Past Present Future
David Runciman
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Recent Episodes
S2E299 The Great Political Fictions: The Human Factor
Today’s political fiction is a spy novel, a Cold War comedy and a meditation on the nature of good and evil: Graham Greene’s The Human Factor. Why has Greene so fallen out of fashion? What made the…
S2E298 The Great Political Fictions: The Dispossessed
Today’s great political fiction is a path-breaking work of science fiction: David explores Ursula Le Guin’s The Dispossessed (1974), which imagines a world without the need for government or coercive…
S2E297 The Great Political Fictions: The Golden Notebook Part 2 w/Catherine Taylor
In the second of two episodes about Doris Lessing’s The Golden Notebook, David talks to critic and memoirist Catherine Taylor about the novel’s place in the history of feminism. Is its idea of ‘free…
S2E296 The Great Political Fictions: The Golden Notebook
In today’s episode David explores Doris Lessing’s bold and brilliant The Golden Notebook (1962), a book about female emancipation, political disillusionment and much, much more. Why did Lessing…
S2E295 The Great Political Fictions: Brave New World
For the first in a new set of episodes about some of the great political fictions of the past hundred years David explores Aldous Huxley’s much misunderstood dystopian masterpiece Brave New…
S16E294 Live Film Special: Good Night, and Good Luck w/Helen Lewis
Today’s episode was recorded in front of a live audience at the Regent Street Cinema in London: David talks to the writer and broadcaster Helen Lewis about George Clooney’s Good Night, and Good…
The Starmer Crisis in Historical Perspective – Part 2: What’s Next?
Today it’s the second of our episodes trying to make sense of what’s happening in British politics with a bit of historical perspective: this time asking what is likely to follow from the current…
The Starmer Crisis in Historical Perspective – Part 1
Today it’s the first of two episodes in which we try to make sense of what’s happening in British politics with a bit of historical perspective: how did we arrive at the current crisis and what might…
S19E291 Where Are We Going? The Future Of Work
David talks to author and journalist Sarah O’Connor, who writes about the changing character of work for the Financial Times, to explore what is happening to the world of jobs and employment in the…
S16E290 Live Film Special: The Third Man w/Misha Glenny
Today’s episode was recorded in front of a live audience at the Regent Street Cinema in London: David talks to the writer and broadcaster Misha Glenny about Carol Reed’s 1949 masterpiece The Third…
S14E289 Now & Then with Robert Saunders: The General Strike @100 Part 2
Today it’s the second part of David’s conversation with historian Robert Saunders about the meaning of the 1926 General Strike on its hundredth anniversary. How did the strike end and was its outcome…
S14E288 Now & Then with Robert Saunders: The General Strike @100
In today’s episode David talks to historian Robert Saunders about the meaning of Britain’s one and (so far) only general strike on its hundredth anniversary. Was the strike a revolutionary event or…
S16E287 Live Film Special: South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut w/Beeban Kidron
Today’s episode was recorded in front of a live audience at the Regent Street Cinema in London: David talks to film director and campaigner Beeban Kidron about the 1999 film-length version of South…
S17E286 Talking … Peter Mandelson and New Labour w/Helen Thompson
In today’s episode David and Helen Thompson explore the tortured relationship between Peter Mandelson and the New Labour project that he helped to create and now seems finally to have destroyed. How…
S22E285 PPF+: A Taste Of What You’ve Been Missing (Taster 2)
In today’s extra episode some more highlights from the PPF+ archive in another selection we first put out last summer: here are a few more excerpts we think you might enjoy. In this episode you’ll…
S22E284 PPF+: A Taste Of What You’ve Been Missing (Taster 1)
In today’s extra episode some more highlights from the PPF+ archive in a selection we first put out last summer: here are a few more excerpts we think you might enjoy. In this episode you’ll hear…
S22E283 PPF+: A Taste Of What You’ve Been Missing (Taster 3)
Today’s episode features some recent highlights from PPF+ where we have just released our 50th bonus episode. In this selection you’ll hear philosopher Paul Sagar talking about his personal…
S21E282 Orwell’s War: Frozen In Time (1942-43)
Today’s episode in our series about how George Orwell tried – and failed – to make sense of WW2 looks at his response to the vast lurches of fortune from 1942-43 as Hitler’s plans for world…
S21E281 Orwell’s War: False Dawn (1940-41)
Today’s episode in our new series about how George Orwell tried – and failed – to make sense of WW2 as it was happening looks at the events of 1940 and 1941, from the collapse of France to Hitler’s…
S21E280 Orwell’s War: The Nightmare (1938-39)
Today’s episode is the first in a new series about how the greatest political writer of the 20th century tried – and failed – to make sense of the central political event of the century. How did…
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Past Present Future has published 313 episodes since April 2023, covering topics in History, News.
Past Present Future is currently highly active with new episodes every few days. Average episode length is 57m.
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