Professor Brian Cox grapples with science's darker side, asking why, when science has done so much for us, it often gets such a bad press. Starting with the original Frankenstein, the grisly 19th century tale of George Foster's hanging and subsequent 'electrocution', he confronts the idea that science can go 'too far'. Are British scientists’ meddlers, or visionaries corrupted by the unscrupulous?

Professor Brian Cox celebrates Britain's pivotal role in creating modern science. From performing Isaac Newton's iconic light experiment to meeting a wartime code breaker and making hydrogen explosions, he ploughs through 300 years of British history. Along the way, he introduces the obsessive, eccentric, visionary characters who dragged science into the modern world.

Professor Brian Cox reveals what science really is, who the people are who practice it, and how it is inextricably linked to the past, present and future of each and every one of us. British science has a long track record of accidental discoveries improving our lot. Wondering why the sky is blue helped British scientists crack bacterial infection. But is this the best way to use science?