Liverpool 10–14 September
British Science Festival 2025
Welcome to the 2025 British Science Festival!
The benefit of being a touring Festival is that every year we get to explore a different part of the UK and work with some incredible partners. Working with both the University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University has produced a vibrant and immersive programme of events and activities in some of the most iconic venues across the city.
From particle physics to health and life sciences, state-of-theart telescopes and the rise of AI, Liverpool is home to groundbreaking science.
What makes this year’s Festival feel particularly special is the connections we’ve made with organisations from across the city – far too many to mention here – who have helped bring the culture of Liverpool into the programme.
10–14 September
We’ve got live music, art installations, performances, comedy, mind-bending illusions – even a glam-rock, sci-fi, geology rave!
My thanks go to Astra Zeneca and Liverpool BID for their support across the Festival. Special thanks must also go to Culture Liverpool, National Museums Liverpool and the Liverpool Biennial for partnering with us to show that science, culture, and art are all part of the very bedrock of Liverpool.
James Brown, Festival Director
Get ready, Liverpool!
On behalf of Liverpool John Moores University and the University of Liverpool, we are delighted to welcome you to the 2025 British Science Festival here in our fantastic city.
Liverpool has a proud and storied history; we are the birthplace of countless pioneers and innovators and home to titans of industry and invention. We have a long-standing record of world-changing discoveries and applied science. We created the world’s first tropical disease research institute, the first commercial wet dock and are the birthplace of the railways.
Today, Liverpool’s industrial transformation is led by world-leading high-performance computing capabilities and trailblazing health and life science research. The Liverpool City Region is also at the forefront of global advancements in the prevention of infectious disease, the future of materials and consumer goods, and innovations within clean growth, glass manufacturing, fourth
industrial revolution technologies and creative industries.
We are committed to becoming a prosperous and economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable city region, with a strong focus on social value, unlocking opportunities for local people, and improvements to health, life chances and wellbeing.
By co-hosting this wonderful annual festival, we aim to further enhance a lasting legacy for science engagement in Liverpool, and advocate for diversity of thought and opinions to promote inclusive opportunities for innovation. Working together with the British Science Association we want to bring people and science together for mutual benefit and learning, whilst celebrating all the strengths and talents of the communities and organisations that make this city unique.
Professor Anthony Hollander and Professor Keith George
Venue Map
Accessible
Baby
Changing
Quiet/prayer
Sensory
Shopmobility Toilets
Blue
Liverpool Lime St
Liverpool Central
Quirky Quarter
The Black-E
Liverpool Cathedral
Train station
Bus stop/station
Ferry terminal
For full details on directions, venues, and accessibility, visit our website at britishsciencefestival.org or scan the QR code.
Bam Boo
Redmonds Building Unity Theatre
Victoria Gallery & Museum
Yoko Ono Lennon Centre
Wednesday 10 September 2025
Drop-in The joy machine
12.00–17.00 | Peter’s Lane –Liverpool ONE
Share your good mental health habits and help build a joy machine.
Meet the team from Merseysidebased mental health charity Open Door to explore how we break negative thought patterns and develop new habits to improve our mental health.
Drop-in Tracking Liverpool’s wild side
12.00–17.00 | Peter’s Lane –Liverpool ONE and Bluecoat –Garden
How much nature have you noticed recently? The School of Biological and Environmental Sciences (Liverpool John Moores University) challenges you to track down Liverpool’s wild side.
Collect an ID sheet, go out into the city and see what you can find!
Drop-in Football for robots
12.00–17.00 | Peter’s Lane – Liverpool ONE They code, they shoot, they score! Get to grips with coding and become ‘player of the match’ at this drop in activity with Everton in the Community, Everton Football Club’s official charity.
Drop-in Quantum curiosities
12.00–17.00 | Peter’s Lane – Liverpool ONE
Uncover the mysteries of quantum physics- the study of the smallest building blocks of the universe.
Join researchers from Imperial College London to discover how quantum discoveries have shaped our understanding of the world and how future technologies may transform our lives.
Drop-in Wired differently: Step inside the neurodivergent brain
12.00–15.00 | Bluecoat – The Bistro
At least one in five of us are diagnosed as neurodivergent.
Let’s talk about what it’s like to experience the world differently.
Take part in a series of activities designed to challenge stereotypes and spark meaningful conversations, co-created by neurodivergent people across Liverpool and the Institute of Population Health (University of Liverpool).
Talk Prescribed cannabis: Patient stories
12.00–13.00 | Bluecoat –Garden Room
What is cannabis medicine, how does it work and who’s using it?
Researchers from the Centre for the Study of Crime, Criminalisation and Social Exclusion (Liverpool John Moores University) and the University of Liverpool will share the experiences of people in the UK who are prescribed cannabis, exploring how it feels to use something that’s otherwise illegal.
Talk Embracing autistic joy
12.00–13.00 | Bluecoat – Performance Space
In a conversation designed to disrupt stereotypes, Liz Pellicano (University College London) and her collaborators will explore the essence of autistic joy.
The interactive talk will feature a short trumpet performance.
Drop-in Craft activity: Embracing autistic joy
13.00–14.00 | Bluecoat – The Bistro
This drop in craft activity will follow the 60-minute interactive talk- Embracing Autistic Joy. Disrupt stereotypes in a hands on craft activity called “springy thingy”, designed by Dr Katie Gaudion.
Talk Deepfakes, identity, and bioethics
13.30–14.30 | Bluecoat – Performance Space
Explore new biological technologies, ethics and what consent means in the context of medicine and biotechnology.
Chaired by artist Anna Dumitriu, the panel will bring together Liverpoolbased artist Gina Czarnecki, clinical engineer John Hunt (University of Liverpool) and forensic anthropologist Caroline Wilkinson (Liverpool John Moores University).
Talk Moving minds: The power of dance in therapy
14.00–15.00 | Bluecoat – Garden Room
Discover how dance therapy can transform brain health.
Join neuroscientists, arts therapists and sport scientists (Liverpool John Moores University and Edge Hill University), as we explore how busting a move can activate neural networks and foster empathy and resilience.
No experience necessary – just bring curiosity and a willingness to move!
Talk The lost girls of autism
15.00–16.00 | Bluecoat
– Performance Space
Science has historically failed autistic women. An emerging body of research is changing the story.
