Best of the Spectator: Recent Episodes
The Spectator
Home to the Spectator's best podcasts on everything from politics to religion, literature to food and drink, and more. A new podcast every day from writers worth listening to.
From wartime leadership to economic revolutions, Conservative figures have shaped Britain’s past and present. But who stands out as the greatest of them all? In this conversation, recorded live at Conservative Party Conference: Katie Lam makes the case for William Pitt the Younger, Camilla Tominay nominates Margaret Thatcher, William Atkinson points out the number of young Tories who now idolise Enoch Powell, and Neil O’Brien explains why all conservatives should know about Jerzy Popieluszko. Who wins? You decide.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Tim Shipman says that the real war for the right is yet to come; Ian Williams examines the farce over the collapses China espionage case; Theo Hobson argues that the Church of England is muddled over sex and marriage; Lara Prendergast reads her letter from America; and, Lisa Haseldine goes on manoeuvres with the German army, the Bundeswehr.
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Recorded live in Manchester, during the Conservative Party conference, Michael Gove sits down with Tim Shipman, Madeline Grant and Tim Montgomerie to discuss how the Tories can turn their fortunes around. Do the Tories need to show contrition for their record in government? Has the party basically been split ever since the Coalition years? And does Nigel Farage need to set a deadline for Tory to Reform defectors? Plus – from Canada to Italy – which countries do British Conservatives need to look towards for inspiration?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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The Spectator’s cover story this week looks at ‘the fear’ gripping Jewish people amidst rising antisemitism. Reflecting on last week’s attack in Manchester, Douglas Murray says that ‘no-one in the Jewish community was surprised’ – a damning inditement on Britain today. How do we tackle religious intolerance? And is there room for nuance in the debate about Israel and Palestine?
Host Lara Prendergast is joined by the Spectator’s US editor Freddy Gray, associate editor – and host of our religious affairs podcast Holy Smoke – Damian Thompson and commissioning editor Mary Wakefield. As well as the cover, they discuss: how biological innovations are threatening motherhood; the views of the new – and first female – Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally; and how New York has ended up with (almost certainly) an incoming socialist mayor in Zohran Mamdani.
Plus: the panel mourn the novelist Jilly Cooper, and Damian reveals how he ended up with a driving conviction – despite having never passed his driving test.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
The Spectator is trialling new formats for this podcast, and we would very much welcome feedback via this email address: podcast@spectator.co.uk
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My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is Ben Schott. The author of the world- (or downstairs-loo-) conquering Schott’s Original Miscellany returns with Schott’s Significa, a deeply reported and constantly surprising book in which he uses the private languages of various communities – from gondoliers to graffiti writers and from Swifties to sommeliers – as a way of understanding their worlds. Ben tells me about how the project came together, how he was inspired by the folklorists Iona and Peter Opie pinning the butterfly of playground games – and why doing the shoe-leather reporting yields results that you could never get from Google or ChatGPT.
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Listeners on the Best of Spectator playlist can enjoy a section of the latest episode of Quite right! but for the full thing please seek out the Quite right! channel. Just search ‘Quite right!’ wherever you are listening now.
This week, Michael and Maddie record Quite right! in front of a live audience at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester – with attendance down, the big question is whether Kemi Badenoch can survive as leader of the opposition. There is the unmistakable air of fatalism among MPs staring down electoral annihilation – but would another change in leadership cement the Tories as pathologically regicidal?
They also debate Badenoch’s bold pledge to bar candidates who won’t back leaving the European Convention on Human Rights – a ‘calculated risk’ that could redefine the party’s identity or too little too late?
Then, in the wake of the horrific Manchester synagogue attack, they turn to the rise of anti-Semitism and the crisis of policing. Are Britain’s streets really being governed by ‘two-tier justice’? And what does it say about public order – and public confidence – that Jewish Britons are being told to stay indoors for their own safety?
Finally, they dissect the Church of England’s choice of Sarah Mullally as the new Archbishop of Canterbury. Is she an inspired appointment, or proof that the Church has become, as Michael puts it, ‘another bureaucratic manifestation of generalised niceness’?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson
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Tim Shipman, James Heale and Lucy Dunn record live at Conservative party conference in Manchester. What's the mood at conference – and has Kemi done enough to neutralise her detractors? Tim says he expects there to be no immediate leadership challenge but the Conservatives need to get real about the 'attention economy' they're faced with. What inspiration can they take from Tory grandee Michael Heseltine? And can they 'make conservative sexy again'? Plus, audience questions on the upcoming budget and the challenges for the Conservatives in both Wales and Scotland.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: James Heale says that, for Labour, party conference was a ‘holiday from reality’; William Atkinson argues that the ‘cult of Thatcher’ needs to die; David Shipley examines the luxury of French prisons; Angus Colwell provides his notes on swan eating; and, Aidan Hartley takes listeners on a paleoanthropological tour from the Cradle of Mankind.
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Michael Gove speaks to Jeffrey Archer about his life, career and his new novel End Game, which marks the gripping finale of the William Warwick series.
This discussion was part of the Spectator's speaker series. To see more on our upcoming events – including with Charles Moore and with Bernard Cornwell – go to events.spectator.co.uk
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The general election result of 2024 reflected – among other things – a collapse of trust among British voters in the Conservatives. How can the British right evolve so it learns lessons from the past and from across the pond, in order to win back its base?
This is an excerpt from an event hosted by The Spectator and American Compass; a leading US think tank. The panel includes:
Robert Jenrick MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Justice and MP for Newark
Miriam Cates, former MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge and GB News Presenter
Gavin Rice, head of political economy at Onward
Nick Timothy, MP for West Suffolk
Henry Olsen, Senior Fellow, Ethics & Public Policy Centre
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
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Dame Sarah Mullally has been announced as the new Archbishop of Canterbury. Previously the Bishop of London, she becomes the first woman to lead the Church in its almost 500 year history. She also had a 40 year career as a professional nurse, rising to be the most senior nurse in England and Wales. The Rev'd Marcus Walker, rector at St Bartholemew the Great in the City of London, joins Damian Thompson to react to the news – what can we expect from her leadership?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Sam Leith's guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the historical novelist Philippa Gregory. In her gripping new book Boleyn Traitor, Philippa seeks to rescue Jane Boleyn from the vast condescension of history. She tells Sam how fiction allows her to make plausible speculations about the gaps in the record, how she works to make the Tudors speak to us in language we can recognise, where Henry VIII went wrong — and what the Tudor court's descent into tyranny has to say to us about our own age.
Produced by James Lewis.
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The Spectator’s cover story this week is an interview with Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch ahead of the Tory party conference. Reflecting on the criticism she received for being seen as slow on policy announcements, she says that the position the Conservatives were in was ‘more perilous than people realise’ and compares herself to the CEO of an ailing firm. Can Kemi turn it around for the Tories?
Host William Moore is joined by the Spectator’s political editor Tim Shipman – who interviewed Kemi – alongside commissioning editor Lara Brown, and academic and author Philip Hensher. They discuss whether the ‘cult of Thatcher’ needs to die, Tim says he's more Disraeli and Bismarck to Lara's Pitt and Philip reveals what once got him sacked from the House of Commons.
Plus: while discussing Philip's review of Graham Robb's The Discovery of Britain, the panel ponder which politicians are best at invoking history.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
The Spectator is trialling new formats for this podcast and we would very much welcome feedback via this email address: podcast@spectator.co.uk
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Listeners on the Best of Spectator playlist can enjoy a section of the latest episode of Quite right! but for the full thing please seek out the Quite right! channel. Just search ‘Quite right!’ wherever you are listening now.
This week, Michael and Maddie report from the Labour party conference in Liverpool and unpick Keir Starmer’s big speech. Was his attempt to reclaim patriotism for Labour a genuine statement of values – or a clumsy exercise in stereotypes about steelworkers, chip shops and football nostalgia? And why does Labour’s attack line on Nigel Farage risk sounding like political ‘nuclear warfare’ that could backfire outside the conference hall? And what about the Tories? With Labour bringing the fight to the Reform party, where does this leave Kemi Badenoch and the Conservatives ahead of their conference later this week?
They then turn to Donald Trump’s extraordinary new Middle East peace initiative. With Benjamin Netanyahu on board and Tony Blair drafted into the proposed ‘peace board’, is this a serious diplomatic breakthrough or a surreal ‘fever dream’ that only Trump could cook up?
Next, another peace proposal doomed to fail: Emma Watson’s attempt to reconcile with J.K. Rowling after years of public estrangement. Was Watson’s olive branch an act of goodwill or a late recognition that the cultural tide has turned? And why did Rowling’s sharp response strike such a chord with women who felt abandoned during the height of the trans debate?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson, Oscar Bicket and Matt Miszczak.
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Donald Trump has unveiled his “peace plan” for Gaza with Benjamin Netanyahu – but is it realistic? Professor John Mearsheimer joins Freddy Gray to assess Trump’s foreign policy instincts, the role of Tony Blair on the Board of Peace, the use (and misuse) of the term “genocide,” and what chance there is of a Saudi-Israeli accord emerging from the conflict.
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Whilst a certain noisy northern mayor has positioned himself as the problem child of conference 2025, The Spectator finds another Labour politician far more interesting. All around Liverpool the newsstands are decorated by the image of the Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, dubbed the ‘Terminator’ by Tim Shipman in the most recent issue of The Spectator. As one strategist notes: ‘Shabana is not afraid to use power. That’s what we need.’
In this special edition of Coffee House Shots we present a wide-ranging in-conversation between Shabana Mahmood and Spectator editor Michael Gove. Listen for: how to tackle the ‘Boriswave’, whether the Home Office is fit for purpose, Shabana’s compelling case for digital ID cards and her response to Keir Starmer’s claim that Reform are ‘racist’.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Megan McElroy.
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Freddy Gray speaks to Jacob Heilbrunn, a longstanding friend of Americano to discuss James Comey, violence in Washington and Tucker Carlson’s new series.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Matthew Parris reflects on the gay rights movement in the UK; faced with Britain’s demographic declines, Stephen J. Shaw argues that Britain needs to recover a sense of ‘futurehood’; Henry Jeffreys makes the case for disposing of wine lists; Tessa Dunlop reviews Valentine Low’s Power and the Palace: The Inside Story of the Monarchy and 10 Downing Street; and, Angus Colwell reviews a new podcast on David Bowie from BBC Sounds.
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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The past few years have seen growing calls for countries in the global west to pay reparations to former colonies for their role in the transatlantic slave trade. The debate over reparations was already part of the so-called ‘culture wars’, but became louder following the Black Lives Matter movement, as many groups sought to re-examine their histories. Calls for reparations have been embraced by the Church of England which set up a £100 million fund, with the aim of raising £1 billion, to pay reparations for the role the Church played in the slave trade.
But do the arguments in favour of reparations really stand up? Conservative peer Nigel Biggar, emeritus regius professor of moral theology at the University of Oxford – and an Anglican priest – demolishes the arguments for reparations in his new book. In Reparations: Slavery and the Tyranny of Guilt he argues that calls for reparations are part of a ‘lust for self-condemnation’ and rooted in political opportunism. And, as Conservative MP Katie Lam questions, is it even legal for the Church to do this? And why – with crumbling parish churches across the country – is the Church focused on this now?
Nigel and Katie join host Damian Thompson to talk through their arguments and warn about the worrying precedent it could set.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On the eve of Labour’s party conference, the Spectator's editor Michael Gove sits down with Steve Reed MP, the new Secretary of State for Housing, Communities, and Local Government. The government has announced an historic £5 billion package of funding for 'national renewal' – designed to revive high streets, parks and public spaces. Reed explains how he thinks Labour can win back 'forgotten' communities through building 1.5 million houses through this Parliament, allocating fair funding for councils and devolving more powers to local government. Is this Labour's own 'levelling up' agenda?
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First: who has the Home Secretary got in her sights?
Political editor Tim Shipman profiles Shabana Mahmood in the Spectator’s cover article this week. Given Keir Starmer’s dismal approval ratings, politicos are consumed by gossip about who could be his heir-apparent – even more so, following Angela Rayner’s defenestration a few weeks ago. Mahmood may not be the most high-profile of the Starmer movement, but she is now talked about alongside Wes Streeting and Andy Burnham as a potential successor to Starmer.
But – it all depends on what she can achieve at the Home Office. So, who does she have in her sights? Tim joined the podcast
Next: why the philosopher king of Silicon Valley is reinventing the ‘Antichrist’ theory
What do Mohammed, Martin Luther, King George III, Adolf Hitler, Henry Kissinger and Bill Gates have in common? They have all been identified as the Antichrist. And now the theory is back, preoccupying the mind of billionaire Peter Thiel, who believes that ‘a globe-trotting liberal elite… are using their billions to manufacture a new world order’.
So why is Thiel, the co-founder of Paypal and Palantir, so obsessed with the Antichrist? Damian Thompson joins the podcast to discuss.
And finally: the cost-of-giving crisis
Rupert Hawksley, the Spectator’s new opinion editor, examines the crisis facing charity shops. Over 50 stores have shut this year with the big four – the British Heart Foundation, Barnado’s, Oxfam and Cancer Research UK – struggling to maintain healthy sales. This isn’t just a crisis for the charities, he argues, but also for the consumers who rely on the shops.
Rupert joined the podcast alongside another charity shop enthusiast, the Spectator’s editor Michael Gove. What’s the most prized charity shop find?
Plus: Henry Jeffreys discusses the horror of wine lists and Angus Colwell reviews a new BBC Sounds podcast on David Bowie, ahead of the ten year anniversary of his death next year.
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Sam's guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the historian Sudhir Hazareesingh, whose new book Daring to Be Free: Rebellion and Resistance of the Enslaved in the Atlantic World reframes the story of Atlantic slavery. He explains why the familiar tale of enlightened Europeans bringing about abolition leaves out the most important voices of all – the enslaved themselves – and how from Africa to Haiti and beyond, traditions of rebellion, resistance and spiritual resilience shaped the struggle for freedom long before Wilberforce or Clarkson entered the picture.
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Listeners on the Best of Spectator playlist can enjoy a section of the latest episode of Quite right! but for the full thing please seek out the Quite right! channel. Just search ‘Quite right!’ wherever you are listening now.
This week, Michael and Maddie lift the lid on the strange rituals of party conference season and why the ‘goldfish bowl’ reality of a week in Birmingham (or Manchester, or Liverpool) often leaves politicians with ‘PTSD’.
They then turn to the government’s revived enthusiasm for digital ID cards. Is this a sensible fix for illegal immigration – or, as Michael puts it, ‘snake oil rubbed onto an already weak idea’? And why does Tony Blair always seem to be the ghost whispering ‘ID cards’ into Westminster’s ear?
Next, Keir Starmer’s recognition of a Palestinian state: a principled step, or a political stunt designed to placate his backbenchers? Michael and Madeline dissect the backlash, the ‘terrorist chic’ of pop-concert activism, and what this move really says about Labour’s priorities.
Finally, they reflect on the extraordinary words of Erika Kirk, who publicly forgave her husband’s alleged murderer. What does Christian forgiveness look like in an age that prizes vengeance and why do so many secular commentators miss its radicalism?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson, Oscar Bicket and Matt Miszczak.
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Freddy Gray is joined by Harry Kazianis, editor in chief of the National Security Journal, to assess China’s military rise. He argues Beijing aims to dominate the Indo-Pacific with missiles, drones and naval power, posing a growing threat to U.S. influence and Taiwan.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: John Power argues the Oxford Union has a ‘lynch-mob mindset’; Elisabeth Dampier explains why she would never date a German; Nick Carter makes the case for licensing MDMA to treat veterans with PTSD; Maggie Fergusson reviews Island at the Edge of the World: The Forgotten History of Easter Island by Mike Pitts; and, Mark Mason provides his notes on guided walks. Mark will also be hosting a guided walk for the Spectator, for tickets go to www.spectator.co.uk/events.
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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This year marks 800 years since the birth of the theologian St Thomas Aquinas. Aquinas, best known for his theory of natural law and his magnum opus the Summa Theologia, argued for the existence of God through faith-based reason. The influence of the 13th Century theologian on the philosophy of religion is unquestionable, but what is curious is his resurgent popularity amongst Generation Z – particularly in America. Is this part of the recovery of the sacred seen across the global west?
Fr Gregory Pine OP, professor of dogmatic and moral theology at the Dominican House of Studies, joins Damian Thompson to talk about Aquinas’s legacy, unpack some of the philosopher’s more complicated arguments and describe his own personal journey within the Order of Preachers.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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The government is expected to press ahead with recognition of Palestinian statehood, before a formal declaration at the United Nations. Prime Minister Keir Starmer set out plans earlier this year to recognise Palestine – but what does this actually mean? And what does the move actually achieve; is it driven by principle, by politics – or by pressure from within his own party?
Michael Stephens of RUSI and Gabriel Pogrund of the Sunday Times join James Heale to assess the significance of this shift. They discuss the backlash from countries like the US, the unease within Labour ranks and the growing tension between domestic politics and Britain’s standing with allies in the Middle East. France, Australia and Canada, close allies of Britain, announced their own plans to recognise Palestine, yet the US has condemned any move. What does Starmer’s recognition of Palestine mean for the UK’s relationship with the US? And is Starmer at risk of being outflanked – both at home and abroad?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
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First: a warning from history
Politics moving increasingly from the corridors of power into the streets, economic insecurity exacerbating tensions and the centre of politics failing to hold; these are just some of the echoes from Weimar Germany that the Spectator’s editor Michael Gove sees when looking at present-day Britain. But, he says, ‘there are grounds for hope’ – what are they? Michael joined the podcast to discuss.
Next: why did science succumb to the ‘culture wars’?
Biologist and peer Matt Ridley bemoans the ‘cultification of science’, arguing that ‘left-wing ideological nonsense’ ended up permeating through all scientific disciplines. Thinking ‘neutral facts’ were safe, Matt admits he – and colleagues – may have been naïve as one by one different battlefields emerged. Matt joined the podcast to discuss. Has science thrown off the shackles of the ‘culture wars’?
And finally: how many books have you read?
Emily Hill delves into the world of competitive reading this week – the rise of people publicising the books they’ve read, particularly through social media. Emily calls this ‘conspicuous’ and notes it appears to be a trend amongst mainly female influencers.But is this solely performative or – in a world of diminishing attention spans – could the trend be promoting the act of reading? Emily joined the podcast alongside BookTok blogger Lucas Oakeley.
Plus: Mark Mason provides his notes on guided walks. Mark will also be hosting a guided walk for the Spectator, for tickets go to www.spectator.co.uk/events
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Sam Leith's guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Roger Lewis, whose book The Life and Death of Peter Sellers has been republished to mark 100 years since the comedian's birth. Roger tells Sam about the difference between Sellers's public persona and private life, plus his influence on comedy today. They also discuss how Roger reinvented the way biographies were written, and whether the view he had of Sellers as a teenager changed through writing the book.
Produced by James Lewis.
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This week Michael and Madeline unpick the shock defection of Danny Kruger to Reform UK’s ‘pirate ship’ – as described by Michael – and ask whether this coup could mark the beginning of the end for the Conservative party.
They also dive into Westminster’s most charged moral debates: the assisted dying bill in the Lords and the quiet decriminalisation of abortion up to birth. What do these changes say about parliament’s ‘intoxicated liberal hubris’ – and the protections given to the vulnerable?
Also, Donald Trump lands in Britain this week – but why is it that the Prime Minister acts ‘like Carson the butler’ in his presence, and who exactly is the ‘diplomatic secret weapon’ that the Palace deploys to manage ‘the Donald’?
Finally, Michael and Madeleine (re)turn to Oxford, where the Union has been engulfed in controversy over free speech and political violence. Has one of Britain’s oldest debating societies become a cautionary tale for our universities? Is there such a thing as ‘right-wing cancel culture’?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson, Oscar Bicket and Matt Miszczak.
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In a bumper episode, the legend that is Raymond Blanc joins Olivia Potts and Lara Prendergast. The self-taught chef heads up the double Michelin-starred Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons, has trained chefs from Heston Blumenthal to Marco Pierre White, and received an honorary OBE in 2008. His new book Simply Raymond Kitchen Garden is out now.
The chef tells Liv and Lara about his earliest memories of food – from eating worms to easter eggs, how his love of food is connected to the garden and why he owes his existence to General de Gaulle. He explains how he ended up becoming ‘exiled’ to Great Britain, how he fell in love with Le Manoir and why he would have to choose an English chef to cook his dream meal. Plus: Lara’s daughter makes a guest appearance.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: James Heale reports on the battle for the north; Robert Hardman provides his royal notebook; who’s really in charge of China, asks Francis Pike; Henrietta Harding goes on Ozempic safari; and, Mary Wakefield explains how to raise a patriot.
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Tyler Robinson, a 22-year-old from south-west Utah, has been detained over the shooting of Kirk, a conservative activist and close ally of Donald Trump. Author and anthropologist Max Horder joins Freddy Gray to discuss the cocktail of online hate and tribal divisions that's fuelling America's new era of political violence.
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It is 10 months since the resignation of Justin Welby as Archbishop of Canterbury. Now, finally, the Crown Nominations Commission is believed to have drawn up a shortlist of candidates, and a successor to Welby could be approved by October.
Theologian and author Andrew Graystone joins Damian Thompson to talk through what he calls ‘a weak list’ of potential candidates – weak because there are no obvious frontrunners and the Commission is choosing between ‘half a dozen equals’.
These range from the more talked-about Michael Beasley (Bath and Wells), Guli France-Dehqani (Chelmsford) and Rose Hudson-Wilson (Dover) [all pictured in the thumbnail] to the ‘others’: Stephen Lake (Salisbury), Martyn Snow (Leicester), Joanne Grenfell (St Edmundsbury and Ipswich), Sarah Mullallay (London), Rachel Treweek (Gloucester) and Ruth Worsely (interim bishop of Liverpool).
As Andrew tells Damian, factors dividing the candidates include their age, their views on LGBT inclusion and, crucially, their records on safeguarding issues. Also, note the presence of six women on this list. Could the Church be about to appoint the first female Primate of All England? And could this lead to disastrous controversy within the Anglican Communion – or is that body already so fractured that the Church of England will ignore its objections?
Anyone wondering why the process has taken so long – especially compared to the 17 days it took the Catholic Church to elect a new Pope this year – should check out our previous episode with Andrew here.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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First: a look ahead to President Trump’s state visit next week
Transatlantic tensions are growing as the row over Peter Mandelson’s role provides an ominous overture to Donald Trump’s state visit next week. Political editor Tim Shipman has the inside scoop on how No. 10 is preparing. Keir Starmer’s aides are braced for turbulence. ‘The one thing about Trump which is entirely predictable is his unpredictability,’ one ventures. And government figures fear he may go off message on broadcast – he is scheduled to be interviewed by GB News.
It is rare for leaders to receive a second visit, especially those in their second term. But, as Tim says, ‘Britishness is fashionable in Washington’ and no-one likes ‘royal treatment’ more than Trump. So, can Starmer take advantage of the President’s ‘love of the deal’? Tim joins the podcast to discuss.
Next: why are historical figures being labelled neurodiverse?
A new biography of Margaret Thatcher has provoked much discussion by claiming that Britain’s former Prime Minister was autistic. The proof for such a claim rests on the Iron Lady’s (supposed) lack of a sense of humour, a lack of feeling embarrassed and a tendency to see the world in black and white.
But is there a danger in reappraising historical and political figures, particularly when it comes to personal traits? Historians – and frequent Spectator contributors – Robert Tombs and John Keiger joined the podcast to give their verdict.
And finally: is everyone on Ozempic?
One of the Spectator’s writers, under the pseudonym Henrietta Harding, headed out on what she terms ‘Ozempic safari’ – spotting the ‘Mounjaro Mummies’ as they drop off their children at school. ‘We know what to look for’, she says, ‘sunken faces, slightly wasted arms and, of course, envy-inducing weight loss’.
But the school gates aren’t the only place Ozempic seems to have taken hold. Westminster is awash with politicians who have suspiciously slimmer fitting suits – but why? Associate editor Toby Young and deputy political editor James Heale join the podcast to make sense of the trend for trim.
Plus: As President Xi re-emerges, Francis Pike asks who’s really in charge in China?
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
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Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk was shot dead while taking questions at Utah Valley University. Kate Andrews speaks to eyewitness and reporter Eva Terry about the chaos on campus, the reaction across America, and what comes next.
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In this bonus episode Michael and Madeline tackle two extraordinary political stories. First, the dramatic resignation of Peter Mandelson as Britain’s US ambassador, following renewed scrutiny of his links to Jeffrey Epstein. Why did Keir Starmer take so long to act – and what does the debacle reveal about his leadership style?
Then, across the Atlantic, America is reeling from the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Michael and Madeline reflect on the tragedy, what it means for free speech, and whether political violence is reshaping the way debate happens in the public square.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson, Oscar Bicket and Matt Miszczak.
