In Our Time - In Our Time Returns for a New Series

Episode Date: September 7, 2026

In Our Time returns for a new series with host Misha Glenny.A world class seminar, every week. In Our Time explores the ideas, people and discoveries that have shaped our world, spanning history, philosophy, religion, science, literature, art and culture. On Thursdays, hear brand-new episodes with Misha Glenny and leading academics. On Mondays, discover Misha's Archive Picks: classic conversations from the In Our Time archive, originally presented by Melvyn Bragg. Recent episodes have featured topics as wide-ranging as the Roman Arena, Handel's Messiah, John Keats, On Liberty and the Mariana Trench, bringing expert insight to pivotal events, influential thinkers and remarkable discoveries. Throughout the archive, you can hear discussions on historical figures such as Marie Antoinette, Nefertiti, Mary Wollstonecraft, Karl Marx and Albert Einstein; explore great works of literature such as Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and the poetry of John Donne; uncover the stories behind cultural masterpieces including Van Gogh's Sunflowers and Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel; or journey from Jupiter and the death of stars, to the theories of Plato and Aristotle. In Our Time celebrates the pursuit of knowledge and the enduring power of ideas.A BBC Studios Production.

This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. Growing businesses deal with the same problem, too many tools, too much back and forth and not enough time. Odu helps bring it all together. It's an all-in-one business management platform, fully integrated from sales and accounting to inventory and marketing, so your team can spend less time chasing information and focus on growth. Whether you're in retail, manufacturing or service, Odu gives you one place. to manage your business. Visit Odu.com to book a demo. It's O'Dbolo.com. Lives Less Ordinary is bringing you a special series

of extraordinary love stories from all around the world. In India, love at first sight feels more psychotic than arranged marriage. Love stories that break all the rules. We came into our relationship with a lot of complicated pieces. Stories that show that sometimes

love is all you need. Lives Less Ordinary Love Stories from the BBC World Service. Listen now. Search for Lives Less Ordinary, wherever you get your BBC podcasts. It often starts with a question. What were lines doing in York in the third century? Was he always interested in maths? Why was Jeremy a lonely snail?

Then we search for answers. This is one of the big mysteries in the history of life on Earth. In a way, it's one of the big problems in all of biology. In our time is a world-class seminar every week, exploring the ideas. ideas, people and events that have shaped our world. It's a novel where nothing happens and everything happens. If I was going to define mathematics, I would say it's the study of structure. It's one of the first times really that you consistently see someone painting teeth.

I know that sounds bonkers. Empires, movements and discoveries whose influence remain as relevant as ever. Each week, myself and three guests discuss a single subject. What is interesting to note, Bisha, So the fundamental innovation here was to try to mathematically calculate human behavior. From cybernetics and Handel's Messiah to Dadaism and the depths of the Mariana Trench. That's about 98 times the height of St Paul's Cathedral. As I was doing the research for the program, my jaw just dropped further and further down.

Our conversations range from wars and revolutions to the issues that define our existence. For one of the fathers of liberalism, there wasn't too much liberty in evidence at home, was there? There certainly wasn't. Episodes are released twice a week. On Mondays, we revisit one of more than a thousand in our time episodes in our archive. And every Thursday, myself and my guests tackle a brand new subject. What fascinates me about the tree of life, when you look at it, is how close we are to slime moles. Listen to In Our Time First.

on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your BBC podcasts. Tea or coffee? Love a cup of tea. I have tea too. Tea for me, please. Thank you very much. Lives Less Ordinary is bringing you a special series of extraordinary love stories.

Roshan Sethi was an uptight Canadian doctor who couldn't come out to his Indian family. Karansani was an actor from India who felt he had to keep his sexuality a secret to make it in Hollywood. But they met, fell in love, and things began to change. They decided to make a romantic,

to comedy based on their relationship. Lives Less Ordinary Love Stories from the BBC World Service. Listen now, wherever you get your BBC podcasts.