# Past Present Future

A podcast by David Runciman. Past Present Future is a bi-weekly History of Ideas podcast with David Runciman, host and creator of Talking Politics, exploring the history of ideas from politics to philosophy, culture to technology. David talks to historians, novelists, scientists and many others about where the most interesting ideas come from, what they mean, and why they matter. Ideas from the past, questions about the present, shaping the future. New episodes every Wednesday and Sunday.

Feed: https://feeds.megaphone.fm/ARML2708405200

## Latest episodes

- [Can Universities Survive? The Great Expansion](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/8a7f9f483793) (2026-10-25, 62 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR4017712701.mp3
- [Can Universities Survive? The Thousand-Year Story Part 2](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/1f3d18a45cce) (2026-10-21, 61 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR6711271268.mp3
- [Can Universities Survive? The Thousand-Year Story](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/9b4f5fa0d7eb) (2026-10-18, 60 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR9786799985.mp3
- [The History of Transhumanism: Silicon Valley](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/c272cab794b0) (2026-10-14, 57 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR8887616861.mp3
- [The History of Transhumanism: New Horizons](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/c7caf58f971d) (2026-10-11, 58 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR6974039912.mp3
- [The History of Transhumanism: Origins](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/ee3a6884e0c5) (2026-10-07, 62 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR9845178279.mp3
- [An Ageing World: Simone de Beauvoir on Old Age](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/68c26f3d4fc6) (2026-10-04, 55 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR2743871160.mp3
- [An Ageing World: The Problem of Gerontocracy](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/61ef3dc9c745) (2026-09-30, 60 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR6810134407.mp3
- [An Ageing World: The Meaning of Death](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/62b286f36928) (2026-09-27, 58 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR9934068810.mp3
- [An Ageing World: Lifespan vs Healthspan](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/cc3429f1806e) (2026-09-23, 57 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR6713739956.mp3
- [The Lives of the Philosophers: Iris Murdoch](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/86efb99f2289) (2026-09-20, 65 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR5040351601.mp3
- [The Lives of the Philosophers: Hannah Arendt](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/67179383e696) (2026-09-16, 54 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR8410192296.mp3
- [The Lives of the Philosophers: Elizabeth Anscombe](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/8c08b7d05da0) (2026-09-13, 62 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR4248220030.mp3
- [Now & Then with Robert Saunders: Gladstone vs Disraeli Part 2 (Burnham vs Badenoch)](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/d56d9865fc75) (2026-09-09, 56 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR9299028891.mp3
- [Now & Then with Robert Saunders: Gladstone vs Disraeli – The Bulgarian Horrors](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/c9c9ff9b5931) (2026-09-06, 57 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR1611282554.mp3
- [The Lives of the Philosophers: Jean-Paul Sartre](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/53c5c7af437c) (2026-09-02, 55 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR5431671379.mp3
- [The Lives of the Philosophers: J. L. Austin](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/b4a000e9ed58) (2026-08-30, 62 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR8194223562.mp3
- [The Lives of the Philosophers: Camus](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/63db60bc5605) (2026-08-26, 59 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR3638123736.mp3
- [The Lives of the Philosophers: Simone Weil](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/77f054fec03d) (2026-08-23, 63 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR6778006978.mp3
- [The Lives of the Philosophers: A. J. Ayer](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/4a90be6b7b8f) (2026-08-19, 64 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR3269943016.mp3
- [Forensics on Trial](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/5f9f52632006) (2026-08-16, 61 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR2271647091.mp3
- [The History of Bad Ideas: Overdiagnosis](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/176821672969) (2026-08-12, 60 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR1223650192.mp3
- [The History of Bad Ideas: Short-Form Video](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/b051152f34e3) (2026-08-09, 61 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR4258292137.mp3
- [The History of Bad Ideas: Decadence](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/3c483a104ef1) (2026-08-05, 57 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR8849716813.mp3
