Archive by Era: 18th Century

1. Astronomy and Empire

   Melvyn Bragg examines the relationship between astronomy and British Imperial expansion.
2. Catherine the Great

   Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Empress who transformed and modernized Russia.
3. Common Sense Philosophy

   Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss common sense philosophy.
4. Consequences of the Industrial Revolution

   Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the influence of the Industrial Revolution.
5. David Hume

   Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the work of the Scottish philosopher David Hume.
6. Edmund Burke

   Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the philosopher, politician and writer Edmund Burke.
7. Electrickery

   Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the dawn of the age of electricity.
8. Empiricism

   Melvyn Bragg examines the 17th century idea that all knowledge arises from experience.
9. Epistolary Literature

   Melvyn Bragg discusses epistolary literature from Aphra Benn to Les Liaisons Dangereuses
10. Faust

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the myth of Faustus and temptation by evil.
11. Goethe

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the great German polymath, Johann Wolfgang Goethe.
12. Goethe and the Science of the Enlightenment

    Melvyn Bragg assesses the scientific legacy of the 18th century German poet Goethe.
13. Gothic

    Melvyn Bragg examines the origins and significance of the 18th century Gothic movement.
14. Immunisation

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the search for immunisation and its impact on society.
15. Johnson

    The life and work of Samuel Johnson, a giant of 18th century literature.
16. Lamarck and Natural Selection

    Melvyn Bragg discusses Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, the 18th century French precursor to Darwin.
17. Malthusianism

    Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Malthusianism.
18. Mary Wollstonecraft

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and ideas of Mary Wollstonecraft.
19. Materialism

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Materialism in Philosophy.
20. Oxygen

    Melvyn Bragg discusses the discovery of Oxygen by Joseph Priestley and Antoine Lavoisier.
21. Politeness

    Melvyn Bragg examines the cultural effect of the eighteenth century idea of Politeness.
22. Pope

    The life and work of the brilliant, acerbic and unpopular poet Alexander Pope.
23. Robinson Crusoe

    Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Daniel Defoe's seminal novel Robinson Crusoe.
24. Sensibility

    Melvyn Bragg examines the ideas behind the 18th century literary cult of sensibility.
25. Slavery and Empire

    Melvyn Bragg examines British imperialism and its captives, both slaves and Britons.
26. Spinoza

    Melvyn Bragg discusses the Dutch, Jewish and Christian Philosopher, Baruch Spinoza.
27. Sturm und Drang

    Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the German artistic movement known as Sturm und Drang.
28. Swift's A Modest Proposal

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Jonathan Swift's satirical 1729 pamphlet A Modest Proposal
29. Taste

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 18th century obsession with taste.
30. Tea

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss tea, the first truly global commodity.
31. The Age of Doubt

    Melvyn Bragg examines the spread of religious doubt over the last three centuries.
32. The Arabian Nights

    Melvyn Bragg discusses the myths, tales and legends of the Arabian Nights.
33. The Baroque Movement

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the culture of the Baroque.
34. The Building of St Petersburg

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the building of St Petersburg.
35. The East India Company

    The history of the private trading company that helped forge the British Empire.
36. The Enclosures of the 18th Century

    Melvyn Bragg examines the enclosure movement that fenced in the British countryside.
37. The Encyclopédie

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss one of the great achievements of the Enlightenment.
38. The Enlightenment in Scotland

    Melvyn Bragg examines the emergence and impact of the Scottish Enlightenment.
39. The French Revolution's Legacy

    The impact and legacy of the French Revolution on European culture and politics.
40. The French Revolution's reign of terror

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the reign of terror during the French Revolution.
41. The Grand Tour

    The origins and cultural impact of 18th century tourism.
42. The Industrial Revolution

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Industrial Revolution.
43. The Jacobite Rebellion

    Melvyn Bragg examines the Stuart dynasty's final attempt to reclaim the throne of England.
44. The Lunar Society

    Melvyn Bragg examines an 18th century group of pioneering scientists and engineers.
45. The Mughal Empire

    Melvyn Bragg and guests examine how much the British Raj owed to the Mughal Emperors.
46. The Needham Question

    Melvyn Bragg examines the Needham Question; why Europe, not China made modern technology.
47. The Observatory at Jaipur

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the observatory at Jaipur.
48. The Prelude

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss William Wordsworth’s poem The Predule.
49. The Royal Society and British Science: Episode 2

    How Newton tested the lines between government-funded research and public access.
50. The Scriblerus Club

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the satirical 18th century Scriblerus Club.
51. The Social Contract

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Social Contract; a key idea in political philosophy.
52. The Sublime

    Melvyn Bragg explores a transcendental idea that took hold on the Age of Enlightenment.
53. Vitalism

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 18th and 19th century quest for the spark of life.
54. Voltaire's Candide

    Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Voltaire's satirical novel Candide, published in 1759.
55. Washington and the American Revolution

    Melvyn Bragg examines the first President of the US and what drove him to revolution.
56. William Hazlitt

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and works of the essayist William Hazlitt.
57. Women and Enlightenment Science

    Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the role played by women in Enlightenment science.

Showing all (57) "18th Century" programmes.

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