Wolfson plays host to Wolfson Foundation Anniversary Lecture

Neil MacGregor, the outgoing Director of the British Museum, was the guest lecturer, and spoke on private philanthropy and public funding in the context of British museums and galleries, and their importance to cultural life in the UK.

The Wolfson Foundation was founded in 1955 by Sir Isaac Wolfson, a Scottish businessman who was Managing Director of Great Universal Stores. Over the past 60 years the Foundation has funded over 10,000 projects totalling £1.7 billion in real terms. The Foundation has had a long and generous association with Wolfson College, providing one of the founding grants in 1966, funding the Leonard Wolfson Auditorium, and partly funding Phase II of the New Academic Wing (which will open in Spring 2016).

Professor Dame Hermione Lee, College President and Trustee of the Wolfson Foundation, and Dame Janet Wolfson de Botton, the granddaughter of Sir Isaac Wolfson and current Chairman of the Foundation, spoke about the work of the Foundation and the outstanding projects that have been supported over the years.

A celebratory dinner for the guests was held in Hall after the lecture. A recording of the lecture can be found on the Wolfson Foundation website.