The Infinite Monkey Cage

Bird and bat droppings might not sound precious, but guano was once so prized it shaped agriculture, trade and even warfare. Professor Adam Rutherford and Jessica Fostekew explore the surprising story of this pongy but remarkable substance, joined by ecologist Kate Jones, ornithologist Tim Birkhead and comedian Zoe Lyons.
From vast seabird colonies off the coast of Peru to bat-filled caves in the tropics, they discover how guano became one of humanity's most valuable natural resources, powering farming booms, helping to drive the production of gunpowder and sustaining entire ecosystems. Along the way they uncover why seagulls may be as dastardly as they seem with their targeted 'drops', what scientists can learn from ancient 'poo cores' and whether it's weird to have never spotted a bat. Most importantly, they discover why nature's least glamorous resource may be one of its most important.
Producer: Mel Brown
A BBC Studios Production

We walk on them, rake them up, often barely give them a thought, but the humble leaf is an extraordinary feat of biological engineering. Adam Rutherford and Jessica Fostekew are joined plant scientist Tracy Lawson, biologist Jonathan Silvertown, and comedian Alex Kealy to uncover the hidden ingenuity of leaves. They explore how leaves evolved, why plants face a constant battle between thirst and starvation, and whether understanding their clever adaptations could help us engineer crops for a hotter, drier future.
Producer: Mel Brown
A BBC Studios Production

Things that go bump in the night meet the cold light of science as Jessica Fostekew and Prof Adam Rutherford investigate why ghosts continue to haunt our imaginations. Joining them for some spooky science are psychologists Chris French and Ciaran O'Keeffe, comedian Isy Suttie and actor and co-creator of Ghosts Laurence Rickard. From sleep paralysis and haunted houses to séances, paranormal investigations and the power of suggestion, they ask why people see and sense things that aren't there, what makes somewhere feel haunted, and whether science can explain our strangest ghostly encounters. So dim the lights and enter the monkey cage....if you dare!

Jessica Fostekew and Adam Rutherford tackle one of the biggest and strangest questions in science: what is nothing? Starting with the earliest philosophers and journeying through to today's cutting-edge experiments, they ask whether true nothingness can ever exist.
Joining them to explore one of science's most perplexing and important questions are physicists Harry Cliff and Yvette Fuentes, alongside comedians Hugh Dennis and Ria Lina. Together, they uncover why vacuums are far from empty, how the concept of nothing transformed science, and what the nature of absence can tell us about the origins and fate of the universe.
Along the way, they delve into philosophical debates about the void, discover how scientists measure and define "nothing", and explore why the empty spaces between stars may be more active than they appear. They also role-play as positrons, deliberate over badgers, and learn that geckos harness quantum effects in unexpected ways. Our panel reveal that there is, perhaps surprisingly, rather a lot to say about nothing at all.
Producer: Mel Brown
A BBC Studios Production

The Infinite Monkey Cage returns for a brand-new series, with Professor Adam Rutherford and comedian Jessica Fostekew swinging into the cage as guest presenters. In this first episode, they find out who were the very first people to land on the British Isles… if they even were Isles at all.
Joined by anthropologist Professor Chris Stringer, geneticist Dr Selina Brace and comedian Tim Minchin, they learn that our British ancestors got to hang out with hippopotamuses, uncover what ancient DNA can tell us about man’s earliest best friends, and discover that some Homo sapiens became more than just friends with our Neanderthal cousins... The panel also gets to the bottom of some of the most pressing scientific debates: like if Cheddar Man was really a looker and whether the Brits have always had bad teeth.
Producer: Mel Brown
A BBC Studios Production