Intelligence Squared

In September 2022, a series of underwater explosions tore through the Nord Stream pipelines beneath the Baltic Sea. The destruction of this $20 billion pipeline severed a major artery of Russian gas supplies to Europe, disrupted economies and triggered a manhunt that strained relations within the NATO alliance. In this episode, journalist Hannah Lucinda Smith speaks with Wall Street Journal Chief European Political Correspondent Bojan Pancevski about his investigation into this seismic act of sabotage.  Despite capturing the imagination of millions, the mystery of who blew up the pipeline has so far gone unsolved – was it the CIA? Was it part of the shadow war between Russia and the West? Could Putin himself have been behind it? Drawing on years of reporting and access to intelligence officials, investigators and key players, Pancevski reconstructs the events behind one of the most consequential acts of sabotage in modern history.  Bojan Pancevski is Chief European Political Correspondent at The Wall Street Journal. He is the author of The Nord Stream Conspiracy: The Inside Story of the Explosions That Shook the World. Hannah Lucinda Smith is a journalist and foreign correspondent reporting on global politics, conflict and international affairs. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Long before Putin's invasion of Ukraine, conflict was simmering on Europe's borders. In overlooked territories in eastern Europe, the eastern Mediterranean and the Caucasus –from the Balkans and Cyprus to Abkhazia on the fringes of Georgia – local disputes spiral into regional crises, global alliances are forged and broken, and power is brokered while the West looks elsewhere. In this episode, acclaimed correspondent Hannah Lucinda Smith joins Adam McCauley to discuss her new book Hinterlands: Journeys through Europe's Unfinished Frontiers. She draws on vivid first-hand experience to paint a gripping portrait of Europe at its edges - and the struggles that will define its future. Hannah Lucinda Smith is a journalist known for reporting across the Middle East and Europe for The Times of London, The Atlantic, WIRED, and others. She is the author of Erdogan Rising, an account of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's rise to power, and Zarifa, the memoir of Afghan human rights activist Zarifa Ghafari. Adam McCauley is a journalist, academic, and policy analyst currently based in Ottawa, Canada. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is an episode of Hotels with History, produced by Intelligence Squared on behalf of Perowne International⁠. We're in midtown Manhattan to kick off Series 2, at the very heart of New York society: the Waldorf Astoria. An icon born from family rivalry which evolved into the unofficial palace of the city; from Gilded Age ambition and Art Deco grandeur to revolutionary ideas about service, the Waldorf doesn't just reflect New York's history... it helped define it. Check into The Waldorf Astoria here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As the main intelligence and security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 to 1991, the KGB instilled fear across Russia and sought to sow discord abroad. This network of government spies was notorious for the often brutal methods it used to keep enemies, loyalists and common people under the thumb of the state. And far from fading as the USSR old guard fell from power, the operatives, methods and networks of the KGB remain at the heart of the Russian state today. Putin himself was a KGB officer for 16 years, including six years as a foreign intelligence officer stationed in Dresden, East Germany. In May 2026, veteran security correspondent and Rest is Classified co-host Gordon Corera joined us to unveil the inner workings of the KGB and the hidden power struggles that shaped modern Russia. Corera explored the real-life stories of those on the inside; from the spies who lived and died enforcing its rule, to those who were brave enough to resist it. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. ⁠https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As the main intelligence and security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 to 1991, the KGB instilled fear across Russia and sought to sow discord abroad. This network of government spies was notorious for the often brutal methods it used to keep enemies, loyalists and common people under the thumb of the state. And far from fading as the USSR old guard fell from power, the operatives, methods and networks of the KGB remain at the heart of the Russian state today. Putin himself was a KGB officer for 16 years, including six years as a foreign intelligence officer stationed in Dresden, East Germany. In May 2026, veteran security correspondent and Rest is Classified co-host Gordon Corera joined us to unveil the inner workings of the KGB and the hidden power struggles that shaped modern Russia. Corera explored the real-life stories of those on the inside; from the spies who lived and died enforcing its rule, to those who were brave enough to resist it. --- This is the first instalment of a two-part episode. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

From cannabis legalisation in the United States to the rise of psychedelics as wellness and productivity tools, the global politics of drugs is being rapidly transformed. But who really benefits from the legalisation of recreational drugs? In this episode, journalist and author Atossa Araxia Abrahamian speaks with Kojo Koram, Professor of Law and Political Economy at Loughborough University, about his new book The Next Fix.  Drawing on reporting from Colombia, Ghana, Scotland and the United States, Koram traces the shifting relationship between criminalisation, capitalism and public health. The conversation examines the roots of drug regulation in empire, the racial inequalities embedded in prohibition, and the growing tension between movements seeking justice and corporations seeking profit from newly legal markets. Koram also explores how substances once associated with criminality are being rebranded for elite consumption - as therapeutic treatments, Silicon Valley productivity aids and investment opportunities. At its centre is a wider question about power and inequality: who benefits when drugs move from the underground economy into the mainstream? Kojo Koram is Professor of Law and Political Economy at Loughborough University. He is the author of The Next Fix: The Winners and Losers in the Future of Drugs. Atossa Araxia Abrahamian is a journalist who writes about the cracks in the nation-state system. She is the author of The Hidden Globe: How Wealth Hacks the World. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, journalist Kamal Ahmed was joined by Jon Sopel, Dimple Ahluwalia and Matt Rowe to explore how cybersecurity has moved from a technical concern to a central force shaping economic growth, national security and public trust in an age of boundless intelligence. They examine why cyber resilience must go beyond reactive defence, and how stronger security can protect essential industries such as finance, healthcare and critical infrastructure while enabling innovation and confidence in a rapidly changing world. This episode was recorded live in London as part of Intelligence Squared and IBM's The Age to Come series. Next live event date: 24th Sept 2026. Find out more: www.intelligencesquared.com/the-age-to-come Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, science broadcaster Dr Güneş Taylor speaks with endocrinologist Dr Saira Hameed about her new book Signals: The Inside Story of Our Hormones. From exhaustion and infertility to appetite, mood and libido, Hameed explores the vast and often misunderstood hormonal system that regulates almost every aspect of human life. Drawing on patient stories and recent medical research, Hameed explains how hormones act as the body's internal signalling network — and what happens when those signals misfire. The conversation examines new approaches to diagnosis and care, the discovery of previously unknown hormones linked to fat and metabolism, and the realities behind the growing wellness market around testosterone and male health. Dr Saira Hameed is a Consultant Endocrinologist at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and a Senior Tutor and Honorary Clinical Senior Lecturer at Imperial College London. She is the author of Signals: The Inside Story of Our Hormones. Dr Güneş Taylor is a science broadcaster and Fellow at the Centre for Reproductive Health. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

