The Lonely Century takes a hard look at how widespread the problem of loneliness has become across the globe, and the havoc it is wreaking along the way.

Most of us have felt lonely at one point or another. While being home alone on a Friday night can sometimes feel like a blessing, it can feel empty and repressive when it becomes a frequent occurrence.

In 2010, a study revealed that three in five adults in the US consider themselves to be lonely. In 2019, another showed that more than one in five American millennials have no friends at all.

The problem is escalating across generations, and in 2018, Great Britain even appointed a Minister for Loneliness.

Now in the midst of a global pandemic, the problem of loneliness is more acute than ever.

Although the majority are familiar with the emotion, how many of us have ever stopped to think what loneliness actually is? What does it mean, and how does it feel?

This is exactly what Noreena Hertz decided to look into for her book The Lonely Century.

A thought leader, academic and broadcaster with several books under her belt, Hertz investigates the origins of this loneliness crisis, and what it means for civilization.

By pulling in the data, meeting with the experts, and examining some of the latest technological 'solutions', Hertz shows the 21st Century to be the loneliest yet, and explains what we can all do to solve it.