Following my interview with Michael Gove's department, I present the very same questions to Christine Blower, the National Union of Teachers' general secretary.

Outspoken Bowler discusses Gove's curriculum, teaching standards, male teachers, multiculturalism and academies among other burning topics but as the debate over teachers' pay and pensions rages...

"I must go home now," 92-year-old Gracie tells me with a great sense of urgency, "my mum is waiting for me."

"Is she waiting for you Gracie?" I ask the frail, dementia-stricken former nurse as her eyes wander furiously around her bedroom, "I should think so," she replies, "come on......

'You can know the name of a bird in all the languages of the world, but when you're finished, you'll know absolutely nothing whatever about the bird' said the great scientist Richard Feynman. BBC Two's recent screening of a documentary about the legendary lecturer's life, left many wishing for teachers...

It was 20 years ago when Jill Robinson MBE first walked into a bear bile farm and uncovered one of Asia's darkest secrets. The young animal lover found sweet, Asiatic black bears incarcerated in tiny wire cages with rusting metal catheters implanted in their abdomens through which bile was being...

As Madeleine Peyroux brings her latest recording The Blue Room to a sold out performance at the Cheltenham Jazz festival, I speak with the album's multi talented producer Larry Klein.

A quietly powerful force within the music industry, Klein has played on and produced some of the music world's...

Israeli politics is at a historic turning point. Recent elections have brought about changes that breathe fresh, unmistakable mood of optimism into a tired and troubled coalition.

Just a few weeks on and voters' hope is shaping into concrete political action. The religious parties, who successfully set a hard line...

"Any person over seventy five should have the right to end his life", says 87 year old George. A disturbing thought echoed by "tired of life", 93 year old Joyce.
"I think there should be an option for old people like myself to go to Dignitas and put...

People with Autism often get confused by metaphors. Literal interpretation means they simply don't pick up hidden meanings in idioms and every day expressions, so when we say "his ears are burning" they think of a man with his ears on fire. "Breaking the ice" would bring up an image of...

Is autism on the rise?

The latest figures from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) point to one in 88 children in the U.S having an Autism spectrum disorder, marking a clear increase from 2006 when the rate was one in 110. Is this condition spreading or...

"Staying the same is boring", said a young Joni Mitchell in a 1979 interview. "I'd rather be crucified for changing".

For over forty years, the singer songwriter has fused a burning urge for originality with a once in a lifetime writing mastery, creating songs that take you on a spellbinding...

'I was in absolute agony' 93 year old Jessie tells me, "lying on the floor..unable to get up..I kept calling out but no one could hear me.."

I listen attentively to her breaking voice as she recalls last night's distressing events when just before 11pm, while in her bathroom, Jessie...

British Muslim, twenty eight year old Hafeez grew up in a predominantly Muslim area where 'Israel was Satan'. 'The level of hostility towards Israel', he explains 'went from suspicion to out and out hatred and anti-Semitism..'

A visit to Pakistan as a teenager, brought the young man face to...

What would you like for christmas? I ask 93-year-old Winnie at the end of my daily morning visit. 'just a bit of company', she replies with a somewhat sad smile. 

Being this gentle woman's carer for nearly a year, I have come to love her dearly. I like her sharp...

Wacom's graphics tablets have held a place of honour on creatives' wish lists for many years. Beautifully designed and carrying cutting edge technology these lasting pieces of engineering have become an integral part of the photographic, image editing, film and design industries.

Besides securing the company's unwavering...

How is it that an individual can have more impact on African wildlife law enforcement than high profile nature charities?

I meet an exceptionally dedicated man whose remarkable achievements are a loud and clear testimony to the individual's power to make a change in the world.

Ofir Drori...

Joe, 91, lost his wife 10 years ago and his only son died of Cancer. "I think about them all the time" the charmingly humble man tells me, "its just that Christmas brings back memories of family Christmases when my boy was little.. it is one time of year I...

'Who stole my compassion, my empathy and my conscience?' Gary Yourofsky asks me.

'When we were children', he explains, 'we listened to our parents read us a story about animals, we smiled and giggled, we mimicked the noises the animals made, we wanted to play with them.. not have someone...

'What on earth is the point of my life?' Molly (not her real name) asks me. 

The frail, weary to her bone 92 year old looks at me as her shaky hands struggle to adjust a stubbornly troublesome hearing aid. 

'All I do is wait for people to come and...

Did Einstein believe in god?

The debate over Einstein's religious convictions is finally put to rest in a letter written by the man himself shortly before his death. In the 1954, handwritten 'God Letter' Einstein describes religions 'an incarnation of the most childish superstitions' and calls belief in religion and god...

Have you ever fallen in love with a voice?

The very first note stops you in your tracks and touches your very soul.. its as if every note tells a story and you just know you must keep listening.

Madeleine Peyroux's is one such voice. Her haunting 2004 rendition...