Professor Richard Wiseman started his working life as an award-winning professional magician, and was one of the youngest members of The Magic Circle. He then obtained a first class honours degree in Psychology from University College London and a doctorate in psychology from the University of Edinburgh.

For the past twelve years he has been the head of a research unit at the University of Hertfordshire, and in 2002 was awarded Britain's first Professorship in the Public Understanding of Psychology.

Prof Wiseman has established an international reputation for his research into unusual areas of psychology, including deception, luck and the paranormal. He has published over 40 papers in refereed academic journals, including articles in one of the world’s most respected science publications, Nature.

He has given invited addresses and keynote speeches in Britain and abroad, including to The Royal Society, The Royal Society for the Arts, Microsoft, Caltech, and The Royal Institution.

Prof Wiseman’s research has been featured on over 150 television programmes, including Horizon (BBC), Body Shock (Channel 4), 20/20 (ABC), and Dateline (NBC). He is regularly heard on BBC Radio 4, including appearances on ‘Start the Week’, ‘Midweek’ and ‘The Today Programme’. Feature articles about his work have regularly appeared in The Times, The Daily Telegraph and The Guardian, and a recent poll revealed that he was the psychologist most frequently quoted in the British media.

Prof Wiseman first book, The Luck Factor, presents a comprehensive account of his ten-year research project into the nature of luck. This best-selling book has now been published into 14 languages and published in over 25 countries. His latest book, Quirkology, examines the curious psychology of everyday life, including laughter, lying, and love. This book has featured heavily in the media, and the You Tube channel designed to support it has received over 3 million views.

His work has been supported by grants from several prestigious organisations, including The Perrott Warrick Fund (Trinity College Cambridge), The Leverhulme Trust, The Wellcome Trust, and The National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA).

Prof Wiseman was the recipient of The CSICOP Public Education In Science Award in 2000 and the Joseph Lister Award For Social Science in 2002. In 2004 he was awarded a NESTA DreamTime Fellowship for his innovative work in science communication, and in 2005 served as President of the General Section of The British Association for the Advancement of Science.

Click here to read Prof Richard Wiseman's profile in the Guardian.