The Royal Society is the oldest scientific academy in the world. Since being established in 1660, it has painstakingly archived thousands of papers, letters, manuscripts and illustrations from some of science’s most enquiring minds.

In this episode, Victoria Gill takes a trip to the society to pore over some of the most intriguing artefacts within its vaults. While there, she finds out more about the formation of the Royal Society and how science has been shaped over the centuries. Along the way, she considers the role of women in science, and asks whether their contributions have been historically overlooked.

She is joined by the Royal Society’s Louisiane Ferlier and Keith Moore, along with Prof Uta Frith, a Royal Society Fellow and psychologist, and Dr Stephen Webster, a senior lecturer in science communication at Imperial College London.

As part of its Science in the Making project, the Royal Society is currently digitising all of its collections, for everyone to browse through and enjoy. You can find out more on the Royal Society website.

Presenter: Victoria Gill