Wonders Of The Moon on Channel 5 sees comedian and science buff Dara Ó Briain unlock the mysteries of Earth’s natural satellite. Having studied theoretical physics and mathematics at Dublin’s University College, Dara has a parallel career presenting science shows such as BBC’s Stargazing Live. Now the former Mock the Week host puts on his science hat again to front a wo-part documentary series.
In Wonders Of The Moon, Dara, who’s also an amateur astronomer and astro-photographer, explores the incredible impact the moon has on life on Earth. Stone Age people created the first calendar based on the phases of the moon 5,000 years ago, while the moon’s gravitational pull on Earth causes low and high tides in the world’s oceans. And culturally, there have been tales of people going mad or turning into werewolves when there’s a full moon. And as astronauts prepare to set foot once more on Earth’s only natural satellite in 2025 in the first crewed lunar landing since 1972, Dara couldn’t be more excited!
"I’ve never seen anyone on the moon," says Dara, 51, who hosts the quiz show One & Six Zeros. "I was born the year the last person walked on the moon, so to see that happen again will be amazing."
Dara talks to scientists, lunar experts, geologists and historians and explores a few myths along the way. So here's everything you need to know about Wonders Of The Moon, including our interview with Dara Ó Briain himself...
Wonders Of The Moon release date
Wonders Of The Moon is a two-part series that starts on Channel 5 on Tuesday August 1 at 9pm, with the next episode running the day after at the same time on Wednesday August 2. Catch up with both episodes on streaming service My5.
Interview: Dara Ó Briain reveals more about his Wonders Of The Moon series
What was the thinking behind hosting your series Wonders Of The Moon?
Dara Ó Briain says: To trigger the imaginations of people who don’t know this stuff, and to tease the fact that you’re going to see a lot more moon stuff over the next few years because we’re going to go back to the moon. I’ve never seen anyone on the moon. I was born the year the last person [American astronaut Eugene Cernan] walked on the moon, so to see that happen will be amazing."
How did your interest in the moon begin?
Dara says: "It was probably through big space things – black holes, relativity and all the things you learn when you’re 14. If you get a telescope, the first thing you look at is the moon, and then you’re hooked."
You touch on some moon myths, such as the belief that crime rates rise when there’s a full moon. What’s your view on that?
Dara says: "I love the fact that the entire thing is based on, ‘The full moon affects us; it makes us go mad.’ No, it’s just brighter and, in mediaeval society, brighter meant staying up later, drinking more, fighting more and it was easier to rob things. The whole industry of werewolves and lunacy was actually because more bad stuff happened on a brighter night than happened on a darker night, and it is markedly brighter with a full moon."
If you were to walk on the moon, would you leave something behind like Apollo 14 astronaut Alan Shepard who in 1971 famously played golf on the moon and left two golf balls behind?
Dara says: "Actually, my favourite story is [Apollo 16] astronaut Charles Duke. He brought a photograph of his family and put it on the moon surface and then took a picture of it. What would I take? Maybe an Arsenal jersey, drape it over a rock and say, ‘I claim it in the name of [Arsenal manager] Mikel Arteta!’
Some of the rare lunar samples collected during the Apollo missions were locked away for 50 years so they could be studied later when analytical techniques had advanced and then they were sent to a lab in the UK – by courier!
Dara says: "Isn’t that the most mundane thing in the world? Does a man in a van pull up, put the moon rock on the doorstep and then take a photograph of it with your foot beside it? But it was smart thinking of someone back then. You don’t see a lot of examples of people taking a long-term view of things."
Have you got more TV programmes coming up?
Dara says: "No, we carry on doing the comedy tour [So… Where Were We?] here, then abroad including Canada, Gibraltar and Switzerland, so I’ve not been actively looking. It was nice to say a big goodbye on Mock the Week [the BBC2 comedy panel show ended after 17 years in November 2022], but studio stuff has been pushed out a little bit, everything’s drama at the moment. You can see that by the fact that Mock got cancelled and nothing is replacing it. But I’ve been around long enough to know these things go through cycles, much like the moon. Dara’s massive lunar face will reappear and people will go mad again! "
Is there a Wonders Of The Moon trailer?
Channel 5 hasn't yet released a trailer Wonders Of The Moon so you've need to watch the show.
