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BBC Radio 4

Tim Harford explains - and sometimes debunks - the numbers and statistics used in political debate, the news and everyday life.

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1,133 episodes
Updated Saturday

Episodes1133

Newest first

Sep 20, 2023 · 27 min
Social housing, NHS workforce and Liz Truss debt claims
Have the Tories really built a record number of social rent homes since 2010?
Sep 16, 2023 · 9 min
How to approach the world through numbers
Professor David Sumpter talks to Tim Harford about his new book
Sep 13, 2023 · 28 min
Skin cancer, London rents and your great great great granddaughter
Is it true that 1 in 4 men and 1 in 5 women in the UK will get skin cancer?
Sep 11, 2023 · 14 min
Did 35,000 Americans die building the Panama Canal?
We fact check a claim made by Donald Trump about the world famous canal
Sep 6, 2023 · 28 min
Covid deaths, North Sea gas and Chloe Kelly's World Cup penalty
Covid related deaths are rising in England and Wales - we investigate the figures
Sep 2, 2023 · 8 min
What percentage of our brain do we actually use?
Do we have access to some or all of our brain-power?
Aug 30, 2023 · 28 min
HS2 and electric cars, UK vs China emissions & massive maths errors
Can you really buy an electric car for everybody in the UK for the cost of HS2?
Aug 26, 2023 · 9 min
How safe is the release of Fukushima nuclear plant water?
We ask whether there are any risks posed by the release into the Pacific Ocean.
Aug 19, 2023 · 8 min
How many butterflies are there in the world?
The world’s butterfly population doesn’t seem to be online – so what is it?
Aug 12, 2023 · 9 min
Why is it so hard to predict the outcome of competitions like the Premier League?
What variables do we look at when we try to predict the outcome of a sports competition?
Aug 5, 2023 · 8 min
Are the media exaggerating how hot it is in the Mediterranean?
A look at how accurately media report on the weather – especially recent heatwaves.
Jul 29, 2023 · 8 min
Data, extreme weather and climate change
The role data plays in climate attribution - and why we don’t always have it
Jul 22, 2023 · 9 min
Ukraine war: A new way of calculating Russian deaths
How Russian journalists are using probate records to estimate fatalities
Jul 15, 2023 · 9 min
Are more adult nappies sold in Japan than baby ones?
We examine a claim related to the perception of Japan as an ageing society.
Jul 8, 2023 · 9 min
Does it take 10,000 litres of water to make a pair of jeans?
The numbers behind water use and denim production.
Jul 5, 2023 · 28 min
Immigration: A More or Less Special Programme
Who is coming to the UK - and how do we count them?
Jul 1, 2023 · 9 min
Will there be just 6 grandchildren for every 100 South Koreans?
We look at the numbers around South Korea’s birth rate and the reasons why it’s so low.
Jun 28, 2023 · 31 min
Halving inflation, Scottish tidal power and have 1 in 3 women had an abortion?
Will Rishi Sunak’s pledge to halve inflation happen?
Jun 24, 2023 · 8 min
US National Debt: is $32 trillion a big number?
How concerned should we be about how much the US government borrows?
Jun 21, 2023 · 28 min
Mortgages, birth rates and does space contribute 18% to UK GDP?
Who will be most affected by mortgage rate increases?