Countercurrent: conversations with Professor Roger Kneebone

Taslim Martin in conversation with Roger Kneebone

15 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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...

Sarah Hart in conversation with Roger Kneebone

08 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Sarah Hart is a mathematician whose research focuses on group theory.  She is Professor Emerita at Birkbeck and Provost of Gresham College. In this p...

Neal Peres da Costa in conversation with Roger Kneebone

24 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Neal Peres da Costa is Professor of Historical Performance at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, where he founded the Historical Performance division...

Per Palmgren in conversation with Roger Kneebone

17 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Per Palmgren is Associate Professor in Medical Education at Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden where he is the director of doctoral studies at ...

Ian Walmsley in conversation with Roger Kneebone

10 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Professor Ian Walmsley is Provost of Imperial College London and Chair in Experimental Physics. He has a distinguished career as a researcher, both in...

Deborah Safron in conversation with Roger Kneebone

03 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Deborah Safron is a sociologist and independent scholar who was brought up in America. As part of her research she is documenting the now abandoned...

Dave Stachowiak in conversation with Roger Kneebone

20 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Dave Stachowiak is an expert in leadership. He established and directs the Coaching for Leaders Academy in the USA, drawing on his experience with Gal...

Charles Hayter in conversation with Roger Kneebone

06 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Charles Hayter is a radiation oncologist, author and playwright. After an early career studying and teaching drama, Charles changed direction and beca...

Rachel Vickery in conversation with Roger Kneebone

22 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Rachel Vickery is a human behaviour and high performance consultant. Initially an international gymnast on the New Zealand National Team, she retired ...

Sophie Yates in conversation with Roger Kneebone

08 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Sophie Yates is a distinguished harpsichordist - recitalist, broadcaster, recording artist and teacher. We first recorded a Countercurrent conversatio...

Ashley Solomon in conversation with Roger Kneebone

23 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Ashley Solomon is Head of Historical Performance and Professor at the Royal College of Music. He is a baroque flute and recorder player who has perfor...

Mark Oakley in conversation with Roger Kneebone

10 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Very Rev Dr Mark Oakley is Dean of Southwark. He has held many ecclesiastical roles, including Rector of St Paul's Covent Garden, then Chancellor ...

Stephen Kovacevich in conversation with Roger Kneebone

28 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Stephen Kovacevich is one of the  most celebrated concert pianists of his generation. Since his Wigmore Hall debut in 1961 he has been known for his ...

Michael Booth in conversation with Roger Kneebone

17 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Michael Booth is Chief Library Assistant at the London Library, where he has worked for forty years. One of his remarkable skills is an ability to tra...

Toby Purser in conversation with Roger Kneebone

30 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Toby Purser is Head of Conducting at the Royal College of Music in London. His musical interests encompass symphonic, operative and contemporary reper...

Wayne Meeten in conversation with Roger Kneebone

16 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Wayne Meeten is a distinguished craftsman whose work builds on ancient Japanese metalworking techniques and is profoundly influenced by Tai Chi. Wayne...

Janis Wong in conversation with Roger Kneebone

04 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Janis Wong is Data and Technology Law Policy Advisor at The Law Society of England and Wales. She holds a PhD in computer science and is especially...

Howard Phipps in conversation with Roger Kneebone

19 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Howard Phipps is an artist and print maker, well known for his wood engravings which often focusing on the natural world, with haunting images of land...

Adele Wagstaff in conversation with Roger Kneebone

03 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The portrait artist Adele Wagstaff trained at Newcastle University and the Slade School of Fine Art. She has been shortlisted for the Jerwood Drawing ...

Helen Leek in conversation with Roger Kneebone

14 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Helen Leek is a pianist who has won many prizes, including the International Young Concert Artists Competition and the Brant International Piano Compe...

Eleanor Sharpston in conversation with Roger Kneebone

02 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Dame Eleanor Sharpston KC served as an Advocate General at the Court of Justice of the European Union from 2006 to 2020, before being removed followin...

Steven Appleby in conversation with Roger Kneebone

17 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Steven Appleby is an artist, illustrator and cartoonist who has created cartoon strips for The Guardian, The New Musical Express and many other public...

Graham Scott in conversation with Roger Kneebone

03 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Graham Scott is one of only twenty Premier League football referees. In this podcast we explore the challenges, pressures and satisfactions of being a...

Stephen Akinsanya in conversation with Roger Kneebone

17 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Stephen Akinsanya is a barrister who focuses on defence work in many areas of criminal law. He has a particular interest in defending young people acc...

Allan Hamilton in conversation with Roger Kneebone

03 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Professor Allan Hamilton is a neurosurgeon, radiation oncologist, author, academic, horse whisperer, television scriptwriter and pioneer in artificial...