Join Gina Rippon (Aston University) and Liz Pellicano (University College London) as they discuss how autistic women have found their voice to change our understanding of what it is like to be autistic.
Workshop Fembots and dinosaurs: Scientific illustration workshop
15.30–16.30 | Bluecoat –Garden Room
Take part in a drawing workshop to explore how pop culture shapes the way we think about science.
Illustrator Hana Ayoob will introduce scientific illustration techniques, while Faye Lynch and Nath Bramald (University of Liverpool) will dig into representations of fembots and dinosaurs. Then you’ll draw your own!
All materials will be provided.
Talk In conversation with Robin Saxby: Pioneering engineer
15.30–16.30 | Victoria Gallery & Museum – Leggate Theatre
Join us for a conversation with Robin Saxby, a pioneer of the electronic industry and passionate promoter of young entrepreneurs.
Talk The art of quantum
17.00–18.00 | Victoria Gallery & Museum – Leggate Theatre
This panel will bring together quantum researchers with a passion for art and artists captivated by the quantum world. Join Jess Wade (Imperial College London), Nicola Triscott (FACT) and others to explore what makes quantum theory so uniquely inspiring and how quantum imagery and language have permeated mainstream culture.
Talk In conversation with Julia King, Baroness Brown of Cambridge: BSA Presidential Address
18.30–19.30 | Victoria Gallery & Museum – Leggate Theatre
Baroness Brown takes over the British Science Association Presidency for 2025-2026. Join us for a wide-ranging conversation covering her life and career in science and the complex interplay between innovation and policy.
Workshop Micro to macro: Science meets film
19.00–21.30 | LEAF
Explore science through cinema in an interactive workshop that takes in the minuscule and the massive.
Let’s Make Film will guide you through different filmmaking techniques. Try out microscopes and macro lenses, and experiment with framing, focus, lighting and perspective.
Thursday 11 September 2025
Talk How do we build the animal internet?
10.30–11.30 | Redmonds Building – Large Lecture Theatre, Liverpool
John Moores University
Imagine a world where animals aren’t limited by physical boundaries but instead can roam free online.
Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas (University of Glasgow) invites you to consider what would happen if we constructed an internet for animals.
Talk Can your cash inspire climate action?
10.30–11.30 | Redmonds Building – Lecture Theatre 1, Liverpool
John Moores University
Sociologist Mark Davis (University of Leeds) argues we need to think differently about money if we’re going to solve the climate crisis.
Find out how social scientists can lead the way on climate action by rethinking investment and putting people first.
Drop-in Liverpool in space
10.30–14.30 | Redmonds Building –Student Zone, Liverpool
John Moores University
Space scientists from the University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University reveal the out-of-this-world science happening across the city. Join them to delve into fascinating subjects including microgravity, astrophysics and planetary defence.
Talk What’s in our water and should we be worried?
11.00–12.00 | Redmonds Building – Lecture Theatre 2, Liverpool
John Moores University
Many of us love a paddle or a bracing wild swim. But is it safe?
Regular reports of sewage in our seas and rivers mean anxiety about UK water quality is growing.
Katie Reilly (University of Birmingham) will talk honestly but optimistically about water pollution and what we can do about it.
Workshop Cosmic creativity: Coding robotic telescopes
11.00–12.00 | Redmonds Building –Room 523, Liverpool John Moores University
Dive into the wonders of the Universe and explore unanswered questions about deep-space objects with the Astrophysics Research Institute (Liverpool John Moores University).
You’ll find out how to track supernovae, transform celestial data into stunning visuals, and code a 3D printed robotic telescope.
Talk Synthetic antibodies, from snakebites to Covid-19
12.00–13.00 | Redmonds Building – Large Lecture Theatre, Liverpool
John Moores University
Delve into the world of snake venoms and synthetic antibodies and discover their significance for global health.
Alex Baker (University of Warwick) will share his work that ranges from treating snakebites to testing for Covid-19.
Talk Woman, chemist, activist
12.00–13.00 | Redmonds Building –
Lecture Theatre 1, Liverpool John Moores University
From challenging sexism to fighting for prison reform, Lauren Mullin (Liverpool John Moores University) shares three protest stories from the early 20th century. The stories share a common theme: each one features women chemists whose strong beliefs and inspiring actions were the catalyst for change.
Workshop Art for democracy experiment
12.00–13.00 | Redmonds Building – Room 519, Liverpool John Moores University
How can we democratise museums and make them tools of social change?
Inspired by theorist Stafford Beer and cybernetic decisionmaking tools, we’ll develop ideas for how public institutions can become more transparent and impactful.
Talk Fighting poverty and stigma to defeat TB
12.30–13.30 | Redmonds Building – Lecture Theatre 2, Liverpool John Moores University
It’s preventable and curable, yet over a million people died from tuberculosis (TB) in 2023.
Combining cutting-edge research with powerful personal testimony, Tom Wingfield (Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine) and Fatima Karmadwala (advocate and TB survivor) will argue why a person-centred approach is key to eradicating this infectious disease.
Workshop Speedy science: Ask a researcher
13.00–14.00 | Redmonds Building – Room 523, Liverpool John Moores University
Ever wondered what scientists get up to all day?
This is your chance to grill scientists from across Liverpool about their research.
Ten researchers will get three minutes talk about their work before you get the chance to ask them questions.
Talk Hearing the bigger picture
13.30–14.30 | Redmonds Building – Large Lecture Theatre, Liverpool
John Moores University
Can you help improve new audiovisual hearing aid algorithms?
Using real examples, Bryony Buck (Edinburgh Napier University) will reflect on the stigma surrounding hearing loss, explore what future hearing aids might be like and invite your feedback.
Talk Expect the unexpected
13.30–14.30 | Redmonds Building – Lecture Theatre 1, Liverpool John Moores University
Delve into the randomness of everyday life as Kit Yates (University of Bath) explores the science of prediction and the challenges of forecasting future events.
Find out why improving our understanding of probability could help us better predict what’s going to happen next –from personal finances to climate change and global health.
Drop in Universal secrets: Particle detectors
12.00–17.00 | Yoko Ono Lennon Centre – Fröhlich Café Bar, University of Liverpool
Discover the equipment used to study the smallest particles in the universe.
