Lucy Cooke examines the survival strategies adopted by animals to gain an evolutionary advantage.

Award-winning broadcaster, best-selling author and zoologist Lucy Cooke has produced and presented numerous natural history shows on TV and radio, and has been tipped by The Times as 'the next David Attenborough'. In this BBC Radio 4 series, first broadcast under the title The Power Of..., she delves into the animal kingdom, exploring what gives certain species the evolutionary edge over their rivals.

Over the course of eight episodes, she probes the science behind our seeming obsession with all things cute; unleashes her inner sloth to discover the surprising benefits of being slow; learns that honesty isn't always the best policy, whether you're a chimp, a squid or even a human being and finds out why being small can give you step up on the evolutionary ladder.

She also investigates the animal communities that thrive on co-operation and peaceful behaviour, and considers why it works for them; looks at the power of celibacy and meets nature's ultimate self-cloning sisters; discovers how some species make a success out of going solo and asks why it can pay to stir once the sun goes down—and whether future survival for many diurnal animals may depend on a nightlife.

Production credits:

Presented by Lucy Cooke.

Produced by Alexandra Feachem, Beth Eastwood and Adrian Washbourne.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on the following dates:

The Power of Cute 17th May 2016

The Power of Sloth 26th December 2017

Power of Deceit 6th August 2019

Power of Petite 13th August 2019

Power of Peace 20th August 2019

The Power of Celibacy 4th January 2021

The Power of One 11th January 2021

The Power of Night 18th January 2021