Thank You, Melvyn Bragg | Defector

"Hello. In 1911 the Dutch physicist Haika Kameling-Honors made a remarkable discovery that nobody predicted and that none can since fully explain-it's called superconductivity. Hello. Until twenty years ago, dinosaurs were widely assumed to be large, lumpen lizards that became extinct millions of years ago. Hello. Italo Calvino (1923-1985) was an Italian author of inventive, bedazzling stories, with a passionate belief that writing and art could make life better for everyone."

"The setup is deceptively simple: Each week, Bragg invites three academic experts to discuss a topic. The number here is key: One guest would be an interview, two could be a moderated debate, but with three, you can have a proper conversation. And the topics themselves are astonishingly broad, ranging across history, literature, science, and philosophy. One week a novel, the next a famous mathematical problem, the following a religious text."

Melvyn Bragg hosted In Our Time for 26 years and more than 1,000 episodes, stepping down after the July episode on civility. Each episode features three academic experts who explore a single topic, enabling a conversational exchange rather than a simple interview or debate. Topics span history, literature, science, and philosophy, varying week to week from novels to mathematical problems to religious texts. The programme functions as accessible public education, often likened to a university lecture for beginners, and emphasizes breadth, rigor, and productive civil engagement among experts.

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