Steve Chamberlain

Oct 12, 2024 | theguardian.com | Steve Chamberlain

There aren’t many people who could casually drop “When I was standing on the summit of Everest” into a conversation without it coming across as a massive flex. Somehow, though, Aldo Kane pulls it off in a manner that almost passes you by, as if it’s just – oh, you know – one of those things you do at work. Then again, maybe the reason he owns it so easily is that climbing Everest is probably one of the easier things he’s done.

Nov 25, 2023 | theguardian.com | Steve Chamberlain

The Belgians love their cycling, but the Flemish worship it. The Flanders half of Belgium is laced with dedicated cycle routes carefully delineated and signposted. Whole towns close for road races. Bike sculptures lurk in fields. Posters of famous riders pepper high streets. Cycling runs deep in the culture here: that background hum you can hear? It’s the ceaseless whirr of oiled chain on metal cog.

Oct 28, 2023 | theguardian.com | Steve Chamberlain

Call me chief priestess for the moon goddess,” says Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock when I ask whether she prefers to be known as an astronomer, physicist or space scientist. She is, after all, entitled to all of them because before presenting The Sky at Night on the BBC she trained as a physicist, then an engineer and is now the nation’s go-to woman for all things space. But it seems that she really has her eye on the job of a 4,300-year-old Sumerian religious leader.

Aug 12, 2023 | theguardian.com | Steve Chamberlain

Lyme Regis on the south coast of England is an old and beautiful town. The picturesque River Lym runs through it, easing past quaint houses, leafy banks and beautiful beaches before flowing into the English Channel. The locals, though, keep their dogs on a tight leash near their river. And you won’t see anyone dipping their toes in it during hot weather. The reason? High levels of potentially dangerous faecal bacteria. A polite way of saying it’s a river full of literal crap.

Apr 29, 2023 | theguardian.com | Steve Chamberlain

Andy Field reckons your life doesn’t have enough randomness in it – but don’t worry, it’s not your fault. “We’re sitting right in the middle of the problem,” he says, gesturing out of a café window towards the Olympic Park in east London. “No one is explicitly telling you don’t do this, don’t do that. But there’s no scope for the visitors to this park to be able to determine its meaning, which is the true joy of any park.