A Question of Science – Détails, épisodes et analyse

Professor Brian Cox and panels of the world’s top scientists and experts will be tackling your questions in a new series, launching 17 September.

Can we cure cancer? How do you separate nutrition fact from fiction? What do climate change and the march of A.I. mean for our future? Could we live forever? Each episode is recorded in front of a lively audience and it’s their questions that drive the debate.

Hear from the experts who actually know what they’re talking about, including Adam Rutherford, Helen Sharman, George Monbiot, Giles Yeo, Jeanette Winterson, Rory Cellan-Jones, Paul Nurse, Kevin Fong and You, Me and the Big C’s Lauren Mahon. 

With a focus on accuracy, openness, and debate, A Question of Science will bring you the latest on what we know, what we don’t, and where science might take us next.

A BBC Studios production for the Francis Crick Institute, an independent charity and world-leading research lab.

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Professor Brian Cox and our expert panel are discussing the future of cancer research and treatment. 

With nearly 1 in 2 of us in the UK now expected to receive a cancer diagnosis in our lifetime, pursuing a cure is more important than ever. Our panel brings expertise from the lab, the clinic and their own experiences to answer audience questions about lifestyle and genetic risks, treatment side effects, and what they see as the biggest areas for hope. 

Panellists 

• Gerard Evan – Principal Group Leader, Francis Crick Institute and King’s College London
• Kairbaan Hodivala-Dilke – Deputy Director, Barts Cancer Institute at Queen Mary University of London
• Lauren Mahon – Cancer survivor and former host of You, Me and the Big C
• Charles Swanton – Oncologist, University College London NHS Foundation Trust, Chief Clinician, Cancer Research UK and Principal Group Leader, Francis Crick Institute and UCL 

Watch the video version of this episode and read a transcript on our website: www.crick.ac.uk/podcast/cancer 

If you have a follow up question about any of the episodes in the series, email us:  aquestionofscience@bbc.co.uk

A BBC Studios Production for the Francis Crick Institute.  

Music by John Biddle

© BBC Studios / Francis Crick Institute 2025 

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Professor Brian Cox and our expert panel explore ageing, longevity and the science behind our lifespans. 

Human life expectancy has increased steadily over the last 200 years, but we may be reaching a ceiling. Is this our biological limit, or could the next big scientific breakthrough push it even further? Might repurposing existing drugs help extend our lifespans? Our panel of researchers answers audience questions about the societal impacts of longer lives, our cellular ticking clock, and whether we can learn anything from the 400-year-old sharks of the North Atlantic.  

Panellists 

• Lynne Cox – Associate Professor, University of Oxford
• Paul Nurse – Director, Francis Crick Institute
• Linda Partridge – Professor, Institute of Healthy Ageing, UCL
• Andrew Steele – Author of Ageless: The New Science of Getting Older Without Getting Old

Watch the video version of this episode and read a transcript on our website: www.crick.ac.uk/podcast/ageing 

If you have a follow up question about any of the episodes in the series, email us:  aquestionofscience@bbc.co.uk

A BBC Studios Production for the Francis Crick Institute

Music by John Biddle

© BBC Studios / Francis Crick Institute 2025 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Brian Cox and our expert panel explore the reality and possibilities of artificial intelligence, and how it's changing our lives.

A.I. and machine learning are now part of our everyday lives, but where are they headed and who is in charge? Our panel of scientists, writers and policymakers answers audience questions about the hopes and fears surrounding A.I. and how it can be controlled, and whether it creates new problems – or just amplifies the ones we already have.

Panellists

• Adrian Weller – Director of Research in Machine Learning, University of Cambridge and Head of Safe and Ethical A.I. at The Alan Turing Institute
• Jeanette Winterson – Writer and author of 12 Bytes: How Artificial Intelligence Will Change the Way We Live and Love
• Steph Wright – Head, Scottish A.I. Alliance
• Neil Lawrence – Professor of Machine Learning, University of Cambridge and author of The Atomic Human: Understanding Ourselves in the Age of A.I.

Watch the video version of this episode and read a transcript on our website: www.crick.ac.uk/podcast/ai

If you have a follow up question about any of the episodes in the series, email us:  aquestionofscience@bbc.co.uk

A BBC Studios Production for the Francis Crick Institute.

Music by John Biddle

© BBC Studios / Francis Crick Institute 2025

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Brian Cox and a panel of experts discuss COVID-19 and whether we are prepared for the next pandemic.

Where or when could it happen? How could we control it? What would we do differently? In this episode, a lively studio audience quizzes world-leading scientists and doctors working on the frontline, specialising in infectious disease, vaccines and protecting us from the next deadly outbreak.

Panellists

• Teresa Lambe – Head of Vaccine Immunology, University of Oxford and co-designer of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine
• Wendy Barclay – Head of the Department for Infectious Disease at Imperial College London
• Emma Wall – Senior Clinical Research Fellow, Francis Crick Institute and Consultant in Infectious Diseases, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Kevin Fong – Professor of Public Engagement and Innovation, UCL and Consultant Anaesthetist, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Watch the video version of this episode and read a transcript on our website: www.crick.ac.uk/podcast/pandemics

If you have a follow up question about any of the episodes in the series, email us:  aquestionofscience@bbc.co.uk

A BBC Studios Production for the Francis Crick Institute.

