Countercurrent: conversations with Professor Roger Kneebone

A first career as a human rights lawyer led to Nic becoming a district judge in the civil courts, then a circuit judge hearing criminal cases. After judging for 24 years Nic retired from the law and is now focusing on his interests in historical research, writing, photography and documentary film-making. He is actively involved in issues around the rights of indigenous peoples in South America and...

The philosopher María José Frápolli is Professor of Logic and Philosophy of Science at the University of Granada. Maria has held many senior roles, including professorships at major universities in the UK and Europe. In this podcast we explore the nature of her work and discuss the challenges of explaining the nature of philosophy and philosophical research to those outside the field.  

Lieutenant Colonel Lauren Petritz-Watts is Principal Director of Music (Army) - the most senior position in this branch of the Army. In this podcast we explore the many aspects of Lauren's current role, her experience as a commissioned officer, the unique characteristics of Army music and her experience as the first woman to be appointed to her current position.   Lauren describes the key role of...

Tim Goode is Residentiary Canon at York Minster. In this podcast we explore how his own experience of disability has shaped his role in the Anglican church, and discuss the ideas in his recent book Breaking Not Broken . https://scmpress.hymnsam.co.uk/books/9780334063162/breaking-not-broken

Sebastian Kraemer is a child and adolescent psychiatrist. His first degree was in philosophy. He then qualified in medicine before specialising - first in paediatrics (in Glasgow, Manchester and London) and then in psychiatry (at the Maudsley Hospital and the Tavistock Clinic in London).   His current work explores how people can work together effectively, despite profound disagreement and even ho...

Andy Stirling is emeritus professor in the Science Policy Research Unit at the University of Sussex. His many interests centre around issues of uncertainty, diversity and power in science and technology.   Andy has played a leading role in many project areas, including social justice, democratic politics and respect for the natural world. In the 1980s he was a volunteer with Greenpeace and took pa...

John Law is a pianist and composer who works across multiple genres. Initially trained as a classical musician, he studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London. In his early twenties he discovered jazz and improvisational performing and changed the direction of his career. He has recorded over fifty albums and played with a wide range of leading artists. I've followed his work for many years an...

Professor Andrew McPherson, Chair in Design Engineering and Music at the Dyson School of Design Engineering at Imperial College London. He has undergraduate degrees in engineering and music from MIT, a Masters in Engineering in electrical engineering from MIT and a PhD in music composition from the University of Pennsylvania. Andrew has designed many unconventional musical instruments, including a...

Simon Wallace is a pianist, composer and record producer. As a performer he collaborates with many other jazz musicians, including the singer Sarah Moule. He is a prolific composer and for   nearly twenty years wrote songs with the late American lyricist Fran Landesman.   He has also written for a wide range of TV shows in collaboration with Simon Brint, and for the National Theatre, Young Vic and...

Finn Macpherson is race engineer at Hitech Grand Prix. An engineer by background, Finn has coached promising young racing drivers from their early experiences of go-karting up the motor racing pyramid with single-seater open-wheeled cars to F2 level. In this conversation we explore how mechanical and human perspectives come together in Finn's work.

David Gordon is a composer, harpsichordist, jazz pianist, improviser, teacher and much else besides. He has played with many of the world's leading musicians in a wide range of genres, was the harpsichordist of The English Concert, is the pianist in the London Tango Quintet and leads the David Gordon jazz trio.   In this conversation we explore many aspects of his work, including ideas around impr...

Gary Bridgewood has been making and restoring stringed instruments for over forty years - from violins and cellos to historic instruments such as the viola da gamba. In this podcast he describes his training at the London College of Furniture, followed by his partnership with the lute maker Tom Neitzert in establishing Bridgewood & Neitzert in 1982. We explore the complex nature of his work, which...

