Intelligence Squared

The 12 Books of Christmas | Mishal Husain on Family, Empire and Why Partition Still Matters

23 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

To celebrate 2024, we’re taking a look backwards, and diving into the standout thinkers who have taken to the Intelligence Squared stage in the past...

The 12 Books of Christmas | Zeinab Badawi on an African History of Africa

22 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

To celebrate 2024, we’re taking a look backwards, and diving into the standout thinkers who have taken to the Intelligence Squared stage in the past...

The 12 Books of Christmas | Comfort Eating with Grace Dent

20 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

To celebrate 2024, we’re taking a look backwards, and diving into the standout thinkers who have taken to the Intelligence Squared stage in the past...

The 12 Books of Christmas | Jordan Stephens on Love, Chaos and Becoming a Man

18 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

To celebrate 2024, we’re taking a look backwards, and diving into the standout thinkers who have taken to the Intelligence Squared stage in the past...

The 12 Books of Christmas | The Dictators Who Want to Run the World, with Anne Applebaum

16 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

To celebrate 2024, we’re taking a look backwards, and diving into the standout thinkers who have taken to the Intelligence Squared stage in the past...

The 12 Books of Christmas | The Anxious Generation: Jonathan Haidt on How Smartphones Rewired Childhood

15 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

To celebrate 2024, we’re taking a look backwards, and diving into the standout thinkers who have taken to the Intelligence Squared stage in the past...

The 12 Books of Christmas | An Evening with Marina Diamandis

13 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

To celebrate 2024, we’re taking a look backwards, and diving into the standout thinkers who have taken to the Intelligence Squared stage in the past...

The 12 Books of Christmas | Think Again: Is Free Speech Under Threat? with Suzanne Nossel and Charlotte Lydia Riley

11 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Many liberals believe that in recent years we have seen an erosion of the right to air unpopular opinions without the risk of being cancelled. We are ...

The Intelligence Squared Economic Outlook, with Tim Harford, Part Two

06 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This event was supported by Guinness Global Investors. For the final instalment of the Intelligence Squared Economic Outlook series for 2024, Financ...

The Intelligence Squared Economic Outlook, with Tim Harford, Part One

05 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This event was supported by Guinness Global Investors. For the final instalment of the Intelligence Squared Economic Outlook series for 2024, Financ...

David Baddiel on Family, Jewishness, and the Healing Power of Comedy, Part Two

02 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

David Baddiel has been on our screens for over 35 years. The creator of The Mary Whitehouse Experience and one half of Baddiel and Skinner Unplanned,...

David Baddiel on Family, Jewishness, and the Healing Power of Comedy, Part One

01 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

David Baddiel has been on our screens for over 35 years. The creator of The Mary Whitehouse Experience and one half of Baddiel and Skinner Unplanned,...

The World in 2025 with Peter Frankopan and Emily Maitlis: Making Sense of our Past, Present and Future (Part Two)

29 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We’re living in a time of upheaval. The war in the Middle East is intensifying. Russia is making gains in Ukraine. America faces an election of unpa...

The World in 2025 with Peter Frankopan and Emily Maitlis: Making Sense of our Past, Present and Future (Part One)

27 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We’re living in a time of upheaval. The war in the Middle East is intensifying. Russia is making gains in Ukraine. America faces an election of unpa...

Ayaan Hirsi Ali On Her Fight to Save the West

25 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Decades ago, I escaped the Islamic world and came to the West. Many don’t know how good the West is, or how fragile. I fight for the restoration of ...

How Crowd Psychology Made the Modern World, with Dan Hancox

24 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Journalist and author Dan Hancox argues that despite what politicians, philosophers and the press have long told us, every peaceful crowd is not a vio...

Thomas Friedman on the Future of America and the World: The Post-Election Dissection, Part Two

22 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of our full-length in-depth discussion. With Donald Trump now declared winner of the 2024 presidential race, the United ...

Thomas Friedman on the Future of America and the World: The Post-Election Dissection, Part One

20 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

With Donald Trump now declared winner of the 2024 presidential race, the United States stands on the brink of a new era. Yet, as New York Times column...

Sotheby's Talks – Radical Modernity: From Bloomsbury to Charleston, with Kim Jones and Darren Clarke

18 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, writer, academic and critic Frances Wilson is joined by Artistic Director of Dior Homme and Vice President of Charleston, Kim Jones, ...

