Lynne Truss returns with a new series in which she examines the revolutionary impact of everyday objects.
Today 90 per cent of the population hold up their hands with confidence, thanks to deodorant, which was invented in 1888. Lynne Truss uncovers the history with James Dyson and Uri Geller, and finds out why deodorant is causing the divorce rate to rocket.

[Pictire caption] Body odours are nothing new. Ovid described the youths in Ancient Rome as having armpits that stank like goats

The Indispensables 3.30pm R4
As jobs go, being asked to sniff and then quantify other people's bottled sweat must come pretty high on the list entitled "Sorry, the Salary's Never Going to Be High Enough". But that's what one poor man interviewed today does for a living and, as he explains to Lynne Truss in the first of her returning series on the impact of everyday inventions, he now finds he just can't stop himself from inhaling other people's body odour when he climbs into packed lifts (professional interest, of course). In case you're wondering, Lynne is looking at that product we've all been trained to believe we can't do without (but apparently we can, if we made more effort with the likes of water and fresh lime juice) - deodorant. And if you thought the story about the man with the bottles was disturbing, wait until you get Uri Geller on how he used to pack his armpits with talcum powder. You might not want to hear this but you really mustn't miss it!