The 2025 interdisciplinary Cambridge Festival will take place from 19 March – 4 April with a mixture of online, on-demand and in-person events covering all aspects of the world-leading research happening at Cambridge.
Once again we’ve scoured the programme to highlight events featuring Churchill College connections; from Churchill Fellows and current students to the annual Alex Hopkins lecture.
All these events are free to attend but booking is often required – see below for details.
19 March – 4 April
Living Lab: Climate Action introduces Year 9 and 10 students to real-world engineering challenges in planning climate resilient cities. School pupils took part in authentic research into energy conservation and flood risk reduction, which will be showcased in an Exhibition at West Hub during the Cambridge Festival. The project was led by Churchill Fellows Dr. Rachel Thorley and Prof. Dongfang Liang as part of the College’s outreach work and demonstrates how engineering and science can tackle global problems while inspiring the next generation of scientists. No booking required.
Wednesday 19 March
6:30pm – 9:00pm: The Chapel at Churchill College
‘Translations of the Night: a concert and pre-concert talk’
Mezzo-soprano Lotte Betts-Dean and the Marsyas Trio will present a concert featuring Ravel’s controversial Chansons madécasses alongside contemporary works by Judith Weir and Churchill Fellow Dr Ewan Campbell. The event includes a pre-concert talk with Prof. Charles Forsdick exploring the complexities of colonial and post-colonial music and poetry. Booking required. Find out more and book
Friday 21 March
6:00pm – 7:30pm: Bill Gates Sr House
‘Ideas that could change the world’
Churchill College PhD Student and Gates Scholar Joshua Weygant will be part of a panel hosted by international journalist Catherine Galloway. The panel will explore a range of topics from global healthcare solutions to sustainability and agriculture. Joshua will speak about his research on 3D bioprinting and organ-on-chip systems – technologies that are pushing the boundaries of medicine. Booking required. Find out more and book
Saturday 22 March
10:00am – 4:00pm: Department of Chemistry
‘Crash, Bang, Squelch! with Cambridge Hands-On Science’
Churchill College undergraduate Asmita Niyogi is part of a team organising a fun-filled day of hands-on science, with over 50 student-led interactive experiments, robotics workshops, and talks. Booking is recommended for workshops, talks and priority entry, but drop-ins are welcome! Find out more and book here: hands-on science, robotics, talks.
11:00am – 4:00pm: Cambridge Academy for Science & Technology (Biomedical Campus)
‘High blood pressure – what it is and why it matters!’
Churchill Fellow Dr Carmel McEniery will be part of a team raising awareness about high blood pressure and what can be done about it (including free blood pressure checks), as part of the Cambridge Biomedical Campus Open Day. No booking required. Find out more
11.00am – 4.00pm: Cambridge Academy for Science & Technology
‘Metabolic Maze’
Join Churchill College MPhil students Taylor Simonian and Nina van der Velde as the Institute of Metabolic Science presents a series of fun activities exploring how our genes, environment, and lifestyle all contribute to our risk of metabolic disease. No booking required. Find out more
1:30pm – 4:30pm: Churchill Archives Centre
‘Churchill Archives Centre Open Afternoon’
Home to over 600 collections on the history of modern Britain, Churchill Archives Centre opens its doors for an open day. Visit our reading rooms to see archival treasures chosen from across our collections. Visit our pop–up repair shop to learn about how we look after our archives. Meet the team to learn about some of the research that goes on in the Centre. No booking required. Find out more
2:00pm – 3:00pm: Institute for Manufacturing
‘Your Life Is Manufactured: How we make things, why it matters and how we can do it better’
We live in a manufactured world, surrounded by products whose origins remain invisible to us. Churchill Fellow Prof. Tim Minshall will explore how manufacturing shapes our lives and environment, revealing where the things we use daily actually come from. Age group: 7 upwards. Booking required. Find out more and book
Thursday 27 March
6:00pm – 7:30pm: Cambridge Union Society, Keynes Library, 9A Bridge Street
‘Understanding Ourselves in the Age of AI – Neil Lawrence in conversation with Diane Coyle’
Churchill Fellow Prof. Diane Coyle will host a conversation with Professor Neil Lawrence, DeepMind Prof. of Machine Learning at the University of Cambridge. Their discussion will delve into his book ‘The Atomic Human’, exploring how and why our fears of being displaced by AI might be misplaced. Booking required. Find out more and book
Friday 28 March
5.00pm – 6.15pm: Department of Chemistry
‘Making Vaccines, for the Last Pandemic and the Next One’
This year’s Alex Hopkins Lecture will be delivered by alumna Professor Catherine Green (U93), from the University of Oxford. The lecture will provide an accessible and entertaining insight into the development of the Oxford AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, as detailed in the book Vaxxers which she co-wrote with Sarah Gilbert. Booking required. Find out more & book
Saturday 29 March
10:00am – 2:00pm: Churchill College
‘Artscience Inegratives for wellness’
A dynamic community engagement event delivered virtually by the Centre for Intercultural Musicology at Churchill College. Sharing scientific principles through artistic practices, this exciting symposium and coaching programme is led by a team of multidisciplinary specialists in the fields of art therapy, taichi / qiqong coaching, music and medicine. CIMaCC warmly extends its invitation to fellows, colleagues and students at College. Booking required. Find out more and book
Tuesday 1 April
5:30pm – 6:30pm: Cambridge Union Society, Keynes Library, 9A Bridge Street
‘Your Life Is Manufactured: How we make things, why it matters and how we can do it better’
Join Churchill Fellow Prof. Tim Minshall as he discusses his new book Your Life Is Manufactured: How We Make Things, Why It Matters and How We Can Do It Better. Booking required. Find out more and book
Tuesday 2 April
8:00pm – 9:00pm: Cambridge Union Society, Debating Chamber, 9A Bridge Street
‘Prof. Sir David Spiegelhalter: The Art of uncertainty: Living with change, ignorance, risk and luck’
Join Churchill Fellow Prof. David Spiegelhalter for a conversation about the topics raised in his recent book The Art of Uncertainty: Living with Chance, Ignorance, Risk and Luck. Booking required Find out more and book
For information about other events taking place visit the Festival website: Cambridge Festival
