The Watch Enquiry

Introducing The Watch Enquiry, a journalistic take on the luxury watch industry. Hosted by Tim Barber and Chris Hall, two experienced writers and editors who love getting stuck in and answering the kinds of questions that really matter. Every episode tackles a new enquiry, be it historical, hypothetical or hard-hitting. Series one will include such questions as: "Has collab culture killed creativity in watch design?" and "What are the true game-changers of the 21st century?" Subscribe now!

Welcome to the first episode of The Watch Enquiry! Hosted by journalists Timothy Barber and Chris Hall, The Watch Enquiry delves into areas of watch culture and history that are often overlooked, asking questions that promise to inform, entertain and educate. In this episode, we ask what happened to the futuristic high-tech showcases of the 2000s and 2010s - watches from mainstream, mid-market giants like Cartier and TAG Heuer that promised a glorious future for everyday customers. It was around this time that both of us entered the world of watch journalism, and we were excited by this wave of enthusiasm for redefining what an 'ordinary' watch could look like. Powered by 21st century materials science and manufacturing techniques, these concept watches advertised a future that never really arrived. Or did it? Watches like the Cartier ID 1 and ID 2, TAG Heuer's Mikro- series of chronographs, and all the many timepieces with 'LAB' somewhere in their name may not have translated into much that you could actually buy, but have some of the ideas they introduced trickled down into the mainstream nonetheless?    Music by 99Instrumentals and Grand Seiko Kodo Tourbillon

Patek Philippe's supremacy among volume watch brands today is almost unarguable, strengthened by its unassailable position in the vintage market. But when were the seeds of this dominance sown? In this episode, Tim Barber advances the argument that of all its 186-year history, one year in particular could be fundamental to its modern-day standing. We delve deep into how Patek Philippe was able to emerge from wartime Europe as the pre-eminent fine watchmaker, considering the social, political and economic context of the age. 

Watch brands have been collaborating with outside designers - and with each other - for the last decade, and what was once a radical, diverting tactic for developing interest in a product has become Plan A for every mainstream watchmaker. We wanted to ask " If collab culture has become the default way to make a watch interesting, what does it say about mainstream, mass-production watch brands’ ability to create, and to excite us, if to do that they have to look elsewhere for that spark, that injection of energy?” This episode isn't about judging individual collaborations - although we do actually dwell on a few that we think are pretty good - but rather it's about asking what the whole phenomenon tells us about how watch companies value and respect creativity and those who have it. We look at what happens when brands try to introduce entirely new designs all on their own, and share insights from industry experts like Manuel Emch and James Thompson on why we have arrived at the status quo - and what might change in the next few years.   

What can your watch do? If it can't measure wind speed, host a hand of poker or display an animation of a galloping horse, it's not going to trouble our list of the craziest complications ever made. Imaginative - and incredibly clever - watchmakers have given us dozens of outlandish mechanical creations over the years: in this episode we select our favourites. These are the watches that we think rank above all others for mechanical audacity, engineering complexity and - let's face it -  sheer ludicrousness. Other watches may be more complicated, racking up functions with a joyless one-upmanship, but these watches are the wildest, weirdest and most wonderful things ever to grace a wrist. From brands such as Ulysse Nardin, Konstantin Chaykin, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Richard Mille and many more, these watches are a journey through the most exotic outposts of modern watchmaking. 

Some watches break records; some watches sell millions, and some watches steal our hearts. But very few truly, substantially alter the world around them forever. This is our attempt at making a list of those that do: the watches that have changed the game in the last 15 years. The timeframe, while neatly coinciding with the period since the global financial crisis, is also the time that your hosts Chris Hall and Tim Barber have been reporting on the industry. In this episode, the second of a two-parter, we discuss the Patek Philippe Nautilus 40, Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual in black ceramic, the Ming 17.01, the Rexhep Rexhepi Chronometre Contemporain, the Rolex Oyster Perpetual 41mm of 2020 and - surprise suprise - the MoonSwatch. We hope you enjoy hearing our reasoning, and look forward to debating them vigorously across social media...

What are the watches that really change the industry around them? In this episode, Tim and Chris tackle a question that sounds overwhelming in its simplicity: when you strip away the hyperbole and adjust, as much as possible, for passionate fandom, which watches really made the biggest difference? To the tastes of those collecting them; to the outlook of those manufacturing them and occasionally, to the very notion of what a luxury watch can or should be.  The task was so daunting it had to be split into two episodes: in this episode we discuss, chronologically, the Richard Mille RM27, the MB&F Legacy Machine 1, the Tudor Black Bay, the Bulgari Octo Finissimo and the Omega Globemaster Constellation (yes, really. You'll have to listen to find out why...) I have to flag a really annoying error in the episode: when discussing the Globemaster we mistakenly refer to it as the “Annual Calendar” but we meant the time-only Globemaster. The Annual Cal came out the following year, in 2016. In terms of why we think the watch is game-changing, the distinction is immaterial, but obviously it is an error and we apologise.

We almost didn't publish this podcast. Full disclaimer: it was recorded in summer 2025, and once we had overcome some delays in our production process, it was starting to feel out-of-date. But then, unexpectedly, we started to hear rumours that what we discussed might actually be closer to reality than we could have imagined. So here we are.  In this episode, Tim and Chris take on a classic thought experiment - or you might prefer armchair punditry. "What would you do?" is the eternal counter to journalists' criticisms, so we thought we'd have a go at providing an answer, or answers. Each of us takes a turn to consider what we might change at four respected watch companies - Jaeger-LeCoultre, Blancpain, Grand Seiko and Montblanc. These are hypotheticals, pure speculation on our part, and in some cases quite far-fetched. Or so we thought, at least...