Over 3000 free audio and video lectures, seminars and teaching resources from Oxford University.
Skip to Content Skip to Navigation

The Bodleian Libraries (BODcasts)

Relevant Links

The Bodleian Libraries of the University of Oxford form the largest university library system in the United Kingdom. They include the principal University library-the Bodleian Library-which has been a library of legal deposit for 400 years; major research libraries; and libraries attached to faculties, departments and other institutions of the University. The combined library collections number more than 11 million printed items, in addition to 30,000 e-journals and vast quantities of materials in other formats. The Old Bodleian is also a major visitor attraction, drawing over 300,000 visitors a year. More information about the Bodleian Libraries and their activities can be found at www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk

# Episode Title Description Duration People Date
1 Dr Lawrence Goldman introduces the commemoration, 'Jim Callaghan Remembered' Dr Lawrence Goldman, editor of the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, introduces and chairs the seminar to commemorate the centenary of Jim Callaghan's birth. 0:06:00 Lawrence Goldman 10 May 2013
2 Andrew Smith MP pays tribute to Jim Callaghan Member of Parliament for Oxford East, Andrew Smith gives his view of Jim Callaghan. 0:05:40 Andrew Smith 23 Apr 2013
3 Michael Callaghan remembers his father Jim Callaghan Jim Callaghan's son Michael gives a talk about his memories of his fathers political life. 0:06:16 Michael Callaghan 23 Apr 2013
4 Margaret Jay, Baroness Jay of Paddington remembers her father, Jim Callaghan The daughter of Jim Callaghan, Margaret Jay, gives the closing speech for the event. 0:03:40 Margaret Jay 23 Apr 2013
5 Lord Owen remembers Jim Callaghan British politician Lord Owen talks about his experiences of Jim Callaghan. 0:16:31 David Owen 23 Apr 2013
6 Lord Morgan remembers Jim Callaghan Historian and author Lord Morgan speaks about the Jim Callaghan papers deposited in the Bodleian. 0:22:33 Kenneth Morgan 23 Apr 2013
7 Lord Donoughue remembers Jim Callaghan British politician, businessman and author Baron Donoughue of Ashton speaks about his view as special advisor to Jim Callaghan. 0:12:21 Bernard Donoughue 23 Apr 2013
8 Creative Commons Xu Bing: The Kind of Artist I Am Chinese Artist Xu Bing gives a talk on the subject of his art and the kind of artist he is. 0:46:24 Xu Bing 22 Apr 2013
9 Creative Commons Marconi and the Broadcasting Option: Annual Byrne-Bussey Marconi Lecture Held on Marconi day; 20th April, Gabriele Balbi (University of Lugano) gives a talk about Marconi, co-inventor of the radio 0:23:22 Gabriele Balbi 22 Apr 2013
10 Roy Strong talks to Brian Sewell Self-portrait as a Young Man Art critic Brian Sewell talks to Sir Roy Strong as part of the Times Literary Festival 2013 0:50:19 Brian Sewell, Roy Strong 15 Apr 2013
11 Creative Commons Image Matching on Printed Images in Bodleian Collections Giles Bergel and Andrew Zisserman from the Broadside Ballad Connections project demonstrate new image matching software that allows researchers to track images across early forms of printed literature. Visit http://ballads.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/ 0:19:46 Giles Bergel, Andrew Zisserman, Relja Arandjelovic 13 Dec 2012
12 Creative Commons Dickens' Railways Professor Stphen Gill, Lincoln College, gives a talk about the influence the Railways had on Charles Dickens' literature. 0:30:00 Stephen Gill 26 Oct 2012
13 Creative Commons The Romance of the Middle Ages Dr Nicholas Perkins talks about how romance functions as a genre in the middle ages, especially about how gifts and tokens were exchanged as signs of fidelity, specifically in Sir Orfeo, Sir Gawain, and King Horn. 0:30:18 Nicholas Perkins 21 Jun 2012
14 Creative Commons Jane Austen's Manuscripts Explored Professor Kathyrn Sutherland from the University of Oxford talks around the manuscripts of Jane Austen, what we can learn from them about her family life but also her writing style and techniques. 0:09:31 Kathryn Sutherland 08 Jun 2012
