Podcast · Tech & Science

Best Medicine

by BBC Radio 4 · English · Tech & Science

Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by funny and fascinating comedians, doctors, scientists, and historians to celebrate medicine's inspiring past, present and future. In each programme, Kiri challenges her guests to make a case for what they think is 'the best medicine', and each

New episodes: Weekly
Typical length: 29 min
Latest: 2 Sep 2026
Language: English

Latest episode

2 Sep 2026 · 28 min

6 - Team Sports, Making Sense, Pet Dog Blood Donors, Board Games

Joining Kiri Pritchard-McLean this week is comedian Josh Pugh who makes the case for the life lessons learnt in Team Sports. Professor Julia Simner explores how our senses shape reality and talks to Kiri about a new pair of AI glasses that are helping people with dementia, Veterinary Ophthalmologist Dr Serena Maini champions the dogs helping to save other dogs' lives through blood donation, and writer Tim Clare rolls the dice for Board Games. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by a funny and…

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Earlier episodes 25 most recent

26 Aug 2026 · 29 min
5 - Seaweed Underwear, Bubbles, Saunas
Joining Kiri Pritchard-McLean this week is entrepreneur Alex Perry who champions seaweed underwear inspired by a personal mission to improve women's health. Professor Eleanor Stride returns with bubbles (again) in the fight against everything from cancer to antimicrobial resistance, and comedian Kate Cheka turns up the heat in defence of saunas. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by a funny and fascinating panel of comedians, doctors, scientists, experts and historians to celebrate medicine's…
19 Aug 2026 · 29 min
4 - Fighting, Gene Therapy for Huntington’s Disease, Plants
Joining Kiri Pritchard-McLean this week is comedian Stephen Bailey who explains how fighting transformed his confidence. Professor Ed Wild shares a groundbreaking gene therapy that can treat Huntington's disease for the first time, and Professor Alessandra Devoto explores how plants like basil could help unlock future treatments for liver fibrosis. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by a funny and fascinating panel of comedians, doctors, scientists, experts and historians to celebrate medicine's…
12 Aug 2026 · 29 min
3 - Horses, Breaking Bad News, Reels
Joining Kiri Pritchard-McLean this week is CEO and Founder of Devon Healing Horsemanship Louise Broadway, who champions how horses can help people for whom talking therapies haven’t worked. Intensive Care Doctor Matt Morgan argues there's more to Breaking Bad News than simply delivering it, and comedian Mel Owen shares how Instagram Reels helped lead her to not one but two life-changing diagnoses. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by a funny and fascinating panel of comedians, doctors,…
5 Aug 2026 · 29 min
2 - Reformer Pilates, Persistence, Free Flaps
Joining Kiri Pritchard-McLean this week is comedian Jamie MacDonald who stretches the limits with Reformer Pilates, married couple Dr Lindsey Fitzharris and Adrian Teal who pitch the power of Persistence, and Wing Commander Poonam Valand who has Kiri in stitches with surgical Free Flaps. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by a funny and fascinating panel of comedians, doctors, scientists, experts and historians to celebrate medicine's inspiring past, present and future. Each week Kiri challenges…
29 Jul 2026 · 29 min
1 - Rubbish, Home Births, Collaboration
Joining Kiri Pritchard-McLean this week is comedian Michelle Wolf who reflects on home births, Professor Stephen Wallace explains how old plastic bottles can be transformed into a form of Dopamine that can be used to treat Parkinson’s disease, and Dr Matt Clarke from the Institute of Cancer Research and Great Ormond St Hospital demonstrates the power of medical collaboration in helping to identify and treat brain tumours. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by a funny and fascinating panel of…
24 Dec 2024 · 41 min
7. Bonus Episode - Extra Dose
Right, roll up your sleeve, it’s time for an extra dose of Best Medicine! This is a special episode of unheard bits that couldn’t be squeezed into Series 2, featuring more fascinating medical insights, extended bits and a whole Petri dish of jokes – some more cultured than others. Laura Smyth shares more on sleep, Zoe Lyons delves into transplants and Dr Lindsey Fitzharris takes Kiri through more weird ritualistic historical medical practices. Dr Matt Morgan talks about the time he stripped naked and covered himself in honey in the name of science, Daliso Chaponda is still in denial about…
24 Dec 2024 · 29 min
6. Pain Management, Organoids, Prosthetic Leg Covers
Joining Kiri this week is comedian Desiree Burch who explains the best ways to cope with pain following surgery. Dr Abdullah Khan engineers mini versions of human organs in a dish to enable more effective testing of new medical treatments, and Mark Williams shows off personalised prosthetic legs clad in anything from gold and flames to beer and the Welsh Flag. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by a funny and fascinating panel of comedians, doctors, scientists, and historians to celebrate…
17 Dec 2024 · 29 min
5. Books, Poetry, Scandal, Writing