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Sam Leith’s guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Andrew Bayliss, author of Sparta: The Rise and Fall of an Ancient Superpower. Andrew tells Sam what we know — and don't know – about these much-mythologised figures from the Ancient world and tells the story of how a tiny city-state punched above its weight, until it didn't. This is Sparta.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Michael Gove and Madeline Grant return with another episode of Quite right!, The Spectator’s new podcast promising sanity and common sense in an increasingly unhinged world.
This week, they dissect Keir Starmer’s brutal reshuffle – from the ‘volcanic ejection’ of Angela Rayner to the rise of Shabana Mahmood, the ‘uncompromising toughie’ now in charge of the Home Office. What do these moves reveal about the Labour party’s deepest fears on crime and migration?
Across the Channel, Emmanuel Macron faces yet another political crisis, as France lurches towards its fifth prime minister in two years. Is Britain now drifting into its own pre-revolutionary mood – and becoming ‘France 2.0’?
And finally, a new biography of Margaret Thatcher makes the startling claim that she was autistic. Michael and Madeline ask: why must every figure from history be retroactively diagnosed as ‘neurodiverse’?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson, Oscar Bicket and Matt Miszczak.
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On this episode, Nick Gillespie, Reason's editor at large, joins Freddy to discuss whether Trump 2.0 is really as authoritarian as people say. Is he closer to a gangster than a dictator? They also discuss tariffs, the weaponisation of the Justice Department, and the state of free speech in the UK.
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At the Reform conference in Birmingham, the Spectator's editor Michael Gove sat down with Reform UK's head of their department of government efficiency Zia Yusuf. They discussed Labour's track record in government, Zia's faith and his tech background, why leader Nigel Farage is his political hero and how AI could change Britain.
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The Catholic Church will acquire its first millennial saint today, when Pope Leo XIV canonises someone who, if he were alive today, would be young enough to be his son.
Carlo Acutis, a ‘computer geek’ from a prosperous Italian family, died aged just 15 in 2006. In this episode of Holy Smoke, Damian Thompson talks to Mgr Anthony Figueiredo and the Italian-based journalist Nicholas Farrell about the extraordinary phenomenon of St Carlo, the miracles associated with him – and the scepticism they arouse – and a mean-spirited attack on him by one of the late Pope Francis’s closest advisers.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Tim Shipman interviews shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick (plus – Tim explains the significance of Jenrick’s arguments in a special introduction); Colin Freeman wonders why the defenders of Ukraine have been abandoned; Rachel Clarke reviews Liam Shaw and explains the urgency needed to find new antibiotics; Michael Gove reviews Tom McTague and ponders the path that led to the UK voting to leave the EU; and, Melanie Ferbreach provides her notes on made-up language.
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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First: Reform is naff – and that’s why people like it
Gareth Roberts warns this week that ‘the Overton window is shifting’ but in a very unexpected way. Nigel Farage is ahead in the polls – not only because his party is ‘bracingly right-wing’, but ‘because Reform is camp’. Farage offers what Britain wants: ‘a cheeky, up-yours, never-mind-the-knockers revolt against our agonisingly earnest political masters’.
‘From Farage on down,’ Roberts argues, ‘there is a glorious kind of naffness’ to Reform: daytime-TV aesthetics, ‘bargain-basement’ celebrities and big-breasted local councillors. ‘The progressive activists thought they could win the culture war simply by saying they had won it’, but ‘the John Bulls and Greasy Joans are stirring again’. Roberts loves how ‘the current excitement over flag-raising’ is the ‘conniptions’ it gives to ‘the FBPE crowd’. Of course, for Farage, planning for government ‘really cannot be a pantomime affair’. But ‘in these grim times’ we ‘need the romping Reform’. Gareth joins the podcast to make his case for Carry On Reform.
Next: the ‘she’ consumed by masculine rage
Lionel Shriver reacts to the latest school shooting in America. The perpetrator was widely reported in the media with the pronouns ‘she/her’ which, Lionel argues, is not just an issue around politeness. This glosses over the fact that the shooter was biologically male, adding to the majority of cases of school shootings that are conducting by men. By pandering to this incoherence of the reality of the situation, it doesn’t help society to uncover the reasons behind the issue.
Lionel joined the podcast alongside the Spectator’s US editor Freddy Gray. Freddy points out how this shooting is just one example of how younger people can be transfixed by the very darkest sides of the internet.
And finally: why people make up languages
Constructed language expert Dr Bettina Beinhoff and author and historian Peter Parker join the podcast to talk about ‘made-up’ languages. Why do humans construct languages outside of their every-day speech? Most people will have heard of Klingon or Elvish, used in books and film, but what about Polari – the subversive language used by groups of LGBT people decades ago – or the Potato language – which writer Melanie Ferbreach says her parents used to hide their conversations from her. Listeners may be impressed to hear Lara's own attempt at 'eggy-peggy'...
Plus: with a special introduction from our political editor, Tim Shipman interviews shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick – is he trying to outflank Farage?
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Natasha Feroze.
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My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the Albanian-born political philosopher Lea Ypi, whose new book Indignity: A Life Reimagined reconstructs the story of her grandmother’s early life amid the turbulence of the early and mid twentieth century. She talks to me about using the techniques of fiction to supply the gaps in the archive, about Albania’s troubling position as a tiny power among great ones, why the fight between Kant and Nietzsche remains a live one — and how online trolls sparked her quest for a restorative account of her beloved grandmother’s life.
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Michael Gove and Madeline Grant launch ‘Quite right!’, the new podcast from The Spectator that promises sanity and common sense in a world that too often lacks both.
In their first episode, they take stock of a political summer dominated by Nigel Farage, a Labour government already facing mutiny, and the curious spectacle of Tory MPs moonlighting as gonzo reporters.
From J.D. Vance’s Cotswold sojourn and Tom Skinner’s bish bash bosh patriotism, to Sydney Sweeney’s jeans advert causing a culture war, Michael and Madeline discuss what really drives our politics: policies, or memes and vibes?
Plus: Keir Starmer’s ‘phase two’ reshuffle – does it amount to more than technocratic jargon? And why has cosy crime conquered our screens, even as Richard Osman’s The Thursday Murder Club stumbles upon its Netflix release?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson, Oscar Bicket and Matt Miszczak.
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Freddy Gray is joined by writer and internet ethnographer Katherine Dee. She's written about the Minneapolis school shooting and Robin Westman for Spectator World. Two children were killed and 17 others injured by a killer with a bizarre online footprint: a mix of memes, nihilism, politics and gore references. Katharine argues 'these shooters are radicalized, but in no particular direction. Their identities fragment. There is a deep fear of being forgotten.'
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As Parliament returns from summer recess, three rising stars of the 2024 intake join Coffee House Shots to provide their reflections on frontline politics so far. Labour's Rosie Wrighting, the Conservatives' Harriet Cross and the Liberal Democrats' Joshua Reynolds tell deputy political editor James Heale how they have found Parliament so far, and their most – and least – favourite thing about being an MP. Plus: while they are all new, and young, MPs, their parties' fortunes have all varied wildly – how have they dealt with that?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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What links the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem and St Peter's in Rome with the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, and Canaanland in Ota, Nigeria? These are just some of the churches that Anglican priest and writer the Revd Fergus Butler-Gallie highlights in his new book Twelve Churches: An Unlikely History of the Buildings that made Christianity. The Anglican priest and writer joins Damian Thompson on Holy Smoke to explain how each Church not only tells a story but also raises a surprising dilemma for modern believers.
Fergus aims to tell the history of the Churches 'warts and all' and argues that, from Turkey to Britain, today’s Christians must be prepared to defend their religious spaces. Also, why is the Church of England one of the worst offenders when it comes to preserving its heritage?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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The Daily Telegraph have run a story this week that Angela Rayner may have dodged stamp duty on her second home. But beyond the story, its the photos of the Deputy Prime Minister on the beach at Hove – drinking and vaping – that went viral. Christian Calgie, senior political correspondent for the Daily Express, joins James Heale to unpack the story and the wider questions it raises for British politics, but also to discuss Rayner herself. Could 'teflon Ang' turn around the Labour Party's fortunes? And why do so many people – including many Tories – like her so much?
Produced by Megan McElroy and Patrick Gibbons.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Tom Slater says that Britain is having its own gilet jaunes moment; Justin Marozzi reads his historian’s notebook; Iben Thranholm explains how Denmark’s ‘spiritual rearmament’ is a lesson for the West; Angus Colwell praises BBC Alba; and, Philip Womack provides his notes on flatmates.
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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First: an economic reckoning is looming
‘Britain’s numbers… don’t add up’, says economics editor Michael Simmons. We are ‘an ageing population with too few taxpayers’. ‘If the picture looks bad now,’ he warns, ‘the next few years will be disastrous.’ Governments have consistently spent more than they raised; Britain’s debt costs ‘are the worst in the developed world’, with markets fearful about Rachel Reeves’s Budget plans.
A market meltdown, a delayed crash, or prolonged stagnation looms. The third scenario, he warns, would be the bleakest, keeping politicians from confronting Britain’s spendthrift state. We need ‘austerity shock therapy’ – but voters don’t want it. To discuss further, we include an excerpt from a discussion Michael had with our deputy editor Freddy Gray and economist Paul Johnson for Spectator TV.
Next: can the foster system survive?
‘The foster system in this country is collapsing,’ Mary Wakefield warns. There around 80,000 children who need homes, but ‘a catastrophic lack of people prepared to care for them’. Every year the small pool of available foster households shrinks, with younger generations unwilling to become carers and more and more existing carers considering leaving.
Mary joined the podcast to explain how bad the problem is, alongside author and full-time foster carer Rosie Lewis.
And finally: the unsettling rise of DeathTok
Damian Thompson highlights the rise of ‘DeathTok’ – the name given to videos shared on the social media platform Tik Tok by users who are dealing with life-threatening illnesses. Ordinary young people ‘employ adult communications skills to express adolescent feelings’ and share every stage of the ruthlessness of their cancer journey. The videos may upset younger uses who stumble across them, but for many this digital sense of community will prove invaluable.
There is a wider question though – ‘the luxury of fading memories’ says Damian, is something we lose with every advance in media technology. Can this really be a good thing?
Plus: Tom Slater says that Britain is having its own gilet jaunes moment and Philip Womack reacts to the news that the Pope will be getting some flatmates.
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
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This week's Book Club podcast marks the 80th anniversary this year of the publication of Brideshead Revisited. This conversation is from the archives, originally recorded in 2020 to mark its 75th anniversary.
To discuss Evelyn Waugh's great novel, Sam Leith is joined by literary critic and author Philip Hensher, and by the novelist's grandson (and general editor of Oxford University Press's complete Evelyn Waugh) Alexander Waugh. What made the novel so pivotal in Waugh's career, what did it mean to the author and how did he revise it? And why have generations of readers, effectively, misread it?
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Immigration returned to the headlines over the past week after the High Court granted an injunction forcing the removal of migrants from a hotel in Essex – a ruling that could have wider implications for similar cases across the country. At the same time, the sight of Union Jacks and St George’s Crosses appearing in towns and cities has sparked a debate over whether flag-flying is a symbol of patriotism or a sign of growing division.
On this podcast, originally recorded for Saturday's Coffee House Shots, Lucy Dunn is joined by Lord Hannan and trade unionist Paul Embery to ask: what kind of country is Britain becoming? Paul argues that rapid cultural change, combined with economic decline, has left many people feeling disoriented and neglected. Dan Hannan warns that national symbols once seen as unifying risk becoming sectarian markers, echoing Northern Ireland’s politics of identity.
They debate the failures of integration policy to the dangers of what Embery calls ‘soft Lebanonisation’ – a creeping communalism in which people retreat into their own tribes. The political class have been slow to listen, leaving space for rising resentment over immigration and national identity. So, why is Britain so uncertain of its own identity?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
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Today James Heale has been on quite the magical mystery tour. Bundled into a bus at 7.45 a.m. along with a group of other hacks, he was sent off to an aircraft hangar in Oxfordshire where Nigel Farage finally unveiled his party’s long-awaited deportations strategy. The unveiling of ‘Operation Restoring Justice’ was accompanied by some impressive production value, including a Heathrow-style departure board and an enormous union flag.
The headlines of Farage’s mass deportation initiative are as follows: Reform will leave the ECHR and disapply the Refugee Convention for five years if elected in 2029; a new British Bill of Rights will be introduced, with all government departments required to make the migration crisis their number one ministerial priority; and all this at a cost of £2 billion. But how realistic is it? And since we now have headline deportation plans from the parties at the top of the polls (just), which is more impressive?
Oscar Edmondson speaks to James Heale and Karl Williams, research director at the Centre for Policy Studies.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
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Freddy Gray speaks to Christopher Mondics who is a legal affairs writer about how the left-wing orthodoxy has destroyed Protestantism in America. They discuss the mainline denominations in America, how 'wokeness' infiltrated the churches and why, despite some drop off, religion is still so present in America.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Svitlana Morenets says that Trump has given Zelensky cause for hope; Michael Simmons looks at how the American healthcare system is keeping the NHS afloat; Ursula Buchan explains how the Spectator shaped John Buchan; Igor Toronyi-Lalic argues that art is no place for moralising, as he reviews Rosanna McLaughlin; Richard Morris reveals how to access the many treasures locked away in private homes; and, Mark Mason provides his notes on bank holidays.
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Since the government’s decision to proscribe the group Palestine Action, arrests have mounted across the country, raising questions not only about the group’s tactics but also about the government’s handling of free speech and protest rights.
On today’s special edition of Coffee House Shots, Michael Simmons is joined by The Spectator’s James Heale and journalist Ash Sarkar to debate whether this is evidence of an increasingly authoritarian bent to Starmer’s Labour. Has the ban made prosecutions easier, or has it created a chilling effect on freedom of expression? And is this further evidence of the overreach of the attorney-general, Lord Hermer?
Also on the podcast, with Keir Starmer’s majority secured but his party’s membership dwindling, is there space for a new populist party to Labour’s left? Ash defends Jeremy Corbyn and Zara Sultana’s efforts to establish Your Party. Should they be taking a leaf out of Reform’s playbook?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
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US President Donald Trump claims Washington, D.C. has been "overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals". There are lots of stories about crime, including one very bizarre incident involving a sandwich. Just how unsafe is D.C.? Freddy Gray is joined by US managing editor Matt McDonald and Isaac Schorr, staff writer at Mediaite, who has written a piece on his experience in Washington for Spectator World.
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First: Putin has set a trap for Europe and Ukraine
‘Though you wouldn’t know from the smiles in the White House this week… a trap has been set by Vladimir Putin to split the United States from its European allies,’ warns Owen Matthews. The Russian President wants to make a deal with Donald Trump, but he ‘wants to make it on his own terms’. ‘Putin would like nothing more than for Europe to encourage Ukraine to fight on… and lose even more of their land’. But, as Owen writes, those who count themselves among the country’s friends must ask ‘whether it’s time to choose an unjust peace over a just but never-ending war’.
Have European leaders walked into Putin’s trap? Owen joins the podcast alongside Gideon Rachman of the Financial Times.
Next: Lionel Shriver, Toby Young & Igor Toronyi-Lalic on the decline of shame in society
A rise in brazen shoplifting, attempts to police public spaces and moralising over ‘Art’ – these are all topics touched on by columnists Lionel Shriver and Toby Young and Arts editor Igor Toronyi-Lalic in the magazine this week. Are these individual problems in their own right, or could they be symptomatic of wider failings in British society?
Lionel, Toby and Igor joined the podcast to try to make sense of why guilt and shame seem to have disappeared in modern Britain.
And finally: the hell of owning a holiday rental
William Cash writes in the magazine this week about the trials and tribulations of running a holiday let. He complains that the lines between hotels and holiday lets have become blurred, and people of all ages are now becoming guests from hell. He writes: ‘it has become increasingly evident that middle class families have no idea how to behave on holiday… basic guest decorum seems to belong to a different summer holiday age’.
So how did things get so bad? William joined the podcast alongside Spectator columnist Melissa Kite – who runs her own B&B in Ireland.
Plus: ahead of the long weekend, Mark Mason reveals who we can thank for bank holidays.
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Sam Leith's guest for this week's Book Club podcast is Max Hastings. Max joined Sam earlier this year for a live recording to discuss his new book Sword: D-Day, trial by battle, which tells the story of the individual stories who risked their lives as part of Operation Overlord. The discussion was arranged to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day. On the podcast Max tells Sam about why he was drawn to chronicle war, why it is important to remember all victims and not just the ‘traditional heroes’, and whether there was an alternative to D-Day at the time. Plus, how serious a moment does he think we face today, compared with 1945?
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Tom Gordon, Liberal Democrat MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, joins James Heale to discuss his campaign to improve working class representation in politics. Tom, newly elected in 2024, explains how getting his mum involved in local politics in West Yorkshire led him to think about the structural issues that exist preventing more people from getting involved in politics.
Plus, with both the Liberal Democrats and Reform UK challenging the traditional Labour and Conservative duopoly, what lessons can both parties learn from each other?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson. Photo credit: House of Commons.
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Donald Trump hasn't left his meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska with a deal to end the war in Ukraine. He told reporters that 'great progress' was made but 'we didn't get there'. To discuss who really got the upper hand, Freddy Gray is joined by Spectator associate editor and Russia correspondent Owen Matthews.
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The Bible is widely said to be the most published book of all time. Despite this, many older versions of the Bible are still sought after. This is because, as Tom Ayling tells Damian Thompson on this episode of Holy Smoke, there is a great deal of diversity amongst the editions precisely because it has been so widely published. Tom, a young antiquarian bookseller who set up his own business, joins the podcast to talk about the risks and rewards behind collecting rare books.
Tom explains why, for him, books are ‘most than just a text’; takes us through the various religious books in his collection, from old editions of the Holy Bible to the Book of Common Prayer; and reveals some of the more amusing mistakes he has come across. For more from Tom, go to: www.tomwayling.co.uk
Produced by Patrick Gibbons. Photo credit: Tom Rowland (Tom W. Ayling Ltd).
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80 years ago this week Japan surrendered to the allies, ushering in the end of the Second World War. To mark the anniversary of VJ day, historians Sir Antony Beevor and Peter Frankopan join James Heale to discuss its significance. As collective memory of the war fades, are we in danger of forgetting its lessons? And, with rising state-on-state violence and geopolitical flashpoints, is the world really safer today than in 1945?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Patrick Kidd asks why is sport so obsessed with Goats; Madeline Grant wonders why the government doesn’t show J.D. Vance the real Britain; Simon Heffer reviews Progress: A History of Humanity’s Worst Idea; Lloyd Evans provides a round-up of Edinburgh Fringe; and, Toby Young writes in praise of Wormwood Scrubs – the common, not the prison.
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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First: how Merkel killed the European dream
‘Ten years ago,’ Lisa Haseldine says, ‘Angela Merkel told the German press what she was going to do about the swell of Syrian refugees heading to Europe’: ‘Wir schaffen das’ – we can handle it. With these words, ‘she ushered in a new era of uncontrolled mass migration’. ‘In retrospect,’ explains one senior British diplomat, ‘it was pretty much the most disastrous government policy of this century anywhere in Europe.’ The surge of immigrants helped swing Brexit, ‘emboldened’ people-traffickers and ‘destabilised politics’ across Europe.
Ten years on, a third of the EU’s member states within the Schengen area have now imposed border controls. Can freedom of movement survive in its current form? Lisa joined the podcast alongside Oliver Moody, Berlin correspondent for The Times.
Next: the cultural impact of the railways
It’s been 200 years since the world’s first public train travelled from Shildon to Stockton – across County Durham. Richard Bratby argues that this marked the start of a new era for Britain and the world: ‘no invention between the printing press and the internet has had as profound a cultural impact as the railways’.
How can we explain the romantic appeal of the railways? Richard joined the podcast to discuss, alongside Christian Wolmar, author of over twenty books about the railways including The Liberation Line.
And finally: who is the Greatest Of All Time?
What do Lionel Messi, Roger Federer and Tom Brady have in common? Their acolytes would argue that they are the GOAT of their sport – the Greatest Of All Time. Why are fans so obsessed with the GOAT label? Are pundits guilty of recency bias? And does it really matter anyway? Journalist Patrick Kidd joined the podcast to discuss, alongside the Spectator’s Sam McPhail.
Plus: Madeline Grant asks why not show J.D. Vance the real Britain?
Hosted by William Moore and Gus Carter.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Sam Leith's guest for this week's Book Club podcast is Joanna Pocock, whose new book Greyhound describes two trips she took across America by Greyhound bus in 2006 and 2023. They talk about the literature of the road, that distinctively American and usually distinctively male genre, and the meaning of travel – and Joanna tells Sam how the America you see from a Greyhound differs from the one you see on television; and how dramatically it has changed even over the last couple of decades.
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Brett Graham is the man behind the Michelin-starred The Ledbury in Notting Hill, which is celebrating 20 years this year. He’s also the director of The Harwood Arms in Fulham, London’s only pub with a Michelin star.
On the podcast, Brett tells hosts Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts about why being in the kitchen is like being in the army, what it was like for The Ledbury to receive its third Michelin star and the trials and tribulations of learning food production – including ending up with 127 piglets.
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Freddy Gray speaks to podcast host and commentator Candace Owens about her story investigating whether Emmanuel Macron's wife Brigitte is a man, why she remains firm on her views about Gaza, and how Trump is doing in his presidency.
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St John Henry Newman (1801-90) is perhaps the most influential theologian in the history of English Christianity. Yet, as Damian Thompson discusses with Fr Rod Strange – one of the world’s leading authorities on Newman – he was a divisive figure, though perhaps not in the way one might imagine. One of the founders of the Oxford Movement, Newman was widely acknowledged as the most gifted intellectual in the Church of England. In 1845 he converted to Rome and was eventually made a cardinal. Thus he had a unique viewpoint on Church doctrine and dogma. But what is Newman’s significance today? Although he is universally celebrated, conservative and liberal Christians, and especially Catholics, are still fighting over his legacy.
Newman was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI, canonised by Pope Francis, and Pope Leo XIV has now announced that he will be given the title Doctor of the Church, an honour granted to only 38 out of over 10,000 saints. What is it about Newman that has inspired Pope Leo? And, coming so soon after his election, what does this decision tell us about Leo’s pontificate?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Freddy Gray is joined by author Ann Coulter in London, to discuss why she backs the rise of Reform UK, how immigration main issue voters care about this election and why she's backing Trump in his second term.
Ann Coulter's Substack can be found at: anncoulter.substack.com
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Max Jeffery reports from court as the Spectator and Douglas Murray win the defamation cause brought against them by Mohammed Hijab; Cosmo Landesman defends those who stay silent over political issues; Henry Blofeld celebrates what has been a wonderful year for test cricket; David Honigmann reflects on the powder keg that was 1980s New York, as he reviews Jonathan Mahler’s The Gods of New York; and, following the Oasis reunion, Rachel Johnson reflects on her run ins with the Gallagher brothers.
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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First: Nigel Farage is winning over women
Does – or did – Nigel Farage have a woman problem? ‘Around me there’s always been a perception of a laddish culture,’ he tells political editor Tim Shipman. In last year’s election, 58 per cent of Reform voters were men. But, Shipman argues, ‘that has begun to change’. According to More in Common, Reform has gained 14% among women, while Labour has lost 12%. ‘Women are ‘more likely than men… to worry that the country is broken.’
Many of Reform’s most recent victories have been by women: Andrea Jenkyns in the mayoral elections, Sarah Pochin to Parliament; plus, there most recent high profile defections include a former Tory Welsh Assembly member and a former Labour London councillor. What makes Reform’s success with women all the more remarkable is that it appears organic; ‘we haven’t forced this’ says Farage.
So why are women turning to Reform UK? Tim Shipman and Sarah Pochin MP join the podcast to discuss.
Next: is Italy experiencing a renaissance?
From Italy, Owen Matthews argues that Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has revived her nation. While he says that Italy has been ‘suffering from the same economic malaise’ as the rest of Europe, the macroeconomics covers up the true affordability of the country. Espressos cost €1.20, pizzas are no more than €10, and rents in even the swankiest areas are ‘laughably’ cheap compared to Britain. Plus, Owen sees none of the ‘media catastrophisation’ over issues like immigration, social cohesion and militant Islam that appears to grip the UK. So how has Meloni done it?
To discuss, Owen joined the podcast alongside Antonello Guerrera, UK & Westminster correspondent for the Italian newspaper Repubblica.
And finally: one in three British adults cannot swim
This week, Iram Ramzan provides her ‘notes on’ learning to swim saying, ‘it’s humiliating to admit that at 37’ she can’t. She’s not alone though – one third of British adults cannot swim, and the proportion appears to be rising. Iram highlights the disparities between different communities; 76 percent of South Asian women for example cannot swim 25 metres. Iram joined the podcast to discuss further, alongside fitness professional and entrepreneur Elle Linton who also learnt to swim in her thirties.
