Westminster Art and Design students produce title sequences for Royal Institution Christmas Lectures 2024

The 2024 Christmas Lectures will be presented by Ultra-Processed People author Dr Chris van Tulleken and will focus on the revolutionary latest science around what happens inside the body when eating. The lectures will be broadcast at 9pm on 29, 30 and 31 December on BBC Four and will be available to watch on BBC iPlayer shortly after.

Apart from a four-year break during the Second World War, the Royal Institution has hosted its Christmas Lectures every Christmas since 1827, when renowned scientist Michael Faraday delivered the first one from the famous lecture theatre of the Royal Institution with the aim of engaging and educating young people about science. The BBC have broadcast the lectures on television each year since 1966.  

This is the fifth year that Westminster students have designed and animated the titles for the lectures as part of a longstanding historical connection between the University and the Royal Institution. In 1847, Professor John Henry Pepper became the first director of the Royal Polytechnic Institution, the antecedent organisation of the University, based in what is now Westminster's Regent Campus. Following in the footsteps of the Royal Institution, which still stands just 600 metres from the University’s Regent Campus, Pepper began delivering a series of evening lectures to the working people of London from the Polytechnic.  

Both institutions became well-known in London for Christmas lectures and scientific presentations, and Professor Pepper even invited Michael Faraday to visit the Polytechnic to show him behind the scenes of his world-famous Ghost Illusion in what is now the Regent Street Cinema.  

This year, Westminster students used their title sequences to make a "love letter" to British stop frame animation. They took inspiration from the Sledgehammer music video created by Aardman Animations nearly 40 years ago, which is the project that gave Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park his big break in the industry.

About this year’s title sequence Stephen Ryley, Course Leader for the Animation BA Honours course at Westminster, said: "I’m extremely proud of our students; they have been able to deliver an ingenious title sequence, operating effectively as a dynamic and proactive team. They were working for three clients at once: the production company, the Royal Institution and the BBC, so to keep them all happy is a great achievement."

Dr Chris van Tulleken, best-selling author and host of this year’s lectures, shared a video message for the students:

The University of Westminster is a member of the Aardman Academy, which provides stop motion animation training around the world, including courses, masterclasses and visits to their Bristol studios for university students.

Mark Simon Hewis, Head of Department at the Aardman Academy, said: "The students' titles are a joyful celebration of mixed media creativity. I absolutely love how they’ve embraced a visual assault, anything-goes approach, blending stop-motion, hand-drawn elements and unexpected textures to craft something wonderfully unpredictable. It’s playful, imaginative and full of personality—each frame feels alive with the kind of energy and charm that only a mixed media approach can deliver. There’s a raw, handmade quality to it all that makes it endlessly fun to watch and impossible not to smile at."

The lecture series producer Peter Gauvain from Windfall Films commented: "Working with Stephen and his brilliant team of Animation students has been a delight. They came up with the concept for this year's title sequence and have executed it with dedication, skill and real innovation. Receiving each new cut has been something to look forward to and I know that the finished article will be a truly memorable part of this year's Royal Institution Christmas Lectures. Huge thanks to the whole team at the University of Westminster!"

Second-year Animation BA Honours student Vlad Bolshakov also gained work experience as a runner for the show. Vlad said: "As difficult and demanding as this project has been I really enjoyed the challenges and solving the problems that came with them. Through the project I was able to find out just how much I love telling stories. I was also extremely lucky to have secured a position as a runner at the TV production of the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures themselves. I can't quite put it into words just how excited I am to learn and experience more."

The Royal Institution Christmas Lectures and the students’ work on this project contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 4: Quality Education and 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth. Since 2019, the University of Westminster has used the SDGs holistically to frame strategic decisions to help students and colleagues fulfil their potential and contribute to a more sustainable, equitable and healthier society.

Watch the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures from 29 December on BBC iPlayer.

Find out more about Art, Design and Visual Culture courses at the University of Westminster.