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, 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 is some level of genius. It also helps

it. 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.

BBC Sounds, music, radio podcasts. Hello, I'm Christopher Harding.

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On this edition, Britain is not the only island nation

counting down the weeks until the end of an era.

Our country and the people's and peace until the end of an era.

Emperor Akihito of Japan at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo last month, praying for peace and happiness around the world in his final New Year's address.

He's preparing to abdicate on the 30th of April this year.

Japan is a country used to counting the years and organizing its thoughts about itself

around an emperor's reign.

2019 is Heise 31.

So people in Japan now find themselves reflecting on the passing of one era

and looking forward to the next. Interesting timing then for this week's Japan Now festival,

which brings together artists and writers from Japan for a series of talks and events here in the UK.

Joining me in suitably reflective mood are four of the people taking part this year.

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