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PODCAST

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford

Pushkin Industries

We tell our children unsettling fairy tales to teach them valuable lessons, but these Cautionary Tales are for the education of the grown ups – and they are all true. Tim Harford (Financial Times, BBC, author of “The Data Detective”) brings you stories of awful human error, tragic catastrophes, and hilarious fiascos. They"ll delight you, scare you, but also make you wiser. New episodes every Friday.

history

All Episodes

27:45

The Refugee Who Led a Software Revolution - with Ben...

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/04/07

Millionaire-making tech start-ups are most often associated with Silicon Valley. But this software revolution begins on a woman’s kitchen table in rural Britain in the 1960s. Steve Shirley faced extraordinary odds. After escaping Nazi Germany as a child, she later encountered workplace discrimination and endured deep personal tragedy. But she persevered to build a business decades ahead of its time, creating opportunities for hundreds of women. Tim Harford is joined by Ben Walter, CEO of Chase

en-US

43:42

The Mad Mystic and the Last Battle on English Soil -...

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/04/03

As the Victorian era dawns, modernisation erodes the old ways of life and poverty rises. In the unrest, an unlikely hero emerges, capturing the imagination of the countryside's working class. He claims to be the new Messiah, and promises a better future. Despite his unconventional appearance and strange claims, his message resonates with the people of Kent, many of whom are willing to follow him into bloody battle. For this Cautionary Conversation, Ian Breckon - author ofMadTom's Rising: The

en-US

39:36

The Sightseeing Flight and the Invisible Mountain

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/03/27

In November 1979, Flight 901 departs New Zealand on a sightseeing journey over Antarctica, heading directly towards a volcano. When the plane vanishes, investigators are left with a mystery: how could a seasoned pilot miss a 12,000-foot peak? As they try to piece together the incident, conflicting stories emerge, key evidence disappears, and a troubling picture takes shape - one defined by human error, deceptive illusions, and the hunt for someone to blame. For a full list of show notes, see

en-US

46:28

Presenting: Drug Story - On Xanax and Anxiety

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/03/20

This episode comes to you from the new podcast Drug Story, which investigates the origins, workings and cautionary tales behind today's medical interventions. In this episode, host Thomas Goetz investigates the rise of Xanax, a drug used to treat anxiety that has become one of the world's most counterfeited and abused drugs. What happens when a drug works too well, and how do we manage anxiety in an environment that seems to fuel it? Listen to Drug Story wherever you get your podcasts. This episode

en-US

41:29

"And it went click" - Dawn of the Working Dead

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/03/13

Robert Propst is more than an inventor: he is a visionary, an innovator dreaming up how to make the perfect office workstation. When he reveals his bold design for a creative, flexible 'cockpit of tomorrow', he comes into conflict with the unyielding push for workplace efficiency. This clash of ideals will go on to shape our working lives forever. For a full list of show notes, see timharford.com.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

en-US

42:24

Explosives or Sugar? The Deadly Art of Distraction in...

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/03/06

In 1999, a series of bombs explode in Russian apartments, killing hundreds and spreading panic. No one knows who is behind it. But when one device is spotted before it detonates, troubling questions emerge. Was it really a bomb? Why is the country's security service changing its story? And why are the people who probe too closely turning up dead? Tim Harford is joined by Helena Merriman, host of new BBC podcast The History Bureau - Putin and the Apartment Bombs, which charts the mysterious events

en-US

41:21

Flight of the Fantasist: The Race Around the World -...

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/02/27

For Spotify Listeners: Apologies that this episode is currently unavailable on the regular feed. We are working with Spotify to fix the issue. Until then, the episode is available for free on other platforms including Apple Podcasts and iHeart. Donald Crowhurst is a brilliant inventor with a failing business. When he hears about the Golden Globe Race offering publicity and cash to the fastest to sail around the world, it feels like the perfect solution. Betting his business and his home on success,

en-US

39:28

The Philosopher and the Handyman: The Race Around the...

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/02/20

Who will be the first to sail non-stop around the world? In 1968, The Sunday Times announces a trophy and a cash prize for the winner, and theGolden Globe Race is on.Leading the charge are Robin Knox-Johnston, an old-fashioned British patriot, and Bernard Moitessier, an enigmatic French philosopher. As monstrous seas and deadly gales close in, the difference between victory and disaster will come down to just one word. For a full list of show notes, see timharford.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for

en-US

40:42

Presenting... American Criminal: The Great McDonald's...

