A Point of View
A weekly reflection on a topical issue
A Point of View - 01/02/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Prof David Cannadine.
Details
A Point of View - 01/08/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Professor Lisa Jardine.
Details
A Point of View - 02/01/2009
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Clive James. Clive reflects on the end of the get-rich-quick era.
Details
A Point of View - 02/03/2007
Broadcaster and writer Clive James presents a weekly reflection on a topical issue.
Details
A Point of View - 02/04/2010
Simon Schama reflects on the history of political rhetoric and the power during elections of televised debates as shown by the experience of presidential hopefuls in America.
Details
A Point of View - 03/04/2009
Clive James gives his take on the adult film industry and the expenses furore surrounding the Home Secretary and her husband Richard Timney.
Details
A Point of View - 03/10/2008
As financial chaos grips the public imagination, Lisa Jardine ponders debt in the Renaissance.
Details
A Point of View - 04/01/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Prof David Cannadine.
Details
A Point of View - 05/02/2010
Lisa Jardine reflects on the need for climate scientists to take scrupulous care when they inform and persuade.
Details
A Point of View - 05/03/2010
Lisa Jardine presents the last in her series of personal reflections.
Details
A Point of View - 05/09/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Katharine Whitehorn.
Details
A Point of View - 05/10/2007
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Tim Egan of the New York Times.
Details
A Point of View - 05/12/2008
As a new exhibition opens entitled Writer's Rooms, Clive James expresses his relief that the chaos of his office is not featured.
Details
A Point of View - 06/04/2007
Broadcaster and writer Clive James presents a weekly reflection on a topical issue.
Details
A Point of View - 07/09/2007
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Tim Egan of the New York Times.
Details
A Point of View - 07/11/2008
In the aftermath of the US election, Clive James reflects on the significance of the word 'election' and its relationship with democracy.
Details
A Point of View - 08/01/2010
Lisa Jardine welcomes the advent of electronic books but retains her passion for the printed page.
Details
A Point of View - 08/02/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Prof David Cannadine.
Details
A Point of View - 08/08/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Katharine Whitehorn.
Details
A Point of View - 09/04/2010
Simon Schama celebrates the distinctive history and culture of New Zealand and regrets any renewed talk of joining forces with Australia.
Details
A Point of View - 10/04/2009
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Clive James. The cane toad was imported into Australia to help sugar cane growers get rid of pests, but has now become Enemy Number One.
Details
A Point of View - 10/10/2008
In the light of the current mortgage crisis, Lisa Jardine asks if we are too wedded to the idea of owning our own family home.
Details
A Point of View - 11/01/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Prof David Cannadine.
Details
A Point of View - 12/02/2010
Lisa Jardine reflects on the power of music and the value of musical education.
Details
A Point of View - 12/03/2010
Simon Schama reflects that when times are hard people seem to prefer tough leaders who knock heads together to mild-mannered conciliators.
Details
A Point of View - 12/09/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Katharine Whitehorn.
Details
A Point of View - 12/10/2007
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Tim Egan of the New York Times.
Details
A Point of View - 12/12/2008
Clive James explores the question of national identity and why it really is preferable to see Santa and his elves in Lapland rather than in the New Forest.
Details
A Point of View - 13/03/2009
Katharine Whitehorn reflects on the aged and the part they have to play in mainstream society.
Details
A Point of View - 14/09/2007
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Tim Egan of the New York Times.
Details
A Point of View - 14/11/2008
Reflection on a topical issue from Clive James. He argues the days of mindless Hollywood action are over and says a new climate of reason prevails that extends beyond Hollywood.
Details
A Point of View - 15/01/2010
Lisa Jardine reflects on the challenge of delivering the right level of supplies for public use, be it salt to cope with ice or a flu vaccine.
Details
A Point of View - 15/02/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Prof David Cannadine.
Details
A Point of View - 15/08/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Katharine Whitehorn.
Details
A Point of View - 16/03/2007
Broadcaster and writer Clive James presents a weekly reflection on a topical issue.
Details
A Point of View - 17/04/2009
Clive James reflects on the resignation of the Prime Minister's senior aide Damian McBride and the inappropriateness of the new-fangled phrase 'reputational damage'.