Researchers from the Department of Physics (University of Liverpool) will showcase real particle detectors from CERN’s Large Hadron Collider, the DarkSide-20k experiment, the Boulby Underground Laboratory and beyond.
Talk Game on, snack more
12.00–13.00 | Yoko Ono Lennon Centre – The Tung Auditorium, University of Liverpool
Brands are everywhere on videogame livestreaming platforms, targeting young people with ads for food high in fat, sugar and salt.
Rebecca Evans (University of Liverpool) will show how this marketing affects eating habits, asking what we should do to protect gamers from junk-food marketing.
Talk Universal secrets: Unpacking particle physics
14.00–15.00 | Yoko Ono Lennon Centre – The Tung Auditorium, University of Liverpool
Satisfy your curiosity about the world’s smallest building blocks and demystify particle physics at this panel discussion and Q&A.
Delve into dark matter, discover fascinating experiments including Muon g-2 and the Large Hadron Collider and quiz world leading particle physicists!
Performance The greatest science demonstrations. Ever!
18.00–19.00 | Yoko Ono Lennon Centre – The Tung Auditorium, University of Liverpool Whizz! Pop! Bang!
Join the Royal Institution’s explosive anniversary show and help choose the greatest science demos of all time.
After two centuries of science demonstrations, they’ve done it all: snot-filled fake noses, lightbulbs dipped in liquid nitrogen, and exploding balloons. What will you see this time?
Image credit: Paul Wilkinson
Talk Peak performance: 50 years of sport science
20.00–21.00 | Yoko Ono Lennon Centre – The Tung Auditorium, University of Liverpool
The last 50 years has seen incredible innovations and advancements in sport science. The developments have had a profound impact on elite sport performance, athlete wellbeing and public health.
Join a panel of academic leaders (Liverpool John Moores University) and senior sport scientists from Everton and Liverpool Football Clubs to discuss the science behind success.
Friday 12 September 2025
Drop-in Tune in to unheard animal worlds
12.00–17.00 | Kazimier Garden – Kaz Garden
Put your feelers out and listen in to everything from soil sounds to fish grunting!
The Ecology and Marine Biology group (University of Liverpool) will reveal how animals communicate using vibrations that are felt rather than heard and how these vibrations can be used to monitor wildlife.
Workshop Medicinal and mindful: Liverpool’s botanical history
12.00–13.00 | Kazimier Garden – Kabin
Discover how Victorian’s identified and documented medicinal plants. Guided by Mindful Garden (Liverpool John Moores University), you’ll explore illustrated plant drawings and herbal artefacts and create your own Victorian powders from medicinal plants.
Drop-in
Tech vs. loneliness
12.00–17.00 | Kazimier Garden – Kaz Garden Is technology making you lonely? This exhibit charts communication technology through the ages –from fax machines to smartphones – and asks if these things make us feel more or less connected to other people.
Drop-in
City greens
12.00–17.00 | Kazimier Garden –Kaz Garden
Dig into the science of urban food growing with researchers from Liverpool John Moores University and the University of Liverpool.
Enjoy an interactive journey through the urban food system and unearth the benefits for people and planet.
Discover the secrets of vertical farming, the power of worms and the science of plant pigmentation and photosynthesis.
Drop-in I was there: Mapping Liverpool’s music scene
12.00–17.00, walking tours starting at 17.30 and 18.00 | Kazimier Garden – Kaz Garden
Live music lovers – we need you!
The Department of Music (University of Liverpool) needs your help to map Liverpool’s live music hotspots. Come along to share your memories of venues past and present and contribute to research about how Liverpool’s vibrant live music scene is changing.
Register for a free walking tour at the drop-in stall.
Installation Electrons in wonderland
13.00–19.00 | Kazimier Garden – Stockroom
Visit our wonderland, shrink to the size of an electron, and take a deep dive into the building blocks of matter.
Using immersive projections and motion capture, scientists from the Department of Physics (University of Liverpool) will reveal how electrons help us understand and change the world around us.
Talk Nature’s power couples
13.30–14.30 | Kazimier Garden – Kabin
What can nature teach us about living together?
Many organisms have evolved to live together in close, complex ways for survival.
In conversation with Emma Brisdion from the Rivers Trust, author Sophie Pavelle will uncover relationships that underpin the natural world and ask: where do humans fit in?
Talk Truth in the dirt: Combatting pseudoarchaeology
15.00–16.00 | Kazimier Garden – Kabin
From ancient aliens and lost civilisations, pseudoarchaeology is a growing field of theories that spread misinformation about the past and fuel political agendas.
Join archaeologist Flint Dibble (University of Cardiff) to uncover how sensationalised myths distort our understanding of the past and how real archaeological research tells a far more fascinating story.
Talk Journey inside Jurassic World
17.30–18.30 | Kazimier Garden – Kaz Garden
Author and presenter Jon Chase delves into the much-loved film franchise that’s changed the way we think about dinosaurs forever.
Featuring roarsome raps and bundles of dinosaur facts, as well as entertaining explorations of palaeontology, geology and evolution.
Talk Once upon a time…
18.00–19.00 | Kazimier Garden – Kabin
What can traditional tales teach us about science today?
Storyteller and former chemist Chris Adriaanse explores how stories have helped transmit scientific information across generations and how a scientific outlook can enrich modern retelling of folk and fairy tales.
Performance BSF After dark
19.00–22.00 | Kazimier Garden – Kaz Garden
After a busy day of talks, workshops and events, join us for some live music, good conversation, and a drink or two.
Talk Giving voice to refugee stories
12.00–13.00 | LEAF
Explore the therapeutic power of zine making.
The panellists will discuss a collaborative, creative research project that used zine making as a way for women refugees in Liverpool to share their stories.
Discover how zines amplified and uplifted the women’s voices, and challenged how people seeking asylum are represented in mainstream media.
Workshop
The superpower of zines!
13.00–14.30 | LEAF
Make your own zine, explore the history of DIY zine culture, and find out about the therapeutic potential of zine making.
Join the University of Liverpool and Asylum Link Merseyside for a hands-on exploration of how zine making can create safe spaces for self-expression and collective storytelling.
