From stone mason to science communication: PhD student wins UK science competition with Artemis-inspired poem
18 August 2026
A stone mason, who is in the process of trading his tools for a telescope, has been crowned UK champion of the world’s longest running and furthest reaching science communication competition.
Tony O’Sullivan, who is studying for a PhD in cometary physics at Cardiff University, won FameLab UK 2026 with his Artemis-inspired poetry performance.
Tony will now go on to represent the UK in the international FameLab final on 5 December 2026, at the Silesian Science Festival in Poland.
Tony describes his win as “surreal and awesome.”
“It was nerve-wracking performing the poem onstage,” he recalls.
“But I always think I’ll regret not doing it far more than messing it up. When I was up there, my hands were shaking uncontrollably, but you can’t see it on camera.”
Watch a video of Tony reciting his poem on YouTube
“The poem was inspired by the Artemis missions and how we seem to have come full circle,” he explains.
“We reached for the Moon originally out of stubborn pride. Now we do it as we look to explore and expand.”
I hope the message that comes across is if we are going to move forward, we must look past regional, national and even international pride and work together, as human beings!
Tony is a full-time PhD researcher at the University’s School of Physics and Astronomy, where his work runs across two strands:
- an astrophysics strand investigating the outburst mechanisms and rotational dynamics of comet 29P
- a longitudinal study examining how young people develop their relationship with science as they grow up – known as 'science capital'
He returned to education via an access course at Cardiff and Vale College before his love of science saw him progress to a Chemistry undergraduate degree.
“I was still working almost full-time as a stonemason, so when my classmates were looking for work after graduation, I realised I had loved the process of education so much. I wanted to go further than the ‘what things do’ of Chemistry, and I wanted to know why.”
This led Tony to an undergraduate degree in Physics at the Open University.
“After my first year, I realised that although I loved Physics broadly, whenever there was an Astrophysics module or topic, I would stay up, working relentlessly until it was finished.
“I explained this burgeoning passion and its links to my childhood love of space on my personal statement for Cardiff University, and the rest, as they say, is history.”
“When art and science do mix, beautiful things happen”
Alongside his research, Tony delivers science communication and widening participation outreach in the schools and communities across South Wales.
He says bridging science and the arts is one of his favourite ways of engaging young people in Physics.
“I think it serves many purposes, including connecting with audiences who may not see themselves as ‘sciencey’,” Tony explains.
There’s some sort of unwritten rule that art and science cannot coexist; we separate them from childhood onwards, in how we label kids, how we fund things and how we structure qualifications.
“The fact is, when art and science do mix, beautiful things happen.
“I’ve been delivering ‘cosmic poetry’ sessions to deprived schools around South Wales as part of my PhD, so after the FameLab finals, hopefully the next science poet you hear won’t be me, but someone who I have inspired.”
Professor Paul Roche, Chair of Astronomy Education at Cardiff University’s School of Physics and Astronomy and Tony’s PhD supervisor, added: “It was clear from my first encounter with Tony that he was a natural and extremely energetic science communicator, and a passionate believer in helping others understand how things work.”
These are vital attributes to help people understand the increasingly complex and confusing world we live in, and his work with schoolchildren is truly inspiring.
Ahead of the competition, UK Masterclass trainer and Science Made Simple founder Wendy Sadler and her team trained Tony, along with the other Welsh finalists.
FameLab has been going for 21 years now – the first ever winner was Dr Mark Lewney who was actually also a PhD student from the School of Physics and Astronomy and so it’s fantastic to have our second winner now with Tony.
Head of Physics Education Research Group
“The competition was stiff – but his poem left the judges absolutely speechless. Congratulations/llongyfarchiadau on this amazing achievement, Tony!”
The competition, now in its 21st year, saw 10 outstanding UK science communicators take to the Helix stage at Cheltenham Science Festival to compete for the title.
Each FameLabber had just three minutes to explain complex science, delivering unforgettable, fast‑paced unique talks designed to inspire, intrigue and amaze.
“There’s a part of me that sometimes feels sad that I wasn’t doing this the whole time,” Tony reflects.
“But realistically, self-employment in an incredibly demanding job taught me determination, self-reliance, conflict and expectation management, how to talk to clients and suppliers and how to focus on getting results.
“All of these things definitely have played a role in my achievements this year.”
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