Matthew Sweet and guests question whether you can ever really escape. Read more
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Escapism
Matthew Sweet and guests question whether you can ever really escape.
Carl Schmitt, democracy and dictatorship
Anne McElvoy with guests including David Runciman and Gisela Stuart
Crisis & Decision
Do we live in a time of crisis? Matthew Sweet gets to grips with the present moment.
The eternal dynamic of Rivalry, Fredric Jameson, the newly reopened Warburg Institute
Michael Crick, Helen Castor, David Edmonds, Kate Maltby and Roger Luckhurst.
Why we read
Shahidha Bari and guests discuss the value of reading fiction and of writing history.
Childhood and innocence
Katherine Rundell, Emily Baughan, Grace Lockrobin, Miriam Cates, Andrew Cooper
Insiders & Outsiders
Matthew Sweet and guests explore the secret languages of the internet and beyond.
Are we all American now?
Freddy Gray, Dr Katie McGettigan, Amanda Taub, Kit Davis and Rana Mitter join Anne McElvoy
Ghosts, death and ecstatic states
Shahidha Bari with Irving Finkel, Simon Critchley, Chris Harding and Hetta Howes.
Milton and our modern world
It is 350 years since the death of Milton. We discuss ideas of Puritanism and divorce.
Cosy comfort reading or Nietzsche?
Alexander McCall Smith, Susannah Clapp, Tom Shakespeare, Deborah Sugg Ryan & Hugo Drochon
Diplomacy from Ancient Greece to Trump
Sir Nigel Sheinwald, Professor Clare Jackson, Bronwen Maddox, Dr Holly Furneaux
Gifts and Gratitude
Following Thanksgiving, and as Christmas approaches, Shahidha Bari on giving and receiving
How we think about evil
Matthew Sweet and guests pick up from this year's Reith lectures and look at ideas of evil
Luck, predictability and superstition
Dr Christian Busch, Bobby Seagull, Sharron Davies, Dr Kate Tomas and Timandra Harkness.
Beer, crisps and the British pub
Tim Martin, Natalie Whittle, Professor Philip Howell, Dr Marianne Hem Eriksen, Ben Wright.