Television
In 1977 I worked as a researcher with Magnus Pyke,
and the first item I did was about why banana skins are slippery. After
Don’t Ask Me and Don’t Just Sit There (studio shows
with Magnus Pyke and David Bellamy) came Where There’s Life (with
Miriam Stoppard and Rob Buckman), and Arthur C Clarke’s Mysterious
World. In 1985 I produced Arthur C Clarke’s World of Strange
Powers.
I invented and produced Scientific Eye, the most successful
school science series on TV – which was used in some
70 per cent of UK secondary schools, and in 35 other countries. This
was followed by Mathematical Eye (1989-92) - the most successful
school maths series. I also produced Fun & Games, an audience-participation
studio series based on mathematical puzzles, The Battle of the Bottle-Snatchers
(for BBC's QED), a co-production with the Japanese TV company NHK, and five
programmes about Loch Ness for Discovery Channel (1993).
In 1990, fat and unfit, I bought a pink-and-yellow
mountain bike in an attempt to change shape; instead I changed direction,
and became a presenter. I have presented eight series of Local Heroes
from the bike, riding around the country talking about dead scientists
and doing demonstrations. The first two (1992 and -3) were regional
series for YTV. In On the Edge (1994), a scientific look at the
East coast, we covered everything from the science of fish and chips
to the colour of Henry VIII’s socks. The other six series of Local
Heroes were on BBC2, finishing in summer 2000.
I have presented for BBC2 one programme on the Top
Ten Treasures of the British Museum, four programmes on
What the Stuarts did for us,
four programmes on
What the Tudors
Did
for Us, eight programmes on
What the Victorians Did for Us, and six programmes on
What the Romans Did for Us. I have also presented two six-part
series on current science and technology (Science Shack),
14 chat shows with top scientists for Mag Rack,
an American Science Channel, 12 Tomorrow’s World
programmes for BBC1, five
Science in Focus
programmes for C4 Schools, three programmes called
Adam
Hart-Davis Says Come to your Senses, and four programmes
called
Live from Dinosaur Island. In addition, I have made 35 history programmes (Hart-Davis on History),
eight programmes
about the history of London for Carlton (Secret City), and a
total of 22 programmes on How London was Built for ITV
London and The History Channel.
My most recent series, for The History Channel, have been Just
Another Day (the science and technology of everyday life) and How
Britain was Built (shot in Bristol, Liverpool, Edinburgh, and
Newcastle). I
have appeared on Celebrity Mastermind, Richard and Judy (3
times), Have I Got News For You, and various other programmes.
See the TV page for more
details.
Radio
I have presented 20 documentaries called Inventors Imperfect, plus
six High Resolution, four Elements of Surprise, five on Reinventing the Wheel,
20 on Eureka Years, and 12 on Engineering Solutions. In 2004 I also appeared in the Radio 4 panel
game Inspiration and have taken part in various other
programmes .
See also the Radio page.
Born 4 July 1943. Education:
Eton College – A- and S-levels in physics, chemistry, and maths;
1 year VSO teaching English in central India; MA
(Oxon) - First in chemistry; D Phil (York) in organometallic
chemistry. Three years’ post-doctoral research in Canada and the UK.
Five years publishing science books for the Oxford University Press. 17
years making programmes with Yorkshire Television. I have lived for
one year in India and for three in Western Canada; I speak a little
Japanese, a little German, and a little French. Currently freelance,
I take photographs, write articles and books, and present radio and television
programmes, mostly abut science.