Details
A Point of View - 17/10/2008
Lisa Jardine considers why this year's winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature is particularly relevant.
Details
A Point of View - 18/01/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Prof David Cannadine.
Details
A Point of View - 19/01/2007
Broadcaster and former MP Brian Walden presents a weekly reflection on a topical issue.
Details
A Point of View - 19/02/2010
Lisa Jardine reflects on the art and dangers of writing secret missives, from love letters and confidential documents to illicit text messages.
Details
A Point of View - 19/03/2010
Simon Schama looks forward to spring with reflections on the changing seasons, and commends Geoffrey Chaucer's upbeat opinion of April compared with TS Eliot's pessimistic view.
Details
A Point of View - 19/10/2007
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Tim Egan of the New York Times.
Details
A Point of View - 20/02/2009
Katharine Whitehorn considers the importance of words, their changing meanings and the influence they have on our perception of things.
Details
A Point of View - 20/03/2009
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Katharine Whitehorn.
Details
A Point of View - 21/09/2007
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Tim Egan of the New York Times.
Details
A Point of View - 21/11/2008
Clive James turns his attention to swearing and argues that bad language used constantly is no language at all.
Details
A Point of View - 22/01/2010
Lisa Jardine on the importance of science education for national prosperity, and a failed attempt in the late 19th century to change our culture to be more pro-science.
Details
A Point of View - 22/02/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Prof David Cannadine.
Details
A Point of View - 22/08/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Katharine Whitehorn.
Details
A Point of View - 23/02/2007
Broadcaster and writer Clive James presents a weekly reflection on a topical issue.
Details
A Point of View - 23/03/2007
Broadcaster and writer Clive James presents a weekly reflection on a topical issue.
Details
A Point of View - 24/04/2009
Clive James wonders what Susan Boyle, the Britain's Got Talent singing sensation, tells us about the progress of feminism and how far appearance still matters.
Details
A Point of View - 24/10/2008
Lisa Jardine ponders the effect of recession on the lingerie industry.
Details
A Point of View - 25/01/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Prof David Cannadine.
Details
A Point of View - 25/06/2010
David Cannadine reflects on the teaching of history in schools and the moves at home and abroad to reform the curriculum and rewrite the textbooks.
Details
A Point of View - 26/02/2010
Lisa Jardine reflects on the importance for history of the recording of personal memories and her regrets that her mother can no longer recall her own fascinating life.
Details
A Point of View - 26/03/2010
Simon Schama reflects on the politics surrounding President Obama's healthcare reforms, which he sees as a turning point of historic significance.
Details
A Point of View - 26/09/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Lisa Jardine. She argues that if society were more ready to celebrate the ingenious then we would all become more interested in science.
Details
A Point of View - 26/12/2008
Clive James reflects on life after the grave, Shakespeare's beliefs and the person and spirit of Jesus Christ.
Details
A Point of View - 27/03/2009
Clive James' take on the downfall of Australian judge Marcus Einfeld.
Details
A Point of View - 28/09/2007
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Tim Egan of the New York Times.
Details
A Point of View - 28/11/2008
As a new film on the notorious Baader-Meinhof gang is released, Clive James argues that the film version of history is often in danger of replacing the real historical event.
Details
A Point of View - 29/01/2010
Lisa Jardine compares the reputations of American presidents during their time in office with how they are remembered after leaving the White House.
Details
A Point of View - 29/02/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Prof David Cannadine.
Details
A Point of View - 29/08/2008
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Katharine Whitehorn.
Details
A Point of View - 30/01/2009
Harry Evans wonders whether the term 'banker' will ever be restored to its former prestige.
Details
A Point of View - 30/03/2007
Broadcaster and writer Clive James presents a weekly reflection on a topical issue.
Details
A Point of View - 31/08/2007
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Tim Egan of the New York Times.
Details
A Point of View - 31/10/2008
Clive James gives his take on yachts, the US election and James Bond.
Details
A Point of View - A History of Fireworks
Lisa Jardine reflects on the history of fireworks and their political significance, especially in France's history and contemporary life.
