Utopia for Realists: And How We Can Get There – from the presenter of the 2025 BBC ‘Moral Revolution’ Reith lectures

Let’s start with a little history lesson: in the past, everything was worse.

We live in a time of unprecedented upheaval. Everywhere there are pressing questions: about the future, society, work, happiness, family and money. Yet no political party of the right or left is providing us with answers.

Rutger Bregman, a bestselling Dutch historian, explains that it needn't be this way. Bregman shows that we can construct a society with visionary ideas that are, in fact, wholly implementable. Every milestone of civilization - from the end of slavery to the beginning of democracy - was once considered a utopian fantasy. New utopian ideas such as universal basic income and a 15-hour work week can become reality in our lifetime.

This guide to a revolutionary yet achievable utopia is supported by multiple studies, lively anecdotes and numerous success stories. From a Canadian city that once completely eradicated poverty, to Richard Nixon's near implementation of a basic income for millions of Americans, Bregman takes us on a journey through history, beyond the traditional left-right divide, as he introduces ideas whose time has come.