Royal Institution Christmas Lectures

The Royal Institution Christmas Lectures are a series of lectures on a single topic, which have been held at the Royal Institution in London each year since 1825. The lectures present scientific subjects to a general audience, including young people, in an informative and entertaining manner. Michael Faraday initiated the first Christmas Lecture series in 1825. This came at a time when organised education for young people was scarce. Faraday presented a total of nineteen series in all.

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Created By

Status

Returning Series

Original Name

Royal Institution Christmas Lectures

First Air Date

January 4, 1966

Last Air Date

December 31, 2024

Seasons

Episodes

122

Language

English

Production Companies

Networks

Channel 4 5 BBC Four More4 BBC Two

S59E03

The Big Food Hack

What did the very first meal on earth look like? To begin his third and final Christmas Lecture in an explosive fashion, Dr Chris van Tulleken takes us back more than four billion years, to the beginnings of life. This was when microscopic bugs first began eating gases and metal, marking the start of an incredible food web which, billions of years later, humans have learned to master.

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