Richard Robinson worked in TV for many years, as a founding member of Spitting Image and creating the puppet characters in several children's programmes, including The Riddlers. He was also a busker for almost as long, starting the Covent Garden buskers pitch. He has written twenty science books, including 'Why the Toast Always Lands Butter-side Down'.

Richard Robinson set the Festival up eight years ago and has never looked back, he says, in the way that someone climbing a dangerous mountain never looks back. What pulls him up is the astonishing discoveries that are revealed daily and the pleasure of sharing them. What pulls him back is the ludicrous lifestyle and the imminence of bankruptcy.

At this inspirational breakfast he explains why the Festival needed to be done, how he found himself doing it, and the extraordinary, life-changing experience it turned out to be.