Joining Kiri this week in a literary special recorded at the Hay Festival is comedian Ignacio Lopez who heals family wounds through writing. Dr Paul Craddock explains how one of the most prestigious medical journals started as a scandal magazine, Miss Shabnam Parkar shares how poetry helps her perform surgery, and Professor Neil Frude walks Kiri through library bookshelves for mental health treatments. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by a funny and fascinating panel of comedians, doctors,…
10 Dec 2024 · 29 min
4. CAR T-cells, Ritual, Water, Crying
Joining Kiri this week are Dr Claire Roddie who retrains cells to fight cancer using revolutionary, game-changing CAR T-cell therapy, and comedian Fatiha El-Ghorri who finds spiritual healing in water. Dr Lindsey Fitzharris takes comfort in rituals both historical and present-day to help her remember her grandmother Dorothy Sissors, and Rev Benjamin Perry explains how crying can be the best medicine. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by a funny and fascinating panel of comedians, doctors,…
3 Dec 2024 · 29 min
3. Sleep, FMTs, Dr Charles Drew, Stem Cell Transplantation
Joining Kiri this week is comedian Laura Smyth who discovered the importance of sleep as she underwent cancer treatment. Historian Subhadra Das celebrates the incredible medical pioneer of blood transfusion Dr Charles Drew, Professor Lindsay Hall uses golden poo donors to cure serious infections, and Professor Nicholas Embleton’s life is saved by a stem cell transplant. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by a funny and fascinating panel of comedians, doctors, scientists, and historians to…
26 Nov 2024 · 29 min
2. Sweating In Nature, Animals, Transplantation, Horticulture
Joining Kiri this week at the Hay Festival is comedian Zoe Lyons who tells Kiri how running helps with the stress associated with her alopecia - and how she survived getting rammed by a badger. Dr Matt Morgan explains how kangaroo vaginas held the key to developing IVF and whales’ hearts inspired new heart treatments for humans, Dr Fotios Sampaziotis unveils innovative new treatments that could repair livers before a transplant is needed, and ethnobotanist James Wong unearths the benefits of horticulture and how it can benefit health and bring hope. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of…
19 Nov 2024 · 29 min
1. MV140, Origami Surgical Capsules, Denial, Defibrillators
Joining Kiri Pritchard-McLean this week is comedian Daliso Chaponda who champions Denial as the best medicine (or does he?). Urology Consultant Mr Bob Yang explains how a pineapple-flavoured UTI vaccine is changing lives, Dr Dana Damian takes Kiri on a journey through the body with tiny swallowable Origami Surgical Robots, and paramedic Thomas Martin teaches Kiri how to stay alive with Defibrillators. And the panel hear from David, one of the few people in the world who can claim he was brought back from clinical death with a defibrillator - and has also watched the whole incident on video.…
12 Nov 2024 · 1 min
Best Medicine: Series 2 - time for your second dose!
It's time for your second dose of Best Medicine! Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by a funny and fascinating panel of comedians, doctors, scientists, and historians to celebrate medicine’s inspiring past, present and future. Each week Kiri challenges her guests to make a case for what they think is 'the best medicine', and each of them champions anything from world-changing science or an obscure invention, to an every-day treatment, an uplifting worldview, an unsung hero or a futuristic cure. Whether it’s futuristic origami surgical robots, life-changing pineapple UTI…
12 Dec 2023 · 29 min
10. Epidurals, Embroidery, Play, Death
Joining Kiri this week are historian Dr Paul Craddock who unravels how vascular surgery owes a debt to 19th century Parisian embroiderer Marie-Anne Leroudier, historian Subhadra Das unearthing stories of death prevention, comedian Ria Lina pushing epidurals as the best medicine, and paediatrician Dr Guddi Singh who shows off with play. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by funny and fascinating comedians, doctors, scientists and historians to celebrate medicine’s inspiring past, present and…
5 Dec 2023 · 29 min
9. Autopsies, Light, Escapism, Henrietta Lacks
Joining Kiri this week is a druid, a drag queen and a mortician...it's one man, Kristoffer Hughes, who puts forward the autopsy as the best medicine. Professor Olivette Otele tells us the tale of Henrietta Lacks, an extraordinary woman whose so called 'immortal cells' have saved countless lives, movie reviewer Ali Plumb talks about the importance of escapism and shares his own story of recovery through movies, TV, art and culture, and Professor Anil Seth sheds a light on...light. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri…
28 Nov 2023 · 29 min
8. Doing Less, Gardening, The Smartphone, Expertise
Joining Kiri are historian Dr Paul Craddock who talks about what gardening and skin grafting have in common, comedian Shaparak Khorsandi who tells us how doing less helps manage her ADHD, Professor Roger Kneebone who explains how puppeteers, fighter pilots and chefs can teach surgeons to become more skilful and Professor Jamie Ward, who reveals how the smartphone can allow people see through their tongues and hear colours. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by funny and fascinating comedians,…
21 Nov 2023 · 29 min
7. Failure, Detection, Herpes, Climate Change
