6pm - 7:30pm GMT
Wednesday 11 November 2026
Adams-Sweeting Lecture - The real Enigma expert: Alan Turing or Henryk Zygalski?
Free
University of Surrey
Guildford
Surrey
GU2 7XH
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About the speaker: Sir Dermot Turing
Dermot Turing is the award-winning author of X, Y and Z – the real story of how Enigma was broken and Enigma Traitors, which reveals the failings of Allied cipher security during World War II. His most recent book is Misread Signals – how History Overlooked Women Codebreakers, which was published in August 2025. His other books cover subjects such as his famous uncle Alan Turing, codebreaking and computing history. He began writing in 2014 after a career in law, principally at the international law firm Clifford Chance. As well as writing and speaking, Dermot is a trustee of the National Museum of Computing and a Visiting Fellow at Kellogg College, Oxford.
About the lecture
The solution of the famous Enigma machine cipher by Bletchley Park’s codebreakers, notably Alan Turing, is a source of pride for Britain. But how did they achieve their breakthrough in 1939– from knowing next to nothing about the Enigma machine, to designing an electro-mechanical device to identify which setting (out of 158 quintillion possibilities) was in use each day – in only 3 months? Who was Henryk Zygalski, what was his role in the Enigma puzzle, and what was his connection to Guildford?
There will be an audience Q&A with Sir Dermot after his keynote.
About the Adams-Sweeting Lecture Series
The Adams Sweeting Lecture Series sees experts, innovators and scientists deliver fascinating talks on pioneering developments in their area of expertise.
From curious school students to ever-curious seniors, the lecture series is inclusive for all with a keen interest in science or a curiosity in the topic area.
You can find out more about some of our previous speakers in the series here.