Thackray Insights invites you to delve deep into eye­ opening topics and explore the unheard stories of medicine.

For as long as there have been vaccines, there have been anti-vaxxers. From the first backlash following Edward Jenner’s innovative discovery to the recent COVID pandemic, historians Gareth Williams and Paula Larsson chart the development – and similarities – of anti-vaccination movements across the last two centuries.

About the Speakers:

Professor Gareth Williams is a former Chair of the Jenner Trust and Emeritus Professor of Medicine at Bristol. A Cambridge-trained physician, he has led internationally recognised research in diabetes and obesity. He has published 200 scientific papers and authored or edited over 20 books, including Angel of Death: the story of smallpox, Unravelling the Double Helix and The Impossible Bomb. He has received an honorary doctorate from the University of Angers.

Paula Larsson is a DPhil historian at the University of Oxford’s Centre for the History of Science, Medicine and Technology. Her research examines vaccine policy, medical research and eugenics in twentieth-century Canada, particularly their impact on Indigenous peoples and immigrants. She also founded Uncomfortable Oxford, exploring Oxford’s histories of empire, colonialism and inequality.

Interested in attending multiple events in the season? Add three or more Insights events into your basket for a 20% discount on your overall purchase at checkout.

We offer a select number of free Insights tickets for students studying A-Level or above – email groups@thackraymuseum.org to find out more.