The Bright Club Podcast: Recent Episodes
Bright Club
This intellectual comedy podcast is anchored by Steve Cross, who is joined every week by a star from the world of comedy, and a researcher from UCL, London's Global University. Together they tackle the really big questions, like: Are there penguins on Saturn's moons? Who was the randiest archaeologist of all time? Does owning your own laser make you more attractive to women?
The final questions, wrap-up and results of this argumentative panel show, with Helen Keen, Jay Stone, Sam Tazzyman, Chiara Ambrosio and flummoxed Steve Cross. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Third question for the four geniuses: Helen Keen, Sam Tazzyman, Jay Stone and the irrepresible Chiara Ambrosio. Steve Cross is bewildered. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
The second question for our four intellectual pugilists Chiara Ambrosio, Jay Stone, Sam Tazzyman and Helen Keen. Contains mild rudeness, mainly from inept host Steve Cross. Part 2 of 4. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Four brilliant brains tussle for this year's Bright Club Wars crown. From comedy to philosophy, from cells to duck mating habits, we cover all the intellectual bases. Steve Cross weakly referees. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Joe Cain explores the history of science, demolishing some so-called heroes to applause from comedian Joe Cain. Steve Cross sobs quietly as his illusions are shattered. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Geographer Gail Davies helps comedian Elis James understand the construction of science around the world, while Steve Cross does some colouring-in. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
The history of Swansea, Southall and sexy moustaches with archaeologist Sarah Dhanjal, comedian Elis James and inveterate ignoramus Steve Cross. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Public Health Epidemiologist Judith Stephenson and comedian Michael Legge explore Britain's attitudes to contraception and STIs. Steve Cross explodes into unprofessionalism. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
David Osrin is a public health epidemiologist. Michael Legge is a comedian. They are both brave in their own ways. Steve Cross gazes in awe. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Essi Viitanen studies Finnish film, and she shares her findings with comedian Michael Legge. Steve Cross tries to work out where Finland is. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Historian Oliwia Berdak explains the finer points of the formation of the Croatian Army to comedian Michael Legge. Steve Cross imagines looking like Rambo. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Sexual selection modeller Sam Tazzyman leads Terry Saunders into a beautiful garden full of double entendres. Steve Cross tried to contain himself. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
A touching exploration of old scandinavian love poetry this week with Scandophile Richard Cole and comedian Terry Saunders. Steve Cross tries to keep the smut level down, but fails. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
This week German literature and language expert Ernest Schonfield tries to overcome decades of ignorance on the part of comedian Terry Saunders and Allo Allo fan Steve Cross. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
The first of the LOVE podcasts sees comedian Terry Saunders find out what Britain does, with whom and how often from sex survey statistician Cath Mercer. Steve Cross follows maybe half of the conversation. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
This week a special podcast with Naked Scientists, Answer Me This, Short Science and Eu.Sci, to help you start to podcast. Recorded at the Science Communication Conference and starring our very own producer Martin Austwick.
Zoe Self, racehorse biomechanics researcher, looks on in horror as comedian Joe Lycett descends into cabin fever. Steve Cross whinnies quietly. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
We have our first ever non-UCL researcher on the podcast! Tom Manly, neuropsychologist, picks apart comedian Joe Lycett's brain, while they both wonder if Steve Cross even has one. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Physicist Jon Butterworth collides hadrons. Comedian Joe Lycett collides... well, you finish the thought yourself. This might be the most philosophical podcast yet. Supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Digital Humanities researcher Claire Ross studies heavy Twitter users like comedian David Morgan. They chat about museums, the web and kittens while Steve Cross chirps nonsense. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Who's better, Capt. America or Capt. Britain? How do people think about the end of the world? All this and more with political geographer Jason Dittmer, Eurovision fan David Morgan and lost soul Steve Cross. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust
Katherine Woolf trains the Doctors of the future, and tries to understand how they can be a success, she gives comedian David Morgan and fool Steve Cross a few tips. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
The first of four Happiness podcasts sees Human Computer Interaction expert Dom Furniss explain to comedian David Morgan the mysteries of cash machines, doors and medical devices, while Steve Cross babbles. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
We delve into the mind of Immanuel Kant in the last of the Brains podcasts. Well, philosopher Silvia and comedian Helen do. Steve mainly tries to get his own brain to function. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Speaking in a noisy place? If you ever need to order a drink in a noisy club or make light conversation on the train this podcast will help. With speech scientist Rachel Baker and comedian Helen Keen. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
What do you get if you combine understanding of the brain with buying stuff? Neuroscientist Benedetto De Martino and comic Helen Keen get into details, while Steve Cross regrets all his terrible decisions. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
The first of the 'Brains' series of podcasts sees comedian Helen Keen and historian Valerie Wallace speculate about what philosopher Jeremy Bentham might have thought about call centres. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
The second podcast of performances from Bright Club: Life at the Bloomsbury Theatre on Feb 4th 2011. Warning, contains swearing. Featuring Sophie Scott, Tom Stern and Celia Morgan.
