University Events

Children's Lectures

Holmes Lectures for 10- to 14-year-olds

The Holmes Memorial Lectures are designed for children aged 10 to 14 with the intention of fostering an interest in science.

2025 Holmes Memorial Lectures

The 2025 Holmes Lectures will be given by researchers from Newcastle University’s School of Engineering.

DISCOVER ENGINEERING:
Lecture 1: How engineering shapes our world
Wednesday 15 January 2025

In this lecture we explore the fascinating world of engineering and how it impacts our everyday lives and discover why we need future engineers like you! You'll meet different types of engineers and learn about how their work is changing people's lives. From developing new prosthetics and detecting illnesses to using underwater sound to track divers and robots - it all starts with engineering!

Book your place

DISCOVER ENGINEERING:
Lecture 2: Engineering for a better world: Clean water for all
Wednesday 22 January 2025

Sustainable Development Goal 6 declares the importance of achieving "clean water and sanitation for all", but there is often too much, too little or it is too dirty. In this lecture, we explore the term ‘water security’ and why it’s so important. You’ll learn how engineers need to work with other experts to solve problems like floods and water shortages and how these solutions are making a difference in the UK and around the world.

Book your place

Children attending the Holmes Lectures should be accompanied by an adult so please include a ticket for yourself when booking.

For group bookings and school visits, please email the Public Lectures office at public.lectures@ncl.ac.uk or telephone our booking voicemail line 0191 208 6136.

Past Holmes Memorial Lectures

Who was John H Holmes?

The annual John H Holmes lectures first took place at Newcastle University in 1937 and have covered a wide range of topics including sustainability, Forensic science, medical physics, chemistry and sports science. The talks form part of the INSIGHTS Public Lecture programme and are held every January.

John Henry Holmes (1857-1935) was an English electrical engineer, inventor and pioneer of electric lighting who invented the quick break light switch, the technology behind which remains the basis for modern wall mounted light switches.

John Henry Holmes was born in Newcastle on 6 June 1857 and grew up in Gateshead and then Jesmond. John attended the Friends School in Bootham, York, where he was taught the rudiments of science. At the age of 16, he won a place at the Durham College of Physical Science, later Armstrong College, now Newcastle University.

In 1880, Holmes attended a public demonstration of Joseph Swan's incandescent light bulb. This seemed to spark his interest in electric lighting, and he approached Swan on multiple occasions in hopes of becoming his apprentice.

John Henry Holmes and his brother Theodore founded J. H. Holmes & Co. in Shieldfield, Newcastle upon Tyne in 1883, their manufacturing company specialised in early motors, dynamos, switches, and lighting. The company was very active in the early proliferation of electric lighting, having installed Newcastle's first domestic electrical lighting into their father's house in Jesmond, and supplied installations throughout Europe and the British colonies and the United States. He invented the quick break light switch, the technology behind which remains the basis for modern wall mounted light switches, and his first experimental model is preserved at the Discovery Museum in Newcastle.

Holmes went on to become a prolific inventor, drives for printing presses, train lighting sets, and portable ships’ searchlights which enabled the Suez Canal to be traversed by night for the first time. John Henry Holmes died in April 1935 at the age of 78 and is buried at Jesmond Old Cemetery.

Photograph of John Henry Holmes (Copyright: Newcastle Libraries, Local Studies)