Plus: what small error led Rachel Johnson to get a telling off from Noel Gallagher? And Max Jeffery reports from court, where the Spectator and Douglas Murray have won a defamation claim brought against them by Mohammed Hijab.
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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The Spectator and Douglas Murray have comprehensively won a defamation case brought by Mohammed Hegab.
Hegab, a YouTuber who posts under the name Mohammed Hijab, claimed that an article about the Leicester riots, written by Douglas Murray and published by The Spectatorin September 2022, caused serious harm to his reputation and led to a loss of earnings. However, the judge found that the article did not cause serious harm to Hijab, that what was published was substantially true, and that Hijab had ‘lied on significant issues’ in court and had given evidence that ‘overall, is worthless’. What does this case mean for the future of press freedom?
On today’s podcast, Michael Simmons discusses the case with Alex Wilson, The Spectator’s lawyer, and Max Jeffery, who attended court on behalf of the magazine.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Megan McElroy.
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Sam Leith's guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Nicola Barker, talking about her new book TonyInterruptor -- about how a man who interrupts a free jazz concert becomes a viral sensation on social media. Nicola tells Sam why some of her books are bouts of the flu and some are sneezes, how hard she works on her apparently spontaneous prose, why she remains devoted to reality television — and about the time she went to visit Martin Amis with a ghetto blaster.
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Trump, MAGA, and US foreign policy
Kate Andrews speaks to Damir Marusic, assignment editor at The Washington Post and co-founder of Wisdom of Crowds. They examine Donald Trump’s surprising foreign policy moves in his second term: his position on the Israel-Gaza conflict, why he's armed Ukraine despite MAGA frustration, and whether his instincts are reshaping Republican foreign policy for good.
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John O’Neill and Sam McPhail, the Spectator’s research and data team, join economics editor Michael Simmons to re-introduce listeners to the Spectator’s data hub. They take us through the process between the data hub and how their work feeds into the weekly magazine. From crime to migration, which statistics are the most controversial? Why can’t we agree on data? Plus – whose data is presented better, the Americans or the French?
For more from the Spectator’s data hub – which may, or may not look like the thumbnail photo – go to: data.spectator.co.uk
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Megan McElroy.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Michael Simmons argues that Trump is winning the tariff war with China; Kapil Komireddi reviews Robert Ivermee’s Glorious Failure: The Forgotten History of French Imperialism in India; Margaret Mitchell watches a Channel 4 documentary on Bonnie Blue and provides a warning to parents; David Abulafia provides his notes on wax seals; and, Melissa Kite says that her B&B is the opposite of organic.
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Massacres in Syria and the Congo: why aren't Western elites, including the Churches, drawing attention to religious persecution?
After the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, many people voiced fears that the religious minorities in the country could face increased persecution. This could be at the hands of the new government’s supporters, or simply because the new regime can't protect them. Now those fears appear to have been realised. There is rising sectarian violence against Christians, the Alawites and the Druze (pictured). There are also frequent barbaric attacks on Christians in parts of Africa: more than 40 Christians have just been murdered by Islamists in the Democratic Republic of the Congo while attending church.
Fr Benedict Kiely joins Damian Thompson on this episode of Holy Smoke to discuss the background to this violence, the role of inter-faith score-settling, and why the global West – including leaders of the Catholic Church – seem more interested in migration than the slaughter of Christians and other people of faith.
A Catholic priest of the Ordinariate, Fr Ben is a leading campaigner for religious believers around the world, and especially in the Middle East, and the founder of the charity nasarean.org.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Is the Online Safety Act protecting children – or threatening free speech? Michael Simmons hosts John Power, who writes the Spectator's cover piece this week on how the Act has inadvertently created online censorship. Implemented and defended by the current Labour government, it is actually the result of legislation passed by the Conservatives in 2023 – which Labour did not support at the time, arguing it didn’t go far enough.
Michael and John joined by former Conservative MP Miriam Cates who defends the core aims and principles at the heart of the Act. They debate the principles of Big Tech, the risks of government overreach and whether freedom of expression is under threat.
Produced by Megan McElroy and Patrick Gibbons.
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Lionel Shriver on Trump’s vendetta, Mamdani’s ‘stupid’ ideas & sentimental immigration
Deputy US editor Kate Andrews is joined by author and Spectator columnist Lionel Shriver to assess Donald Trump’s turbulent second term. They discuss the rise of socialism in New York, why fairness is warping immigration policy, and whether Trump’s obsession with lawfare and vengeance is undoing his own presidency.
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First: the new era of censorship
A year ago, John Power notes, the UK was consumed by race riots precipitated by online rumours about the perpetrator of the Southport atrocity. This summer, there have been protests, but ‘something is different’. With the introduction of the Online Safety Act, ‘the government is exerting far greater control over what can and can’t be viewed online’. While the act ‘promises to protect minors from harmful material’, he argues that it is ‘the most sweeping attempt by any liberal democracy to bring the online world under the control of the state’.
Implemented and defended by the current Labour government, it is actually the result of legislation passed by the Conservatives in 2023 – which Labour did not support at the time, arguing it didn’t go far enough. So how much of a danger is the Act to free speech in Britain?
John joined the podcast to discuss further alongside former Conservative minister Steve Baker, MP from 2010-24, and who was one of the biggest critics of the bill within the Conservative Party at the time.
Next: should we be worried about protests against migrants?
This week, outside a hotel in Epping, groups amassed to protest against the migrants housed there, with counter-protestors appearing in turn. Tommy Robinson might not have appeared in the end, but the Spectator’s Max Jeffrey did, concluding that the protests were ultimately ‘anticlimactic’.
Nevertheless, the protests have sparked debate about the motivations of those speaking out against the migrants – are there legitimate concerns voiced by locals, or are the protests being manipulated by figures on the political fringes? And what do the protests tell us about community tensions in the UK? Max joined the podcast to discuss alongside the editor of Spiked Tom Slater.
And finally: why are ‘romantasy’ novels so popular?
Lara Brown writes in the magazine this week about the phenomenon of the genre ‘romantasy’, which mixes romance with fantasy. While ‘chick-lit’ is nothing new, Lara argues that this is ‘literature taken to its lowest form’, emblematic of the terminally online young people who consume it. Nevertheless, it is incredibly popular and is credited by publishers as boosting the British fiction industry to over £1 billion. To unpack the genre's popularity, Lara joined the podcast, alongside Sarah Maxwell, the founder of London’s first romance-only bookshop Saucy Books, based in Notting Hill.
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Megan McElroy.
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Sam Leith is joined for this week's Book Club podcast by Gary Shteyngart — whose new novel Vera, or Faith is set in a near-future America whose politics seems to be less science-fictional by the day. It tells the unexpectedly tender story of a bright but lonely ten-year-old girl contending with her parents' failing marriage and navigating the beginnings of a friendship. Gary tells Sam how parenthood changed him as a writer, how his feelings about his Russian heritage have shifted uncomfortably in light both of the Ukraine invasion and the US's fresh hostility to migrants, and why Writers' Tears is his students' drink of choice.
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Donald Trump is in Scotland, holding court at Turnberry. He's welcomed Sir Keir and Lady Victoria Starmer to his golf course, and had a long discussion with reporters at a wide ranging press conference, that covered Russia, Gaza, and his long running feud with London mayor Sadiq Khan. To unpack it all, Freddy is joined by political editor Tim Shipman, and deputy US editor Kate Andrews.
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Charlotte Ivers is the restaurant critic for the Sunday Times; most recently she reviewed Lupa, Fenix and Home SW15. Charlotte started her career as a media adviser in Theresa May’s Number 10, before she moved into the world of radio. She was a political correspondent at talkRADIO and Wireless Group before joining Times Radio.
On the podcast, Charlotte tells hosts Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts about chasing the high she felt from tasting risotto for the first time, how a second date unwittingly converted her from vegetarianism and what she thinks makes a good restaurant critic.
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Douglas Murray on conspiracy America, lawfare & the new age of suspicion
Donald Trump promised to release the Epstein files – so why hasn't he? Spectator columnist Douglas Murray joins Kate Andrews to discuss the scandal that won't go away, what it says about trust in institutions, and why even Trump’s most loyal supporters are starting to turn on him.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Ian Thomson on what the destruction of the Hotel Oloffson means for Haiti (00:54); Patrick Kidd analyses Donald Trump and the art of golf diplomacy (06:43); Mike Cormack reviews Irvine Welsh’s Men In Love (16:49); Ursula Buchan provides her notes on the Palm House at Kew (20:38); and, Richard Bratby argues that Johann Strauss deserves better than to be the victim of snobbery – plus listen to the end for an extract from Strauss’s Emperor Waltz (24:24).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Katie Lam became an MP in 2024 after a career in finance. She's also an accomplished scriptwriter, having co-written five musicals. She's one of the most exciting new intake MPs, and she's ruffling feathers in Westminster and beyond. She joins political editor Tim Shipman to discuss everything from her vision for the country to the ECHR, and shares her political ambitions.
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Did Condé Nast shape the world?
In this episode of Americano, Freddy Gray speaks with New York Times writer and debut author Michael Grynbaum about his new book Empire of the Elite, a sweeping history of Condé Nast – the media empire that once dictated American taste, fashion, and celebrity. From Anna Wintour’s carefully staged exit to the vanished world of glossy magazine grandeur, Grynbaum charts how the institution that once crowned cultural royalty is struggling to stay relevant in an era of TikTok stars and Substack columnists.
On the podcast they explore the rise of celebrity culture, the influence of British identity on Condé’s editorial direction, and the complex relationship between Donald Trump and the house that built (and later disowned) him.
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The soul suckers of private equity, Douglas Murray on Epstein and MAGA & are literary sequels ‘lazy’?
First up: how private equity is ruining Britain
Gus Carter writes in the magazine this week about how foreign private equity (PE) is hollowing out Britain – PE now owns everything from a Pret a Manger to a Dorset village, and even the number of children’s homes owned by PE has doubled in the last five years. This ‘gives capitalism a bad name’, he writes. Perhaps the most symbolic example is in the water industry, with water firms now squeezed for money and saddled with debt. British water firms now have a debt-to-equity ratio of 70%, compared to just 4% in 1991. Britain’s desperation for foreign money has, quite literally, left Britain ‘in the shit’.
Gus joined the podcast to discuss further, alongside the journalist Megan Greenwell, author of Bad Company: Private Equity and the Death of the American Dream. (00:46)
Next: why is MAGA so incensed over Jeffrey Epstein?
Six years after he died, the Jeffrey Epstein scandal is still haunting Donald Trump. Trump had vowed to release all files on various cases that attract conspiracy theorists – from JFK to Martin Luther King Jr. What makes the Epstein case different, as Douglas Murray writes in the magazine this week, is that the case was so recent and Epstein’s ties with the elites, many of whom are still in power. Trump appeared to backtrack on releasing files relating to Epstein, prompting ire from the MAGA world, and there is now mounting cross-party pressure to uncover who knew what. Mike Johnson, the House speaker, sent representatives home early for summer, and there is even talk of Ghislaine Maxwell testifying.
Why is the Epstein scandal such a lightning rod for MAGA rage? Douglas Murray joined the Spectator to discuss. The full interview can be found on Spectator TV. (15:49)
And finally: are literary sequels ‘lazy’?
It’s ‘sod’s law’, says the Spectator’s literary editor Sam Leith, that when a friend’s book is due to be reviewed in the pages of the books section that you edit, the review will be bad. Mike Cormack reviews Men In Love by Irvine Welsh this week, calling the decision by Welsh to pen another sequel to Trainspotting ‘lazy’. At the Spectator this made us ponder whether this is true of all literary sequels, and what motivates authors to stick with characters and stories that they know.
Sam joined us to discuss further alongside Lucy Thynne, the Telegraph’s deputy literary editor. (33:59)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Megan McElroy.
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My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is the biographer Frances Wilson, whose new book Electric Spark: The Enigma of Muriel Spark was recently lauded in these pages as "mesmerising" and "a revolutionary book". She tells me how she immersed herself in the spooky life and peerless art of the great novelist, and why a conventional biographical treatment would never have been adequate to a subject for whom fiction and reality twined in unexpected and disconcerting ways.
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What's left of the Tories?
The Commons is closing down for the summer, but Kemi Badenoch has treated us to a shadow cabinet reshuffle. At the beginning of the year, Badenoch’s team were keen to stress stability, dismissing talk of an early reshuffle. But, as so often in politics, events have forced her hand. Ed Argar, the shadow health secretary, had a health scare earlier this summer. He has today stepped back from the frontbench to focus on his recovery. Badenoch is therefore using his departure as the chance to make what she calls ‘a few changes to my frontbench.’
The headline is that Sir James Cleverly, former foreign and home secretary, is returning to the front bench as shadow housing secretary. Is his new position designed to take on Angela Rayner? And what's Badenoch planning to do about the Jenrick question? Lucy Dunn speaks to Michael Gove and Tim Shipman.
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Is Epstein the new Russiagate?
Freddy Gray is joined by Spectator writer Roger Kimball. They delve into the Epstein claims, the media's handling of the story, Trump’s economic agenda, and whether the MAGA movement is holding strong or starting to splinter.
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Will AI have rights?
Freddy Gray speaks to Spectator writer Paul Wood about his piece this the latest edition of Spectator World on AI and whether it will soon have rights. This first came about when Paul went to live in Rome and discovered some of the work the Vatican has been doing in AI.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Mark Mason reminisces about old English bank notes (00:33), Philip Patrick wonders whether AI will replace politicians in Japan (04:04), Matthew Parris wonders why you would ever trust a travel writer (10:34) and Mary Wakefield looks at the weird world of cults (17:42).
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The strange death of Tory England has been predicted before. But never has the ‘natural party of government’ faced a greater challenge to survive. The Conservatives are facing attacks on all fronts from Labour, the Liberal Democrats and Reform UK. Kemi Badenoch’s six-month anniversary as leader was marked by the loss of nearly 700 councillors, with a stern test awaiting next year in Scotland and in Wales. She promises change with her long-awaited policy commissions, ahead of a make-or-break party conference in October, but can she turn it around? Is there a road back to power for the 121 surviving Tory MPs? And what exactly is Robert Jenrick and the rest of the shadow cabinet up to?
Join editor Michael Gove, new political editor Tim Shipman, assistant editor Isabel Hardman and the pollster Luke Tryl as they discuss where the Tories go from here.
This event is in partnership with Charles Stanley Wealth Managers.
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Trump has said he's "very, very unhappy" with Russia, and threatened severe tariffs against them if there's no deal on Ukraine within 50 days. He's also sending more weapons to Ukraine in coordination with NATO. What's behind his change of heart on foreign policy, and how's his MAGA base responding? Freddy Gray is joined by deputy US editor Kate Andrews, and Sergey Radchenko, professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.
You can watch this episode here: https://youtu.be/J_QvBDhAGgU
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First up: how the Bank of England wrecked the economy
Britain’s economy is teetering on the brink of a deep fiscal hole, created by billions of pounds of unfunded spending – never-ending health promises, a spiralling welfare bill and a triple lock on the state pension, which will cost three times as much as originally estimated.
Although politicians ‘deserve much of the blame for the economic state we’re in’, it’s Andrew Bailey – Michael Simmons argues in the magazine this week – who ‘has enabled their recklessness’.
He joined the podcast to discuss who really broke Britain with Kate Andrews, Deputy Editor of The Spectator’s world edition and former Economics Editor. (01:15)
Next: has Ukraine lost faith in Zelensky?
Whilst Donald Trump’s surprise ‘newfound support for Ukraine is a welcome lifeline’, Owen Matthews writes in the magazine this week, ‘the question is whether his help will be enough to stop Russia’s relentless attacks before Ukraine is engulfed in a critical military, political and social crisis that threatens to destroy it from within’. Ukraine is running out of men, and is racked by corruption scandals and purges. As a consequence, public faith in Volodymyr Zelensky is declining.
To discuss what’s next for Ukraine, Owen joined the podcast. (24:29)
And finally: the joys of mudlarking
In the arts section of the magazine this week, Margaret Mitchell reviews a new exhibition at the Museum of London Docklands on mudlarking – the practice of combing at low tide for washed-up items of historical interest. These can include everything from statues of Roman gods and goddesses to the common vape – and it’s a hobby that is booming in popularity.
To discuss, Margaret joined the podcast alongside Lara Maiklem, mudlarker and Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. (41:07)
Hosted by William Moore and Gus Carter.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
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My guest this week is Irvine Welsh – who, three decades after his era-defining hit Trainspotting, returns with a direct sequel, Men In Love. Irvine tells me what Sick Boy, Renton, Spud and Begbie mean to him, why his new book hopes to encourage a new generation to discover Romantic verse and shagging, and why MDMA deserves more credit for the Good Friday Agreement than Tony Blair.
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Candice Chung is a food writer whose work has been featured in many publications, including the Guardian. Her first book, Chinese Parents Don’t Say I Love You, is out now.
On the podcast, she tells Liv about her earliest memories of food growing up in Hong Kong, why trying lasagne for the first time was a magical experience, and how Chinese parents show their love through food.
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Last week The Spectator held a live event entitled ‘Recovering the Sacred’ in the glorious surroundings of St Bartholomew the Great, the oldest parish church in the City of London.
The speakers included two London parish priests – one Anglican, one Catholic – who have contributed much to the growing interest among young people in traditional liturgy and Christian theology, a development that the hierarchy of their respective churches certainly didn’t foresee.
They were the Rev Marcus Walker, Rector of St Bart’s, whose Prayer Book Evensongs and Eucharists attract large numbers of young professionals to his ancient church; and Fr Julian Large, the Provost of the Brompton Oratory, where an increasingly youthful congregation flocks to Latin Masses.
We also heard from Dr Cosima Gilhammer, a Fellow in English at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, whose writings on the rhythms and symbolism of the liturgy are deeply inspiring; The Spectator’s editor, Michael Gove; and the Rev Prof Andrew Davison, Regius Professor of Divinity at Oxford University, who also holds a doctorate in biochemistry.
The evening concluded with a panel discussion chaired by Holy Smoke’s presenter, Damian Thompson, and – a real treat – a performance of Catholic and Anglican motets sung by the renowned choir of St Bart’s.
The event was completely sold out. Inevitably, many were disappointed not to attend in person – but the microphones were running, and so we are delighted to present ‘Recovering the Sacred’.
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As Labour looks to get a grip on public spending, one rebellion gives way to another with the changes to the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) system threatening to become welfare round two.
On this week’s Saturday edition of Coffee House Shots, Lucy Dunn is joined by The Spectator’s Michael Simmons and former Ofsted chief Amanda Spielman to explore what the government is planning – and why so many Labour MPs are worried. Is the system failing the children it's meant to support, or simply costing too much? And can Labour afford to fix it without tearing itself apart?
Listen for: Amanda on the unintended consequences of the 2014 SEND overhaul; why teaching assistants may not be the silver bullet schools think they are; and Labour’s mess over Ofsted. Michael Simmons also outlines the fiscal timebomb threatening local authorities; the cultural shift post-Covid that’s changed how we approach education; and why one Labour insider is warning, ‘If you thought cutting support for disabled adults was bad, wait till you try it with children.’
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
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This week: Sophia Falkner profiles some of the eccentric personalities we stand to lose when Keir Starmer purges the hereditary peers; Roger Lewis’s piece on the slow delight of an OAP coach tour is read by the actor Robert Bathurst; Olivia Potts reviews two books in the magazine that use food as a prism through which to discuss Ukrainian heritage and resistance; Aidan Hartley reads his Wild Life column; and Toby Young reflects on the novel experience of being sober at The Spectator summer party.
Hosted and produced by Oscar Edmondson.
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This week: Peerless – the purge of the hereditary peers
For this week’s cover, Charles Moore declares that the hereditary principle in Parliament is dead. Even though he lacks ‘a New Model Army’ to enforce the chamber’s full abolition, Keir Starmer is removing the hereditary peers. In doing so, he creates more room, reduces the Conservatives’ numerical advantage, and improves ‘the sex and ethnic balance’. But 86 hard-working and dutiful peers ‘lacking worldly ambition or partisan passions’ will be lost.
Also in the magazine, Sophia Falkner, researcher at The Spectator, sets out exactly what we stand to lose by profiling some of the most capable hereditary peers in the House. She warns that Labour’s purge is ripping the heart out of the Lords. Sophia and Charles spoke to Natasha Feroze earlier this week on Spectator TV – you can also hear their discussion on the podcast. (01:10)
Next: Why should the hunt for the next Archbishop of Canterbury be ‘inclusive’?
That’s the question Revd Fergus Butler-Gallie asks in the magazine this week. ‘It will be a miracle,’ writes Butler-Gallie, ‘if we know the name of the new Primate of All England by the autumn.’ Justin Welby announced his resignation as Archbishop of Canterbury last November; it took until May this year even to assemble the committee to discuss his potential successors.
For Butler-Gallie, the process doesn’t have to be swift – it only has to be ‘holy’. To discuss what exactly constitutes a ‘holy process’ – and what this drawn-out process says about the Church – he joined us alongside Esme Partridge, journalist and master’s student in philosophy and religion at Cambridge University. (18:57)
Finally: Does AI belong on the tennis court?
Patrick Kidd writes in the magazine about the creep of AI spoiling sport, following a high-profile incident during this week’s Wimbledon tournament in which the AI system stands accused of ‘human error’. To discuss, Kidd was joined by Dr Tom Webb, founder of the Referee and Sports Official Research Network. (34:16)
Hosted by William Moore and Gus Carter
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Ed Harvey
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My guest this week is the writer M. John Harrison, who joins me to talk about the rerelease of his 1992 novel The Course of the Heart – a deeply strange and riddling story of grief, friendship, memory and occult magic. We talk about why this book is so personal to him, what he learned from Charles Williams and Arthur Machen, turning his back on science fiction/fantasy and returning to it – as well as how probably the most acclaimed of all his novels, Light, came about after Iain Banks told him he wasn't having enough fun.
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Zut alors! The French are in town. Emmanuel Macron is on his state visit this week, spending time today with the King and tomorrow with the Prime Minister. His itinerary includes a state dinner and an address to both Houses of Parliament this afternoon.
All the pageantry, of course, is for a reason: to defrost what Tim Shipman calls the ‘entente glaciale’ and the stalemate over migration. Keir will be hoping to get the French to sign a ‘one in, one out’ migration deal – with Labour seemingly surprised that, upon coming into power, the French didn’t roll over and make concessions on small boats when a left-wing government took office. Can we expect a new entente cordiale? Is there anything in it for Macron when it comes to stopping the boats?
We also received the sad news today that Tory grandee Norman Tebbit and regular Spectator contributor Jonathan Miller have passed away. We remember both of them on the podcast.
James Heale speaks to Tim Shipman and Freddy Gray.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Megan McElroy.
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Victor Davis Hanson, classicist, historian, and author of The End of Everything, joins Freddy Gray to discuss Zoran Mamdani’s shock candidacy win, the future of the Democratic Party, and rising class tensions in American politics. They also explore third-party prospects, Trump’s economic policies, and shifting global dynamics.
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Cast your mind back a year. Labour had just won a storming majority, promising ‘change’ to a stale Tory party that was struggling to govern. But have things got any better?
In the magazine this week, Tim Shipman writes the cover piece to mark the occasion of Labour’s first year in government. He takes readers through three chapters: from Sue Gray (freebies scandal and winter fuel cut) to Morgan McSweeney (a degree of professionalisation and dealing with the Donald) to the point at which ‘things fall apart’ (assisted dying, the welfare vote and Reeves’s tears).
On the podcast, Tim is joined by The Spectator’s James Heale as well as sketchwriter and long-time Westminster mischief-maker Quentin Letts to go through the events and personalities that have contributed to the dysfunction.
Listen for: Tim’s run-in with Lord Hermer at the US Ambassador’s bash; why Jeremy Corbyn’s mooted political party could cause a chasm in the Labour party to rival the one tearing the Conservatives apart; who the targets for the chop might be, should there be a reshuffle; how young members of the Labour party are beginning their charm offensive on Angela Rayner; and why politicians have failed to grasp the banal fundamentals that make a great political performer.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: John Connolly argues that Labour should look to Andy Burnham for inspiration (1:51); Gavin Mortimer asks if Britain is ready for France’s most controversial novel – Jean Raspail’s The Camp of the Saints (4:55); Dorian Lynskey looks at the race to build the first nuclear weapons, as he reviews Frank Close’s Destroyer of Worlds (11:23); Steve Morris provides his notes on postcards (16:44); and, Lloyd Evans reflects on British and Irish history as he travels around Dublin (20:44).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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This week: one year of Labour – the verdict
In the magazine this week Tim Shipman declares his verdict on Keir Starmer’s Labour government as we approach the first anniversary of their election victory.
One year on, some of Labour’s most notable policies have been completely changed – from the u-turn over winter fuel allowance to the embarrassing climb-down over welfare this week. Starmer has appeared more confident on the world stage but, for domestic audiences, this is small consolation when the public has perceived little change on the problems that have faced Britain for years. Can Starmer turn it around?
