S03E15: East Midlands | Local Heroes

Duration: 29'04''

Synopsis

Adam Hart-Davis cycles to Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire to find out about this week's heroes. They include Frank Whittle, who invented the jet engine, and Robert Bakewell, the world's first genetic engineer.

Further Information

More clips from Local Heroes

S03E01: Cornwall | Local Heroes

S03E01: Cornwall | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 28'55''

Adam visits south-west England, where his subjects include William Murdock, who devised the world's first mechanical vehicle and also came up...

S03E02: London | Local Heroes

S03E02: London | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 28'54''

This week he visits London, where he builds his own submarine to illustrate the achievements of Cornelus Drebbel, who rowed underwater from Wes...

S03E03: Egypt | Local Heroes

S03E03: Egypt | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 29'09''

Adam Hart-Davis travels to Egypt in search of the earliest heroes of science. Using a drinks can and a stove, he recreates Hero of Alexandria's ...

S03E04: Italy | Local Heroes

S03E04: Italy | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 29'02''

Adam Hart-Davis visits southern Italy, home to the greatest scientists of the ancient world. In Syracuse, he recreates Archimedes' famous ''eure...

S03E05: South | Local Heroes

S03E05: South | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 28'59''

Adam Hart-Davis continues his search for unsung heroes of science when he cycles around the south of England. On a stop-off in Surrey, he uses a...

S03E06: Ireland | Local Heroes

S03E06: Ireland | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 28'59''

Adam Hart-Davis cycles around Ireland to rediscover some scientific milestones. He looks at how John Tyndall found the sky was blue, how Charl...

S03E07: Potteries | Local Heroes

S03E07: Potteries | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 29'13''

Adam Hart-Davis searches for unsung heroes of science on a trip to the Potteries, Staffordshire. Using a few pipes, a ribbon and an air pump...

S03E08: Merseyside | Local Heroes

S03E08: Merseyside | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 28'57''

Adam relives his childhood love of Meccano, invented by Frank Hornby, before moving on to celebrate the work of other scientists and innova...

S03E09: Home Counties | Local Heroes

S03E09: Home Counties | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 28'56''

Hart-Davis begins by exploding balloons of hydrogen and oxygen in London, just as Henry Cavendish did in the late 18th century to prove ...

S03E10: Edinburgh | Local Heroes

S03E10: Edinburgh | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 29'04''

This week Hart-Davis makes the journey to Elgin, re-creating the moment when Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, and to the site w...

S03E11: The Netherlands | Local Heroes

S03E11: The Netherlands | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 29'04''

In Delft, Hart-Davis profiles the draper who was the first person to see bacteria through a microscope and the book-keeper whose gravi...

S03E13: Gloucestershire | Local Heroes

S03E13: Gloucestershire | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 28'59''

Adam Hart-Davis recalls the work of Edwin Beard Budding, who invented the lawnmower, and focuses on William Henry Fox Talbot, the fath...

S03E14: Local Heroines | Local Heroes

S03E14: Local Heroines | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 29'08''

Adam visits London, where all his heroines are women.

S03E16: Glasgow | Local Heroes

S03E16: Glasgow | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1998 | 28'57''

Adam Hart-Davis concludes the series by visiting western Scotland. There he learns about John Logie Baird, inventor of the television, Lord Ke...

More resources about Selective breeding and genetic engineering

Selective breeding | Countryfile

Selective breeding | Countryfile

BBC One | 2014 | 6'22''

For thousands of years we have been selectively breeding farm animals to make them more and more productive. But in recent years there has b...

Genetically Modified Papaya | Bang Goes the Theory

Genetically Modified Papaya | Bang Goes the Theory

BBC One | 2011 | 8'32''

An examination of the need for, and the potential issues with, the genetic modification of papayas in Hawaii.

IVF | How Science Changed Our World

IVF | How Science Changed Our World

BBC One | 2010 | 3'18''

Professor Robert Winston meets families who benefitted from breakthrough's in research which lead to IVF treatments.

Embryonic stem cells | i-Science

Embryonic stem cells | i-Science

BBC Two | 2009 | 4'36''

Stem cell research raises ethical issues, which makes some people uncomfortable about it, in spite of the potential benefits.

Selective breeding and the 'Green Revolution' | Botany: A Blooming History

Selective breeding and the 'Green Revolution' | Botany: A Blooming History

BBC Four | 2011 | 5'30''

Norman Borlaug used selective breeding techniques to improve wheat production in Mexico. He produc...

The genetic modification debate | Science Britannica - Learning Zone

The genetic modification debate | Science Britannica - Learning Zone

BBC Two | 2013 | 6'12''

Brian Cox explores the science behind the genetic modification of plants, and the ongoing debate around ...

02: Predictor | How to Build a Human

02: Predictor | How to Build a Human

BBC Two | 2002 | 49'18''

A look at the veracity of scientists' claims that they are on the verge of being able to predict our futures by analysing our genes and ...

03: Hidden World | Botany: A Blooming History

03: Hidden World | Botany: A Blooming History

BBC Four | 2011 | 59'01''

Timothy Walker looks at how pioneer botanists unlocked the patterns found in different types of plants and opened the door to a...

