Short And Curly

Many cultures believe it’s good luck if a bird poos on your head, like what happened to Carl (eww!). Others say it’s bad luck if you break a mirror.

What would you do if you had the power of invisibility? Would you sneak around, spy on people, commit crimes, pull practical jokes, or find out what other people really think about you?

Lollies are a colourful and magical and very sweet part of many children’s lives. But can you say no when faced with a bowl of jelly beans or sour worms or other types of candy? With so much concern nowadays about the amount of sugar in our diets, this show looks at self control and what we should do if people don’t have any.

Walked into any traffic lights lately as you stare manically at a screen? Maybe you’re one of the millions of people playing Pokemon Go, the augmented reality game which sends its players out into the streets to catch weird little imaginary creatures. Is it an annoying disruption of public spaces? And, because it’s cleverly designed so you never want to stop playing, we ask: Are you playing the game or is the game playing you?

Images of movie stars and pop singers are everywhere we look – album covers, concert posters, t-shirts, Instagram feeds and other social media. Photos and videos are a big part of how famous people present themselves. But, how honest and accurate are they? Do they look anything like they do in real life… and should they? When do small changes to an image turn it into a lie? And does it even matter?

For professional fire and rescue workers, it’s not all sirens, cool trucks and running red lights. They often have to make really hard and terrible decisions in moments of heat, smoke and danger. Their job is to be there to help on the worst day of your life. So, if you were a firefighter, who would you save first?

We’re often told we have a special responsibility to our brothers and sisters just because they are family. But, do we really? And what kind of duty is it?  What if you found out the annoying new kid at school was your long lost brother or sister?  Would you feel any differently about them? And, if you really didn’t like them, is it somehow worse to kill a sibling than to kill anyone else? Yep, some murderously tricky questions!

Unless you’re a vegetarian, there are some animals you probably eat regularly.  But how would you cope if your next dinner was some stir-fried dog?  Why is it okay to eat a baby cow (veal) or sheep (lamb) and not a cute little puppy?  Are our ideas about eating animals a bit of a mess?  And does this matter?

He is wise and old and learned and kind, but the Principal of Hogwarts is not perfect.  He deceives, he holds back really important information about issues of life and death, and is willing to sacrifice Harry Potter for the good of the many, leading him (as Professor Snape says) “like a pig to slaughter”.  So, is Dumbledore an ethical person?  How flawed are we allowed to be and still be counted as “good”?

There are 1,000 people currently shortlisted for the trip of a lifetime, from which they will never return!  They want to be the first stage in the human habitation of the red planet.  But do humans have a right to inhabit other planets, and which humans specifically?  Would colonizing Mars be a chance to create a better world from scratch, or will it become an environmental and ethical nightmare?  Would you want to go?

Kind lies. White lies. Little lies. We take a trip to the fun park to look at all sorts of lies we tell for all sorts of reasons. Like what if your parent asks you to pretend to be younger than you are to get a cheaper entry fee? What’s the right thing to do? Amidst the rides and games, junk food and excitement, we explore a few stories about lying, a subject which has divided some of the greatest thinkers in history.

In the 1950s, a group of young boys took part in a now famous experiment to find out how easy it would be to turn two groups of children into enemies. The boys didn’t know they were in a scientific study, and many later regretted the things they did to each other. Is the knowledge we might get from such an experiment worth the pain it might cause to get it?

Do coaches, equipment and healthy food make for a level playing field?

Is the victim blameless if they become aggressor?

Perhaps the line between humans and other animals is more blurred that you’d think.

Is borrowing somebody else's smarts ok?

As robots become more sophisticated and human-like, how can we be sure what they tell us is real?