Tim joined the podcast alongside the Spectator’s editor Michael Gove. What would they say Starmer’s greatest mistake, and biggest success, have been over the past year? (1:46)
Next: would Zohran Mamdani ruin New York?
In the magazine this week, the Spectator’s deputy US editor Kate Andrews writes about Zohran Mamdani – the self-declared ‘democratic socialist’ who defied expectations to become the Democratic Party’s presumptive candidate for the New York City mayoral election this November.
From a little-known state assemblyman to the mayoral heir presumptive – how did Mamdani do it? And what effect could his policies have? Kate joined the podcast alongside the Spectator’s US editor Freddy Gray. (24:03)
And finally: ‘admit it – most wedding toasts are awful’
Are wedding toasts as awful as Madeline Grant says they are in the magazine this week?
Maddie writes about the trend for multiple speeches at weddings, beyond the traditional three, blaming creeping Americanisms and the feminist revolution, amongst other things. These, compounded with widespread poor oratory skills, means the playbill looks ‘fuller and fuller’ and guests are denied a moment to ‘at least dull the horror with alcohol’. Should we push back against the trend?
Maddie joined the podcast alongside professional speechwriter Damian Reilly. (35:37)
Hosted by William Moore and Gus Carter.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Sam Leith's guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is one of the most popular living thriller writers. Karin Slaughter has made her native Georgia her fictional territory, and she joins Sam as she launches a new series set in a whole new county, with the book We Are All Guilty Here. They talk 'planning versus pantsing', what it means to write violence against women as a woman and how becoming the showrunner for television compares to the sovereignty of the novelist.
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Nearly everyone loves Robert Prevost, the unassuming baseball fan from Chicago who unexpectedly became Pope Leo XIV this year. But as he prepares to spend his summer in Castel Gandolfo he has some difficult decisions to make. Is he prepared to clear up all the doctrinal confusion created by his predecessor Pope Francis? And will he allow liberal bishop to continue to persecute Catholics who prefer the ancient Latin form of Mass?
Damian Thompson gives us his thoughts in advance of Recovering the Sacred, a Spectator event at St Bartholomew-the-Great in the City of London on July 8 featuring debate and sacred music illustrating the recovery of tradition by a new generation of Christians. For tickets and more information, go to spectator.co.uk/church.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Thomasina Miers is a chef, writer and restaurateur who co-founded Wahaca – the award-winning restaurant group that brought bold, sustainable Mexican street food to the UK. Her new book, Mexican Table, is out in August.
On the podcast, Thomasina tells Lara about early memories of stirring onion with her mother, why she moved her family across the world to live in Mexico, and why bread is the ultimate comfort food.
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There have been a number of navel-gazing interviews with the Prime Minister over the weekend. Across thousands and thousands of words, he seems to be saying – if you read between the lines – that he doesn’t particularly enjoy being PM.
In better news, Labour seems to have quelled the welfare rebellion. Liz Kendall is making a statement in the Commons this afternoon, in which she will outline the concessions that Labour has made on its controversial welfare bill. All in, the cost has spiralled by £3 billion per calendar year – which an already put-upon Chancellor will have to find. Whilst it remains the largest rebellion of this government, the number of rebels has shrunk to around 50.
Also on the podcast, Wes Streeting is due to announce his – much-delayed – ten-year plan for the NHS. We are expecting a number of big shifts in Thursday’s announcement, including: moving from analogue to digital, swapping treatment for prevention, and hospital for community. Does Wes have the perspiration for the ailing NHS?
James Heale speaks to Tim Shipman and Isabel Hardman.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
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As Labour rebels appear to have forced concessions from Keir Starmer over welfare this week, former Conservative MP Steve Baker joins James Heale to reflect on his own time as a rebel, and to provide some advice to Labour MPs. Steve, an MP for 14 years and a minister under Theresa May, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, tells James about the different rebellions he was a part of (from Brexit to Covid), explains how to organise a successful one and reveals how he has lost close friends when he has made the decision to compromise.
He also blames Labour’s problems on their ‘bombs not benefits’ approach, explains why the current welfare rebellion demonstrates that ‘the facts of life are Conservative’ and argues that it has been a mistake for the Conservatives not the support Labour’s original approach to reducing the winter fuel allowance.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Megan McElroy.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Peter Frankopan argues that Israel’s attack on Iran has been planned for years (2:00); just how bad are things for Kemi Badenoch, asks Tim Shipman (13:34); Francis Pike says there are plenty of reasons to believe in ghosts (21:49); Hermione Eyre, wife of Alex Burghart MP, reviews Sarah Vine’s book How Not To Be a Political Wife: A Memoir, which deals with Vine’s marriage to ex-husband Michael Gove (28:46); and, George Young reports on the French sculptors building the new Statue of Liberty (34:45).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Against all odds, Zohran Mamdani, the 33-year-old state assemblyman and proud 'Muslim democratic socialist' won as as the Democratic nominee for New York City mayor. Aidan McLaughlin wrote about this for Spectator World. On this episode of Americano, Freddy Gray speaks to Aidan about how Mamdani defeated the favourite Andrew Cuomo, whether his success is attributed to TikTok and whether Zohran is really the voice of the 'oppressed'.
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This week: war and peace
Despite initial concerns, the ‘Complete and Total CEASEFIRE’ – according to Donald Trump – appears to be holding. Tom Gross writes this week’s cover piece and argues that a weakened Iran offers hope for the whole Middle East. But how? He joined the podcast to discuss further, alongside Gregg Carlstrom, the Economist’s Middle East correspondent based in Dubai. (01:51)
Next: why are so many restaurants offering halal meat?
Angus Colwell writes about the growing popularity of halal meat in British restaurants. This isn’t confined to certain food groups or particular areas – halal is now being offered across restaurants serving all sorts of cuisine, from Chinese to Mexican. But why is it so popular? And is it just a trend, or part of a wider shift for British restaurants? Angus joined the podcast to discuss further, alongside restaurateur James Chiavarini, owner of Il Portico and La Palombe, both in Kensington. (23:46)
And finally: millennials, the brown furniture is on its way
The ‘great wealth transfer’ – the transfer of trillions in wealth from boomers to millennials – is oft-discussed, but Arabella Byrne argues this goes far beyond just money. Brown furniture, from desks to cabinets to mirrors, will be passed on as inheritance by boomers who downsize – and Arabella says this is ‘the abject symbol of generational misalignment’. Arabella joined the podcast to discuss further, alongside The Spectator’s economics editor Michael Simmons. (33:07)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
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My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is science writer Carl Zimmer, whose new book Air-Borne: The Hidden History of the Life We Breathe explores the invisible world of the aerobiome – the trillions of microbes and particles we inhale every day. He tells me how Louis Pasteur's glacier experiments kicked off a forgotten scientific journey; how Cold War fears turned airborne research into a bioweapons race; and why the COVID-19 pandemic exposed a century-long misunderstanding about how diseases spread through the air.
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It is rare to see the President so visibly frustrated (see The Apprentice, circa 2004), but after Iran and Israel seemingly ignored his ceasefire announcement – and his plea on Truth Social, ‘PLEASE DO NOT VIOLATE IT!’ – Donald Trump has come down hard on both sides. In a clip taken this afternoon he exclaimed: ‘These are countries who have been fighting so long and so hard, that they don’t know what the f*** they’re doing.’ Succinctly put by the President.
The exchange of fire could be the expected tit-for-tat seen after the announcement of ceasefires in other global conflicts, but it has dampened the mood at Nato, which world leaders were approaching with cautious optimism, believing the road to de-escalation was clearing. What happens next?
Also on the podcast, Keir Starmer is facing a huge rebellion less than a year after coming into power. Overnight, scores of Starmer’s MPs have signed a reasoned amendment to the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill. This would effectively kill the bill at its second reading in the Commons on Tuesday. Can he de-escalate the precarious domestic situation?
Lucy Dunn speaks to James Heale and Michael Stephens.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
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Today’s Holy Smoke is a curtain-raiser for ‘Recovering the Sacred’, a Spectator event at St Bartholow-the-Great in the City of London in which a panel of experts will explore the rediscovery of traditional worship and theology by young Anglicans and Catholics. The event will be held on Tuesday 8th July; for more details, and to book tickets, go to: spectator.co.uk/church
In today’s episode Damian Thompson talks to Anglican James Vitali and Catholic Georgia Clarke, two Generation Z professionals bursting with enthusiasm for their faith. It’s an exhilarating discussion; don’t miss it.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On this week’s special Saturday edition of Coffee House Shots, James Heale sits down with Jeremy Hunt to discuss his new book, Can We Be Great Again?. The former chancellor and foreign secretary argues that Britain remains one of the world’s most influential nations – but is in danger of losing its nerve. He reflects on working in the Foreign Office during Donald Trump’s first term, makes the case for the BBC as a tool of soft power, and admits he wanted to be the first chancellor since 1997 to deliver a Budget with a whisky in hand.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Owen Matthews says that Venice’s residents never stop complaining (1:11); Bijan Omrani reads his church notebook (7:33); Andrew Hankinson reviews Tiffany Jenkins’s Strangers and Intimates: The Rise and Fall of Private Life (13:54); as 28 Years Later is released, Laurie Penny explains the politics behind Alex Garland’s film franchise (18:25); and, Andrew Watts provides his notes on Angel Delight (25:09).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Starmer’s war zone: the Prime Minister’s perilous position
This week, our new political editor Tim Shipman takes the helm and, in his cover piece, examines how Keir Starmer can no longer find political refuge in foreign affairs. After a period of globe-trotting in which the Prime Minister was dubbed ‘never-here Keir’, Starmer’s handling of international matters had largely been seen as a strength. But as tensions escalate in the Iran–Israel conflict, global events are beginning to create serious challenges. They threaten not only to derail the government’s economic plans but also to deepen divisions within the Labour party, particularly between the leadership and much of the parliamentary party. Tim joined the podcast alongside The Spectator US editor Freddy Gray. (02:08)
Next: is it a mistake to try and topple Iran’s Supreme Leader?
Justin Marozzi asks if we are seeing ‘an ominous mission creep in Israel’s blistering attack on Iran’. Donald Trump has been calling for the ‘UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER’ of Iran, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been directly addressing the Iranian people. The regime may be unpopular, but how realistic is the expectation of regime change? Marozzi joined the podcast alongside Michael Stephens, a Middle East expert at the defence and security thinktank Rusi. (19:07)
And finally: should we embrace feeling shame?
Stuart Jeffries reviews a new book by the French philosopher Frédéric Gros in the books section of the magazine this week. A Philosophy of Shame: A Revolutionary Emotion argues that shame should be embraced, rather than avoided. So, in an era of ‘cancel culture’ and public shaming – not to mention some of the shamelessness exhibited by social media influencers – can ‘shame’ be a good thing? Stuart joined the podcast to discuss. (34:31)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
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My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is the historian William Dalrymple, whose bestselling account of ancient India’s cultural and economic influence, The Golden Road, is newly out in paperback. He tells me why the ‘Silk Road’ is a myth, how Arabic numerals are really Indian – and how he responds to being Narendra Modi’s new favourite author.
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Nadine Dorries is one of the most recognisable Conservative politicians from the past two decades. Elected as the MP for Mid Bedfordshire in 2005, she notably clashed with David Cameron and George Osborne (who she called ‘two arrogant posh boys’) and lost the whip in 2012 when she took part in the reality show I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here. Loyal to Boris Johnson, she served in his government and rose to be Culture Secretary. She stood down in 2023 and went on to write about politics in the bestselling books The Plot and Downfall.
On the podcast, Nadine tells the Spectator’s executive editor Lara Prendergast about her memories of tinned burgers and Sunday lunches as a child, working long shifts as a nurse in Warrington and what it was like spending a year in Zambia. She also explains the ‘relentless’ but ‘collegiate’ atmosphere of Parliament and how she once saw a mouse at the Commons’ salad bar. Nadine explains what it is like to have recently used the weight-loss jab Mounjaro and why, in her family, she is still the ‘queen of the Sunday roast’.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Relations between Iran and Israel are deteriorating rapidly, with comparisons being drawn to Israel’s 1981 strike on Iraq’s Osirak nuclear reactor. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears to be advocating for regime change in Tehran, reportedly encouraging the United States to take military action. Donald Trump, who previously came close to authorising a strike, is now said to be more cautious – mindful of the risks of exposing American forces abroad and being drawn into another protracted conflict, contrary to the non-interventionist platform on which he was elected. The Iranian regime, built on a foundation of resistance, is responding to Israel’s attacks while also expanding its network of regional proxies, which now extends as far as South America and east Africa. Iran is believed to be only weeks away from producing weapons-grade uranium, meaning that failure to institute regime change may lead Tehran to accelerate its nuclear ambitions – particularly if tensions are eased while the current regime remains in power.
Russia, meanwhile, has positioned itself as a strategic disruptor. By maintaining dialogue with both Tehran and Jerusalem, Moscow retains influence over developments without aligning itself fully with either side. Although it has refrained from supplying Iran with its most advanced military technology, its ambiguous stance offers it significant leverage. While global energy prices have thus far remained stable, the possibility of disruption cannot be discounted. Cautious but alert, the Gulf states are keen to avoid direct involvement. The broader question now facing the international community is whether diplomacy can contain the crisis – or whether the region is edging closer to a far more serious and destabilising confrontation.
To discuss the conflict, Freddy Gray speaks to Owen Matthews and Charlie Gammell.
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In honour of the author Frederick Forsyth, who died early this week, please enjoy this episode of the Book Club podcast, from the archives, in which he joined Sam Leith in 2021 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of his classic thriller The Day of the Jackal.
On the podcast Frederick tells Sam about banging it out in a few weeks on a typewriter with a bullet hole in it, the shady characters who informer his research, and how he never realised that – for much of its readers – the Jackal would be the hero…
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The Spectator’s economics editor Michael Simmons is joined by the outgoing boss of the Institute for Fiscal Studies Paul Johnson and the CEO of the Resolution Foundation Ruth Curtice to understand why Britain’s economy is in such a bad place. Given it feels like we are often in a doom loop of discussion about tax rises, does this point to a structural problem with the British economy? And why are the public’s expectations so out of line with the state’s capabilities?
Michael, Paul and Ruth talk about whether it’s fair for Labour to claim they’ve been ending austerity, the extent to which the effects of the covid-19 pandemic are still being felt and if tax rises are inevitable. Plus – if Ruth and Paul had the opportunity to be an economic Treasury dictator, what one policy would they enact to make a big change?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Sean Thomas reflects on the era of lads mags (1:07); John Power reveals those unfairly gaming the social housing system (6:15); Susie Moss reviews Ripeness by Sarah Moss (11:31); Olivia Potts explains the importance of sausage rolls (14:21); and, Rory Sutherland speaks in defence of the Trump playbook (18:09).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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OnlyFans is giving the Treasury what it wants – but should we be concerned?
‘OnlyFans,’ writes Louise Perry, ‘is the most profitable content subscription service in the world.’ Yet ‘the vast majority of its content creators make very little from it’. So why are around 4 per cent of young British women selling their wares on the site? ‘Imitating Bonnie Blue and Lily Phillips – currently locked in a competition to have sex with the most men in a day – isn’t pleasant.’ OnlyFans gives women ‘the sexual attention and money of hundreds and even thousands of men’. The result is ‘a cascade of depravity’ that Perry wouldn’t wish on her worst enemy.
In business terms, however, OnlyFans is a ‘staggering success’, according to economics editor Michael Simmons. ‘Britain’s sex industry brings in far more to the economy than politicians are comfortable admitting’; OnlyFans might just be Britain’s most profitable tech start-up. ‘If we are going to wage a moral war on porn,’ Simmons argues, ‘we should at least be honest about what we’re sacrificing.’ Louise and Michael joined the podcast to discuss further (1:21).
Next: could Xi Jinping’s time be up?
Historian Francis Pike writes about the unusual absence of China’s President Xi. China-watchers have detected some subtle differences from the norm in Chinese media, from fewer official references to Xi to changes in routine politburo meetings. So, could Xi Jinping be forced to step down? And if so, who is on manoeuvres and why?
Francis joined the podcast alongside former diplomat Kerry Brown, professor of China Studies at King’s College London (22:31).
And finally: is the era of the lonely hearts ad coming to an end?
Tony Whitehead provides his notes on lonely hearts columns this week, writing about how, 330 years after they first appeared in print in Britain, they may soon disappear. Francesca Beauman – who literally wrote the book on the subject, Shapely Ankle Preferr’d – and Mark Mason join the podcast to provide their favourite examples, from the serious to the humorous (35:13).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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In this week’s Book Club podcast I am joined by Lucy Mangan, author of Bookish: How Reading Shapes Our Lives. She tells me what teenagers did before they had Young Adult books to read, the bizarre demise of the author of Goodnight Moon, and the wisdom of forsaking the busy world for an armchair and a good book.
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Daniel Taub, former Israeli Ambassador to the UK, joins Damian Thompson to talk about his new book Beyond Dispute: Rediscovering the Jewish art of constructive disagreement. In a fast-moving interview, Daniel explains how the art of arguing has shaped Jewish humour and scholarship, and Damian asks him about keeping kosher, life after death – and the influence of the Talmud on Curb Your Enthusiasm.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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In the new edition of Spectator World, author and anthropologist Max Horder argues that the US is experiencing a change in its psyche, and left-wing violence is being normalised. He joins Freddy Gray on the Americano podcast to discuss the various examples attached to this, and what the dereliction of democratic disagreement means for us all.
This episode is also available to watch on Spectator TV: https://youtu.be/MPQ-BDTjRDo
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The Belgian composer César Franck – unfairly associated with kitsch and sentimentality by certain cultural sophisticates – wrote some of the most spiritually inspiring music of the late 19th century.
In this episode of Holy Smoke, Damian Thompson talks to the British-Israeli pianist Ariel Lanyi, who has just recorded Franck’s late masterpiece Prélude, Aria et Final on the Linn label. Ariel discusses the influence of Catholicism and the anti-Catholic Richard Wagner on the devout Franck, who was organist of a church in Paris for 30 years – but reserved his most profound thoughts for ostensibly secular works.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Damian Thompson.
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The Spectator’s editor Michael Gove and assistant editor Madeline Grant interview Rupert Lowe, MP for Great Yarmouth and notorious Westminster provocateur. Earlier this year, Lowe was suspended from the Reform party amid claims of threats towards the party’s then-chairman Zia Yusuf, and a souring relationship with Nigel Farage. Following his political ‘assassination’, he now sits as an independent MP and continues to be one of the most energetic parliamentarians in challenging the Westminster orthodoxy.
During the discussion – recorded before Zia Yusuf resigned as party chairman on Thursday – Lowe diagnoses the issues that have blighted Reform and its bid to ‘professionalise’; challenges Michael on the then-Tory government’s mismanagement of an 80-seat majority and its record on Covid; addresses his interview with Emily Maitlis and her questioning on the grooming gangs scandal; but admits, in spite of it all, that he would still prefer Nigel Farage to be Prime Minister over Keir Starmer.
Watch the interview in full on Spectator TV.
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Billionaire Elon Musk and US President Donald Trump have had a very public falling out. Musk, whose time running the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) came to an end last month, publicly criticised Trump’s spending bill (the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act’). The row then erupted onto social media with Trump expressing his disappointment with Musk, Musk accusing Trump of ‘ingratitude’ – and even making insinuations about Trump’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. Tesla’s stock has taken a hit, Trump and Musk are yet to speak and there could be implications for the government contracts that Musk’s companies have, but the full consequences are yet to be understood.
What do this tell us about Trump 2.0, and American politics more generally? Freddy Gray and Kate Andrews discuss.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Megan McElroy.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Max Jeffery tracks down the Cambridge bike bandit (1:10); Tanya Gold says that selling bathwater is an easy way to exploit a sad male fetish (5:38); Madeline Grant examines the decline of period dramas (10:16); a visit to Lyon has Matthew Parris pondering what history doesn’t tell us (15:49); and, Calvin Po visits the new V&A East Storehouse (23:08).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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How Reform plans to win
Just a year ago, Nigel Farage ended his self-imposed exile from politics and returned to lead Reform. Since then, Reform have won more MPs than the Green Party, two new mayoralties, a parliamentary by-election, and numerous councils. Now the party leads in every poll and, as our deputy political editor James Heale reveals in our cover article, is already planning for government.
The party’s chair, tech entrepreneur Zia Yusuf, describes the movement as a ‘start-up’; and like a start-up, Reform is scaling up at speed. Among the 676 councillors elected last month, a number are considered more than ready to stand as MPs. James also interviewed Reform’s deputy leader, the MP Richard Tice, who said that the Reform movement cannot be thought of within the traditional left-right political spectrum.
James joined the podcast to discuss further; you can also hear an extract from his interview with Richard. (1:01)
Next: are young people turning to religion?
A recent survey by the UK’s Bible Society has found that over the past six years, Church attendance has risen by 50 per cent. There are signs that this is being driven by younger people – why are Gen Z turning to religion? A new book by Lamorna Ash, Don’t Forget We’re Here Forever: A New Generation’s Search For Religion, seeks to answer this question and is reviewed in the magazine this week by Rupert Shortt.
To unpack this potential Church revival, Rupert – the author of The Eclipse of Christianity and Why It Matters – joined the podcast, alongside Georgia Clarke, director of youth ministry at St Elizabeth of Portugal Roman Catholic Church in London. (21:25)
And finally: is experimental fiction truly novel?
Philip Hensher writes in the magazine this week about the modern trend of ‘experimental literature’. For Philip, not only do these novels have incredibly rigid rules, but they are far from ‘experimental’ as he feels many of their components aren’t truly new.
To discuss further, Philip – who has been writing his own history of the novel – joined the podcast, alongside Simon Okotie. Simon, author of The Future of the Novel, is also a judge for the Goldsmiths Prize, which awards a novel which ‘breaks the mould or extends the possibilities of the novel form’. (33:11)
Plus: extracts from Tanya Gold’s article on selling bathwater (17:54) and Madeline Grant’s on the decline of period dramas (19:35).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is the historian Alice Loxton, whose new book Eighteen: A History of Britain in 18 Young Lives is just out in paperback. In it, she tells the story of the early lives of individuals as disparate as the Venerable Bede and Vivienne Westwood. On the podcast, Alice tells me about Geoffrey Chaucer’s racy past, what Bede was like before he was venerable, and why her editor wouldn’t let her take her characters to Pizza Express. She also reassures me that – in a post-Rest is History world, where history is more exciting and accessible than ever – there is still a place for the fusty old historians.
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Jun Tanaka is a Japanese-British chef with over 30 years’ experience in some of London’s most famous restaurants, including La Gavroche, Restaurant Marco Pierre White and The Square. In 2016 he opened the Ninth, which was awarded a Michelin star two years later.
On the podcast, Jun tells Lara why the smell of baking brings back early food memories, how Japanese packed lunch is superior to English packed lunch, and why, in his view, you still can’t get a good ramen in London.
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From the decline of meritocracy to the rise of anti-Western ideology, author Heather Mac Donald joins Freddy Gray to discuss race, merit, and victim hierarchy. Why is the West so desperate to self-cancel? And is now a moment of reckoning considering we're five years on from the BLM protests?
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Bijan Omrani joins Damian Thompson to talk about his new book God is an Englishman: Christianity and the Creation of England. They discuss the spiritual and cultural debt the country owes to Christianity. The central question of Bijan’s book is ‘does it matter that Christianity is dying in England?’. The faith has historically played a disproportionate role in many areas of English life that we take for granted now – for example, by shaping both charity and the welfare state. Yet this is influence is often ignored as congregations shrink and the UK slides into secularism.
But are there unexpected grounds for hope? The publication of God is an Englishman has coincided with a modest but surprising revival of traditional worship among Millennials and members of Generation Z. Is there, as the book puts it, a ‘weariness of the young' with what secular society is offering them?’ And could we see the eventual flourishing of a smaller but purer English Christianity?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan has called for possession of small amounts of cannabis to be decriminalised following a report by the London Drugs Commission. The report has made 42 recommendations, which include removing natural cannabis from the Misuse of Drugs Act.
Former cabinet minister, now Labour peer, Charlie Falconer and Tory MP Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst join Lucy Dunn to discuss whether now is the time to decriminalise cannabis. For Lord Falconer, who chaired the Commission, the present law doesn’t work and he explains the principles behind the review; Neil, however, believes that the proposals send the wrong message that cannabis is harmless. He argues that a balance needs to be found between robust enforcement and compassion for families and friends also affected by the behaviour of drug users. They both agree on the diagnosis, but how do you combat the issue?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Arabella Byrne on the social minefield of private swimming pools (1:13); Sean Thomas says that not knowing where you are is one of the joys of travel (5:34); reviewing Helen Carr’s Sceptred Isle: A New History of the 14th Century, Mathew Lyons looks at the reality of a vivid century (11:34); reviewing Tim Gregory’s Going Nuclear: How the Atom Will Save the World, Bryan Appleyard analyses the three parties debating global warming (16:07); and, Chas Newkey-Burden looks back to the 1980s nuclear drama that paralysed his childhood, Threads (20:42).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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End of the rainbow: Pride’s fall
What ‘started half a century ago as an afternoon’s little march for lesbians and gay men’, argues Gareth Roberts, became ‘a jamboree not only of boring homosexuality’ but ‘anything else that its purveyors consider unconventional’. Yet now Reform-led councils are taking down Pride flags, Pride events are being cancelled due to lack of funds, and corporate sponsors are ‘withdrawing their cold tootsies from the rainbow sock’.
