John Campbell is a physicist and passionate science communicator from New Zealand. He is most well known for his firewalking, his public shows, and his Ask-A-Scientist programme, which has been running since 1993.

John is the author of Rutherford Scientist Supreme and www.rutherford.org.nz

He retired from teaching physics at the University of Canterbury in 2005 whereupon he produced a DVD for physics teachers in New Zealand schools on how to build, and use in an entertaining way, classroom demonstrations of physics principles. His current project is an international documentary on Ernest Rutherford.

John is a retired parachutist and retired amateur marine archaeologist, but still dives for food. He plays soccer for the Ilam Hardies, which, considering he was at his peak in the 1960 Chatham Cup final is the longest downhill slide in the history of sport. And once he came third in a gumboot throwing competition.