Joining Kiri this week are Dr Lindsey Fitzharris who brings with her a Victorian clockwork surgical saw to demonstrate why failure can sometimes be the best medicine, while Professor Kevin Harrington explains how he uses molecular scissors to modify the herpes virus to attack cancer cells. We also hear from his patient Nigel who went from palliative care to cancer-free. Dr Aravinthan Varatharaj talks about playing detective when diagnosing neurological diseases, and comedian Dr Matt Winning says doing something about climate change is the best medicine. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of…
14 Nov 2023 · 29 min
6. CT Scans, Inhalation, Faith, Attention
Joining Kiri this week are Reverend Kate Bottley who offers up faith as the Best Medicine, Dr Subarna Chakravorty and John James OBE who team up to talk about sickle cell, comedian Ria Lina who wants everyone to get a CT scan, and historian Caroline Rance debunking dodgy inhalation practices throughout history. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by funny and fascinating comedians, doctors, scientists and historians to celebrate medicine’s inspiring past, present and future. Each week, Kiri…
7 Nov 2023 · 28 min
5. Laughter, Other People, Inclusion, Tissue Engineering
This week comedian Nabil Abdulrashid tells us how laughter and comedy reduced the levels of violence in prison, heart surgeon Professor Massimo Caputo describes how he used tissue engineering in a world-first life-saving heart operation, neuroscientist Dr Adam Kampff brings us an incredible insight into the human brain by taking us from rats that play video games to the birth of language and human civilisation, and historian Phillipa Vincent-Connolly transports us back to Henry VIII's court to explore the lives of disabled courtiers. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and…
31 Oct 2023 · 29 min
4. Surgical Microrobots, Backlash, The Immune System, Keeping an Open Mind
Joining Kiri this week are Dr Christos Bergeles demonstrating surgical micro-robots that can transport the surgeon to areas of the body that are normally impossible to operate on, historian Dr Elinor Cleghorn champions Backlash by bringing us the tale of Victorian medical hero Mary Putnam Jacobi, Professor Daniel Davis explores the beauty of the immune system, and comedian Sukh Ojla tells us to keep an open mind. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by funny and fascinating comedians, doctors,…
24 Oct 2023 · 28 min
3. Breast Medicine
Joining Kiri are friend of the show historian Dr Lindsey Fitzharris who shares her own breast cancer recovery story with a detour via Victorian breast cancer surgery. Comedian Jordan Gray champions boob jobs, Sarah Kerruish unveils the life-saving power of AI with MIA, an algorithm that can read 80,000 mammograms in a weekend, and Dr Samantha Terry puts forward a case for injectable radioactive therapies that can destroy cancer cells you can't even see. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by funny…
17 Oct 2023 · 28 min
2. Cytosponge, Fresh Air, Showmanship, Alkaline Breathing
Joining Kiri this week are Professor Rebecca Fitzgerald OBE who demonstrates the Cytosponge test which detects throat cancer with a revolutionary pill on a string, Dr Jack Hartnell brings tales of surgical showmanship from the middle ages, comedian Thanyia Moore extols the virtues of Alkaline Breathing, and Dr Tolullah Oni explains how you treat an entire city like a patient. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by funny and fascinating comedians, doctors, scientists and historians to celebrate…
10 Oct 2023 · 29 min
1. Sobriety, Touch, Camellia Sinensis, Trust
Joining Kiri this week are haptic technology specialist Dr Ally Barrow with the power of touch and a demonstration of virtual reality injections, mental health nurse Ed Freshwater speaks about a powerful treatment for mental illness, journalist and broadcaster Seyi Rhodes explores what happens when trust is lost in medicine, and comedian Felicity Ward offers sobriety as her best medicine. Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by funny and fascinating comedians, doctors, scientists and historians to…
3 Oct 2023 · 29 min
Pilot: Bubbles, Dancing, Masks, GoodSAM
Joining Kiri this week are medical historian Dr Lindsey Fitzharris with the story of the pioneering World War I surgeon who transformed wounded soldiers faces, comedian Darren Harriott and his love of dancing, biomedical engineer Professor Eleanor Stride with cancer curing micro bubbles, brain surgeon Professor Mark Wilson with the GoodSAM app that can summon a first-aider at the touch of a button, and the man who owes his life to it. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by funny and fascinating comedians, doctors, scientists, and historians to celebrate medicine’s…
26 Sep 2023 · 3 min
Introducing Best Medicine
Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by funny and fascinating comedians, doctors, scientists and historians to celebrate medicine’s inspiring past, present and future.

About Best Medicine

Best Medicine is a English tech & science podcast from BBC Radio 4. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.

Publisher: BBC Radio 4
Language: English
Category: Tech & Science
New episodes: Weekly
Typical length: 29 min
Latest episode: 2 Sep 2026
Feed: RSS — paste into any podcast app
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1709100207
Rights: (C) BBC 2026

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