In Our Time Podcast
Misha Glenny and guests discuss the ideas, people and events that have shaped our world.
A world-class seminar, every week.
In Our Time explores the ideas, people and discoveries that have shaped our world, spanning history, philosophy, religion, science, literature, art and culture.
On Thursdays, hear brand-new episodes hosted by Misha Glenny and leading academics. On Mondays, discover Misha's Archive Picks: classic conversations from the In Our Time archive, originally presented by Melvyn Bragg.
Recent episodes have featured topics as wide-ranging as the Roman Arena, Handel's Messiah, John Keats, On Liberty and the Mariana Trench, bringing expert insight to pivotal events, influential thinkers and remarkable discoveries.
Throughout the archive, you can hear discussions on historical figures such as Marie Antoinette, Nefertiti, Mary Wollstonecraft, Karl Marx and Albert Einstein; explore great works of literature such as Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and the poetry of John Donne; uncover the stories behind cultural masterpieces including Van Gogh's Sunflowers and Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel; or journey from Jupiter and the death of stars, to the theories of Plato and Aristotle.
In Our Time celebrates the pursuit of knowledge and the enduring power of ideas.
Episodes to download
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Mathematics and Music
Thu 25 May 2006
Melvyn Bragg examines the mathematical structures that lie within the heart of music.
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Astronomy and Empire
Thu 4 May 2006
Melvyn Bragg examines the relationship between astronomy and British Imperial expansion.
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The Great Exhibition of 1851
Thu 27 Apr 2006
Melvyn Bragg examines the exhibition that showcased Victorian Britain's industrial might.
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Immunisation
Thu 20 Apr 2006
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the search for immunisation and its impact on society.
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The Oxford Movement
Thu 13 Apr 2006
Melvyn Bragg examines the 19th century Catholic movement within the Church of England.
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Jorge Luis Borges
Thu 6 Apr 2006
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and work of Jorge Luis Borges.
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Goethe
Thu 6 Apr 2006
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the great German polymath, Johann Wolfgang Goethe.
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The Carolingian Renaissance
Thu 30 Mar 2006
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Emperor Charlemagne and the Carolingian Renaissance.
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The Royal Society
Thu 23 Mar 2006
The history of the formation of the Royal Society, the oldest scientific academy.
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Don Quixote
Thu 16 Mar 2006
Melvyn Bragg considers the importance of the 17th century Spanish novel Don Quixote.
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Negative Numbers
Thu 9 Mar 2006
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss negative numbers, a history of mystery and suspicion.
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Friendship
Thu 2 Mar 2006
Melvyn Bragg explores the concept of friendship; ‘a single soul dwelling in two bodies’.
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Catherine the Great
Thu 23 Feb 2006
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Empress who transformed and modernized Russia.
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Human Evolution
Thu 16 Feb 2006
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the six million year old story of human evolution.
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Chaucer
Thu 9 Feb 2006
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Geoffrey Chaucer, the father of English literature.
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The Abbasid Caliphs
Thu 2 Feb 2006
Melvyn Bragg examines the Abbasid Caliphs, rulers of the Islamic world for 200 years.
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Seventeenth Century Print Culture
Thu 26 Jan 2006
Melvyn Bragg examines the controversy and scandal of 17th century print culture.
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Relativism
Thu 19 Jan 2006
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss relativism; a philosophy with no absolute truths.
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Prime Numbers
Thu 12 Jan 2006
Melvyn Bragg examines prime numbers and their mysterious role in the universe of numbers.
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The Oath
Thu 5 Jan 2006
Melvyn Bragg and guests explore the importance of the oath in the Classical World.
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The Oresteia
Thu 29 Dec 2005
Melvyn Bragg examines the ‘Oresteia’, the seminal trilogy of tragedies by Aeschylus.
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The Peterloo Massacre
Thu 15 Dec 2005
Melvyn Bragg examines the 1819 Peterloo Massacre and the brutality of the British state.
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Artificial Intelligence
Thu 8 Dec 2005
Melvyn Bragg investigates artificial intelligence; can a computer imitate the human mind?
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Hobbes
Thu 1 Dec 2005
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the great 17th century philosopher Thomas Hobbes.
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The Graviton
Thu 24 Nov 2005
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the search for the Graviton particle in physics.
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Greyfriars and Blackfriars
Thu 10 Nov 2005
Melvyn Bragg looks at the religious orders of the Dominicans and the Franciscans.