Details
A Point of View - A Pioneering Scientist
Lisa Jardine reflects on the colourful career of the founder of the British Museum, Sir Hans Sloane.
Details
A Point of View - A welcome slice of American pie
Simon Schama reflects on American food and eating habits and welcomes the growing popularity of ethnic dishes and local farm produce.
Details
A Point of View - Are museums our new churches?
Alain de Botton explores the notion that museums are our new churches. And he appeals for a complete revamp of some of our favourite museums.
Details
A Point of View - Baby Boomers
Sarah Dunant owns up to being a member of the greediest generation - the baby boomers. She wonders if after asking for freedom, they are now asking for the right to die?
Details
A Point of View - Blog de Jour
Clive James reflects on the revelation of the identity of Belle de Jour, the author of The Diary of a London Call Girl.
Details
A Point of View - Book Choice
Book-lover Lisa Jardine muses on her conversion to the e-book and admits she's reading Tony Blair's autobiography not in a beloved hardback but on her electronic reader.
Details
A Point of View - Britain's New Politics
Simon Schama reflects on the political dramas following the general election and compares the British system for a swift handover of power to the cumbersome American one.
Details
A Point of View - Cakes and coupons
Lisa Jardine reveals her inner conflict between two passions inherited from her mother: a money-saving streak versus a love of baking extravagant multi-layered cakes.
Details
A Point of View - Coalitions Then and Now
David Cannadine recalls Britain's forgotten history of coalition government, reflecting that the so-called 'new politics' is not that unusual.
Details
A Point of View - Conspicuous Consumption
Sarah Dunant reflects on public attitudes to conspicuous consumption and looks back at attempts to police it in previous centuries by means of 'sumptuary laws'.
Details
A Point of View - Dear Diary
Joan Bakewell celebrates the art of diary writing by public figures and private individuals, whose accounts of everyday life help shape our view of the past.
Details
A Point of View - Endings of Empire
In the 50th anniversary year of independence for Somalia, David Cannadine looks back at the ceremonies which marked the end of Britain's empire.
Details
A Point of View - Expensive Mistakes
Clive James reflects on democracy, MPs' expenses and the furore over the Oxford Poetry Professorship.
Details
A Point of View - Feminism and Democracy
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Clive James.
Details
A Point of View - Hearts of Oak
Simon Schama reflects on the power and symbolism of the oak tree in British history and fears a new threat to its survival.
Details
A Point of View - Hermie's Ghost
A weekly reflection on a topical issue. Clive James reflects on the media coverage of man-made global warming and the need for minds to be open.
Details
A Point of View - High Road to Xanadu
Clive James reflects on the seductive allure of illegal narcotics, and lays the blame for their attractions at the door of Samuel Taylor Coleridge and his trip to Xanadu.
Details
A Point of View - History through Religion
Sarah Dunant finds religion a powerful lens for a fresh look at history, bringing more sharply into focus an episode such as the Babington plot against Queen Elizabeth the First.
Details
A Point of View - Huizinga and the human cost of cuts
Lisa Jardine reflects on the upcoming spending cuts through the prism of Dutch historian, Johan Huizinga, and argues that the human cost of the cuts must not be overlooked.
Details
A Point of View - Impact
Clive James warns of the dangers that a new plan for calculating funding for universities may pose to academic freedom.
Details
A Point of View - Living Forever
Joan Bakewell reflects on the process of ageing and the efforts of scientists to reverse it and she considers the pros and cons of adding many more years to the human span.
Details
A Point of View - Memory and recall
Lisa Jardine reflects on memory and her newly acquired facility to recite Horace's odes. She muses how - as she gets older - her long-term memory seems to become sharper.
Details
A Point of View - New Old Fashioned
Lisa Jardine reflects on changing styles of architecture and commends buildings that prove to be the boldest and the best in every age rather than simply 'new old fashioned'.
Details
A Point of View - 'News' and concentration
Alain de Botton argues that in our technological age, we are being swamped with information, and are no longer capable of making sense of it all.
Details
A Point of View - Newsflash from the Far East
Clive James observes that while democracy is the right system for governing a country, it's the wrong system for choosing a professor of poetry.
