More or Less Podcast
Tim Harford explains - and sometimes debunks - the numbers and statistics used in political debate, the news and everyday life.
Episodes to download
-
![]()
How much luck do you need to win the World Cup?
Saturday
Investigating the role of random chance in football
-
![]()
Does playing tennis make you live 9.7 years longer?
Sat 11 Jul 2026
Should we all take up tennis? We delve into the evidence on its life-extending powers.
-
![]()
Does the average teacher really earn £54,000?
Wed 8 Jul 2026
Tim Harford investigates teacher pay, Russian soldier deaths and card-shuffling maths.
-
![]()
Does a full moon make crime rates go up?
Sat 4 Jul 2026
Holding the moon to account for its role in crime rates
-
![]()
Examining the numbers behind Andy Burnham’s ‘Manchester Miracle’
Wed 1 Jul 2026
Tim Harford examines ‘Manchesterism’, hot cities, whales and CO2, and prime numbers.
-
![]()
The messy history behind the modern calendar
Sat 27 Jun 2026
Why is May, May? We explain the genesis of the modern calendar
-
![]()
Benefits vs minimum wage: Which pays more?
Wed 24 Jun 2026
Tim Harford examines benefits vs work, dangerous temperatures and the World Cup draw
-
![]()
Is the US worse than North Korea for malnutrition deaths?
Sat 20 Jun 2026
Why have malnutrition deaths shot up in the US since 2012?
-
![]()
Is the US worse than North Korea for malnutrition deaths?
Sat 20 Jun 2026
Why have malnutrition deaths shot up in the US since 2012?
-
![]()
Does Europe suffer more heat deaths than the US?
Wed 17 Jun 2026
Tim Harford investigates heat deaths, the carbon footprint of eggs, and ironing out Wales
-
![]()
Andrew Ross Sorkin: What can the Great Crash of 1929 tell us about today?
Sat 13 Jun 2026
The financial journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin on the numbers behind the 1929 crash
-
![]()
Andrew Ross Sorkin: What can the Great Crash of 1929 tell us about today?
Sat 13 Jun 2026
The financial journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin on the numbers behind the 1929 crash
-
![]()
Education, Education, Education (and immigration)
Wed 10 Jun 2026
Tim Harford investigates migrants and jobs, VAT and private schools, and a hard maths exam
-
![]()
Factchecking claims that 400 churches were burned to the ground in France
Sat 6 Jun 2026
Looking into the numbers behind claims of attacks on churches
-
![]()
Factchecking claims that 400 churches were burned to the ground in France
Sat 6 Jun 2026
Looking into the numbers behind claims of attacks on churches
-
![]()
Debunking the claim that migrants will get half of new homes
Wed 3 Jun 2026
Tim Harford investigates migration and housing, Welsh literacy, and bond market drama
-
![]()
The known unknowns of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Sat 30 May 2026
The data race to find out how fast Ebola is spreading
-
![]()
The known unknowns of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Sat 30 May 2026
The data race to find out how fast Ebola is spreading
-
![]()
Does a fall in the UK's healthy life expectancy mean what you think it means?
Wed 27 May 2026
Tim Harford explores healthy life expectancy, HS2 costs, VAT cuts and his marathon time
-
![]()
Is the ‘loneliness epidemic’ real?
Sat 23 May 2026
We investigate if loneliness is increasing at epidemic rates
-
![]()
Is the ‘loneliness epidemic’ real?
Sat 23 May 2026
We investigate if loneliness is increasing at epidemic rates
-
![]()
Are refugees more likely to commit crime?
Wed 20 May 2026
Asylum seekers, nuclear power plants and fish, Sir David Attenborough and blue tit chicks
-
![]()
Erdos Problem 1196: Can AI now solve maths that no human can?
Sat 16 May 2026
How a 23-year-old mathematician used AI to crack an unsolved maths problem
-
![]()
Erdos Problem 1196: Can AI now solve maths that no human can?
Sat 16 May 2026
How a 23-year-old mathematician used AI to crack an unsolved maths problem
-
![]()
Why it’s wrong to say vaping is as bad for you as smoking
Sat 9 May 2026
Vaping vs smoking: how the evidence on cancer and other health risks compare
-
![]()
Why it’s wrong to say vaping is as bad for you as smoking
Sat 9 May 2026
Vaping vs smoking: how the evidence on cancer and other health risks compare
-
![]()
Does it take 15,000 litres of water to produce a kilogram of beef?
Sat 2 May 2026
How a stat about cows and water is not all it seems
-
![]()
Does it take 15,000 litres of water to produce a kilogram of beef?
Sat 2 May 2026
How a stat about cows and water is not all it seems
-
![]()
Have RFK and MAHA really changed American views on vaccines?
Sat 25 Apr 2026
Why a Politico headline overstated vaccine scepticism in the US
-
![]()
Have RFK and MAHA really changed American views on vaccines?
Sat 25 Apr 2026
Why a Politico headline overstated vaccine scepticism in the US
Unlock the history and truth behind the data with The OU
Explore how numbers shape, and sometimes mislead us, with The Open University.
When can you trust statistics?
BBC Ideas discovers three easy ways to help make sense of statistics.
