Two hundred children aged between ten and 12 attended the event, presented by TV's Dr Jonathan Hare, at P&G's Newcastle Technical Centre.

Children travelled from across Northumberland to take part in the interactive show.

During a fun-packed hour, the fascinated youngsters learnt a wide range of things – from how to switch on Christmas tree lights using potatoes as batteries, to powering a radio using sea water.

Dr Hare, of Sussex University, who has appeared on several TV science programmes, including Rough Science, Tomorrow's World and Hollywood Science, said: "I've loved science and inventing from an early age and am passionate about creating a great interactive learning experience for the children – these shows are a perfect opportunity to pass on my enthusiasm for the subject."

Andrew Graydon, P&G's community matters co-ordinator, said: "Science is a significant part of our work here and we are keen to inspire local children to develop and interest in the subject.

"It's great to host an event that shows young people how much fun science can be – the positive response from the children has been fantastic and I hope their enthusiasm continues to develop."

The series of Christmas lectures were funded by the North East Process Industry Cluster (NEPIC) and the Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) and run by the Science Learning Centre North East.