Sliced Bread BBC Radio 4

Why do we buy so many vacuum cleaners?
Dough is a new series from BBC Radio 4 which looks at the business behind profitable, everyday products and considers how they might evolve in the future.
In this episode, the entrepreneur Sam White speaks with experts from the world of vacuum cleaner manufacturing, including:
Grahame Capron-Tee - who has seen many significant changes during his long career in the industry;
Nick Grey - the inventor and founder of Gtech;
Anthony Williams - a global director at the data insights company, GFK.
Also joining them is the technology expert and applied futurist Tom Cheesewright, to offer his insight and predictions on what might be coming beyond the current production pipeline.
Together, they explore how vacuum cleaners went from exterior, horse-drawn contraptions to interior, automatic robots scuttling around on the floor, explain why UK households buy so many vacuum cleaners and give their expert views on game-changing - and pointless - product innovations.
There's a debate about bagged versus bagless vacuum cleaners and a discussion on when robotic vacuum cleaners might be able to clean more than just the floors.
Dough looks at where the smart money's going now and what that could mean for all of us in the years ahead.
Produced by Jon Douglas. Dough is a BBC Audio North production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.
Sliced Bread returns for a new batch of investigations in August when Greg Foot will investigate more of the latest so-called wonder products to find out whether they really are the best thing since sliced bread.
In the meantime, Dough is available in the Sliced Bread feed on BBC Sounds

What might our TV sets be like in the future?
Dough is a new series from BBC Radio 4 which looks at the business behind profitable, everyday products and considers how they might evolve in the years to come.
In this episode, the entrepreneur Sam White speaks with experts from the world of television manufacturing, including Brian Palmer, who has seen many interesting and amusing changes during his long career in the industry.
Brian is now the founder and chief executive officer of Cello Electronics (UK) Ltd which makes televisions at its factory in County Durham.
He gives a candid account of some of the ups and downs he has faced, while explaining how his business has always managed to make a profit, despite competition from global rivals.
Paul Gray is a Research Director for Consumer Electronics and Devices at the analysts, Omdia. With a background in TV manufacturing, he has considerable knowledge on how the business has changed.
Brian and Paul offer their views on game-changing - and pointless - TV innovations before considering where companies are investing their money now.
Tom Cheesewright, a technology expert and applied futurist, then offers his predictions on what might be coming beyond the current production pipeline.
TVs have come a long way in a relatively short space of time and where they are going next might surprise you!
Produced by Jon Douglas. Dough is a BBC Audio North production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.
Sliced Bread returns for a new batch of investigations in August when Greg Foot will investigate more of the latest so-called wonder products to find out whether they really are the best thing since sliced bread.
In the meantime, Dough is available in the Sliced Bread feed on BBC Sounds

Dough is a new series from BBC Radio 4 which looks at the business behind profitable, everyday products and considers how they might evolve in the future.
In each episode, entrepreneur Sam White, futurist Tom Cheesewright and a host of technology experts take on a popular product, look at where the smart money's going now and then try to predict what that could mean for all of us in the years ahead.
The series starts on BBC Radio 4 and will be available in the Sliced Bread feed on BBC Sounds weekly from Thursday, 18 July 2024.

Listener Chris from Suffolk recently took a DNA ancestry test, and after getting some interesting results back, he wondered how accurate they really were?
Greg Foot finds out by taking two tests himself – and has the results and his family tree revealed to him by DNA Genealogist from Finding Families, Louise Baldock.
He also speaks to Professor of Genetics at Leicester University Mark Jobling to find out what these companies are looking for, what they can or can’t determine from our DNA in terms of where we came from, and asks the question – is sharing our DNA with these companies safe?
All of the ideas for our investigations come from you, our listeners, and we’re always on the lookout for more. If you have seen a wonder product that claims to make you happier, healthier or greener, and want to know if it is SB or BS, then please do send it over on email to sliced.bread@bbc.co.uk or drop us a message or voice note on WhatsApp to 07543 306807.
PRESENTER: Greg Foot
PRODUCER: Kate Holdsworth

Are the latest ear plugs better for gigs, focus and sleep?
In this special edition of Sliced Bread, recorded at the Hay Festival in South Wales, Greg Foot investigates the newer style of ear plugs. He's joined by listener Marni who's seen adverts for brands like Loop, which promise to protect your hearing at higher volumes while still allowing you to enjoy music at gigs. Other models in their range claim to give you better focus, shutting out extraneous noise but still allowing you to hear conversation. Or, in the case of their 'Quiet' model, sleep better.
As ever Greg's joined by two experts to deep-dive into the science and find out if the evidence backs up the marketing claims. And with the help of a special dummy head fitted with microphones, they carry out a series of tests to hear the difference between traditional foam ear plugs and the newer models.
If you have seen a wonder product that claims to make you happier, healthier or greener and want to know if it is SB or BS then please do send it over on email to sliced.bread@bbc.co.uk or drop us a message or voicenote on Whatsapp to 07543 306807
PRESENTER: Greg Foot
PRODUCERS: Kate Holdsworth and Simon Hoban

Can fortified drinks and spreads really reduce cholesterol?
Almost half of UK adults have raised cholesterol, according to the charity Heart UK - and Sliced Bread listener Cathy is one of them. She found out after taking a test at her GP and wants to do something about it. Her first plan of action is to make changes to her lifestyle, such as diet and exercise. As part of that, Cathy wants to know if the spreads and drinks that claim to lower cholesterol really do work.
Greg Foot is joined by Cathy and a panel of experts at our studios in Salford to investigate. What are the ingredients that are proven to lower cholesterol? How effective are they compared to widely-prescribed statins - and are the supermarket own brand versions of these drinks and spreads just as good as branded ones?
All of the ideas for our investigations come from you, our listeners, and we're always on the lookout for more. If you have seen a wonder product that claims to make you happier, healthier or greener and want to know if it is SB or BS then please do send it over on email to sliced.bread@bbc.co.uk or drop us a message or voicenote on Whatsapp to 07543 306807
PRESENTER: Greg Foot
PRODUCER: Simon Hoban