ScienceSociety & Culture

Countercurrent: conversations with Professor Roger Kneebone

Professor Roger Kneebone

A podcast for people who like the unexpected. Join the surgeon and academic Professor Roger Kneebone in conversation with unorthodox people whose careers defy traditional boundaries and who swim against the tide.

Technical support by Justin Margovan - with my thanks

My personal website www.rogerkneebone.co.uk
Many of the people in Countercurrent feature in my book Expert: Understanding the Path to Mastery (Penguin Viking, 2020)

https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/313/313248/expert/9780241392058.html

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23 episodes
fortnightly
Avg 1 hr 22 min
English

Episodes 23

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October 1 · 1 hr 5 min
Lord Robert Salisbury in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 7th Marquess of Salisbury, has had a long career as a Conservative politician. He represented South Dorset in the House of Commons from 1979-1987. He was a junior defence minister for two years before being appointed to the House of Lords as Lord Cranborne after the 1992 general election. In the 1990s he was Leader of the House of Lords, from which he retired in 2017. His home is Hatfield House in Hertfordshire. This conversation was recorded in early November 2023, before David Cameron was appointed Foreign Secretary by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
September 27 · 1 hr 33 min
Mariá José Frápolli in conversation with Roger Kneebone
The philosopher María José Frápolli is Professor of Logic and Philosophy of Science at the University of Granada. Maria has held many senior roles, including professorships at major universities in the UK and Europe. In this podcast we explore the nature of her work and discuss the challenges of explaining the nature of philosophy and philosophical research to those outside the field.
September 16 · 1 hr 20 min
Lauren Petritz-Watts in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Lieutenant Colonel Lauren Petritz-Watts is Principal Director of Music (Army) - the most senior position in this branch of the Army. In this podcast we explore the many aspects of Lauren's current role, her experience as a commissioned officer, the unique characteristics of Army music and her experience as the first woman to be appointed to her current position. Lauren describes the key role of music in the Army, from regular formal ceremonies such as Trooping the Colour to special state occasions and overseas visits. We also discuss her personal journey within a system which offers both opportunities and challenges.
August 31 · 1 hr 1 min
Tim Goode in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Tim Goode is Residentiary Canon at York Minster. In this podcast we explore how his own experience of disability has shaped his role in the Anglican church, and discuss the ideas in his recent book Breaking Not Broken. https://scmpress.hymnsam.co.uk/books/9780334063162/breaking-not-broken
August 17 · 1 hr 42 min
Sebastian Kraemer in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Sebastian Kraemer is a child and adolescent psychiatrist. His first degree was in philosophy. He then qualified in medicine before specialising - first in paediatrics (in Glasgow, Manchester and London) and then in psychiatry (at the Maudsley Hospital and the Tavistock Clinic in London). His current work explores how people can work together effectively, despite profound disagreement and even hostility. He is especially interested in attachment as a basic drive. In this podcast we discuss many aspects of his long professional career and explore similarities and differences between our experiences. https://www.sebastiankraemer.com https://www.karnacbooks.com/product/how-do-we-even-talk-about-palestine-and-israel-one-group/98411/
August 3 · 1 hr 13 min
Andy Stirling in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Andy Stirling is emeritus professor in the Science Policy Research Unit at the University of Sussex. His many interests centre around issues of uncertainty, diversity and power in science and technology. Andy has played a leading role in many project areas, including social justice, democratic politics and respect for the natural world. In the 1980s he was a volunteer with Greenpeace and took part in campaigns around nuclear disarmament and energy challenges. https://profiles.sussex.ac.uk/p7513-andrew-stirling
July 20 · 1 hr
John Law in conversation with Roger Kneebone
John Law is a pianist and composer who works across multiple genres. Initially trained as a classical musician, he studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London. In his early twenties he discovered jazz and improvisational performing and changed the direction of his career. He has recorded over fifty albums and played with a wide range of leading artists. I've followed his work for many years and have heard him play on several occasions, most recently as part of a quartet led by the saxophonist Jon Lloyd. http://www.johnlaw.org.uk https://jonlloydmusic.com/jon-lloyd-quartet
July 6 · 1 hr 11 min
Andrew McPherson in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Professor Andrew McPherson, Chair in Design Engineering and Music at the Dyson School of Design Engineering at Imperial College London. He has undergraduate degrees in engineering and music from MIT, a Masters in Engineering in electrical engineering from MIT and a PhD in music composition from the University of Pennsylvania. Andrew has designed many unconventional musical instruments, including an augmented magnetic resonator piano and TouchKeys which give pianists new kinds of expressive control over the sounds they create. In this podcast we explore the many strands of his career and the way in which his interests intersect. https://andrewmcpherson.org/bio
June 22 · 1 hr 34 min
Simon Wallace in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Simon Wallace is a pianist, composer and record producer. As a performer he collaborates with many other jazz musicians, including the singer Sarah Moule. He is a prolific composer and for nearly twenty years wrote songs with the late American lyricist Fran Landesman. He has also written for a wide range of TV shows in collaboration with Simon Brint, and for the National Theatre, Young Vic and Edinburgh Festival. I first met Simon several years ago, when he appeared at the Pheasantry in London with the singer Pete Atkin (a previous guest on Countercurrent), performing songs written by Atkin during his decades-long collaboration with the late Clive James. https://www.simonwallace.org
June 8 · 1 hr 28 min
