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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The Planets
Thu 27 May 2004
Melvyn Bragg examines our knowledge of the planets in both our and other solar systems.
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Toleration
Thu 20 May 2004
Melvyn Bragg looks at the politics behind the rise of religious freedom in England.
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Zero
Thu 13 May 2004
Melvyn Bragg examines the number between 1 and -1, once denounced as the devil's work.
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Heroism
Thu 6 May 2004
Melvyn Bragg explores what defines a hero, and their place in classical society.
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Hysteria
Thu 22 Apr 2004
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss how emotional experiences can become physical symptoms.
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The Later Romantics
Thu 15 Apr 2004
Melvyn Bragg examines the poetry, tragedy and idealism of Byron, Shelley and Keats.
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The Fall
Thu 8 Apr 2004
Melvyn Bragg examines the concept of original sin and its influence in Christian Europe.
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China's Warring States period
Thu 1 Apr 2004
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the astonishing productivity of the Chinese Golden Age.
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Theories of Everything
Thu 25 Mar 2004
Melvyn Bragg explores the 30 year search to solve all the biggest questions in physics.
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The Norse Gods
Thu 11 Mar 2004
Melvyn Bragg examines the myths and theology that inspired the Vikings.
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The Mughal Empire
Thu 26 Feb 2004
Melvyn Bragg and guests examine how much the British Raj owed to the Mughal Emperors.
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Rutherford
Thu 19 Feb 2004
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Ernest Rutherford, the father of nuclear science.
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The Sublime
Thu 12 Feb 2004
Melvyn Bragg explores a transcendental idea that took hold on the Age of Enlightenment.
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Thermopylae
Thu 5 Feb 2004
Melvyn Bragg examines the Battle of Thermopylae, a defining clash between East and West.
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Lamarck and Natural Selection
Boxing Day 2003
Melvyn Bragg discusses Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, the 18th century French precursor to Darwin.
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The Alphabet
Thu 18 Dec 2003
Melvyn Bragg investigates how sounds turned into signs and signs became the alphabet.
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The Devil
Thu 11 Dec 2003
Melvyn Bragg examines how the Devil became an established figure in Christianity.
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Wittgenstein
Thu 4 Dec 2003
The life, work and legacy of the 20th century philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein.
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St Bartholomew's Day Massacre
Thu 27 Nov 2003
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the infamous St Bartholomew’s Day Massacre in 1572.
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Ageing the Earth
Thu 20 Nov 2003
Melvyn Bragg examines the age of the Earth and its division into four great Eons.
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Duty
Thu 13 Nov 2003
Melvyn Bragg examines duty, a concept that has excited philosophers through history.
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Sensation
Thu 6 Nov 2003
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the novels of sensation, a Victorian literary phenomenon.
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Robin Hood
Thu 30 Oct 2003
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the centuries old myth of the most romantic noble outlaw.
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Infinity
Thu 23 Oct 2003
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the nature and existence of mathematical infinity.
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The Schism
Thu 16 Oct 2003
Melvyn Bragg examines events surrounding the medieval division of the Christian Church.
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Bohemianism
Thu 9 Oct 2003
Melvyn Bragg examines the 19th century Parisian philosophy of life lived for art.
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Maxwell
Thu 2 Oct 2003
The work and legacy of the often overlooked 19th century scientist James Clerk Maxwell.

