Word of Mouth Podcast
Series exploring the world of words and the ways in which we use them
Episodes to download
-
![]()
-
![]()
The Welsh Language with Huw Stephens at the Hay Festival
Thu 29 May 2025
Michael Rosen talks to Welsh radio and TV presenter Huw Stephens about the Welsh language.
-
![]()
The language that changed the world
Thu 22 May 2025
Michael Rosen hears about the origin of all Indo-European languages from Laura Spinney.
-
![]()
The End of the Full Stop?
Thu 15 May 2025
Michael Rosen and Christian Ilbury discuss how online chat is changing how we punctuate.
-
![]()
Street Names
Thu 8 May 2025
Michael Rosen talks to Philip Seargeant about where our street names come from.
-
![]()
Old English, New English
Thu 20 Feb 2025
Michael Rosen on the Old English words used in daily life then and now, with Hana Videen.
-
![]()
Talking Cockney
Thu 13 Feb 2025
Michael talks cockney with Andy Green and Saif Osmani from the Modern Cockney Festival.
-
![]()
Creating Languages for Film and Television with Professor David Adger
Thu 6 Feb 2025
Michael Rosen asks a linguist how he invents new languages for TV series and films.
-
![]()
Politeness with Louise Mullany
Thu 30 Jan 2025
Professor Louise Mullany talks politeness, and how it governs every sphere of our lives.
-
![]()
Jackie Kay on the Scots language
Thu 23 Jan 2025
Jackie Kay has written a book in Scots and tells Michael about her love of the language.
-
![]()
The Language of Genetics
Thu 16 Jan 2025
Adam Rutherford joins Michael to unpick the knotty language we use to talk about genetics.
-
![]()
Susie Dent's World of Words
Thu 9 Jan 2025
Susie Dent joins Michael to talk about her lifelong fascination with words and languages.
-
![]()
Social media language
Thu 3 Oct 2024
How language is used on platforms like Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn and Twitter/X.
-
![]()
How Animals Talk
Thu 26 Sep 2024
Michael hears about how animals communicate, and why, from zoologist Arik Kershenbaum.
-
![]()
-
![]()
-
![]()
Former astronaut Col. Chris Hadfield on the language of Space exploration
Thu 5 Sep 2024
The Canadian former astronaut and author talks about communicating Space
-
![]()
The words we use about getting older and why they matter
Thu 29 Aug 2024
How we talk about getting older can affect how we age. Michael hears from Dr Lucy Pollock.
-
![]()
-
![]()
Little Green Men: the secret rules of word order
Thu 13 Jun 2024
Michael explores the mysterious rules of word order with linguist Dr Laura Bailey.
-
![]()
Word of Mouth with Michael Morpurgo at the Hay Festival
Thu 6 Jun 2024
In conversation with Michael Morpurgo at the Hay Festival.
-
![]()
Language When There Are No Words
Thu 30 May 2024
Joshua Reno talks about how Charlie, his non verbal-autistic son, communicates with him.
-
![]()
-
![]()
Disaster Dialogue
Thu 16 May 2024
Professor Lucy Easthope explains why language is important in the aftermath of a disaster.
-
![]()
-
![]()
How to Think Like an Anthropologist, with Gillian Tett
Tue 20 Feb 2024
Michael Rosen is joined by Gillian Tett, columnist at the Financial Times.
-
![]()
Family Sayings
Tue 13 Feb 2024
Michael shares listeners' stories about words and phrases passed down through families.
-
![]()
Are you different in another language?
Tue 6 Feb 2024
Can speaking another language change your behaviour, your decisions, even your morals?
-
![]()
Unequal English
Tue 30 Jan 2024
Michael Rosen is joined by Ruanni Tupas to discuss English from around the world.
-
![]()
Words for Sale!
Tue 23 Jan 2024
Dr Pip Thornton and Michael Rosen explore how language has become an online commodity.
Idioms Quiz
Explore why languages have idioms with The Open University鈥檚 quiz.
From blunk to brickfielder: our wonderful words for weather
Exploring creative descriptions for wind, rainfall and sunny spells from around the world
Digital body language 鈥� how to communicate better online
We need to find new ways of talking to each other 鈥渧irtually鈥�.
Coinages that changed the world 鈥� and some that tried to...
Exploring the hidden histories of obscure words, and common buzz phrases.
Ittibitium, borborygmus, and Ba humbugi 鈥� 14 wonderful science words you鈥檝e never heard of
Michael Rosen puts the language of science under the microscope.
Download this programme
Subscribe to this programme or download individual episodes.
Keywords for Our Time
Series of programmes examining key phrases in public debate.
Smiley face: Seven things you didn't know about emoji
Some facts about emoji - possibly the world's first truly global form of communication.
The funny words that kids invent
Have a look at some of the fantastic words that children invent and reimagine.
