The concept of government is under attack. In the United States, Donald Trump has fired tens of thousands of federal workers; ignored congressional statutes; insulted judges; and allowed Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, access to sensitive government information in a slash-and-burn campaign against the US government. In June 2025 Michael Lewis, the renowned author of bestselling non-fiction masterpieces including Moneyball, The Big Short, Flash Boys and Liar’s Poker, came to the Intelligence ...
Jul 06, 2025•36 min•Season 1Ep. 3245
The concept of government is under attack. In the United States, Donald Trump has fired tens of thousands of federal workers; ignored congressional statutes; insulted judges; and allowed Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, access to sensitive government information in a slash-and-burn campaign against the US government. In June 2025 Michael Lewis, the renowned author of bestselling non-fiction masterpieces including Moneyball, The Big Short, Flash Boys and Liar’s Poker, came to the Intelligence ...
Jul 05, 2025•41 min•Season 1Ep. 3244
This is an episode of The Specialist, produced by Intelligence Squared in partnership with Sotheby's. In The Specialist, explore the significance and journey of an extraordinary work through the eyes of those that know it best. Rubens’ early masterpiece The Massacre of the Innocents was hidden away for nearly 250 years. George Gordon, Deputy Chairman, Sotheby’s Europe and Co-Chairman of Old Master Paintings & Drawings Worldwide, spearheaded its discovery, attribution and triumphant sale. Mor...
Jul 04, 2025•15 min•Ep. 3243
Today’s episode is the recording of our recent panel Ctrl, Alt, Delusion: Resetting Reality in the Manosphere, live at SXSW London, in partnership with Sage & Jester. Sage & Jester is an impact-led arts production company that exposes manipulation and misinformation. At Sage & Jester, entertainment sparks critical thinking. Their work blends wisdom and wit to entertain, enlighten, and help you harness your internal BS detector. They're not just storytellers, they are catalysts for a ...
Jul 04, 2025•48 min•Season 1Ep. 3240
The tortured poet. The rebellious scientist. The monstrous artist. The tech disruptor. You can tell what a society values by who it labels as a genius. You can also tell who it excludes, who it enables, and what it is prepared to tolerate. Taking us from the Renaissance Florence of Leonardo da Vinci to the Florida rocket launches of Elon Musk’s SpaceX, Helen Lewis joined us to unravel a word that we all use — without really questioning what it means. In conversation with acclaimed satirist and s...
Jul 01, 2025•40 min•Season 1Ep. 3241
The tortured poet. The rebellious scientist. The monstrous artist. The tech disruptor. You can tell what a society values by who it labels as a genius. You can also tell who it excludes, who it enables, and what it is prepared to tolerate. Taking us from the Renaissance Florence of Leonardo da Vinci to the Florida rocket launches of Elon Musk’s SpaceX, Helen Lewis joined us to unravel a word that we all use — without really questioning what it means. In conversation with acclaimed satirist and s...
Jun 30, 2025•40 min•Season 1Ep. 3240
After coming last by quite such a distance on Taskmaster Series 15, and seeing his emotional frailties laid bare in a series of memes of him with his head in his hands, Ivo Graham is adapting to an increasingly irreversible reputation as a man better known for his chaos than his comedy. His new book Yardsticks For Failure is a map of the brain behind the breakdowns; a deep dive into the various facepalms of Ivo’s recent past, and a live diary of his unravelling present, where his solution to the...
Jun 29, 2025•39 min•Season 1Ep. 3239
After coming last by quite such a distance on Taskmaster Series 15, and seeing his emotional frailties laid bare in a series of memes of him with his head in his hands, Ivo Graham is adapting to an increasingly irreversible reputation as a man better known for his chaos than his comedy. His new book Yardsticks For Failure is a map of the brain behind the breakdowns; a deep dive into the various facepalms of Ivo’s recent past, and a live diary of his unravelling present, where his solution to the...
Jun 27, 2025•37 min•Season 1Ep. 3238
‘A beautiful novel full of life-affirming wonder and imagination’ Benedict Cumberbatch Matt Haig is one of Britain’s most celebrated authors, best known for his internationally bestselling novel The Midnight Library and the critically acclaimed memoir Reasons to Stay Alive. Matt’s newest novel, The Life Impossible, which became an instant Sunday Times bestseller, follows retired maths teacher Grace Winters who leaves her mundane bungalow in England for Ibiza, where she embarks on a journey to un...
Jun 24, 2025•39 min•Season 1Ep. 3237
‘A beautiful novel full of life-affirming wonder and imagination’ Benedict Cumberbatch Matt Haig is one of Britain’s most celebrated authors, best known for his internationally bestselling novel The Midnight Library and the critically acclaimed memoir Reasons to Stay Alive. Matt’s newest novel, The Life Impossible, which became an instant Sunday Times bestseller, follows retired maths teacher Grace Winters who leaves her mundane bungalow in England for Ibiza, where she embarks on a journey to un...