15 Creative Commons The Watsons: Jane Austen Practising Professor Kathryn Sutherland from the University of Oxford talks about some of Jane Austen's manuscripts from the novel "The Watsons" and what we can learn about her from these. 0:27:07 Kathryn Sutherland 08 Jun 2012
16 Creative Commons Wireless Communications during the Titanic Disaster Michael Hughes (Bodleian Libraries) gives a talk about the final wireless communications from the Titanic 0:22:27 Michael Hughes 22 May 2012
17 Creative Commons The Bodleian Library and the Scientific Revolution Dr Poole presents the Bodleian and the seventeenth-century Scientific Revolution in terms of its contributions to Oxford and to British science in the period. 0:28:21 William Poole 08 May 2012
18 Creative Commons Shakespeare and Medieval Romance Professor Helen Cooper, University of Cambridge, speaks about the continuities between the Romance of the middle ages and Shakespeare's plays. She looks at textual features from his plays (including King Lear) which may indicate his influences. 0:28:17 Helen Cooper 12 Apr 2012
19 Creative Commons The Birth of Romance in England Dr Laura Ashe delivers a lecture on the birth of romance in England in the 12th Century, part of a series of lectures to accompany The Romance of the Middle Ages exhibition at the Bodleian Library. 0:28:18 Laura Ashe 23 Feb 2012
20 Creative Commons The Role of Open Access in Maximising The Impact of Biomedical Research Sir Mark Walport, Director of the Wellcome Trust, gives a lecture on scholarship, publishing and the dissemination of research designed to stimulate debate in Oxford on the issues surrounding changes in scholarly communications. 0:42:00 Sir Mark Walport 26 Apr 2011
21 Creative Commons Brought to Book: Book History and the Idea of Literature Professor Paul Eggert, University of New South Wales, gives the 17th Annual D.F. McKenzie lecture on the subject of books and gives a case study of Henry Lawson, Australian author of Where the Billy Boils 1:00:57 Paul Eggert 09 Mar 2011
22 Creative Commons Mary Shelley - Journal of Sorrow Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. In the months immediately following Shelley's death Mary lived at Albaro on the outskirts of Genoa. Her only regular companions were her young son, Percy Florence, and the journal she began on 2 October 1822. 0:04:26 Nouran Koriem 02 Dec 2010
23 Creative Commons William Godwin- Letter to Mary Shelley Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. This is the letter Godwin wrote to Mary after hearing of Shelley's death. 0:03:34 Hoare Nairne 02 Dec 2010
24 Creative Commons Percy Bysshe Shelley - Letter to Mary Shelley Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. 'Everybody is in despair and every thing in confusion' writes Shelley in his last letter to Mary. He was in Pisa to discuss a new journal, The Liberal, with Leigh Hunt and Lord Byron. 0:03:23 Henry Cockburn 02 Dec 2010
25 Creative Commons Percy Bysshe Shelley - Adonais. An Elegy on the Death of John Keats Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. This great elegy was prompted by the news of the death of John Keats in Rome, and by Shelley's belief that Keats's illness was caused by the hostile notices his work had been given in the Quarterly Review. 0:08:20 Jordan Saxby 02 Dec 2010
26 Creative Commons Percy Bysshe Shelley - Opening lines of 'The Triumph of Life' Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. Shelley worked on 'The Triumph of Life', a dark and visionary poem, while living at the Villa Magni. 0:02:02 Hoare Nairne 02 Dec 2010
27 Creative Commons Percy Bysshe Shelley - Dedication fair copy of 'With a guitar. To Jane' Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. Shelley presented this light-hearted poem, copied out in his best hand, with the guitar he gave to Jane Williams in 1822. 0:03:42 Jordan Saxby 02 Dec 2010
28 Creative Commons Percy Bysshe Shelley - Fair copy of Ode to the West Wind Part of the Shelly's Ghost Exhibition. Shelley's best-known poem was written in Florence in late 1819. 0:03:51 Christopher Adams 02 Dec 2010
29 Creative Commons Percy Bysshe Shelley - Draft of 'Ozymandias' Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. 'Ozymandias' is the Greek name for Ramses II, who ruled Egypt for sixty-seven years from 1279 to 1213 BC. 0:00:51 Christopher Adams 02 Dec 2010
