It's 2024, and the Manchester extension of HS2 has been cancelled. The leg to Leeds was cancelled in 2021. The remaining line to Birmingham is now less than half the initial planned route, and will cost over double the initial budget. This is not exclusive to HS2; Sprialling costs and missed deadlines have become commonplace in big engineering projects, the UK is now one of the most expensive places in the world to build infrastructure, but Britain has a proud history of engineering, and one name in particular looms large - Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Ruthless, bloody minded and notoriously driven - what could he do about the current state of UK infrastructure?
Presenter: Neil Maggs Producer: Johnny I'Anson Editor: Clare Fordham
When Robots Steal Our Jobs
Artificial Intelligence
Downward Social Mobility
You Can't Say That
Referendum Conundrums
Maskirovka: Deception Russian-Style
Correspondents Look Ahead
Precedents or Principles?
Conservative Muslims, Liberal Britain
Just Culture
Inside Welfare Reform
The Idea of the Caliphate
Meet the Family
Peston and the House of Debt
Michael Pollan on Food
Thrifty Debtors
The End of the Pay Rise?
Tories: Nasty or Nice?
Varieties of Capitalism
What Does Putin Want?
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Global News Podcast
The Infinite Monkey Cage
Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4
You’re Dead to Me
Elis James and John Robins