From Brexit negotiations and the Cuban Missile Crisis to elections, auctions and everyday decision-making, game theory can offer powerful insights into how we navigate a world shaped by competing interests, cooperation and strategic choices. In this episode, Professor Michael Wooldridge joins Carl Miller to explore the surprising life lessons hidden within one of mathematics' most influential fields. Drawing on ideas from his new book Life Lessons from Game Theory: The Art of Thinking Strategically in a Complex World, Wooldridge explains how game theory can help us better understand conflict, human behaviour and truth.  Professor Michael Wooldridge the Ashall Professor of the Foundations of Artificial Intelligence in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Oxford, and a Senior Research Fellow at Hertford College. Carl Miller is an author, speaker and researcher at Demos, a think tank based in London, where he co-founded the Centre for the Analysis of Social Media in 2012. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Professor Turi King, Director of the Milner Centre for Evolution at the University of Bath, is known for leading the genetic investigation identifying Richard III and advising on the Mary Jane Kelly case (the last victim of Jack the Ripper). She co-presents the BBC's DNA Family Secrets with Stacey Dooley and is the author of a new book, The Secrets of Our DNA, which takes us through some fascinating true stories  to show how DNA has solved mysteries and shapes our world today. In this episode, she talks to Dr Güneş Taylor about Richard III; how the fate of the Romanovs was discovered through genetic research; eugenics; the study of Hitler's DNA; and how she used David Attenborough's DNA to study the link between the Y chromosome and the surname. Together, they explore how genetics informs every aspect of our lives, why it affects us all, and what it can – and can't tell us about who we are. The Story of Our DNA by Professor Turi King is available online and in bookshops now. Dr Güneş Taylor is Group Leader at the Centre For Reproductive Health at the University of Edinburgh Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This debate was part of the ‘Think Again' series in which two leading thinkers present alternative answers to a difficult societal question. The book and series published by The Bodley Head.  --- What happens when life becomes unbearable — when suffering is unrelenting, dignity is stripped away, and the end is inevitable? Those who support legalising assisted dying argue that autonomy doesn't stop at the threshold of death. For individuals facing terminal illness, the current law is not a protection but a cruelty, forcing them to either act while they still can or surrender all control over how their lives will end. With robust safeguards in place, supporters argue, a compassionate society should not force its most vulnerable members to suffer against their will but should instead legalise a right to die. But skeptics urge us to look harder at what legalisation would truly mean in practice. Assisted dying is never simply a private act — it implicates families, healthcare professionals, and the values of society as a whole. In a healthcare system already under enormous strain, could the right to die quietly become the pressure to die? And rather than investing in the infrastructure of death, should we instead be transforming the way we care for the dying through properly funded palliative care?  In May 2026 we produced a live debate marking the launch of Do We Have The Right To Die?, the second book in our partnered ‘Think Again' book series published by Bodley Head. Former Supreme Court President Lady Hale and former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams went head to head to debate this urgent and divisive question: should assisted dying be enshrined as a fundamental right, or does it place our most vulnerable citizens in profound danger? --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This debate was part of the ‘Think Again' series in which two leading thinkers present alternative answers to a difficult societal question. The book and series published by The Bodley Head.  --- What happens when life becomes unbearable — when suffering is unrelenting, dignity is stripped away, and the end is inevitable? Those who support legalising assisted dying argue that autonomy doesn't stop at the threshold of death. For individuals facing terminal illness, the current law is not a protection but a cruelty, forcing them to either act while they still can or surrender all control over how their lives will end. With robust safeguards in place, supporters argue, a compassionate society should not force its most vulnerable members to suffer against their will but should instead legalise a right to die. But skeptics urge us to look harder at what legalisation would truly mean in practice. Assisted dying is never simply a private act — it implicates families, healthcare professionals, and the values of society as a whole. In a healthcare system already under enormous strain, could the right to die quietly become the pressure to die? And rather than investing in the infrastructure of death, should we instead be transforming the way we care for the dying through properly funded palliative care?  In May 2026 we produced a live debate marking the launch of Do We Have The Right To Die?, the second book in our partnered ‘Think Again' book series published by Bodley Head. Former Supreme Court President Lady Hale and former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams went head to head to debate this urgent and divisive question: should assisted dying be enshrined as a fundamental right, or does it place our most vulnerable citizens in profound danger? This is the first instalment of a two-part episode. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Douglas Stuart is one of the most successful writers in Britain today. He is celebrated globally for his honest portrayals of human relationships and working-class life. In 2020 he won the Booker Prize for his debut novel Shuggie Bain, a searingly honest novel set in 1980s Glasgow about a boy named Shuggie trying to save his mother, Agnes, from alcoholism and poverty.  His second novel Young Mungo, a story of the dangerous first love of two young men, was released in 2022 and became a number one Sunday Times Bestseller.  In May 2026, Stuart joined us live in London for an evening on identity, resilience, and the themes of his new novel John of John.  