Advertise on podcast: Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford

Tim is running the London Marathon on the 26th of April. To give him a week off to finish training, we're playing this running-themed classic from the archives. If you would like to donate to Teenage Cancer Trust, Tim's fundraising page is at tinyurl.com/HarfordMarathon - any support is very much appreciated. Until the 1960s, it was deemed too "dangerous" for women athletes to run distances longer than 200m - and a marathon would kill them, or leave them unable to have children. Rubbish, of course. But when Kathrine Switzer signed up for the 1967 Boston Marathon, it wasn't the distance that bothered her - it was the enraged race director trying to assault her.   Thanks to pioneers like Kathrine, women have made huge strides in long distance running - and are now challenging the times of men in the very races they were banned from for so very long. See the show notes at timharford.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This episode is available exclusively to Cautionary Club members and Pushkin+ subscribers. To join the Club and get access to ad-free listening, behind the scenes content and bonus episodes, head to ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.patreon.com/cautionaryclub⁠⁠⁠⁠. To join Pushkin+ visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠pushkin.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠ or the ⁠show page⁠ on ⁠⁠Apple⁠⁠. Comrade Lysenko has seized control of Soviet agriculture with his radical ideas about genetics. He disdains traditional scientists who learn everything from books and nothing from the land, and those who question his methods soon find themselves in trouble with Stalin. Across the world, the abrasive Iowan farmer's son Norman Borlaug is also annoying experts with his big ideas. Both men are sure they can end starvation, but their approaches couldn't be more different. See the show notes at timharford.com

In 1860, police officer Robert O'Hara Burke plans an expedition to map the mysterious blank in the centre of Australia. Joining him is scientist William Wills, and a ragtag team of hires. Burke falls out with virtually everyone around him, and demonstrates an uncanny ability to make terrible choices - from the equipment he brings to the route he takes. But even as the mission unravels, one final, simple decision could still save him. For a full list of show notes, see timharford.com.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Millionaire-making tech start-ups are most often associated with Silicon Valley. But this software revolution begins on a woman’s kitchen table in rural Britain in the 1960s. Steve Shirley faced extraordinary odds. After escaping Nazi Germany as a child, she later encountered workplace discrimination and endured deep personal tragedy. But she persevered to build a business decades ahead of its time, creating opportunities for hundreds of women. Tim Harford is joined by Ben Walter, CEO of Chase for Business and host of The Unshakeables podcast, to explore the life, legacy and lessons of an overlooked titan of tech. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the Victorian era dawns, modernisation erodes the old ways of life and poverty rises. In the unrest, an unlikely hero emerges, capturing the imagination of the countryside's working class. He claims to be the new Messiah, and promises a better future. Despite his unconventional appearance and strange claims, his message resonates with the people of Kent, many of whom are willing to follow him into bloody battle. For this Cautionary Conversation, Ian Breckon - author of Mad Tom's Rising: The Revolutionary Mystic Sir William Courtenay and the Last Battle Fought on English Soil - joins Tim to discuss a forgotten folk hero and the dangerous power of belief in desperate times. For a full list of show notes, see timharford.com.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In November 1979, Flight 901 departs New Zealand on a sightseeing journey over Antarctica, heading directly towards a volcano. When the plane vanishes, investigators are left with a mystery: how could a seasoned pilot miss a 12,000-foot peak? As they try to piece together the incident, conflicting stories emerge, key evidence disappears, and a troubling picture takes shape - one defined by human error, deceptive illusions, and the hunt for someone to blame.  For a full list of show notes, see timharford.com.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This episode comes to you from the new podcast Drug Story, which investigates the origins, workings and cautionary tales behind today's medical interventions. In this episode, host Thomas Goetz investigates the rise of Xanax, a drug used to treat anxiety that has become one of the world's most counterfeited and abused drugs. What happens when a drug works too well, and how do we manage anxiety in an environment that seems to fuel it?  Listen to Drug Story wherever you get your podcasts. This episode mentions death by suicide. If you are suffering emotional distress or having suicidal thoughts, support is available - for example, from the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the US, or the Samaritans in the UK on 116 123. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Robert Propst is more than an inventor: he is a visionary, an innovator dreaming up how to make the perfect office workstation. When he reveals his bold design for a creative, flexible 'cockpit of tomorrow', he comes into conflict with the unyielding push for workplace efficiency. This clash of ideals will go on to shape our working lives forever. For a full list of show notes, see timharford.com.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This episode is available exclusively to Cautionary Club members and Pushkin+ subscribers. To join the Club and get access to ad-free listening, behind the scenes content and bonus episodes, head to ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.patreon.com/cautionaryclub⁠⁠⁠⁠. To join Pushkin+ visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠pushkin.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠ or the ⁠show page⁠ on ⁠⁠Apple⁠⁠. Before he became Muhammad Ali, Cassius Clay was known as the "Louisville Loud-mouth", as famous for his sharp taunts and poetic put-downs as he was for his skills in the ring. In 1963, Clay arrived in England to take down beloved British Heavyweight, Henry Cooper. Clay is the clear favourite, but the showdown will be remembered as one of boxing history's most shocking battles, changing both men forever and showing what it really means to win.

