Economics
27 episodes
Al-Ghazali
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Islamic scholar Al-Ghazali, one of the most significant and influential philosophers of the Middle Ages.
19 March 2015
Featuring: Peter Adamson, Carole Hillenbrand, Robert Gleave
Philosophy12th-century Muslim theologiansMetaphysiciansIslamic philosophersPsychology in the medieval Islamic worldEconomists of the medieval Islamic world, MujaddidIranian ethicists, Iranian logiciansEpistemologistsAsharis, Muslim critics of atheismAutobiographers11th century12th centuryEconomicsIslamMedicinePsychologyTheologyBertrand Russell
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the influential 20th-century British thinker Bertrand Russell, widely regarded as one of the founders of Analytical philosophy.
6 December 2012
Featuring: A. C. Grayling, Mike Beaney, Hilary Greaves
PhilosophyBritish free speech activistsBritish historians of philosophyEnglish logiciansUniversal basic income writersEuropean democratic socialistsMetaphysics writersMembers of the Order of MeritEnglish anti-fascists19th-century atheistsBritish philosophers of educationEmpiricistsEnglish humanistsFree love advocatesGeorgistsBritish critics of religionsEnglish Nobel laureatesNobel laureates in LiteratureTheorists on Western civilizationBritish political philosophersPhilosophers of social scienceEnglish people of Scottish descentEnglish socialistsEnglish male non-fiction writersConsequentialistsFellows of the Royal SocietyLinguistic turnPhilosophers of sexualityRhetoric theoristsMetaphilosophersPhilosophers of loveEnglish political philosophersCritics of work and the work ethicEnglish people of Welsh descent20th-century atheists20th-century English mathematiciansPresidents of the Aristotelian SocietyUtilitariansBritish atheism activistsWriters about communismLogicians19th-century English essayistsSecular humanistsPhilosophers of economicsIntellectual historians, University of Chicago facultyOntologistsEnglish scepticsFreethought writersCritics of the Catholic Church19th-century English philosophersBritish critics of ChristianityPeople from MonmouthshireAristotelian philosophersJerusalem Prize recipientsPhilosophers of lawEnglish prisoners and detaineesBritish philosophers of languageSet theoristsPhilosophers of technologyBritish consciousness researchers and theoristsPhilosophers of mathematicsBritish philosophers of mind20th-century English philosophers19th-century English mathematiciansAnti-nationalistsPhilosophers of literatureEnglish agnosticsBritish philosophers of culture, English pacifistsWriters about globalizationWriters about religion and scienceFellows of Trinity College, CambridgeEnglish essayistsAnalytic philosophersAcademics of the London School of Economics, British philosophers of scienceWriters about activism and social changeAlumni of Trinity College, CambridgePhilosophers of historyBritish philosophers of religionBritish ethicistsAtheist philosophersUniversity of California, Los Angeles facultyBritish philosophers of logicEnglish political writers19th century20th centuryEconomicsLanguageMathematicsDavid Hume
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the work of David Hume, the philosopher and leading figure of the Scottish Enlightenment.
6 October 2011
Featuring: Peter Millican, Helen Beebee, James Harris
PhilosophyCritics of the Catholic ChurchPhilosophers of mind18th-century British essayistsWriters about religion and scienceVirtue ethicistsMetaphilosophersPhilosophers of religionBritish male essayistsPhilosophers of logicCriticism of rationalismWriters about activism and social changeAlumni of the University of EdinburghEpistemologistsPhilosophy writersPhilosophers of artBritish philosophers of educationPhilosophers of psychology18th-century British philosophersEmpiricistsPhilosophers of identityBritish consciousness researchers and theoristsBritish critics of religionsPhilosophers of mathematicsDeist philosophersTheorists on Western civilizationPhilosophers of sciencePhilosophers of historySkeptic philosophersPeople of the Scottish EnlightenmentPhilosophers of social scienceConservatismSecular humanistsPhilosophers of economicsEnlightenment philosophersAction theoristsSocial philosophersBritish male non-fiction writersOntologistsFreethought writers18th centuryEconomicsMathematicsPsychologyScotlandDavid Ricardo
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Ricardo's argument that Britain's economy was being held back by the interests of landlords and protectionism, and his call for free trade.
