Episode summary: On November 12th, 2012, the Accomack County volunteer fire departments got a call. An abandoned house had suddenly gone up in flames. And then, just hours later, a second fire was reported. Then a third. Over the next few months, there would be a lot more fires—nearly 90 in all. It...

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Episode summary: Coalmining & Luddism: Laurie explores the meaning of progress, from the former pit villages of South Wales & Durham to contemporary high tech industry. He’s joined by Huw Beynon, Emeritus Professor in the School of Social Sciences at the University of Cardiff, who charts the rise an...

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Episode summary: After Producer Katie Mingle’s mom wrote a romance novel, Katie set out to understand the romance genre and its classic covers. There was a lot to unpack.

Episode summary: Josie Long presents magical short documentaries and audio adventures about illusions. From a series of magical failures to an illusion which helped steer someone safely home. Magic Mike Produced by Mike Williams Third Man Factor Produced by Olivia Humphreys Sand Produced by Ariel Me...

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Episode summary: On May 20, 2021, President Biden signed the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act. What exactly is a hate crime and what does the Constitution say about them?

Episode summary: Plus, the defining human attribute visible from galaxies far, far away.

Episode summary: Mona Eltahawy is a feminist author and award-winning commentator and public speaker. Her work has been published in The Guardian, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and other publications around the world. She is frequent commentor on current affairs on the BBC, CNN, Al Jazeer...

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Episode summary: David talks to historian Linda Colley about her new global history of written constitutions: the paper documents that made and remade the modern world. From Corsica to Pitcairn, from Mexico to Japan, it’s an amazing story of war and peace, violence, imagination and fear. Recorded as...

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Episode summary: Popular Netflix documentary Seaspiracy has sparked a lot of debate recently, including some controversy over some of the claims the documentary makes and the numbers behind them. One of the most striking is that: “if current fishing trends continue we will see virtually empty oceans...

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Episode summary: MIGRANTS IN LONDON: how has London been shaped by the history of immigration? Laurie Taylor talks to Panikos Panayi, Professor of European History at De Montfort University, & author of a new study which examines the contribution of immigrants to London’s economic success and status...

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