The British Institute of Radiology has stood the test of time over the past 125 years but why does it continue to thrive at the heart of the imaging and radiation oncology community?
Watch Dr Adrian Thomas, BIR Honorary Historian and radiologist in conversation with Dr Emily Grossman, Science Educator and bestselling author, unpick what is so unique about the BIR and why people all over the world are passionate about this special society.
They will explore why the original ethos of its founders is so important today and discover some of the important men (and women) in the early days of the Institute. Take yourself back to the late Victorian era when seeing inside the body was an extraordinary concept, when using radiation to cure disease was just a dream but the principle of scientists and clinicians working together was a clear ethos and vision for this unique institution which continues today.
This video will appeal to all professions in the imaging and radiation oncology at all stages of their career, to diehard BIR fans and to those who are new to our community.
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Duration:59 mins
Speaker info
Prof Adrian Thomas
Dr Adrian Thomas Adrian started training in radiology at Hammersmith Hospital in 1981, and was encouraged to join the BIR by Robert Steiner who had been President in 1972–73. Adrian has now been a member of the Institute for 41 years and was Honorary Secretary (Medical) from 1999-2005. He became interested in the library and archives, and has Honorary Librarian and then Honorary Historian since 2005. Adrian was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal of the BIR in 2006 and the Fellowship in 2007. In 2016 Adrian was awarded the Freedom of the City of London. He is a visiting professor at Canterbury Christ Church University. Adrian has presented and written a great deal on the history of radiology. With some friends (including the BIR past-president Liz Beckmann) he was involved in the biography of Godfrey Hounsfield: Intuitive Genius of CT . Godfrey was an active member of the Institute. More recently, with Francis Duck, Adrian co-authored a biography of Edith and Florence Stoney, Sisters in Radiology (Springer Biographies) . The Stoney sisters were early members of the BIR, and Florence was President of the Wessex Branch. With BIR member Arpan Banerjee Adrian has written The History of Radiology (Oxford Medical Histories) (2013). Adrian is always keen to discuss the history of radiology and had a good time showing Michael Portillo around the old Royal London Hospital appearing in Portillo's Hidden History of Britain (2018). Adrian had given advice to many, helping in The Theory of Everything (2014) and The Danish Girl (2015), both starring Eddie Redmayne. His new book on radiology history Invisible Light will appear in Spring 2022, and he is currently working with a friend on a biography of Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen whose centenary is in 2023.Dr Emily Grossman
Dr Emily Grossman is a bestselling science author, internationally acclaimed public speaker and much-loved TV personality, with a Double First in Natural Sciences from Cambridge University and a PhD in Cancer Research. She is best known as a Resident Science Expert on ITV’s The Alan Titchmarsh Show and Sky1’s Duck Quacks Don’t Echo and for delivering hundreds of inspirational talks in schools, universities and at live events - as well as a TEDx talk on Why Science Needs People Who Cry and numerous media interviews. Emily the author of Emergency on Planet Earth, a critically acclaimed, free, easy-to-read online guide to the climate and ecological crisis, Brain-Fizzing Facts: Awesome Science Questions Answered (shortlisted for the Teach Primary Book Awards 2020), Meet the Microbes!; The Tiny Living Things That Mould Our World, and the Amazon #1 Bestseller World-Whizzing Facts: Awesome Earth Questions Answered, which helps young people understand what’s going on on our planet and how they can help. In 2018 Emily was named as the second Honorary STEM Ambassador, alongside astronaut Tim Peake, for her pioneering work in STEM education and as a role model to young people.