Sharon Weldon in conversation with Roger Kneebone

20 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Sharon Weldon is Professor of Healthcare Simulation and Workforce Development at the University of Greenwich. After overcoming serious illness as a te...

Paul Jakeman in conversation with Roger Kneebone

06 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Paul Jakeman is a sculptor and stone carver, whose work ranges from creating new designs to restoring historic statues. He is also Stone Carving Tutor...

Thomas Schlich in conversation with Roger Kneebone

23 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Thomas Schlich is the James McGill Professor in the History of Medicine and Charie of the Department of Social Studies of Medicine at McGill Universit...

Annmarie Adams in conversation with Roger Kneebone

09 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Annmarie Adams is Stevenson Professor in the History and Philosophy of Science, including Medicine, at McGill University in Montreal. An architect and...

Nina Baker in conversation with Roger Kneebone

25 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Nina Baker was one of my first Countercurrent guests. In 2014 she described her varied career, from being the first female deck officer in the British...

Tony Webb in conversation with Roger Kneebone

11 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

After a five year apprenticeship as a wood and stone carver Bradford's (a leading London workshop) in the 1950s, Tony worked at the firm for fifteen y...

Misha Perouansky in conversation with Roger Kneebone

28 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Professor Misha Perouansky is a consultant anaesthetist and experimental neuroscientist in Madison WI, USA. He first took part in Countercurrent 2017...

Emma Barker in conversation with Roger Kneebone

14 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Emma Barker is an art historian and academic who teaches and researches at the Open University. She specialises in eighteenth-century French art an...

Anne Desmet in conversation with Roger Kneebone

30 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Anne Desmet RA is a distinguished wood engraver, print maker and Royal Academician. Fascinated by the idea of metamorphosis, her imaginative works oft...

Andrew George in conversation with Roger Kneebone

16 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The immunologist Andrew George is Professor Emeritus at Imperial College London. In addition to his immunological research, Andrew plays a leading rol...

Christopher Le Brun in conversation with Roger Kneebone

02 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Sir Christopher Le Brun PPRA is widely known as a painter, though he also works in other media. From 2011 until 2019 he was President of the Royal Aca...

Quassim Cassam in conversation with Roger Kneebone

19 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Quassim Cassam is professor of philosophy at the University of Warwick. He is well known for his work examining terrorism, political extremism, the pr...

Peter Openshaw in conversation with Roger Kneebone

05 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Peter Openshaw CBE is a respiratory physician and mucosal immunologist at Imperial College London, where he is Professor of Experimental Medicine at t...

Dan Dworkis in conversation with Roger Kneebone

22 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Dan Dworkis is a board-certified emergency physician and Adjunct Professor at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California....

Matt Bishop in conversation with Roger Kneebone

08 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Matt Bishop is a writer, journalist, novelist and communications expert with a lifelong passion for motor sport. In this podcast we explore his insigh...

Stephen Webster in conversation with Roger Kneebone

24 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Stephen Webster is a philosopher of science and developed the internationally renowned Masters in Science Communication at Imperial College London....

Geoff Grandfield in conversation with Roger Kneebone

10 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Geoff Grandfield is well known for his iconic book covers and illustrations, strongly influenced by film noir. His images, with their unconventional v...

Sheila Hayman in conversation with Roger Kneebone

27 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Sheila Hayman is a documentary film maker who has been exploring the relationship between people and technology for over forty years. In this conversa...

Simon Clarke in conversation with Roger Kneebone

13 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Simon Clarke is a consultant paediatric and neonatal surgeon and a professional actor. In this conversation we explore the similarities and difference...

John McMunn in conversation with Roger Kneebone

29 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

John McMunn fell in love with opera and performing at the age of ten. He studied at Harvard University before moving to England to become a Choral Sch...

Rob Sansom in conversation with Roger Kneebone

15 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Rob Sansom is an actor, Simulated Patient, house decorator and builder. In this conversation we explore how his work in these apparently unrelated wor...

Siobhan Davies in conversation with Roger Kneebone

01 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Dame Siobhan (Sue) Davies has had a long career in contemporary dance. Initially at the London Contemporary Dance Theatre, Sue established Siobhan Dav...

David Spiegelhalter in conversation with Roger Kneebone

18 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Professor Sir David Spiegelhalter was Winton Professor of the Public Understanding of Risk at the University of Cambridge until his recent retirement....

Lilli Cooper in conversation with Roger Kneebone

04 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

After completing her training in plastic surgery and as a professional coach, Lilli Cooper has expanded her interests to address issues around perfor...

Richard Horton in conversation with Roger Kneebone

19 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Richard Horton is the Editor-in-Chief of The Lancet. In this conversation he describes the challenges and excitement of being at the helm of one of...

