Made of Stronger Stuff

Psychologist Kimberley Wilson and Dr Xand van Tulleken take a journey around the human body, to find out what it can tell us about our innate capacity for change.

In this episode, Kimberley and Xand zoom in on the appendix, long written off as a useless body part. But new research reveals that this worm-shaped part of our digestive system can actually tell us a lot about human evolution, and the relationship between brain and body.

Xand and Kimberley find out the surprising truth about what the appendix actually does, hear how it might be implicated in neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease, and peep behind the curtains of a nightmare appendectomy.

Producer: Dan Hardoon

Psychologist Kimberley Wilson and Dr Xand van Tulleken take a journey around the human body, to find out what it can tell us about our innate capacity for change. In this episode, Kimberley and Xand focus on the heart, which has been branded the seat of emotion by generations of poets and songwriters.

They find out whether it’s medically possible to die from a broken heart, hear from a woman who lived for 16 months without a human heart, and Xand opens up about how Long Covid is affecting his heart.

Producer: Dan Hardoon

Psychologist Kimberley Wilson and Dr Xand van Tulleken take a journey around the human body, to find out what it can tell us about our innate capacity for change. In this episode, Kimberley and Xand pull their shoulders back and examine the spine.

They debunk some myths about contortionists’ spines, ask whether standing tall can really improve your confidence, and explore how we can change our relationship with pain.

Producer: Dan Hardoon

Psychologist Kimberley Wilson and Dr Xand van Tulleken take a journey around the human body, to find out what it can tell us about our innate capacity for change. In this episode, Kimberley and Xand take a deep breath and explore the lungs.

They’re taught how to belly breathe by a champion free diver, get to grips with the science of why deep breaths relax us, and find out how air pollution affects not just our lungs, but almost every part of our body.

Producer: Dan Hardoon

A Whistledown Production for BBC Radio 4

Psychologist Kimberley Wilson and Dr Xand van Tulleken take a journey around the human body, to find out what it can tell us about our innate capacity for change.

In episode one, Kimberley and Xand take a closer look at the peepers, the mince pies… the eyes! They discover why we don’t always see reality, experience the power of sensory illusions, and hear the amazing story of Jason Esterhuizen, whose sight has been partially restored with the help of a brain implant.

Producer: Dan Hardoon

A Whistledown Production for BBC Radio 4

As we change our world we alter our bodies. From personal to global shifts, Kimberley Wilson and Xand van Tulleken ask - a body part at a time - how much control do we truly have?