25 March 2021
Featuring: Matthew Watson, Helen Paul, Richard Whatmore
Edmund Burke
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the work of the philosopher, politician and writer Edmund Burke, whose views on revolution in America and France were hugely influential.
3 June 2010
Featuring: Karen O'Brien, Richard Bourke, John Keane
Philosophy18th-century Irish philosophers18th-century Irish writersPhilosophers of cultureIrish Freemasons, Irish libertarians, Irish people of English descentBritish MPs 1774–1780Rectors of the University of GlasgowBritish MPs 1784–1790, British MPs 1790–1796Virtue ethicistsPhilosophers of religionCritics of deismEnglish libertariansHistorians of the French RevolutionAlumni of Trinity College Dublin18th-century philosophersEnglish people of Irish descentPhilosophers of education18th-century English philosophersPhilosophers of art18th-century English male writersStreathamitesPolitical philosophersClassical liberalismPhilosophers of historyBritish MPs 1780–1784, Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituenciesWriters from Dublin (city)18th-century English writersBritish political philosophersIrish AnglicansConservatismPhilosophers of economicsSocial philosophersNatural law ethicists18th-century Anglo-Irish people, 18th-century Irish male writersAnglican philosophers18th centuryEconomicsFranceIrelandGame theory
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss game theory, the mathematical study of decision-making.
10 May 2012
Featuring: Ian Stewart, Andrew Colman, Richard Bradley
Harriet Martineau
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Harriet Martineau who wrote extensively in the C19th on a wide range of subjects including abolition, and is called the mother of sociology.
8 December 2016
Featuring: Valerie Sanders, Karen O'Brien, Ella Dzelzainis
History19th-century English women writersEnglish women novelists19th-century English philosophers19th-century English historians19th-century English novelistsBritish women essayistsFeminism and historyEnglish women philosophers19th-century British economists19th-century atheistsVictorian novelists19th-century English short story writersBritish atheism activistsEnglish abolitionistsEnglish UnitariansEnglish people of French descentEnglish writers with disabilitiesBritish scientists with disabilitiesEnglish atheistsPositivistsVictorian women writersWriters from NorwichEnglish historical novelistsEnglish travel writersEnglish suffragists19th centuryEconomicsHayek's The Road to Serfdom
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Hayek's 1944 book warning that the centralised planning of the wartime economy, if extended into peacetime, could lead to tyranny.
17 October 2024
Featuring: Bruce Caldwell, Melissa Lane, Ben Jackson
Ibn Khaldun
Melvyn Bragg and guests Robert Hoyland, Robert Irwin and Hugh Kennedy discuss the life and ideas of the 14th-century Arab philosopher of history Ibn Khaldun.
4 February 2010
Featuring: Robert Hoyland, Robert Graham Irwin, Hugh N. Kennedy
John Ruskin
Melvyn Bragg discusses the life and work of John Ruskin, art and social critic, and one of the most influential figures of the Victorian era.
31 March 2005
Featuring: Dinah Birch, Keith Hanley, Stefan Collini
English philosophers19th-century British journalistsEnglish essayistsArchitectural theoreticiansArtists' Rifles soldiersAnglo-ScotsAlumni of King's College LondonAnti-consumeristsAlumni of Christ Church, OxfordEnglish fantasy writersEnglish children's writersArts and Crafts movement artistsEnglish people of Scottish descentMale essayistsCritics of political economy19th-century British economistsCritics of work and the work ethic19th centuryEconomicsMarx
Melvyn Bragg discusses Karl Marx who once said that while other philosophers wanted to interpret the world, he wanted to change it. And he changed the world with his Communist Manifesto.
14 July 2005
Featuring: A. C. Grayling, Francis Wheen, Gareth Stedman Jones
PhilosophyGerman writers on atheismPhilosophers of cultureUniversity of Bonn alumniPhilosophers of mindCritics of political economyWriters about globalizationWriters about religion and sciencePhilosophers of religionSocialist feministsMaterialistsGerman male non-fiction writersCritics of work and the work ethicEconomic historians, German sociologistsFellows of the Royal Society of ArtsPhilosophical anthropologyGerman Marxist writersMarxist theoristsWriters about activism and social change19th-century atheistsEpistemologistsPhilosophers of educationGerman political philosophersStateless peopleCritics of religionsPhilosophers of lawAnti-consumeristsMetaphysiciansJewish socialistsPhilosophers of technologyHumboldt University of Berlin alumniUniversity of Jena alumniAnti-imperialists19th-century German philosophersTheorists on Western civilizationPhilosophers of sciencePhilosophers of historyCritics of JudaismBurials at Highgate Cemetery19th-century German historiansAtheist philosophersMembers of the International Workingmen's AssociationPhilosophers of economicsGerman anti-capitalists, German socialist feminists, Jewish communistsSocial philosophersPamphleteersGerman revolutionariesAnti-nationalistsOntologists19th centuryEconomicsGermanyMedicineMill
Melvyn Bragg discusses the 19th century political philosopher John Stuart Mill and his treatise On Liberty which is one of the sacred texts of liberalism.
