Laura 'laughs in the face of Death' as part of milestone show for BBC

22 Sep 2023

A University of Winchester academic was part of a broadcasting milestone this week.

Professor Laura Hubner from the School of Media and Film was one of the panel of experts on the 1000th episode of Melvyn Bragg’s popular BBC Radio 4 programme In Our Time.

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Laura, an expert in Scandinavian cinema, was on to discuss The Seventh Seal – Ingmar Bergman’s classic 1957 film fantasy, famous for its scenes in which a knight plays out a chess match with Death (pictured).

Jan Holmberg, Director of the Ingmar Bergman Foundation, Stockholm and Claire Thomson, Professor of Cinema History and Director of the School of European Languages, Culture and Society at University College London, joined Laura and Melvyn for the discussion in the programme's notoriously tiny studio.

Laura said: "It was a great honour to work closely with Melvyn, Claire and Jan on this special edition. The research team were excellent, and the Producer, Simon Tillotson, was an inspiration throughout. It was also great to have a few laughs in the face of Death!"

In Our Time has been running for 26 years – most of that time in its regular 9am Thursday slot – exploring a different historical, scientific, cultural or philosophical topic each week.

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The show, which regularly attracts two million listeners, became the BBC’s first podcast in 2004.

Melvyn (pictured above) has attributed its success and longevity to the quality of the academics chosen to share their expertise.

Listen to the latest episode of In Our Time can on BBC Sounds.

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