logo
episode-header-image
Jun 2021
46m 56s

From the archive: The Machiavelli of Mar...

The Guardian
About this episode
We are raiding the Audio Long Reads archives and bringing you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2015: Military strategist, classical scholar, cattle rancher – and an adviser to presidents, prime ministers, and the Dalai Lama. Just who is Edward Luttwak? And why do very powerful people pay vast sums for his advice?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod
Up next
Yesterday
How does woke start winning again?
British progressives have suffered major setbacks in recent years, in both public opinion and court rulings. Was a backlash inevitable, and are new tactics needed? By Gaby Hinsliff. Read by Carlyss Peer. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod 
34m 27s
Jul 9
From the archive: The death of the department store
We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2022: the closure of John Lewis’s store in Sheffield after almost 60 years was a bitter blow. As debate rages over what to do ... Show More
33m 54s
Jul 7
‘Do you have a family?’: midlife with no kids, ageing parents – and no crisis
In my 40s, I found myself with a life that didn’t look like it was ‘supposed’ to. What was I doing? On trips to South Korea with my mother, an answer began to emerge By E Tammy Kim. Read by Jennifer J Kim. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod 
30m 48s
Recommended Episodes
May 2024
Why Are We Drawn to Dictators?
Is liberal democracy facing an existential crisis? A 2023 poll conducted by the Open Society Barometer found that faith in democracy among young people is waning. But what does this mean? Why might young people become more 'strongman-curious'? To get to the bottom of this, Dan is ... Show More
49m 14s
Apr 2020
Why David Attenborough is famous but 'he isn't a celebrity' – books podcast
We speak to Horrible Histories consultant and podcaster Greg Jenner about the history of celebrity and share what listeners are reading. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/bookspod 
37m 17s
Sep 2019
From Blair to Cameron: what makes a good political memoir? – books podcast
On this week’s show, we look at the history of political memoirs, and speak to fantasy author Brian Catling and Weil sibling biographer Karen Olsson. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/bookspod 
35m 53s
Jun 2021
Salman Rushdie on Truth, Language and the Power of Stories
Salman Rushdie, internationally bestselling author and ‘Best of the Booker’ winner, is a storyteller of the highest order, illuminating truths about our society and culture through his dazzling prose. Best known as a novelist, he is also a compelling essayist and last month he ca ... Show More
57m 58s
Feb 2022
Take My Advice (with Cheryl Strayed and Luis Miranda, Jr.)
Hillary has given—and gotten—a lot of advice over the years. On today’s episode, she talks with two of her favorite advice givers about their approach to this sometimes delicate and often consequential enterprise. First, we hear from author and columnist Cheryl Strayed about how ... Show More
47m 18s
Feb 2024
Q & A: Shakespeare, Gulliver and Trump
In an extra episode this week David answers your questions about the most recent series of the History of Ideas - in particular about the political lessons of Gulliver’s Travels, for its own time and for our own. Plus, how is Trump like - and not like - Coriolanus, and where are ... Show More
46m 47s
Aug 2023
Dickens vs Tolstoy: The Battle Of The Great 19th-century Novelists PART 1
Dickens. Tolstoy. Their names and reputations shake the ground – and so do their books, if you drop one. But whose legacy is more enduring? Whose vision truer and more relevant today? Should you embark on War and Peace or Our Mutual Friend? To battle it out, in 2018 Intelligence ... Show More
37m 54s
Jul 2008
Christopher Capozzola, “Uncle Sam Wants You: World War I and the Making of The Modern American Citizen” (Oxford UP, 2008)
I confess I sometimes wonder where we got in the habit of proclaiming, usually with some sort of righteous indignation, that we have the “right” to this or that as citizens. I know that the political theorists of the eighteenth century wrote a lot about “rights,” and that “rights ... Show More
1h 7m
Apr 2024
The Nudge Revolution
Cass Sunstein and Richard Thaler’s bestseller ‘Nudge’ was released on 8th April, 2008, catapulting a new method of behavioural economics into the public psyche - and the hands of policymakers, including David Cameron and Barack Obama. The book challenged the notion of humans as r ... Show More
11m 43s
Feb 2020
The surprising history of astrology – books podcast
Alexander Boxer talks about his book A Scheme of Heaven and we discuss why Harvey Weinstein’s lawyers tried to remove a juror for her reading history. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/bookspod 
30m 7s