Good Bad Billionaire

How did the richest people make their billions? New episodes include: Cristiano Ronaldo and Beyoncé. Let us know whether you think they are good, bad or just another billionaire.

World Service,98 episodes

Episodes

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Hetty Green: The 'witch' of Wall Street
Hetty Green was America’s richest woman, but was renowned as the nation’s biggest miser
28 Jul 2025,47 mins
Sam Walton: Walmart’s founder
Sam Walton’s discount store Walmart is the largest retailer on Earth
21 Jul 2025,44 mins
Howard Hughes: Eccentric aviator
The original weird billionaire, Howard Hughes went from playboy to paranoid recluse
14 Jul 2025,45 mins
Henry Ford: Putting the world on wheels
Henry Ford revolutionised American life by making mass-produced cars affordable to all
07 Jul 2025,52 mins
John D Rockefeller: The first billionaire
John D Rockefeller believed God wanted him to get rich – so he obliged
07 Jul 2025,47 mins
Coming soon: Good Bad Dead Billionaire
A new season with a difference: Famous dead billionaires and how they made their money
23 Jun 2025,1 min
Eike Batista: Golden grifter
Mining magnate Eike Batista was Brazil’s richest man, but corruption led to his downfall
26 May 2025,40 mins
LeBron James: King of the court
LeBron James is the first active NBA basketball player to become a billionaire
19 May 2025,48 mins
Masayoshi Son: High-tech gambler
Investor Masayoshi Son became notorious for making huge bets on technology companies
12 May 2025,44 mins
Strive Masiyiwa: Connecting a continent
Telecoms magnate Strive Masiyiwa escaped kidnap to become Zimbabwe’s first billionaire
05 May 2025,42 mins
Ike Perlmutter: Marvel’s empire builder
Ike Perlmutter, the CEO who reinvented Marvel
28 Apr 2025,46 mins
Selena Gomez: Actress, singer, beauty mogul
How Disney star Selena Gomez became a billionaire beauty entrepreneur
21 Apr 2025,47 mins
Orlando Bravo: Tech dealmaker
Orlando Bravo failed to become a tennis pro, but private equity made him a billionaire
14 Apr 2025,46 mins
Vince McMahon: Wrestling's ringmaster
Vince McMahon turned professional wrestling into a global phenomenon
07 Apr 2025,48 mins
Markus Persson: Minecraft maker
How did Markus Persson create Minecraft, the most successful computer game ever?
31 Mar 2025,46 mins
John de Mol: Big Brother’s daddy
By reinventing reality TV, John de Mol made television history and a billion dollars
31 Mar 2025,41 mins
Sir James Dyson: Sucking up the cash
How a blocked vacuum cleaner led to a billion-dollar idea for inventor James Dyson
24 Mar 2025,46 mins
Martha Stewart: The original lifestyle influencer
Martha Stewart, the homemaker who sold perfection to America
17 Mar 2025,51 mins
Encore - Chuck Feeney: All duty
Revisiting the story of Chuck Feeney, a billionaire who gave it all away
17 Feb 2025,38 mins
Encore - Taylor Swift: Swiftonomics
A brief update after Taylor Swift's Eras tour ended, and another chance to hear her story
03 Feb 2025,53 mins
Peter Thiel: Paypal mafioso
How Peter Thiel made his fortune from huge tech companies then renounced Silicon Valley
25 Nov 2024,47 mins
Doris Fisher: Don’t mind The Gap
How American businesswoman Doris Fisher and her husband founded a clothing empire
18 Nov 2024,43 mins
Carlos Slim Helú: Telecom titan
Mexican telecom company boss Carlos Slim Helú was once the richest person on Earth
11 Nov 2024,46 mins
Roman Abramovich: Premier League oligarch
How Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich got rich, then got sanctioned
04 Nov 2024,41 mins
Mukesh Ambani: Asia’s richest person
How Indian multinational conglomerate boss Mukesh Ambani built Asia's biggest fortune
28 Oct 2024,45 mins
Patrice Motsepe: Mining magnate
How Patrice Motsepe became the first black billionaire in post-apartheid South Africa
21 Oct 2024,40 mins
Jack Ma: China's ecommerce CEO
How Jack Ma brought ecommerce to China by creating online mega-platform Alibaba
14 Oct 2024,43 mins
Yvon Chouinard: A $3 billion giveaway
The founder of sporting apparel firm Patagonia made billions - then gave it all away
07 Oct 2024,48 mins
Whitney Wolfe Herd: Dating app entrepreneur
How the woman who founded dating apps Bumble and Tinder was briefly a billionaire
30 Sep 2024,42 mins
Aliko Dangote: Africa’s richest person
Aliko Dangote started a cement business, and went on to become Africa’s richest person
23 Sep 2024,39 mins