Everything Under The Sun

In this week's show we answer four questions from Arthur, Scarlet, Coco and Beth with help from special guest expert Justin Pollard.  Justin is a historian and writer. He writes questions for the TV show QI and is a historical consultant on TV shows such as Vikings and on films. He knows all about the Egyptians so he’s the perfect person to answer our first question about pyramids and mummies...

In this week's show we answer three questions from Ted, Polly and Tara with help from special guest expert Mark Powers.  Mark is the author of Space Detectives a story about two boys who go to space to run an ice cream shop and solve mysteries along the way. We also have a competition to win a copy of the book!  We find out which was the first planet in the solar system, how big it is co...

In this week's show we answer three questions from Matilda & Tabitha, Cleo and Magnus with help from special guest expert the picture book writer and illustrator Kim Hillyard.  Kim has written two picture books, one about a brave and strong fly called Mabel who decides to climb a mountain and the other about a hamster called Ned, which is a story about kindness.  Kim tells us about h...

In this week's show we answer three questions from Goldie, Meg and Isla and Valentin with help from special guest expert Lizzie King of Lizzie Loves Healthy.  Lizzie is a family nutritionist and cook book writer who has a range of natural remedies to help children, one helps with Sleep! It’s called Be Sleepy.  Lizzie talks to us about how light affects our sleep, why we get sleepy and wh...

In this week's show we answer three questions from Faye and Maya, Ethan and Alex with help from special guest expert Willow Crossley. Willow Crossley is a florist and a writer who lives in Oxfordshire with her three boys, writing books and designing beautiful things with flowers. She tells us all about why flowers are prickly plus we find out why blackberry bushes are extra prickly because of a sp...

In this week's show we answer three questions from Arlo, Beatrice and Henry and Isabelle with help from special guest experts Jon Ablett from the Natural History Museum in London.  Jon Ablett is a world expert on molluscs and looks after a huge collection of them at the Natural History Museum in London.  He gives us the low down on snails and why they come out in the rain....

In this week's show we answer three questions from Bea, Beatrice and Wilf with help from special guest expert Lauren Child. Lauren Child is a much loved children’s author and illustrator who has written classic series such as Charlie and Lola, Clarice Bean and Ruby Redford. She has won many awards, her books are bestselling and she was Children’s Laureate! Very impressive indeed.  Lauren talk...

  In this week's show we answer three questions from Leo, Dragon and Cecily with help from special guest experts Professor Schmitt and Doug Millard from the Science Museum in London.  Professor Schmitt is a world expert on skateboards and has been making them for decades - he gives us the low down on how they were invented. Doug Millard looks after the airplane collection at the Science...

This week we answer three questions from Orla, Reuben and Gil with the help of expert Charlie Luxton. Charlie is an architect who specialises in environmentally friendly homes. We find out how spiders manage to trap flies in their webs but don't get stuck in them themselves. To give you a clue it is thanks to the way they use their legs, keep clean and a special way they design their webs. Charlie...

In this week's show we answer three questions from Tasso, Lily and Mia with help from special guest expert Dan Stevens.  Dan Stevens is an English actor who now lives in America, he shot to fame in Downton Abbey and has since been in The Man Who Invented Christmas, Night at the Museum and Eurovision.  Dan tells us all about why actors love a stage to perform on as well as why they wear m...

  In this week's show we answer three questions from Goldie, Tasso and Sophia with help from special guest expert Zephyr Wildman.  Zephyr is a wonderful yoga teacher who teaches in London as well as on retreats around the world and knows all about yoga.  We find out how yoga helps us with focus, memory and resilience and how practicing can help us feel more peaceful. We discover the...

In this week's show we answer lots of questions from Tabitha, Jensen, Eleanor, Alice, Ollie, Jack, Chessie and Eleanor with help from the wonderful writer Neil Gaiman.  Neil is the author of lots of books for children and adults including Coraline, Stardust, Fortunately The Milk, The Ocean at the End of the Lane, picture books about a sneezing panda called Chu, American Gods and much more. He...

