mutually beneficial.