Trump, Podcasters and the New Age of Confusion, with Jamie Bartlett

17 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode of Intelligence Squared, head of programming Conor Boyle speaks with author and tech expert Jamie Bartlett about how podcasting, video...

Tim Marshall on the Power of Geography, Part Two

15 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of our full-length in-depth discussion. Tim Marshall is one of the world’s most successful authors on foreign affairs....

Tim Marshall on the Power of Geography, Part One

13 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Tim Marshall is one of the world’s most successful authors on foreign affairs. He’s the writer who put the ‘geo’ into geopolitics with his mul...

Oleksandr Zinchenko on Football, Ukraine and Achieving Greatness, Part Two

11 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of our full-length in-depth discussion. A fan favourite at Arsenal and previously Manchester City, Oleksandr Zinchenko h...

Oleksandr Zinchenko on Football, Ukraine and Achieving Greatness, Part One

10 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A fan favourite at Arsenal and previously Manchester City, Oleksandr Zinchenko has been lighting up the Premier League with his fearless performances ...

John Gray on the US Election and a World After Liberalism, Part Two

08 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of a three-part episode. We once thought liberalism could and should be universal. But recent decades have shown that th...

John Gray on the US Election and a World After Liberalism, Part One

06 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We once thought liberalism could and should be universal. But recent decades have shown that this presumption could be flawed. Now, with the re-electi...

Jeremy Bowen: Making Sense of the Modern Middle East, Part Two

04 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of a two-part episode. The October 7 Hamas-led terrorist attacks on Israel and the subsequent siege of Gaza by the Israe...

Jeremy Bowen: Making Sense of the Modern Middle East, Part One

03 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The October 7 Hamas-led terrorist attacks on Israel and the subsequent siege of Gaza by the Israeli military upended the Middle East. Can the conflict...

Lionel Barber and Zanny Minton Beddoes on the Story of the World’s Wildest Investor, Part Two

01 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of a three-part episode. Japan’s Masayoshi Son has purportedly invested or controlled assets worth $1trn in the past t...

Lionel Barber and Zanny Minton Beddoes on the Story of the World’s Wildest Investor, Part One

30 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Japan’s Masayoshi Son has purportedly invested or controlled assets worth $1trn in the past two decades through his media-tech giant, SoftBank. He b...

Grace Dent on the Joys of Comfort Eating, Part Two

28 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of a three-part episode. The foods we turn to behind closed doors are deeply personal, saturated in memories and topped ...

Grace Dent on the Joys of Comfort Eating, Part One

26 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The foods we turn to behind closed doors are deeply personal, saturated in memories and topped with a healthy dollop of guilty pleasure. In Comfort Ea...

An Evening with Gary Younge, Part Two

24 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of a three-part episode. Gary Younge has had a ringside seat during the biggest events in modern Black history: accompan...

An Evening with Gary Younge, Part One

23 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Gary Younge has had a ringside seat during the biggest events in modern Black history: accompanying Nelson Mandela on his first election campaign, joi...

Archive: Napoleon the Great? With Andrew Roberts, Adam Zamoyski and Jeremy Paxman

21 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

How should we remember Napoleon, the man of obscure Corsican birth who rose to become emperor of the French and briefly master of Europe? In this arch...

The Story of the Solar System, with Maggie Aderin-Pocock

20 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Dame Maggie Aderin-Pocock is an award-winning space scientist, broadcaster, author and familiar face from the BBC's The Sky at Night programme. She's ...

Dan Jones on England’s Greatest Warrior King, with Kate Williams, Part Two

17 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of a three-part episode. Henry V reigned over England for nine years and four months before he died at the early age of ...

Dan Jones on England’s Greatest Warrior King, with Kate Williams, Part One

16 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Henry V reigned over England for nine years and four months before he died at the early age of 35. He was known as a hardened, sometimes brutal, warri...

The History of Information, with Chris Haughton

14 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Haughton is a designer, illustrator and children's book author, whose bold imagery is known for lighting up the pages of books such as Well Done...

Archive: Jamaica's Culinary Journey, with Melissa Thompson and Riaz Phillips

13 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This discussion is a dip back into the extensive Intelligence Squared archive, first aired in late 2022. Jerk chicken, curried goat, ackee and saltfis...

