Astronomy for All Lectures
Established in 2006 by Charles Barclay (now an Honorary Fellow of Green Templeton College), the Astronomy for All Lecture Series strengthens connections between Green Templeton and the University of Oxford’s Astrophysics department and raises awareness of the Radcliffe Observatory among modern astrophysicists, students, and the public, with accessible talks from leading astronomers and researchers.
The series has ranged across contemporary astrophysics and cosmology, as well as astronomy education, archaeoastronomy and historical subjects. Speakers have included leading figures in the field, including five Presidents of the Royal Astronomical Society, among them Professor Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell and former Savilian Professor Steven Balbus. The series reached an important milestone in 2025, when Charles delivered the fiftieth Astronomy for All lecture. Titled ‘Hornsby’s legacy: Laying the foundations of Astronomy in Oxford’, the lecture explored the origins of the Radcliffe Observatory and the vision of Thomas Hornsby, the Savilian Professor of Astronomy, for the building.
This fiftieth lecture also marked Professor Rob Fender’s arrival as new convener of the lectures. Rob joined Green Templeton’s Fellowship in 2023 and has helped to build a deeper relationship between the college and the University of Oxford’s Astrophysics sub-department. In parallel, seven Astrophysics Associates joined the college. More than four hundred people attended the first lecture of this new chapter, given by Professor Brian Schmidt under the title ‘The Universe from beginning to end’ at the Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities. Read the report.
Green Templeton aims not simply to remember but to actively engage with our historic connection with astronomy. To this end, the college holds the Astronomy for All series alongside community events for Oxford Open Doors and regular stargazing nights for the college community. The Preserving the Past | Inspiring the Future campaign seeks to safeguard the Grade I Radcliffe Observatory for future generations, while creating new opportunities to encounter its history and continuing astronomical legacy.
Find out more about the Radcliffe Observatory and Green Templeton’s campaign to conserve it
Previous events
Astronomy for All: The universe from beginning to end
Saturday 12 September 2026
Professor Brian Schmidt
Astronomy for All Lecture 2025
Wednesday 24 September 2025
Charles Barclay
Black holes in the Universe
Wednesday 10 May 2023
Professor Rob Fender, Head of Astrophysics, University of Oxford
A tale of two telescopes: the Vera C. Rubin Observatory and the Extremely Large Telescope
Thursday 26 May 2022
Aprajita Verma, Senior Researcher, Department of Physics, University of Oxford
Introduced by Michael Dixon, Principal, Green Templeton College
Illuminating the Dark Ages – the era of James Webb
Thursday 19 May 2022
Charles Barclay, Associate Fellow, Green Templeton College
Introduced by Rebecca Surender, Vice Principal, Green Templeton College
Spacecraft exploration of our solar system
Thursday 12 May 2022
John Zarnecki, Emeritus Professor, Department of Physical Sciences, The Open University
Introduced by Charles Barclay, Associate Fellow, Green Templeton College
The ‘computer’ who unlocked the Universe: celebrating pivotal women in astronomy
Thursday 20 May 2021
Introduced by Dr Rebecca Surender, Vice-Principal, Green Templeton
Charles Barclay. Associate Fellow, Green Templeton; Outreach Astronomer; Director of the Blackett Observatory at Marlborough College; and Academic Visitor in the Astrophysics sub-department at the University of Oxford.
Stories in the Sky – Cultural interpretations of visible patterns and rhythms
Thursday 28 May 2020
Charles Barclay, Associate Fellow, Green Templeton College, University of Oxford and convener of the annual Astronomy for All Lectures
Galaxy Zoo: from the lab to your living room
Wednesday 27 February 2019
Dr Becky Smethurst, Department of Astrophysics, University of Oxford
The gravitational sky
Wednesday 20 February 2019
Professor Mike Cruise, President of the Royal Astronomical Society
Reaching young stars: British Astronomy and Astrophysics Olympiad
Wednesday 23 January 2019
Charles Barclay, Vice President of the Royal Astronomical Society and Green Templeton Associate Fellow
Happy Friday!
We are ready and excited for a busy Michaelmas Term ahead.
Get ready for a discussion on leadership, diplomacy, philanthropy and Olympic sport. Plus a live fencing demonstration.🤺
On 28 October, we are bringing together four extraordinary women from the United States, United Kingdom and Pan-American sporting communities for the event: Bridging Nations, Leading Change.
The conversation will explore how sport can create change across borders, from women’s leadership and philanthropy to sports diplomacy and the Olympic movement.
With a welcome from Chief Executive of @TeamGB Jon Dutton OBE , alumna Selina Kaing (MBA, 2006) will moderate the panel`s discussion featuring:
🌎 Ana Irene Delgado, Permanent Representative of Panama to the Organization of American States
🏅 Sally Munday, Chief Executive of @UKSport
🤺 Georgina Usher MBE, Chief Executive of @BritishFencing
To register, go to the link in the comments
#GreenTempletonCollege #Oxford #WomenInLeadership #SportDiplomacy #Fencing #OlympicMovement #WomenInSport #OxfordEvents
Although we can not guarantee his attendance, Vincent encourages all new students to attend the college life fairs, taking place today from 14:00 to 15:30 in the marquee and Thursday 8 October from 10:30 to 12:00!
Meet college staff and representatives from student clubs!
The college is delighted to welcome a new Oxford PharmaGenesis DPhil Scholarship in Translational Health.
The scholarship has been established through an endowment gift of £1,660,000 from Oxford PharmaGenesis, now part of the Klick family, creating a permanent fund to support doctoral students undertaking outstanding postgraduate research in the field of translational health at Nuffield Department of Primary Care @oxford_uni
Yesterday our alumni celebrated the 2026 Mid-Autumn Festival in Hong Kong alongside @st_annescollege alumni at the two societies’ first co-organised event.
The group gathered at a Michelin-starred restaurant to mark the joyful occasion, make new connections and enjoy exquisite traditional food together.
It is wonderful to see the two college alumni societies bringing the wider Oxford community together for what Nathaniel Chan (MBA, 2016), co-chair of the Green Templeton College Hong Kong Alumni Society, described as ‘a memorable occasion’.
Plans are already taking shape for a hike and karaoke event in November, following an ‘impressive impromptu a cappella performance by one alumnus’ at the lunch.
#alumni
#Oxford
#HongKong
