BBC Radio 4’s Any Questions? comes to The Open University in Milton Keynes

Posted on 9 July 2026 • TV and radio, University news

The Open University will welcome one of the BBC’s longest-running and most respected current affairs programmes to its Milton Keynes campus this summer. 

BBC Radio 4’s Any Questions? will be broadcast from The Open University’s Walton Hall campus on Friday 7 August 2026, bringing a live audience and a panel of leading figures from politics and public life to Milton Keynes. 

The visit comes in a special year for The Open University, marking the 60th anniversary of the publication of the 1966 University of the Air White Paper, which set out the vision for what would become The Open University. Championed by Jennie Lee, Minister for the Arts in Harold Wilson’s government, the idea was rooted in a radical belief that higher education should be open to people from all backgrounds. 

Presented by Alex Forsyth, Any Questions? has been a fixture of British public debate since 1948, travelling across the UK each week to hear questions directly from audiences and explore the issues shaping national conversations. 

The programme’s visit offers residents from Milton Keynes and the surrounding area a chance to be part of a live national broadcast and put their questions directly to the panel. 

Michelle Smyth, Head of Government and External Affairs, at The Open University, said:

“We are delighted to be hosting BBC Radio 4’s Any Questions? at our Milton Keynes campus in this important anniversary year for The Open University. Sixty years on from the University of the Air White Paper, the OU remains true to the founding vision championed by Jennie Lee and Harold Wilson: opening up education and public debate to people wherever they are. We look forward to welcoming audience members from across Milton Keynes and beyond for what promises to be a fascinating evening.”

The Open University has been based in Milton Keynes since its foundation and remains one of the city’s largest employers and a major contributor to education, skills and innovation across the region. 

Details of the panel will be announced by the BBC closer to the broadcast date. 

Members of the public wishing to attend should apply for free tickets online via Eventbrite (on a first come first served basis).  

Picture credit: BBC