In John of John, Stuart returns to the themes of class, family, masculinity, and sexuality. It is the story of John-Calum Macleod, who returns to his childhood home on the island of Harris. Out of money and with little to show for his art school education, he sinks back into his old life, caught between the two poles of his childhood: his father John, a sheep farmer, weaver, and pillar of their local Presbyterian church, and his Glaswegian grandmother Ella, who has kept a faltering peace with her son-in-law for decades. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events ... Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Douglas Stuart is one of the most successful writers in Britain today. He is celebrated globally for his honest portrayals of human relationships and working-class life. In 2020 he won the Booker Prize for his debut novel Shuggie Bain, a searingly honest novel set in 1980s Glasgow about a boy named Shuggie trying to save his mother, Agnes, from alcoholism and poverty. His second novel Young Mungo, a story of the dangerous first love of two young men, was released in 2022 and became a number one Sunday Times Bestseller. In May 2026, Stuart joined us live in London for an evening on identity, resilience, and the themes of his new novel John of John. In John of John, Stuart returns to the themes of class, family, masculinity, and sexuality. It is the story of John-Calum Macleod, who returns to his childhood home on the island of Harris. Out of money and with little to show for his art school education, he sinks back into his old life, caught between the two poles of his childhood: his father John, a sheep farmer, weaver, and pillar of their local Presbyterian church, and his Glaswegian grandmother Ella, who has kept a faltering peace with her son-in-law for decades. --- This is the first instalment of a two-part episode. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, journalist Hannah Lucinda Smith speaks with economists Soumaya Keynes and Chad Bown about our new era of global trade wars. Drawing on their new book How to Win a Trade War, Keynes and Bown shed light on the historical roots of our modern trade infrastructure and how tariffs, export controls and supply chain battles are drastically reshaping the global economy. The conversation examines the increasingly fraught economic relationship between the US and China, the growing use of economic coercion, and what the future holds for the world stage as countries increasingly treat trade as a strategic weapon rather than a cooperative system. Soumaya Keynes is an economist and journalist. She is the co-author of How to Win a Trade War and host of the podcast The Economics Show. Chad Bown is an economist specialising in international trade and economic policy. He served as chief economist at the U.S. Department of State in the Biden administration from January 2024 to January 2025. He is the co-author of How to Win a Trade War. Hannah Lucinda Smith is a journalist and foreign correspondent reporting on global politics and international affairs. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What do we lose when a language dies? Roughly 7,000 languages are spoken around the world today. Over half of them are expected to vanish in the next century – along with the wealth of information they contain, the family ties they represent, and the psychological benefits they confer. In May 2026 journalist Sophia Smith Galer joined us live to explore how this mass extinction event is one of the most urgent cultural emergencies we're facing today. Drawing on her globe-spanning investigation, How to Kill a Language, Smith Galer shed light on linguicide, its root causes, and what we lose when a language dies. From Ghana to Greece, Ukraine to Ecuador, her research ultimately led her back home: to Italy, where piaśintein, the Gallo-Italian language of her grandparents, is on the brink of vanishing forever. Smith Galer also discussed the communities bringing their languages back, from Kurdish activists in Iran to Karuk campaigners in the forests of California Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What do we lose when a language dies? Roughly 7,000 languages are spoken around the world today. Over half of them are expected to vanish in the next century – along with the wealth of information they contain, the family ties they represent, and the psychological benefits they confer. In May 2026 journalist Sophia Smith Galer joined us live to explore how this mass extinction event is one of the most urgent cultural emergencies we're facing today. Drawing on her globe-spanning investigation, How to Kill a Language, Smith Galer shed light on linguicide, its root causes, and what we lose when a language dies. From Ghana to Greece, Ukraine to Ecuador, her research ultimately led her back home: to Italy, where piaśintein, the Gallo-Italian language of her grandparents, is on the brink of vanishing forever. Smith Galer also discussed the communities bringing their languages back, from Kurdish activists in Iran to Karuk campaigners in the forests of California Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How can changing the way we breathe lower stress and blood pressure? Why is touch so important for premature babies and ICU patients? And what can our organs teach us about staying healthy? Dr Giulia Enders, author of the multimillion-selling Gut, returns with a new book, Organ Speak — an exploration of the lungs, skin, immune system, muscles and brain, and the extraordinary ways our organs work together to keep us alive and well. In this episode, she joins science communicator Dr Emma Yhnell to discuss how exercise really works, the hidden sophistication of the immune system, why humans evolved to sleep and dream, and whether AI can ever compete with the complexity of the human brain. Dr Giulia Enders is a physician and author. Her new book, Organ Speak: What it Really Means to Listen to Our Bodies, is available online and in stores now. Dr Emma Yhnell is an academic and science communicator. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Are we really alone in the universe? The question of whether there is extraterrestrial life is one of our oldest questions. And few nations on Earth are more captivated by the prospect of life on Mars than the United States. President Barack Obama recently made headlines by stating he believes aliens are real. And around 41% of Americans believe aliens have made contact with planet Earth. In May 2026, Orwell Prize-winning journalist Daniel Lavelle joined acclaimed filmmaker and podcaster Jon Ronson to discuss why humans, and Americans in particular, are so obsessed with encountering aliens. Drawing from Lavelle's new book, Chasing Aliens, they explored an extraordinary road trip through America's UFO heartlands – a journey that led Lavelle from fringe believers and interdimensional crystal rituals at the clandestine Skinwalker Ranch, all the way to Harvard astrophysicists and the corridors of government itself. He revealed what he found: not just the truth about UFOs, but something far more unexpected – a deeply moving story about loneliness, belief, and our unshakeable need not to be alone in the cosmos. