What are the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures?
The Royal Institution Christmas Lectures are our biggest events; demonstration-packed, fun-filled science events for young people. They are broadcast on UK television every Christmas and have formed part of the Christmas tradition for generations.
The 2009 Christmas Lectures
The 300 million year war with Prof Sue Hartley
This year at the RI Christmas Lectures you will find out what it really means to be green! Click here for more details.
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Christmas Lectures in recent years
The theme of the lectures changes every year, and they are delivered by an expert in their field. You can explore lectures from recent years online by exploring games and interactions that go into more depth than we have time for in the programmes.
The truth about food
Explore the mysteries of what we eat and how food gets from farm to fork. Presented by Prof Lord Krebs.
The number mysteries
Prof Marcus du Sautoy takes us on a journey through some of the greatest thrillers in mathematics.
Hi-tech trek
Join Prof Chris Bishop on a hi-tech trek to explore the science behind the digital revolution in search of the ultimate computer.
Webcast archive
Take a trip down memory lane by watching our archive of Christmas Lectures from the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s.
You can also order your own copy of recent years on DVD. Still available are the 2007 lectures 'Back from the brink: the science of survival' given by Dr Hugh Montgomery. You can also pre-order your copy of the 2009 Lectures, 'The 300 million year war' given by Prof Sue Hartley, for delivery in March.
The Royal Institution Christmas Lectures have been inspiring children and adults alike since 1825.
Click here for more information about previous lecturers and a behind the scenes 'Making of' video from the 1996 lectures.
Video archive of the lectures
The theme of the lectures changes every year, and they are delivered by an expert in their field. You can enjoy many of the lectures again by watching them from our webcast archive. This archive contains most of the lectures that have been broadcast since we started showing them on TV in the 1960s, given by some of our most famous lecturers like Sir David Attenborough in 1973, astronomer Carl Sagan in 1977 and Ian Stewart in 1997.