30 Creative Commons Mary Shelley (with Percy Bysshe Shelley) - Draft of Frankenstein Mary Shelley drafted Frankenstein in two tall notebooks. The first notebook was probably purchased in Geneva, the second several months later in England. 0:04:23 Christopher Adams 02 Dec 2010
31 Creative Commons Harriet Shelley - Letter to Eliza Westbrook, Shelley and her parents Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. Harriet Shelley drowned herself in December 1816, aged twenty-one. Her body was recovered from the Serpentine on 10 December, and an inquest into the death of one 'Harriet Smith' was held the following day. 0:03:16 Hannah Morrell 02 Dec 2010
32 Creative Commons Mary Shelley - Letter to Percy Bysshe Shelley Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. Shelley and Mary arrived back in London to face the almost universal disapproval of family and friends, and severe money problems. 0:01:38 Nouran Koriem 02 Dec 2010
33 Creative Commons Percy Bysshe Shelley and Mary Shelley - Joint journal entry Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. Shelley and Mary eloped at 4.15 am on 28 July 1814, accompanied by Mary's step-sister Jane Clairmont. 0:05:05 Henry Cockburn 02 Dec 2010
34 Creative Commons Percy Bysshe Shelley: Letter to William Godwin Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. Using false names, Shelley sent copies of The Necessity of the Atheism to 'men of thought and learning', including bishops and clergymen. 0:01:30 Henry Cockburn 02 Dec 2010
35 Creative Commons William Godwin: Memoirs of the Author of a Vindication of the Rights of Woman Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. Godwin's memoir of Mary Wollstonecraft has been called the first modern biography. At the time, however, its frankness and emotional candour provoked general outrage. 0:08:05 Henry Cockburn 02 Dec 2010
36 Creative Commons Mary Wollstonecraft Three notes to William Godwin Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. Even after their marriage Godwin and Wollstonecraft preferred to live independently during the day, and communicate by correspondence. 0:01:39 Hannah Morrell 02 Dec 2010
37 Creative Commons Mary Wollstonecraft - A Vindication of the Rights of Woman Part of the Shelley's Ghost Exhibition. In her most famous work Mary Wollstonecraft argued that if women were educated in the same way as men they would perform as well 0:03:38 Annabell James 02 Dec 2010
38 Creative Commons Oxford Literary Festival 2010 Pieces of Places Discussion The Weirdstone of Brisingameng Alan Garner, Mark Edmonds and Robert Powell take part in a discussion on the subject of pieces of places, objects and artefacts found and what they mean for writing fiction and for archeology in general 0:49:26 Alan Garner, Mark Edmonds, Robert Powell 21 Jun 2010
39 Creative Commons Oxford Literary Festival 2010 Pieces of Places - Reading of Alan Garner's Work The 50th anniversary of the publication of Alan Garner's first novel, The Weirdstone of Brisingamen. A talk examining the importance of place in Alan Garner's work. Robert Powell gives a reading of The Stone Book, from The Stone Book Quartet. 0:49:38 Robert Powell, Alan Garner 21 Jun 2010
40 Creative Commons Oxford Literary Festival 2010 By Seven Firs and Goldenstone - An account of the Legend of Alderley Alan Garner gives an illustrated lecture on the Legend of Alderley. This version of the myth of the Sleeping Hero is rooted to places on Alderley Edge in Cheshire, where Alan Garner grew up. 0:55:37 Alan Garner 21 Jun 2010
41 Pre-1500 Printed Books The earliest printers spread from Mainz in Germany where Gutenberg first had his printing house to Venice, Rome, Paris, and the Netherlands. Examples from all of these centres of 15th-century printing are found in Bodleian collections. 0:12:18 Paul Nash 05 Mar 2010
42 BODcast: P.D. James in conversation with Colin Dexter (short) Special footage celebrating the launch of Talking about Detective Fiction by PD James, the latest Bodleian Library publication. PD James is donating all royalties from the hardback edition to the Bodleian and hopes it will encourage further philanthropy. 0:04:39 P. D. James, Colin Dexter 30 Sep 2009