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. ⁠https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Are we really alone in the universe? The question of whether there is extraterrestrial life is one of our oldest questions. And few nations on Earth are more captivated by the prospect of life on Mars than the United States. President Barack Obama recently made headlines by stating he believes aliens are real. And around 41% of Americans believe aliens have made contact with planet Earth. In May 2026, Orwell Prize-winning journalist Daniel Lavelle joined acclaimed filmmaker and podcaster Jon Ronson to discuss why humans, and Americans in particular, are so obsessed with encountering aliens. Drawing from Lavelle's new book, Chasing Aliens, they explored an extraordinary road trip through America's UFO heartlands – a journey that led Lavelle from fringe believers and interdimensional crystal rituals at the clandestine Skinwalker Ranch, all the way to Harvard astrophysicists and the corridors of government itself. He revealed what he found: not just the truth about UFOs, but something far more unexpected – a deeply moving story about loneliness, belief, and our unshakeable need not to be alone in the cosmos. --- Image 1: https://www.war.gov/UFO/#NASA-UAP-VM6-Apollo-17-1972 Image 2: https://www.war.gov/UFO/#NASA-UAP-VM6-Apollo-17-1972 "GIMBAL" video: video: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Gimbal_The_First_Official_UAP_Footage_from_the_USG_for_Public_Release.webm "GOFAST" video: Video: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Go_Fast_Official_USG_Footage_of_UAP_for_Public_Release.webm --- This is the first instalment of a two-part episode. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Has far-right thinking entered mainstream politics in the UK?  In 2025, Britain saw its largest-ever far-right rally, following a summer of flag-waving protests. Then, in May 2026, local elections reshaped England's political landscape: Labour and the Conservatives suffered heavy losses, while Reform UK surged in popularity. In this episode, author and journalist Daniel Trilling joins academic Sophie Scott-Brown to examine the rise of populist rightwing nationalism and its growing influence on mainstream politics. While Reform UK remains more moderate than parties like Germany's AfD or Viktor Orbán's movement in Hungary, Trilling explores its shift to the right on issues such as immigration — and how populist movements tap into feelings of national decline, humiliation, and the desire for strong, authoritarian leadership. In a wide-ranging conversation, they discuss why populist right politics is gaining ground, the decline of the two-party system, the dangers of our current political moment, and what can be done to change course.  Daniel Trilling is a journalist and author, who writes about nationalism, migration and human rights for publications including the London Review of Books, the Guardian and the New York Times. His latest book is If We Tolerate This: How the British Establishment Made the Far Right Respectable.  Sophie Scott Brown is a historian and philosopher specialising in modern intellectual history and political thought. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What does it mean to mourn a shared life? In this episode, essayist and novelist Siri Hustvedt speaks to book critic Mythili Rao about Ghost Stories. Her most personal work yet, it is a searing and intimate meditation on grief, memory and enduring love, written in the aftermath of the death of her husband, writer, poet and filmmaker Paul Auster. Weaving together journal entries, letters, emails and fragments of Auster's final writing, Hustvedt reflects on four decades of love, intellectual companionship and family life in New York. Together they discuss grief not as a single event but as an altered experience of time, memory and presence. Hustvedt discusses the role of writing in mourning, the value of nurturing an inner life in an age of constant distraction, and the intersection of personal grief and political dread in contemporary America. Siri Hustvedt is a novelist, essayist and poet. Her books include What I Loved, The Blazing World and Memories of the Future. Her latest book is Ghost Stories. Mythili Rao is a journalist, book critic and podcaster. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

World famous astronomer Neil deGrasse Tyson joins Dr Radha Modgil to discuss his new book Take Me to Your Leader, exploring the science of alien life, humanity's obsession with UFOs, and what first contact might actually look like. From Area 51 to Star Wars, Tyson blends humour, science and big existential questions in a conversation about whether we're truly alone in the universe. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Patrick Radden Keefe is an award winning writer known for his ability to tell complex stories in ways that are compelling and revealing. Author of the bestsellers Empire of Pain—a shocking exposé of the Sackler family and their involvement in the opioid crisis—and Say Nothing, his award-winning account of The Troubles in Northern Ireland and the murder of Jean McConville by the IRA, Keefe has built a global reputation for meticulous reporting, moral clarity, and gripping storytelling.In May 2026 he joined Emily Maitlis live on the Intelligence Squared stage to discuss the investigation that has led to his new book London Falling. At its centre is a teenager who mysteriously fell to his death from a Thames-side luxury apartment in London, and his grieving family's determination to get to the truth of what really happened. Keefe also discussed the broader themes of how money laundering, crime and corruption function today in London's underbelly. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Patrick Radden Keefe is an award winning writer known for his ability to tell complex stories in ways that are compelling and revealing. Author of the bestsellers Empire of Pain—a shocking exposé of the Sackler family and their involvement in the opioid crisis—and Say Nothing, his award-winning account of The Troubles in Northern Ireland and the murder of Jean McConville by the IRA, Keefe has built a global reputation for meticulous reporting, moral clarity, and gripping storytelling.In May 2026 he joined Emily Maitlis live on the Intelligence Squared stage to discuss the investigation that has led to his new book London Falling. At its centre is a teenager who mysteriously fell to his death from a Thames-side luxury apartment in London, and his grieving family's determination to get to the truth of what really happened. Keefe also discussed the broader themes of how money laundering, crime and corruption function today in London's underbelly. --- This is the first instalment of a two-part episode. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What do our Google searches reveal about who we really are? For a new book, What We Ask Google, data analyst Simon Rogers explores the world's biggest dataset - billions of searches carried out over two decades - to provide a revealing portrait of our collective brain. In this episode, he speaks to Carl Miller about what the data reveals—from how we process grief and loneliness, to how we seek to understand our health, to “nowcasting” and how our search data can anticipate future trends. Along the way, he uncovers some unexpected cultural trends: in Paris, the most searched-for food is pizza; in the UK, parents look for children's parkour classes, while in the US, it's etiquette and croquet. If social media is where we perform, he says, our search data is a more honest reflection of our interests, offering a window into humanity's endless gift for curiosity.  Simon Rogers is Google's Data Editor. What We Ask Google is available online and in stores now. Carl Miller is an author and researcher at Demos. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