Think Again: Is Free Speech Under Threat? with Suzanne Nossel and Charlotte Lydia Riley

11 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Many liberals believe that in recent years we have seen an erosion of the right to air unpopular opinions without the risk of being cancelled. We are ...

Original Sins: A History of Sex and Christianity, with Diarmaid MacCulloch

09 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Academic, author, broadcaster and ordained deacon Diarmaid MacCulloch is Emeritus Professor of the History of the Church at Oxford University, and Fel...

Archive: Secrets of the Sprakkar, with Eliza Reid

06 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This discussion is a dip back into the extensive Intelligence Squared archive, first aired in early 2022. 'Sprakkar' is an ancient Icelandic word mean...

The Intelligence Squared Economic Outlook, with Paul Johnson, Part Two

05 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Paul Johnson is the economist who has set the terms of so much political debate over the past few decades in Britain. Having served as Director of th...

The Intelligence Squared Economic Outlook, with Paul Johnson, Part One

03 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Paul Johnson is the economist who has set the terms of so much political debate over the past few decades in Britain. Having served as Director of th...

Philippa Gregory and Tracy Chevalier on Weaving the Story into Historical Fiction, Part Two

01 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of a three-part discussion. Philippa Gregory and Tracy Chevalier have defined the genre of historical fiction for decade...

Philippa Gregory and Tracy Chevalier on Weaving the Story into Historical Fiction, Part One

30 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the first instalment of a three-part discussion. Philippa Gregory and Tracy Chevalier have defined the genre of historical fiction for decades...

How the Bank of Mum and Dad Took Over the Economy, with Eliza Filby

29 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For this episode we're joined by Eliza Filby, an academic, writer and public speaker specialising in contemporary values and most recently generationa...

Katy Hessel on The Story of Art Without Men, with Pandora Sykes, Part Two

26 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of a three-part episode. How many women artists do you know? Despite the work of activist groups and scholars alike, wom...

Katy Hessel on The Story of Art Without Men, with Pandora Sykes, Part One

25 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the first instalment of a three-part episode. How many women artists do you know? Despite the work of activist groups and scholars alike, wome...

A History of Good and Evil, with Hanno Sauer

23 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Hanno Sauer is a philosopher not shying away from the big questions. His recent book is The Invention of Good and Evil: A World History of Morality, ...

Archive: The Allure of Abandoned Places, with Cal Flyn

22 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This episode was first aired in March, 2022. Cal Flyn’s Islands of Abandonment was one of the UK’s bestselling books of 2021. It was the Sunday...

Mustafa Suleyman on Intelligence and Power in the Twenty-First Century, Part Two

19 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of a three-part episode. Mustafa Suleyman, the CEO of Microsoft AI, knows what’s coming. And in September 2024 he retu...

Mustafa Suleyman on Intelligence and Power in the Twenty-First Century, Part One

17 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the first instalment of a three-part episode. Mustafa Suleyman, the CEO of Microsoft AI, knows what’s coming. And in September 2024 he retur...

Ex-Wife: Ursula Parrott's Forgotten Literary Classic, with Marsha Gordon and Hannah Dawson 

16 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Divorcées, dark humour and the underbelly of 1920s New York form the basis of author and screenwriter Ursula Parrott's forgotten classic novel, Ex-Wi...

Archive: The Psychology of Language, with Morten Christiansen and Nick Chater

15 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is an archive discussion first aired in early 2022. Morten Christiansen is Professor of Psychology at Cornell University and Nick Chater is Profe...

Black Arsenal: Club, Culture and Identity, Part Two

12 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of a two-part episode. Arsenal Football Club is special. Its multicultural fandom reflects a changing city and a unique ...

Black Arsenal: Club, Culture and Identity, Part One

10 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the first instalment of a two-part episode. Arsenal Football Club is special. Its multicultural fandom reflects a changing city and a unique r...

Lessons from History on How to Tackle Today's Greatest Challenges, with Roman Krznaric

09 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Leading social philosopher Roman Krznaric discusses his latest book, History for Tomorrow, which looks at what lessons we can learn from the past thou...

