5 episodes

Will Self goes on a 50-kilometre walking tour of the Large Hadron Collider at Cern, just outside Geneva.

Self Orbits CERN BBC Radio 4

    • Society & Culture

Will Self goes on a 50-kilometre walking tour of the Large Hadron Collider at Cern, just outside Geneva.

    What Goes Around...

    What Goes Around...

    Will Self concludes his 50 kilometre circumnavigation of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN just outside Geneva - entirely on foot.
    Following the course of the Collider through the French and Swiss countryside, Will stops at regular intervals to descend to the tunnel below and view the experiments.
    As Will gets close to completing his circuit, he visits Voltaire's chateau and an abandoned CERN experiment. The excursions put Will in a pensive frame of mind as he heads towards Geneva Airport.
    Producer: Laurence Grissell.

    • 13 min
    Finally Feeling the Wonder

    Finally Feeling the Wonder

    Will Self continues his 50 kilometre circumnavigation of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN just outside Geneva - entirely on foot.
    Following the course of the Collider through the French and Swiss countryside, Will stops at regular intervals to descend to the tunnel below and view the experiments.
    So far Will has been feeling completely baffled. Following an ultimatum to his CERN hosts, he receives a crash course in particle physics from Professor Akram Khan of Brunel University.
    Producer: Laurence Grissell.

    • 13 min
    The Ultimatum

    The Ultimatum

    Will Self continues his 50 kilometre circumnavigation of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN just outside Geneva - entirely on foot.
    Following the course of the Collider through the French and Swiss countryside, Will stops at regular intervals to descend to the tunnel below and view the experiments.
    Invited to 'feel the wonder' of particle physics, Will is still baffled. He decides to issue an ultimatum to his CERN hosts.
    Producer: Laurence Grissell.

    • 13 min
    Bamboozled

    Bamboozled

    Will Self continues his 50 kilometre circumnavigation of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN just outside Geneva - entirely on foot.
    Following the course of the Collider through the French and Swiss countryside, Will stops at regular intervals to descend to the tunnel below and view the experiments.
    Invited to 'feel the wonder' of particle physics, Will is so far baffled. Far from wondrous, he very soon finds himself wondering about his own capacity for misunderstanding - expressing concerns that his walking tour may be a complete waste of time.
    And to make matters worse, just as he emerges from one of the tunnels Will is engulfed by a huge thunderstorm.
    Producer: Laurence Grissell.

    • 13 min
    A Naked Lunch

    A Naked Lunch

    Will Self embarks on a 50 kilometre walking tour of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN just outside Geneva.
    Following the course of the Collider through the French and Swiss countryside, Will stops at regular intervals to descend to the tunnel and view the experiments below. He aims to complete the circuit entirely on foot.
    Invited to 'feel the wonder' of particle physics, Will is unconvinced. At lunch with his CERN hosts, he questions them closely on the rationale for their work.
    And as Will's journey gets under way, far from wondrous, he very soon finds himself wondering about his own capacity for misunderstanding - expressing concerns that his walking tour may be a complete waste of time.
    Producer: Laurence Grissell.

    • 13 min

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