Autumn Lecture Series 2025: Here I stand with Chris Bryant MP
(Monday 20th October 2025)
When watching live, you can increase the quality of the video to 720p by pressing the ‘settings cog’ button on the video menu. You can also unmute and change the volume.
Sir Chris Bryant MP is a prominent British Labour politician who has served as the Member of Parliament for Rhondda (and now Rhondda and Ogmore) since 2001. He left the Anglican priesthood in 1991 because he concluded that being gay and being a priest at that time were incompatible. He held various ministerial roles in government from 2008 to 2010, including Deputy Leader of the House of Commons and Under-Secretary of State for Europe and Asia. In opposition, he served in the Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Culture Secretary and Shadow Leader of the House of Commons. Knighted in 2023 for political and public service, he currently holds roles as Minister of State for Data Protection and Telecoms, and Minister of State for Creative Industries, Arts and Tourism, appointed in July 2024. He is also a published author on parliamentary history.
Chris Bryant’s Christian faith has always been a foundational aspect of the values that has stood for and has directly influenced his life choices, his political principles, and his ongoing advocacy for social justice, and for the LGBT+ community, even when it puts him at odds with the institution of the Church.
Chris Bryant has written many books including: The Glamour Boys: The Secret Story of the Rebels who Fought for Britain to Defeat Hitler 2020: (winner of the 2020 Parliamentary Book Award for Best Non-Fiction.) Code of Conduct: Why We Need to Fix Parliament (2023) (a Sunday Times bestseller.) Parliament: The Biography (two volumes) In August 2025 he published his new memoir A Life and A Half: The Unexpected Making of a Politician.
Please let us know what you thought of tonight’s lecture and submit any suggestions for future themes and speakers by following this link here.
You may also like
Contemplative Prayer (17.10)
Nazareth Contemplative Prayer on Saturday 17th of October 2026, with Maddie Naisbitt at St Martin-in-the-Fields.
Sermon (18.10)
A sermon preached at St Martin-in-the-Fields on Sunday 18th of October 2026, by Revd Sam Wells during the Celebration of Three Hundred Years.
Great Sacred Music: Round me falls the night (22.10)
A sequence to speak to heart, head and soul, exploring through songs and readings the great classical music of our religious heritage.
Reflections from Bread for the World (14.10)
Reflections: “An excerpt from The City is my Monastery’ by Revd Richard Carter, Jolley Gosnold and Maddie Naisbitt.
Preached at St Martin-in-the-Fields during Bread for the World on Wednesday 14th of October 2026.
Sermon (11.10)
A sermon preached at St Martin-in-the-Fields on Sunday 11th of October 2026, by Revd Sam Wells.
Contemplative Prayer (10.10)
Nazareth Contemplative Prayer on Saturday 10th of October 2026, with Revd Catherine Duce at the Battersea Boating Lake.
Great Sacred Music: Pilgrimage (15.10)
A sequence to speak to heart, head and soul, exploring through songs and readings the great classical music of our religious heritage.
Reflections from Bread for the World (07.10)
Reflections: ‘Eucharistic Justice’ by Jolley Gosnold. Preached at St Martin-in-the-Fields during Bread for the World on Wednesday 7th of October 2026.
Sermon (04.10)
A sermon preached at St Martin-in-the-Fields on Sunday 4th of October 2026, by Revd Andrew Woodward.
Contemplative Prayer (03.10)
Nazareth Contemplative Prayer on Saturday 3rd of October 2026, with Jolley Gosnold in Barbican.
Great Sacred Music: Thomas Traherne (08.10)
A sequence to speak to heart, head and soul, exploring through songs and readings the great classical music of our religious heritage.
Reflections from Bread for the World (30.09)
Reflections: ‘Franciscan Spirituality – 800 Years’ by Revd Catherine Duce. Preached at St Martin-in-the-Fields during Bread for the World on Wednesday 30th of September 2026.
Sermon (27.09)
A sermon preached at St Martin-in-the-Fields on Sunday 27th of September 2026, by Revd Dr Sam Wells.
Contemplative Prayer (26.09)
Nazareth Contemplative Prayer on Saturday 26th of September 2026, with Revd Richard Carter.
Great Sacred Music: Archbishop Parker’s Psalter (01.10)
A sequence to speak to heart, head and soul, exploring through songs and readings the great classical music of our religious heritage.
Reflections from Bread for the World (23.09)
Reflections: ‘Costly Forgiveness’ by Revd Richard Carter. Preached at St Martin-in-the-Fields during Bread for the World on Wednesday 23rd of September 2026.
Sermon (20.09)
A sermon preached at St Martin-in-the-Fields on Sunday 20th of September 2026, by Revd Dr Sam Wells.
Contemplative Prayer (19.09)
Nazareth Contemplative Prayer on Saturday 19th of September 2026, with Revd Catherine Duce at Waterloo Place, London.
Great Sacred Music: John Rutter (24.09)
A sequence to speak to heart, head and soul, exploring through songs and readings the great classical music of our religious heritage.
Reflections from Bread for the World (16.09)
Reflections: ‘The Hound of Heaven’ by Revd Dr Sam Wells. Preached at St Martin-in-the-Fields during Bread for the World on Wednesday 16th of September 2026.