Lady Bakewell says she intends to use her new role at Birkbeck - which specialises in evening and part-time courses and is part of the University of London - to exert pressure on government to support part-time higher education.

BBC: Joan Bakewell urges action on part-time students

The concentrated nature of the courses, which usually involve extensive evening and weekend participation, tends to attract a certain breed of executive.

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The five courses are cleverly intertwined with five live pantomimes performed throughout the evening.

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The University of Phoenix, set up in 1989 to teach adults through a combination of old-fashioned distance learning and evening classes, is incorporating more and more e-learning into its courses, which are mostly taken by people with full-time jobs.

ECONOMIST: Lessons of a virtual timetable