Toothbrush

Discovery

BBC

Science, Technology

4.3 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 8 June 2020

⏱️ 28 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What is the most personal item you own - one you don’t want anyone else using? For Katy Brand it’s her toothbrush. So how did the toothbrush become one of life’s essentials? With the help of resident public historian of Horrible Histories fame, Greg Jenner, Katy goes back to ancient times, when the toothbrush was merely a stick. But the brush, as we know it, only came into being much later when a convict spied a broom in his cell and had a bright idea. But how has ingenuity and innovation shaped the toothbrush and ensured its place in our lives? And given most are plastic, how environmentally friendly is the toothbrush’s legacy? Featuring designer and toothbrush collector, Sophie Thomas, and advocate for clean teeth, Peter Dyer, Chair of Hospital Dentists at the British Dental Association. Producer: Beth Eastwood Picture: Toothbrush BBC Copyright

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're about to listen to a BBC podcast and trust me you'll get there in a moment but if you're a comedy fan
0:05.2	I'd really like to tell you a bit about what we do. I'm Julie Mackenzie and I commission comedy
0:10.1	podcast at the BBC. It's a bit of a dream job really. Comedy is a bit of a dream job really.
0:13.0	Comedy is a fantastic joyous thing to do because really you're making people laugh,
0:18.0	making people's days a bit better, helping them process, all manner of things.
0:22.0	But you know, I also know that comedy is really
0:24.3	subjective and everyone has different tastes. So we've got a huge range of comedy on offer from
0:29.8	satire to silly, shocking to soothing, profound to just general pratting about.
0:35.0	So if you fancy a laugh, find your next comedy at BBC Sounds.
0:40.0	After an explosion in space, now it's the climax of the rescue mission.
0:45.0	Can the astronauts be brought home safely?
0:48.0	What could we have missed?
0:50.0	This can't be happening.
0:52.0	You could hear a pin drop.
0:54.0	13 minutes to the moon from the BBC World Service, the final episode.
1:05.0	Available now.
1:07.0	This is Discovery from the BBC World Service.
1:14.0	I'm Katie Brand and this is my new series The Origin of Stuff, where I pay homage to those
1:18.9	overlooked and sometimes underrated essentials of everyday life. Those objects that often seem so modern,
1:25.0	but you won't believe this, were often road tested by our ancestors thousands of years ago
1:30.0	and only survived thanks to a generous helping of science, innovation and
1:34.7	serendipity and luckily for me being a comedian there are some comedy moments
	...

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