The Benefits of Embracing Our Limitations, with Oliver Burkeman

07 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The podcast welcomes back Oliver Burkeman for this episode. The writer whose popular column for The Guardian ‘This Column Will Change Your Life’ m...

The Dictators Who Want to Run the World, with Anne Applebaum, Part Two

05 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of a three-part episode. In the 20th century most autocrats were brutal dictators whose main goal was to control a domes...

The Dictators Who Want to Run the World, with Anne Applebaum, Part One

03 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the first instalment of a three-part episode. In the 20th century most autocrats were brutal dictators whose main goal was to control a domest...

A Deep Dive into the Sounds of the Seas, with Amorina Kingdon

02 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

What kinds of sound are our oceans making, and what do they mean? In this episode, award-winning science writer Amorina Kingdon discusses her book, S...

Jordan Stephens on Love, Chaos and Becoming a Man, Part Two

31 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second instalment of a two-part episode. Jordan Stephens’ life during his teenage years and his twenties was a whirlwind. As one half of...

Jordan Stephens on Love, Chaos and Becoming a Man, Part One

29 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the first instalment of a two-part episode. Jordan Stephens’ life during his teenage years and his twenties was a whirlwind. As one half of ...

A Fresh Perspective on Life on the Blue Planet, with Ferris Jabr

28 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The development of life on Earth is often framed through the evolution of separate and distinct life forms but less common is the idea of the Earth it...

Why the Horror Genre is Such a Scream, with Anna Bogutskaya

25 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We welcome back Anna Bogutskaya to the podcast for this episode to discuss her book, Feeding the Monster: Why Horror Has a Hold on Us. As the title su...

The Untold Stories of Women in World War One, with Rick Stroud

24 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The bestselling war historian Rick Stroud joins the podcast to discuss some of the lesser told narratives of World War One, drawing from his recent bo...

An Open Conversation About Marriage, with Molly Roden Winter

23 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For this episode the writer, musician and author Molly Roden Winter discusses her bestselling book, More: A Memoir of Open Marriage. The book tells th...

The Power of Influence, with Justin Hempson-Jones

21 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Influence can be as gentle as a bit of friendly advice or as seismic as a strategy to win an election. As a behavioural scientist who has worked with ...

Is the Planet Running Out of People? with Paul Morland

19 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The author and broadcaster Paul Morland is one of the UK’s leading thinkers on demographics – the study of population and its characteristics. Mor...

On the Map: Why Mathematics Can Be Seen Everywhere We Go, with Paulina Rowinska

18 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Paulina Rowinska is a writer, mathematician and science communicator, whose new book, Mapmatics: How We Navigate the World Through Numbers, tells the ...

Why Trust in Politicians is So Low, with Simon Kuper

16 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The writer Simon Kuper returns to the podcast to discuss the follow-up to his book Chums, which highlighted the narrow and highly privileged pathway t...

Cults, Communes and Female Rage on the Page, with Amy Twigg

13 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Debut novelist Amy Twigg's book, Spoilt Creatures, tells a story set on a women's commune where things take a dark turn. The novel has earned Twigg pr...

The Poetry of Modern Storytelling, with Olivia Gatwood

12 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A poet, performer, novelist and screenwriter, Olivia Gatwood has received international recognition for her writing, which has focused on topics inclu...

Jess Phillips on the Challenges of a New Era for British Politics

10 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Labour MP for Birmingham Yardley since 2015, Jess Phillips has never shied away from controversy nor has she been afraid to veer away from Labour Part...

What Keeps Tyrants in Power? with Marcel Dirsus

09 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Marcel Dirsus is a political scientist and the author of How Tyrants Fall: And How Nations Survive. As Non-Resident Fellow at the Institute for Securi...

Power and Greed on the High Seas, with Olive Heffernan

07 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The award-winning science journalist Olive Heffernan’s work has been featured in National Geographic, New Scientist, The Guardian, BBC Wildlife and ...

Imagining London's Future through Fiction, with Joelle Taylor

05 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A truly multifaceted talent, Joelle Taylor is a poet, playwight, actor and most recently a novelist, who has written four collections of poetry along ...

The Women Who Shaped the Ancient World, with Daisy Dunn

03 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The award-winning classicist and cultural critic Daisy Dunn is the author of seven books including her latest, The Missing Thread: A New History of th...

