The Reith Lectures

Reith Revisited: Anand Menon on Robert Birley


Listen Later

Robert Birley's 1949 Reith Lectures series, "Britain in Europe", remain urgently topical today. Sarah Montague discusses the lectures with Professor Anand Menon.

The Reith Lectures began in 1948 on the Home Service, subsequently moving to Radio 4 and becoming a major national occasion for intellectual debate. As part of the celebrations of Radio 4's 50th anniversary, the network looks back at the first 10 years of the Reith Lectures to explore how they reflect the times in which they were delivered and how well they stand up now.

Robert Birley was headmaster of Eton who had worked in postwar Germany. In his lectures, he looked forward to what he described as a European Union and discussed how far Britain would become integrated in it. Sarah assesses his lectures with the help of Anand Menon, who heads The UK In A Changing Europe thinktank.

Producer: Neil Koenig

Researcher: Josephine Casserley

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

The Reith LecturesBy BBC Radio 4

  • 4.3
  • 4.3
  • 4.3
  • 4.3
  • 4.3

4.3

148 ratings


More shows like The Reith Lectures

View all
Global News Podcast by BBC World Service

Global News Podcast

7,775 Listeners

From Our Own Correspondent by BBC Radio 4

From Our Own Correspondent

371 Listeners

More or Less by BBC Radio 4

More or Less

898 Listeners

Newshour by BBC World Service

Newshour

1,062 Listeners

In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,508 Listeners

The Documentary Podcast by BBC World Service

The Documentary Podcast

1,802 Listeners

6 Minute English by BBC Radio

6 Minute English

1,867 Listeners

Learning English Conversations by BBC Radio

Learning English Conversations

1,074 Listeners

Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4 by BBC Radio 4

Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4

2,119 Listeners

Desert Island Discs by BBC Radio 4

Desert Island Discs

2,079 Listeners

Thinking Allowed by BBC Radio 4

Thinking Allowed

302 Listeners

Moral Maze by BBC Radio 4

Moral Maze

56 Listeners

The Life Scientific by BBC Radio 4

The Life Scientific

241 Listeners

The Audio Long Read by The Guardian

The Audio Long Read

836 Listeners

Start the Week by BBC Radio 4

Start the Week

162 Listeners

The Briefing Room by BBC Radio 4

The Briefing Room

61 Listeners

Political Thinking with Nick Robinson by BBC Radio 4

Political Thinking with Nick Robinson

107 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

3,212 Listeners

Americast by BBC News

Americast

774 Listeners

The Bomb by BBC World Service

The Bomb

1,039 Listeners

The Rest Is Politics by Goalhanger

The Rest Is Politics

3,540 Listeners

The Rest Is Politics: Leading by Goalhanger

The Rest Is Politics: Leading

786 Listeners

Radical with Amol Rajan by BBC Radio 4

Radical with Amol Rajan

60 Listeners

Rory Stewart: The Long History of... by BBC Radio 4

Rory Stewart: The Long History of...

79 Listeners