Alex Dedman works on the genetics of bipolar disorder. Isy Suttie helps her to explain her research to Steve Cross, who is in a mood throughout. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
This podcast contains some of the live performances from Bright Club: Life at the Bloomsbury Theatre on 04/02/11. With Carolyn McGettigan, Chris Abram and Claire Thomson. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust. CONTAINS SWEAR WORDS.
A cheery romp through death in cinema with Scandophile Claire Thomson and amateur Dane Isy Suttie. Steve Cross says little, having been told off early on for his poor accent work. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Celia Morgan is a clinical psychopharmacologist. Try saying that that with a mouthful of tea. She chats about her work with Isy Suttie (comedian) while Steve Cross provides regular warnings. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Want to know what your brain looks like when you laugh? Or Beatbox? Or speak Welsh? Comedian Isy Suttie and Neuroscientist Sophie Scott investigate and Steve Cross reveals his brain scanner stories. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Sarah Bennetto and Steve Cross talk about medieval literature in hilarious depth with Jane Gilbert. NSFW if you're a priest or living in the middle ages. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
The vikings were a strange bunch, chopping off heads and writing poems at the same time. Old Norse expert Chris Abram takes us into their world, while comedian Sarah Bennetto and Steve Cross snicker. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
In this podcast we really get into books, as solid real things with histories. Prof of English Henry Woudhuysen leads the way, with comedian Sarah Bennetto following along and Steve Cross getting lost. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Did men have more dimensions in the twentieth century? Can maths and art combine? Philosopher Chiara Ambrosio and comedian Sarah Bennetto try and find out, while Steve Cross tried not to get slapped. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
What did the powerful get up to in Ancient Egypt? Egyptologist John J Johnston knows, comedian Nick Doody asks, and Steve Cross looks confused. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
The third power podcast sees political scientist Alex Braithwaite and comedian Nick Doody pick through terrorism, political violence and schools career service predictions. This podcast is supported by a People Award from the Wellcome Trust.
How powerful is your brain? And how does laughing work? Nick Doody joins neuroscientist Carolyn McGettigan to find out. Steve Cross tries to join in but mainly gets people's names wrong. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Atmospheric chemist Dave Rowley talks climate change and ozone depletion with comedian Nick Doody and ill-informed anchor Steve Cross, who mainly talks about hair spray. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
In this weird-sounding podcast astronomer Steve Fossey tells us about the discoveries you can make from the bottom of a hill by the A1, while Steves Cross and Hall get confused about who is who. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Who am I? Where am I? Why do I feel this way? So sang Jesus Jones. Prof. Kate Jeffery explains how to answer one of these questions, while Steves Hall and Cross repeatedly grab the wrong end of the stick. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
What can thick, stinky bacterial mats from a Kenyan lake tell us about life on Mars? Steve Hall and astrobiologist Lottie Davis investigate while Steve Cross tries to tag along. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Steve Hall is back! And this time Mark Westmoquette (Astronomer) is explaining to him where stars come from and how galaxies grow. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust and recorded with kit bought by the STFC.
WARNING: EXPLICIT CONTENT. Not For kids. A new panel show format from Bright Club descends into intellectual infighting and NSFW naughtiness. Contains swearing. Best to delete this to be on the safe side. Not for under 18s. Enough warning? PART TWO!
