Welcome back to the home of the oxymoron. Evil genius. He asked the newspaper to print his obituary early so he'd enjoy it. That's like hiding at your own funeral. Yeah, it's a big, great gig. I'm Russell Kane. Join me to weigh in on whether the biggest players in history are more evil or genius. Becoming that rich, I'd say that at some level of genius. It also helps

that it's a long time ago, right? It's like the podcast version of telling your kids the ice cream

van plays music when it's out of ice cream. Listen to evil genius on BBC Sounds.

Hello, on tonight's program, England is a curious country and few foreigners can understand her mind.

Winston Churchill to the German Ambassador Ribbentrop on the eve of war. Well, on the eve of

the 50th anniversary of Churchill's death, free thinking looks at Englishness and Winston Churchill,

subject of a new book by Boris Johnson, Tory Leader hopeful,

and the greatest Englishman of all time, according to the Sun in a special issue last year on Englishness.

Churchill was an MP in 1900 while Victoria was on the throne, and he died in the television age,

with his funeral,

one of television's finest hours, as one reviewer said. In between, his shift of from Tory to

liberal and back again, was journalist, author, painter, an opponent of Indian independence,

the supreme leader of the wartime coalition, and Prime Minister in the early

1950s. I remember his funeral in 1965, with the Dockland Cranes bowing their jibs as the funeral

procession made its way down the Thames, the riderless hall stepping down Whitehall, with boots

turned backwards in its stirrups.

To rephrase the poet W.H. Orden, the world seemed to agree that the day of his death saw the passing of a great Englishman.

Sell, Chartwell. My dear Clemy, my publisher has promised me a most generous advance in my history of the English-speaking people.

Who is it?

Winston.

Have you paid Mr. Monks?

Where what?

...