Jun 22, 2025•40 min•Season 1Ep. 3236
Deborah Frances-White is the writer and comedian best known for hosting The Guilty Feminist podcast. David Tennant is the multi-award-winning actor who has played iconic roles including Doctor Who, Hamlet, Barty Crouch Jr., Rivals’ Lord Tony Baddingham and more. In April 2025 they came to Intelligence Squared to discuss how we can have better and more open conversations on difficult topics. Drawing from her new book Six Conversations We’re Scared to Have, Deborah shared how she grew up in a cult...
Jun 21, 2025•42 min•Season 1Ep. 3236
Deborah Frances-White is the writer and comedian best known for hosting The Guilty Feminist podcast. David Tennant is the multi-award-winning actor who has played iconic roles including Doctor Who, Hamlet, Barty Crouch Jr., Rivals’ Lord Tony Baddingham and more. In April 2025 they came to Intelligence Squared to discuss how we can have better and more open conversations on difficult topics. Drawing from her new book Six Conversations We’re Scared to Have, Deborah shared how she grew up in a cult...
Jun 20, 2025•40 min•Season 1Ep. 3235
What is happening behind closed doors in Britain’s far right movement? On today’s episode, we’re joined by journalist Harry Shukman, the journalist who spent over a year undercover investigating the British far right. Drawing on his new book, Year of the Rat, Shukman sheds light on the secret meetings, pub gatherings, political canvassing, and neo-Nazi conferences at the heart of the extreme right-wing activity in Britain. Through his investigations, Shukman has effectively exposed the mechanics...
Jun 17, 2025•50 min•Season 1Ep. 3234
‘Embracing the knowledge in The Next Conversation will vastly improve your life.’ – Andrew Huberman, creator of the Huberman Lab Podcast ‘ The Next Conversation gives you the tools to change your life, one conversation at a time.’ – Mel Robbins, bestselling author and host of the Mel Robbins Podcast In a time when conversations often feel more divisive and polarised than ever, knowing how to communicate effectively has never been more essential. Jefferson Fisher has built a global following by a...
Jun 15, 2025•38 min•Season 1Ep. 3233
‘Embracing the knowledge in The Next Conversation will vastly improve your life.’ – Andrew Huberman, creator of the Huberman Lab Podcast ‘ The Next Conversation gives you the tools to change your life, one conversation at a time.’ – Mel Robbins, bestselling author and host of the Mel Robbins Podcast In a time when conversations often feel more divisive and polarised than ever, knowing how to communicate effectively has never been more essential. Jefferson Fisher has built a global following by a...
Jun 14, 2025•38 min•Season 1Ep. 3232
On today’s episode, an episode from our friends at Sotheby's, exploring the world of Shakespeare. Sam Leith, author, journalist and literary editor of The Spectator, will be joined by Emma Smith, Professor of Shakespeare Studies at Oxford, Tracy-Ann Oberman, who most recently starred as Shylock in her adaptation of The Merchant of Venice, and acclaimed actor Joseph Kloska. They will be revealing how different editions shaped our understanding of Shakespeare’s plays. Why do some of his most famou...
Jun 12, 2025•40 min•Season 1Ep. 3231
In June 2024, Nvidia became the most valuable corporation on Earth. In Stephen Witt’s new book ‘The Thinking Machine’ he chronicles the astonishing story of how a designer of videogame equipment conquered the market for AI hardware, and in the process reinvented the computer. He spoke about it with author and Research Director at Demos Carl Miller. ---- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intellig...
Jun 11, 2025•55 min•Season 1Ep. 3230
*** Click here to see the photograph referred to in the podcast introduction: https://www.intelligencesquared.com/events/an-evening-with-adam-buxton *** --- Adam Buxton is a comedian, writer, podcaster — and one of the UK’s most beloved cultural figures. Best known for The Adam Buxton Podcast, The Adam and Joe Show on Channel 4, and the distinctive blend of surreal and self-deprecating humour he brings to all his work, Buxton has spent decades making people laugh while also offering insightful r...
Jun 08, 2025•38 min•Season 1Ep. 3229
*** Click here to see the photograph referred to in the podcast introduction: https://www.intelligencesquared.com/events/an-evening-with-adam-buxton *** --- Adam Buxton is a comedian, writer, podcaster — and one of the UK’s most beloved cultural figures. Best known for The Adam Buxton Podcast, The Adam and Joe Show on Channel 4, and the distinctive blend of surreal and self-deprecating humour he brings to all his work, Buxton has spent decades making people laugh while also offering insightful r...
Jun 07, 2025•39 min•Season 1Ep. 3228
Steve McQueen is one of Britain’s most acclaimed filmmakers and artists. He is the recipient of the Academy Award for Best Picture, two BAFTA Awards, the Caméra d’Or, a Golden Globe, and the Turner Prize. McQueen’s work includes his first feature-length film Hunger about Bobby Sands and the 1981 Irish hunger strike, the Oscar-winning 12 Years a Slave, the BBC anthology Small Axe, and his most recent film Blitz. In April 2025 McQueen joined us live on the Intelligence Squared stage to discuss the...
