From Cautionary Tales: Death on the Floor

In this episode, we examine the haunting true story of the Radium Girls, the young women in the early 20th century hired to paint luminous watch dials with radium-laced paint. Believing their employers' assurances that their work was safe , these dial painters were unknowingly ex ...  Show more

From the monstrous Yule Cat of Iceland to the cannibal Wendigo of North America, in this episode I explore seven eerie winter legends from around the world. You’ll meet Japan’s ghostly Yuki-Onna, China’s New Year beast Nian, Greece’s chaotic Kallikantzaroi, the rhyming ghost-hors ...  Show more

Here’s a special preview of the new season of Cautionary Tales, from Pushkin On Cautionary Tales, bestselling author Tim Harford shares stories of human error, natural disasters, and tragic catastrophes from history that contain important lessons for today. In this preview, you’l ...  Show more

Here’s a special preview of the new season of Cautionary Tales from Pushkin Industries. On Cautionary Tales, bestselling author Tim Harford shares stories of human error, natural disasters, and tragic catastrophes from history that teach us important lessons for today. In this pr ...  Show more

Today’s podcast features two separate, unique stories that share a theme: workplace horror stories. The audio from these stories has been pulled from our YouTube channel, which is just called "MrBallen," and has been remastered for today's podcast.

Story names, previews ...

Henry Petroski is one of Tim Harford's favourite fellow nerds. His study of engineering failures has profoundly influenced Tim's own writing, including the classic Cautionary Tales episode Death on the Dance Floor. Petroski passed away in June 2023, at the age of 81. This week, i ...  Show more