Francis Galton: Victorian scientist and pioneer of eugenics

Francis Galton: Victorian scientist and pioneer of eugenics

From You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

July 31, 2026 · 59 min

About this episode

This episode explores the life and controversial legacy of Francis Galton, a Victorian scientist and pioneer of eugenics.

Greg Jenner is joined in Victorian England by historian and curator Subhadra Das and comedian Desiree Burch to learn all about the life of scientist and eugenics pioneer Francis Galton. He was many things: a Victorian gentleman scientist, an inventor of whacky devices, a pioneer of fingerprinting technology, the less famous cousin of superstar naturalist Charles Darwin, and an important figure in the development of statistics. But more importantly – and more troublingly – Francis Galton originated the now discredited science of eugenics. His theories about how to apply principles of good breeding to humans, and his advocacy of ways to improve Britain’s so-called ‘racial health’, led directly and indirectly to many horrors in the decades after his death, from the forced sterilisation of certain groups to the Holocaust. This episode traces his life from child prodigy to prolific scientist, exploring his obsession with understanding the world through measurement and statistics, and how this mindset eventually led him to pioneer eugenic theories. Along the way it takes in his African travels, unwise self-experimentation during his medical degree, and his troubling views on women. If…

People in this episode

Host: Greg Jenner

Guests: Subhadra Das, Desiree Burch

Topics covered

More episodes of You're Dead to Me

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the You're Dead to Me podcast page.