WARNING: EXPLICIT CONTENT. Not For kids. A new panel show format from Bright Club descends into intellectual infighting and NSFW naughtiness. Contains swearing. Best to delete this to be on the safe side. Not for under 18s.
With comedian Rufus Hound, physicist Matty Hoban, biologist Tom Morgan and philosopher Tom Stern.
All opinions expressed in this podcast aren't those of any of the podcast makers. They're probably not even the opinions of the people saying them - they're just trying to be funny.
Steve Cross bites his lip and tries not to giggle as archaeometallurgist Ruth Fillery-Travis and comedian Andrew O'Neill talk about Roman slags. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
It would have been a crime to edit this meeting of metal minds down at all. So we haven't. Half an hour of the mythologies and mysteries of moshing, with barely time for a breath. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Debi Linton, palaeontologist and metaller, meets Andrew O' Neill, comedian and metalhead. Steve Cross sounds confused and gets the wrong end of a succession of sticks. Dinosaurs abound. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Two men with ringing in their ears (Neuroscientist David McAlpine and Comedian Andrew O'Neill) pick apart the details of the ear and music-induced hearing loss, while Steve Cross looks confused. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Becky Lawson (Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience) is a neuroscientist, but she also knows how to explain things using cake and jam metaphors. Perfect to help Bec Hill and Steve Cross understand the brain. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
Matt Pope, archaeologist, gives Bec Hill, comedian, and Steve Cross, resident ignoramus, a lesson in stone age food. Are our bodies designed to live on something other than beer and chips? This podcast is sponsored by the Wellcome Trust.
Drink is a kind of food, isn't it? Booze culture expert James Kneale joins Bec Hill and Steve Cross for a meandering exploration of drinking across the world and through time. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
The first of our 'Food' themed podcasts stars perky aussie comic Bec Hill and Laura Ishiguro, who studies the history of food eaten by colonial Brits. They join Steve Cross for a chat about nasty soups, awful pies, baked beans and curry. This podcast is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
This week Steves Hall and Cross meet Matt Piper, an expert on ageing in fruitflies. There's a lot of talk of food (as usual) and ways to encourage a lady fruitfly to get jiggy at a young age. This podcast is financially supported by the STFC.
This ever-so-slightly-delayed episode features Ian Hamilton, building design and energy use expert, and Steve Hall (We Are Klang). We're trying to make sense of the future, and what Britain might look like. Generously supported by the Science and Technology Facilities Council.
As ever, the opinions expressed in this podcast are not those of anyone's employers. In fact, they're usually not even the speakers' opinions. We're just making it up as we go along...
This week Steve Hall (We Are Klang) and Bright Club's regular anchor and idiot Steve Cross try and understand museums, the cultural power of objects and spoliation with UCL's Cultural Property Advisor, Subhadra Das.
In the first of four 'Time' podcasts, Joe Flatman, archaeologist at the UCL Institute of Archaeology, tries to explain to Steve Hall (from We Are Klang) and Steve Cross how cakes explain why everything good on Time Team is buried.
Sheila Kanani studies Saturn's moons using the Cassini spacecraft. Here she tries to describe what she's found to Kent Valentine and Steve Cross, both of whom seem more interested in chasing penguins around the solar system.
Narciss Okhravi, consultant ophthalmic surgeon at Moorfields Eye Hospital, helps Kent Valentine to understand how vision works, and shares a few tales from the front-line of an Eye Hospital casualty department. She also reminds him that he needs an eye test!
Martin Austwick, medical physicist from the National Medical Laser Centre, and Kent Valentine try to get their heads around photo-dynamic therapy, quantum computing, and what makes a "proper" Doctor. Hosted by Steve Cross.
Lucie Green, space scientist at the Mullard Space Science Laboratories, and Kent Valentine, comedian at large, try to get their heads around the sun. This podcast is supported by the Science and Technology Facilities Council.
Coming soon from the people who brought you Bright Club, the thinking person's variety night. What happens when comedy, genius and ignorance collide? The Bright Club Podcast features researchers from UCL, London's Global University.