Experience cutting-edge research brought to life through amazing hands-on activities and incredible conversations.

What will you find out at Discovery Day? Join us for this free family-friendly event in Bristol.

You’ll find dozens of interactive stalls and activities from researchers at the Universities of Bristol and Bath, where you can ignite your curiosity and explore everything from quantum science to climate change, solar power to superconductors, germs to dark matter, and animal emotions to artificial intelligence.

Make your own wind turbine, fly a drone, design your perfect meal, or take part in real research about human behaviour.

‘Beat the teacher’ in a game exploring physical activity, step inside a dark matter experiment, see a levitating train in action, or test your code-cracking skills.

Try fairground-style games to learn about allergies, design the vehicle of the future, or spot the bad bugs in an infectious disease challenge.

Alongside the stalls, enjoy a programme of short, family-friendly Discovery Talks from some of our amazing researchers throughout the day:

Pond Scum: Friend or Foe? Ash Winter explores the surprising medical potential of algae

The Search for Dark Matter, Sam Eriksen

Drones, huh? What are they good for? Steve Bullock

No booking required for talks, first come first seated.

This is a rare chance to meet the people behind world-changing research, ask questions, and try things out for yourself.

Timings: Tickets are available for the morning session (10:00-12:30) or the afternoon session (1:30-4:00). Your ticket will also give you access to any of the Discovery Talks.

Please note: This event takes place on the second floor of We The Curious, in the dedicated events space. A ticket to Discovery Day does not give entry to We The Curious’s permanent exhibition floors. Tickets for We The Curious can be purchased separately by visiting www.wethecurious.org

Practical information: Refreshments are available for purchase in the We The Curious cafe and in neighbouring Millenium Square. You are welcome to bring your own food and drink to consume at the event, and the open air terraces on the second floor will be available for you to enjoy if you need a pit stop, or just a quiet moment and a bit of fresh air. A buggy park and unstaffed cloakroom will be available at the venue.

FUTURES is part of European Researchers’ Night, a pan-European event Night taking place in 40 countries and more than 460 cities all over Europe and beyond simultaneously, funded by the European Union to bring science and society closer and heighten young people’s interest in science.

FUTURES 2026-27 is funded by the European Union under the Marie Sklodowska Curie Actions, Grant Number 101305354. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

Description supplied by the event organiser.