Iain Stewart

Iain Stewart (born 1964 [http://www.englishrivierageopark.org.uk/drisbio.html Biography] , English Riviera Geopark] ) is a geologist notable for his frequent appearances on television to promote the subject. He has presented series such as "Journeys From the Centre of the Earth", "Earth - The Power of the Planet", "Hot Rocks" and "10 Things You Didn't Know About...". He has also appeared in the "Rough Science" programmes. In 2008, he hosted the BBC produced "Earth: The Biography", a 5 part series that was presented in the United States on the National Geographic Channel.

His latest series is "The Climate Wars", a 3 part series on history of the science and politics of climate change, shown on BBC Two in September 2008.

Life

Stewart was a child actor, and holder of an Equity card in his native Glasgow, Scotland. In 1978 he appeared in a Scottish series, "Huntingtower". [ [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxY47AB36pc Clip from "Huntigntower"] YouTube.com] Having left acting behind, he studied geology and earth science, and graduated from Strathclyde University (Glasgow, Scotland) in 1986 and obtained his doctorate in 1990 at the University of Bristol on research into earthquakes in Greece and Turkey. He began teaching geology at the West London Institute of Higher Education, and then Brunel University where he stayed for 12 years in total before moving back to Scotland to develop a new career as a science broadcaster. Nostalgic for Brunel, he said "And invariably, you move on to places that for all their benefits, seem surprisingly narrow, and more fallow, in comparison. In short, it was a remarkable place to be" [ [http://people.brunel.ac.uk/~gystiit/BMF.pdf Memories of Past members of the Department of Geography and Earth Sciences] , Brunel University, edited by Iris Turner, 2007] .

His second television career began when he appeared as an expert academic for "Helike - The Real Atlantis", a 2002 BBC "Horizon" film about the destruction of the Greek city of Helike by earthquake and tidal wave in 373 BC, newly rediscovered in 2001. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/horizon/2001/helike.shtml Horizon: Helike - The Real Atlantis] , BBC Two 9.00pm Thursday 10 January 2002] This, he says, "gave me a hunger to get more geology on telly," and he moved to Glasgow to try to get television projects off the ground. [Samantha Booth, [http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/entertainment/celebrity-interviews/2008/09/06/scots-tv-scientist-iain-stewart-is-on-one-man-mission-to-make-geology-sexy-86908-20726121/ Scots TV scientist Iain Stewart is on one-man mission to make geology sexy] , "Daily Record", September 6, 2008] He featured in another Horizon film, "Earthquake Storms", in April 2003, [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/horizon/2003/earthquakestorms.shtml Horizon: Earthquake Storms] , BBC Two, Thursday 1 April, 9pm 2003] before appearing as a team member in the fourth series of "Rough Science" (shown Jan/Feb 2004), a series where a group of scientists is challenged to solve tasks using only the resources of the local surroundings and a small set of supplies. [ [http://www.open2.net/roughscience4/Iains_diaries_menu.html Rough Science: Iain's Diaries] , BBC/Open University]

Solo series and films he has subsequently presented include:
*"Journey From The Centre Of The Earth" (shown Sept/Oct 2004), six one-hour films charting how geology has shaped the history of the Mediterranean, [ [http://www.open2.net/journeysfrom/ Journeys From The Centre Of The Earth] , BBC/Open University] shown in the United States on Discovery's Science Channel as "Hot Rocks: Geology of Civilization". [ [http://science.discovery.com/convergence/hotrocks/hotrocks.html Hot Rocks: Geology of Civilization] , Science Channel] The series won the prestigious "Best Earth Science programme" award at the 2005 Jackson Hole Film Festival.
*"Ten Things You Didn't Know About... Volcanoes" (July 2006).
*"Journeys into the Ring of Fire" (June 2007); four one-hour films showing how rocks shaped the history and culture in Japan, Peru, Indonesia and California. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfour/documentaries/features/journeys-centre-earth.shtml Journeys into the Ring of Fire] , BBC Four documentaries]
*"Earth: The Power of the Planet" (Nov 2007), U.S. title: "Earth: the biography", five one hour films ("Volcano", "Oceans", "Atmosphere", "Ice", "Rare Earth") about the forces that have shaped the planet and made it what it is. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/tvradio/programmes/earthpoweroftheplanet/page1.shtml Earth: The Power of the Planet] , BBC] [ [http://www.plymouth.ac.uk/pages/view.asp?page=19791 Earth - the power of the planet] , University of Plymouth] [ [http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/earth-the-biography/all/01 Earth: the biography] ,National Geographic Channel]
*"Ten Things You Didn't Know About... Tsunamis" (Jan 2008).
*"Ten Things You Didn't Know About... Earthquakes" (Jan 2008).
*"Ten Things You Didn't Know About... Avalanches" (Jan 2008).
*"The Climate Wars" (Sept 2008), three one-hour films tracing the history of the science and politics of climate change. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/proginfo/tv/wk38/feature_earth.shtml Earth – The Climate Wars] (BBC Press Office)]

He now combines television appearances with work as a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Geology at the University of Plymouth. [ [http://www.plymouth.ac.uk/staff/istewart Staff detalis] plymouth.ac.uk]

His main research interests are in the broad area of Earth hazards and natural disasters, particularly in terms of identifying past major earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions in the Mediterranean region. Stewart also specializes in geology's effect on culture and religion throughout the history of the world. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfour/documentaries/features/iain-stewart-biog.shtml BBC - BBC Four Documentaries - Journeys From the Centre of the Earth - Dr Iain Stewart ] ] He appears in other roles, including as a scientific commentator. [ [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrPjddK2t-I&feature=related Stewart on global warming] YouTube.com]

References

External Links

*