2. Something in the Water

Will Self ponders the origins of our insatiable thirst for bottled waters.

How did mineral water become such a valuable commodity and is it a luxury the world can no longer afford?

Will's a confirmed fan of mineral water - yet he's puzzled by its enduring appeal when H2O flows freely from the tap.

He investigates the history of five different mineral waters and the spa towns from which they spring.

Will examines how Buxton rose to prominence as a spa town in the 18th and 19th centuries and what it owes to the grand spas of central Europe.

Producer: Laurence Grissell

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2021.

(Photo credit: Luther Self)