One of the books in my collection is Patrick Moore’s Do You Speak Venusian? It’s a hilarious take on ‘alternative thinkers’ in the 1950s and 1960s – and on their theories about everything from the Earth being flat to the Aetherius Society. Moore, it seems, went to a meeting of the Aetherius Society, fronted by … More The funny world of alternative thinkers

Back when I was a kid, the latest woo-de-jour involved ‘ancient’ aliens who’d apparently arrived in the ‘ancient’ world to help humanity build pyramids and become civilised. Stupid humans! The idea wasn’t original – Arthur C. Clarke had been toying with it for decades in his science fiction. But as he well knew, it was … More Bring me some new ancient astronauts. I like not the ones I have.

News that Tutankhamen’s tomb might contain yet more secrets 93 years after it was revealed – possibly including the crypt of his stepmother, Queen Nefertiti, is mildly surprising. You’d think by now that ancient Egypt had been pretty thoroughly raked over. But maybe not. The logic goes like this. Tutankhamen died aged around 18, probably from … More King Tut’s latest tomb mystery doesn’t mean we’ll be infested by mummies

I am always intrigued by the way ‘ancient mysteries’ go away with new science discoveries. All without recourse to secret ancient civilisations or helpful aliens. Take Gobekli Tepe. This construction in southeastern Turkey is made of 7-10 ton upright stones, elaborately carved, and was recognised for what it was in the early 1990s by archaeologist Klaus Schmidt. Current … More Making ancient mysteries like Gobekli Tepe go away – with science!