Damaris Coffman, Professor at UCL, Craig Muldrew, a Cambridge economic historian, and Helen Paul from the University of Southampton delve into the ideology of mercantilism that shaped Europe between the 16th and 18th centuries. They discuss the drive for exports and the critique by Adam Smith highlighting the flaws in mercantilism. The conversation explores the interplay between mercantilism and colonialism, along with its lasting influence on modern economics and the persistent debates over trade policies and globalization.

Matthias Morys, a Senior Lecturer in Economic History at the University of York, and Helen Paul, a Lecturer in Economics and Economic History at the University of Southampton, dive into the transformative impact of the gold standard from 1870 to the 1970s. They explore how gold's availability boosted world trade and currency confidence, while discussing the constraints it imposed on governments during economic crises. The conversation also highlights the gold standard's involvement in the Great Depression and its legacy in shaping modern monetary systems.

Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Adam Smith's celebrated economic treatise The Wealth of Nations. Smith was one of Scotland's greatest thinkers, a moral philosopher and pioneer of economic theory whose 1776 masterpiece has come to define classical economics. Based on his careful consideration of the transformation wrought on the British economy by the Industrial Revolution, and how it contrasted with marketplaces elsewhere in the world, the book outlined a theory of wealth and how it is accumulated that has arguably had more influence on economic theory than any other.With:Richard Whatmore Professor of Modern History and Director of the Institute of Intellectual History at the University of St AndrewsDonald Winch Emeritus Professor of Intellectual History at the University of SussexHelen Paul Lecturer in Economics and Economic History at the University of SouthamptonProducer: Thomas Morris.