AI models now advise on everything from war, crop output, and marriages. Algorithms determine whether we can get a loan, a job, an apartment, or an organ transplant. Carissa Véliz, Associate Professor at the Institute for Ethics in AI at the University of Oxford, argues that today's computer scientists play the same role as the oracles of the ancient world and the astrologers of the Middle Ages. And when we cede ground to these predictions, we lose control of our own lives. In this episode, Véliz speaks to technology philosopher Tom Chatfield about how systems of prediction have long shaped human decisions - and how their influence is expanding in the age of data and AI. Together they examine why more data does not always lead to better outcomes, and how predictive systems can become self-fulfilling, and argue for shifting focus from prediction to preparation — and for reclaiming human agency in a world increasingly guided by forecasts. Carissa Véliz is Associate Professor at the Institute for Ethics in AI at the University of Oxford. She is the author of Prophecy: Prediction, Power and the Fight for the Future, from Ancient Oracles to AI. Tom Chatfield is a technology philosopher, author and commentator on digital culture, technology and society. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The town of Weimar looms large in German history. This ancient town nestled in the heart of the country was home to some of Europe's greatest thinkers, Goethe and Schiller, Liszt and Nietzsche among them. It gave its name to the ambitious Weimar Republic crafted in the aftermath of the First World War. But it was also where fascism took hold. Where Bauhaus architects first experimented with new ways of living, Buchenwald was dug out of a beech forest. German-British historian Katya Hoyer has drawn on a wealth of new archival research to tell the story of Weimar through the lives of some of its citizens from the years 1919-1939.  In this episode, she talks to historian Sophie Scott-Brown about some of these vividly drawn characters who, as the events of history swept them up, became witnesses, perpetrators, victims and bystanders. How did Germany, within a few years, turn from one of the most liberal democracies in the world to a genocidal dictatorship? What choices did individual Germans make that enabled this? And what lessons can we learn to avoid repeating their mistakes?  Katja Hoyer is Visiting Research Fellow at King's College London and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. She is the author of Weimar: Life on the Edge of Catastrophe. Dr Sophie Scott-Brown is Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of East Anglia If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kae Tempest is widely regarded as one of Britain's greatest wordsmiths. In a career of ferocious creativity, he has received multiple prizes and critical recognition across the many forms he works in. Beginning as a lyricist and songwriter in his teens, Tempest threw himself fully into whichever discipline he could find work in; gigging as a poet, writing for the theatre or busking with his band. A decade later, this obsessive compulsion to push his writing as far and as hard as he could, secured him a record deal with UK independent label Big Dada and a poetry publishing contract with Picador. Tempest's work has always sought to pull the focus between the global or national concerns of a character, and the private, very intimate experiences of their lives; the minuscule and the mundane peering out from behind the incomprehensibly large and overpowering. Whether it's austerity, addiction, communal disassociation, the planet in crises, or the death of our prevailing myths, the bigger picture is always made up of tiny parts. We were joined by Tempest live on stage at St George's, Bristol as he discussed his much anticipated return to fiction. His first novel in a decade, Having Spent Life Seeking is the story of Rothko Taylor, who returns to their hometown of Edgecliff, seeking a place to belong after fifteen years in the wilderness. It weaves together themes that have shaped Tempest's work to date: family and forgiveness; redemption and atonement; desire and abandon; selfhood and community. Themes that are dealt with in this new novel, with a deeper resolve and a new clarity of intent. ---  If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kae Tempest is widely regarded as one of Britain's greatest wordsmiths. In a career of ferocious creativity, he has received multiple prizes and critical recognition across the many forms he works in. Beginning as a lyricist and songwriter in his teens, Tempest threw himself fully into whichever discipline he could find work in; gigging as a poet, writing for the theatre or busking with his band. A decade later, this obsessive compulsion to push his writing as far and as hard as he could, secured him a record deal with UK independent label Big Dada and a poetry publishing contract with Picador. Tempest's work has always sought to pull the focus between the global or national concerns of a character, and the private, very intimate experiences of their lives; the minuscule and the mundane peering out from behind the incomprehensibly large and overpowering. Whether it's austerity, addiction, communal disassociation, the planet in crises, or the death of our prevailing myths, the bigger picture is always made up of tiny parts. We were joined by Tempest live on stage at St George's, Bristol as he discussed his much anticipated return to fiction. His first novel in a decade, Having Spent Life Seeking is the story of Rothko Taylor, who returns to their hometown of Edgecliff, seeking a place to belong after fifteen years in the wilderness. It weaves together themes that have shaped Tempest's work to date: family and forgiveness; redemption and atonement; desire and abandon; selfhood and community. Themes that are dealt with in this new novel, with a deeper resolve and a new clarity of intent. --- This is the first instalment of a two-part episode. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How close are we to a new global conflict? In this episode, journalist Hannah Lucinda Smith speaks with global defence commentator Peter Apps about his new book The Next World War: The New Age of Global Conflict and the Fight to Stop It. From Ukraine to Taiwan, and from cyber warfare to space, Apps argues that the foundations of a new kind of global conflict are already in place. Drawing on reporting from the corridors of power in Washington, London, Moscow and Beijing, as well as frontline perspectives, Apps maps the fault lines shaping today's geopolitical landscape. He explores the return of great power rivalry, the rise of ‘hybrid' warfare, and the growing role of technology in reshaping how conflicts are fought. At its centre is a stark question: are these tensions containable, or are they leading towards a wider and more dangerous confrontation? Apps sets out how governments, militaries and societies are preparing for the possibility of large-scale conflict — and what might still be done to prevent escalation. Peter Apps is a global defence commentator at Reuters. He is the author of The Next World War: The New Age of Global Conflict and the Fight to Stop It. His podcast, Battle for the Next World War, will release soon.  Hannah Lucinda Smith is a journalist and foreign correspondent reporting on global politics and conflict. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

