Tim Harford
@timharford
FT columnist, BBC journalist, author, host of Cautionary Tales, professional nerd.
The DeLorean Saga: Fraud, Drugs and Marty McFly’s Car - Cautionary Tales x Business History timharford.com/2026/08/caut...
Cautionary Tales - The Weight of Fame: A Hollywood Tragedy timharford.com/2026/08/caut...
Lessons from a shipwreck timharford.com/2026/08/less... (Photo: Anneli Karlsson / Vasamuseet)
Cautionary Tales Treacle Tears: The Boston Molasses Disaster timharford.com/2026/06/caut...
I feel lucky to have the opportunity to run in memory of those who do not. In particular I’m thinking of my cousin Winnie, who died last April at the age of 20.
I’ve run around the amazing Ladybower Reservoir, across St Mark’s Square, even chased Alistair Brownlee down Regent’s Park Canal. (He is faster than the dinosaurs.)
Well, it’s been a long road since I raced the dinosaurs at a New Year’s Day parkrun. I’ve managed various niggles (knee, glute, achilles… yawn).
I’m running in memory of Winnie – a cousin and a childhood friend of my daughter. Winnie died of cancer on 22 April 2025. She was 20.
Sphygmograph be damned: the science of love timharford.com/2026/02/caut...
Reading Adam Rutherford's "How To Argue with a Racist". Despite the pugnacious title it's largely a fun, readable and highly educational book about genetics (with the occasional glimpse into the worldview of white supremacists). I learned a lot. amzn.to/4rW29Op
A friend just gave me "The Mathematicians' Library" - early xmas gift. It's a beautiful looking tour of great books of mathematics from history. Lovely reproductions. Can't wait to properly read it. amzn.to/4iICuo5
Treacle Tears: The Boston Molasses Disaster (Cautionary Club) timharford.com/2025/11/caut...
Cautionary Tales: Derek Bentley Must Hang timharford.com/2025/10/caut...
Cautionary Club release has dropped! "Can You Make A Sherman Tank Float?" timharford.com/2025/10/caut...
Great fun at the Oxford Half today - and a good warm-up for the London Marathon. Overwhelmed by the support so many people have given to Teenage Cancer Trust. We're through £7000 now! Thank you. If you fancy chipping in some more, here's the link: www.justgiving.com/page/tim-har...
New York billboards are advertising Cautionary Tales! Wow. (I think this is Patreon's way of showing some love for my favourite podcast... www.patreon.com/c/Cautionary...)
One-way street signs are weird. They tell you if you're going the right way, but not if you're going the wrong way. I've tried to discover why this is, but haven't succeeded... timharford.com/2025/02/do-y...
A useful children's guide to basic shapes - the sqale, the hectanbie, and the renatle! www.aiweirdness.com/shaped-like-...
Very sorry to read of the death of Dame Stephanie "Steve" Shirley. What a life she lived! Escaped the holocaust via Kindertransport, computer pioneer, philanthropist, autism activist. Amazing, amazing. www.franmonks.com/how-to-make-...
Can we "nudge" our way to higher economic growth? timharford.com/2025/06/can-...
If you're looking for a personal trainer in Oxford, Ali Shioui is a fantastic calisthenics coach and a great human being. I've been working with him for a couple of years and it's been amazing fun. www.a-star-fitness.co.uk
Cautionary Tales - the shark that ate Hollywood timharford.com/2025/06/caut...
Cautionary Tales - the Nazis, the Bomb, and the Woman that Science Forgot timharford.com/2025/06/caut...
Beware the Giffen-ish rollercoaster of the money markets... timharford.com/2025/05/bewa...