The European Skeptics Podcast - The ESP

These days even cognitive biases are automated. In TWISH we hear about the skeptical TV-series X-Aknák (X-Mines) that ran on Hungarian TV in the early 2000s. Then, it’s time for the news:UK / INTERNATIONAL: Canadian man admits sending ‘suicide packets’ to hundreds of people in the UK and around the worldUK / INTERNATIONAL: John Maddox Prize open for nominationsINTERNATIONAL: Online ads are becoming harder to spot – but we’re not powerless to stop itGERMANY: Interviews from SkepKon 2026 now availableThe Conference of Deans of Faculties of Medicine in France aims to throw out alternative medicine from the universities and for that they are Really Right!Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-534.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:06:54 TWISH0:14:38 News0:31:22 Really Right0:36:13 Quote0:38:03 Outro0:39:25 Outtakes

With the return of a super-El Niño it may be a hot year and in TWISH we hear about James Lind‘s famous scurvy experiment from 1747. Then we have the news:INTERNATIONAL: Antidepressants in pregnancy do not raise children’s risk of autism or ADHDBELGIUM / DENMARK: Attempted control and recommendations regarding meat consumption spark disinformation campaignsINTERNATIONAL: Hantavirus myths and factsUK: Halley’s comet named after the wrong person?Swedish influencer Katrin Zytomierska claims her olive oil prevents cancer and for that she receives this week’s award for being Really Wrong.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-532.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:07:00 TWISH0:19:26 News0:40:15 Really Wrong0:43:31 Quote0:48:09 Outro0:49:31 Outtakes

The new Hungarian government are making all the right noises and we hope they will live up to it. Don’t forget to get your ESC Liverpool tickets, and in TWISH we here about Magnus Hirschfeld, a pioneer in fighting for what we today call LGBTQ rights. Then, we head for the news:NORWAY / EU: Warning to athletes: Do not buy dietary supplements online, even from within EuropeITALY: PM Georgia Meloni uses deepfake of herself to warn of misuse of AIINTERNATIONAL: AI fitness instructors selling unreal gainsUK: AI platforms pushing Reform?Endometriosis can be a debilitating condition but what the Bucharest Endometriosis Centre is doing to their patients seem terrible. For that they are Really Wrong.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-531.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:52 Greetings0:10:46 TWISH0:19:24 News0:44:55 Really Wrong0:54:55 Quote0:58:32 Outro0:59:54 Outtakes

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 anniversaryINTERNATIONAL: Haunted houses explained?INTERNATIONAL: Skeptical Science experiment results and lessons learnedNETHERLANDS / SWEDEN: To meat or not to meat?SWITZERLAND: The endless loop of homeopathy finally broken?Jehovah’s Witnesses’ ‘clarification’ regarding blood transfusions is still harmful and stupid, and for that they get this week’s award for being Really Wrong.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-530.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:52 Greetings0:07:29 TWISH0:15:30 News0:37:54 Really Wrong0:44:35 Quote0:45:39 Outro0:47:02 Outtakes

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 then, it’s time for the news:UK: GP struck off register for garlic oil cancer cure claimsROMANIA: Romania leads EU measles cases as vaccination rates collapseAUSTRIA: Doctor using fake therapies and bogus diagnostics now in courtUK: Food intolerance tests have become a multimillion-pound industryBELGIUM: SKEPP handed out their yearly awardsIllegal peptide sales promise you the world, but are unproven, costly, and possibly dangerous. For that, they are Really WrongEnjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-529.htmlSegments:0:00:26 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:08:10 TWISH0:15:04 News0:37:21 Really Wrong0:41:16 Quote0:42:55 Outro0:44:17 Outtakes

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 the Chernobyl disaster that happened 40 years ago this week. And then of course, we have the news:IRELAND: 12-year-old sex abuse victim locked up and punished for four years in a nunneryIRELAND / UK: UK survivor of Irish mother and baby home can’t afford to accept compensationGERMANY: Will homeopathy finally get what it deserves: nothing?SWEDEN: Tough-on-crime sentiments are polarizing SwedesThe Swedish government ignores science and all experts and has decided to push through sending children to prison and for that they are Really Wrong.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-528.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:51 Greetings0:18:13 TWISH0:30:34 News0:47:46 Really Wrong0:50:13 Quote0:51:44 Outro0:53:07 Outtakes

This week we have a great interview with the fabulous Dr Kat Ford!Enjoy!Segments:0:00:34 Intro0:00:58 Greetings0:07:47 Interview0:55:33 Farewell0:57:19 Outro0:58:41 Outtakes

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 findsINTERNATIONAL: ‘Stand with Science’ – World Health Day: People live longer today than ever before, even after cancer: here are the latest WHO data.UK: Eat tapeworm eggs, lose weight: The terrifying Victorian practice whose myth refuses to dieThe Really Wrong Award goes to the Finnish MP and former Minister of the Interior Päivi Räsänen, who was convicted of hate speech against gay people.Enjoy!https://theesp.eu/podcast_archive/theesp-ep-526.htmlSegments:0:00:27 Intro0:00:56 Greetings0:03:15 TWISH0:16:09 News0:38:24 Really Wrong0:44:04 Quote0:47:02 Outro0:48:24 Outtakes