Talk ‘For What It’s Earth’ – LIVE
18.00–19.00
| LEAF
Join hosts Emma and Sophie to explore the environmental impact of gigs, festivals, and streaming — and how we can all help the music industry go green. Come for the music, stay for the climate action!
Performance Science comedy
spectacular
20.30–22.00 | LEAF
A scientist and a comedian walk into a bar…
Join a lineup of fantastic science comedians for an evening of absolute zero chill. The event will be compared by the hilarious Freya McGhee, who blends science, comedy and dating into one unforgettable experiment.
Performance Science rapper’s delight
12.00–15.00 | Church Street
Join science rapper Jon Chase (AKA Oort Kuiper), dropping scientific bars and renegade rhymes, live on the streets of Liverpool. From aliens and genetics to space flight and the universe, expect to be inspired and entertained while the beats bang and the rhythm grips you.
Talk Truth in the age of AI
16.00–18.00 | FACT
How do we perceive truth and authenticity in the age of viral deep fakes and AI-altered videos?
Join multimedia artist Rachel Maclean and FACT’s Director Nicola Triscott as they discuss how artists are opening up new perspectives on the risks and opportunities that AI poses to our perception of what is true.
Image credit: Rachel Maclean, DUCK
Experience Sounds of the wilds
19.00–20.00 | Bam Boo Brunch & Cocktails
Take part in a fantasy tabletop role-playing adventure inspired by research into animal hearing and the musical culture of Liverpool.
Guided by game-masters from the Science & Sorcery team, you will have the chance to influence the story as you encounter mythical beasts and decipher their calls.
Performance Outspoken: Rhyme meets reason
20.30–22.30 | Bam Boo Brunch & Cocktails
Rhyme will meet reason, as eight local poets take to the stage and respond creatively to the broad theme of science!
Wordy Lirpa – Liverpool poet and Outspoken founder – will be your host during this fun evening of spoken word and live music.
Performance Antiviral roller skating!
18.30–19.15 | Unity Theatre – Unity One
Swoop over to see the Liverpool Roller Birds dance against an amazing, animated background. The skaters will reveal what coronaviruses get up to inside your cells during infection and how scientists design drugs to stop them.
Performance Batman (aka Naomi’s Death Show)
19.30–21.00 | Unity Theatre – Unity Two
A girl walks down the street, a knife in her pocket, on her way to confront the man she believes killed her mother…
A live, choose-your-ownadventure story that happens to be true. Ultimately you get to decide the direction the performance takes: will you choose mercy or revenge?
A panel discussion exploring how the science of death can help us mourn will follow the performance.
Performance MOONFACE
21.15–22.15 | Unity Theatre – Unity One
Shady billionaires make plans to colonise and mine the solar system, and our nearest celestial neighbour, the moon, has something to say about it.
A clowning show performed by Meg Hodgson with live sound from Livvy Lynch, ‘MOONFACE’ is a funny and exuberant love letter to our rocky satellite that explores what it means to be human.
Image credit: Charley Williams
Saturday 13 September 2025
Workshop Medicinal and mindful: Liverpool’s botany of today
11.00–12.00 | Bluecoat – Garden Room
Guided by Mindful Garden (Liverpool John Moores University), you’ll zoom into the unimaginably tiny cell structures of plants and conduct your own chemical reactions to identify the medicinal properties of leaves.
Drop-in AI puzzle lab: Decode the future of healthcare
11.00–16.00 | Bluecoat – The Bistro
Through a series of puzzles, discover how artificial intelligence and digital twins are being used to simulate real-life medical scenarios and improve decision making in healthcare.
Drop-in What the phage?!
11.00–16.00 | Bluecoat – The Bistro
Explore a fascinating, unseen, world through VR gaming.
Bacteriophages – aka phages – are our most common microbe, existing in unimaginably large numbers.
Experience life at phage scale using virtual reality (VR) headsets. And take part in an augmented reality (AR) treasure hunt, tracking down phages at locations across Liverpool.
Drop-in Convergence: Exploring the art in science
11.00–16.00 | Bluecoat –The Bistro
This exhibition brings together artists and scientists from the Liverpool School of Art and Design (Liverpool John Moores University) to reveal how art-science collaborations can spark new ways of understanding the world.
Drop-in Welcome to Microbe City!
11.00–16.00 | Bluecoat –The Bistro
Visit Microbe City and wander through the wondrous world of biofilms – collaborative communities of micro-organisms that develop and grow together. You’ll find out more about these amazing microbes and how they’re part of all our lives –important to everything from food to medicine.
Experience Geophonic: A rock and walk performance
11.30–12.30 and 14.30–15.30 | Starting at Bluecoat, ending at Museum of Liverpool.
Journey deep into the earth and listen to the stories of the rocks beneath your feet during this atmospheric sound walk and performance.
Geology, sci-fi and rave culture come together in a guided tour through the geological forces that continually shape Liverpool’s landscape.
Programmed in collaboration with the Liverpool Biennial.
Installation Navigating an uncertain future
11.30–16.00 | Bluecoat – Performance Space Immerse yourself in an interactive installation that combines performance, projection, poetry and melting ice, along with interviews with over 50 women.
The piece explores the everyday impact of the climate crisis on women in the UK and how we might share the collective weight of an uncertain future.
Drop in any time to watch, listen and share your experiences.
Workshop Archive adventures: Creative writing workshop
13.00–14.00 | Bluecoat – Garden Room
Take part in a creative writing workshop that will reveal how scientific archives could inspire your work.
Writer Clodagh Chapman will talk about how scientific archives can be places of unexpected discovery and share practical tips about how to use them.
Talk Prosthetics: Past, present, future
15.00–16.00 | Bluecoat – Garden Room
Myths about artificial limbs will be debunked and prostheses will be explored as both functional tools and symbols of resilience, innovation and identity.
Rae Gillibrand (University of Leeds) will give an empowering talk that reflects on the development of prostheses from the medieval period to the modern day.
Talk Colonialism, Race & Health: Visions of Black health and healing
12.00–13.30 | The Black-E – Main Space
”To understand our healthcare systems, and to understand the racial inequalities that define our societies, we must recognise how the theory of race began and how it continues to be reinforced.”