- [The History of Bad Ideas: The Romantic Hero](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/34fe17bafcdc) (2026-08-02, 56 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR4294112967.mp3
- [The History of Bad Ideas: The Electoral College](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/d9053d873fb9) (2026-07-29, 57 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR4858996894.mp3
- [The History of Bad Ideas: Utilitarianism](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/a2d730d4facc) (2026-07-26, 59 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR7242751807.mp3
- [The History of Bad Ideas: Political Leadership is What Counts](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/8c24fe95abc2) (2026-07-22, 59 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR9309523277.mp3
- [The History of Bad Ideas: Celebrity](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/654c00e43e50) (2026-07-19, 69 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR9820379953.mp3
- [The History of Bad Ideas: Deliverism](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/c8a4ff14587c) (2026-07-15, 57 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR9988180611.mp3
- [The History of Bad Ideas: Narrative History](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/f09824de09ae) (2026-07-12, 57 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR5789309384.mp3
- [The History of Bad Ideas: Hysteria](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/94be121334cb) (2026-07-08, 59 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR2142603137.mp3
- [Where Are We Going? The Future of the Future](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/3a18283e29d3) (2026-07-05, 59 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR1268640731.mp3
- [Where Are We Going? The Idea of the Future](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/51dcda5bf4cf) (2026-07-01, 62 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR9024103221.mp3
- [Live Film Special: Never Let Me Go w/Adam Rutherford](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/9b9ee9bf9493) (2026-06-28, 57 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR3977576089.mp3
- [Now & Then with Robert Saunders: The Brexit Referendum 10 Years On](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/fb8b01a5e643) (2026-06-24, 64 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR6270588895.mp3
- [Live Special: Jimmy Wales on the Lessons of Wikipedia](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/5848a5693ddf) (2026-06-21, 58 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR5477112212.mp3
- [The Great Political Fictions: HHhH](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/7556b29a1932) (2026-06-17, 59 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR8401303597.mp3
- [The Great Political Fictions: The Years](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/5ffd428d5ab5) (2026-06-14, 57 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR1367671468.mp3
- [The Great Political Fictions: The Human Factor](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/78cc9e025098) (2026-06-10, 61 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR1949611306.mp3
- [The Great Political Fictions: The Dispossessed](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/d5f2fa7728cf) (2026-06-07, 63 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR6978494056.mp3
- [The Great Political Fictions: The Golden Notebook Part 2 w/Catherine Taylor](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/3eb99b646c79) (2026-06-03, 62 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR5851177412.mp3
- [The Great Political Fictions: The Golden Notebook](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/5b8104452b09) (2026-05-31, 61 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR5987981591.mp3
- [The Great Political Fictions: Brave New World](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/48ab6fe91e10) (2026-05-27, 66 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR3524262571.mp3
- [Live Film Special: Good Night, and Good Luck w/Helen Lewis](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/dcf706ef533e) (2026-05-24, 63 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR1701267089.mp3
- [The Starmer Crisis in Historical Perspective – Part 2: What’s Next?](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/89fe38ceeb98) (2026-05-20, 64 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR9070511464.mp3
- [The Starmer Crisis in Historical Perspective – Part 1](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/d3f439588f5c) (2026-05-17, 74 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR3852574753.mp3
- [Where Are We Going? The Future Of Work](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/cb75f27a0e9d) (2026-05-13, 63 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR3763398621.mp3
- [Live Film Special: The Third Man w/Misha Glenny](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/27fe0411490a) (2026-05-10, 57 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR2434227843.mp3
- [Now & Then with Robert Saunders: The General Strike @100 Part 2](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1682047968/4a2548ca34e9) (2026-05-06, 62 min): audio https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/NSR3441429795.mp3?updated=1778003337

Shows are listed from Apple Podcasts' charts and directory, and Podcast Index where it is used. Every show and episode belongs to its publisher and plays from the publisher's own feed; this site hosts none of them.