Norwich Science Festival 2025

Norwich Science Festival, now in its ninth year, returned to the city from 15–22 February 2025 with over 250 workshops, performances, talks and hands-on science events! 

This year’s Festival offered visitors the chance to explore the science of tomorrow - inviting everyone to discover the ways in which science shapes our collective futures. From climate to technology, biodiversity to health, our bustling programme explored these new frontiers, encouraging us all to see the future as fluid, not fixed. 

Steve Backshall MBE opened the Festival with two inspiring talks about his love of the ocean, and his exceptional career to date. Joined by Festival Patron and friend Prof Ben Garrod for a truly special ‘In Conversation’ event, the dynamic duo inspired us all, sharing their passion for the planet’s wildlife and the vital need for its protection.  

Later in the week, Dame Darcey Bussell and Dr Peter Lovatt – known as Dr Dance! – closed the Festival with an unforgettable evening of science and dance, exploring movement’s impact on our minds, bodies and lives. And between, visitors could enjoy everything from sci-fi movies and the wonders of space, to forensic science and fermentation! 

Our ever-popular Explorium gave visitors the chance to create, discover and experiment with free, hands-on science activities every day of the Festival. 8,000 visitors a day came through the doors to meet over 100 exhibitors and explore the changing activities on offer - including flight and F1 simulators, robots, miniature mice and creepy crawlies, and even the chance to have a go at presenting the weather! 

Brand-new for 2025, we transformed Sir Isaac Newton Sixth Form into a spectacular pop-up workshop hub, featuring three immersive and interactive workshops for children. 

A team of fantastic Explainers, with the support of expert facilitators Dr Lucy Catto and Dr Mandy Hartley, delivered the workshops, guiding keen future scientists as they created rainbows, helped save the farmers crop, and powered up Spark City!

As part of our community engagement project, Science on Your Doorstep (SOYD), we teamed up with Norwich Primary Academy to give their families free access to the workshops at Sir Isaac Newton during the Festival. Later in the week, SOYD brought the wonders of space directly to the community with a free family day of space-themed workshops and shows in Mile Cross.  

With thanks to the support of Norfolk Community Foundation, Dudgeon Offshore Wind Farm and Alan Boswell Group Charitable Trust, we were delighted to provide a free touring play to 35 Norfolk schools as part of Norwich Science Festival 2025. 

The play, Food Scientists to the Rescue!, ended its highly successful tour at the Festival – performing twice a day, every day for our visitors, at no cost at all. Hundreds of families joined scientist Sally and her travelling suitcases of stories, as we explored the fascinating connections between food, climate change, and our diet. 

The Festival’s mission is to inspire and entertain a diverse range of audiences, while keeping science accessible, inclusive and affordable. We offered free Essential Companion tickets to all events booked directly with us, alongside a programme of free SEND workshops and Relaxed Performances, and a dedicated Festival Quiet Space.  

Many events were priced at £6 or under, and a few notable elements of the programme were completely free to access, including the explosive outdoor show, Boom, Bang Whoosh! with Dr Nikhil Mistry and the return of the popular Animal Dissection with Dr Jess French and Prof Ben Garrod. 

Relive Norwich Science Festival 2025

Thank you to our sponsors and funders

Norwich Science Festival is very much a team effort - and we couldn’t do it without the generous support of our partners, sponsors and funders. We’d like to express our thanks to everyone involved in Norwich Science Festival 2025.