About Sir Howard Florey

Born in Adelaide, Florey was educated in Australia and later studied at Cambridge and Oxford universities in the United Kingdom.

While at Cambridge, Florey, along with Sir Alexander Fleming and Sir Ernst Chain, worked on developing a poisonous product, made from common mould, into a drug that could kill deadly bacteria — what we now know as the antibiotic penicillin.

In 1945, along with Fleming and Chain, Florey was awarded a Nobel Prize for his immense contributions to human health and wellbeing.

Interviews with Howard Florey

In 1967, oral history pioneer Hazel de Berg interviewed Howard Florey. He spoke about his childhood, schooling and work on the development of penicillin.

Use excerpts from the recording to learn more about the processes Florey, Fleming and Chain used in their work. Find out what influenced their discovery and how Florey felt after the breakthrough.

Listen to Sir Howard Florey

Sir Howard Florey talks about his early life, education and his interest in science at a young age.

Sir Howard Florey talks about his role in the development of penicillin. He shares his thoughts on what drove him and his team in their research

Sir Howard Florey talks about common misconceptions surrounding the development of penicillin and perceived impact of penicillin on global populations.

Sir Howard Florey shares his personal feelings about Australia's scientific potential

Learning activities