Controversial US academic Noam Chomsky is due to speak in Dublin tonight on the so-called "war on terror".
Last night, more than 1,000 people crammed into O'Reilly Hall on the UCD campus to hear his lecture.
The 77-year old is a persistent critic of US foreign policy and has written more than 30 political books. He has also attacked the Government here for allowing US aircraft to refuel at Shannon airport.
The venue for his Amnesty International Lecture, which begins at 7pm, has been changed from Trinity College Dublin to the Shelbourne Hall at the RDS due to the demand for tickets.
Dr Chomsky, who has a cult-like following was dubbed 'the Elvis of Academia' by U2 singer Bono.
In an interview about the refuelling of US military aircraft at Shannon, Dr Chomsky asked: "Is Mr Ahern following the will of the Irish people or is he following orders from Washington?
"It can only be justified if the goal of the Government is to be the obedient servant of the global superpower."
The professor of linguistics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology received an honorary fellowship from UCD's Literary and Historical Society in 2002.