43 BODcast: P.D. James in conversation with Colin Dexter (long) Special footage celebrating the launch of Talking about Detective Fiction by PD James, the latest Bodleian Library publication. PD James is donating all royalties from the hardback edition to the Bodleian and hopes it will encourage further philanthropy. 0:13:14 P. D. James, Colin Dexter 30 Sep 2009
44 Magna Carta and Wind In The Willows A short history of how the Bodleian library stores original copies of the Magna Carta and the original Wind in the Willows letters. 0:02:29 Bodleian Library 11 Sep 2008
45 Paradise Lost Book One: Milton's ambitions Milton’s ambitions as a poet 0:01:57 Sam Dastor 29 Apr 2008
46 Paradise Lost Book Four Satan first spies Adam and Eve 0:02:17 Sam Dastor 29 Apr 2008
47 Paradise Lost Book One: Satan's first speech Satan’s first speech 0:02:43 Sam Dastor 29 Apr 2008
48 Samson Agonistes The Biblical hero Samson bewailing his political and personal state 0:02:41 Sam Dastor 29 Apr 2008
49 Aeropagitica Milton’s defense of the freedom of the press written to Parliament 0:03:16 Sam Dastor 29 Apr 2008
50 Magna Carta at Oxford Richard Sharpe explains that the seventeen surviving manuscripts on the Magna Carta are engrossments, not copies: official documents from Royal Chancery bearing the ruler's seal. Prof. Sharpe also reveals why so many examples of the Magna Carta survive. 0:21:03 Richard Sharpe 29 Apr 2008
# Episode Title Description Duration People Date
1 Creative Commons Xu Bing: The Kind of Artist I Am Chinese Artist Xu Bing gives a talk on the subject of his art and the kind of artist he is. 0:46:24 Xu Bing 22 Apr 2013
2 Roy Strong talks to Brian Sewell Self-portrait as a Young Man Art critic Brian Sewell talks to Sir Roy Strong as part of the Times Literary Festival 2013 0:50:19 Brian Sewell, Roy Strong 15 Apr 2013
3 Creative Commons Image Matching on Printed Images in Bodleian Collections Giles Bergel, Andrew Zisserman and Relja Arandjelovic at the Broadside Ballad Connections project demonstrate new image matching software that allows researchers to track images across early forms of printed literature. http://ballads.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/ 0:19:46 Giles Bergel, Andrew Zisserman, Relja Arandjelovic 13 Dec 2012
4 Creative Commons Jane Austen's Manuscripts Explored Professor Kathyrn Sutherland from the University of Oxford talks around the manuscripts of Jane Austen, what we can learn from them about her family life but also her writing style and techniques. 0:09:31 Kathryn Sutherland 08 Jun 2012
5 Creative Commons The Watsons: Jane Austen Practising Professor Kathryn Sutherland from the University of Oxford talks about some of Jane Austen's manuscripts from the novel "The Watsons" and what we can learn about her from these. 0:27:07 Kathryn Sutherland 08 Jun 2012
6 Creative Commons Oxford Literary Festival 2010 By Seven Firs and Goldenstone - An account of the Legend of Alderley Alan Garner gives an illustrated lecture on the Legend of Alderley. This version of the myth of the Sleeping Hero is rooted to places on Alderley Edge in Cheshire, where Alan Garner grew up. 0:55:37 Alan Garner 21 Jun 2010
7 Pre-1500 Printed Books The earliest printers spread from Mainz in Germany where Gutenberg first had his printing house to Venice, Rome, Paris, and the Netherlands. Examples from all of these centres of 15th-century printing are found in Bodleian collections. 0:12:33 Paul Nash 05 Mar 2010
8 BODcast: P.D. James in conversation with Colin Dexter (short) Special footage celebrating the launch of Talking about Detective Fiction by PD James, the latest Bodleian Library publication. PD James is donating all royalties from the hardback edition to the Bodleian and hopes it will encourage further philanthropy. 0:04:39 P. D. James, Colin Dexter 30 Sep 2009
9 BODcast: P.D. James in conversation with Colin Dexter (long) Special footage celebrating the launch of Talking about Detective Fiction by PD James, the latest Bodleian Library publication. PD James is donating all royalties from the hardback edition to the Bodleian and hopes it will encourage further philanthropy. 0:13:14 P. D. James, Colin Dexter 30 Sep 2009
10 Magna Carta and Wind In The Willows A short history of how the Bodleian library stores original copies of the Magna Carta and the original Wind in the Willows letters. 0:02:36 Bodleian Library 11 Sep 2008