PROFESSOR JIM AL-KHALILI

Professor Jim Al-Khalili is a theoretical physicist at the University of Surrey where he holds a Distinguished Chair in physics as well as a university chair in the public engagement in science.

He is a prominent author and broadcaster. He has written 14 books on popular science and the history of science, between them translated into twenty-six languages. His latest book, The World According to Physics, was shortlisted for the Royal Society Book Prize. He is a regular presenter of TV science documentaries, such as the Bafta nominated Chemistry: a volatile history, and he hosts the long-running weekly BBC Radio 4 programme, The Life Scientific.

Jim is a past president of the British Science Association and a recipient of the Royal Society Michael Faraday medal and the Wilkins-Bernal-Medawar Medal, the Institute of Physics Kelvin Medal and the Stephen Hawking Medal for Science Communication. He received an OBE in 2007 and a CBE in 2021 for ‘services to science’.

He is a Vice President of Humanists UK.

DR JULIAN BAGGINI

Julian is editor-in-chief and co-founder of The Philosophers’ Magazine. He is the author of several books on philosophy including How the World Thinks: A Global History of Philosophy, The Godless Gospel – Was Jesus a Great Moral Teacher?, Welcome to Everytown: A Journey into the English Mind, What’s It All About?: Philosophy and the Meaning of Life, the bestselling The Pig that Wants to be Eaten, Do They Think You’re Stupid?, The Ego Trick, The Virtues of the Table: How to Eat and Think, Freedom Regained. He has written for various newspapers, magazines, academic journals, and think tanks.

He is a Patron of Humanists UK.

ANDREW COPSON

Andrew is Chief Executive of Humanists UK. He became Chief Executive in 2010 after five years coordinating Humanists UK’s education and public affairs work. Andrew is also the current President of Humanists International.

He is the author of Secularism: A Very Short Introduction and, with Alice Roberts, The Little Book of Humanism, The Little Book of Humanist Weddings, and The Little Book of Humanist Funerals.

MADELEINE GOODALL

Madeleine Goodall is the Humanist Heritage Coordinator for Humanists UK, researching and writing about the history of humanism to celebrate the organisation’s 125th birthday. She has a background in education, museums, and community history, and is also Humanists UK’s Wikimedian in Residence. She currently leads on a two-year National Lottery Heritage Fund project – Humanist Heritage: doers, dreamers, place makers – which focuses on the remarkable freethinkers and activists who changed the world, and the communities they built around them.

DR JONATHAN ILIFF

Dr Jonathan Iliff is a neuroscientist and medical doctor based at University College London with ties to King’s College, and the president and founder of the UCL Society for the Application of Psychedelics.

His research focuses on the use of psychedelic compounds, like LSD and psilocybin – the active ingredient in magic mushrooms – in the treatment of mental health disorders. This will include the treatment of a large number of patients for depression with psilocybin in a clinical trial over the next four years. He has worked with prominent figures in the field, including writing a comprehensive review with Professor David Nutt.

DR BRIAN KLAAS

Brian Klaas is an expert on democracy, authoritarianism, US Politics, Western foreign policy, political violence, and elections. In the past, he has advised governments, US political campaigns, international politicians, the European Union, NATO, and more.

Brian is the author of Fluke: Chance, Chaos, and Why Everything We Do Matters, The Despot’s Accomplice, The Despot’s Apprentice: Donald Trump’s Attack on Democracy, How to Rig an Election, the book Michela Wrong argues, ‘…should be read by every voter, civil society activist, opposition politician, election monitor, journalist, and diplomat.’ His latest, Fluke: Chance, Chaos, and Why Everything We Do Matters, dives deeply into the phenomenon of random chance and the chaos it can sow, taking aim at most people’s neat and tidy storybook version of reality. He is also the creator and host of Power Corrupts, a podcast about the hidden – and often nefarious – forces that shape our world.

Brian holds a doctorate in politics from the University of Oxford and is a Fellow in Comparative Politics at the London School of Economics. Recently, he has worked with individuals at the highest levels of government and public affairs in Thailand, Tunisia, Madagascar, Zambia, Belarus, Nigeria, and Côte d’Ivoire.

