Professor James Chapman (pictured), Director of Film Studies at the University of Leicester, will give this year's Ernest Hughes Memorial Lecture on Thursday, November 22, starting at 7pm, in the Faraday Lecture Theatre, Faraday Building.

Professor Chapman, who is based in Leicester's Department of History of Art and Film, is a leading historian of film, television, and popular culture.

His book, Licence to Thrill: A Cultural History of the James Bond Films, has been published in the UK, the USA, and Japan.

And Professor Chapman has also published books on British cinema during the Second World War, on British adventure series of the 1960s, World cinema, British historical films and national identity, and, most recently, Inside the Tardis: The Worlds of Doctor Who – A Cultural History.

Professor Edward Ernest Hughes (1877-1953) was the first Professor of History at Swansea University, where he worked from 1926 until 1944. According to his biographer, he was 'a notable intermediary between the university and the public'.

The lecture's organiser, Professor Chris Williams, Swansea University History Department, said: "We are delighted to welcome Professor Chapman to give this year’s Ernest Hughes Memorial Lecture, which has in the past attracted other prominent historians including Sir Keith Thomas, John Julius Norwich, and, most recently, Professor Richard Holmes.

"The lecture always attracts a wide audience, including not only academics and students from the university itself but also many interested members of the general public."

Admission to the lecture is free and open to all. For further information contact Professor Chris Williams, Swansea University History Department, Tel: +44 (0)1792 602318, or email: christopher.m.williams@swansea.ac.uk.