In 1999, a series of bombs explode in Russian apartments, killing hundreds and spreading panic. No one knows who is behind it. But when one device is spotted before it detonates, troubling questions emerge. Was it really a bomb? Why is the country's security service changing its story? And why are the people who probe too closely turning up dead? Tim Harford is joined by Helena Merriman, host of new BBC podcast The History Bureau - Putin and the Apartment Bombs, which charts the mysterious events surrounding the rise of Vladimir Putin, and asks why the real story sometimes gets missed.  For a full list of show notes, see timharford.com.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Donald Crowhurst is a brilliant inventor with a failing business. When he hears about the Golden Globe Race offering publicity and cash to the fastest to sail around the world, it feels like the perfect solution. Betting his business and his home on success, Crowhurst sets off in a high-tech trimaran.  Soon, the brutal Southern Ocean starts to look too much for his boat. Alone at sea, under mounting pressure, Crowhurst has a bold idea. If he radios in the right coordinates, no one needs to know he’s not where he claims to be. WARNING: This episode discusses death by suicide. If you are suffering emotional distress or having suicidal thoughts, support is available - for example, from the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the US, or the Samaritans in the UK on 116 123. For a full list of show notes, see timharford.com.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Who will be the first to sail non-stop around the world? In 1968, The Sunday Times announces a trophy and a cash prize for the winner, and the Golden Globe Race is on. Leading the charge are Robin Knox-Johnston, an old-fashioned British patriot, and Bernard Moitessier, an enigmatic French philosopher. As monstrous seas and deadly gales close in, the difference between victory and disaster will come down to just one word.  For a full list of show notes, see timharford.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This episode comes to you from American Criminal, the true-crime history podcast that takes you inside the minds of some of America's most notorious outlaws, exploring the dark side of the American dream. In this series, host Jeremy Schwartz explores the scandal at the heart of the McDonald's Monopoly promotion. The chance to win a prize when you bought a burger was a massive marketing success, with McDonald's returning to the promotion for years. But what the company didn't know was that a man on the inside was rigging the competition and choosing the big winners himself. Find American Criminal wherever you get your podcasts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chris McKinlay is a good-looking, smart student at UCLA, but he can't seem to get a girlfriend. He's a computing expert, so why not use his technology prowess to supercharge his search for a soulmate? He starts building an army of bots and unleashes them into the world of online dating. Chris' search for love leads him to some unexpected places, and it might be teaching us all the wrong lessons about love.  See the show notes at timharford.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This episode is available exclusively to Cautionary Club members and Pushkin+ subscribers. To join the Club and get access to ad-free listening, behind the scenes content and bonus episodes, head to ⁠⁠⁠www.patreon.com/cautionaryclub⁠⁠⁠. To join Pushkin+ visit ⁠⁠⁠pushkin.fm⁠⁠⁠ or the ⁠show page⁠ on ⁠Apple⁠. To celebrate - or commiserate - this year's Valentine's Day, Tim has something a little different. Straight from the Cautionary Library of misadventures comes a bumper crop of romantic blunders, featuring super glue, a lost hotel deposit and a very wet explosion. Love, it seems, makes fools of us all.