Doctor, activist and writer
Annabel Sowemimo will share her widely acclaimed analysis of racial health disparities and the problem of racism in medicine. Annabel will be joined by a panel of leading academics and practitioners from the University of Liverpool and National Museums Liverpool.
Drop-in Voyager at 50: Is there anybody out there?
12.00–17.00 | The Black-E – The Gallery
If you met an alien, what would you tell them about life on Earth?
Take part in a craft activity inspired by the Voyager 1 space probe and imagined extraterrestrial encounters.
Explore a display of magazines, books and other paraphernalia from the University of Liverpool’s science fiction archives.
Workshop Bee creative: Make candles & seed bombs
13.00–14.30 | The Black-E – The Gallery
Did you know there are more than 270 bee species in Britain?
Learn about different bees and do your bit to help nurture and protect them at this creative workshop with local artist and beekeeper, Andrea Ku. You’ll make a candle using beeswax from Liverpool’s bees and a seed bomb using local wildflower seeds.
Talk Searching for science’s invisible women
13.00–14.00 | The Black-E – The Chamber Theatre
Uncover the women working behind the scenes for some of science’s biggest moments.
Gregory Lynall (University of Liverpool) reveals how meticulous research and poetry have helped uncover female assistants’ forgotten stories.
Experience Uncovering connections between science and slavery in Liverpool
14.00–15.30 | The Black-E
Join researchers from the School of Biosciences (University of Liverpool) for a walking tour through Liverpool’s streets and investigate hidden histories of slavery in the city.
Find out how slavery was used to fund Liverpool’s growth and establish scientific institutions, and discuss the impact these legacies continue to have today.
Talk Gut feeling: How new weight loss drugs work
14.30–15.30 | The Black-E – Main Space
How do Ozempic and Mounjaro work and are they safe? Can these drugs really solve the so-called obesity crisis?
Giles Yeo (University of Cambridge) and Johnathan Pettitt (The Genetics Society) will assess how weight-loss jabs are altering our outlook on obesity.
Talk Voyager at 50: How to talk to aliens
15.00–16.00 | The Black-E – The Chamber Theatre
If you met an alien, how would you tell them about life on Earth if you don’t have a way to communicate?
Hannah Little (University of Liverpool) shares her research into the beginnings of human language and how this might help us in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence.
Workshop Follow your nose: Scented brickmaking workshop
15.30–16.30 | The Black-E – The Gallery
Delve into scent, texture, memory and belonging at this experimental craft workshop with artist Daisy James.
Working with your hands and nose, you’ll make scented bricks from overlooked materials, shaped with everyday tools.
Talk DNA and Identity: Ethics and emotions in ancestral genetic testing
16.30–17.30 | The Black-E – The Chamber Theatre
Delve into the science, ethics and emotions of DNA testing.
Find out about a collaboration between The Mixed Museum and people born to Black GIs and white British women during World War Two who have used at-home DNA testing to search for their American relatives.
Talk Murder Mystery: Use forensics to solve a crime
16.30–18.15 | The Black-E – Main Space
Investigate a fictional murder and find out about new frontiers in forensic research.
Caroline Wilkinson, Director of the Forensic Research Institute (Liverpool John Moores University) and a team of forensic specialists will guide you through the evidence and help you identify the killer.
Follow the clues and decide whodunit, using your smartphone to cast your vote.
Workshop Skulls, skeletons and bones: Animal anatomy drawing workshop
17.30–19.30 | The Black-E – The Gallery
Take part in a drawing workshop with an animal anatomy twist!
Pick up a pen, crayon or paint brush and learn how to draw animal bones and skeletons, with Fay Penrose and Rosie MacDiarmid from the School of Veterinary Science (University of Liverpool).
Materials will be provided and no previous drawing experience is necessary.
Performance Out and open: Queer cabaret
18.30–19.30 | The Black-E – The Chamber Theatre
Young Homotopia, a Liverpoolbased collective of young LGBTQIA+ people, are putting on a show stopping cabaret exploring mental health in the queer community.
In collaboration with film and media researcher Gary Needham (University of Liverpool), this new show will explore themes of joy, resilience and the power of community.
Talk Bionically beautiful: Tilly Lockey
19.30–20.30 | The Black-E – Main Space
Tilly Lockey is a change maker, altering how people see bionics and human augmentation. Combining her passion for fashion and sci-fi films, she pushes the boundaries of technology, design and challenges stigmas.
Join advocate, social media star and presenter Tilly to explore how we can accelerate technology for a more accessible, inclusive and augmented future.
Performance Taking flight
16.30–17.30 | Liverpool Cathedral
Enjoy a thought-provoking performance by dance company Movema, exploring freedom, flight and birds, performed beneath an installation by the visual artist Maria Loizidou.
Together, Movema’s performance and Maria’s installation invite us to consider our relationship with nature and to think about coexistence and survival.
Programmed in collaboration with the Liverpool Biennial.
Workshop All aboard! Journey through intercity innovation
17.00–19.00 | Victoria Gallery & Museum – Waterhouse Café
All aboard for an unforgettable ride through history and into the future!
Embark on a compelling journey as we commence the countdown to the fifth anniversary of the Liverpool to Manchester Railway (1829–1830) – the world’s first inter-city passenger line.
This event is run by The Heritage Institute.
Quirky Quarter Takeover
Join us for a weird and wonderful evening of illusions, tricks, new perspectives and more as we take over Liverpool’s most unique venue.
Drop-in Can you believe your eyes?
18.00–21.30 | Quirky Quarter
The Department of Eye and Vision Science (University of Liverpool) will share how their groundbreaking research is transforming eye health. Discover what our eyes can tell us about our health and take home a photo of your iris.
Drop-in Robot artist
18.00–21.30 | Quirky Quarter
Can robots make great art? And how do their creative skills compare with yours?
You and the robot artist will take turns, collaborating on a shared abstract painting – what will you create together?
Drop-in Losing touch
18.00–21.30 | Quirky Quarter
Journey through the somatosensory system –a network of nerves that enables us to feel pressure, pain, temperature and motion – and find out what happens when it gets disrupted.
Using illusions and prosthetics, neuroscientists and engineers (University of Salford and University of Southampton) invite you to explore the challenges of movement without touch or haptic feedback.
Drop-in Liverpool’s party people
18.00–21.30 | Quirky Quarter
What makes a big night out buzz?