Finn Macpherson in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Finn Macpherson is race engineer at Hitech Grand Prix. An engineer by background, Finn has coached promising young racing drivers from their early experiences of go-karting up the motor racing pyramid with single-seater open-wheeled cars to F2 level. In this conversation we explore how mechanical and human perspectives come together in Finn's work.
May 25 · 1 hr 33 min
David Gordon in conversation with Roger Kneebone
David Gordon is a composer, harpsichordist, jazz pianist, improviser, teacher and much else besides. He has played with many of the world's leading musicians in a wide range of genres, was the harpsichordist of The English Concert, is the pianist in the London Tango Quintet and leads the David Gordon jazz trio. In this conversation we explore many aspects of his work, including ideas around improvisation, risk and jeopardy in performing. https://www.davidmusicgordon.com https://londontangoquintet.com/david-gordon/
May 11 · 58 min
Gary Bridgewood in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Gary Bridgewood has been making and restoring stringed instruments for over forty years - from violins and cellos to historic instruments such as the viola da gamba. In this podcast he describes his training at the London College of Furniture, followed by his partnership with the lute maker Tom Neitzert in establishing Bridgewood & Neitzert in 1982. We explore the complex nature of his work, which combines the highest level of craftsmanship and technical mastery with his attention to each customer's individual needs. https://bridgewoodandneitzert.london
April 27 · 1 hr 38 min
Antranig Basman in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Dr Antranig Basman is a mathematician and computer scientist who studied at Cambridge University. After completing a PhD in Computer Vision at the Cambridge University Engineering Department's Machine Intelligence Laboratory he spent five years as Visiting Scholar at the University of Colorado at Boulder. In this podcast we discuss Antranig's many interests and avenues of work, especially around pressing societal challenges which exclude the perspectives of marginalised groups. Now he is based in London and works on a range of community-oriented projects with colleagues across the world. https://ponder.org.uk
April 13 · 1 hr 23 min
Geoff Brown in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Geoff Brown is Education Services Coordinator at Middle Temple, one of the four Inns of Court in central London. He trained as an actor before moving to the world of the law and now has a particular interest in advocacy training for those at the start of a legal career - especially the Moot. In this conversation we explore Geoff's many skills and interests, including improv theatre and stand-up comedy.
March 30 · 2 hr 5 min
Lucy Skilbeck in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Lucy Skilbeck studied drama in Australia before coming to the UK in the 1980s and establishing herself as a director and teacher. For ten years she was Director of Actor Training at RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Art) in London. She is also Founder and Director of Being With Horses, where she offers equine-facilitated actor training and coaching. In this extended (2 hour) conversation we explore how her work in the theatre and with horses intersects with my own experiences in clinical practice and academia. https://www.rada.ac.uk/about-us/acting-teaching-staff/lucy-skilbeck/ https://beingwithhorses.co.uk
March 16 · 1 hr 20 min
Angus McCullough KC in conversation with Roger Kneebone
The distinguished barrister Angus McCullough KC has over 35 years of experience in public and private law. He has played a prominent role in many high profile cases - such as the phone hacking trial with Rebekah Brooks and proceedings against Stephen Yaxley-Lennon (otherwise known as Tommy Robinson). Alongside his work as a barrister he has recently been appointed as a part-time judge of the Courts of Appeal in Jersey and Guernsey. Angus has many other interests, especially concerning the natural world. He is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and he keeps bees. https://www.1cor.com/london/barristers/angus-mccullough-kc/
March 2 · 1 hr 33 min
Hamish Brown in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Hamish Brown is a pianist, composer and arranger with many strings to his bow. I first encountered Hamish in his capacity as collaborative pianist during a teaching session for Masters students in conducting at the Royal College of Music, where he is a staff accompanist. Hamish has collaborated with many leading singers as well as performing as a soloist across the world and as an orchestral keyboard player. His work spans multiple genres, including classical, jazz, musical theatre and choral work. http://hamishbrown.org/biography
February 23 · 1 hr 14 min
Nick Gold in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Nick Gold is managing director of the speaker bureau Speakers Corner. He works with clients to provide suitable speakers for corporate events and other gatherings, drawing on his extensive panel of contributors. In this podcast we discuss parallels with other kinds of live performing, including clinical consultations and scientific presentations at conferences. https://www.speakerscorner.co.uk/meet-the-team/nick-gold
February 9 · 1 hr 38 min
David Juritz in conversation with Roger Kneebone
David Juritz started playing the violin at the age of five. After winning the Royal College of Music's top award he joined the English Chamber Orchestra before becoming the Leader of the London Mozart Players - a role he held for seventeen years. He is well known for his recordings, including Bach's Sonatas and Partitas for unaccompanied violin and Vivaldi's Four Seasons, and for his work with the London Tango Quintet. His recording of Bach's Goldberg Variations, transcribed for violin, guitar and cello, was released in 2021. In this conversation we explore the many intersecting strands of his professional career. https://davidjuritz.com/biography/
January 26 · 59 min
Rob Ryan in conversation with Roger Kneebone
Rob Ryan studied Fine Art at Trent Polytechnic and specialised in printmaking at the Royal College of Art in London. For many years he has worked from his London studio. He has written and illustrated several books and he is particularly well known for his papercuts, which are instantly recognisable. In this conversation we explore the process by which he creates and executes his designs. https://robryanstudio.com/about/ https://shop.robryanstudio.com

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