According to award-winning actor, writer, director and producer Lena Dunham, we're now too invested in having a good relationship with our ex.  Best known for creating the hit HBO show Girls, which earned her eight Emmy nominations and two Golden Globes, Lena Dunham has recently published her Sunday Times and New York Times Number One Bestseller, Famesick, which explores the decade after the show's end and how she navigated fame, illness and relationships. In April 2026 Lena joined Intelligence Squared live at the Hackney Empire with journalist, author and screenwriter Dolly Alderton for an intimate slumber-party-style event, where they discussed everything from their favourite meal-deal to Lena's legacy as a voice of a generation.  --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit ⁠intelligencesquared.com/membership⁠ to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit ⁠intelligencesquared.com⁠ to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ⁠podcastchoices.com/adchoices⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

According to award-winning actor, writer, director and producer Lena Dunham, we're now too invested in having a good relationship with our ex.  Best known for creating the hit HBO show Girls, which earned her eight Emmy nominations and two Golden Globes, Lena Dunham has recently published her Sunday Times and New York Times Number One Bestseller, Famesick, which explores the decade after the show's end and how she navigated fame, illness and relationships. In April 2026 Lena joined Intelligence Squared live at the Hackney Empire with journalist, author and screenwriter Dolly Alderton for an intimate slumber-party-style event, where they discussed everything from their favourite meal-deal to Lena's legacy as a voice of a generation.  --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, journalist Kamal Ahmed explores how innovation is the driving force behind meaningful growth, not simply through capital investment, but by rethinking and reinventing the status quo with transformative technologies. He was joined by guests Laura Gilbert, Lee Ellis & Prashant Jojodia, who together examined what sustainable, resilient growth looks like for the UK, and how empowering both businesses and individuals can push the boundaries of what is possible while securing future prosperity. This episode was recorded live in London as part of Intelligence Squared and IBM's The Age to Come series. Next live event date: 13th May 2026 - and you can secure £10 tickets using code PODCAST at checkout. Find out more: https://www.intelligencesquared.com/ibm/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Demis Hassabis – CEO and co-founder of Google DeepMind – is one of the world's most visionary technologists. A child chess prodigy from North London, Hassabis was awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for using artificial intelligence to predict the complex structures of nearly all known proteins. His company DeepMind, now owned by Google, is at the forefront of the pursuit to build artificial general intelligence, and considered Google's engine room of AI innovation.  Sebastian Mallaby – former FT contributing editor, two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of numerous books – has, for the past 3 years, explored the moral questions at the heart of AI and AGI, through the story of Demis Hassabis. With extensive access to DeepMind and its key players, Mallaby has conducted hundreds of hours of interviews with Hassabis and his inner circle as well as detractors and rivals at other companies. No other journalist has had such a closeup view of the opportunities, hype and threats AI could pose for us all.  In April 2026 Hassabis and Mallaby came together for an intimate exploration of The Infinity Machine, Mallaby's definitive account of Hassabis' life and career. They discussed how he came to lead the world's most ambitious AI lab, what the pursuit of AGI might cost as well as  what it might unlock, and what the story of Hassabis and DeepMind can tell us about humanity's innate drive to develop new technologies. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Demis Hassabis – CEO and co-founder of Google DeepMind – is one of the world's most visionary technologists. A child chess prodigy from North London, Hassabis was awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for using artificial intelligence to predict the complex structures of nearly all known proteins. His company DeepMind, now owned by Google, is at the forefront of the pursuit to build artificial general intelligence, and considered Google's engine room of AI innovation.  Sebastian Mallaby – former FT contributing editor, two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of numerous books – has, for the past 3 years, explored the moral questions at the heart of AI and AGI, through the story of Demis Hassabis. With extensive access to DeepMind and its key players, Mallaby has conducted hundreds of hours of interviews with Hassabis and his inner circle as well as detractors and rivals at other companies. No other journalist has had such a closeup view of the opportunities, hype and threats AI could pose for us all.  In April 2026 Hassabis and Mallaby came together for an intimate exploration of The Infinity Machine, Mallaby's definitive account of Hassabis' life and career. They discussed how he came to lead the world's most ambitious AI lab, what the pursuit of AGI might cost as well as  what it might unlock, and what the story of Hassabis and DeepMind can tell us about humanity's innate drive to develop new technologies. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chemistry is everywhere. From cosmetics and the clothes we wear to life-saving medicines and kitchen experiments, chemical processes are all around us, defining our interactions with the world we live in.  In this episode, Professor Dame Ijeoma Uchegbu joins Professor Helen Czerski to discuss how chemistry shapes our understanding of the world. Their conversation explores our complex relationship with plastics; the fact that synthetic products are not always harmful and natural ones not always safe; and the ways machine learning could transform chemical testing and revolutionise the development of new medicines. Professor Dame Ijeoma Uchegbu is President of Wolfson College, University of Cambridge. She is the author of Chain Reaction: The Wondrous Chemistry of Everyday Life. Professor Helen Czerski is a British physicist, oceanographer, and broadcaster. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Cambridge Five - Donald Maclean, Guy Burgess, Kim Philby, John Cairncross and Keeper of the Queen's Pictures Anthony Blunt - made up one of the most notorious spy rings of the 20th century. Besotted with communist ideology and radicalised while at Cambridge University in the 1930s, their clandestine supply of British and US intelligence material gave Stalin an inside track on US and British decision-making until May 1951. So how did this collective come into being, what brought about its downfall, and why did four of the five never answer for their crimes? In this episode, Antonia Senior draws on recently declassified files to reexamine the story of the Cambridge Five. Discussing her new book Stalin's Apostles: The Cambridge Five and the Making of the Soviet Empire with historian and philosopher Sophie Scott Brown, Senior explores how a generation shaped by the crises of the 1930s was drawn to communism, and how elite networks within Cambridge and the British establishment enabled one of the most damaging intelligence breaches in modern history. Antonia Senior is a journalist and writer. She is the author of Stalin's Apostles: The Cambridge Five and the Making of the Soviet Empire. Sophie Scott Brown is a historian and philosopher specialising in modern intellectual history and political thought. