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End your punchlines with a ‘K’: The science of being funny

Episode 3

Why do comedians love consonants? And why is ‘flank' so funny to say? Delve into the science and trickery of being funny from the perspectives of a neuroscientist, a standup comedian, a scientist, and a copywriter.

Listen to Sophie Scott, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at UCL; Ash Dunne, Scientific Director at Merk; Marion Miranda, Copywriter at Leith; and Ria Lina, award-winning comedian as they discuss the science of being funny.
22 Aug

Hosts & Speakers

Ria Lina

Award-Winning Comedian

You might have seen Ria Lina on Live at the Apollo, Have I Got News For You, and Mock The Week or even heard her on shows such as The News Quiz and The Now Show. Before she went into comedy she was a virologist and then an IT Forensic Investigator for the Serious Fraud Office, and as a result of her science background, she's also a regular pundit on Sky News, and Times Radio.

Marion Miranda

Copywriter at Leith

A Singaporean in Scotland, Marion is an award-winning copywriter at Leith where she works on a wide variety of health clients. She loves creative thinking and is always looking to create ads and messaging that will make you see differently. In 2023, she was a Cannes Young Lions Global Gold Winner, representing the whole of the UK with her creative partner, Joe.

Sophie Scott

Professor of Cognitive Neurology at UCL

Professor Sophie Scott is a British neuroscientist and Wellcome Trust Senior Fellow at University College London (UCL). Her research investigates the cognitive neuroscience of voices, speech and laughter particularly speech perception, speech production, vocal emotions and human communication. She also serves as director of UCL's Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience.

Achille (Ash) Dunne

Scientific Director Global Medical Communications | Neurology & Immunology Medical Unit at Merck

Originally training as a geneticist and then playing with microscopes for Cancer Research UK, Ash has worked in medical communications for over 12 years. He is currently a Scientific Director for Merck’s Neurology and Immunology Global Medical Communications. Being deeply nerdy, Ash loves getting stuck into data, and developing scientific publications. He also believes that science should be accessible to non-scientists, and works on lay summaries of medical research. In the past, Ash has performed as a stand-up comedian, when he’s not being a professional nerd, still performs improv comedy and releases music.