This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/jun/29/stephen-hawking-to-deliver-bbc-reith-lecture-on-black-holes

The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Stephen Hawking to deliver BBC Reith lecture on black holes Stephen Hawking to deliver BBC Reith lecture on black holes
(about 4 hours later)
Stephen Hawking will deliver the BBC’s flagship Reith lecture this year on the subject of black holes. Professor Stephen Hawking is to discuss the nature of black holes, and former MP Glenda Jackson is to return to acting in a Radio 4 autumn schedule announced on Tuesday.
The renowned physicist, 73, follows in the footsteps of the artist Grayson Perry and Burma’s opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in delivering the Radio 4 lecture. Hawking will deliver the prestigious Reith lecture later this year to “describe the remarkable properties of black holes” and will answer a selection of questions submitted by listeners. The lecture coincides with the BBC plans for a series of events to mark 100 years of Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity.
Listeners will be able to suggest questions in advance for Hawking, whose life was recently dramatised in an Oscar-winning film. “I’m delighted to be the BBC’s Reith lecturer and to be able to convey the thrill of science to millions of listeners around the world through my lecture,” he said. “I want to encourage people to imagine and explore the possibilities of science. Both the known, and the as yet unknown.”
“I’m delighted to be the BBC’s Reith lecturer and to be able to convey the thrill of science to millions of listeners around the world through my lecture,” he said. Previous Reith lectures have been delivered by Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, Turner prize-winning artist Grayson Perry and world renowned pianist Daniel Barenboim.
“I want to encourage people to imagine and explore the possibilities of science. Both the known, and the as yet unknown. Jackson will appear in Blood, Sex and Money, an adaption of Emile Zola’s 20-novel series Les Rougon-Macquart charting the lives of members of a single family from the 19th century into the industrialised era.
“My talk is on black holes … a region where gravity is so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape. I will describe the remarkable properties of black holes, including the fact that very small black holes aren’t black at all, but glow like hot bodies. The series will also feature actor Robert Lindsay and Georgina Campbell, who won a Bafta last month for her role in Murdered By My Boyfriend. The adaptation is set to run as three week-long seasons broadcast at six-month intervals, starting in November.
“We should never stop trying to tell these extraordinary stories from science, and I hope my Reith lecture will enthuse a new generation to develop ideas that will have an impact on our understanding of the world and never to be overwhelmed by the task of discovery.” It is Jackson’s first foray into acting since she became MP for Hampstead and Highgate in 1992, following a film career that including two best actress Oscars in the 1970s. She stood down from parliament at the last election.
Hawking’s lecture comes as Radio 4 plans to mark the 100th anniversary of Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity with special programming in the autumn. The station’s popular News Quiz is also getting a revamp, with current panelist Miles Jupp taking over as presenter from Sandy Toksvig, who is stepping down at the end of the current season after nine years fronting the show to start a party campaigning for women’s rights.
Named after the BBC’s first director general, John Reith, the lectures were set up in 1948 to “advance public understanding and debate about significant issues of contemporary interest”. Jupp – who has previously said he his posh voice has been a hinderance in comedy – has been a panellist on the show since 2009. He currently fronts another Radio 4 panel show, It’s Not What You Know and has appeared on BBC comedies The Thick of It and Rev, as well as Have I Got News for You and Mock the Week.
“Sandi has been remarkable in her time in charge of The News Quiz and her legacy will live on forever among listeners,” said Jupp.
Other new Radio 4 commissions include a special Late Night Women’s Hour series with 6 Music DJ Lauren Laverne, sharing presenting duties with Jane Garvey, the first broadcast of Arthur Miller play The Hook, about union corruption in 1950s New York, and sitcom To Hull and Back by Lucy Beaumont, the winner of the BBC New Comedy Award.
BBC director general Tony Hall said: “Radio 4 is a treasured part of the BBC – it wakes us up, makes us think, and helps us make sense of what’s going on around us. It’s something none of us should take for granted – there’s nothing else like it in the world and it’s a service our country can be proud of.”