Has Pride suffered from conflation with ‘genderism’? Gareth joined the podcast to discuss, alongside diversity consultant Simon Fanshawe, one of the six original co-founders of Stonewall. (0:59)
Next: people are forgetting how to read
Philip Womack ‘can hear the rumblings of disaster, as if the foundations of western culture, eroded for decades, are teetering into collapse’. The reason? We are forgetting how to read. Today’s children ‘hardly read; their tech-blinded parents don’t care; their teachers don’t have the resources’.
American students participating in a study requiring them to parse the first paragraph of Bleak House ‘were unable to elicit a scintilla of sense’ from Charles Dickens’s prose. What or who is to blame? Philip joined the podcast to discuss. (23:29)
And finally: the social minefield of swimming pool season
Arabella Byrne writes in the magazine this week that while she has ‘always loved English swimming pools’, the arrival of the summer season always presents her ‘with an annual etiquette conundrum’. If you’re lucky enough to know one of the 200,000 Brits who have a private swimming pool, she asks: how acceptable is it - really - to ask to use a friend’s pool?
Arabella joined the podcast, alongside the Spectator’s very own Dear Mary, Mary Killen. (32:46)
Hosted by William Moore and Gus Carter.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Freddy Gray speaks to writer and author Karen Hao, whose new book Empire of AI looks at a new, ominous age of empire with OpenAI. On the podcast they discuss the impacts of artificial intelligence on society and democracy and how Open AI founder Sam Altman has become a controversial figure.
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Sam Leith's guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is Robert Macfarlane. In his new book Is A River Alive? he travels from the cloud forests of Ecuador to the pollution-choked rivers of Chennai and the threatened waterways of eastern Canada. He tells Sam what he learned along the journey – and why we need to reconceptualise our relationship with the natural world.
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After Pope Francis died, it took the Roman Catholic Church just 17 days to choose a successor in Pope Leo XIV. It has been well over 6 months since Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby resigned and we are only just making sense of those chosen to sit on the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC), that will recommend his successor. Even then, it’s unlikely we will know more until the autumn. Why has it taken so long?
Journalist, commentator – and quite frankly expert – Andrew Graystone joins Damian Thompson and William Moore, the Spectator’s features editor, to take listeners through the process. From committees to choose committees and confusion about the rules, as William comments, even acclaimed Conclave writer Robert Harris would struggle to make a fast-paced and riveting story out of the Anglican succession. That’s not to say there isn’t plenty of intrigue though: from bishops effectively ruling themselves out, to opaque appointments, and even a former head of M15 appointed to lead the CNC.
Andrew, Damian and William discuss the process, the problems plaguing it and unpack those in contention to be the next Primate of All England. The chosen successor will ultimately lead the third largest Christian communion, with around 100 million members worldwide, and play a prominent role in British society with a seat in the House of Lords and as a spiritual advisor to King and country – no pressure.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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This spring marks the 25th anniversary of the landmark judgment in the infamous Irving v Lipstadt Holocaust denial case. David Irving sued American academic Deborah Lipstadt after she had described him as a Holocaust denier in her 1994 book, for his claims that Jews had not been systematically exterminated by the Nazis. Given the burden of proof in English libel law being on the defence, it was up to Lipstadt and her publisher Penguin to prove her claims were true that Irving had deliberately misrepresented evidence. In 2000, the Judge found in her favour.
Deborah Lipstadt and the lawyers that represented her, Anthony Julius and James Libson, join Michael Gove for this special edition of Coffee House Shots to provide their reflections: on the trial, on what it’s like to go to court over something that’s widely accepted as settled historical truth, and to discuss why they think antisemitism flourishes in so many forms. They also talk about why the principles of the case are ever more important today as they were 25 years ago.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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On the podcast, Jo tells Katy about starting her career through multi-ethnic radio, being poached by the BBC and what it was like to be a political correspondent during the Blair era. They also discuss rows over the BBC gender pay gap, viral moments on social media and what it was like working with infamous 'wallflower' Andrew Neil.
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He talks James through his policy proposals and the political reaction to them, the thinking behind expanding chemical castration for sex offenders and why deportation is complicated when dealing with the very worst foreign criminals. Ultimately his review is designed to reduce what is currently the highest incarceration rate in Europe.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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‘This week Starmer fell… into the embrace of Ursula von der Leyen’ writes Michael Gove in our cover article this week. He writes that this week’s agreement with the EU perpetuates the failure to understand Brexit’s opportunities, and that Labour ‘doesn’t, or at least shouldn’t exist to make the lives of the fortunate more favourable’.
Michael makes the argument that ‘the real Brexit betrayal’ is Labour’s failure to understand how Brexit can protect British jobs and industries and save our manufacturing sector. Historian of the Labour Party Dr Richard Johnson, a politics lecturer at Queen Mary University writes an accompanying piece arguing that Labour ‘needs to learn to love Brexit’.
Richard joined the podcast to discuss further, alongside Conservative peer Dan Hannan. Both Brexiteers, they disagree over the approach the government should take and what tools it should be using. (1:02)
Next: the big appeal of bite-sized history
Why are so many readers turning to short histories? The historian Alice Loxton writes in the magazine this week about the popularity of books with titles like ‘the shortest history of…’, ‘a brief history of…’ or ‘a little history of’. Some may argue these are designed to satisfy generations of distracted readers, but Alice defends them, saying ‘there is something liberating about how noncommittal they are’.
Should we embrace the ‘short history’? Alice, author of Eighteen: A History of Britain in 18 Young Lives, joined the podcast to discuss further alongside Professor Simon Heffer – himself the author of A Short History of Power. (24:40)
And finally: is being a bridesmaid ‘brutal’?
A Northern Irish bride chose to have 95 bridesmaids when she married earlier this month. While it might be understandable to not want to choose between friends, Sophia Money-Coutts writes in the magazine this week that, once chosen, the reality of being a bridesmaid is brutal. Sophia joined the podcast to discuss further, alongside the journalist Francesca Peacock. (36:22)
Hosted by William Moore and Gus Carter.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Included in this compilation are: New Man (00:42); Virgin (5:16); Debauchery Competition (9:32); Buddhism (14:12); The Beach (18:58); and, Memory (23:40).
Read by Jeremy Clarke, with an introduction from William Moore.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On the podcast she tells Liv about her 'inexplicable' love of olives as a child in Ukraine, trying to make it as a writer in New York and how to write about food without it feeling contrived.
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The Financial Times’ chief US columnist Edward Luce joins Freddy Gray on this episode of Americano to talk about his new book Zbig: The Life of Zbigniew Brzezinski, America's Cold War Prophet. The book aims to bridge the gap in the historiography of the Cold War and looks at Zbig’s legacy – from preventing a Soviet invasion of Poland, to strengthening relations with China, to shaping America’s response to 9/11. Was Zbig a Cold War prophet?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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‘If your house is on fire you don’t wait a year to call the fire brigade,’ says William. But Michael argues that political leaders – much like football managers – should be given time and patience in order to implement their direction, philosophy and, ultimately, to become successful. So should she stay or should she go? ... Or should the Tories give it to ‘Big Sam’ until the end of the season?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Have your say, by emailing us at: podcast@spectator.co.uk
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On his tour of the Middle East, he signed an enormous arms deal with Saudi Arabia and announced all US sanctions on Syria would be lifted. Historian and former diplomat Charlie Gammell joins Freddy Gray to discuss what Trump really wants in the Middle East.
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Keir Starmer worries about who is coming into Britain but, our economics editor Michael Simmons writes in the magazine this week, he should have ‘sleepless nights’ thinking about those leaving. Since 2016, nearly 30,000 millionaires have left – ‘an outflow unmatched in the developed world’.
Tax changes have made Britain a ‘hostile environment’ for the wealthy, yet we are ‘dangerously dependent’ on our highest earners: the top 0.01 per cent pay 6 per cent of all income tax. If the exodus is ‘half as bad’ as those he has spoken to think, Simmons warns, a 2p hike to income tax looms.
Michael joined the podcast to discuss further, alongside private wealth specialist James Quarmby from advisory firm Stephenson Harwood. (1:04)
Next: Michael Gove interviews justice secretary Shabana Mahmood
‘There’s a moment of reckoning to come’ Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood tells The Spectator’s editor Michael Gove in a wide-ranging interview in the magazine this week. Gove writes that he has a degree of sympathy for her, given he occupied her post for 15 months several years ago; ‘it’s the most glamorous and least attractive job in the cabinet’ he writes.
The interview touched on grooming gangs, AI and the oath she swore on the Quran. You can hear an extract from the interview on the podcast but, for the full interview, go to Spectator TV (16:08)
And finally: ‘pond terfs’ versus the ‘right on’
Zoe Strimpel highlights a schism that has emerged over Hampstead ladies pond in the magazine this week: whether trans women should be allowed to swim in the ladies pond. The division, between older ‘pond terfs’, who are against their inclusion, and younger ‘right on’ women, has only widened following the Supreme Court ruling. Far from solving the issue, the fight has only intensified.
Zoe joined the podcast alongside Julie Bindel to discuss further. (27:48)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and Gus Carter.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
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Presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
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Listen for: Zia’s understanding of why Reform did so well; Jacob’s concession that a Tory/Reform pact of some description could be the only way for the Conservatives to avoid extinction; and Michael’s assessment of whether Labour will force us closer to the EU.
This podcast was originally recorded live at the Emmanuel Centre in Westminster on Wednesday 7 May.
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The election of Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, is seen as a surprise but is being heralded by both liberal and conservative factions of the Catholic Church. Does he represent continuity or change with his predecessor? On this episode of Holy Smoke, Fr Benedict and Damian take us through what clues are available to understand what we can expect from the new Pope, from his choice of clothes and papal name to his views on issues like homosexuality and the traditional mass. Could Leo XIV surprise us?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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If you want to understand why voters flocked to Reform last week, Gus Carter says, look no further than Goat Man. In one ward in Runcorn, ‘residents found that no one would listen when a neighbour filled his derelict house with goats and burned the animals’ manure in his garden’. This embodies Scuzz Nation – a ‘grubbier and more unpleasant’ Britain, ‘where decay happens faster than repair, where crime largely goes unpunished, and where the social fabric has been slashed, graffitied and left by the side of the road’.
On the podcast, Gus speaks to Dr Lawrence Newport, founder of Crush Crime, to diagnose the issues facing Britain – and offer some solutions to stop the rot. (01:28)
Next: is it demeaning to study Dickens?
In the magazine this week, Philip Hensher reviews ‘Literature and Learning: A History of English Studies in Britain’ by Stefan Collini. Philip’s main gripe is that the history stops short of charting the threats posed to the study of English literature in the past fifty years. Accessible, ‘relevant’ short stories are increasingly replacing the classics, as the monuments of Victorian literature defeat today’s undergraduates.
So can English literature still teach us how to read deeply in an age of diminishing attention spans? Philip joins the podcast alongside Orlando Reade, author and assistant professor at Northeastern University London, where he teaches English and creative writing. (17:47)
And finally: are you a bad house guest?
In the magazine, Christa D’Souza bemoans terrible house guests. Set against the idyllic backdrop of her home in the Greek Cyclades, she gives an account of the trials and absurdities of hosting – from towel-hoarding Americans to the toddler-like breakfast habits of many grown adults.
She joins the podcast alongside our very own agony aunt, Mary Killen, to discuss further – and hopefully offer some advice on how better to deal with rude house guests. (29:04)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and Gus Carter.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
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On the podcast, she tells Liv and Lara why, as a child, she would only eat orange cheese, why Lancashire hotpot is so nostalgic, her Eureka moment when she decided to become a chef – and where you should eat in Manchester.
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On this episode you can hear from: journalist Bill Hayton on what it means to be Chinese (1:10); writer and actor Mark Kitto and author Alex Ash on being foreign in China (13:07); professor of international history Elizabeth Ingleson on whether China’s economic boom was made in America (23:08); professor of Chinese studies and former diplomat Kerry Brown and professor of history Steve Tsang on how the cultural revolution shaped China’s leaders today (47:05); journalist Bill Bishop and professor of political science Victor Shih on how Xi took complete control at the 20th party congress in 2022 (58:13); journalist and advisor Noah Barkin on the relationship between Europe and China (1:10:04); and, professor of China studies William Kirby and former diplomat Charles Parton on why China won’t invade Taiwan (1:19:56).
To stay abreast of Cindy’s latest work, subscribe to her free Substack at chinesewhispers.substack.com
Produced by Cindy Yu and Patrick Gibbons.
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As host Damian Thompson says, Rome – and the entire Church – is in a state of ‘fevered excitement’. While this is to be expected, most commentators agree that this conclave will be one of the most consequential elections for centuries. At stake are both the future direction of the Church and Francis’s legacy – will his work be amended, continued or even rejected?
The Pillar’s Luke Coppen joins Damian to try to make sense of the noise, gossip and political intrigue. They discuss the favourites to emerge as the new Pope, including Parolin, Pizzaballa and Sarah. Who is likely to succeed Francis?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
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Nigel Farage's 'teal tsunami' comes at the expense of the main parties – turning the two-party consensus on its head. The recriminations for Labour and the Tories have already begun. On the left, a number of MPs have broken cover and urged the government to shift its position on high-salience issues such as winter fuel. On the right, Kemi Badenoch’s leadership is looking increasingly shaky, with Tory MPs and staff warning that a step change is needed. Where do the main parties go from here? And can anyone stop Nigel?
James Heale speaks to Isabel Hardman and The Spectator’s incoming political editor, Tim Shipman.
This episode was recorded as part of The Spectator’s local elections live broadcast. You can watch the full coverage here.
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Garden Court Chambers has a ‘reassuringly traditional’ facade befitting the historic Lincoln’s Inn Fields in the heart of London’s legal district. Yet, writes Ross Clark in the cover article this week, ‘the facade is just that. For behind the pedimented Georgian windows there operates the most radically effective cell of left-wing activists in Britain’.
Ross argues that cases taken on by Garden Court lawyers raise questions of impartiality. Is this just another example of ‘law’s expanding empire’ over the domain of elected politicians, as former Supreme Court judge Jonathan Sumption has warned?
The Spectator’s editor, and former Justice Secretary, Michael Gove joined the podcast to discuss. (1:16)
Next: cultural desert
‘From its gloopy green-filled chocolate to its soulless towers, Dubai is exerting a cultural influence over our capital’ writes Angus Colwell in the magazine this week. More and more young people might be moving to the city, but its influence is being exported back.
With around 250,000 Brits living in the Middle Eastern Emirate, why is Dubai so popular? Angus worries that we may lose some of the ‘pleasingly chaotic’ aesthetic of London to Dubai’s ‘artificial construction’. Angus joined the podcast alongside the writer Louise Perry. (13:43)
And finally: the enduring obsession with Princess Diana
Almost 30 years on from her death, why has a fascination with Princess Diana endured? Philip Hensher reviews Dianaworld: An Obsession, by Edward White, in the magazine this week which explores the effect that Diana had – and still has – on people around the world. Why did people feel such a connection to the late Princess of Wales?
Philip joined the podcast alongside royal commentator Angela Levin. Philip explains that a ‘passive victimhood’ has crept into society since Diana’s death while, for Angela, the public felt they ‘owned’ the Princess. (22:32)
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Trump’s rhetoric against Canada – engaging in a trade war and calling for the country to become the 51st state – is credited as turning around the fortunes of the Liberals. Are there lessons for conservatives across the anglosphere, including Kemi Badenoch?
Patrick Gibbons speaks to James Heale and Michael Martins.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On the podcast, Kirsty tells Katy about her father fighting in the D-Day landings, changing attitudes over time towards women at the BBC and her views on British & Scottish identities. They also unpack BBC impartiality, how it should be a ‘trusted friend’ to the public and why she left Newsnight. As one of the best-known political interviewers in the UK, Kirsty also explains how she gamed interviews, and the memorable ones from Michael Portillo to Jeffrey Archer to the one that made her name – Margaret Thatcher.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Despite showing some signs of recovery – including being able to meet world leaders such as King Charles III and J.D. Vance – Pope Francis died on Easter Monday.
Here we reissue the episode with Dr Martens, looking at what happens when a pope dies, with a new introduction from Damian. Writing the cover article for the Spectator this week, Damian writes: ‘the next Vicar of Christ will face challenges that dwarf those that confronted any incoming pope in living memory. The Church is mired in doctrinal confusion; its structures of government are fragmented; sexual scandals have been hushed up at the highest level; and it is staring into a financial abyss’. What can we expect from the upcoming conclave?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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‘Francis was a charismatic pope loved by most of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics’ writes Damian Thompson in the cover article this week. But few of them ‘grasp the scale of the crisis in the Church… The next Vicar of Christ, liberal or conservative’ faces ‘challenges that dwarf those that confronted any incoming pope in living memory’.
Ahead of Pope Francis’s funeral this weekend, Damian joined the podcast alongside the Catholic theologian Fr Alexander Lucie-Smith to unpack all the political intrigue underpinning the upcoming papal conclave. They say that he who enters the conclave as a pope, leaves as a cardinal – do we have any clues to who could emerge as Francis’s successor? (1:01)
Next: the ghastliness of AI ghouls
The late Lily Parr – a chain-smoking, 6ft, Lancastrian, lesbian pre-war footballer – has been resurrected via an AI avatar. All fun and games at first glance but, as Mary Wakefield writes in the magazine this week, what the AI’s creators have summoned is ‘a ghoul, a flimsy echo of Parr, infused with the spirit of Gen Z’, lacking the original’s character. Aside from the obvious issues, is this ethical, or even legal?
Mary worries that overworked and underpaid teachers could soon deploy AI to summon the spirit of Churchill or Shakespeare. How concerned should we be about AI creep? Mary joined the podcast to discuss. We thought who better to ask about AI than AI itself so ChatGPT’s latest AI model joined Mary to answer a few questions… (19:09)
And finally: long live long lunch!
Kenton Allen writes in defence of the traditional business lunch in the magazine this week. And it should be two hours at a minimum. This isn’t a ‘long’ lunch, he says, but a ‘proper’ lunch. What does the decline of the work lunch tell us about society today? Kenton joined the podcast alongside the Spectator’s restaurant critic Tanya Gold. They say there was a serious purpose to a long lunch, something being lost today by the modern workforce. Plus, they share their restaurant tips for the best long lunch. (27:46)
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
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On the podcast he tells Liv and Lara about childhood memories of Manchester tart, what he learnt from Albert Roux and Marco Pierre White, and why Fortnum’s rose éclair is the perfect dessert.
Photo credit: Michael Barrow
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On the podcast, Deborah tells Katy Balls about growing up as a Labour supporter with a father active in local Tory politics, the work hard/play hard culture of advertising in the 1980s and how to decipher what voters really think during focus groups. They also talk about the differences between the 1987, ‘92, and ‘97 campaigns, the ‘Hero voters’ that were key to Labour’s electoral success in 2024 and how Labour can best tackle the threat from Reform today. With experience working with Labour spanning four decades, they touch on the Labour giants she worked with, including Alf (now Lord) Dubs, Peter (now Ambassador – also Lord) Mandelson and, more recently, the Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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The Argentinian, the first Latin American – and the first Jesuit – to lead the Church, has been the head of the Holy See for 12 years, succeeding Pope Benedict XVI who resigned in 2013. Francis presided over the funeral of his predecessor, who died in 2022 – a first in modern history. But Francis’s leadership has been historic for many other reasons. In fact, says Damian Thompson, his reign has been ‘one of the most memorable, if controversial – not just in recent years but in recent centuries’. Liberals lauded his position on a number of social issues, while Conservatives saw the papacy as over-reaching and out of touch with every-day Catholics. But is it really that simple?
Catholic priest and theologian Father Alexander Lucie-Smith joins Damian to react to the news of the Pope’s death. Fr Alexander says that while Francis ‘defies summary’, it is incredible to consider how far the papacy has changed when comparing him to his predecessors, even those of the 20th Century like Pope Pius XII. What will his legacy be?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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A former civil servant, Oxford University policy manager and councillor, Calum joins Coffee House Shots to talk about why he got into politics, how Brexit radicalised his desire for good governance and why, for all the fun, there is a serious point behind Ed Davey’s stunts.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Nigel Biggar, Regius professor emeritus of moral theology at Oxford University, now a Conservative peer, celebrates the heroic ‘faithful dissent’ of Christian heroes such as Thomas More and Helmuth von Moltke, who lost their lives rather than defend injustice.
Meanwhile Spectator columnist Mary Wakefield interviews Roman Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury. She’s inspired by his holiness but depressed by his use of ‘C of E bureaucratese’ to uphold liberal orthodoxy on subjects such as gender ideology. But, she says they can share an uncomfortable space together within faith.
In this episode of Holy Smoke, Nigel and Mary join Damian Thompson, who asks them: how can Christians embrace ‘faithful dissent’ in an era of conformist Christian leaders who parrot the platitudes of secular opinion?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Six months after Kim Leadbeater MP launched the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, a group of Labour MPs have pronounced it ‘irredeemably flawed and not fit to become law’. They say the most basic aspects of the bill – having gone through its committee stage – do not hold up to scrutiny. Dan Hitchens agrees, writing in the magazine this week that ‘it’s hard to summarise the committee’s proceedings except with a kind of Homeric catalogue of rejected amendments’ accompanied by a ‘series of disconcerting public statements’.
With a third reading vote approaching, what could it tell us about the country we live in? Dan joins the podcast alongside the Revd Fergus Butler-Gallie, who provides the Spectator’s diary for the week. (1:34)
Next: where are all the rabbits?
If you’ve noticed fewer rabbits across the countryside that might be due to a killer pandemic that has appeared on Britain’s shores. Henry Williams raises awareness in the magazine this week about Rabbit Haemorrhagic Disease (RHD), which has a mortality rate of between 70 and 100% and has already left rabbits endangered in countries like Spain. The disease can kill suddenly and is particularly prolific within wild rabbits, which are less likely to be vaccinated than household pets. How concerned should we be? Henry joined the podcast to discuss. (20:56)
And finally: are creme eggs delicious – or disgusting?
‘How do you eat yours?’ asks the famous Cadbury's advert for creme eggs. James Innes-Smith, writing his notes on creme eggs in the magazine this week, responds ‘stamping on them in disgust’. James might not be a fan but most of the British public are – over 220 million of them are sold in the UK each year. Even more astonishing given they’re only available to buy for a third of the year. Why are they loved so much? James joined the podcast alongside The Guardian’s Lucy Mangan, who makes the case for creme eggs. (27:09)
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
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On the podcast Lindsey tells Katy Balls about starting out her career in Guatemala and in Kenya, what it was like being the only English-speaking journalist in Rwanda when the genocide broke out in 1994, and why she is drawn to studying human behaviour in extreme situations. She also talks about her surprising link to flat screen TV technology, how journalism has changed from cutting up clippings from a typewriter to modern open-source intelligence techniques and the place she would most like to travel to – the past. Having always carried a book of poetry with her on her travels, she also reads a favourite included in her new book: The Child at the Window by Siegfried Sassoon.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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This prayer, known down the centuries by its opening Latin words Nunc dimittis, explains the title of Quentin Letts's novel Nunc!, a delightfully quirky retelling of the story of Simeon and his friends. It's framed by the experience of a 21st-century corduroy-wearing Englishman who, after receiving bad news about his cancer, wanders into his local cathedral and hears the Nunc dimittis sung at evensong. In this episode of Holy Smoke, Quentin touches on the real-life inspiration for his tale – and suggests to Damian Thompson that old Simeon, venerated as a saint, might be the first Christian in recorded history.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Tej Parikh from the Financial Times and Kate Andrews, The Spectator's deputy US editor, join economics editor Michael Simmons to make the case for why globalisation will outlive Trump. Though, as the US becomes one of the most protectionist countries in the developed world, how much damage has been done to the reputation of the US? And to what extent do governments need to adapt?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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‘Shock tactics’ is the headline of our cover article this week, as deputy editor Freddy Gray reflects on a week that has seen the US President upend the global economic order, with back and forth announcements on reciprocal and retaliatory tariffs. At the time of writing, a baseline 10% on imports stands – with higher tariffs remaining for China, Mexico and Canada.