18 May 2006
Featuring: A. C. Grayling, Janet Radcliffe Richards, Alan Ryan
PhilosophyEnglish agnosticsBritish free speech activistsPhilosophers of culturePhilosophers of sexualityEnglish logiciansUK MPs 1865–1868Voting theoristsEnglish libertariansEnglish political philosophersBritish male essayistsEnglish essayistsEuropean democratic socialists19th-century English philosophersScholars of feminist philosophyInfectious disease deaths in FranceHonorary Fellows of the Royal Society of EdinburghBritish socialistsPhilosophy writersPhilosophers of psychologyEnglish feminist writers, English feministsAnglo-ScotsEmpiricistsBritish philosophers of languageUtilitariansEnglish autobiographersBritish philosophers of mindRectors of the University of St AndrewsFellows of the American Academy of Arts and SciencesTheorists on Western civilizationPhilosophers of scienceEnglish non-fiction writersPhilosophers of historyBritish social liberals19th-century English non-fiction writersLogiciansBritish ethicistsBritish political philosophers19th-century English writers19th-century English essayistsBritish philosophers of logicPhilosophers of economicsEnglish political writersEnglish people of Scottish descentEnglish socialistsEnglish male non-fiction writersBritish classical liberal economistsEnglish suffragistsEnglish republicansConsequentialists19th centuryEconomicsLanguageMedicinePsychologyPopper
Melvyn Bragg discusses the philosopher Karl Popper, author of The Open Society and a seminal thinker about science.
8 February 2007
Featuring: John Worrall, Anthony O'Hear, Nancy Cartwright
PhilosophyUniversity of Vienna alumniPhilosophers of culturePhilosophers of mindWriters about globalizationJewish ethicistsWriters about religion and scienceBritish historians of philosophyPhilosophers of religionBritish male non-fiction writersBritish male essayistsPhilosophers of logicKnights BachelorAcademics of the London School of Economics, British philosophers of scienceMetaphysics writers20th-century British essayists20th-century Austrian philosophers, Austrian agnostics, Austrian essayists, Austrian logicians, British agnostics, British logicians, British people of Austrian-Jewish descent, Naturalised citizens of the United KingdomWriters about activism and social changeAristotelian philosophersEpistemologistsBritish philosophers of educationPresidents of the Aristotelian SocietyCritics of religionsMetaphysiciansPolitical philosophersRecipients of the Austrian Decoration for Science and ArtWriters from ViennaPhilosophers of technologyFellows of the British AcademyBritish consciousness researchers and theoristsPhilosophers of mathematics20th-century British philosophersTheorists on Western civilizationPhilosophers of historyJewish philosophersRationalistsBritish social liberalsBritish ethicistsLogiciansBritish political philosophersForeign associates of the National Academy of SciencesPhilosophers of economicsJewish agnosticsMembers of the Order of the Companions of HonourSocial philosophersCritics of MarxismCambridge University Moral Sciences ClubRecipients of the Pour le Mérite (civil class)Ontologists20th centuryEconomicsMathematicsMedicineRobinson Crusoe
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Daniel Defoe's seminal novel Robinson Crusoe. Published in 1719, it was an immediate success and is considered the classic adventure story.
22 December 2011
Featuring: Karen O'Brien, Judith Hawley, Bob Owens
CultureNovels adapted into radio programsMaritime folkloreBritish novels adapted into television shows18th-century British novelsMale characters in literatureBritish novels adapted into filmsAtlantic slave tradeAdventure film charactersNovels adapted into comicsBritish novels adapted into plays18th centuryBookEconomicsRousseau on Education
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Rousseau's ideas on how to educate children so they retain their natural selves and are not corrupted by society.