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/02/17

This episode comes to you from American Criminal, the true-crime history podcast that takes you inside the minds of some of America's most notorious outlaws, exploring the dark side of the American dream. In this series, host Jeremy Schwartzexplores the scandal at the heart of the McDonald's Monopoly promotion. The chance to win a prize when you bought a burger was a massive marketing success, with McDonald's returning to the promotion for years. But what the company didn't know was that a man on

en-US

42:27

Sphygmograph Be Damned: The Science of Love

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/02/13

Chris McKinlay is a good-looking, smart student at UCLA, but he can't seem to get a girlfriend. He's a computing expert, so why not use his technology prowess to supercharge his search for a soulmate? He starts building an army of bots and unleashes them into the world ofonlinedating. Chris' search for love leads him to some unexpected places, and it might be teaching us all the wrong lessons about love. See the show notes at timharford.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

en-US

39:08

The Angels, The Stones and The Dead

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/02/06

In the final days of the Sixties, The Rolling Stones join forces with other rock legends to plan a free concert at Altamont Speedway that will rival Woodstock. The "bad boys of rock" don't have the warmest relationship with the police, so they choose another option for security: The Hells Angels. They're both anti-establishment, they're both counterculture: what could possibly go wrong? See the show notes at timharford.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

en-US

41:19

Powered by Orgasm: The Rise and Fall of a Sex Cult -...

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/01/30

Run by the charismatic Nicole Deadone, OneTaste billed itself as a sexual wellness startup celebrating the power of female orgasm. But behind the celebrity endorsements and promises of healing, lay a darker reality. When Bloomberg journalist Ellen Huet began to dig into the organisation, she uncovered financial, emotional and sexual exploitation of its members, many of whom would call the company a cult. Huet, author of Empire of Orgasm, joins Tim to discuss why we should beware people promising

en-US

40:01

The WOW Machine Stops (Pt 2)

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/01/23

Tony Hsieh, the billionaire CEO of Zappos, is passionate about community. He pours his time, energy and fortune into building a network of like-minded people - first in Las Vegas, then Park City, Utah. But Tony's quest to build connection soon spirals into isolation, addiction and mistrust of those closest to him, revealing a contradictory truth about the pursuit of one of our most fundamental human needs.WARNING: This episode discusses death by suicide. If you are suffering emotional distress or

en-US

38:30

Shoes, Booze and the Pursuit of Happiness (Pt 1)

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/01/16

They say the company Zappos is harder to get into than Harvard. Zappos may sell shoes, but its mission is to deliver WOW through a fun-focused company culture, making it one of the most coveted places to work in America. At the centre is CEO Tony Hsieh, obsessed with the hunt for happiness and driven by increasingly bold - and strange - ideas about how to find it. See the show notes at timharford.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

en-US

37:30

Liar, Bigamist, Brute: How Isaac Singer Liberated Women

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/01/09

The sewing machine was once thought to be an impossible invention. It was such a complicated contraption that it would take more than one inventor, with more than one good idea, to make it work. Each of these inventors, including the notorious Isaac Singer, wanted the credit (and the fortune that came with it) for themselves. And so began the sewing machine war: a mire of backstabbing, stealing and misogyny. See the show notes at timharford.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

en-US

37:20

Fritterin' Away Genius (Classic)

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2026/01/02

Claude Shannon was brilliant. He was the Einstein of computer science... only he loved "fritterin' away" his time building machines to play chess, solve Rubik's cubes and beat the house at roulette.If Shannon had worked more diligently - instead of juggling, riding a unicycle and abandoning project after project - would he have made an even greater contribution to human knowledge? Maybe... and maybe not. Are restlessness and "fritterin'" important parts of a rich and creative life?Read more about

en-US

37:44

Photographing Fairies (Classic)

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2025/12/26

Sherlock Holmes is known for approaching all mysteries with cool logic - and yet when his creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle saw photographs taken by two young girls purporting to show real life fairies at play... he unwisely declared them genuine.How did Elsie and Frances fool so many people with their photography... and why did they keep the hoax going for decades?For a full list of sources go to timharford.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

en-US

47:33

"They fall behind and are slowly crushed" - Board...

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2025/12/19

Playing board games and spending too much money are time-honored Christmas traditions, so to mark the festive season, Tim is joined by the creator of Magic: The Gathering - Richard Garfield - for a special Q&A about economics and game design.How should you go about building the perfect game? Why did the Magic trading card market crash? Why do so many people hate Monopoly? Plus, Richard has a bone to pick with Tim about a previous episode of Cautionary Questions. See omnystudio.com/listener for

en-US

38:30

Flixborough: The Factory that was Wiped off the Map

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2025/12/12

A megaplant near the small village of Flixborough, England, is busy churning out a key ingredient of nylon 6, a material used in everything from stockings to toothbrushes to electronics. When a reactor vessel fails, the engineers improvise a quick-fix workaround, so the plant can keep up with demand. Before long, the temporary patch - a small, bent pipe - becomes a permanent part of the factory, and the people of Flixborough unknowingly drift towards disaster. For a full list of sources, see

en-US

38:20

The Disappearance of Grace Oakeshott

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford ·

2025/12/05

At the start of the 20th century, Britain was slowly becoming a freer place for women. Young Grace Oakeshott seized every opportunity to learn and improve the world around her - though she found those opportunities frustratingly narrow. One day, she vanished suddenly, leaving behind only a pile of clothes on a beach. A hundred years later, the truth about Grace’s disappearance has finally come to light.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

en-US

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