Meet researchers from the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics (University of Liverpool) to investigate the science of going out – from getting ready to the after party – and test yourself with interactive challenges and puzzles.
Drop-in Wild conversations
18.00–21.30 | Quirky Quarter
Visit the Zoological Society of London’s living library of nature knowledge.
It’s just like an ordinary library except, rather than lending out books to read, this library lends out wildlife researchers for a chat!
Enjoy one-to-one conversations about nature, career paths and how research can power conservation.
Drop-in The beauty of maths
18.00–21.30 | Quirky Quarter
Discover how art and maths are entwined at this interactive exhibition.
Gary Lester (Liverpool John Moores University) uses sculpture to illuminate mathematical ideas.
Join him to delve into different dimensions, investigating chaos theory, fractals and complex numbers using paintings, pendulums and dynamic sculpture.
Performance Standing on the shoulders of idiots
18.30–19.30 | Quirky Quarter –Events space
Discover how the theory of light was shaped by brilliant minds doing stupid things at this EdinburghFringe-sell-out show!
Physicist and stand-up comic Nick Werren (Heriot-Watt University) will reveal how some of our most celebrated scientists were ordinary people just like us.
Performance Mind games: Puzzles, the brain and you!
20.30–21.30 | Quirky Quarter –Events space
Unpick the hilarious science of puzzles with comedy group Three Queers and a Welshman.
Solve the world’s hardest puzzles, delve into what makes your brain a puzzle-solving powerhouse, and uncover why elephants are better at solving puzzles than humans.
Sunday 14 September 2025
Museum of Liverpool Takeover
Experience the Museum of Liverpool in a whole new way with a day full of drop-ins, creative workshops, and inspiring talks.
Workshop Wake up and rave!
10.30–11.30 | Museum of Liverpool – Education 3
Launch yourself into the day with Mooncup Theatre’s morning rave and wake up body and mind.
This invigorating and inclusive session will include a gentle warm up, solo and group dancing and a gentle yoga cool down, all accompanied by a fantastic local DJ.
Drop-in Berry bright future
11.30–17.00 | Museum of Liverpool
Could berries power the future? Join researchers at Newcastle University to discover how they create Berry Solar Cells.
Produced sustainably, Berry Solar Cells are a low-cost power source that harness the natural properties of berry juice.
Part of the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition on tour.
Drop-in Flood for thought
11.30–17.00 | Museum of Liverpool – Education 1
Flooding is on the rise. How do we prepare?
Experts from the School of Biological and Environmental Sciences and the Geography and Environmental Science Research Group (Liverpool John Moores University) will guide you through activities to build your flood resilience, offering tips and tools to help you stay confident and safe.
Drop-in Art forgery to astrophysics: A data science showcase
11.30–17.00 | Museum of Liverpool – Education 1
Curious about how computers solve problems? Want to know how sorting algorithms work?
Drop in for a chat with researchers from the University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University and find out about data science.
Drop-in Nature’s perils: Plants and pandemics
11.30–17.00 | Museum of Liverpool
The world around us is home to many deadly and delightful plants and microbes – some of them help treat diseases whilst others are dangerous.
Join researchers from the Health and Life Science Faculty (University of Liverpool) and the Pandemic Institute to discover how they protect people against dangerous germs and plants.
Drop-in Robo-chemist:
Meet your new lab partner
11.30–17.00 | Museum of Liverpool
Watch a robot chemist perform experiments and find out how human-robot collaborations could transform chemistry with researchers from the Department of Chemistry (University of Liverpool).
Drop-in Palaces: a sculpture made of milk teeth and magic
11.30–17.00 | Museum of Liverpool
Marvel at Palaces, a sculpture by Liverpool artist Gina Czarnecki that is embedded with hundreds of donated milk teeth. Sparked by her daughter’s question—“Is the Tooth Fairy real?”— Gina’s artwork explores teeth as symbols of growth, maturity, lost innocence, and altruistic donation of body parts.
Drop-in Scope it out
11.30–17.00 | Museum of Liverpool
Endoscopes – long, thin tubes with small cameras inside – are used to look inside everything from our bodies to engines and animal burrows!
Researchers from across Liverpool John Moores University will reveal how endoscopic technology is being used at different scales and across sectors, from healthcare to space exploration.
Talk Food, glorious food
11.30–12.30 | Museum of Liverpool – Lecture Theatre
What can the humble potato teach us about food cultures and communities?
Potatoes, tomatoes, corn, chocolate, strawberries: many staples of the British diet originate from Latin America.
Join a team of foodies – including scientists, archaeologists, chefs, musicians and curators – for tastings and conversations delving into the origins and importance of these delicious foodstuffs.
Drop-in In search of silent shipping
11.30–17.00 | Museum of Liverpool
Introducing magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) drives –propulsion systems that allow ships and submarines to travel silently by harnessing electromagnetic forces.
Muhammad Ishaq (Coventry University) uncovers how this groundbreaking technology works and the challenges of bringing MHD drives to life.
Drop-in Seeing with sound
11.30–17.00 | Museum of Liverpool
Does music affect how we see art?
Tobiasz Trawinski (Liverpool Hope University) shares research that suggests music could enhance our experiences in galleries and museums.
You’re invited to look at paintings while listening to music. We’ll track your eye movements to find out how the music influences your engagement with the artworks.
Drop-in Mosquito control
11.30–17.00 | Museum of Liverpool
Meet researchers from Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and the Innovative Vector Control Consortium and discover the tools they use to tackle malaria.
Learn about mosquito control technologies from the past, present and future, and be inspired to join the fight against the deadliest animal in the world.
Drop-in Sonic pond dipping
11.30–17.00 | Museum of Liverpool
Learn about Liverpool’s underwater lifeforms and bioacoustics at this interactive workshop.
David de la Haye (EcoSound CIC) will share the hidden soundscapes of freshwater spaces – including puddles –and the technology that allows us to listen to aquatic creatures and plants.
Drop-in Warning: Landslides
11.30–17.00 | Museum of Liverpool
Climate change means landslides in the UK are more likely and more severe. Knowing how to cope with them is crucial.
Take part in an experiment with the British Geological Survey to observe and measure the effects of a landslide.