Music by John Biddle

© BBC Studios / Francis Crick Institute 2025

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Brian Cox and our expert panel are talking all things ancient DNA.

Over the past 50 years, new technology has allowed researchers to sequence and study centuries-old DNA taken from ancient, long-buried human remains. This new insight into our past has led to a whole new understanding of our ancestors, from our migration across the globe, to the environmental changes we’ve experienced, and even the spread of ancient deadly pandemics like the black plague. Our panel of scientists answers questions from a studio audience about the usefulness of commercial DNA tests, the true meaning of ancestry, and what our ancient genetic material could reveal about our future.

Panellists

• Pooja Swali – Research Fellow in Pathogen Genomics, UCL
• Pontus Skoglund – Group Leader, Ancient Genomics Lab, Francis Crick Institute
• Adam Rutherford – Lecturer in Biology and Society, UCL
• Tom Booth – Senior Research Scientist and Archaeologist, Francis Crick Institute

Watch the video version of this episode and read a transcript on our website: www.crick.ac.uk/podcast/ancientDNA.

If you have a follow up question about any of the episodes in the series, email us:  aquestionofscience@bbc.co.uk

A BBC Studios Production for the Francis Crick Institute.

Music by John Biddle

© BBC Studios / Francis Crick Institute 2025

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Brian Cox and a panel of experts discuss how to curb rising global temperatures and what life could be like in a warmer world.

Our planet is hotting up. But as temperatures climb, can we cope with a climate emergency? What can science and technology to do help us, and will social and political change make a difference? Our panel answers the audience’s questions on everything from carbon capture to climate sceptics.

Panellists

• Myles Allen – Head of Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, University of Oxford
• Kathryn Brown – Director of Climate Change and Evidence, The Wildlife Trust
• Hayley Fowler – Professor of Climate Change Impacts, Newcastle University
• George Monbiot – Environmental journalist and campaigner

Watch the video version of this episode and read a transcript on our website: www.crick.ac.uk/podcast/climate

If you have a follow up question about any of the episodes in the series, email us:  aquestionofscience@bbc.co.uk

A BBC Studios Production for the Francis Crick Institute.

Music by John Biddle

© BBC Studios / Francis Crick Institute 2025

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Brian Cox and an expert panel tackle the technology, politics and ethics of space exploration.  

From space tourism to the search for life on Mars, space is a rapidly expanding, multi-trillion-pound global industry, driven by scientific, commercial and often political goals.  But what are the rules of space and who makes them?    

In this episode, the panel answers audience questions on how Earth’s geopolitics are reflected in space, when asteroid mining might become a reality, and whether those star-buying kits are value for money. 

Panellists 

• Carly Howett – Associate Professor of Space Instrumentation, University of Oxford
• Jill Stuart – Visiting Fellow, London School of Economics
• Helen Sharman – Chemist, science communicator and first British astronaut
• Sanjeev Gupta – Professor of Earth Sciences, Imperial College London

Watch the video version of this episode and read a transcript on our website: www.crick.ac.uk/podcast/space 

A BBC Studios Production for the Francis Crick Institute.   

Music by John Biddle

© BBC Studios / Francis Crick Institute 2025 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Brian Cox and our expert panel explore the science of fertility.  

Making babies is big business but our scientific understanding of fertilisation, pregnancy and embryo development is surprisingly limited.    

In this episode, our panel discuss emerging technologies that could shape the future of fertility and tackle audience questions on declining sperm counts, egg freezing and the ethics of genetic screening. 

Panellists:

• Joyce Harper – Professor of Reproductive Science, UCL
• Gunes Taylor – Molecular Biologist, University of Edinburgh
• Naomi Moris – Group Leader, Developmental Models Laboratory, Francis Crick Institute  
• Lucy van de Wiel – Senior Lecturer in Global Health & Social Medicine, King’s College London                                                                                                                                                  

Watch the video version of this episode and read a transcript on our website: www.crick.ac.uk/podcast/fertility

A BBC Studios Production for the Francis Crick Institute

Music by John Biddle

© BBC Studios / Francis Crick Institute 2025 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Brian Cox and our expert panel explore the science of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other conditions that cause dementia.

More than 55 million people around the world are living with dementia, with the number set to rise in ageing populations. How close are we to effective, affordable treatments?  What are the genetic risks? Can we prevent it developing?

The panel takes a deep dive into dementia research and where it’s headed, from early detection to the latest drug trials and whether diet, exercise or even doing puzzles like Sudoku really make a difference.

Panellists

• Bart de Strooper – Professor and Group Leader, Cellular Phase of Alzheimer’s Disease Laboratory, Francis Crick Institute and UK Dementia Research Institute
• Julie Williams – Professor and Group Leader, Cardiff University and UK Dementia Research Institute
• Rory Cellan-Jones – Health and technology writer and presenter of the Movers and Shakers podcast
• Sonia Gandhi – Professor of Neurology, UCL, Assistant Research Director, Francis Crick Institute and Consultant Neurologist, National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery

Watch the video version of this episode and read a transcript on our website: www.crick.ac.uk/podcast/ageingbrain

A BBC Studios Production for the Francis Crick Institute. 

Music by John Biddle

© BBC Studios / Francis Crick Institute 2025

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.