ESC Liverpool 2026  tickets are now available!  Get yours now!   Chris French  wrote a eulogy for  Nick Pope , UFO profile who passed away, and in  TWISH  we hear about  Gustave Le Bon  who identified the  mass psychology of crowds  over 150 years ago. Then we head for the news: UK : Humanists UK celebrates 130th anniversary INTERNATIONAL : Ha...

Next week on  6th May  the  tickets are released for ESC Liverpool . They may sell out fast, so be quick! In other news we note the demise of  Desmond Morris  and if you liked are interview with  Kat Ford , a  preprint of her Glastonbury article  is now available online! In  TWISH  we learn about the Scottish polymath  John Arbuthnot , and the...

Lots going on this week! It’s  European Immunization Week ,  Pontus went to a spa and got ‘cupped’ , and we have news about  two skeptical events : the launch of  Skeptival 2026 in Berlin  and  tickets for the European Skeptics Congress 2026 in Liverpool  (ESC 2026) will be released on 6 May! In  TWISH  we take a look at the misinformation surrounding t...

This week we have a great interview with the fabulous  Dr Kat Ford ! Enjoy! Segments : 0:00:34 Intro 0:00:58 Greetings 0:07:47 Interview 0:55:33 Farewell 0:57:19 Outro 0:58:41 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pontus  is back and  Brian  steps in for András, as we discuss  myths and disinformation . In  TWISH  we hear about three common myths regarding  the sinking of Titanic , and then we get into the news: UK : Non-religion is the new normal: six in ten under-35s have no religion, new analysis finds INTERNATIONAL : ‘Stand with Science’ – World Health Day: People live...

In Pontus’ absence, András carries the torch this week and tells about  Italian electoral abstentions  and in  TWISH  we here about  Robert Bunsen , who knew how to burn things with scientific rigor. Then, it’s time for the news: UK : Polls shows public wants religion out of schools AUSTRIA / GERMANY : Florian Aigner’s new book out – ‘Die Wirklichkeit ist auch nicht wahr’...

Despite the bleak outlook we see in the news,  science and critical thinking  is still a thing. In the UK,  Sense about Science  is recruiting and in Toulouse, France, there is a  great festival  coming up in April. In  TWISH  we revisit the legacy of Erik Weisz,  aka Harry Houdini , and then we have a look at the news: INTERNATIONAL : Funeral rights fo...

General elections in Hungary  are coming up and it’s going to be nasty. We get some  listener feedback  and we were on an  video interview for Skeptical Inquirer .  TWISH  looks to  Tesla’s famous “free energy” patent  which was filed 126 years ago, and finds that in doesn’t promise free energy at all (chocker!). Then we look to the news: UK : Survivors of I...

This week we have an interview with author and nuclear advocate  Zion Lights . Enjoy! https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-522.html Segments: 0:00:33 Intro 0:00:56 Greetings 0:07:05 Interview 0:47:09 Farewell 0:51:34 Outro 0:52:57 Outtakes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Even in a world on fire with yet another big war there are glimmers of light such as the upcoming  Festival of Humanism  in Bournemouth in June. In  TWISH  we hear about some of the most common myths about  Michelangelo , and then we take a look at the news: EU : Vaccine update: EMA recommends approval of Moderna’s combined flu/covid vaccine and more good news regarding HP...

In a very special skeptical Canadian extravaganza, we are joined by the fabulous  Adrienne Hill  as guest host for the show. A very special treat! In  TWISH  we look into the fourth anniversary of Putins’  invasion of Ukraine , and how  disinformation  has been used as weapon in the war. Then, we dig into the news: UK : Racial Slurs shouted at the Bafta Awards by...

Just like his uncle, even the  Prince of Wales  ( William , that is!) cannot entirely stay out of the  Epstein-files , as his charity gets tangled up in it. In  TWISH  we take a look at famed  Giordano Bruno  to see if he was truly a skeptic or more of a trouble make (admittedly, you can be both). Then we have the news: UK : More than 60 children infected in nort...

We start by wishing for  fast trains  and  maglev transportation  in Europe – much better for the environment than air travel. Because even if we have had a rather cold January here in Europe,  Copernicus  tells us that we are still  warming the globe in a reckless pace . In  TWISH  we remember  István Vágó  on what would have been his 77th bi...

