Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock’s early life was not as bright as it is now. She was unsettled, attending over a dozen different schools, diagnosed with dyslexia, and placed in remedial classes. Therefore, it wasn’t school that set her on the path for which she’s best known. It was, in fact, television – The Clangers and Star Trek, to be precise.
With support from her father and the belief that “a black girl with learning difficulties” can succeed, she graduated with a degree in Physics and a PhD in Mechanical Engineering.
As well as being a brilliant theoretical scientist, she has also spent her career building bespoke instruments to help in industrial environments, such as handheld land mine detectors and an optical subsystem for the James Webb Space Telescope.
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Dr MAGGIE ADERIN-POCOCK – THE BUSINESSWOMAN
Maggie is an incredibly busy woman; not only does she present successful television shows, provide keynote speeches, and write critically acclaimed books, she also has her own company, Science Innovation Ltd. Through this, she provides public engagement activities, tours schools and other education establishments – where she has spoken to over half a million people around the globe – and produces scientific films, such as Space in the UK.
She also worked for the UK Government in 2020-21 as a commissioner on Race and Ethnic Disparities, a unit established following the Black Lives Matter protests. Together, the commission investigated race and ethnic disparities in the UK and what needs to be done to eliminate them.
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Dr MAGGIE ADERIN-POCOCK – IN THE MEDIA
Maggie is a frequent face on our television screens as a presenter, guest and scientific expert. She has offered her expertise on shows including I Literally Just Told You (2021-22), The UnXplained with William Shatner (2021), Duck Quacks Don’t Echo (2015-17), The Science of Dr Who (2012), Brave New World With Stephen Hawking (2011), and Wallace and Gromit’s World of Invention (2010).
She is also a popular guest on panel shows such as Countdown (2023), The Wheel (2020-22), Richard Osman’s House of Games (2020-22), and QI (2021); plus news programmes including The Big Breakfast (2021), Sky News (2021), and Good Morning Britain (2017).
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Dr MAGGIE ADERIN-POCOCK – THE SKY AT NIGHT
However, she is best known on our TV screens as a scientific presenter, hosting astronomy shows such as The Sky at Night (2014-), CBeebies Stargazing (2014-17), Stargazing Live: Back to Earth (2014), and Stargazing Live (2014).
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Dr MAGGIE ADERIN-POCOCK – WRITING
Maggie is keen to make science – specifically space science – accessible to as many people as possible. As well as her business and television programmes, she has also written several books, aimed at a wide range of ages.
These include StarFinder for Beginners (2017), which was a bestseller in two of Amazon’s space categories, The Sky at Night: Book of the Moon – A Guide to our Closest Neighbour (2018), Dr Maggie’s Grand Tour of the Solar System (2019), and The Sky at Night: The Art of Stargazing: My Essential Guide to Navigating the Night Sky (2023).
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Dr MAGGIE ADERIN-POCOCK – SPEAKING
Maggie has spoken to over 500,000 young people and adults on science, space, engineering, and other STEM-related topics. One of the reasons she became a scientist was to challenge perceptions and stereotypes put on children of a different race, from a complex background, from a lower class system, or are affected by gender imbalance, and it’s these themes she takes to her school speaking engagements.
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Dr MAGGIE ADERIN-POCOCK – KEYNOTE TALKS
- The Power to Dream
- The Dawn of a New Space Era
- Inspiring Scientists
- Women in Science: The Challenge
- Follow Your Dream
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Dr MAGGIE ADERIN-POCOCK – SPEAKING TOPICS
- STEM
- Women in Science
- Business Management
- Female Entrepreneurs
- Race and Racism
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Diversity, Inclusion and Equality
She has spoken at the likes of the Space-Comm Expo in 2022, the 2022/23 GCSE Science Live!, Expo 2020 Dubai UAE, RSE Con UK 2019, Subsea Expo Awards 2023, and the Isle of Wight Literary Festival 2023.
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To check fees and availability for Astrologist and STEM speaker Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock, contact Great Business Speakers on 0044 (0)1753 439289