Is Telling a Life Story as Easy as ABC? with Sheila Heti

01 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Sheila Heti is a writer from Toronto who has published 11 books since the early 2000s. Those include Motherhood, Pure Colour, and How Should A Person ...

A Story of Fine Art, Friendship and Fraud, with Orlando Whitfield

28 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Orlando Whitfield started his career as a dealer in the feverish global art market but left it disillusioned and burnt-out a decade later. Today he wo...

Former FBI Director James Comey on Trump, his new Crime Thriller and The Politics of Justice

28 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

James Comey is the former FBI Director turned crime novelist who has spent a career fighting organised crime and hostile threats to American democrac...

Generation One: The Climate Podcast | Brought to you by UCL

25 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is an episode of Generation One: The Climate Podcast, brought to you by UCL. Generation One is a collective of people committed to a new era of...

The Story of Wartime Kyiv, with Illia Ponomarenko

23 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Ukrainian journalist Illia Ponomarenko is a co-founder of The Kyiv Independent and former defence and security reporter for the Kyiv Post. He's been o...

Gut Feelings: A History of Our Most Mysterious Organ, with Elsa Richardson

22 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Cultural historian Elsa Richardson discusses her book, Rumbles: A Curious History of the Gut. It looks at our relationship over the centuries with a v...

How Inequality in Healthcare Makes Society Sick, with Layal Liverpool and Chris van Tulleken, Part Two

20 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The is the second instalment of a two-part discussion. We’re living longer than ever before but we are also spending more years in poor health and s...

How Inequality in Healthcare Makes Society Sick, with Layal Liverpool and Chris van Tulleken, Part One

19 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The is the first instalment of a two-part discussion. We’re living longer than ever before but we are also spending more years in poor health and so...

Surprise Gift: How Inherited Generational Traits Underpin Our Societies, with Harvey Whitehouse

17 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Renowned social anthropologist Harvey Whitehouse is Director of the Institute of Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology at the University of Oxford a...

Why Parenthood is a Numbers Game, with Emily Oster

15 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Emily Oster is an economist whose analytical eye is often focused on how to make better sense of the data behind raising children. As professor of eco...

Archive – Can We Fix Capitalism? Yanis Varoufakis vs Gillian Tett

14 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is a dip back into the extensive Intelligence Squared archive from October, 2021. Should capitalism be reformed or replaced? Former Greek Finance...

The Invisible Science of Gas, with Mark Miodownik

12 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Mark Miodownik is the materials scientist and engineer whose new book is It’s a Gas: The Magnificent and Elusive Elements that Expand Our World. The...

Why Turkey is a Country of Endless Curiosity, with Sami Kent

10 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The history of Turkey is often told in well-worn tropes but journalist, audio producer and now author Sami Kent is going for something a little more h...

Archive – The New Science of the Body Clock, with Russell Foster

08 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is a dip back into the extensive Intelligence Squared archive from May, 2022 Every second of the day, tiny biological clocks are ticking througho...

Exploring the History of Ideas, with David Runciman

06 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The spectres of political disillusionment and apathy have weighed heavily on this year of momentous elections but can we take inspiration from the pas...

Growing Up in the Shadow of China, with Edward Wong

05 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Edward Wong is a diplomatic correspondent for The New York Times and its former Beijing bureau chief. The son of Chinese immigrants in Washington, DC,...

Archive – The Gift of a Radio, with Justin Webb

03 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is a dip back into the extensive Intelligence Squared archive from February, 2022. Justin Webb is a familiar voice to many radio listeners. He ha...

Sotheby's Talks – Imaginary Conversations: An ERDEM Collection, with Lady Burlington

01 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In celebration of Imaginary Conversations: An ERDEM Collection inspired by Duchess Deborah, join British fashion journalist Charlie Porter in conver...

Jon Ronson on Conspiracies, Culture Wars and How Things Fell Apart, Part Two

29 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The is the second instalment of a two-part discussion. For this episode, Jon Ronson – the journalist, author, and filmmaker – dives into the world...

Jon Ronson on Conspiracies, Culture Wars and How Things Fell Apart, Part One

28 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The is the first instalment of a two-part discussion. For this episode, Jon Ronson – the journalist, author, and filmmaker – dives into the world ...