In Our Time
BBC Radio 4
Spanning history, religion, culture, science and philosophy, In Our Time from BBC Radio 4 is essential listening for the intellectually curious. In each episode, host Misha Glenny and expert guests explore the characters, events and discoveries that have shaped our world.
History fans can learn about pivotal wars and societal upheavals, such as the rise and fall of Napoleon, the Sack of Rome in 1527, and the political intrigue of the Russian Revolution. Those fascinated by the lives of kings and queens can journey to Versailles to meet Marie Antoinette and Louis XIV the Sun King, or to Ancient Egypt to meet Cleopatra and Nefertiti. Or perhaps you're looking to explore the history of religion, from Buddhism's early teachings to the Protestant Reformation.
If you're interested in the stories behind iconic works of art, music and literature, dive in to discussions on the artistic genius of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel and Van Gogh's famous Sunflowers. From Gothic architecture to the works of Shakespeare, each episode of In Our Time offers new insight into humanity's cultural achievements.
Those looking to enrich their scientific knowledge can hear episodes on black holes, the Periodic Table, and classical theories of gravity, motion, evolution and relativity. Learn how the discovery of penicillin revolutionised medicine, and how the death of stars can lead to the formation of new planets.
Lovers of philosophy will find episodes on the big issues that define existence, from free will and ethics, to liberty and justice. In what ways did celebrated philosophers such as Mary Wollstonecraft and Karl Marx push forward radical new ideas? How has the concept of karma evolved from the ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism to today? What was Plato's concept of an ideal republic, and how did he explore this through the legend of the lost city of Atlantis?
In Our Time celebrates the pursuit of knowledge and the enduring power of ideas.
History fans can learn about pivotal wars and societal upheavals, such as the rise and fall of Napoleon, the Sack of Rome in 1527, and the political intrigue of the Russian Revolution. Those fascinated by the lives of kings and queens can journey to Versailles to meet Marie Antoinette and Louis XIV the Sun King, or to Ancient Egypt to meet Cleopatra and Nefertiti. Or perhaps you're looking to explore the history of religion, from Buddhism's early teachings to the Protestant Reformation.
If you're interested in the stories behind iconic works of art, music and literature, dive in to discussions on the artistic genius of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel and Van Gogh's famous Sunflowers. From Gothic architecture to the works of Shakespeare, each episode of In Our Time offers new insight into humanity's cultural achievements.
Those looking to enrich their scientific knowledge can hear episodes on black holes, the Periodic Table, and classical theories of gravity, motion, evolution and relativity. Learn how the discovery of penicillin revolutionised medicine, and how the death of stars can lead to the formation of new planets.
Lovers of philosophy will find episodes on the big issues that define existence, from free will and ethics, to liberty and justice. In what ways did celebrated philosophers such as Mary Wollstonecraft and Karl Marx push forward radical new ideas? How has the concept of karma evolved from the ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism to today? What was Plato's concept of an ideal republic, and how did he explore this through the legend of the lost city of Atlantis?
In Our Time celebrates the pursuit of knowledge and the enduring power of ideas.
Episodes
Mentioned books
46 snips
May 7, 2026 • 54min
Handel's Messiah
Larry Zazzo, countertenor and lecturer, brings performer’s perspective. Ruth Smith, Handel scholar and institute trustee, explains Jennens and context. Donald Burrows, Handel specialist and emeritus professor, gives compositional and historical framing. They discuss the Dublin premiere, Handel’s fast composing and revisions, Jennens’s libretto, vocal forces and performance practice, and how Messiah became linked to Christmas.
138 snips
Apr 30, 2026 • 55min
The Spanish-American War 1898
Stephen Wilkinson, specialist in Cuban independence, Mary Vincent, expert on Spain and empire, and Frank Cogliano, scholar of US expansion, discuss 1898’s geopolitical shakeup. They explore Cuba’s sugar politics and José Martí’s vision. They trace naval strategy, the USS Maine, US Pacific ambitions, Spain’s humiliation, and the Philippines’ violent transition. The conversation covers press influence, Teller and Platt, and long-term legacies.
