OTLEY Science Festival is back - with a 'cloud factory' and a talk about why some people are lucky among the highlights this year.

A spokesperson said: "We are delighted to be back in person and (mostly) in Otley Courthouse for Otley Science Festival 2021 which runs from 15th to 20th November 2021 (plus the 24th ). So much going on we couldn’t fit it all in. Once again we have a full week of events with a range of speakers covering diverse topics, our popular Science Lunch and, following it’s success last year, a new challenging Science Quiz.

"We are lucky to have Professor Richard Wiseman live in the Courthouse on Saturday evening. Professor Wiseman was described in the Scientific American as 'one of the most interesting and innovative experimental psychologists in the world today'. His books have sold more than three million copies and he regularly appears on the media. He will tell us the science behind why some people lead happy successful lives whilst others face repeated failure. Why are some people consistently in the right place at the right time, while others are always unlucky? For over a decade, psychologist Professor Wiseman has worked with some of the world’s luckiest and unluckiest people to answer these fascinating questions. In his talk he reveals how people and organisations create their good fortune by the way they think and behave, and the practical techniques that allow everyone to become luckier."

The schedule for the week is -

• Monday 15 at 7.30pm – Mobile Teardown with Marty Jopson.

• Tuesday 16 at 7.30pm – Festival Science Café.

• Wednesday 17 at 4pm – for the young audience – The Cloud Factory with Sarah Bearchell

• Wednesday 17 at 7.30 – The return of the Science Quiz (online).

• Friday 19:12.30 – Science Lunch: Making Innovation More than Buzzword Bingo with Tony Morgan. 8pm – Life in Space: the Truth is Up There with Libby Jackson.

• Saturday 20th:10am – Science Fair. 8pm – The Luck Factor with Professor Richard Wiseman

There will also be shows for schools and home educators on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Further details can be found on the Schools Page.

On Wednesday, November 24 Sinclairs are welcoming guests to a unique tour of their paper stationery factory. Sinclairs has a rich history spanning back generations to 1837 – some of the Sinclair family still work there today. Visitors can see how they make millions of school exercise books, notebooks and sketchpads. The tour is free but numbers are limited. Being You with Anil Seth has been cancelled.Visit https://otleysciencefestival.co.uk/festival-2021/ for details and tickets.