The 221st lecture series
Season 2022/23
Our Members’ Newsletter can be viewed here.
The Royal Philosophical Society of Glasgow was founded in 1802, when the term ‘philosophy’ meant knowledge in the broadest sense. The Society provides stimulating lectures and discussion for members on a great diversity of topics.
We are nearing the end of our 2022/23 Session. We are pleased to say Lord Bew’s lecture, which is jointly with the British Academy, will now take place on 31st May. Details are below.
You can also see information and records of our previous speakers using the ‘Lectures’ tab and clicking on Past Lectures, and see the member trips planned in 2023 in the latest Members’ Newsletter, accessible from the ‘News’ tab
We are currently in the process of arranging speakers for 2023/24, our 222nd lecture series. See below for details of some of the exciting talks arranged so far.
If you are someone who enjoys learning about what is happening in the world around you, being introduced to new discoveries and exposed to new ideas, and are not already a member, then join us and expand your horizons!
upcoming lectures
- 04 Oct, 23Upcoming
Professor Steve Brusatte
The fall of dinosaurs and rise of mammalsWednesday, 7:30 pm - 9:30 pmPrevious eclectic, diverse lectures from leading figures

See Professor Lars Chittka's talk for the society "The Mind of the Bee" from January 2021. Bees have a diverse instinctual repertoire that allows the functioning of the beehive like a smoothly oiled factory, with different workers specialising in comb construction, climate control system, defence and foraging for nectar and pollen. However, the richness of bees’ instincts has traditionally been contrasted with the notion that bees’ small brains allow little behavioural flexibility and learning behaviour.
Watch now
When he receives an invitation to deliver a lecture in the Ukrainian city of Lviv, international lawyer Philippe Sands begins a journey on the trail of his family’s secret history. In doing so, he uncovers a series of unlikely coincidences that lead him halfway across the world, to the origins of modern international law, in the 1945 ‘moment’ and at the Nuremberg trial. ‘East West Street’: on the origins of genocide and crimes against humanity, on the individual and the group. See Prof Philippe Sands lecture for the Royal Phil.
Watch nowActive since 1802 to present day

0n the 5th November 1802, three Glaswegian gentlemen, John Roberton, William Douglas, and Peter Nicholson, acting on behalf of a number of others in the city who were ‘interested in the prosperity of the Trades and Manufactures of their country’, and anxious for ‘the improvement of the Arts and Sciences’ ...
Find out more
We started our new session in our new home in the Sir Charles Wilson Building at Glasgow University.
Learn moreMember activities

In March 2022, there was a very successful three day trip to York which was packed with interesting and informative visits and talks. The trip also provided an opportunity to meet with a similar organisation to ours, this being the Yorkshire Philosophical Society (YPS).
See more about the tripJoin the Society

Membership brings free access to all talks as well as other benefits. After each talk you can meet the lecturer and other society members over a glass of wine.
Membership brings free access to all talks as well as other benefits.
Learn
Listen to and participate in a wide variety of outstanding talks from our guest speakers.Support
Membership supports an institution which keeps the engaging, inspiring and lively activities of the society going for the next two centuries!Meet others
Meet like-minded people with a similar passion for learning and ideas.Recent Lectures
-
Professor Lord Paul Bew
Why have the British never understood Ireland/Northern Ireland The British Academy LectureRegistration requiredLord Professor Paul Bew, Queens University Belfast Paul Bew is emeritus professor of politics at Queen’s University Belfast and a cross-bench peer in the House of Lords. He was chair…
-
Professor Anil Seth
From beast machines to dreamachinesAnil Seth is Professor of Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience at the University of Sussex and author of the bestselling book Being You: A New Science of Consciousness. His research brings…
-
Professor Pat Monaghan
What can birds tell us about how to age slowly?This is a change to our advertised programme as the train operators strike on 16th March has severely impacted the travel of our speaker scheduled for the 15th March and…
-
Sir Philip Augar
The big end of town? Coming to terms with the CitySir Philip Augar A former banker, Philip has been commenting on the City for over twenty years. A PhD in History, he has written seven books, contributes to the Financial…
-
Sally Beamish
InspirationSally Beamish was born in London. She began her career as a viola player with the Raphael Ensemble, Academy of St Martins and London Sinfonietta, before moving to Scotland in 1990…
-
Lucasta Miller
John Keats: Body and SoulDr Lucasta Miller is a critic and biographer with a particular interest in finding new ways to approach literary lives. She is the author of The Bronte Myth and of L.E.L.: The Lost…