The Life Scientific
Hosted by Jim Al-Khalili and Professor Jim Al-Khalili · BBC Radio 4
4.8from 510 ratings
- 361
- Episodes
- 54
- Transcribed
- 510
- Ratings
- Monthly
- Cadence
- 2011
- First episode
About The Life Scientific
Professor Jim Al-Khalili talks to leading scientists about their life and work, finding out what inspires and motivates them and asking what their discoveries might do for us in the future
- Publisher
- BBC Radio 4
- Category
- science · society & culture
- Language
- en
- Explicit
- No
- First episode
- 11 Oct 2011
- Latest episode
- 3 Nov 2026
Latest episodes
54 of 361 episodes have a transcript.
3 Nov 2026TRANSCRIPT
Robert Ballard on finding the Titanic and other deep-sea discoveries
27 Oct 2026TRANSCRIPT
Gillian Forrester on gesturing gorillas, babbling babies and the origins of human language
20 Oct 2026
David Canter on how psychology can save lives and catch killers
Inside a recent episode
Robert Ballard on finding the Titanic and other deep-sea discoveries
Published 3 Nov 2026 · Transcript excerpt
[…] I just loved exploring as an early age. And I gather your love of the sea was also fed by fiction. Correct. See, I'm dyslexic and I never read the book 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. But when I was 12, I saw Walt Disney's movie and I was captivated by the submarine Nautilus. In fact, my ship is named Nautilus. […]
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See plansWho has been a guest on The Life Scientific
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
- Robert Ballard
- Gillian Forrester
- David Canter
- Edith Heard
- Ginger Kerrick
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
- Apple Podcasts (US)
- 4.5 / 5
- 216 ratings
- Spotify
- 5.0 / 5
- 294 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 62 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
- Quality
- 85
- Social presence
- 0
- YouTube
- 0
- Engagement
- 99
Contact The Life Scientific
- Guest appearances
- Books guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
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Questions about The Life Scientific
Who hosts The Life Scientific?
Jim Al-Khalili and Professor Jim Al-Khalili host the show. Published by BBC Radio 4.
How often do new episodes come out?
The show publishes monthly, based on its RSS feed.
Does The Life Scientific take guests?
Yes. Guests have been identified in episode analyses.
Where can I read transcripts?
54 of 361 episodes have a transcript on Pod Engine. Full transcripts are available with a Pod Engine plan.
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