Dr David Mannion Speaker | Science

Dr David Mannion

How much of our Universe do we know and how do we know?

Dr David Mannion has three degrees in Astronomy and has taught in Schools and Colleges for 30 years in the UK, Austria and Turkey. He has also been a tutor for the Open University in both Physics and Astronomy.

Dr Mannion became a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society in 1984 and was a member of its Education Committee from 2005 - 2010. He has run numerous Astronomy Clubs and was a founder member and a Vice President of the Association for Astronomy Education. He co-authored a book on Galileo called “Galileo and 400 Years of Telescopic Astronomy” published in 2010.

His other burning interest is weightlifting having once been a British Student Weightlifting and Powerlifting Champion in 1984. He is currently an International Referee for British Weightlifting and became a Masters Champion in the 94 kg class in 2007, 2010, 2012 and again in 2017. He was fourth in the recent European Masters WL championships 2015 held in Bangor North Wales. He wishes to keep lifting weights and watching the stars for as long as possible.

Testimonials from Teachers

"Dr Mannion's workshop brought the topic of Space alive for our Year 6 children. His enthusiasm and subject knowledge shone through, engaging and inspiring the children and allowing them to explore the topic in a practical way. His resources were relevant and his way of describing difficult concepts was accessible to all children. We would definitely recommend Dr Mannion's workshops and book him again."

– Mrs Manson, Year 6 Teacher, Joy Lane Primary School

"Dr David Mannion was employed as Head of Science at Farringtons School, Chislehurst, Kent from 2008 to 2010, teaching throughout the age and ability range to A Level. Dr Mannion impressed all who knew him by his enthusiasm for his subject, Physics and, in particular by his passion for Astronomy. Whilst at Farringtons, he undertook many initiatives to inspire a love of Science including; introducing a Science Week, starting a successful Astronomy Club and conducting various lively assemblies and challenging House activities. His personal subject knowledge was profound but he always took great care to engage his audiences, when public speaking, by his good humour and relating his topics to the experience of his listeners, making Science accessible and relevant to all. Dr Mannion was an excellent colleague, always a gentleman in all situations, kind, well-mannered and unselfish."

– Mrs Sally Worth, Head of Senior School, Farringtons School

"David worked at MGS for seven years. He was at one time Head of Physics CPS+3 and also a gifted and talented co-ordinator. As well as teaching science (KS3) and Physics (KS4 and KS5), he gave interesting talks on Astronomy and he ran an Astronomy club and crest science club where many students did Astronomy projects. He was full of enthusiasm and always engaged his students."

– Mr Mark Thomkins, Headmaster, Maidstone Grammar School

"When David was Head of Science at CATS College, he worked hard to ensure his personal interest in Astronomy and fitness enhanced his teaching and students’ outcomes. It was obvious that David’s passion for his subjects could be translated into easily digestible nuggets of knowledge, so that everybody could share in the enjoyment of learning."

– James Slocombe, Principal, CATS College Canterbury