Jun 05, 2025•41 min•Season 1Ep. 3227
Steve McQueen is one of Britain’s most acclaimed filmmakers and artists. He is the recipient of the Academy Award for Best Picture, two BAFTA Awards, the Caméra d’Or, a Golden Globe, and the Turner Prize. McQueen’s work includes his first feature-length film Hunger about Bobby Sands and the 1981 Irish hunger strike, the Oscar-winning 12 Years a Slave, the BBC anthology Small Axe, and his most recent film Blitz. In April 2025 McQueen joined us live on the Intelligence Squared stage to discuss the...
Jun 03, 2025•40 min•Season 1Ep. 3226
This event is part of our Age of the Strongman series. Click here to see the other events in the series. President Xi Jinping has ruled China for more than a decade. He has overseen an era of unprecedented economic prosperity, cracked down on dissidents, reinvented national identity in his own image and adopted a confrontational ‘wolf warrior’ style of diplomacy on the world stage. Xi has also abolished term limits as President of the Communist Party and it’s possible that he will remain Chi...
Jun 01, 2025•38 min•Season 1Ep. 3225
This event is part of our Age of the Strongman series. Click here to see the other events in the series. President Xi Jinping has ruled China for more than a decade. He has overseen an era of unprecedented economic prosperity, cracked down on dissidents, reinvented national identity in his own image and adopted a confrontational ‘wolf warrior’ style of diplomacy on the world stage. Xi has also abolished term limits as President of the Communist Party and it’s possible that he will remain China’s...
May 31, 2025•40 min•Season 1Ep. 3224
This event is part of Critical Conversations, a new series on the age of misinformation by Intelligence Squared and Sage & Jester, hosted by Sophia Smith Galer. To see other events in this series, click here. Where do we draw the line between free speech and dangerous misinformation? Algorithms not only dictate our data feeds but also reinforce our echo chambers, and the stakes have never been higher – both for our individual perspectives and for society at large. How To Cure Your Algorithm ...
May 29, 2025•51 min•Season 1Ep. 3223
This event is part of Critical Conversations, a new series on the age of misinformation by Intelligence Squared and Sage & Jester, hosted by Sophia Smith Galer. Have you ever clashed with someone on social media or even a loved one? Conversations can easily escalate in a time where everyone is consuming different media with wildly different messaging. At Truth Hurts: From Conflict to Connection, we tackled the most divisive topics in our day-to-day lives and how we can all become better conv...
May 27, 2025•50 min•Season 1Ep. 3222
This event was part of Critical Conversations, a new series on the age of misinformation by Intelligence Squared and Sage & Jester, hosted by Sophia Smith Galer. Sometimes the best way to expose a lie is to laugh at it. Satire is a force to be reckoned with in any democracy and artists are essential in shedding light on the truth. Comedy has long been a way to bring difficult conversations to the fore, and to challenge narratives. At Tricks, Trolls and LOLs, find out how humour and creative ...
May 25, 2025•57 min•Season 1Ep. 3221
Is prosperity possible without growth? And in an age of environmental crisis and rising inequality, is our obsession with economic expansion doing more harm than good? On the podcast today, renowned economist Professor Tim Jackson challenges the very foundations of our economic thinking. In his groundbreaking book 'Prosperity Without Growth', Jackson argued that relentless pursuit of GDP not only fails to deliver human well-being — it actively damages both society and the planet. Now, in his lat...
May 24, 2025•56 min•Season 1Ep. 3220
The ‘Smartphone-free Childhood’ movement has alerted many of us to the dangers inherent in our – and our kids’ – use of devices. But while we can shield children from technology in their early years, withdrawing from the online world is not an option for most of us in adult life. So how do we ensure that we – and our children when they grow up – develop a healthy relationship with smartphones and don’t become addicted to mindless scrolling and harmful consumption? On May 13, Professor Kaitlyn Re...
May 22, 2025•40 min•Season 1Ep. 3219
The ‘Smartphone-free Childhood’ movement has alerted many of us to the dangers inherent in our – and our kids’ – use of devices. But while we can shield children from technology in their early years, withdrawing from the online world is not an option for most of us in adult life. So how do we ensure that we – and our children when they grow up – develop a healthy relationship with smartphones and don’t become addicted to mindless scrolling and harmful consumption? On May 13, Professor Kaitlyn Re...
May 20, 2025•38 min•Season 1Ep. 3218
‘The world as we knew it is gone’ – UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s response to Trump’s tariffs President Donald Trump recently announced a 90-day pause for his monumental ‘liberation day’ tariffs while at the same time escalating a dangerous trade war with China. Trump’s announcement came just weeks after import taxes on all goods entering the US were introduced, in the biggest upheaval of international trade in decades. And beyond the chaos and endless news cycle of the last few days, Tru...
May 18, 2025•41 min•Season 1Ep. 3218
