Professor Matthew Cobb

You mentioned roses.

There are about 150 different volatile compounds in the odour of a rose.

That doesn't mean to say we are detecting all those 150, but potentially we could be.

So most odours are in fact really complicated blends of different things.

And studying the laboratory is very, very hard.

That's all I'd say.

I mean, it partly began much earlier than that.

So historians have studied the role of smell in the French Revolution.

And perfumes started to become much more a symbol, obviously, of wealth.

And it's still the case today.

You know, perfume adverts are just full of glamour and expense.

It gives you access to a different lifestyle.

That's the promise of the perfume advert.

And that very much took off in the 19th century with the development of commerce and all the rest of it.

And it's no good, you know, splashing yourself with lovely eau de cologne if you've got stinky armpits.

So people started to take much more time cleaning themselves.

And then by the time we get to the 20th century, then we get deodorants and a whole, you know, I don't know, you're too young probably.

I remember there used to be adverts for Lifebuoy soap in which you couldn't tell your friend

that they smelled, right?

So you'd have to whisper it to them, B-O, body odour, and then Lifebuoy, or other soaps are available, Lifebuoy was then preferred as, you know, you'd have to clean yourself up so you no longer stink.