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Our changing climate is accelerating conflict and migration, with the potential to drive political instability from the Sahel to Saudi Arabia to Siberia. From the water-stressed mountains of the Arabian Peninsula to the wildfires raging through America's most populated regions, the climate crisis is already affecting the lives of millions.  In a new book, Elemental, former diplomat Arthur Snell explores how global powers must adapt to new vulnerabilities, the risk of future conflicts over natural resources, and the links between the climate crisis and the rise of populism in Europe and the United States. In this episode, he speaks to journalist Adam McCauley about our rapidly changing geopolitics, the technologies available to help us adapt to a heating planet, the potential for new forms of political cooperation and the choices we need to make to avert disaster. Arthur Snell is a former British diplomat who has worked in Afghanistan, Iraq and Yemen. His new book is Elemental: The New Geography of Climate Change and How We Survive It.  If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

More people are being labelled with medical conditions than ever before. Diagnoses of autism, ADHD, allergies, and long COVID have skyrocketed - but are we actually getting less healthy?  In this episode, neurologist Dr Suzanne O'Sullivan speaks to Dr Güneş Taylor about an impending crisis of overdiagnosis. Drawing on histories of real people, as well as decades of clinical practice and the latest medical research, O'Sullivan argues her research indicates that ordinary life experiences, bodily imperfections, sadness and social anxiety are being subsumed into the category of medical disorder. In other words: we are not getting sicker – we are attributing more to sickness. Dr Suzanne O'Sullivan is a neurologist and writer. She is the author of The Age of Diagnosis, as well as previous books including It's All in Your Head and The Sleeping Beauties. Dr Güneş Taylor is a science broadcaster and Fellow at the Centre for Reproductive Health. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What does it mean to translate some of the most recognisable and revered works in the English language? When the wordplay, poetry, and syntax of Shakespeare are all changed, is it still truly Shakespeare?  In this episode, host Mythili Rao speaks with translator Daniel Hahn about his new book If This Be Magic: The Unlikely Art of Shakespeare in Translation. From Hamlet in Italian to Romeo and Juliet in Thai, Hahn explores how Shakespeare's plays are continually reshaped as they move across languages, cultures and traditions. Drawing on close readings and examples from around the world, Hahn examines the practical and creative challenges of translation: how to carry across rhythm, wordplay and humour, and what is lost and gained in the process. The conversation explores questions of fidelity and invention, from the difficulty of reproducing Shakespeare's jokes to the complexities of voice, character and grammar. At its centre is a reflection on what makes Shakespeare endure, not as a fixed body of text, but as a living work constantly remade through language, performance and interpretation. Daniel Hahn is an award-winning translator, author and editor of numerous fiction and non-fiction works. He was previously chair for the Society of Authors and currently serves on the board of trustees for English PEN. He is the author of If This Be Magic: The Unlikely Art of Shakespeare in Translation, which is available in bookstores now. Mythili Rao is a book critic, journalist and podcast producer. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hundreds of millions of people now talk to AI, such as ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini every day. They organise their finances and holidays, ask advice, seek therapy and find love – via machines. Almost overnight, chatbots are transforming society, politics and business. This is one of the biggest and fastest technological changes in history. In this episode journalist and author, Jamie Bartlett, speaks to Intelligence Squared's Head of Programming, Conor Boyle, about the consequences both good and ill of a world where people are talking to machines. Jamie's new book on the topic is titled How To Talk To AI (And How Not To) and is available now from your local bookshop. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Could one of Renoir's most iconic paintings conceal one of the most astonishing true stories of scandal and tragedy in Golden Age Paris? In 1881, Pierre-Auguste Renoir painted two young sisters from a Jewish banking dynasty at their home in Paris's grand 8th arrondissement. Pink and Blue, a portrait of Elisabeth and Alice Cahen d'Anvers, is one of Renoir's most celebrated works. But behind the evoked glamour of the Belle Époque, a darker story was unfurling. In this episode, journalist and author James McAuley speaks with writer Catherine Ostler about how Renoir's Impressionist masterpiece hides both a family secret and the tensions of an era poised for rupture. Drawing from her new book The Renoir Girls, Ostler's new archival research unveils an intimate story of family betrayal which came to embody both the glamour and the vulnerability of Jewish life in Europe, as rising antisemitism and political upheaval reshaped the continent. Catherine Ostler is a writer and historian. She is the author of The Renoir Girls: A Hidden History of Art, War & Betrayal. James McAuley is a journalist and author of The House of Fragile Things, and a Global Opinions contributing columnist for The Washington Post. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On August 20, 1940, in a quiet study in Mexico, one of the 20th century's most consequential political exiles was assassinated with an ice pick. The killing of Leon Trotsky marked the culmination of a relentless campaign orchestrated by Joseph Stalin, stretching across continents and years of pursuit. But how did the plot unfold — and who was the man who carried it out? In this episode, historian and author Tim Bouverie speaks with writer Josh Ireland about his new book The Death of Trotsky. Drawing on archival research and narrative history, Ireland reconstructs the parallel lives of Trotsky, Stalin and Ramón Mercader, the Soviet agent who infiltrated Trotsky's inner circle under a false identity. The conversation explores the machinery of Stalinist power, the psychological and political forces that drove the pursuit of Trotsky into exile, and of how political violence at the highest levels of power continues to echo today, from targeted killings in Putin's Russia to attempted assassinations in Western democracies. Josh Ireland is a historian and writer specialising in modern European history. He is the author of The Death of Trotsky: The True Story of the Plot to Kill Stalin's Greatest Enemy, which is available now in bookstores. Tim Bouverie is a historian and author of Appeasing Hitler: Chamberlain, Churchill and the Road to War and Allis at War. He is known for his work on 20th-century European history and international relations. