Countryfile presenter John Craven proposes Victorian Engineer, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, as a great life. He's joined by engineering historian Julia Elton and presenter Matthew Parris.
And where better to discuss Brunel's achievements than by the harbour in Bristol in the shadow of his magnificent steam ship the SS Great Britain. But should his creator of great machines himself be considered a great man or is finest achievement the engineering of his own reputation?
Recorded at the Food Connections Festival in Bristol.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2014.