Dr Antranig Basman is a mathematician and computer scientist who studied at Cambridge University. After completing a PhD in Computer Vision at the Cambridge University Engineering Department's Machine Intelligence Laboratory he spent five years as Visiting Scholar at the University of Colorado at Boulder. In this podcast we discuss Antranig's many interests and avenues of work, especially around p...

Geoff Brown is Education Services Coordinator at Middle Temple, one of the four Inns of Court in central London. He trained as an actor before moving to the world of the law and now has a particular interest in advocacy training for those at the start of a legal career - especially the Moot. In this conversation we explore Geoff's many skills and interests, including improv theatre and stand-up co...

Lucy Skilbeck studied drama in Australia before coming to the UK in the 1980s and establishing herself as a director and teacher. For ten years she was Director of Actor Training at RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Art) in London. She is also Founder and Director of Being With Horses , where she offers equine-facilitated actor training and coaching. In this extended (2 hour) conversation we explore...

The distinguished barrister Angus McCullough KC has over 35 years of experience in public and private law. He has played a prominent role in many high profile cases - such as the phone hacking trial with Rebekah Brooks and proceedings against Stephen Yaxley-Lennon (otherwise known as Tommy Robinson).   Alongside his work as a barrister he has recently been appointed as a part-time judge of the Cou...

Hamish Brown is a pianist, composer and arranger with many strings to his bow. I first encountered Hamish in his capacity as collaborative pianist during a teaching session for Masters students in conducting at the Royal College of Music, where he is a staff accompanist. Hamish has collaborated with many leading singers as well as performing as a soloist across the world and as an orchestral keybo...

Nick Gold is managing director of the speaker bureau Speakers Corner . He works with clients to provide suitable speakers for corporate events and other gatherings, drawing on his extensive panel of contributors. In this podcast we discuss parallels with other kinds of live performing, including clinical consultations and scientific presentations at conferences.   https://www.speakerscorner.co.uk/...

David Juritz started playing the violin at the age of five. After winning the Royal College of Music's top award he joined the English Chamber Orchestra before becoming the Leader of the London Mozart Players - a role he held for seventeen years. He is well known for his recordings, including Bach's Sonatas and Partitas for unaccompanied violin and Vivaldi's Four Seasons, and for his work with the...

Rob Ryan studied Fine Art at Trent Polytechnic and specialised in printmaking at the Royal College of Art in London. For many years he has worked from his London studio. He has written and illustrated several books and he is particularly well known for his papercuts, which are instantly recognisable. In this conversation we explore the process by which he creates and executes his designs.   https:...

Roberto Trotta is Professor of Theoretical Physics at SISSA, the International School for Advanced Studies in Trieste, Italy, where he directs SISSA's Interdisciplinary Lab. He's also Visiting Professor in Astrostatistics at Imperial College London. His most recent book Starborn: How the stars made us and who we would be without them was published in 2023 and has received widespread acclaim.   In...

Dr Elisa Cunial trained as a psychotherapist and practised for many years in London. She now works in Trieste, Italy as a counselling psychologist and ecotherapist. In this podcast we discuss the nature of her work and explore her ideas for expanding the boundaries of her current practice.  

Taslim Martin is an artist whose work takes many forms, including portraiture, design and site-specific works for public spaces. He lives and works in London, exhibits internationally and has works in the permanent collection of the British Museum and the Horniman Museum. In this conversation we discuss how his career has unfolded and explore some of the influences which have helped to shape it.  ...

Sarah Hart is a mathematician whose research focuses on group theory.   She is Professor Emerita at Birkbeck and Provost of Gresham College. In this podcast we explore her fascination with patterns, both in mathematical thinking and in the physical world. Sarah is well known for her ability to connect with a wide range of public audiences and she is passionate about exploring parallels between mat...

Neal Peres Da Costa is Professor of Historical Performance at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, where he founded the Historical Performance division in 2007. Before that he held academic posts in the UK.   Neal is an expert on performance on historical keyboard instruments including the harpsichord. Alongside his work as a soloist, chamber and continuo musician performing with leading ensembles...