The initial announcement last week had led to the biggest global market decline since the start of the pandemic, and left countries scrambling to react, whether through negotiation or retaliation. China announced a second wave of retaliatory tariffs – to 84% – and Trump, while softening his stance towards other countries, appeared to lean in to a trade war with China by announcing a further hike to 125%. As Freddy writes, for Trump and his supporters ‘China is America’s chief enemy.’ ‘President Trump just took a massive punch at Xi, right in the chops,’ said Steve Bannon. ‘The overlords of easy money, the sociopathic overlords that run Wall Street, the globalist corporatists and the apartheid state of Silicon Valley – all of them combined are the partners of the Chinese Communist party.’
But, as Freddy asks in the magazine, is there method in the madness? Freddy joined the podcast to discuss alongside the financial journalist and Spectator contributor Michael Lynn. (1:35)
Next: should cousin marriages be banned?
Cousin marriage has been back in the news since the Conservative MP Richard Holden proposed banning the practice. Much of the debate has focused on the British Pakistani community where marriage between cousins is less taboo than other communities within the UK. But, as Iram Ramzan writes in the magazine this week, marriage between cousins has been legal in the UK stretching back to Henry VIII.
The dictator Saddam Hussein, the musician Jerry Lee Lewis and even the father of evolution Charles Darwin are surprising examples of people who married their first cousins. Iram writes that it was to her horror that her family suggested she marry her second cousin. To what extent is the law the right recourse to deter cousin marriage? And what are the cultural, ethical, as well as genetic, considerations?
Iram joined the podcast alongside Dominic Wilkinson, professor of medical ethics at the University of Oxford. (18:09)
And finally: restaurant thefts are rising – why?
The Spectator’s food columnist Olivia Potts explores how restaurants are facing a rising problem of theft. Gordon Ramsay’s latest restaurant suffered a £2,000 loss in one week for example. from theft. And, as many as 17 million Britons say they have stolen from a pub or restaurant. Why do they do it? And why is restaurant theft a particular problem now? Liv joined us to discuss further, alongside an anonymous contributor who agreed to share their own experience of stealing from restaurants. (29:57)
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
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On the podcast he tells Liv and Lara about growing up in a Chinese restaurant, why hosting is more like ‘theatre’ and why he always abides by the five-second rule.
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The term ‘old friend of the Chinese people’ might seem a colloquial, almost sentimental, phrase to appear in official diplomatic language, but in the Chinese context, those words have a very specific meaning. Most often, they refer to high profile foreigners whose actions have helped the Chinese Communist Party in one way or another. The most famous of these is Henry Kissinger, who led the way for American rapprochement with China.
That the CCP gives various foreigners this honour is revealing of China’s priorities over the decades, but also of its attempts to co-opt foreign forces to its cause. Think back to the United Front strategy, which we looked at on the podcast earlier in the year.
To discuss this honorific, Cindy is joined Professor Anne-Marie Brady, a China expert at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, who was among the first to look at China’s old friends as a serious political concept some 20 years ago, and Ryan Ho Kilpatrick, a journalist based in Hong Kong.
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On the podcast, Katie talks to Katy Balls about attending Tory party conference with her dad, what Katy calls the ‘chief prefect vibes’ of her CV and whether investment banking or politics is more cutthroat. Having started at Number 10 in 2019, she also talks about the highs and lows at the end of the Brexit negotiations and why the pandemic will probably be the hardest moment of her professional career – plus a mention of that incident with Dilyn the dog. Having a great-great grandfather who was a socialist politician and fierce critic of the Nazis, and who had to flee persecution, she also opens up about her family’s influence on her politics and her values.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Freddy Gray speaks with William Clouston, leader of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), to analyse the implications of Trump's tariff announcement on the UK economy.
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‘Governments need a mission, or they descend into reactive incoherence’ writes Michael Gove in this week’s cover piece. A Labour government, he argues, ‘cannot survive’ without a sense of purpose. The ‘failure of this government to make social justice its mission’ has led to a Spring Statement ‘that was at once hurried, incoherent and cruel – a fiscal drive-by shooting’.
Michael writes that Starmer wishes to emulate his hero – the post-war Prime Minister Clement Atlee, who founded the NHS and supported a fledgling NATO alliance. Yet, with policy driven by Treasury mandarins, the Labour project is in danger of drifting, as John Major’s premiership did. Starmerism’s policy vacuum is being filled so rapidly by HMT that we are embarking on an era of ‘cruel Labour’.
Michael joined the podcast to discuss further, alongside John McTernan, former private secretary to Tony Blair. (1:37)
Next: have the Church’s sacred spaces become community clubs?
From yoga classes to drag shows, and even a helter-skelter, the Revd Dr Jamie Franklin, host of the podcast Irreverentand author of The Great Return, writes in the magazine this week about what he argues is the ‘tragic misuse of its sacred spaces’ by the Church of England. This new reality may be symptomatic of a wider issue with the leadership of the Church, currently pondering its future. The journalist Quentin Letts provides his own manifesto for the next Archbishop of Canterbury in this week’s diary.
So do diverse uses of space broaden the Church’s appeal or does it run the risk of diluting its holiness? Quentin, whose new book NUNC! Is out now, joined the podcast alongside Jamie to discuss. (20:52)
And finally: is Clandon Park a visionary restoration or a catastrophic precedent?
Calvin Po addresses the ‘conundrum of conservation’ in the Arts lead for the magazine this week: how much of a building can be restored before it becomes a different building entirely?
Plans have moved forward for the 18th century Palladian mansion Clandon Park, managed by the National Trust, to be preserved in a half-charred form, following its gutting by fire in 2015. The Trust says this ‘approach combines careful conservation, scholarly restoration and sensitive contemporary design’. And The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB), founded by William Morris, has hailed the plans, arguing that a full restoration would amount to a ‘feeble and lifeless forgery’ and the ‘Clandon of the future will offer a markedly different visitor experience to that of the past, but one that will have its own interest’.
Calvin, however, worries that this sets a ‘catastrophic precedent’ for restorations of the future, and The Georgian Group actively opposed the Trust’s proposal, arguing that the building’s merit comes in its original design ‘not in burnt bricks’.
To discuss further we were joined by The Georgian Group’s director Dr Anya Lucas, and the architectural historian – and former Chair of SPAB – Gillian Darley. (35:17)
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
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The 2024 Makin report concluded that the Church of England missed many opportunities to investigate the late John Smyth, one of the most prolific abusers associated with the Anglican Church. However, the biggest headline from the interview was that Welby would 'forgive' John Smyth were he alive today. Albeit unintentionally, the former Archbishop of Canterbury ended up cementing his reputation as an inflexible micro-manager with a tin ear for the views of abuse survivors and his own clergy.
Where does the interview leave the Church of England? The appointees to the Crown Nominations Committee, the body which will consider the successor to Welby, will soon be known. How should this scandal influence them? And, with mounting reports that Pope Francis has shielded Catholic sexual predators, how does the handling of abuse allegations by Canterbury and Rome compare?
The Rev Fergus Butler-Gallie, Vicar of Charlbury in Oxfordshire and the editor-at-large of The Fence magazine, joins Damian Thompson to discuss the abuse crises that seem to be engulfing all the mainstream Churches.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On the podcast, Kim talks to Katy Balls about finding common ground with other Yorkshire MPs (including one former Prime Minister), why she thinks the growing popularity of Reform is a worrying sign of disillusionment in politics, and how she is more likely to retire than pursue a third career. The debate around Assisted Dying has been more ‘unpleasant’ than expected but she has no regrets, and thinks that – most importantly – the national conversation around death has moved on. Despite a proposed extension, Kim hopes the Bill – if passed – will be implemented within 2-3 years.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Lord Heseltine sits down with James Heale to discuss his thoughts on the current Labour government, how to fix Britain’s broken economy and why devolution should go further. ‘Deeply depressed’ by attacks on the civil service – Britain’s ‘rolls royce’ – he provides his thoughts on various political leaders: Starmer is handling Trump well, Reeves is handling the economy badly, Badenoch is being overshadowed by foreign affairs, and Boris Johnson demonstrated he has ‘no integrity’. And on Thatcher, he says new information has vindicated him over the Westland affair and demonstrated her ‘complicity’. His new book, From Acorns to Oaks: An Urgent Agenda to Rebuild Britain, is out now.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Listen for: Michael’s plan for how to deal with the Donald, and why the Treasury is not fit for purpose; Maurice on his influence in the White House, and what's wrong with the current political class; David’s reflections on why Brexit was ahead of its time; and James’s explanation for Britain’s lost sense of community.
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‘The world’s most exclusive club… is growing,’ writes Paul Wood in this week’s Spectator. Membership is restricted to a very select few: presidents-for-life. Putin of Russia, Xi of China, Kim of North Korea and MBS of Saudi Arabia are being joined by Erdogan of Turkey – who is currently arresting his leading domestic political opponent – and Donald Trump, who ‘openly admires such autocrats and clearly wants to be one himself’. ‘This is the age of the strongman,’ Wood declares, ‘and the world is far more dangerous because of it.’
Despite their bombast, these ‘are often troubled characters’, products of difficult childhoods. But ‘the real danger’ lies in their ‘grandiose plans’ and ‘wish to secure their place in history by redrawing the map’ whether over Ukraine, Taiwan or even Greenland. What drives them, and how worried should we be? Paul joined the podcast alongside the Financial Times journalist, and author of The Age of the Strongman, Gideon Rachman. (1:01)
Next: Tesla owners, beware!
Jonathan Miller writes in the magazine this week about the phenomenon of Tesla cars being defaced, damaged, and even set fire to. The brand’s association with its owner Elon Musk has made it an ‘accessible but indefensible’ target for activists. And, despite Musk’s role in the Trump administration, this issue isn’t confined to the US. Jonathan joined the podcast from his hamlet in the south of France to talk about how local Tesla-owners are preparing to fight back. A representative from the activist group Tesla Takedown did initially accept an invitation to join the podcast… (15:50)
And finally: are theatre matinees experiencing a revival?
Playwright Jonathan Maitland highlights the resurgent popularity of theatre matinees in the arts lead of the magazine. Matinees have a long history within theatre and now offer a greater convenience for diverse audiences in a post-pandemic age. Jonathan’s new play, Wilko: Love and Death and Rock n Roll, is a good example of this. At London’s Southwark Playhouse until the 19th April, they’ve put on extra matinee performances to cope with demand (a small number of tickets are still available).
Jonathan joined the podcast alongside Nica Burns, the theatre producer and co-owner of the Nimax Theatres group which runs six West End theatres including the Palace, the Apollo and the Garrick. (22:25)
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Deputy and US editor Freddy Gray is joined by Ben Domenech, editor-at-large of Spectator World, to discuss.
You can watch this episode on YouTube! Click here.
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On the podcast, Loyd talks to Lara about hazy memories of ‘sipping a Shirley Temple cocktail aged 6 or 7’, the secret behind his pasta sauces, and why he loathes school meals.
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It’s easy to forget that, as recently as the start of this century, the US was China’s biggest ally. Washington saw Beijing as a necessary bulwark against Moscow, and consistently supported China’s entry into the world economy ever since rapprochement in the 1970s, including its accession to the World Trade Organisation.
These days, the relationship couldn’t be more different. Why have relations cooled quite so fast? When was the turning point? And can we now say that rapprochement was a strategic mistake from the US?
Bob Davis is a former senior editor at the Wall Street Journal, who was posted to China between 2011 and 2014. In recent years, he has been conducting a long running series of interviews - with dozens of high level officials over successive American administrations - for the online magazine, The Wire China. He has interviewed defense secretaries, ambassadors, national security advisors, treasury secretaries and more. Now, these interviews have been collated into a new e-book released by The Wire China: Broken Engagement.
Through these interviews, we can see the changing direction of US-China relations through the eyes and words of those at the very heart of America’s decisions. Bob joins this episode.
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Having completed a PhD in English, worked for Oxfam, and been involved in local Green Party politics, she went on to serve in the European Parliament for a decade. In 2010, she was elected to Parliament as the MP for Brighton Pavilion and, during her 14 years in Westminster, the Green Party went from 0.9% of the national vote to 6.4%. Although she stepped down, a record 4 Green Party MPs were elected at the 2024 election.
On the podcast - the 150th episode of Women With Balls - Caroline tells Katy Balls about growing up with different politics to her Conservative-voting parents, why her views on nuclear weapons haven’t changed, and whether the left can be patriotic. She also talks about being a peer of Nigel Farage in Brussels, what it’s like being the sole parliamentary party representative, and why she never considered joining the Labour Party. She argues that there is a political urgency for the left to discuss ‘Englishness’, as outlined in her bestselling book Another England: How To Reclaim Our National Story, which is available now in paperback.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Deputy and US editor Freddy Gray is joined by Americano regular and author Jacob Heilbrunn to discuss.
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‘Growing pains’ declares The Spectator’s cover image this week, as our political editor Katy Balls, our new economics editor Michael Simmons, and George Osborne’s former chief of staff Rupert Harrison analyse the fiscal problems facing the Chancellor.
‘Dominic Cummings may have left Whitehall,’ write Katy and Michael, ‘but his spirit lives on.’ ‘We are all Dom now,’ according to one government figure. Keir Starmer’s chief aide Morgan McSweeney has never met Cummings, but the pair share a diagnosis of Britain’s failing economy. Identifying a problem is not, however, the same as solving it. As Rachel Reeves prepares her Spring Statement, ministers are bracing themselves for cuts in day-to-day spending as the public finances deteriorate.
Is austerity back? Michael and Rupert joined the podcast to discuss further. (1:02)
Next: survival of the fittest vs seduction by the hottest
Biologist and Conservative peer Matt Ridley writes about the concept of sexual selection in the magazine this week, explaining that evolution might not just be driven by survival of the fittest but also by section by the hottest. This, he says, would explain some of nature’s most colourful oddities, particularly within birds, as outlined in his new book Birds, Sex and Beauty. Charles Darwin proposed this as a later part of his evolutionary theory, but it caused a rift amongst his contemporaries – why is it a controversial concept? And could it be true for other species such as humans?
Matt joined the podcast alongside David Puts, Professor of Anthropology and Psychology at Penn State University. (19:13)
And finally: what makes historic murders so fascinating?
Historian and author Hallie Rubenhold’s new book, Story of a Murder: The Wives, the Mistress and Dr Crippen, retells the famous murder case from the perspective of the women involved. Lisa Hilton declares it an ‘intellectual adventure’ in the lead book review in the magazine this week. But why do these cases continue to capture our imaginations, decades and even centuries later? And, whether as victims or as accomplices, what makes women such compelling subjects in historic cases like these?
Hallie joined the podcast alongside the historian and broadcaster Alice Loxton, author of Eighteen: A History of Britain in 18 Young Lives. (30:40)
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Born in Liberia, her family fled west Africa as the region descended into civil war, eventually settling in north London when she was just 7 years old. Trained as an economist, having studied at Oxford and the LSE, she went on to work in the civil service and at various think-tanks. After serving as the CEO for the New Economics Foundation, she became a senior economic adviser for Labour working with Ed Miliband during his time as leader of the Labour Party. Ed is now her boss again – at the department for energy.
On the podcast, Miatta talks to Katy Balls about how the value of public service was instilled early in her life, how politics weighs heavier in west Africa than in the UK, and what it’s like to be considered a rising star in British politics. She also talks about the tough decisions this Labour government has had to make, from international aid to energy. She says that while the politics around energy are tough, the topic is intrinsically linked to Labour’s success – bills must come down before the next general election.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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While Michael admits to giving Starmer a 'painful' two cheers, he does say there is historic precedent for Labour governments enacting right-leaning measures: from Jim Callaghan's migration policies to the economic ones of Ramsay MacDonald. How has Starmer got away with it? And what does his premiership of pragmatism tell us about the future direction of Labour?
Michael sets out a number of tests to judge Starmer's success by: the tests of Fraser Nelson, Robert Jenrick, Ernie Bevin, Denis Healey and Bob Mellish...
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Cindy Yu.
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Paul Wood, Colin Freeman and Father Benedict Kiely write in the magazine this week about the religious persecution that minorities are facing across the world from Syria to the Congo. In Syria, there have been reports of massacres with hundreds of civilians from the Alawite Muslim minority targeted, in part because of their association with the fallen Assad regime. Reports suggest that the groups responsible are linked to the new Syrian president Ahmed al-Sharaa (formerly known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani). For some, the true face of the country’s new masters has been revealed. Whether the guilty men are punished will tell us what kind of country Syria has become since the fall of Assad’s dictatorship.
Speaking to those on the ground, Wood reports of fathers who were shot in front of their families, victims made to howl like dogs as they crawled through piles of corpses, and of state security forces trying to prevent survivors from photographing or talking about what had happened.
But to what extent is al-Sharaa responsible? And could other minorities, like the Syrian Christian minority – one of the oldest in the world, be next? Paul and Fr Benedict joined the podcast to discuss. (1:02)
Next: this century’s ‘unstoppable process of language extinction’
There are around 7,000 languages currently spoken across the world, but by the end of the century only 500 are expected to survive. Thus, documenting endangered languages has never been so important and this is the starting point of Lorna Gibb’s new book, Rare Tongues: The Secret Stories of Hidden Languages, reviewed by Harry Ritchie in the books section of the magazine this week. What are some examples of the languages facing extinction? And should we accept this as an inevitable cultural rise and fall, or should we be working to combat this?
Harry joined the podcast alongside Dr Oliver Mayeux, a sociolinguist at Cambridge, who also speaks Louisiana creole – a language spoken by fewer that 10,000 people. With special thanks to the Endangered Language Alliance, for allowing us to use a clip of the Garifuna language, who are working to document and preserve languages facing extinction across the world. (18:06)
And finally: what is ‘Boom Boom’, Gen Z’s favourite aesthetic trend?
Out are boring converse and dirty t-shirts beloved by millennial tech bros and in are high-fashion double-breasted suits and loafers, or so says Arabella Byrne who writes about the aesthetic trend defining Gen Z. American trend analyst Sean Monahan – who also coined 2013’s ‘normcore’ – coined the term ‘Boom Boom’ to encapsulate the look and feel of the trend. Think 1980s yuppies updated for 2025 – so why exactly is it popular, and what does it tell us about today’s twentysomethings? Arabella and Sean joined the podcast to discuss. (27:50)
Plus: Matthew Parris, Stephen Fry, Rory Sutherland, Rachel Johnson, Philip Hensher, Sean Thomas and Petronella Wyatt reveal the worst insults they ever received from a teacher. (13:59)
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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He's also an intellectual mentor to the vice president of the United States; Politico describes him as 'J.D. Vance's English philosopher king'. Dr Orr says Vance is 'extremely articulate, but he takes no prisoners'. As you'll hear in his conversation with Damian Thompson, that's an observation that could easily apply to the man the vice president calls his 'British Sherpa'.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On the podcast, she tells Liv and Lara about early memories of her grandmother’s paratha, why she is not a vegetarian and why she prefers to think of herself as a ‘Cava communist’ as opposed to a Champagne socialist.
Photo credit: Jonathan Ring
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That one figure can be celebrated across the strait, both in Communist PRC and Taiwanese ROC, is the curious legacy left behind by Sun. March 12th this year is the centenary of Sun’s death, so what better opportunity to look at his legacy, and who better to discuss Sun than the historian Rana Mitter, who needs no introduction with Chinese Whispers listeners.
Further listening:
Japan’s role in the making of modern China
What is it to be ‘Chinese’?
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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So, what makes a liberal? What makes a conservative? And was Hayek right in saying that while there isn’t much to choose between these two political creeds, ultimately, they need each other.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Oscar Edmondson.
Kate Andrews' suggested reading on liberalism:
F. A. Hayek: The Road to Serfdom
Adam Smith: The Wealth of Nations
Deirdre McCloskey: Why Liberalism Works
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On the podcast, Julia talks to Katy Balls about the impact Margaret Thatcher had on the politics of her family, how she gained political experience touring London’s sewers and skyscrapers, and the mixed emotions of becoming an MP in 2017 – when the party lost its majority. She also describes what it was like to fight a campaign five days after giving birth, and her connection to The Spectator – having helped to change the law to protect British media from foreign ownership.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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From the success of Keir Starmer’s visit to Washington to the squabbling we saw in the Oval Office and the breakdown of security guarantees for Ukraine – we have seen the good, the bad and the ugly of geopolitics in the last week, say Niall Ferguson and Nicholas Kulish in this week’s cover piece. They argue that what Donald Trump is really concerned with when it comes to Ukraine is rare earth minerals – which Ukraine has in abundance under its soil. The conventional wisdom is that the US is desperately short of these crucial minerals and, as Niall and Nicholas point out, the dealmaking president is driven by a nagging sense of inferiority in comparison to rare earth minerals powerhouse China. Niall and Nicholas joined the podcast to talk further. (02:19)
Next: why are women having caesareans being offered sterilisation?
During a routine antenatal appointment, Flora Watkins was blindsided by the opening gambit from her obstetrician: ‘Why don’t we tie your tubes when we’ve got the baby out?’ The doctor wouldn’t drop it, despite Flora’s objections, insisting it was ‘a very simple procedure’. Flora speaks to other women who were traumatised by these unsolicited offers and confused about why they had been targeted. Most felt it was a judgment on the number of children they ‘should’ have. Only one woman had been given a medical reason. Flora joined the podcast to discuss this further, alongside Dr Janet Barter, president of the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare, which advises women on contraception. (18:50)
And finally: when is poetry so bad that it becomes good?
Sam Leith, The Spectator’s literary editor, celebrates William McGonagall in the magazine – the man affectionately considered the worst poet in history. McGonagall was, as Sam says, an ‘anti-genius’ who (in light of the Tay Bridge Disaster) concocted such memorable stanzas as:
Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silv’ry Tay!
Alas! I am very sorry to say
That ninety lives have been taken away
On the last Sabbath day of 1879,
Which will be remember’d for a very long time.
But Sam argues that there is joy to be found in bad poetry. To discuss good poetry, bad poetry and the very fine line between them, Sam Leith joined the podcast alongside one of the more successful Dundonian poets, Don Paterson. (33:08)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
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How Trump Recaptured America, takes Donald Trump and his colourful cast of hangers-on from the aftermath of the 6 January riots to his triumphal return to the White House.
Michael tells me why he thinks people in Trumpworld are still talking to him, how the Donald has changed over the decade he has been reporting on him, why he’s confident American democracy will survive a second Trump presidency – and how world leaders, such as Keir Starmer, are best advised to handle this volatile and unpredictable character.
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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The main topic of discussion was, of course, Donald Trump, whose inauguration has ushered in a new world disorder. His ‘shock and awe’ foreign policy has sent Europe scrambling as it tries to work out who will be responsible for ensuring its security in the future. We have seen a move away from the idealism that has defined foreign policy in the last decade and towards ‘realism’, with countries committing to boots on the ground and greater defence spending. Are Labour right to increase their defence pledge? Is Kemi Badenoch being energetic enough in holding the government to account – not just on its foreign policy, but on its record in government so far? And – closer to home – how worried are the Tories about the rise of Reform?
This discussion was originally recorded on Wednesday 26 February.
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The Spectator World’s Ben Domenech secured an interview with Donald Trump after the Starmer meeting, in which he was similarly effusive about the PM: ‘I thought he was very good. I met him twice before – you know, he came to see me twice before – but this time was the best. And I think we got along very well.’ You can find more from that interview on The Spectator World website.
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On the podcast, Alexandra talks to Katy Balls about the heyday of print journalism in the late 1980s and 1990s, why she thinks that discussion of the death of print journalism might be premature, and she opens up about the controversy that surrounded her handover to her successor. She cites her Adele cover as one of her most memorable during her time at Vogue, and she explains why she thinks expectations around beauty – despite her best efforts at challenging contemporary standards – have gotten worse.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Look at any opinion survey or poll, and it’s clear that Reform is hard to dismiss, write Katy Balls and James Heale. Yet surprisingly little is known about the main players behind the scenes who make up Nigel Farage’s new gang. There are ‘the lifers’ – Dan Jukes and ‘Posh George’ Cottrell. Then there are the Tory defectors, trained by Richard Murphy, a valued CCHQ veteran, who is described as a ‘secret weapon’. The most curious new additions are the Gen Zers, who include Tucker Carlson’s nephew, Charles Carlson, and Jack Anderton, known as ‘the Matrix’. Katy and James joined the podcast to lift the lid on Nigel Farage’s inner circle. (02:14)
Next: is technology a help or hindrance when it comes to missing people?
While smartphones are no doubt useful in emergency situations, they create the expectation that you will always be in touch – when sometimes, of course, you can’t be. But what happens when technology fails? Ross Clark tells the hilarious story of how he mistakenly became a ‘missing person’ after his phone died while hiking in Scotland. Ross joins the podcast to unpack the lessons from his day getting the full Lord Lucan treatment, alongside journalist and political correspondent for GB News Katherine Forster. Katherine’s sons, who used smartphones to track a hiking route, went missing last year in Bali when their phones died and they were unable to contact anyone. (17:33)
And finally: how do you make Bond great again?