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dr Radha Modgil is joined by endurance athlete, investor and author Ken Rideout for an inspiring Intelligence Squared conversation on what it really takes to transform your life. Drawing on the ideas in his book Everything You Want Is On The Other Side of Hard, Rideout argues that growth, confidence and fulfilment are only found by deliberately choosing discomfort over ease. Together, they explore why so many of us avoid difficult challenges, how modern life conditions us to seek convenience, and what is lost when we do. Rideout shares lessons from his own journey—from addiction and adversity to elite-level endurance sport—and explains how discipline, accountability and doing “hard things” can reshape not just your mindset, but your entire future. Blending personal storytelling with practical insight, this episode offers a clear, uncompromising perspective on resilience, mental toughness and the pursuit of a more meaningful life. ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Before sex evolved on our planet, two billion years ago, all reproduction happened asexually. So why and how did sexual reproduction evolve? Dr Lixing Sun is Distinguished Research Professor in behavior and evolution at Central Washington University. In a new book, On the Origin of Sex, he explores the fascinating, varied and complex ways reproduction happens across the natural world: from whiptail lizards, capable of immaculate conception, to clownfish and bearded dragons who regularly switch gender roles. In this episode he sat down with Dr Güneş Taylor to explore the biological advantages of sexual reproduction, the differences between sex and gender and the variety of ways in which our planet is populated.  On The Origin of Sex: The Weird and Wonderful Science of Reproduction by Dr Lixing Sun,  is available now online and in stores. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

According to Great British Bake Off judge and national treasure Prue Leith the secret to a happy life lies in embracing everyday with joy while accepting our inevitable end. Prue has had an exhilarating career. She has been a Michelin-starred restaurateur, author, broadcaster, and beloved Bake Off judge. Yet her passion for life has also been shaped by the loss of her brother and first husband. These experiences inspired her to become a leading campaigner for assisted dying in the UK. In February 2026 Prue joined Intelligence Squared live at the Royal Geographical Society to reflect on her remarkable life and share insights from her new memoir Being Old … and Learning to Love It! Expect reflections on love, ageing, joy, and grief — from strutting the catwalk and finding love again in her seventies, to facing life's hardest goodbyes with humour and grace. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

According to Great British Bake Off judge and national treasure Prue Leith the secret to a happy life lies in embracing everyday with joy while accepting our inevitable end. Prue has had an exhilarating career. She has been a Michelin-starred restaurateur, author, broadcaster, and beloved Bake Off judge. Yet her passion for life has also been shaped by the loss of her brother and first husband. These experiences inspired her to become a leading campaigner for assisted dying in the UK. In February 2026 Prue joined Intelligence Squared live at the Royal Geographical Society to reflect on her remarkable life and share insights from her new memoir Being Old … and Learning to Love It! Expect reflections on love, ageing, joy, and grief — from strutting the catwalk and finding love again in her seventies, to facing life's hardest goodbyes with humour and grace. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How deeply was the British Crown involved in the transatlantic slave trade? New research by historian Brooke Newman argues that, from the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, until well into the 19th century, the Crown and its navy helped expand, finance and protect the trade in enslaved African people. In this episode, Newman joins historian and broadcaster Helen Carr to examine how the monarchy's links to slavery complicate Britain's national story about abolition and its colonial past. Drawing on her new book, The Crown's Silence, she explores the evidence, considers how the subject of reparations has become caught up in the culture wars, and reflects on what a formal apology from King Charles III could mean.  Brooke Newman is an Associate Professor of history at Virginia Commonwealth University and a fellow of the Royal Historical Society. The Crown's Silence: The Hidden History of Slavery and the British Monarchy is out now.  If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is an episode of The Specialist, your weekly dose of wonder. In The Specialist, explore the significance and journey of an extraordinary work through the eyes of those that know it best. On today's episode, the extraordinary saga of the 1933 Double Eagle, America's last gold coin; stolen, smuggled, and seized. Selby Kiffer is Sotheby's Senior International Specialist of Books and Manuscripts. Over the last half century, he has overseen the sale of many of the most celebrated private libraries offered at auction. A lecturer and expert, with a unique knowledge of Americana, he has also handled significant letters by Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin. Selby is joined by David Tripp, former Director of Sotheby's Coin, Tapestry and Musical Instruments departments and widely recognised as the leading expert on the Double Eagle. ⁠Further details about the episode subject⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Populism has been winning big in recent years. It is the wave that has buoyed Donald Trump's second term in office, Marine Le Pen's popularity in France, and Reform UK's recent leaps and bounds in British polling. Across the West, authoritarian populists now govern one-quarter of the world's democracies. But what explains the surge of populism across the democratic world - and can it be reversed? In this episode, economist and commentator Will Hutton speaks with Labour MP Liam Byrne about his new book Why Populists Are Winning: And How to Beat Them. Drawing on original polling, international reporting and interviews with leading thinkers, Byrne narrows down the meaning of populism, interrogates the funding, media ecosystems and language deployed by populist leaders, and the psyches of those who are persuaded to vote for them. Byrne explains how populist leaders mobilise what he calls five distinct ‘tribes' of voters, and which of these can be appealed to. He sets out his argument for rebuilding what he calls the ‘radical centre' of Western politics, and why confronting populism requires more than simply condemning it. Liam Byrne is a Labour MP, a member of His Majesty's Privy Council and the Chair of the House of Commons Business and Trade Select Committee. He served in Gordon Brown's Cabinet, in No. 10 Downing Street and HM Treasury, and chaired the Global Parliamentary Network on the World Bank and IMF 2019-2025. He is the author of more than twenty publications on economics, foreign policy and public service reform including The Inequality of Wealth. His latest is Why Populists Are Winning: and How to Beat Them, which is available now online and in bookstores. Will Hutton is the former Editor-in-Chief of the Observer. He is a commentator, columnist, and author of books including The State We're In, How Good We Can Be, and This Time No Mistakes: How to Remake Britain. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices