About this episode
Dr Gwen Adshead explores the concept of evil and its relationship with mental illness in her second Reith Lecture.
In her second Reith Lecture, Dr Gwen Adshead asks if there’s such a thing as “evil.”? In a career spanning nearly 40 years the forensic psychiatrist has heard many of her patients ask: “ I have done evil things but does that make me evil.”? Dr Adshead says that we have often confused “evil” with mental illness. She argues that we all have capacity for “evil” and says we need to find ways to cultivate societal and individual “goodness.” The programme is recorded at the V&A in Dundee in front of an audience. The Reith Lectures are presented and chaired by Anita Anand. Producer: Jim Frank Editor: Clare Fordham
People in this episode
Host: Anita Anand
Guest: Dr Gwen Adshead
Topics covered
- evil
- mental illness
- goodness
- forensic psychiatry
- society
- individual morality
Keywords
- evil
- mental illness
- forensic psychiatry
- goodness
- society
- morality
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: BBC Radio 4
Places: V&A in Dundee
More episodes of The Reith Lectures
- 4. Fighting for Humanity in the Age of the Machine. · December 16, 2025 · 57 min
- 3. A conspiracy of decency · December 9, 2025 · 57 min
- 2. How to start a moral revolution · December 2, 2025 · 58 min
- 1. A Time of Monsters · November 25, 2025 · 58 min
- Moral Maze debate: Rutger Bregman’s call for a moral revolution · November 25, 2025 · 57 min
- Can we change violent minds? · December 17, 2024 · 58 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The Reith Lectures podcast page.