James Bond seems to have lost his way. Gone is the charm, wit and romp of the original Connery and Moore Bonds, replaced by a grittier, more vengeful Bond with bloated plotlines that are far too referential. Amazon – which took full ‘creative control’ of the franchise this week – faces quite the task in rebooting the world’s most famous spy once again. Journalist Madeline Grant gives her prescription in the magazine on how to save Bond, but we are joined on the podcast by William Boyd, who is part of an elite class of authors to have written their own James Bond novels. (28:29)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
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Dr Kurt Martens, Professor of Canon Law at the Catholic University of America, joins Damian Thompson to unpack the process. What really happens when a Pope dies?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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On the podcast, Emma tells Liv about early memories of 'sugar butties', what's the best bottle to bring to a dinner party and what she would pair with her desert island meal.
Photo credit: Elena Hearthwick
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The Xinhua write-up gave few other details, but the news has caused reverberations across Asia as the river on which the dam would be built, the Yarlung Tsangpo, flows into both India and Bangladesh. The existence of the dam could, as this episode explains, have extensive impact on these downriver countries.
To break down the complicated water politics of the region, Cindy Yu is joined by Chinese Whispers regular, the journalist Isabel Hilton, who founded the climate NGO Dialogue Earth (formerly known as China Dialogue); and Neeraj Singh Manhas, an expert on transboundary rivers and Asian water politics, currently at South Korea’s Parley Policy Initiative.
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What's the strategy behind Trump's decision? And what could the consequences be for American companies and for global trade? They also discuss the broad political consensus behind free trade in the US since the 1990s. Given the 'lived reality' that faced many American investors and companies - for example competing with Chinese Electric Vehicles - was the free trade really working anyway?
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
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Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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The subject of Ukraine shattered the unity of Eastern Orthodoxy long before Russia’s full-scale invasion began. In 2018 the Ukrainian Orthodox Church declared independence from Moscow with the approval of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. In response, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow broke off all relations with Constantinople, creating arguably the greatest schism in Orthodoxy for 1,000 years.
There are now two main Ukrainian Orthodox Churches: one that supports independence and one still loyal to Moscow. As The Spectator’s Ukraine correspondent Svitlana Morenets points out, Ukrainians who previously didn’t care which church they attended now have to decide which to attend.
Meanwhile, Dr Yuri Stoyanov, a fellow at SOAS, describes the alarming escalation of apocalyptic rhetoric encouraged by Kirill, whose talk of a Holy War against the forces of Antichrist is popular with soldiers but means little to the average Russian.
As we approach the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Svitlana and Yuri join host Damian Thompson to discuss the role of the Russian Orthodox Church in perpetuating the conflict. Has Holy War returned to Europe? And is it true that President Putin has secretly been taking part in bizarre quasi-shamanistic rituals?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
This week: the world needs a realist resetDonald Trump’s presidency is the harbinger of many things, writes The Spectator’s editor Michael Gove, one of which is a return to a more pitiless world landscape. The ideal of a rules-based international order has proved to be a false hope. Britain must accept that if we are to earn the respect of others and the right to determine the future, we need a realist reset. What are the consequences of this new world order? And is the Trump administration reversing the tide of decline, or simply refusing to accept the inevitable?
Michael Gove joined the podcast alongside the geopolitical theorist Robert Kaplan, author of the new book Waste Land: A World in Permanent Crisis. Robert argues that the true understanding of realism has been corrupted, and that democracy ‘can easily become the tyranny of the majority’. (1:06)
Next: when does healthy scepticism over cholesterol become pseudoscience?With ‘sky-high’ cholesterol, the journalist Paul Wood has gone down an internet rabbit-hole to improve his heart health. He declares ‘I was convinced by the cholesterol sceptics’. There was once a time when it felt like the front pages of newspapers had a story raising doubts about statins – a type of medication to control cholesterol – every week. Now, the internet is full of medical misinformation around high cholesterol, an issue that will affect over half of Britons. So, what is the truth behind cholesterol? And when does healthy scepticism tip over into pseudoscience? Paul joined the podcast alongside the cardiologist Dr Christopher Labos, author of Does coffee cause cancer? (25:24)
And finally: with a love of magic, is it any wonder Dickens could conjure up worlds full of surprises?When people hear ‘the magic of Charles Dickens’ they undoubtedly think about the words - and the worlds - he created. Yet, many won’t realise that the great writer had a love of showmanship and stage magic himself. Peter Conrad says that Dickens could have even been an actor. What makes Dickens’s worlds so compelling? And how did his love of stagecraft influence his writing? Peter has authored a new book on the subject, Dickens the Enchanter: Inside the Explosive Imagination of the Great Storyteller, and joins the podcast. (37:10)
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the novelist and critic James Bradley whose new book is Deep Water: The World in the Ocean. He tells me how we need to rethink our relationship with the sea and the life it contains, why fish are much more intelligent than we are used to imagining, and why – amid planetary doom – there’s still room for hope.
Political commentator, and author of Troubled, Rob Henderson joins Freddy Gray from the ARC conference in London. They discuss the political reaction to the news that Elon Musk has allegedly had his 13th child – are there signs of a new, more permissive conservatism? They also discuss Trump’s administration so far – particularly his flurry of executive orders – with critics decrying them as the tactics of a populist, yet supporters approving of the speed of activity. What’s the psychology underpins these political viewpoints? Vice-President J.D. Vance’s speech in Munich over the weekend has also left many European leaders reeling – but should they really have been surprised?
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Patrick Gibbons.
In his new book Why We Believe: Finding Meaning in Uncertain Times, Prof Alister McGrath rejects the notion that belief is a relic of the past and takes aim at the ‘new atheists’ who attack religion without even knowing what it is.
Prof McGrath, emeritus Andreas Idreos Professor of Science and Religion at Oxford University, has had a unique journey to religion. A former Marxist atheist with a doctorate in molecular biology, he’s now a world-renowned theologian and Anglican priest.
In this lively discussion with Damian Thompson he talks about the boundary between science and religion, something poorly understood by aggressive atheists such as Richard Dawkins and the late Christopher Hitchens. He suggests that, while we all look for meaning, the safety of science doesn’t provide the sense of belonging that we all crave.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: James Heale wonders what Margaret Thatcher would make of today’s Conservatives (1:28); Andrew Kenny analyses South Africa’s expropriation act (6:13); Lara Prendergast explores the mystery behind The Spectator’s man in the Middle East, John R Bradley (13:55); Ysenda Maxtone Graham looks at how radio invaded the home (30:13); and, Nina Power reviews two exhibitions looking at different kinds of rage (35:13).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
It is 50 years since Margaret Thatcher was elected Conservative leader, and at this week’s shadow cabinet meeting, Lord Forsyth was invited as a guest speaker to mark the occasion. He noted the similarities between 1975 and 2025. Back then, the party was broke, reeling from defeat and facing the fallout from a reorganisation of local government. But, despite threadbare resources, Thatcher managed to rebuild to win power four years later. ‘You have the potential to do the same,’ Forsyth told Kemi Badenoch.
However, when asked if a young Thatcher would have been drawn to the right’s insurgent Reform Party, Nigel Farage replied, ‘I don’t think there’s any doubt about it.’ He even claimed that Thatcher had voted UKIP in 1999. ‘She believed in meritocracy, she put Jewish people in her cabinet, working-class people like Norman Tebbit. She would have hated wokery and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI),’ said Farage.
What would Mrs Thatcher have thought of the current state of the Conservative Party? Might Reform have appealed to her?
James Heale speaks to Lord Forsyth.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Professor John Mearsheimer comes back on the Americano show with Freddy Gray to discuss how seriously we should take Trump's foreign policy. They cover the President's plans to rebuild Gaza, why Netanyahu and Trump won't agree on what to do with Iran and whether Trump can strike a deal with Putin.
This week: The Spectator launches SPAFFThe civil service does one thing right, writes The Spectator’s data editor Michael Simmons: spaffing money away. The advent of Elon Musk’s DOGE in the US has inspired The Spectator to launch our own war on wasteful spending – the Spectator Project Against Frivolous Funding, or SPAFF. Examples of waste range from the comic to the tragic. The Department for Work and Pensions, Michael writes, ‘bought one Universal Credit claimant a £1,500 e-bike after he persuaded his MP it would help him find self-employment’. There’s money for a group trying to ‘decolonise’ pole dancing; for a ‘socially engaged’ practitioner to make a film about someone else getting an MBE; and for subscriptions to LinkedIn. Lord Agnew, who used to hold the ‘Pythonesque’ title of ‘minister of state for efficiency and transformation’, backs The Spectator’s new SPAFF campaign and says total reform is the only option. Michael and Theo joined the podcast to discuss. (1:04)
Next: is surrogacy a blessing or a sham?Debates about surrogacy have raged again following the announcement that the actress Lily Collins has had a baby via surrogate. Mary Wakefield says that there is a ‘sadness’ behind surrogacy, and that babies could be affected by being separated from their birth mother. Surrogacy is illegal in many countries, such as Spain and Italy, and Mary worries about potential legal changes that would make it easier to pursue here in the UK. So, is surrogacy a lifeline for many couples looking to conceive, or is it a practice that we should be more concerned about? Mary joined the podcast to discuss alongside Sunshine Hanson. Sunshine is the president and co-founder of the US-based surrogacy agency Surrogacy Is, and has also been a gestational surrogate three times. (16:26)
And finally: is smoking sexy again?Flora Watkins revels at the news that Generation Z are shedding their vapes and taking up ‘real’ smoking, saying that everyone looks ‘hotter with a fag in their mouth’. Disregarding familial disapproval, Flora says that smoking makes her feel cool, young and attractive. Does this mean that smoking is sexy again? And why is smoking proving more popular with younger generations? It appears that the proposed smoking ban, proposed by both the Conservatives and now Labour, is having the opposite effect. Flora joined the podcast - with a cigarette in hand - to discuss, alongside the writer Zak Asgard. (29:35)
Presented by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
From Churchill to Thatcher to Blair to Farage, Parliament has seen some truly fantastic rhetoricians over the years. But last week came the news that – in a bid to improve his own oratorical skill – Keir Starmer employed a voice coach: former actress Leonie Mellinger. Mellinger has been at the centre of a fresh COVID-19 row, as the Prime Minister considered her to be so important that she qualified as a ‘key worker’ in 2020, visiting Labour headquarters in a mask on Christmas Eve 2020 to advise Starmer.
It is not an unusual practice to employ a voice coach to improve a politician’s public speaking, and on the podcast Michael Gove is joined by his own former coach Graham Davies, to recover the lost art of political rhetoric. They discuss what makes a great political speech, share some of their favourite examples and ask: has Mellinger actually improved Starmer’s delivery?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Megan McElroy.
Sam Leith's guest on today’s Book Club podcast is the musician, writer and photographer Colin Greenwood, who joins me to discuss his new book of photographs and memoir How To Disappear: A Portrait of Radiohead. Colin tells me about the band’s Mr Benn journey, photographing what you want to see… and what it takes to make Radiohead open a gig with 'Creep'.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
Angus Hanton, author of Vassal State: How America Runs Britain, joins Freddy Gray to talk about the economic relationship between Britain and America. As the world adjusts to the new US administration, every day seems to bring news of new potential tariffs. Is the UK a prime target for Trump? What could the impact of tariffs be? And what are the long-term questions facing British politicians about both the economic and political relationship with the US?
Produced by Megan McElroy and Patrick Gibbons.
Andy Cato is a musician, record producer and DJ, and is perhaps best known as one half of the Grammy Award-winning electronic music duo Groove Armada.
Andy is also a farmer and now puts his energy into championing a better food system as co-founder of Wildfarmed, the UK’s leading regenerative food and farming company. Backed by Jeremy Clarkson and hundreds of farmers nationwide, regenerative farming methods place nature at the heart of food production: protecting natural landscapes, minimising pesticide use and building food security.
On the podcast, he tells Lara about nutrition on world music tours, his favourite food spot at Glastonbury Festival and why he sold the rights to his music to pursue regenerative farming.
Beginning in the first Trump presidency and expanded under Joe Biden, the US has taken a strategy of technologically containing China through restricting its access to cutting edge semiconductors. As Chinese Whispers has looked at before, these chips form the backbone of rapid advances in AI, telecoms, smartphones, weaponry and more. Washington’s aim was clear: to widen the technological gap between the two powers
But has this strategy worked? Lately this has become a hot topic of debate as Chinese tech companies such as Huawei and DeepSeek have nevertheless made technical strides. Some even argue that the export controls have spurred on Chinese innovation and self-reliance.
In this episode of Chinese Whispers, two very informed and smart guests debate this issue. Ryan Fedasiuk is U.S. Director of The Future Society, an independent nonprofit organization focused on AI governance, and former Advisor for U.S.-China Bilateral Affairs at the US State Department. Steve Hsu is Professor of Theoretical Physics at Michigan State University and a start-up founder. He also hosts the podcast, Manifold.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Joe Bedell-Brill.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Katy Balls analyses the threat Reform pose to the Conservatives (1:20); Alexander Raubo talks us through the MAGA social scene and the art collective Remilia (6:42); Damian Thompson reviews Vatican Spies: from the Second World War to Pope Francis, by Yvonnick Denoel (12:27); Daisy Dunn reviews the new podcast Intoxicating History from Henry Jeffreys and Tom Parker Bowles, as well as BBC Radio 4’s Moving Pictures (17:50); and, Mark Mason provides his notes on obituaries (22:46).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
This week saw the publication of Patrick Maguire and Gabriel Pogrund’s new book Get In: The Inside Story of Labour Under Starmer. It’s the second in their tell-all series of books on the Labour Party’s ups and downs and has caused quite a stir in Westminster. From the revelations about Keir Starmer’s voice coach causing a fresh lockdown row to Michael Gove’s secret dinner with Morgan McSweeney, there is a high-density of scoops and disclosures. Can Labour blame the failures of their first 100 days on Sue Gray? And is there such a thing as ‘Starmerism’? Patrick and Gabriel sat down with Katy Balls and Michael Gove to discuss.
Produced by Megan McElroy and Oscar Edmondson.
Kay Burley announced her retirement from Sky News this week, after 36 years, having presented more than a million minutes of live television news – more than any other presenter in the world.
To mark the occasion, here’s a special edition of Women With Balls – from the archives – when Kay Burley joined Katy Balls in 2019 to talk about how she ‘knocked the rough edges’ off her accent, her love of Jane Fonda, and why the BBC couldn’t afford her these days.
As a man with the instincts of an insurgent, Morgan McSweeney, Keir Starmer’s chief of staff, has found Labour’s first six months in office a frustrating time, writes The Spectator’s editor Michael Gove. ‘Many of his insights – those that made Labour electable – appeared to have been overlooked by the very ministers he propelled into power.’ McSweeney is trying to wrench the government away from complacent incumbency: there is a new emphasis on growth, a tougher line on borders, an impatience with establishment excuses for inertia. Will McSweeney win his battle? And what does this mean for figures in Starmer’s government, like Richard Hermer and Ed Miliband? Michael joined the podcast alongside Starmer’s biographer Tom Baldwin. (1:04)
Next: can the AfD be stopped?Lisa Haseldine writes about an earthquake that hit German politics last week; the much feted ‘firewall’ – the agreement by mainstream political parties not to work with the far-right – appeared to fall. Freidrich Merz, tipped to be Chancellor after the upcoming German elections, relied upon the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) for two votes on immigration. Cue protests and denouncements; Merz’s most high-profile predecessor as CDU leader, Angela Merkel, even made a rare, political intervention to denounce the decision. Has the vote helped or hindered Merz? And has the German firewall fallen permanently? Lisa joined the podcast alongside Elisabeth Dampier. Elisabeth has interviewed the controversial AfD MEP Maximilian Krah for the magazine and writes about the man who calls himself ‘the German Donald Trump’. (21:02)
And finally: the curious life of an obituary writerMark Mason provides his notes on obituaries for the magazine this week, stating that ‘there’s nothing as inspiring or instructive or entertaining about reading a few hundred words about someone’s time on his planet’. What’s the process behind putting an obituary together? The Times' longest serving obituary writer Damian Arnold once said, ‘The first thing I do when I wake up in the morning is check to see who's dead.’ Mark and Damian joined the podcast to discuss who makes for the best obituary, if there is joy to be found in celebrating death, and whether they’ve ever published an obituary of someone who isn’t actually dead… (33:48)
Presented by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
When Netanyahu visited the White House, Donald Trump said in a press conference that the US could take over the Gaza Strip and suggested the permanent resettlement of its 1.8 million residents to neighbouring Arab countries. It has sparked global condemnation raising questions about where the Gaza citizens could be resettled to, and how this could impact the hostage negotiations. To discuss this and the conflict more widely, Freddy Gray is joined by former Israel spokesperson Eylon Levy.
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Philip Marsden, whose new book Under A Metal Sky: A Journey Through Minerals, Greed and Wonder looks in thrilling and surprising detail at the wonders that are to be found beneath our feet. On the podcast he takes me through the meanings that rocks and metals have had through human history, from the bronze age, via the alchemist's quest for the philosopher's stone, to the present day.
It's happened. Reform are now ahead of Labour, according to a voting intention poll by YouGov. Reform leads the landmark poll with 25 points, with Labour languishing all the way down in second place on 24 points. Meanwhile, the Conservatives place third on 21 per cent, the Liberal Democrats are on 14 per cent and the Greens on 9 per cent. While there have been a handful of polls to date putting Reform in the lead, they have so far been regarded as outliers. It's a slim lead, but does it point to a long term shift in UK politics – or can it be dismissed as a blip? Does this make a Tory-Reform pact more likely?
Oscar Edmondson speaks to Katy Balls and James Heale.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
The Spectator's economics editor Kate Andrews and Social Democratic Party leader William Clouston join Freddy Gray to try and make sense of Donald Trump's decision to impose tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China. He has since threatened the European Union, and has warned the UK. Is this a negotiation tactic or something more? What political philosophy underpins the decision? And what will the impact be?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Megan McElroy.
Jeremy Chan is the head chef and owner of Ikoyi, a West African-inspired restaurant that celebrates British seasonality. He is also the author of a cookbook of the same name.
On the podcast, he tells Liv and Lara about growing up with a number of different food influences – from Hong Kong to Canada – and why his two-Michelin-starred restaurant should never be pigeonholed.
Photo credit: Danny J Peace
There has been a Christian community in Syria since the first century AD. But it is shrinking fast and faces terrifying new threats as the country’s government, following the overthrow of President Assad, forges alliances with hardline Muslims including foreign jihadists – Uighurs from China, Uzbeks from Central Asia, Chechens from Russia, Afghans and Pakistanis.
Mgr Michael Nazir-Ali, the former Anglican Bishop of Rochester who is now a Catholic priest of the Ordinariate, has written a heartbreaking piece for The Spectator about the Christians of Maaloula in southwest Syria. It’s one of the last remaining communities to speak Syriac, a dialect of Aramaic, the language of Jesus Christ. ‘Were this community to be destroyed, something precious and irreplaceable would be lost’, he writes.
Yet that is exactly what may happen. When the then-Bishop Nazir-Ali visited the town in 2016, he discovered that the predecessors of the jihadis who recently toppled Bashar al-Assad ‘had systematically destroyed and desecrated the town’s churches and monasteries. Orthodox nuns were kidnapped and held to ransom … young men had been singled out and executed when they refused to convert to the extremists’ version of Islam.’
Will it happen again? Ahmad al-Sharaa, head of the new Syrian transitional administration, has told Church leaders they have nothing to fear. But can he be trusted? As Mgr Nazir-Ali tells Damian Thompson in this episode of Holy Smoke, it is time for the West to act.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Loyd Grossman pleads to save Britain's cathedrals, as he reads his diary for the week (1:31); Unity Mitford is a classic case of aristocratic anti-Semitism says Tanya Gold (7:47); looking ahead to another Strategic Defence Review, Harry Halem warns that Britain is far from prepared for the era of AI warfare (12:42); 'the worst echo chamber is your own mind': Angus Colwell interviews philosopher Agnes Callard (24:24); reviewing Prosecuting the Powerful: War Crimes and the Battle for Justice, by Steve Crawshaw, Philippe Sands argues that while the international criminal justice system was prejudiced from the start the idea was right (31:01); and, Michael Simmons contradicts the Pope and declares that gossip is good for you (41:21).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
The first phase of Trump’s presidency has been a whirlwind of news. The President signed a succession of executive orders, which overwhelmed and confused the Democratic Party with the amount of ‘energy in the executive’. But there are signs of life, particularly in opposition to Trump’s attempts to freeze federal grants and loans. What’s going on? Are the Democrats finding their feet?
To discuss, Freddy is joined by Damon Linker, senior lecturer in political science at the University of Pennsylvania and the author of the Notes from the Middle Ground substack.
This week: why don’t we know how many people are in Britain?How many people live in the UK? It’s a straightforward question, yet the answer eludes some of the nation’s brightest statistical minds, writes Sam Bidwell for the cover this week. Whenever official figures are tested against real-world data, the population is almost always undercounted. For example, in England alone, nearly 64 million patients are registered with GP practices – higher than the Office for National Statistics (ONS)'s estimated population of 58 million. Sam argues there are serious consequences for our society at large, including for tax, housing and our utilities. Who is to blame for this data deficiency? And why is Britain so bad at tackling illegal migration? Sam joined the podcast alongside the broadcaster Trevor Phillips. (1:03)
Next: has gender ideology taken over the press regulator?Two months ago, the press regulator Ipso upheld a complaint against The Spectator for the way in which writer Gareth Roberts referred to transgender author Juno Dawson. One person who wasn’t surprised by the ruling was Conrad Roeber, who was lead author of a report for the regulator examining how the press treats trans-related issues. In the magazine this week, he argues: ‘It effectively asked me to mark its homework,’ and he worries that the case demonstrates that a contentious ideology has taken over the regulator. What does this case mean for the intersection of equality, free speech and a free press? Conrad joined us to discuss, alongside The Spectator’s editor Michael Gove. (21:35)
And finally: trad dads vs female breadwinnersArabella Byrne argues in favour of ‘trad dads’, saying that she is quite happy with her traditional family life with her husband as the main breadwinner. Her piece was (in part) a response to an article by Theo Hobson, published in The Spectator several weeks ago, where he shared his conflicting feelings about his wife being the main earner in his family. How much have societal norms really changed? What impact is there on a spouse who isn’t the breadwinner? And for all the talk of gender parity professionally, can it ever truly be achieved in the familial home? Both Arabella and Theo joined us to discuss. (36:00)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
Colombia has agreed to accept military aircraft carrying deported migrants from the US – avoiding a trade war between the two countries. Donald Trump had threatened sanctions on Colombia to punish it for initially refusing military flights following a rapid immigration crackdown. What are the challenges of deportation flights, and what's Trump's vision for Latin America? Freddy Gray is joined by Todd Bensman, Fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies, and author of 'Overrun'.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the novelist Lissa Evans, talking about her previous life as the producer of the sitcom Father Ted – as described in her new book Picnic on Craggy Island: The Surreal Joys of Producing Father Ted. She tells me about the collaborative genius of Graham Linehan and Arthur Mathews, the unusual experience of having to cut laughter out of episodes because there was simply too much of it, and sending a sheep to make-up.
Chinese Whispers is nominated in the Political Podcast Awards 2025. Vote for it to win the People's Choice category here
When Chinese spy scandals break, like the latest involving Prince Andrew and his Chinese business associate, one organisation often comes up – the United Front. Mao Zedong had dubbed it one of the Chinese Communist Party’s three ‘magic weapons’.
So what is this mysterious ‘United Front’ and how important is it to advancing the CCP’s agenda? Joining the podcast is Charlie Parton, a former British diplomat in Beijing and a special advisor on China to the Foreign Affairs Select Committee. He is now chief advisor to the Council on Geostrategy’s China Observatory.
Americano is nominated in the Political Podcast Awards 2025. Vote for it to win the People's Choice category here
Cryptocurrency became a key feature of the American election and the Trump universe. Not only did Trump and Melania launch their own coins, but the President has also appointed venture capitalist David Sacks to be the AI and Crypto 'czar'. Freddy Gray is joined by podcaster and owner of Bedford FC Peter McCormack to discuss whether Trump can decentralise finance, why voters are turning to the fiat market, and whether Peter is a Bitcoin maximalist.
Andrea Picciotti-Bayer, director of the US-based Conscience Project and a friend of Holy Smoke, joins Damian to talk about what the incoming second Trump administration could mean for religious freedoms in America. Andrea argues that the Biden administration waged an unprecedented assault on such freedoms during his term. What could happen over the next four years on issues like gender, abortion, adoption and religious discrimination? And what are the nuances between federal and state laws? (2:06)
Also on the podcast, Damian speaks to The Spectator’s Will Moore, Lara Prendergast and Freddy Gray about the nomination of Cardinal Robert McElroy to be the new Archbishop of Washington. Far from being a routine appointment, Damian reveals in this week’s magazine that this is clearly a retaliation against the new Trump administration for the nomination of an arch MAGA loyalist, and uncompromising Catholic, as the new ambassador to the Holy See. Cardinal McElroy is an outspoken liberal. What does this tell us about both the Papacy and the President? And how much sway does the Catholic hierarchy really have in Trump’s America? (21:55)
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
For the past fortnight, Canada’s Parliament has been empty. After Justin Trudeau resigned as Liberal leader, all the polls are pointing to the likelihood that Canada will become another example of the West’s shift to the right.
