With a star-powered programme of world-class scientists, celebrity speakers and family-focused STEAM events, the NI Science Festival (NISF) returns from 11-22 February next year to venues across Northern Ireland.
The festival, which is supported by the Department for the Economy and Belfast City Council, celebrates the wonders of science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics through a vibrant programme of events that inspire curiosity, spark conversations and showcase how science shapes our world.
Commenting on this year’s programme, festival director Sarah Jones said: “Science isn’t just for labs. It’s in our history and culture. It’s how we understand the world around us and that’s what we’re about at NI Science Festival. With events spanning archaeology to music and quantum physics we’re here to open up a whole world of possibility for audiences.”
This year’s festival line-up features some of the UK and Ireland’s best-known science communicators and innovators, including festival-favourite Professor Alice Roberts exploring history and archaeology in her event, Domination: The Fall & Rise of an Empire, an investigative journey to establish who spread Christianity, how and why.
Another familiar face at the festival, theoretical physicist Professor Jim Al-Khalili returns with his talk Quantum 2.0, a look back at how a century of quantum mechanics has shaped our world and the next frontiers of quantum science.
Economy Minister Dr Caoimhe Archibald said: “Since its inception in 2015, the Science Festival has engaged tens of thousands of young people in science and provided a wide range of entertaining and informative events which demonstrate how Science and Technology can open career opportunities that young people may have not previously considered. As part of my commitment to developing good jobs and given how vital STEM skills are to the economy, this continues to be a key aspiration for the Department. I am looking forward to participating in this year’s festival and wish the Science Festival every success for 2026 and beyond.”
The Deputy Lord Mayor of Belfast, Councillor Paul Doherty, said: “The NI Science Festival is always a brilliant festival to look forward to, in the New Year, with a wide range of STEAM events taking place in Belfast and beyond, educating and inspiring both young and old.
“We have a rich history of scientists, engineers and inventors from the city as well as a thriving tech and creative industries’ sector. Events like the Science Festival are inspirational to our next generation.”
Ireland’s State Pathologist, Dr Marie Cassidy, will be in conversation with journalist Alison Morris for a fascinating discussion reflecting on a career spanning three decades and some of the country’s most high-profile cases.
Escape to the Chateau star and sustainability advocate Dick Strawbridge will be in conversation at Hillsborough Castle and the Ardhowen Theatre in Enniskillen, delving into his background in engineering, heritage restoration and sustainable living alongside apprentices from the All-Ireland Heritage Skills Programme.
The festival is also leading on Maps and Memories, a project which shines a light on the rich and fascinating heritage of the Ordnance Survey in Ireland, marking 200 years since the first mapping survey began on Divis Mountain. Working in partnership with National Trust, Queen’s University Belfast, Ordnance Survey Northern Ireland and the Historic Environment Division, the project will investigate and raise awareness of important trig points (triangulation pillars) which were used to create the first detailed maps of Ireland in the 19th century.
As part of the 2026 programme, the festival will also be back on the road, visiting Bangor, Newcastle, Enniskillen and Limavady with its NISF Roadshow, which includesHorrible Science with Nick Arnold, an all-out gross fest of bugs, brains, burps and more. Expect outrageous experiments, revolting facts and laugh-out-loud mayhem for all the family. Also along for the ride is the W5 team with their new interactive show W5 on Tour: The Hunt – Extreme, a thrilling adventure into the animal kingdom exploring how animals survive life in the wild.
In true NI Science Festival fashion, the wider programme of events promises the weird and the wonderful, with events about the science of vampires, a living autopsy, the real science behind fourteen poisons used in Agatha Christie mysteries, and much more.
The festival will also lead important conversations on a range of topics from Eating Disorders in Northern Ireland and The Untold History of Psychiatry and Homosexuality in Northern Ireland to The Lost Girls of Autism with Gina Rippon.
For booking information and further details, visit www.nisciencefestival.com.