In this week's show we answer questions from Orla, Emilia, Zac, Ambrose and Portia with help from special guest expert Lee Davies from Kew Gardens in London.  Lee is curator of fungi at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Lee tells us all about mushrooms and toadstools and why they like the dark. Plus we uncover the biggest living thing in the world, which happens to be an enormous mushroom!&nbs...

In this week's show we answer three questions from Evangeline, Roman and Clara with help from special guest expert the artist Grayson Perry.   Grayson is a world-renowned artist, writer and TV presenter and works a lot with clay to make incredible pots so he is the perfect person to answer Clara’s question.   We discover how to make clay last forever and what temperature it needs to go i...

Welcome back to the second series of Everything Under The Sun! Thanks for sending in your questions.   In this week's show we answer three questions from Ithaca, Benji and Elijah with help from special guest expert Sir Richard Branson.   Richard Branson founded Virgin Records, Virgin airways and now Virgin Galactic which is working hard to make it easier for people to go into space. One...

This week we answer three questions, how are dictionaries made? How are Blue Plaques decided and how is earwax made? Our guest expert is Catherine Sangster from the Oxford English Dictionary! Find out who the first blue plaque ever was for and how they are made in Cornwall. Do subscribe to the podcast wherever you listen to it and tell all your friends! For more info go to www.everythingunderthesu...

Today we answer four spring like questions, they are from Seraphina, Alex, Elizabeth and Anurada they are: how do buds appear on trees?  how do trees make their leaves?  what the husks of seeds are made out of? Why are blueberries skin blue?    A big thank you to Seraphina, Elizabeth, Anurada and Alex for this week’s questions and to Jess Evans at the National Trust and Alys Fo...

Hello and welcome to episode 58 of Everything Under The Sun – I hope everyone is doing okay at home! This week we're talking about sleepy sloths, dreams and camels. Our first question is about a sleepy animal, called a sloth and it comes from Alice, 5, she would like to know why do sloths sleep so much?  We also discuss Catrin's question, which is why do we dream?  I have David Eagleman...

Hello and welcome to episode 57 of Everything Under The Sun – a weekly podcast answering all the most pressing questions children around the world have about life on earth! Even though we can’t visit any at the moment there are still lots of countries out there filled with children doing the same thing as you – staying at home! I thought we’d have an episode with questions about different things i...

Hello and welcome to episode 56 of Everything Under The Sun – a weekly podcast answering all the most pressing questions children around the world have about life on earth!  My name is Molly and today I have three questions for you: The first is who was the first comedian? We find out all about the history of comedy and funny people of the past from Dan Schreiber from No Such Thing as A Fish...

Hello and welcome to episode 55 of Everything Under The Sun! I know a lot of you children listening might be at home at the moment, hopefully with lots of people around you having fun but still you might be missing your friends a bit as lots of schools have closed for a while - if so this is for you!  I hope you enjoy the show and remember, do send in a question and I can answer it for you!&n...

Hello and welcome to 54th episode of Everything Under the Sun, a weekly podcast answering all the most pressing questions children around the world have about life on earth. My name is Molly and today I have three questions! They’re about armadillos, music and mermaids!   Our first question comes from Wolf, who lives in Paraguay! He sent me a photo of an armadillo he saw on holiday in Ur...

Bumblebees! Baboons! Saguaros! This episode is for all the children who are going to be at home for a while, this is so you can all hear each other's voices and learn new things! Please do send your favourite episode of Everything Under The Sun to your friends so they can listen and learn new things! Remember if you'd like to send in a question you record it using an adult's smartphone, using a vo...

Hello and Welcome to a very special episode of Everything Under The Sun. Today is the 52nd episode of the podcast, which means this beloved podcast has taken a full trip around the sun! It has been such a lovely year of making Everything Under The Sun, because I’ve had such fun creating it. I love waking up to find your questions waiting for me each morning in my inbox, I love pressing play on the...

  Today’s questions are about DEW, BUBBLES and HICCUPS.   First up is Maggie who would like to know - what is dew?   Find out how water can be three things, and how it turns into dew.   Our next question is why do bubbles pop? To answer it I have writer, physicist, oceanographer Helen Czerski, who knows all about bubbles!   She’s written a book called Bubbles: A Ladyb...