Latest news from Loughborough University
| 5 June 2006 | PR 06/61 |
Former MP Tony Benn launches exciting new lecture series
Former MP Tony Benn is to give the first lecture in an exciting new series being held at Loughborough University.
The series will see renowned academics and household names present, entertaining and informative lectures on a range of subjects to the general public.
Lectures scheduled for later on in the series will be given by Bafta award-winning TV presenter Johnny Ball – who has helped millions of school children to understand maths and science through programmes such as ‘Think of a Number’ – and Lord Martin Rees – Astronomer Royal, president of the Royal Society and professor of Cosmology and Astrophysics at the University of Cambridge.
The lecture series kicks off at 5.30pm on Tuesday 27 June, with ‘Engineering, Science and Society’, in which Tony Benn will share his views on those topics and invite questions and debate from the audience.
“We’re absolutely delighted to be running this programme of lectures,” says organiser Jackie Baseley. “Having Tony Benn to start the series is terrific, and I’m sure the others will prove to be just as popular. We’re aiming to offer a real variety of lecture topics, so hopefully there’ll be something for everyone.”
The lecture will take place in room T.0.03 of the Wolfson School, Loughborough University.
The event is free, but admission is by ticket only. To reserve a place, go to www.lboro.ac.uk/lectures/ or call 01509 228336.
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For further information contact:
- Hannah Baldwin, Head of PR, Loughborough University, E: H.E.Baldwin@lboro.ac.uk,
Please Note: The Public Relations Office does not hold contact details for Tony Benn
Notes to editors
- The media are welcome to attend the lecture, although places must
be reserved in advanced. Please contact Hannah Baldwin in the Public
Relations Office.
- Tony Benn biography
Tony Benn retired from the House of Commons in May 2001, after fifty years in Parliament. He is the longest serving Labour MP in the history of the party.
He was a Cabinet minister in the Wilson and Callaghan governments from 1964-79, as Minister of Technology, Secretary of State for both Industry and Energy, and President of the Council of European Energy ministers in 1977.
An elected member of the National Executive Committee of the Labour party from 1959-94, he was Chairman of the Party in 1971-72.
He is a member of the Transport and General Workers Union and the National Union of Journalists, and an honorary member of the National Union of Mineworkers.
- Loughborough has an established reputation for excellence in teaching
and research, strong links with industry, and unrivalled sporting achievement.
Assessments of teaching quality by the Quality Assurance Agency place
it in the top flight of UK universities; the National Student Survey
ranked Loughborough equal first among full-time students; and industry
highlights the University in its top five for graduate recruitment.
Around 40% of Loughborough’s income is for research, and 60% for
teaching. The University has been awarded five Queen's Anniversary Prizes:
for its collaboration with aerospace and automotive companies such as
BAE Systems, Ford and Rolls Royce; for its work in developing countries;
for pioneering research in optical engineering; for its world-leading
role in sports research, education and development; and for its outstanding
work in evaluating and helping to develop social policy-related programmes.
In 2006 Loughborough celebrates the 40th anniversary of its University Charter, awarded on 19 April 1966 in recognition of the excellence achieved by Loughborough College of Advanced Technology and its predecessor Colleges. Loughborough University of Technology was renamed Loughborough University in 1996.