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What Rhymes With Now?

What Rhymes With Now?

What Rhymes With Now? 12 Episodes Oct 14, 2026

What Rhymes With Now? is a history podcast hosted by Patrick Cook and produced by Louis Walsh. Each episode features an interview with a leading historian about a historical period that illuminates a current issue. The show seeks to provide historical perspective on today's biggest challenges by drawing parallels between the past and the present. It's aimed at listeners looking for a deeper understanding of current events through the lens of history.

Episodes

The future of the right with Lucy Harris
The future of the right with Lucy Harris Oct 14, 2026 00:46:25 The future of the right of politics in the changing political and technological landscape, the impacts of new technologies on the social fabric of society, the political situation in the UK.Lucy Harris a political advisor and strategist, and a former Member of European Parliament with the Brexit Party.Patrick Cook is the host of the What Rhymes With Now? podcast, which looks at historical events a
The Berlin showdown that ignited the Cold War with Giles Milton
The Berlin showdown that ignited the Cold War with Giles Milton Sep 30, 2026 00:56:50 The dramatic events in Berlin following the Second World War revealed the tensions between the Allies and the Soviets, and kickstarted decades of Cold War. Featuring timeless lessons about geopolitics and negotiations.Giles Milton is the internationally best-selling author of twelve works of narrative history, including Nathaniel’s Nutmeg and Churchill’s Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare. His book
Turning points in American foreign policy with Dr Alex Goodall
Turning points in American foreign policy with Dr Alex Goodall Sep 16, 2026 01:22:40 Alex Goodall is a Senior Lecturer in International History with a particular focus on the United States and the world. His main research interests focus on the history of political repression in the twentieth-century United States and the rise of American power overseas in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, particularly in Central America and the Caribbean.Patrick Cook is the host
How the radio changed the home with Beaty Rubens
How the radio changed the home with Beaty Rubens Sep 2, 2026 00:45:41 What can the rise of the radio teach us about the changing media landscape today how it will affect our lives?Beaty Rubens was a BBC Radio producer for thirty-five years and is now a freelance producer, presenter, and writer. Her new book 'Listen In: How the radio changed the home' is available here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/listen-in/beaty-rubens/james-naughtie/9781851246311What R
The dramatic history of the English language with Frederick Atkinson
The dramatic history of the English language with Frederick Atkinson Aug 19, 2026 01:01:26 Patrick is joined by Frederick Atkinson to discuss the history and development of the English language, some of the great writers in English history and how social media and AI is changing the way we engage with language.Frederick Atkinson is writer and presenter focussing on English history, mythology and literature. Patrick Cook is the host of the What Rhymes With Now? podcast, which looks at hi
What would Plato say today? With Angie Hobbs
What would Plato say today? With Angie Hobbs Aug 5, 2026 00:51:30 Fake news. Money and politics. Demagogues who tell the crowd exactly what it wants to hear. And the oldest question of all — what does a good life actually look like? Plato was turning these questions over 2,400 years ago, and his conclusions are as strange and as sharp as ever.In this episode I'm joined by Professor Angie Hobbs — Professor of the Public Understanding of Philosophy at the Univ
UK nuclear energy and infrastructure with Simon Taylor
UK nuclear energy and infrastructure with Simon Taylor Jul 22, 2026 00:59:12 Why does it feel like the UK (and the West in general) can't build anything anymore? Why is nuclear so hotly debated by environmentalists and policy makers? What can we do to get clean, cheap energy and infrastructure?Patrick speaks with Professor Simon Taylor about the history and financing of nuclear power in Britain — from the early ambitions of the civil nuclear programme to the cost overr
Global order and disorder with Ayse Zarakol
Global order and disorder with Ayse Zarakol Jul 8, 2026 00:46:38 Ayşe Zarakol is Professor of International Relations at the University of Cambridge and a Politics Fellow at Emmanuel College. She is the author of Before the West: The Rise and Fall of Eastern World Orders, which argues that the sovereign, universalist world orders we associate with the modern West have older precedents in the great Eastern empires — and that understanding how those orders rose a
Andy Beckett Bonus Clip
Andy Beckett Bonus Clip Jun 24, 2026 00:04:21 An additional clip from Patrick's discussion with Andy Beckett.16/04/2026
How our beliefs shape society with Ryan Avent
How our beliefs shape society with Ryan Avent Jun 10, 2026 00:57:18 Why does Western civilization feel lost? What are the underlying beliefs behind our society, and how did they emerge? How will social media and AI impact the way we live? What can we do about it? I’m speaking about all of this with Ryan Avent, author of the new book, In Good Faith: How the Nature of Belief Shapes the Fate of Societies.
The future of dollar dominance with Paul Blustein
The future of dollar dominance with Paul Blustein May 27, 2026 00:59:16 How did the dollar become the dominant global currency? What impact does that have on the US and the global economy? How might this change with the emergence of new global powers, geopolitical uncertainty and technological innovation? To find out more, I spoke with the author Paul Blustein about his latest book King Dollar.
Britain, England, and the Anglo Saxons with Nicholas J. Higham
Britain, England, and the Anglo Saxons with Nicholas J. Higham May 13, 2026 00:54:02 Why is Great Britain divided into England, Scotland and Wales? The answer lies nearly two thousand years ago, in the collapse of Roman rule and the arrival of the Anglo-Saxons — a story of migration, cultural replacement and identity that resonates with debates we're having today. Patrick speaks with historian Nicholas J. Higham, author of the new book How England Began: From Roman Britain to

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