The Chester Ideas lecture series will feature talks on a range of topics, including Taylor Swift and Team GB.

Free public lectures featuring a variety of topics will be held at the University of Chester.

The Chester Ideas series follows the successful Festival of Ideas held earlier this year, giving the public a chance to attend talks by experts on a variety of subjects.

Topics range from optimising the performance of Team GB athletes at the Olympics, exploring the past with Time Team expert Professor Stewart Ainsworth, to studying the varying accents of global singing sensation Taylor Swift.

The series of talks will take place across the University’s campuses in the coming months.

They will include inaugural lectures by newly appointed professors and a return of the popular Culture and Society Research and Knowledge Exchange Institute (RKEI) Public Lecture series.

On Thursday, November 28, 'Swifties' can look forward to the talk titled 'How swiftly does Swift’s accents shift?: The language of Taylor Swift'.

Speakers Helen West and Esther Humphries, both experts in the field, will discuss the spoken and sung performance of the multi-million-selling music star.

Then on Tuesday, January 21, 2025, the University will welcome back Professor Stewart Ainsworth for his talk 'Mapping the past: from Ordnance Survey to Time Team'.

Known as the 'lumps and bumps' man for his trained eye on landscapes, Stewart has appeared in over 200 episodes of the long-running TV show.

He will reflect on his career and discuss the significance of archaeology and heritage.

The following week, on Wednesday, January 29, 2025, Professor Arpan Guha will deliver his inaugural lecture titled 'Mind games in medicine: Thinking beyond the linear'.

Professor Guha, a specialist in Medical Education, will discuss the intricacies of decision making and leadership challenges in healthcare problem-solving.

On Wednesday, February 12, Professor Paul Worsfold will answer the question posed by his talk 'How do you optimise performance of Team GB athletes at the Olympics?'.

Professor Worsfold will explore the strategic planning and specialised services that go into creating a high-performance environment, which helped secure Team GB second place in the medals table at the Rio 2016 Games.

While all the events are free to attend, some require advance booking.

Chester Ideas will also feature talks from the Faculty of Health, Medicine and Society Historical Society, the monthly opening of the Riverside Museum, an 80th anniversary celebration of VE Day, and the Cheshire Prize for Literature awards evening.

For more information on all events call 01244 511344, email events@chester.ac.uk, or head to their website.