A WORLD-LEADING thinker will speak in the region next week.

Political theorist and activist Noam Chomsky will discuss whether humanity can survive the 21st century without a major setback when he delivers a lecture at Durham University on Thursday, May 22.

All 200 tickets for Durham Castle’s Great Hall have been snapped up, along with all 250 for seats in the Rosemary Cramp lecture theatre, where the lecture will be streamed live.

Prof Chomsky, institute professor of linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), has been a fierce critic of US foreign policy for several decades.

Now 85, he remains in great demand as a speaker.

Patrick Knaap, from Durham University, said: “We’re delighted to have Professor Chomsky at the castle.

“He’s one of the most important academics of his time, not only as a linguist but also as a philosopher.”