Free Thinking

With Matthew Sweet. A first night review, by Susannah Clapp, of Peter Morgan's new play, The Audience, starring Helen Mirren as the Queen. Simon Thurley, Chief Executive of English Heritage, the architect Richard Griffiths and architecture critic Hugh Pearman discuss what place heritage has in a modern and increasingly urbanised Britain. Adrian Wootton reviews possibly the last film from Steven Soderbergh; Side Effects. And Jaron Lanier, one of the most important philosophers of the digital age talks about his book Who Owns The Future?

Shereen El Feki, author of Sex and the Citadel, joins Philip Dodd to explore how the struggles for political change in the Arab world have been accompanied by a sexual revolution. Professor Andrew Hussey explains how the culture and history of France can by understood by observing the history of the Louvre. As Science is becoming ever more popular in our news and consciousness, neuroscientist Daniel Glaser and philosopher of science Rupert Read discuss whether we are living through a new age of Enlightenment. And critic Nigel Floyd reviews Broken, the new film directed by Rufus Norris.

As extreme libertarian thought is on the rise in right-wing politics, Anne McElvoy is joined by Business editor of The Economist Robert Guest and American historian Tim Stanley to explore the growth of ‘anarcho-capitalism’. Italian film writer Pasquale Iannone reviews Paolo and Vittorio Taviani's Caesar Must Die. Set designer Christopher Oram and theatre critic Susannah Clapp take a look at what makes great theatre stage design. And to coincide with the Southbank’s The Rest is Noise festival, Anne and guests explore the cultural and political transformations of Berlin during the 1920s and ‘30s.

Samira Ahmed examines why James Joyce's experimental and 'difficult' work Finnegans Wake has been a surprise hit in China. Travel writer Sara Wheeler discusses her new book, 'O my America!’, which tells the story of six remarkable women who fled nineteenth-century England to reinvent themselves in the USA. Historian Justin Champion, sociologist Eileen Barker and theologian Martin Palmer join Samira to discuss why we are so obsessed with the idea of the end of the world. And we look at an unlikely cultural movement which has flourished in post 9/11 America - Muslim comedy.

As the winner of the Paul Foot award for investigative and campaigning journalism is announced, Matthew Sweet re-assesses the significance of this award with Ian Hislop and the winner Andrew Norfolk, in a year the judges have described as "exceptionally strong". Matthew talks to political philosopher John Gray about his latest book and asks should we turn towards contemplation of the natural world and the non-human? And James Lasdun discusses his memoir on literary stalking with psychoanalyst Lisa Appignanesi and New Generation Thinker Martin Goodman.

Does compassion inhibit rational political debate? To discuss, Philip Dodd is joined by MP David Blunkett, IPPR Director Nick Pearce, and Radio 3 New Generation Thinker Adriana Sinclair. Sarah Dunant reviews a new Frederico Barocci exhibition, arguing that the artist should be added to the list of Italian Renaissance masters. Rory Carroll discusses his new book on Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. And Annalisa Piras reflects on what the surprises of the Italian election can tell us about the country’s cultural climate.

A Landmark edition in which Anne McElvoy and guests look at Alain-Fournier's celebrated and nostalgic tale of adolescent romance, Le Grand Meaulnes. Michèle Roberts, Hermione Lee and Patrick McGuiness examine it's enduring appeal and legacy from the poetry of its language, to the interlocking mysteries of its plot to the intriguing romantic life and early death of its author, and the story of the woman who inspired him. With readings by Peter Marinker.

Ray Kurzweil, renowned American inventor, thinker and futurist, joins Rana Mitter to discuss questions of consciousness and humanity, and the possibilities of a world where humans and intelligent machines live side by side. Rana explores the idea of the ‘Anglosphere’, and whether there is a shared identity across the English-speaking world, with historians John Darwin and Tim Stanley and the writer Yasmin Alibhai-Brown. And playwright Anders Lustgarten discusses his new production for the Royal Court theatre.

Adam Mars-Jones reviews the first West End revival of the nine Tony award winning; A Chorus Line. What is old age, and when we get there, how do we face the end? Philip Dodd discusses with the best-selling novelist Lynne Reid Banks, historian Pat Thane and Professor of English Literature at Oxford, Helen Small. Plus an interview with the controversial Israeli historian Shlomo Sand.

Matthew Sweet debates how the discovery of alien life might change the way we think about humanity and how it will impact our moral and philosophical universe. Matthew is joined by the best-selling science-fiction writer Stephen Baxter, the science broadcaster and journalist Sue Nelson, the futurist and neuroscientist Anders Sandberg, and one of our leading space scientists, John Zarnecki, Professor of Space Science at the Open University. This event was recorded as part of Radio 3's Free Thinking Festival at The Sage Gateshead on Sunday 4th November 2012.