Workshop Salt and sparks: A jewellery workshop
11.30–12.30 | Museum of Liverpool –Education 2
Discover the fascinating science behind saltwater etching in this creative jewellery-making workshop.
Liverpool-based VA Studio will be your guides as you design and make your own unique piece of etched jewellery to take home.
Workshop The power of song
12.00–13.30 | Museum of Liverpool – Education 3
Discover how singing can boost your physical and mental health.
Sofa Singers founder James Sills will lead an uplifting session designed to help you harness the transformative power of song. Track your mood and find out what effect singing has.
Workshop Medicinal and mindful: Liverpool’s botanical
future
13.30–14.30 | Museum of Liverpool –Education 2
Unearth the conservation efforts of herbariums; libraries of pressed plants for future research.
Guided by Mindful Garden (Liverpool John Moores University), you’ll learn the delicate art of mounting dried plants to preserve the species for future research.
Talk The ins and outs of school admissions
13.30–14.30 | Museum of Liverpool – Lecture Theatre
How do you choose a school for your kids? Are in-demand school places pushing up rent and house prices where you live?
Economics lecturer Ellen Greaves (University of Exeter) will delve into the complexities of secondary school admissions and invite you to think about what a fairer system might look like.
Talk The whispers of rock: Stories from the earth
14.00–15.00 | Museum of Liverpool – Education 3
Rock is often seen as inert and unfeeling. Earth scientist Anjana Khatwa will convince you it’s anything but.
Join Anjana on an exhilarating journey through deep time to find out how rocks have been shaped over the eons – and how they’ve shaped us.
Talk Is there really a ‘wood wide web’?
15.30–16.30 | Museum of Liverpool – Lecture Theatre
The idea that trees share food, water and information using a ‘wood wide web’ has become popular. But is it true?
Katie Field (University of Sheffield) – an expert in plant-fungal relationships – takes a critical look at this delightful idea, asking if it’s been overstated.
Talk Disrupting the school-to-prison pipeline
15.30–16.30 | Museum of Liverpool – Education 3
How does being excluded from school affect your future?
Ellen Greaves (University of Exeter), Karen Graham (City St George’s, University of London), Cecilia Cappel (Spark Inside), and a young person with lived experience of the prison system will debate the ‘school-toprison pipeline’. We’ll discuss how to achieve better outcomes for young people and schools, and what we can learn from interventions like ‘nurture units’ in Glasgow.
Workshop Self preservation: Create your own DNA jewellery
15.30–16.30 | Museum of Liverpool – Education 2
In this creative workshop, you’ll extract your own DNA using a simple, safe method then suspend it in resin to create a deeply personal piece of jewellery.
Liverpool based artist Gina Czarnecki will guide you through the process while discussing the potential, the uses and ethical dilemmas of biomedical technology.
Experience Geophonic: A rock and walk performance
11.30–12.30 and 15.30–16.30 | Starting at Bluecoat, ending at Museum of Liverpool.
Journey deep into the earth and listen to the stories of the rocks beneath your feet during this atmospheric sound walk and performance.
Geology, sci-fi and rave culture come together in a guided tour through the geological forces that continually shape Liverpool’s landscape.
Programmed in collaboration with the Liverpool Biennial.
Drop-in Stranded! Save our ship!
11.30–17.00 | Royal Albert Dock
Step back in time to 1846 as a ship prepares to leave Royal Albert Dock.
Join a crew from Liverpool John Moores University for a timetravelling virtual reality adventure.
When the ship gets stranded, will you be able to work out what’s gone wrong and find a way home?
Drop-in Blue Room Art Lab: Patterns, patterns, everywhere
13.00–16.00 | Bluecoat – Performance Space
Delve into the fascinating patterns found on Earth and in Space at this experimental art lab!
Join artists from Blue Room –a Liverpool-based inclusive arts project for learning disabled and neurodivergent artists – for playful activities, demonstrations and displays inspired by stars and planets.
Installations throughout the Festival
‘Geist’ by This is Loop
Peter’s Lane – Liverpool ONE
Hunt for the elusive ghost particle and interact with particles of light.
Use your body movements to activate the large-scale artwork.
Neutrinos are abundant but minuscule and hard to trace.
‘Geist’ by This is Loop explores work to detect these so-called ghost particles and asks what they might reveal about the universe.
In partnership with Culture Liverpool..
Image credit: Alan Hayes
Liverpool’s hidden superstar
College Lane – Liverpool ONE
At nine metres tall, the Liverpool Telescope is the world’s largest robotic telescope. But have you seen it?
Optical telescopes don’t work well in cloudy cities. So after building the huge robotic telescope in Liverpool, researchers at the Astrophysics Research Institute (Liverpool John Moores University) found it a new home in the Canary Islands. Visit the mural to see the Liverpool Telescope in all its glory!
Fungal galaxies: Journey inside plants
College Lane – Liverpool ONE
Witness fungi as never before in a mural that unearths the hidden beauty of the microorganisms living inside plants.
Diego Dylan Bianchi (Trinity College Dublin) has captured dreamlike imagery of the filamentous fungi – also known as moulds – that can be found throughout a plant, from its roots to its seeds.
Don’t miss!
12.00–13.00
Throughout the week
Geist – Peter’s Lane, Liverpool ONE
Fungal galaxies – College Lane, Liverpool ONE
Liverpool’s hidden superstar – College Lane
Drop-in activities
Wired differently: Step inside the neurodivergent brain (12.00–15.00)
Craft activity: Embracing autistic joy (13.00–14.00)
Prescribed cannabis: Patient stories Tracking Liverpool’s wild side
Moving minds: The power of dance in therapy
Fembots and dinosaurs: Scientific illustration workshop
For the most up-to-date version of the programme and to book your free tickets,
Bluecoat
The Bistro Garden Room Gardens (outdoor)
Don’t miss!
The art of quantum
17.00–18.00
Victoria Gallery & Museum
Throughout the week
Geist – Peter’s Lane, Liverpool ONE
Fungal galaxies – College Lane, Liverpool ONE
Liverpool’s hidden superstar – College Lane
Event type Talk
In conversation with Robin Saxby: Pioneering engineer
The art of quantum
In conversation with Julia King, Baroness Brown of Cambridge: BSA Presidential Address
Drop-in activities 12.00–17.00
Quantum curiosities
Tracking Liverpool’s wild side
Football for robots
The joy machine
For the most up-to-date version of the programme and to book your free tickets, visit britishsciencefestival.org/events
Victoria Gallery & Museum, University of Liverpool
Peter’s Lane – Liverpool ONE
What’s on Thursday 11 September
Don’t miss!
