Masters of Reinvention will air on factual channel Yesterday and free streaming service UKTV Play, to be produced by Air TV.
In the six-episode series, multi-award-winning mechanical engineer and broadcaster, Dr Shini Somara will turn to back copies of Practical Mechanics magazine – once the bible of British inventors – to challenge a dream design team to update its vintage blueprints for the 21st century.
Dr Shini Somara:
“We haven’t yet reinvented the wheel, so I’m curious and amped on how and why we can improve on the ingenuities of yesteryear!”
Each week Dr Shini will lead a diverse crew of engineers, crafters and gadgeteers to update inventions dating back to the 1930s, 40s, 50s or 60s using only Practical Mechanics’ faded plans as a guide. Working from a repurposed vintage shed on a Yorkshire airfield, the build teams will be drawn from a consistent pool of returning experts, with Dr Shini allocating team members to the projects that most suits their skills.
Masters of Reinvention has been commissioned for UKTV by commissioning editor Kirsty Hanson with head of factual and factual entertainment Helen Nightingale, and ordered by Yesterday channel director, Gerald Casey, and director of commissioning, Hilary Rosen. Produced by Air TV, the production company that makes Bangers & Cash, the executive producers are Matt Richards and Ian Cundall, and the series producer is Ben Bhatia.
UKTV’s Kirsty Hanson: “Britain is a nation of inventors and it’s brilliant to not only celebrate that, but inspire our viewers to be ambitious and creative with their spare time. Masters of Reinvention feels like an exciting, new turn of the wheel for Yesterday.”
Gerald Casey: “Yesterday viewers will love how Masters of Reinvention combines innovation and invention in a new format, revealing how designers and engineers use their expertise to build gadgets from scratch.”
Masters of Reinvention will air in 2025 on U&Yesterday and available on the free streaming service U.
