Beware of the dragon: Africa should not look to China

This is an episode of The Specialist, your weekly dose of wonder. In The Specialist, explore the significance and journey of an extraordinary work through the eyes of those that know it best. On this episode, the extraordinary story of the 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé — a car so rare and revered that few believed it would ever leave the Mercedes-Benz museum. Yet it went on to become the most expensive automobile in history. To tell this story to full effect, this episode will feature both Gord Duff, President of RM Sotheby’s in Blenheim, Ontario, and Marcus Breitschwerdt, Executive Vice President of Mercedes-Benz and CEO of Mercedes-Benz Heritage. Further details about the episode subject. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

10 Okt 16min

Can criminal psychology offer us a new way to think about and combat climate change? In this episode, criminal psychologist Julia Shaw sits down with physicist and broadcaster Helen Czerski to offer a compelling new framework to understand environmental crime. While big structural issues often cloud political progress on climate action, Shaw takes a more granular approach. In conversation with Czerski, she draws on her new book Green Crime to illuminate the minds of those behind some of the world’s most devastating environmental scandals - from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill to Dieselgate and the shadowy wildlife trade in Shuidong. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

9 Okt 43min

Anthony Scaramucci, former White House Communications Director turned outspoken Trump critic, comes to Intelligence Squared in September for a straight-talking conversation on the fallout from Trump’s second presidency. From his brief but explosive tenure inside the Trump White House in 2017 to his career on Wall Street and success as co-host of ‘The Rest Is Politics US’ podcast, Scaramucci has never been one to hold back — sometimes at great personal cost. In conversation with Emily Maitlis he explored the biggest questions facing America and the world today.  Is Trump an existential threat to democracy or can the US Constitution withstand his authoritarian impulses? Does his ‘America First’ approach make war more or less likely? Does Vladimir Putin hold leverage over Trump, or is his detachment from Europe’s troubles with Russia a calculated move to prioritise the greater threat from China? And are his opponents once again underestimating him — could the 77 million Americans who re-elected him be right that he will, in the end, make America great again? Scaramucci, with his trademark wit and unfiltered honesty, offered a rare insider’s perspective on the chaos and consequences of the Trump era. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

7 Okt 31min

Anthony Scaramucci, former White House Communications Director turned outspoken Trump critic, comes to Intelligence Squared in September for a straight-talking conversation on the fallout from Trump’s second presidency. From his brief but explosive tenure inside the Trump White House in 2017 to his career on Wall Street and success as co-host of ‘The Rest Is Politics US’ podcast, Scaramucci has never been one to hold back — sometimes at great personal cost. In conversation with Emily Maitlis he explored the biggest questions facing America and the world today.  Is Trump an existential threat to democracy or can the US Constitution withstand his authoritarian impulses? Does his ‘America First’ approach make war more or less likely? Does Vladimir Putin hold leverage over Trump, or is his detachment from Europe’s troubles with Russia a calculated move to prioritise the greater threat from China? And are his opponents once again underestimating him — could the 77 million Americans who re-elected him be right that he will, in the end, make America great again? Scaramucci, with his trademark wit and unfiltered honesty, offered a rare insider’s perspective on the chaos and consequences of the Trump era. --- This is the first instalment of a two-part episode. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

5 Okt 35min

Malcolm Tucker. Pet ASBOs. A law requiring everyone in Britain to carry around a plastic bag. It’s been twenty years since Armando Iannucci‘s The Thick of It first brought the chaos and drama of the fictitious ‘Department of Social Affairs and Citizenship’ into our lives. First aired on the BBC in 2005, the show satirised the Blair government’s spin-heavy politics, with Peter Capaldi’s foul-mouthed character Malcolm Tucker quickly becoming one of Britain’s most unforgettable TV villains. In September 2025 Iannucci came to Alexandra Palace Theatre alongside actors from the show Peter Capaldi, Chris Addison and Rebecca Front to relive some of the funniest moments from the show, reveal behind-the-scenes stories and answer questions on whether a show like The Thick of It could ever work in today’s polarised political climate and social media news cycle. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

4 Okt 38min

Malcolm Tucker. Pet ASBOs. A law requiring everyone in Britain to carry around a plastic bag. It’s been twenty years since Armando Iannucci‘s The Thick of It first brought the chaos and drama of the fictitious ‘Department of Social Affairs and Citizenship’ into our lives. First aired on the BBC in 2005, the show satirised the Blair government’s spin-heavy politics, with Peter Capaldi’s foul-mouthed character Malcolm Tucker quickly becoming one of Britain’s most unforgettable TV villains. In September 2025 Iannucci came to Alexandra Palace Theatre alongside actors from the show Peter Capaldi, Chris Addison and Rebecca Front to relive some of the funniest moments from the show, reveal behind-the-scenes stories and answer questions on whether a show like The Thick of It could ever work in today’s polarised political climate and social media news cycle. --- This is the first instalment of a two-part episode. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

3 Okt 37min

Are supercomputers and killer robots going to take over? In this episode, Adam McCauley speaks to professor and author Anthony King in order to debunk the science-fiction tinged narrative of AI’s military potential and to, instead, explore the actual applications of AI in the armed forces over the last decade. Professor Anthony King was appointed Director of the University of Exeter’s pioneering Strategy and Security Institute in 2023. He previously held positions at the University of Warwick and the University of Liverpool. He has also been advising the armed forces for over two decades. His latest work is AI, Automation, and War: The Rise of a Military-Tech Complex. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

30 Sep 1h 5min

Watch the full video of this event for free here: https://mailchi.mp/intelligencesquared/lw6gixq1t9 The transcript of this event is available here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1GvYGaOE-fnDQdFvrTLQjUGcrE6Ra0acN/view?usp=drive_link --- The most influential inventor of the modern world, Sir Tim Berners-Lee is a different kind of visionary. Born in the same year as Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, Berners-Lee famously shared his invention, the World Wide Web, for no commercial reward. Its widespread adoption changed everything — transforming humanity into the first digital species. In September 2025 Berners-Lee came to the Intelligence Squared stage to tell the story of his iconic invention and explore the future of human innovation. Drawing on his new memoir, This is For Everyone, Berners-Lee explored how the web launched a new era of creativity and collaboration, while unleashing a commercial race that today imperils democracies and polarises public debate. As the rapid development of artificial intelligence heralds a new era of innovation, Berners-Lee is the perfect guide to the crucial decisions ahead, and to provide a gripping, in-the-room account of the rise of the online world. With his characteristic optimism, technical insight and wry humour, Berners-Lee discussed the power of technology — both to fuel our worst instincts and to profoundly shape our lives for the better. --- If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full ad free conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events  ...  Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

28 Sep 36min