JULIE MORGAN MS

Julie Morgan MS, patron of Humanists UK, served as a Labour MP from 1997 to 2010 and has been a Member of the Senedd from 2011. Since campaigning for Jim Callaghan in the 1965 general election, she has had a lifelong commitment to politics in Wales and she continues to be heavily involved in the fields of women’s rights, the welfare of children, and black and minority ethnic and disabled people’s rights. 

Julie worked as a social worker and an assistant director of Barnardo’s before entering Parliament. She was instrumental in the creation of the Welsh Children’s Commissioner role, removing the defence of reasonable punishment and securing significant funding for autism support services across Wales. Julie has long campaigned for a change in the law on assisted dying. She is currently the Deputy Minister for Health and Social Care in Wales where she holds responsibility for social care, mental health provisions and children’s and young people’s rights and entitlements, including the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Julie continues to serve her constituency of Cardiff North and provides support to Humanists UK’s campaigns.

CATHERINE NIXEY

Catherine Nixey is a journalist and author. She currently works as a writer at the Economist; her writing has previously appeared in The Times and the Financial Times, among others. Her first book, The Darkening Age, was published in 2017 and was an international bestseller, was translated into 12 languages, and won a Royal Society of Literature Jerwood Award and the Morris D. Forkosch Book Award from the Council for Secular Humanism.

Her second book, Heresy: Jesus Christ and the Other Sons of God, was published in March 2024.

LUCY POTTER

Lucy Potter is a PhD candidate within the department of Sociological Studies at the University of Sheffield. In collaboration with Humanists UK, she is exploring how blasphemy and apostasy form a basis for an asylum claim. Lucy’s academic interests are based in the field of non-religion as well as migration studies. 

KATHY RIDDICK

Kathy leads Humanists UK’s work in Wales as Coordinator of Wales Humanists, the section bringing together all of Humanists UK’s members and supporters in Wales. She is also Campaigns Manager in the Public Affairs and Policy team working across all Humanists UK campaigns. She came to Humanists UK after a successful career in business consulting and communications.

As well as representing Wales Humanists to senior stakeholders in the Welsh Government, Kathy ensures that the voice of humanists in Wales is fully represented in public policy discussions, Senedd debates, and in the media, and works to expand the availability of humanist ceremonies, pastoral support, and resources for teachers in Wales.’

DR ADAM RUTHERFORD

Dr Adam Rutherford is a scientist, writer, and broadcaster. He is a Lecturer in Biology and Society at UCL, and has written and presented award-winning series and programmes for the BBC, including Radio 4’s Start the Week, Inside Science, and The Curious Cases of Rutherford & Fry with Dr Hannah Fry. He’s written a number of books including A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived, the very humanist Book of Humans, the Sunday Times bestselling How to Argue With a Racist, Control: The Dark History and Troubling Present of Eugenics, and, most recently, his first book for children, Where Are You Really From?, published in September 2023.

He is President of Humanists UK.

DR JULIA SHAW

Dr Julia Shaw is a psychological scientist at University College London, the author of multiple best-selling books, and a BBC science communicator. She is best known for her work in the areas of false memory, bisexuality, and criminal psychology.

Released in the summer of 2022, Julia’s third book Bi: The hidden culture, history, and science of bisexuality is an eye-opening, rigorous, and personal exploration of sexuality. According to the Guardian, ‘the book opens up conversations that might just lead to more visibility, understanding and empathy for all people, however they define themselves’.

She co-hosted the BBC podcast Bi People and is the founder of the Bisexual Research Group.

MARI VAUGHAN-OWEN

Mari Vaughan-Owen is a trained and accredited member of the Non-Religious Pastoral Support Network and, in October 2023, became the first humanist chaplain for staff and Members of the Senedd.

For the past 41 years, Mari has worked as a nurse and health visitor, working in many clinical and community areas across London and Cardiff.

Mari is also a humanist celebrant, conducting funeral ceremonies across South East Wales.

CALLUM WEAVER

Callum Weaver is a professional close-up magician with a contemporary style of performing. ​He is a member of The Magic Circle, the world’s premier magic society. 

He has over two decades of experience as a magician, specialising in both Close-Up and Parlor magic. He is a multi award-winning, Gold Star member of the Bristol Society of Magic, winning the Close-up Magician of the Year award three years running.

SPECIAL KEYNOTE GUEST SPEAKER

We look forward to welcoming our keynote guest speaker to Humanists UK Convention 2024, for a very special live edition of What I Believe.