10 October 2019
Featuring: Richard Whatmore, Caroline Warman, Denis McManus
PhilosophyPhilosophers of culturePhilosophers of mind18th-century classical composers18th-century philosophersWriters about activism and social changeSimple living advocatesBurials at the Panthéon, ParisContributors to the Encyclopédie (1751–1772)Proto-evolutionary biologistsPhilosophers of educationFrench political philosophersPhilosophers of artConverts to Roman Catholicism from Calvinism, Romantic philosophersPeople with hypochondriasisClassical-period composersDeist philosophersPhilosophers of scienceAutobiographersPhilosophers of economicsEnlightenment philosophersCatholic philosophers18th-century male musiciansSocial philosophersAge of EnlightenmentPhilosophers of literature18th centuryEconomicsFranceMusicThe Dutch East India Company
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Dutch East India Company, which dominated the Asian spice trade in the 17th century and is sometimes called the first multinational corporation.
3 March 2016
Featuring: Anne Goldgar, Chris Nierstrasz, Helen Paul
The East India Company
Melvyn Bragg discusses the powerful private trading company that redrew the map of India, built an empire and reinvented the fashions and the foodstuffs of Britain.
26 June 2003
Featuring: Huw Bowen, Linda Colley, Maria Misra
The Fable of the Bees
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Bernard Mandeville's scandalous and influential work on private vices and public benefits, published first as The Grumbling Hive, a poem, in 1705.
25 October 2018
Featuring: David Wootton, Helen Paul, John Callanan
The Gold Standard
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the age of gold, from 1870, when many nations tied their currencies to gold in the hope of economic stability and increasing trade around the world
20 January 2022
Featuring: Catherine Schenk, Helen Paul, Matthias Morys
The Hanseatic League
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Hanseatic League or Hansa which dominated North European and Baltic trade in the medieval period.
1 February 2024
Featuring: Justyna Wubs-Mrozewicz, Georg Christ, Sheilagh Ogilvie
The Physiocrats
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Physiocrats, an important group of economic thinkers in 18th-century France.
20 June 2013
Featuring: Richard Whatmore, Joel Felix, Helen Paul
The Silk Road
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Silk Road, the trade routes which spanned Asia for over a thousand years, carrying Buddhism to China and paper-making and gunpowder westwards.
3 December 2009
Featuring: Frances Wood, Tim Barrett, Naomi Standen
The South Sea Bubble
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the South Sea Bubble, the speculation mania in early 18th-century England which ended in the financial ruin of many of its investors.
20 December 2012
Featuring: Anne Murphy, Helen Paul, Roey Sweet
The Theory of the Leisure Class
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Thorstein Veblen's critique of wasteful capitalism, as he saw it, in America's Gilded Age with conspicuous leisure and conspicuous consumption.
16 November 2023
Featuring: Matthew Watson, Bill Waller, Mary Wrenn
The Wealth of Nations
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Adam Smith's celebrated economic treatise The Wealth of Nations.
19 February 2015
Featuring: Richard Whatmore, Donald Winch, Helen Paul
The Zong Massacre
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the drowning of 132 enslaved Africans, purportedly as there was not enough drinking water to go round. The owners profited; nobody was prosecuted.
26 November 2020
Featuring: Vincent Brown, Bronwen Everill, Jake Subryan Richards
Weber's The Protestant Ethic
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Max Weber's book The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism.
27 March 2014
Featuring: Peter Ghosh, Sam Whimster, Linda Woodhead
HistoryUniversity of Göttingen alumniMembers of the Bavarian Academy of SciencesGerman nationalistsGerman philosophers of historyEconomic sociologistsEconomic historians, German sociologistsCritics of work and the work ethicWriters about activism and social changeAcademic staff of the Humboldt University of BerlinGerman political philosophersPeople from the Province of SaxonyGerman philosophers of culture19th-century German writersHumboldt University of Berlin alumniGerman philosophers of science19th-century German philosophersGerman philosophers of technologyContinental philosophers20th-century German philosophersUniversity of Strasbourg alumniDeaths from pneumonia in GermanyHeidelberg University alumni19th-century German male writersPhilosophers of economicsMax Weber19th century20th centuryEconomicsGermany
