Did Mussolini make the trains run on time?
More or Less: Behind the Stats
BBC
4.6 • 3.5K Ratings
🗓️ 21 December 2024
⏱️ 9 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
“Say what you like about Mussolini but he did make the trains run on time.” This phrase is the political equivalent of “every cloud has a silver lining” – but does it have any factual basis? Mussolini’s dictatorship in Italy was full of atrocities, brutal suppression and propaganda. Did it also create a more efficient railway network? We speak to Professor Ruth Ben-Ghiat about the truth of the claim and why the Mussolini regime wanted us to believe it. Presenter: Lizzy McNeill Producer: Lizzy McNeill Researcher: Esme Winterbotham Series Producer: Tom Colls Editor: Richard Vadon Sound Master: James Beard Production Co-ordinator: Katie Morrison.
Image: Benito Mussolini in his train studying maps. (Photo by ullstein picture/ullstein picture via Getty Images)
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Hi, it's Nicola Cocklin. |
| 0:02.8 | Young people have been making history for years, but we don't often hear about them. |
| 0:06.6 | My brand new series on BBC Sounds sets out to put this right. |
| 0:10.6 | In history's youngest heroes, I'll be revealing the fascinating stories of 12 young people |
| 0:16.0 | who've played a major role in history and who've helped shape our world. |
| 0:19.8 | Like Audrey Hepburn, Nelson Mandela, Louis Braille and Lady Jane Grey, |
| 0:24.8 | history's youngest heroes with me, Nicola Cochlin. |
| 0:27.9 | Listen on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:30.4 | Hello and thank you for downloading the more or less podcast. |
| 0:34.0 | We're the program that looks at the numbers in the news and the world around us, |
| 0:37.4 | and I'm Lizzie McNeil. |
| 0:44.6 | Ah, Italy, home of the pizza, the Renaissance, and my in-laws. |
| 0:49.8 | It's a beautiful country, but with a dark past, arguably one of its darkest moments came when they were under the rule of this man. |
| 1:10.4 | Benito Mussolini, ex-journalist turned fascist dictator. |
| 1:13.0 | I didn't realize that career path was an option. Good to know. |
| 1:17.3 | Under Mussolini, Italy went from a democracy to a one-party police state. |
| 1:21.9 | Aggressive foreign policy drained their economy, |
| 1:24.3 | ultimately driving Mussolini to join forces with Hitler's Germany and Imperial |
| 1:28.2 | Japan in World War II. It did not turn out well for him. |
| 1:32.5 | Towards the end of the war, the Italian dictator Mussolini met a violent death at the hands |
| 1:36.7 | of party's arms. His was a legacy that should not be celebrated. Yet, there's one positive |
| 1:43.1 | that we hear repeated about him time and time again. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.