Tag:
Dominique Olivier
Dominique Olivier
How sweatpants became a status symbol
Athleisure might look like a comfort trend, but it reflects something deeper: the evolution of leisure, status, and how we use our time. As Dominique Olivier explains, sweatpants and the concept of the weekend share surprisingly similar roots.
Dominique Olivier
Why are lawns a thing?
Lawns were never about practicality or ecology. They were never even really about grass. They were about signalling. Dominique Olivier walks us through the history of lawns, from communal grazing areas through to a show of wealth.
Dominique Olivier
Hello hello, Art Nouveau
At the height of the Belle Époque, the Art Nouveau movement pushed back against industrial sameness with unapologetic beauty. As AI ushers in a new age of effortless production, that same tension between efficiency and aesthetics is beginning to surface again. Could an unexpected outcome of AI be a return to beauty in everyday things? Dominique Olivier takes us back to the Art Nouveau era.
Dominique Olivier
A curious case of choreomania
In 2026, it doesn’t take much to make millions of people do the same thing at once. We call it "going viral". But five hundred years ago, in a small European city, something else went viral - and the reasons why remain a mystery to this day. Dominique Olivier tells the story of choreomania. Dance enthusiasts, this one is for you!
Dominique Olivier
Concorde: an Icarian tale
The Concorde promised to change air travel forever. In the end, it became a luxury way to literally buy yourself time - until disaster struck. In this tale of Supersonic boom to bust, Dominique Olivier explains why air travel still takes so long these days.
Dominique Olivier
The Nazi who was tried as a pirate
The scale and nature of Adolf Eichmann’s crimes placed them outside the reach of conventional legal frameworks. To hold him accountable, one court turned to a centuries-old doctrine designed to prosecute those who were considered enemies of all humanity. Dominique Olivier tells the astonishing story of how one Nazi almost got away.
Dominique Olivier
Bad taste is still taste
A film widely labelled as "the worst ever made" has spent two decades selling out midnight screenings. This raises an awkward possibility: maybe the line between “bad” and “good” is less stable than we like to think. Dominique Olivier introduces you to the cultural phenomenon that is The Room.
Dominique Olivier
From spelunker to spactacle: the Floyd Collins story
A desperate bid to create Kentucky’s next cave attraction spiralled into one of America’s first media frenzies. Floyd Collins went underground in a bid to attract tourists and ended up as the spectacle they came to see. Dominique Olivier tells this extraordinary tale.
