I’ll be speaking at this years Fertility Show about how to improve sperm quality focussing on clear, research-backed guidance; from lifestyle and environmental influences to addressing common misconceptions. Join me on Saturday 16th May 2026 at 4:30 at Upper West Hall, Olympia London, W14 8UX.

Spent the last couple of days at the #EBART2026 conference in Barcelona where I gave a talk about latest advances in sperm selection methods. Great programme and speakers and of course what is not to love about Barcelona in the spring time?

My comments in @theguardian.com about whether or not men need to stick to the 2 to 7 day abstinence rule before they produce a sample for IVF ... www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

My comments in @dailymail.co.uk about why pre-conception health is as important for men as it is for women .... www.dailymail.co.uk/health/artic...

It was great to be part of this celebration and to help announce the partnership with colleagues from Frederick University at this wonderful event!

This week I attended the 60th anniversary celebrations of Frederick University in Nicosia, Cyprus to announce a landmark licensing agreement to develop a new medical school at their Limassol campus by 2028. Further details at: www.manchester.ac.uk/about/news/m...

A few months ago I worked with @adance.bsky.social to create a science comic for @knowablemag.bsky.social about the journey sperm makes to reach the egg. Little did I know that that this would involve me being immortalised in cartoon form. Check it out .... knowablemagazine.org/content/arti...

A busy day giving lots of comments on a tragic story of 197 children born using donor sperm with an undetected mutation now putting them at risk of cancer. My interview with the BBC World Service (available for the next 29 days) gives more details about the case. www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Quick break from the day job and a trip to London to give a talk at the British Fertility Society fertility preservation conference about when it’s safe for men to father children after chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment. Thanks for inviting me!

Busy day today at the Fondation pour la Recherche Médicale in Paris reviewing grants in reproductive medicine and biology. Some great projects funded. What a great team led by Catherine Racowsky and involving Adam Balen, Virginia Bolton, Eve Feinberg, Richard Legro, Anja Pinborg & Nicolas Plachta.

From Manchester for the world. We are proud to launch our bold strategy to 2035. Together, we're redefining what a great civic University looks like for the 21st century. Visit our webpage to explore our ambition in full: www.manchester.ac.uk/about/manche...

This is what an official dinner with the Austrian ambassador to Saudi Arabia looks like … thanks for inviting me!

Last week I spent three days at KAUST (King Abdullah University of Science and Technology) attending the @timeshighered.bsky.social World Academic Summit. The theme was "Universities as Agents of Progress" and it was therefore fitting that the conference was held at KAUST. What an amazing campus.

Looking forward to speaking at this event in Manchester on Thursday. Come join us if you are free. Register at: events.teams.microsoft.com/event/a606e8...

Had a great day on Friday at @cam.ac.uk celebrating what would have been the 100th birthday of IVF pioneer Bob Edwards. Some great talks and it was interesting to see some of the information held in @chuarchives.bsky.social

Great to give a lecture at the British Fertility Society study week in London yesterday on my favourite topic “Male fertility after cancer treatment”. Good to catch up with old friends and colleagues too!

Busy day today but still time to pop into BBC Radio Sheffield and have a chat with the lovely Paulette Edward’s about 3 parent babies and other things IVF related!

Great article from the good folk at @newcastleuni.bsky.social reporting the first UK births from mitochondrial donation www.nejm.org/doi/full/10....

Busy week in Paris last week and not much time to post anything, but I did manage to attend a reception on the Champs-Élysées courtesy of my collaborators at Cryos International. We have more papers coming, watch this space!

My comments in @theguardian.com courtesy of @hannahdevlin.bsky.social concerning the prospects for lab grown sperm (and eggs) "I’m ready for it. Whether society has realised, I don’t know.” Other comments from the super @rodtmitchell.bsky.social too! www.theguardian.com/science/2025...

My comments on BBC News (who I can't find on bluesky) concerning the 'Notable' rise in dads over 60 in England and Wales www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

My comments in @dailymail.co.uk about sperm quality in older men and whether or not there are merits in getting it tested regularly www.dailymail.co.uk/health/artic...

It was great to give a keynote at The Fertility Show this weekend in London and have the opportunity to catch up with @fertilityalliance.bsky.social (of which I'm Patron), as well as the gents from The Male Fertility Podcast. Great to see male infertility coming out of the shadows!

Turns out that last week's sperm race in LA was not a world first (that was done by me in 2004 for the BBC) but also seemingly computer generated. Read more at www.thefp.com/p/the-naked-... @thefp.com

Great to attend the 2nd IVF conference organised by the Dr Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Academy in Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) over the last few days. There were some great speakers and I gave a lecture in a session about sperm DNA testing as well as meeting up with old friends, colleagues and students!

I’ll be speaking at this year’s Fertility Show on Saturday 17th May 2025 at Olympia London. Find out more at www.fertilityshow.co.uk Save 25% on tickets! T&Cs: Offer valid on general admission tickets only until the Show. Cannot be used with other offers. Use code SP25 at checkout. See you there!

Here is a great film "The Birdman of Skomer" about my friend Professor Tim Birkhead and his 50+ year study of guillemot's on the island of Skomer - please share! vimeo.com/1063680641/2...

After a delayed arrival to Tunisia, I had interesting visits to see mosaics at the National Museum of Bardo, the lovely town of Sidi Bou Said, and the ancient city of Carthage, including the old Punic port.

This morning’s holiday flight to Tunisia turned out to be a two hour aerial tour of Cheshire and Derbyshire! #stillinmanchester

My comments in @theguardian.com about a new study which suggests that men with higher quality sperm live longer www.theguardian.com/science/2025... courtesy of @iansample.bsky.social

Are we ready for the new male contraceptives? My contribution to the debate on this week’s edition of The Inquiry on BBC World Service. Listen at: www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w...

Spent the last three days in Cairo at the 9th UEARS conference where I took part in a consensus workshop, gave a couple of talks, and caught up with colleagues. Great to enjoy some Egyptian hospitality as well!

Today I visited Alexandria University (Egypt) and spent some time with the staff teaching on the joint undergraduate medical and dental programmes that The University of Manchester @fbmh-uom.bsky.social has had with them since 2021 ...

Today I visited Mansoura University (Egypt) to visit friends and colleagues involved in the Mansoura Manchester Programme for Medical Education. This is approaching its 20th anniversary and has graduated thousands of students ...

My comments in @theguardian.com about a new non-tablet form of viagra potentially making its way to the UK market www.theguardian.com/science/2024...

After nearly 14 years on the other place, I’ve decided to give @bsky.app a spin. Now to link up with all the people who made the transition before me ….