2010-2011: 07: Panda Makers | Natural World

2010-2011: 07: Panda Makers | Natural World

BBC HD | 2010 | 58'39''

Wildlife film following The Chengdu Research Base project in China, which aims to breed 300 pandas and then start introducing the...

Artificial selection | Short Circuit

Artificial selection | Short Circuit

BBC Two | 2008 | 2'08''

The breeding of racehorses with desirable characteristics is an example of artificial selection.

Brave New World | Storyville

Brave New World | Storyville

BBC Four | 2020 | 9'08''

There are many moral and ethical concerns about the extent to which science should utilise our knowledge of genetic engineering.

Can Science Make Me Perfect? with Alice Roberts

Can Science Make Me Perfect? with Alice Roberts

BBC Four | 2018 | 1'29'13''

Anatomist Alice Roberts embarks on a quest to rebuild her own body from scratch, taking inspiration from the very best design...

Consultation announced on gene editing | Farming Today

Consultation announced on gene editing | Farming Today

BBC Radio 4 | 2020 | 24'55''

The government are going to hold a consultation in the autumn on whether to allow gene editing. Charlotte Smith hears ...

Discovering the holy grail | Storyville

Discovering the holy grail | Storyville

BBC Four | 2020 | 7'44''

A yoghurt company discovered their holy grail, which just happened to be CRISPR: a microbial immune system.

Dolly: The Sheep That Changed the World

Dolly: The Sheep That Changed the World

BBC Scotland | 2021 | 59'07''

Documentary telling the story of the scientists who created Dolly, the sheep that changed the world.

Engineering the genome | Storyville

Engineering the genome | Storyville

BBC Four | 2020 | 5'48''

Gene therapy, is contoversial, complex, yet valuable science.

Programmable protein | Storyville

Programmable protein | Storyville

BBC Four | 2020 | 6'47''

CRISPR could potentially help people with inherited diseases, such as sickle cell disease, in the future.

Robert Bakewell | Countryfile

Robert Bakewell | Countryfile

BBC One | 2015 | 6'57''

Adam finds out about his farming hero, Robert Bakewell. Back in the 18th century, Bakewell introduced the concept of selective breeding into fa...

S04E06 | Bang Goes the Theory

S04E06 | Bang Goes the Theory

BBC One | 2011 | 27'42''

Liz Bonnin looks at the controversial science of genetically modified crops in Hawaii, while Dallas tries to remedy Jem's dust allergy by makin...

The Gene Race | Horizon

The Gene Race | Horizon

BBC Two | 1996 | 49'02''

Two teams of researchers, one in US, one in UK use radically different genetic techniques in the race to find an effective treatment against cystic f...

More from Adam Hart-Davis

S02E06: South East | Local Heroes

S02E06: South East | Local Heroes

BBC Two | 1997 | 29'01''

Adam Hart-Davis's search for Britain's greatest scientific pioneers is in South-East England, where he looks at the work of Hertha Ayrton, ...

The Clock That Changed the World | A History of the World

The Clock That Changed the World | A History of the World

BBC One | 2010 | 29'09''

Adam Hart-Davis tells the story of the amazing 280-year-old wooden clock, made in Lincolnshire, that changed timeke...

03: The Aztecs, Maya and Incas | What the Ancients Did for Us

03: The Aztecs, Maya and Incas | What the Ancients Did for Us

BBC Two | 2008 | 58'57''

Roving reporter Hermione Cockburn describes Aztec, Mayan and Incan inventions, including chocolate, suspension ...

20: Anglesey | Hart-Davis on History

20: Anglesey | Hart-Davis on History

BBC Two | 2006 | 27'58''

Adam Hart-Davis and Jayne Constantinis visit Anglesey, featuring a look at the Menai Straits, Welsh music, Beaumaris Castle, Amlwch Port...

02: The Applyance of Science | What the Stuarts Did for Us

02: The Applyance of Science | What the Stuarts Did for Us

BBC Two | 2002 | 29'04''

Hart-Davis travels around Britain to introduce the idea and inventions of the Stuart Period in science and enginee...

01: Seeying the Worlde | What The Tudors Did For Us

01: Seeying the Worlde | What The Tudors Did For Us

BBC Two | 2002 | 32'54''

The development of scientific instruments gave the Tudors new worlds to explore, both on land and on sea. And did the Eng...

04: Crime and Punishment | What the Victorians Did For Us

04: Crime and Punishment | What the Victorians Did For Us

BBC Two | 2001 | 28'52''

Adam Hart-Davis investigates the Victorian innovations that left a lasting impression on British society. In this p...

01: Life of Luxury | What the Romans Did for Us

01: Life of Luxury | What the Romans Did for Us

BBC Two | 2000 | 28'47''

Adam Hart-Davis investigates the lavish lifestyles of the Romans, visiting the sumptuous villa at Fishbourne, the famous bath...

15: West Norfolk | The History Hour

15: West Norfolk | The History Hour

BBC Two | 1997 | 58'53''

Adam Hart-Davis concludes his tour of Britain with a visit to west Norfolk to look at the region's farming history.