Aristeidis Anagnostou in conversation with Roger Kneebone

05 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Aris has been fascinated by the human body for as long as he can remember. Early on he discovered a special aptitude for treating ill and injured peop...

Helen Anahita Wilson in conversation with Roger Kneebone

22 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Helen Anahita Wilson trained as a pianist and spent years performing contemporary compositions in the UK. She then became immersed in the complex rhyt...

Robert Lindsey in conversation with Roger Kneebone

08 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Robert Lindsey studied English Literature at Oxford University, where he completed PhD in Shakespeare studies and co-edited the Penguin edition of Chr...

Gareth Mitchell in conversation with Roger Kneebone

25 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Gareth Mitchell lectures in science communication at Imperial College London. For many years he presented the weekly technology programme Digital Plan...

Lord Robert Salisbury in conversation with Roger Kneebone

11 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 7th Marquess of Salisbury, has had a long career as a Conservative politician. He represented South Dorset in the House of Comm...

Andrew Grundon in conversation with Roger Kneebone

27 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Andrew Grundon is an artist who draws, paints and sculpts. He designs and paints traditional pub signs, makes marionettes and is writing and illustrat...

Jonathon Tomlinson in conversation with Roger Kneebone

13 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Jonathon Tomlinson has been a full-time GP in East London since 2001. He is fascinated by the challenges subtleties of the clinical consultation. H...

Abigail Bainbridge in conversation with Roger Kneebone

30 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Abigail Bainbridge is a book conservator and Director of Bainbridge Conservation. She teaches on many degree programmes, including at West Dean Colleg...

Allan Hamilton in conversation with Roger Kneebone

16 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Allan Hamilton holds four professorships at the University of Arizona College of Medicine - in neurosurgery, radiation oncology, psychology and electr...

Ishminder Mangat in conversation with Roger Kneebone

02 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Ishminder Mangat is a junior doctor based in Bristol. She is fascinated by exploring how clinical medicine and the arts can enrich and enlighten on...

Desiree Botana Machado in conversation with Roger Kneebone

18 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Desiree Botana Machado is a skilled prosector, preparing dissections of human cadavers for teaching medical students and surgeons. We discuss how her ...

James Eastaway in conversation with Roger Kneebone

04 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dr James Eastaway trained as a doctor while developing his career as a leading Baroque oboeist and working in experimental theatre. As a musician he p...

Joz Norris in conversation with Roger Kneebone

21 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Joz Norris is an award-winning writer, actor and comedian. We explore Joz's approach to his work in the world of comedy, and discuss how his absurdist...

Anna Detari in conversation with Roger Kneebone

07 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Hungarian musician Anna Detari studied the flute at the Liszt Institute in Budapest and developed a passion for performing contemporary compositio...

Angeliki McAllister in conversation with Roger Kneebone

24 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Miss Angeliki McAllister trained as a breast surgeon, initially focusing on procedures to remove cancers and refashion patients' breasts. Now she is d...

Simon Friend in conversation with Roger Kneebone

14 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Simon Friend retired from PwC in 2017 after 35 years with the company. His background in accountancy, auditing and business leadership has led to a ra...

Maiko Tsutsumi in conversation with Roger Kneebone

19 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Maiko Tsutsumi studied furniture making and Japanese lacquer work as an apprentice in her native Japan in the 1990s. After moving to London and studyi...

Tim Boon in conversation with Roger Kneebone

05 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Tim Boon is a historian of the public culture of science. In his long career at the Science Museum he has explored many aspects of public history rela...

Callum Thorpe in conversation with Roger Kneebone

22 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Callum Thorpe initially trained as a scientist, gaining a PhD in immunology from Imperial College London. He then trained as an opera singer and is no...

AJ West in conversation with Roger Kneebone

08 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

AJ West's career has been varied and at times controversial, and his interests are diverse. In addition to fifteen years as a television journalist an...

Ann Martin-Davis in conversation with Roger Kneebone

24 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Ann Martin-Davis is an award-winning pianist who performs as a soloist and chamber musician all over the world. In addition to her performing and reco...

Robert Peake in conversation with Roger Kneebone

10 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Robert Peake is Senior Associate at Next Action Associates. He studied at UC Berkeley in California, where he gained a degree in English Literature an...

Robert Kirby in conversation with Roger Kneebone

27 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Robert Kirby trained as an actor at Rose Bruford College. With support from The Prince's Trust he established People People, a company which brings te...

Paul Haidet in conversation with Roger Kneebone

13 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Paul Haidet's work crosses multiple boundaries. As Distinguished Professor in the Departments of Medicine, Public Health Sciences and Humanities at...