This is an oddly positive episode with a lot of good news, who could foresee that? But do us a favor and help  Skeptical Science  with your translation skills (link in the show notes)! In  TWISH  we dig into the cannibalism that is Christianity with a look into  the legend of St Agatha . Then, it’s time for the news: SWEDEN : Gaming addiction risk greatly exaggerated EUROP...

Canada’s  Mark Carney  could possibly be a role model for our European leaders, and  the Swedish Bar Association  agrees with our criticism of putting  children in prison . In  TWISH  we hear of  Emanuel Swedenborg , a great polymath of the Enlightenment who somehow turned into a religious mystic. Then it’s time for the news: RUSSIA : The Ukraine war has giv...

English  may not be our first language but we are willing to learn! Hungarian nuts with a nationalist agenda would like you to believe in made up history, including that  Jesus spoke Hungarian , and other nonsense. And they are getting a foot in at schools… In  TWISH  we hear about  Joseph Justus Scaliger  who took on  historical chronology  in a revolutiona...

2025  was the  third hottest year on record , but that hardly even makes the news. In  TWISH  we hear about the science communicator  Jacob Bronowski , and then it’s time for the news: VATICAN / RUSSIA / USA : The Vatican offered Maduro safe way to Russia SWITZERLAND : Erich von Däniken dead at 90 AI : Followup from last week: Google removes some AI overviews EU : Authorit...

We have to rant about  Trump and Venezuela  for a bit, but to take our minds off that, we turn to  TWISH  and hear about the  discovery of the Galilean moons , found by (who could have guessed?)  Galileo . Then it’s time for the news: UK : Google AI Overviews put people at risk of harm with misleading health advice HUNGARY : University of Pécs course on gene therapies...

Welcome to the new year!  Obviously we start with some  reflections on 2025  and we also give a shout-out to  Haley Stevens  and her article about  Wikipedia  in  the Skeptic UK . In  TWISH  we learn that the practice of  New Year’s resolutions  is ancient although each resolution seldom lasts longer than a week or two. Then we look...

Merry Christmas everyone!  This is an episode unlike any other in the ESP history, hope you will enjoy it! See you again in 2026! Segments : 0:00:27 INTRO 0:00:50 GREETINGS 0:05:11 FACT CHECKERS 0:08:39 REASON TELLS 0:12:11 FAREWELL 0:14:11 OUTRO  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week’s  TWISH  we take a look at the most skeptical saint,  Doubting Thomas  – not that we feel that he got everything right. In the news today we take a look at the following: INTERNATIONAL / SWEDEN : Rising nicotine addiction in teens HUNGARY : GP about to leave practice due to harassment from antivaxxers SWEDEN : Breast cancer patients turn away from conventional tre...

Rage bait  is the  Oxford Word of the Year  and that cannot be a a good sign of the times we live in. In  TWISH  we acknowledge the genius of  Ada Lovelace  while recognizing that she had some flaws as well, especially when it came to  phrenology  and  mesmerism … Then we take a look at the news: EU : Proposal to allow plants modified using CRISPR...

We discuss  science communication  by the  ECDC  re  vaccinations  and have some  listener feedback about Dr Who , before with dive into  TWISH  which this week is about a pioneer of modern chemistry,  Martin Heinrich Klaproth . Then of course, there’s the news: INTERNATIONAL : E-trade via dropshipping – the scam has many levels UK : ChatGPT’s dang...

We start by noting that  COP30  was pretty disappointing although we are not too surprised. On another, more positive side,  Michael Frass ‘ terrible study claiming that homeopathy can help in cancer treatment  finally has been retracted!  Also, get your  flu vaccines , everyone. In  TWISH  we hear how  António Egas Moniz  invented lobotomy and was...

This week celebrates the launch of  Dr Who  way back in 1963, the longest running TV-show in history, and a special favourite for many skeptics. For the news we look into the following: INTERNATIONAL : Updated evidence for Covid-19, RSV, and influenza vaccines HUNGARY : Parliament votes to issue general ban on artificial meat products RUSSIA / UKRAINE : Every fifth Russian believes the s...