Genius With Dave Gorman

A bus that's steered by its passengers, giant bricks with speed up house-building, cold-air ballooning for people with vertigo... Welcome to the weird and wonderful world of Genius, a new BBC Two programme that showcases a selection of viewers' outlandish inventions, from the truly inspired to the utterly insane.

The six-part series, hosted by comedian Dave Gorman, sees members of the public pitch their wacky ideas in front of a studio audience and then be evaluated by a celebrity guest who decides whether or not they are touched by genius.

"It's like a nonsense version of Dragons' Den," explains Gorman, who has previously presented the show on BBC Radio 4. "If you're looking to make a fortune, this is probably not the programme for you, but all the ideas have a weird internal logic to them. In the first episode, for example, someone has invented 100-metre-high shoes for winning gold at the Olympics. When they fire the starting gun, you just fall over. It's certain death, but you'll beat Usain Bolt."

TV and Satellite Week, 10th March 2009

Dave Gorman Blog Post

The presenter blogs about the filming of the series.

Dave Gorman, 2nd October 2008

Gorman's Genius set for BBC2

Dave Gorman's Radio 4 entertainment show Genius is to transfer to BBC2 as a six-part series.

The radio-show involves members of the public pitching ingenious ideas to Gorman and a celebrity guest.

Past ideas have included fizzy Bovril, a shower coat that allows you to stay dry while you wash your hair and a child-swap scheme for divorced fathers who have to travel long distances.

The television version, which will begin filming in September for a likely transmission on BBC2 early next year, will transfer to television virtually unchanged. It is being made by the BBC's in-house comedy department.

Genius will also stay on Radio 4, with a series and possibly a Christmas special lined up for next year, the BBC said.

Ben Dowell, The Guardian, 28th April 2007