Details
A Point of View - On Strike
Clive James reflects on the postal workers' dispute and gives his personal view of the modern history of labour relations.
Details
A Point of View - Option Swamp
Clive James vents his frustration at automated customer systems and finds them a poor substitute for dealing with real people.
Details
A Point of View - Political and Military Leaders
David Cannadine reflects on the relationship between political and military leaders, comparing British, American and world history.
Details
A Point of View - Reading for Free
Joan Bakewell reflects on the irreplaceable value of reading at a time when the squeeze on government spending is putting public libraries at risk.
Details
A Point of View - Reputation Building
Lisa Jardine reflects on how reputations are won and lost. A bridge builder will be a good engineer if his bridge doesn't fall down....but how do we judge our politicians?
Details
A Point of View - Sex and Religion
Joan Bakewell compares the tensions in the Catholic and Anglican churches over policy on homosexuality, contraception and the status of women priests.
Details
A Point of View - Sheer Poetry
Clive James wonders what it says about the British attitude to poetry that we have the institution of the Poet Laureateship.
Details
A Point of View - Special Elephants
David Cannadine traces the remarkable history of the Asian elephant, prompted by the recent auction of colourful models to raise funds for their preservation.
Details
A Point of View - Spirit of the Game
A weekly reflection on a topical issue from Clive James. The spirit in which the game is played determines whether he likes or loathes the sport.
Details
A Point of View - Stars of South London
David Cannadine celebrates the cultural heritage of South London, in particular Dulwich Picture Gallery and two great writers educated nearby, PG Wodehouse and Raymond Chandler.
Details
A Point of View - Student Psyche
Sarah Dunant reflects on the character of the new generation of students. How are they dealing with the challenge of growing up and are they about to become more political?
Details
A Point of View - Talking About Their Generation
Clive James reflects on the human condition and the need for liberal democracy to spread to allow future generations to enjoy the fruits of progress.
Details
A Point of View - The drama of politics
Simon Schama reflects on the timeless drama of British politics and looks back to the 1830s, when parliamentary reform prevented social unrest from turning into revolution.
Details
A Point of View - The ecological sublime
Alain de Botton gives a philosopher's take on our ecological dilemmas. He argues that fear of environmental destruction has changed for ever our relationship with nature.
Details
A Point of View - The Golf Ball Potato Crisp
Clive James reflects on the importance of scepticism in every walk of life, and he criticises extreme reactions to those who are sceptical about man-made global warming.
Details
A Point of View - The History of Passports
David Cannadine reveals the colourful history of passports and identity cards - the political tensions, public resistance and some curious 19th century practices.
Details
A Point of View - The Man on the Fourth Plinth
Clive James celebrates the honouring of Battle of Britain commander Sir Keith Park with a temporary statue on Trafalgar Square's fourth plinth.
Details
A Point of View - The Meaning of Memorial Day
David Cannadine reflects on the significance of Memorial Day in the United States. He traces the history of this important public holiday and describes the role it plays in America.
Details
A Point of View - The Princeton P-rade
David Cannadine reflects on the distinctive style of American graduation ceremonies which forge a lasting sense of identity for graduates and their peers.
Details
A Point of View - The Sistine tapestries
Lisa Jardine reflects on the significance of the Raphael tapestries brought from the Sistine Chapel to London to mark the Pope's visit.
Details
A Point of View - Traces of the Past
Sarah Dunant reflects on the removing of most of the railings around Kensington Palace and the way this illuminates the tension between past history and future landscape.
Details
A Point of View - Tribute to Teachers
Sarah Dunant pays tribute to outstanding women teachers who inspired her own generation of schoolgirls to achieve through education as well as any boy.
Details
A Point of View - Volcano Power
David Cannadine reflects on the destructive power of volcanoes and the long line of writers who have been fascinated by the fate of Pompeii.
Details
A Point of View - What humanities should teach
Alain de Botton with his topical reflections. He argues that teachers of humanities in universities have only themselves to blame for many of the swingeing cuts they are facing.
Details
A Point of View - When money is just an illusion
Simon Schama reflects on the meaning of money as represented by coins and notes and in art. He celebrates the solidity of coins with their seeming defiance of monetary transience.
Details