Sam Guglani in conversation with Roger Kneebone

27 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Sam Guglani and I explore how his work as an oncologist is interwoven with his lifelong fascination with writing and the arts. Sam describes how he...

Ana Silvera in conversation with Roger Kneebone

13 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Ana Silvera's work defies orthodox categories, spanning folk, jazz, pop, classical and many other traditions. In addition to her recordings she works ...

Ash Ranpura in conversation with Roger Kneebone

30 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Ash Ranpura's career has moved between experimental neuroscience, internal medicine, clinical neurology and hospital redesign. In this conversation we...

Miranda Lowe in conversation with Roger Kneebone

16 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As Principal Curator of Crustacea and Cnideria at the Natural History Museum, Miranda Lowe is responsible for the museum's vast collection of marine i...

Ian Skelly in conversation with Roger Kneebone

02 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Ian Skelly is a well-known music presenter on BBC Radio 3. A familiar voice at the BBC Proms, Ian has a wide range of interests including photography,...

Harry Collins in conversation with Roger Kneebone

19 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Harry Collins is Distinguished Research Professor at Cardiff University. For over forty years he has been writing on the sociology of gravitational wa...

Ananth Viswanathan in conversation with Roger Kneebone

05 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Vis specialises in the diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma, an eye disease where pressure on the optic nerve leads to impaired sight. As a surgeon he ...

Peter Randall-Page in conversation with Roger Kneebone

21 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Peter Randall-Page is internationally known for his carvings in stone, often at massive scale and in public places. He is fascinated by connections be...

Simon Blackburn in conversation with Roger Kneebone

07 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Mr Simon Blackburn's clinical work varies from operating on premature babies with congenital abnormalities to treating adolescents with surgical probl...

Monica Lalanda in conversation with Roger Kneebone

24 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Monica Lalanda spent much of her career as an emergency doctor. She has always had a passion for drawing and developed a parallel career as a graphic ...

Iain Burnside in conversation with Roger Kneebone

10 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Iain Burnside studied at Oxford University, the Royal Academy of Music and the Chopin Academy in Warsaw. As a freelance pianist, he specialises in son...

Hansjorg Schmidt in conversation with Roger Kneebone

26 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Hansjorg Schmidt heads the MA Light in Performance programme at Rose Bruford College in London. In this conversation he explains how he uses light whe...

Austin O'Carroll in conversation with Roger Kneebone

12 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Austin O'Carroll spends much of his time working with homeless and marginalised people in Dublin, where he founded Safetynet (an organisation designed...

James Taylor in conversation with Roger Kneebone

29 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As a professional keynote speaker, James Taylor is a skilled performer who works with audiences across the world. His Supercreativity podcast features...

Tim Weekes in conversation with Roger Kneebone

15 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Tim Weekes has wide experience in the world of pre-hospital care. Trained as an Emergency Medical Technician and solo responder, his degree course as ...

Jeff Bezemer in conversation with Roger Kneebone

01 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Jeff Bezemer and I discuss our collaboration aimed at making sense of the operating theatre as a pedagogic space. Jeff's background in applied linguis...

Onora O'Neill in conversation with Roger Kneebone

18 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The moral philosopher Onora O'Neill (Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve) has a longstanding fascination with trustworthiness. She has explored these ideas e...

Luke Delmas in conversation with Roger Kneebone

04 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As a postdoctoral synthetic chemist, Luke Delmas is fascinated by the challenges of conducting experimental work and teaching students the skills of t...

Sarah Whatley in conversation with Roger Kneebone

20 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Sarah Whatley trained as a dancer. She has a longstanding interest in how dance and choreography intersect with ways of thinking about movement in oth...

Anna Batistatou in conversation with Roger Kneebone

06 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Anna Batistatou specialises in the pathology of cancer and is interested in issues of perception, cognition and communication. In this podcast we expl...

Nina Baker in conversation with Roger Kneebone

01 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Even as a child, Nina Baker was unorthodox. In her first career, she became the first female navigating officer in the British Merchant Navy. After se...

kavanagh

27 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Johnny Messum in conversation with Roger Kneebone

23 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Johnny Messum has a background in art history. In 2016 he established Messums Wiltshire, a multi-purpose gallery and arts centre in a converted 13th c...

Kishor Gulabivala in conversation with Roger Kneebone

09 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Kishor Gulabivala specialises in endodontics and restorative dentistry. His work requires him to integrate different forms of perception and intervent...

Alex Auerbach in conversation with Roger Kneebone

25 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Alex Auerbach is sport psychologist and Director of Wellness and Development for the Toronto Raptors, an elite basketball team based in Canada. In thi...

Mills

19 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas