How many of us even use a pen these days and what if we never picked one up ever again? In this episode of Life Without, Alan Davies looks at our ancient skill of handwriting. If we could no longer write, would it really matter?

From the feather with ink to our daily ballpoint, writing has been the most personal and poetic way to communicate throughout human history. But as less of us pick up a pencil, would life without writing work?

This episode features Nels Abbey a critically acclaimed writer and Dominic Wyse a Professor of Early Childhood and Primary Education at the UCL Institute of Education.

An ITN production for BBC Radio 4

Gen Z are famously having less of it. Do we even need it all? In this episode of Life Without, Alan Davies looks at what happens when we lose one of our most primal instincts?

Where do we currently stand in reproductive technology and how important is sex in understanding our biological function?

This episode features Miranda Kane a comedian, writer, and former sex worker who uses her platform to destigmatise the sex industry and Sarah Johns, a biological anthropologist at Kent and Medway Medical School with specialized expertise in human sexual behaviour.

An ITN production for BBC Radio 4

No more buzzing, no more honey, no more bees – so then what? In this episode of Life Without, Alan Davies looks at how dependent we are on the existence of our busy little friends.

From how they impact our diets to the medicinal qualities of their produce (honey and beeswax), we learn what is missing from the shelves, when bees are missing from our lives.

This episode features Simon Potts ecologist and Professor of Biodiversity at Reading University and Alison Benjamin co-founder of Urban Bees and author of A World Without Bees.

An ITN production for BBC Radio 4