Home

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford

We tell our children unsettling fairy tales to teach them valuable lessons, but these Cautionary Tal

Episodes

Total: 136

Sam Israel had a problem. The investors in his hedge fund, Bayou Capital, were expecting spectacular

Bonus: When Spanish conquistadors arrived in Peru in 1526, it was the beginning of the end for the I

Nicolae Ceaușescu was not beloved. His regime was vicious and he treated Romania as his personal wal

Why are so many autocrats germaphobes? Why was the truth so dangerous for Soviet engineers? And what

The Happiness Lab’s Dr. Laurie Santos brings together other Pushkin hosts to mark the International

Chuck Yeager's plane pitched and rolled as it plummeted from the sky. He grappled with the controls

As US troops approached a Nazi prison camp, they could hear agonized wailing. The stench of rotting

In the 1920s, Germany’s Society for Spaceship Travel boasted some of the sharpest scientific minds –

At the height of World War Two, British intelligence began receiving reports that the enemy was deve

Teaser: In 1977, two planes collided on the runway at Tenerife Airport. Why did the crash happen? An

One speechmaker inspired millions with his words, the other utterly destroyed his own multi-million-

Torrey Canyon was one of the biggest and best ships in the world - but its captain and crew still ne

What if you could never have the same day off as your family and friends? Would you quit your job? W

Cautionary Book Club: Mollie Maggia's dentist planned to remove a painful abscess from her mouth. Bu

In Goiânia, Brazil, a junk dealer acquires an old medical device from two scrap-metal scavengers. Th

Cautionary Conversation: Just before Christmas 1799, President George Washington was riding around h

William the Conqueror undertook a remarkably modern project. In 1086, he began compiling and storing

On The Dream, host Jane Marie gets to know the life coaches and gurus who claim they know the secret

Henry Roan has been shot through the back of his head. The local authorities have found his body slu

Minnie Smith grew sick quite suddenly. She had been young, fit and healthy - and the doctors were ba