175 snips
Apr 23, 2026 • 53min
Silicon
Misha Glenny and guests discuss the physics, biology and chemistry of the element silicon which is at the heart of some of the most useful and beautiful objects on the planet. While it is still being created throughout the universe, the silicon we have here was made billions of years ago in dying stars. In its compounds we have long used silicon for glass and, more recently, purified silicon has become the foundation of modern electronics. Perhaps less appreciated is the role silicon compounds play in the biology of life on Earth, on the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and the cycling of elements between land, oceans and atmosphere that sustains us.With Kate Hendry
Oceanographer at the British Antarctic Survey and Bye-Fellow of Queen’s College, University of CambridgeAndrea Sella
Professor of Chemistry at University College LondonAnd Monica Grady
Professor Emerita in Planetary and Space Sciences at the Open UniversityProduced by Martha OwenReading list:Christina De La Rocha and Daniel J. Conley, Silica Stories (Springer, 2017)Bernard Quéguiner, The Biogeochemical Cycle of Silicon in the Ocean (John Wiley & Sons, 2016)In Our Time is a BBC Studios ProductionSpanning history, religion, culture, science and philosophy, In Our Time from BBC Radio 4 is essential listening for the intellectually curious. In each episode, host Misha Glenny and expert guests explore the characters, events and discoveries that have shaped our world.
63 snips
Apr 16, 2026 • 51min
Dadaism
Dawn Ades, Emeritus Professor of Art History, maps Dada’s spread and legacy. Ruth Hemus, Professor of French and Visual Culture, explores language, performance, and photomontage. Stephen Forcer, Professor of French, examines Zurich origins, sound poetry, and political context. They discuss Cabaret Voltaire performances, antiwar absurdity, photomontage, Duchamp’s Fountain, and how Dada evolved across cities.
92 snips
Apr 9, 2026 • 53min
Archaea
Thorsten Allers, archaeal genetics professor studying molecular info systems; Christa Schleper, genetics and microbiology expert behind Asgard discoveries; Buzz Baum, cell biologist exploring archaeal roots of eukaryotes. They trace Woese's split of life, explore Asgard archaeal features and imaging, debate models for eukaryote origins, and explain archaeal ecology from extremophiles to methane cycling.
51 snips
Apr 2, 2026 • 54min
Margaret Beaufort
David Grummitt, historian of the Wars of the Roses; Catherine Lewis, medieval household and piety specialist; Joanna Laynesmith, Tudor-era historian. They trace Margaret Beaufort's rise from child bride and young mother to political survivor. Short scenes cover her marriages, protecting Henry through exile and civil war, her role at Bosworth, court influence as king's mother, patronage, piety and cultural legacy.
102 snips
Mar 26, 2026 • 53min
The Columbian Exchange
John Lindo, ancient DNA expert on infectious disease in the Americas; Rebecca Earle, food historian of early colonial Spanish America; Mark Maslin, earth system scientist on human climate impacts. They examine catastrophic population loss and its environmental ripple effects. They trace how crops, livestock and pathogens crossed oceans, reshaping diets, landscapes, trade and climate in the centuries after 1492.
84 snips
Mar 19, 2026 • 48min
John Keats
Meiko O’Halloran, Romantic literature lecturer; Nicholas Roe, Wardlaw Professor of English; Fiona Stafford, Oxford literature professor. They trace Keats’s quick shift from medicine to poetry. They explore his 1818 creative surge, the making of the great odes, his classical influences, harsh contemporary reviews and the role of illness and travel in his short life.
195 snips
Mar 12, 2026 • 50min
The Code of Hammurabi
Selena Wisnom, lecturer in Middle Eastern heritage, on Babylonian religion and ritual. Frances Reynolds, Assyriologist from Oxford, on the stele and legal phrasing. Martin Worthington, Middle Eastern studies professor, on Babylonian language and history. They trace the stele's imagery, the code's conditional style, social ranks and punishments, and how the law was displayed, read and reused across Mesopotamia.
195 snips
Mar 5, 2026 • 51min
Henry IV Part 1
Laurence Publicover, Associate Professor of English at Bristol, Lucy Munro, Professor of Shakespeare and Early Modern Literature at King’s, and Emma Smith, Professor of Shakespeare Studies at Oxford, chat about Falstaff, Hotspur and Hal. They discuss kingship and succession, Hal’s tavern life and performance of identity, the politics of history plays, staging challenges, and the play’s enduring popularity.
