The Mark Steel Lectures
Series Overview
The Mark Steel Lectures are a series of radio and television programmes. Written and delivered by Mark Steel, each scripted lecture presents arguments for the importance of a historical figure. The lectures were originally broadcast on BBC Radio 4 over three series between 1999 and 2002. Many of the arguments were illustrated by miniature sketches. These sketches featured Mark Steel, Martin Hyder, Mel Hudson, Carla Mendonça, Femi Elufowoju Junior and Debbie Isitt. The first series was subtitled "A series of lectures about Englishmen who changed the course of history", with the remaining two changing this to "A series of lectures about people with a passion". The first series was produced by Phil Clark; the others by Lucy Armitage. The lecture on Ludwig van Beethoven was nominated for a Sony Radio Comedy Award. The programme transferred to television in 2003, with an Open University series on BBC Four, which was later repeated on BBC Two. This variously featured: ⁕Gerard Logan as Lord Byron ⁕Martin Hyder as Isaac Newton, Sigmund Freud, Aristotle, Che Guevara, Oliver Cromwell, Ludwig van Beethoven and Charles Darwin ⁕Ainsley Harriott as Robert Boyle ⁕Linda Smith as Martha Freud
Broadcast Schedule & Network Information
Airing status, episode counts, upcoming schedule, and network syndication.
3 Seasons • 18 Episodes
30 min per episode
2003 – 2006
Premiered: Tue, Oct 7, 2003
Creative Production Team
Latest Aired Episode
Season 3, Episode 6: “Ernesto 'Che' Guevara”
Walk down any high street in this country and chances are at some point you’ll see somebody wearing a Che Guevara t shirt. Most of whom have absolutely no idea who he was and what he stood for. Still, it’s a nice image, and he was handsome… Che Guevara was born in Argentina in 1928; initially he trained to be a doctor but became politically conscious and abandoned his vocation in order to travel across South America on the back of a motorbike. It was in Mexico in 1955 that Che met a young Fidel Castro who with his brother Raul had been exiled from his Cuban homeland and was preparing for an uprising there by training a crack squad of rebels in the Mexican countryside. This was Che’s calling. It’s what he’d been waiting his whole life for. It was his destiny. In this latest edition of his BAFTA nominated series of lectures, writer and broadcaster Mark Steel travels to South America and turns his attentions to the life and revolutionary times of Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara.
Seasons & Episodes Breakdown
Cast & Creators
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Mark Steel
Phil Bowker, Jon Rolph
Department Leadership Roster
Phil Bowker
Producer
Mark Steel
Writer
Jon Rolph
Producer
Production Stills & Gallery
Official cinematic photography and background stills for The Mark Steel Lectures.
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Frequently Asked Questions About The Mark Steel Lectures
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What is The Mark Steel Lectures about?
The Mark Steel Lectures are a series of radio and television programmes. Written and delivered by Mark Steel, each scripted lecture presents arguments for the importance of a historical figure. The lectures were originally broadcast on BBC Radio 4 over three series between 1999 and 2002. Many of the arguments were illustrated by miniature sketches. These sketches featured Mark Steel, Martin Hyder, Mel Hudson, Carla Mendonça, Femi Elufowoju Junior and Debbie Isitt. The first series was subtitled "A series of lectures about Englishmen who changed the course of history", with the remaining two changing this to "A series of lectures about people with a passion". The first series was produced by Phil Clark; the others by Lucy Armitage. The lecture on Ludwig van Beethoven was nominated for a Sony Radio Comedy Award. The programme transferred to television in 2003, with an Open University series on BBC Four, which was later repeated on BBC Two. This variously featured: ⁕Gerard Logan as Lord Byron ⁕Martin Hyder as Isaac Newton, Sigmund Freud, Aristotle, Che Guevara, Oliver Cromwell, Ludwig van Beethoven and Charles Darwin ⁕Ainsley Harriott as Robert Boyle ⁕Linda Smith as Martha Freud
How many seasons does The Mark Steel Lectures have?
The Mark Steel Lectures comprises 3 seasons available to explore.
Who stars in The Mark Steel Lectures?
Key cast members in The Mark Steel Lectures include Gerard Logan, Mark Steel.
Who created or directed The Mark Steel Lectures?
The Mark Steel Lectures was developed and directed by Not specified.