Harry Houdini is remembered today for his legendary escapes and illusions, but he also had a lifelong obsession with the paranormal. After dabbling in fake seances himself, Houdini made ...

As a tourist, the only reasonable response to Venice’s all-consuming beauty is to gasp in admiration after rounding every corner. As an economist, another response occurs: once upon a time, this ...

This episode is released exclusively on Pushkin+. Episodes are released on the main feed each Friday. In 1998, an art gallery gets a mysterious phone call. The caller claims they have been fooled ...

Do we trust our fitness trackers too much? How do fraudsters gain our faith? Why do people trust podcasters? And would you trust a drug dealing nanny with a tambourine? Tim Harford is joined by ...

Highbrow pleasure recently: the Royal Opera House, and Leoš Janáček’s Jenůfa. The opera was first performed when the composer was 50, and it was followed by an outpouring of new music, better than ...

When Ernest Borgnine gets his big break in Hollywood, he can hardly believe his luck. But soon he discovers his supposed star vehicle, Marty, is not the dream gig he thought it was. In this episode of ...

On the first of January, you can’t move without bumping into an article about new year’s resolutions. The same cannot be said about the first of February — and that may be part of the problem. Each ...

This episode is released exclusively on Pushkin+. Episodes are released on the main feed each Friday. In 1998, an art gallery gets a mysterious phone call. The caller claims they have been fooled by a ...

Highbrow pleasure recently: the Royal Opera House, and Leoš Janáček’s Jenůfa. The opera was first performed when the composer was 50, and it was followed by an outpouring of new music, better than ...

Cautionary Conversation: In the 1920s, a conman convinced America that goat testicles were the secret to male virility. Tim Harford and Dr Kate Lister (Betwixt the Sheets podcast) dive into the ...

Cautionary Conversation: You may be surprised to learn that champagne as we know it today was invented by a nineteenth-century businesswoman. Tim Harford is joined by Ben Walter, CEO of Chase for ...