How do we build the animal internet?
10.30–11.30 Redmonds Building, Liverpool John Moores University
Throughout the week
Geist – Peter’s Lane, Liverpool ONE
Fungal galaxies – College Lane, Liverpool ONE Liverpool’s hidden superstar – College Lane
Can your cash inspire climate action?
Woman, chemist, activist
Expect the unexpected
Redmonds Building, Liverpool John Moores University
Lecture Theatre 2
What’s in our water and should we be worried?
Large Lecture Theatre Student Zone How do we build the animal internet? Liverpool in Space
Fighting poverty and stigma to defeat TB
Synthetic antibodies, from snakebites to Covid-19
For the most up-to-date version of the programme and to book your free tickets, visit britishsciencefestival.org/events
Hearing the bigger picture
Don’t miss!
Peak performance:
50 years of sport science
18.30–19.30
Yoko Ono Lennon Centre, University of Liverpool
Throughout the week
Geist – Peter’s Lane, Liverpool ONE
Fungal galaxies – College Lane, Liverpool ONE
Liverpool’s hidden superstar – College Lane
Redmonds Building, Liverpool John Moores University Room 523 10.30 11.00 Cosmic creativity: Coding robotic telescopes 11.30 12.00 12.30
Speedy science: Ask a researcher
Redmonds Building, Liverpool
John Moores University
Yoko Ono Lennon Centre, University of Liverpool Room 519
The Tung Auditorium
Art for democracy experiment
Game on, snack more
Universal secrets: Unpacking particle physics
Universal secrets: Particle detectors
The greatest science demonstrations. Ever!
Peak performance: 50 years of sport science
For the most up-to-date version of the programme and to book your free tickets, visit britishsciencefestival.org/events
Fröhlich Café Bar
Geist – Peter’s Lane, Liverpool
Medicinal and mindful: Liverpool’s botanical history
Giving voice to refugee stories
Electrons in wonderlandThe superpower of zines! Nature’s power couples
Truth in the dirt: Combatting psuedoarchaeology
Kazimier Garden
LEAF
Kabin
Stockroom
21.15–22.15
Throughout the week
Geist – Peter’s Lane, Liverpool ONE
Fungal galaxies – College Lane, Liverpool ONE
Liverpool’s hidden superstar – College Lane
MOONFACE
Bam Boo Brunch & Cocktails
Unity Theatre
Church Street
Unity One
Unity Two
Science rapper’s delight
Antiviral roller skating! Sounds of the wilds
Batman (aka Naomi’s Death Show)
Outspoken: Rhyme meets reason
Bionically Beautiful: Tilly Lockey
Throughout the week
Geist – Peter’s Lane, Liverpool ONE
Fungal galaxies – College Lane, Liverpool ONE
Liverpool’s hidden superstar – College Lane
Searching for science’s invisible women
Bee creative: Make candles & seed bombs
Voyager at 50: How to talk to aliens
DNA and Identity: Ethics and emotions in ancestral genetic testing
Follow your nose: Scented brickmaking workshop
Voyager at 50: Is there anybody out there?
Uncovering connections between science and slavery in Liverpool
Out and open: Queer cabaret
Skulls, skeletons and bones: Animal anatomy drawing workshop
The Black-E
Chamber Theatre
The Gallery
Main entrance
Don’t miss!
Geophonic: A promenade performance
11.30–12.30 | 14.30–15.30
Bluecoat
Throughout the week
Geist – Peter’s Lane, Liverpool ONE
Fungal galaxies – College Lane, Liverpool ONE
Liverpool’s hidden superstar – College Lane
Drop-in activities
11.00–16.00
Convergence: Exploring the Art in Science
What the phage?!
Welcome to Microbe City!
AI Puzzle Lab: Decode the future of Healthcare
Medicinal and mindful: Liverpool’s botany of today
Archive adventures: Creative writing workshop
Geophonic: A promenade performance
Prosthetics: Past, present, future
Geophonic: A promenade performance
Bluecoat
The Bistro Garden Room
Courtyard
Quirky Quarter Takeover
18.00–21.30
Quirky Quarter Don’t miss!
Throughout the week
Geist – Peter’s Lane, Liverpool ONE
Fungal galaxies – College Lane, Liverpool ONE
Liverpool’s hidden superstar – College Lane
Quirky Quarter
Quirky Quarter takeover
18.00–21.30
Losing touch
Liverpool’s party people
Can you believe your eyes?
Robot artist
The beauty of maths
Wild conversations
Taking flight
For the most up-to-date version of the programme and to book your free tickets, visit britishsciencefestival.org/events
Liverpool Cathedral Exhibition space
Don’t miss!
Geist – Peter’s Lane, Liverpool ONE
Fungal galaxies – College Lane, Liverpool ONE
Liverpool’s hidden superstar – College Lane
Salt and sparks: A jewellery workshop
Medicinal and mindful: Liverpool’s botanical future
Food, glorious food Drop-in activities 11.30–17.00
Mosquito control
Seeing with sound
Robo-chemist: Meet your new lab partner
In search of silent shipping
The ins and outs of school admissions
Self preservation: Create your own DNA jewellery Is there really a ‘wood wide web’?
Berry bright future
Scope it out
Warning: Landslides
Nature’s perils: Plants and pandemics
Flood for thought
Art forgery to astrophysics: A data science showcase
Palaces: A sculpture made of milk teeth
Sonic pond dipping
Don’t miss!
Blue Room Art Lab:
Patterns, patterns, everywhere
13.00–16.00
Bluecoat
Throughout the week
Geist – Peter’s Lane, Liverpool ONE
Fungal galaxies – College Lane, Liverpool ONE
Liverpool’s hidden superstar – College Lane
Blue Room Art Lab: Patterns, patterns, everywhere
Geophonic: A promenade performance
Geophonic: A promenade performance
Bluecoat
Performance Space
Courtyard
