Just before this BBC podcast gets underway, here's something you may not know.

My name's Linda Davies and I Commission Podcasts for BBC Sounds.

As you'd expect, at the BBC we make podcasts of the very highest quality featuring the most knowledgeable

experts and genuinely engaging voices. What you may not know is that the BBC

makes podcasts about all kinds of things like pop stars,

poltergeist, cricket, and conspiracy theories and that's just a few examples.

If you'd like to discover something a little bit unexpected, find your next podcast over at BBC Sounds.

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Hello, thanks for listening to this edition of Analysis. podcasts. next half hour I'm going to explore how the markets got tamed.

This is a story about a monster.

Governments believe that if they behave badly, the monster would come and punish them.

But just as parents turn the light on,

to show kids there is nothing in the bedroom cupboard,

governments have realized they don't need to fear the monster after all.

That monster is the markets.

Governments used to fear that if they borrow too much

they would pay a terrible price in terms of higher borrowing costs.

But now governments around the world are borrowing. in terms of higher borrowing costs.

But now governments around the world are borrowing record amounts,

but paying record low interest rates.

I'm Philip Kogan of The Economist,

...