Gambling is an activity as old as human social life itself, sometimes carried out alone but, more often than not, by crowds or whole nations. Lottery systems have historically been used as a means of allowing 'Fate' to decide upon the distribution of materials (unequally distributed by a society), and have often been ascribed to the divine.
This lecture is part of Professor Pick's series, Rumour, Disease and the Madness of Crowds. The other lectures in this series are:
1665: The Great Pestilence of London
1848: The Chartists' Revolution in London
1888: Jack the Ripper
Money Mania: The South Sea Bubble
Miracle Cures: Spas, Shrines and Spirits
Professor John Pick was Gresham Professor of Rhetoric in 1985 and 1987. He was the founding professor of Europe's first Department of Arts Policy and Management at City University, London. He is Emeritus Professor of Arts Policy and Management at City University and Emeritus Visiting Professor in Arts Management at South Bank University.
