What Rhymes With Now?

The future of dollar dominance with Paul Blustein

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

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 the Anglo-Saxons [https://www.waterstones.com/book/how-england-began/nicholas-j-higham/9780300254921],  about what happens when a civilian society loses the military power that protected it, how an incoming culture can reshape a country within generations (or not), and what it actually means to be from somewhere.

Trailer: What Rhymes With Now?

History doesn't repeat itself, but it rhymes. What Rhymes With Now? is a podcast, produced by Louis Walsh, that puts today's biggest challenges in historical perspective. Each episode, host Patrick Cook interviews a leading historian about a period that illuminates something urgent about the present. If you're looking for the bigger picture, this is your show.

The Politics of the French Revolution with John Hardman

You may have heard that inequality today has reached levels not seen since the French Revolution. But what actually happened after 1789 — and what does it teach us about the fragility of political institutions, and populist politics? Patrick speaks with John Hardman, author of The French Revolution: A Political History [https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-french-revolution/john-hardman/9780300292985], about how a group of radical lawyers wrestled control from a king, how revolutionary politics devoured its own, and why the structural design of government matters just as much as the intentions of the people running it.

The Great Depression and the New Deal with Robert McElvaine

Why didn't America turn to fascism during the worst economic crisis in modern history? If AI causes mass unemployment in the coming years, what can the 1930s teach us about replacing the social role of work? Patrick speaks with Robert S. McElvaine [https://substack.com/@robertsmcelvaine], historian, political commentator and author of The Great Depression: America 1929–1941, about the wealth inequality and debt-fuelled consumption that caused the crash, Roosevelt's political genius, and why the lessons of the New Deal matter more now than ever.