This is partly due to the incumbency problem (and the ongoing internal struggles in the Liberal Party), but also the Canadian Conservatives’ firebrand leader: Pierre Poilievre. A skilled communicator who seamlessly mixes the online and offline world, Poilievre is in many ways one of the first Conservative influencers. And he has been picking up a number of admirers in the UK: Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick have visited Canada to try to learn from his playbook, and Starmer seems to have been taking tips as well. Why are the left and the right excited by a Canadian conservative?
Katy Balls speaks to James Heale and Patrick Maguire.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Freddy Gray reads his letter from Washington D.C., and reveals what Liz Truss, Eric Zemmour and Steve Bannon made of Trump’s inauguration (1:22); Tanya Gold writes about the sad truth behind the gypsies facing eviction in Cornwall (7:15); Rose George reviews The Forgotten Sense: The New Science of Smell, by Jonas Olofsson, and explains the surprising link between odour disgust and political attitudes (13:07); Toby Young provides his favourite anecdotes about President Trump, having crossed paths with him in New York City in the 1990s (18:39); and, Rory Sutherland proposes a unique way to solve Britain’s building crisis: ‘Areas of Outstanding Natural Ugliness’ (23:40).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Rachael Maskell has been the MP for York Central since 2015. With over two decades experience working in the NHS, and as a trade unionist, she has championed causes on the left from improving healthcare to combating climate change. Yet, she has not been afraid to take what she says is an ‘evidenced approach’ to political issues, even when it has put her in opposition to the position of the Labour leadership. Most recently, she was a leading voice against the assisted dying bill as Chair of the Dying Well parliamentary group.
On the podcast, Rachael talks to Katy Balls about the influence of politics around the dinner table and the miners’ strikes, how we could improve the NHS, and why she served under Jeremy Corbyn. Having disagreed with the Labour government over issues like the winter fuel allowance, Rachael also reveals what she makes of Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves’s leadership, and how she would like to see their approach change.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
This week: the death of British industryIn the cover piece for the magazine, Matthew Lynn argues that Britain is in danger of entering a ‘zero-industrial society’. The country that gave the world the Industrial Revolution has presided over a steep decline in British manufacturing. He argues there are serious consequences: foreign ownership, poorer societies, a lack of innovation, and even national security concerns. Why has this happened? Who is to blame? And could Labour turn it around? Matthew joined the podcast, alongside the head of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Paul Nowak. (1:05)
Next: the Pope takes on President TrumpThe Pope has nominated Cardinal Robert McElroy to be the new Archbishop of Washington. Damian Thompson writes that on the face of it, this might sound like a routine appointment, but the reality is that this is retaliation against the Trump administration. for the nomination of an arch-MAGA loyalist, and uncompromising Catholic, as the new ambassador to the Holy See. Subsequently, the Vatican has appointed an outspoken liberal. What does this tell us about the power of both the Papacy and the President? And how much sway does the Catholic hierarchy really have in Trump’s America? Damian joined us to reveal more, alongside our deputy editor Freddy Gray, who has been in D.C. for Trump’s inauguration. (19:02)
And finally: what are sex parties really like?Far from being a sexy affair, sex parties are depressing, with most attendees leaving unfulfilled and rather disappointed, writes James Innes-Smith. He says that he spent more time in the kitchen at a recent party than in the bedroom. So, what makes them appealing in the first place? Are people looking for connection in all the wrong places? James joined the podcast alongside Sophia Money-Coutts, who has written about the subject for Tatler magazine. (30:35)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
In this week’s Book Club podcast, we’re contemplating the astounding achievement of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby in its 100th year. My guest is Professor Sarah Churchwell, author of Careless People: Murder, Mayhem and the Making of The Great Gatsby, as well as the introduction to Cambridge University Press’s new edition of the novel. Sarah tells me what we get wrong about this Jazz Age classic, why Fitzgerald’s antisemitism shouldn’t necessarily get him cancelled, and how Fitzgerald’s great novel traces the arc that leads from 1925 to Donald Trump’s second inauguration.
Americano is nominated in the Political Podcast Awards 2025. Vote for it to win the People's Choice category here
Donald Trump has been sworn in as the 47th President of the United States. All the former leaders of the free world were there to watch Trump take the oath - again - but how was this inauguration different to the last? And what signs were there of how Trump intends to govern?
Guest hosting for Americano, The Spectator’s Kate Andrews speaks to Freddy Gray, who is on the ground in D.C., and Lionel Shriver about Trump’s speech lamenting the Biden administration, Biden’s last minute pardoning of his family, and why some Democrats could be willing to give Trump a chance this time round.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Natasha Feroze.
The parties - and protests - have already kicked off, as Trump's inauguration gets underway in Washington D.C. today. Katy Balls speaks to Michael Gove and Republicans Overseas UK's Sarah Elliott about what we can expect from the first week of Trump's second presidency, and how Keir Starmer will attempt to navigate the 'special relationship'. Sarah updates us on the mood in the US capital; which UK politicians have been spotted joining in on the fun?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Michael Gove offers up some advice to Keir Starmer (1:33); Mary Wakefield examines the rise of the ‘divorce party’ (7:28); Mitchell Reiss looks at the promise and peril of AI as he reviews Genesis: Artificial Intelligence, Hope and the Human Spirit, a collaboration between the former CEO of Google Eric Schmidt, the former chief research and strategy officer at Microsoft Craig Mundie, and the late US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger (13:52); Max Jeffery listens to The Armie HammerTime Podcast as the actor attempts to reverse his spectacular downfall (20:45); and, Nicholas Farrell reveals the time he got drunk with the ghost of Mussolini (25:24).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
It's been a tricky week for Rachel Reeves: an onslaught of criticism for the levels of borrowing costs, GDP at 0.1 per cent, and stagflation still gripping the UK economy. Remarkably she has come out of it looking stronger – politically at least. But can she afford to celebrate? The Spectator's Kate Andrews and data editor Michael Simmons join the podcast to discuss the economy, and go through some of the most striking graphs from The Spectator's data hub this week.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
Welcome to one of the most heated exchanges of views in the history of the Holy Smoke podcast. In this episode, Damian Thompson talks to the distinguished Islamic scholar Dr Musharraf Hussain about the controversy surrounding the Muslim background of some of the accused in the crimes of Britain's 'grooming gangs'.
Damian draws an analogy between the Catholic hierarchy's cover-up of sex abuse by priests, and what he claims was the role of certain local Muslim community leaders in restricting debate about, and investigation of, abuse committed by men from Pakistani families. To say that there was no common ground between Dr Thompson and Dr Hussain would be putting it mildly, alas...
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
This week: President Trump’s plan to Make America Greater
In the cover piece for the magazine, our deputy editor and host of the Americano podcast, Freddy Gray, delves into Trump’s plans. He speaks to insiders, including Steve Bannon, about the President’s ambitions for empire-building. Could he really take over Canada, Greenland and the Panama Canal? And if not, what is he really hoping to achieve? Academic and long-time friend of J.D. Vance, James Orr, also writes in the magazine this week about how the vice president-elect could be an even more effective standard-bearer for the MAGA movement. Freddy and James joined the podcast, just before Freddy heads off to cover Trump’s inauguration. (1:00)
Next: the child-free influencers waging war on motherhood
Kara Kennedy also writes in the magazine about the popularity of social media influencers advocating child-free lives. It’s well documented that more and more young people are choosing not to have children. However, while some might think this is about championing different lifestyles, Kara writes that many of these influencers are, in fact, shaming those who choose to have children. What motivates them? Kara joined the podcast alongside Brittany Brantley, an influencer who started out in the child-free community, before choosing to have a child. (16:58)
And finally: can fact-checking ever be objective?
Following the news that Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta will reduce its fact-checking service, Matt Ridley examines the world of fact-checking and declares the practice ‘corrupted’. Matt argues that fact-checking is riddled with bias – can it ever be objective? Matt joined the podcast alongside The Spectator’s very own fact-checking team, Sam McPhail and Michael Simmons – who get a positive mention in Matt’s piece. They lift the lid on how the magazine approaches fact-checking. (26:58)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
Americano is nominated in the Political Podcast Awards 2025. Vote for it to win the People's Choice category here
The LA wildfires have been mostly extinguished, but there is growing concern that more fires could be imminent as strong winds are expected this week. Many believe that the destruction has shone a light on the broader mismanagement of California, run by the Democrat Gavin Newsom – who has proposed billions in new funding for 'Los Angeles 2.0'. Freddy Gray speaks to energy specialist Robert Bryce about the policy failures which have contributed to the wildfires, what the clear up could look like and why this crisis will expose the class divide in America.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is Orlando Reade, whose book What in Me Is Dark: The Revolutionary Life of Paradise Lost describes the life and afterlife of one of the greatest poems in the language. Orlando tells me how Milton’s epic has been read with – and against – the grain over the centuries; how it went from being a totem of English exceptionalism to being an encouragement to postcolonial revolutionaries and political thinkers from Malcolm X to C. L. R. James; how the modernists wrestled with Milton… and how Jordan Peterson gets it wrong.
Julian is a philosopher, journalist and author. He has served as the academic director of the Royal Institute of Philosophy and is a member of the Food Ethics Council. His new book, How the World Eats: A Global Food Philosophy, is out now.
On the podcast, Julian tells Liv about why he used to insist that shepherd’s pie was served at his birthday parties, the philosophical view of veganism and why it’s worth getting the expensive hazelnuts.
Chinese Whispers is nominated in the Political Podcast Awards 2025. Vote for it to win the People's Choice category here
Among the casualties of Donald Trump’s trade war with China in his first presidency was the telecoms giant Huawei. Founded by former military engineer Ren Zhengfei, the company is a world-leading manufacturer of everything from telecoms equipment to smartphones.
But it fell foul of the Trump administration as it tried to become integral to the world’s rollout of 5G, leading to a backlash in the West and even the house arrest of Ren’s daughter. At the centre of the row is a suspicion that Huawei is essentially a state-owned company, working at the behest of the Chinese Communist Party.
So as Trump prepares to go back to the White House, this episode tries to get to the bottom of the telecoms giant. Is it an arm of the Chinese state? How has it found such world dominating success? Can it survive a second Trump presidency?
Cindy Yu speaks to Eva Dou, technology reporter for the Washington Post. Her new book is the House of Huawei: Inside the Secret World of China’s Most Powerful Company.
Americano is nominated in the Political Podcast Awards 2025. Vote for it to win the People's Choice category here
Freddy Gray is joined by Amy Wax who is a professor at Penn University to discuss education in America. Recently the Florida Governor Ron De Santis has been embracing a return to ‘classical education' which emphasises liberal arts and western teachings. Amy Wax speaks to Freddy about how education in America has been taken over by ‘woke’ ideologies, what simple teaching techniques should be retuned to the classroom, and whether there is any need for the Department of Education.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Catherine Lafferty argues that the drive to reduce teenage pregnancies enabled grooming gangs (1:27); following Luke Littler’s world championship victory, Michael Simmons says that Gen Z is ruining darts (6:32); Paul Wood looks at the return of Isis, and America’s unlikely ally in its fight against the terrorist group (10:35); Philip Hensher reviews a new biography of the Brothers Grimm by Ann Schmiesing, and looks at how words can be as dangerous as war (17:57); Isabel Hardman highlights the new garden now open at the Natural History Museum (26:57); and, Damian Thompson reveals he watched videos of plane crashes to distract himself from the US election coverage – why? (31:40).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
This week, MPs voted against a new national inquiry into grooming gangs. The vote followed weeks of pressure on Labour after Elon Musk brought grooming gangs back into the spotlight, after safeguarding minister Jess Phillips rejected a new national inquiry.
If we did have a national inquiry, what would it achieve? We’ve had many in recent years; Iraq, Grenfell Covid, the Post Office. Do they achieve meaningful justice for victims, or are they a drawn-out way to avoid knotty legislative change? Does parliament have the mechanisms to enact the recommendations – have politicians ever done this in the past, and is there an appetite to do so in the future?
Deputy broadcast editor Natasha Feroze discusses with Spectator assistant editor Isabel Hardman, and Raja Miah, anti-grooming gang campaigner and Oldham commentator.
Americano is nominated in the Political Podcast Awards 2025. Vote for it to win the People's Choice category here
Freddy Gray is joined by Gideon Rachman of the Financial Times to discuss what Donald Trump’s revisionist America could mean for the world order. Trump is a sworn enemy of what he calls ‘globalism’, which raises questions about whether America will remain the world’s most powerful country in 2025 and beyond. Gideon has described five ways in which Trump's America First strategy would play out, from a great new power bargain, to war by accident and anarchy in a leaderless world. On the podcast Freddy and Gideon discuss the five possible scenarios, how the Russia-Ukraine war could be resolved, whether Trump’s tariffs are such and bad thing, and if China is the real antagonist.
This week: what does justice look like for the victims of the grooming gangs?
In the cover piece for the magazine, Douglas Murray writes about the conspiracy of silence on the grooming gangs and offers his view on what justice should look like for the perpetrators. He also encourages the government to take a step back and consider its own failings. He writes: ‘If any government or political party wants to do something about the scandal, they will need to stop reviewing and start acting. Where to begin? One good starting point would be to work out why Pakistani rapists in Britain seem to have more rights than their victims.’ To unpack his piece in a little more detail, we were joined by journalist Julie Bindel, who has been reporting on the grooming gangs for almost 20 years. (03:20)
Next: ‘Why I’m voting for the AfD’
In the magazine, Elisabeth Dampier explains why she will be voting for Germany’s AfD party – Alternative for Deutschland. Support for the hard-right AfD party grew dramatically in 2024 and is often used as an example of a broader trend of support for right-wing politics in the West. But is the key to their success as simple as an unpopular incumbent government and the salience of immigration? And how do they deal with constant comparisons to National Socialism? To discuss, we were joined by Elisabeth and German historian and journalist Katja Hoyer. (17:09)
And finally: Help! I’m addicted to videos of plane crashes
Damian Thompson writes an excellent guest Life column this week on his latest obsession: binge-watching aeroplane crash videos on YouTube. Now, this does sound a little bit morbid but – as he explains – it’s actually very educational, especially when you are being talked through the intricacies of air accidents by Petter Hörnfeldt, who runs the Mentour Pilot YouTube channel. We thought it would be fun to get Damian in conversation with his new hero, Petter. (29:46)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week’s Books podcast, I am joined by Rachel Cooke, who edits the new book The Virago Book of Friendship. Rachel unpacks the intense, often enigmatic dynamics of female friendships in a spry and very dip-in-and-out-able anthology of writing about female friendship in an exhilaratingly wide array of forms, from high culture to low.
There are many gems to cackle over, including: an incomparably tender and exact description of Hannah Arendt by Mary McCarthy; a wonderful, worm-turning character assassination of the ghastly Susan Sontag by her former disciple, Terry Castle; and the revelation that Elizabeth Bishop and Marianne Moore were boon companions for two whole years before they stopped calling each other ‘Miss Bishop’ and ‘Miss Moore’.
How do you solve a problem like Elon? We have spent much of the past week talking on the podcast about Labour vs Musk, and the tech billionaire’s vocal criticism of how the government is dealing with the grooming gang scandal. But Reform UK are having their own issues with the volatile owner of X. There have been questions over whether Musk could still bankroll the party after he called for Farage to step down following a disagreement over Musk’s support for the far-right activist Tommy Robinson – but in the last 24 hours, it seems the tech billionaire has rowed back a little on his stance and has returned to reposting Farage’s tweets.
Musk seems to be playing those on the right of British politics against each other, dishing out endorsements – retweets – to a different politician each day. Can anyone trust Musk? And what has the response to the grooming gang scandal revealed about parties on both sides of British politics?
James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Tim Stanley, columnist for the Telegraph.
Produced by Megan McElroy, Natasha Feroze and Oscar Edmondson
Dame Sarah Storey is Britain’s most successful Paralympian of all time. She is a 45-time World champion, a 23-time European champion, and a 77-time world recorder breaker – including times she broke her own records. Earlier this year she won her 18th and 19th Olympic golds at the Paris 2024 games.
On the podcast, Sarah talks to Katy Balls about switching from swimming to cycling, the influence of bullying at school and the funding disparity that Paralympians face. She also talks about working with Dan Jarvis and Andy Burnham on improving cycling infrastructure, as well as her preparations for the next Olympics – Los Angeles 2028. Plus, where does she keep all those medals?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
This week: composer James MacMillan reads his diary on the beautiful music of football (01:11); Sebastian Morello tells us about the deep connection between hunting and Christianity (07:17); Amy Wilentz explains how Vodou fuels Haiti’s gang culture (16:14); The Spectator’s literary editor Sam Leith reviews The Virago Book of Friendship (22:38); and – from the arts pages – The Spectator’s theatre critic Lloyd Evans writes about a new play on the last days of Liz Truss and also about Bette and Joan, which includes 'brutal' and 'brilliant' portraits of Bette Davis and Joan Crawford (26:37).
Presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
Laura King is affectionately known as the 'Caviar Queen' and is widely regarded as the UK's foremost caviar expert. In this special episode of the podcast Laura takes Liv and Lara through a caviar tasting: from Beluga to Oscietra.
This week: the fight for the future of the right
From Milei in Argentina to Trump in the US, Meloni in Italy to the rise of the AfD in Germany, the world appears to be turning to the right, say James Kanagasooriam and Patrick Flynn. One country, however, seems to be the exception to this rule: our own. Britain under Keir Starmer appears to be putting on a revival of the old classic Socialism in One Country. However, beyond Westminster, the data show that Britain is not moving to the left in line with its government. While the Conservatives and Reform are locked in a near-constant struggle for supremacy, polling shows that the public are moving to the right. Both parties can pitch for the socially conservative vote, but it is on the economy that Britain’s battle for the right becomes interesting. James and Patrick joined the podcast earlier this week to unpack their cover piece.
Next: Jordan Peterson on faith, family and conservatism
In the magazine this week, our editor Michael Gove interviews Canadian psychologist and commentator Professor Jordan Peterson. His latest book, We Who Wrestle with God, explores the psychological significance of Bible stories. He spoke to Michael about supernatural relationships, the folly of Conservatives and the future of Europe. You can hear an extract from that interview on the podcast, but the full interview is available on The Spectator’s YouTube channel, Spectator TV.
And finally: the dangers of over-diagnosing ADHD
‘Just a decade or so ago I rarely saw anyone in a clinic with “attention deficit hyperactivity disorder”,’ writes Max Pemberton, a consultant psychiatrist, in The Spectator this week. Now, he says, he sees at least one case a day. Have all these people simply been undiagnosed for years? To what extent are we medicalising normal everyday issues, difficulties and problems? To discuss, Max joined the podcast alongside Mary Wakelfield, The Spectator’s commissioning editor, who has had her own run-in with the adult ADHD trap.
Presented by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Happy New Year! And it could prove to be a very happy new year for Nigel Farage and the Reform Party. They provided some of the stand-out political drama of 2024, with Lee Anderson’s defection and Farage’s return, before winning five seats at the general election (as well as a hefty chunk of the popular vote). They finished the year strong with a meeting with Elon Musk, where we understand that a possible donation was discussed. Farage also gave a memorable speech at The Spectator awards, warning that a 'political revolution' is coming. With the local elections coming up in 2025, could this be the year that Reform and Farage crystallise into a real political threat?
James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Gawain Towler, former Reform UK strategist.
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast I'm joined by the Nobel Prize winning novelist Orhan Pamuk to talk about the publication of Memories of Distant Mountains: Illustrated Notebooks. Right up to early adulthood, Orhan had imagined he was destined to be a painter, but then his life took another turn. In these illustrated notebooks he marries words and images in an elliptical sort-of diary. He tells me about what he puts in and what he leaves out, how his imagination works, the artists and writers he admires, what fame has given him, and why he wishes he didn't have to talk about politics.
Americano is nominated in the Political Podcast Awards 2025. Vote for it to win the People's Choice category here
The former US President has died age 100 surrounded by his family in Plains. Known as the longest-lived US President in history, The Spectator's political correspondent James Heale and Freddy Gray discuss Jimmy Carter's legacy both in and out of office, how he compares to Joe Biden as one-term Presidents, and the way Jimmy Carter's Christianity shaped his politics.
In this end-of-year episode of Holy Smoke, Damian Thompson discusses the abuse scandals that have forced the current Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, to resign his post, his predecessor Lord Carey to resign his ministry as a priest, and now threaten the survival of the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cotterill.
These developments are an unprecedented disaster for the Church of England – but how many Roman Catholics realise that Pope Francis would also be facing demands for his resignation if the details of various horrifying scandals were not being allegedly concealed by the Vatican and its media allies?
Santa will have had a tricky time this year fulfilling all the Christmas wish lists in Westminster. Keir Starmer is desperately hoping for a change in the political weather, and Kemi Badenoch would like an in with Donald Trump. Ed Davey dreams that Labour’s electoral troubles will get so bad that proportional representation starts to look appealing. Nigel Farage, meanwhile, wants to avoid what usually happens with him and keep his party from falling out – or perhaps Elon Musk will give him a Christmas bonus in the form of a generous donation.
What’s certain is that 2025 will prove to be one of the most defining in recent political memory: with Starmer choosing mission-led government; Reform circling the local elections in May; hushed talk of Jeremy Corbyn forming a new party on the hard left; and Donald Trump in the White House. It’s extraordinary that so much could be up for grabs so early after Starmer’s supermajority. What might 2025 bring?
James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Patrick Maguire, political columnist for the Times.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
2024 has been another year of extraordinary events in American politics. From Trump’s attempted assassination, the general election, the death of peanut the squirrel, Biden’s resignation and international wars shaping foreign policy. To discuss this year, and what impact it could have on 2025, Freddy Gray is joined by the historian Victor Davis Hanson of the Hoover Institute.
Broadcaster and Radio DJ Annie Nightingale passed away earlier this year. In memory of her, please enjoy this episode of the Book Club podcast, from the archives, in which she joined Sam Leith in 2020 to talk about the publication of her book Hey Hi Hello.
Annie Nightingale was Britain’s first female DJ, an occasional Spectator contributor, and the longest serving presenter of Radio One. Annie spoke to Sam about the Beatles’ secrets, BBC sexism, getting into rave culture, the John Peel she knew - and how while most people never get past the music they love in their teens, she’s never lost her drive to hear tunes she’s never heard before.
On 2024 Out Loud: Cindy Yu examined Chinese work ethic (1:13); Michael Simmons declared his love of the doner kebab (6:28); Angus Colwell reported from Israel in July (9:27); Igor Toronyi-Lalic explained the inspiration behind the cinema of Marguerite Duras (14:41); Mary Wakefield analysed the disturbing truth of the Pelicot case (20:38); Fraser Nelson signed off as editor of The Spectator (27:01); and Michael Gove revealed his thoughts as he sat down at the editor’s desk (33:15).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Kemi Badenoch is just over a month into her tenure as leader of the opposition, and already she has been criticised for her performances at PMQs and for failing to offer much in the way of policy proposals. It has been a consistent gripe of many of Badenoch’s detractors that she is a culture warrior or a one-trick pony. However, we might get a better idea of what the Conservatives will look like in the new year once her series of policy commissions get under way. So, how will she position her party? And, as countries around the world turn rightward, can she wrestle herself into conversations with Trump and the like?
Oscar Edmondson speaks to Katy Balls and Paul Goodman, former editor of Conservative Home.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
This week is a special episode of the podcast where we are looking back on some of our favourite pieces from the magazine over the past year and revisiting some of the conversations we had around them.
First up: the Starmer supremacy
Let’s start with undoubtedly the biggest news of the year: Starmer’s supermajority and the first Labour government in 14 years. In April, we spoke to Katy Balls and Harriet Harman about just what a supermajority could mean for Keir Starmer. Listening back, it’s an incredibly interesting discussion to revisit. The aim of Katy’s piece was to communicate the internal problems that could arise from such a sweeping victory and, crucially, how Starmer might manage a historic cohort of backbenchers. One MP who knows about adjusting to life in government after a supermajority is Harriet Harman, former leader of the Labour party and a member of Tony Blair’s first cabinet. (01:51)
Reflections from the editor’s chair
The change in No. 10 Downing Street is, of course, not the only notable shake-up in Westminster this year. Fraser Nelson stepped down as editor of The Spectator in September after 15 years of wielding the editor’s pen, with 784 issues to his name. We sat down with him on his final day in the office to reflect on his time at 22 Old Queen Street. (08:31)
Do historians talk down to children?
In June, Mary Wakefield dedicated her column to this very question. She wrote about her experience trying to find engaging and challenging history books for her 8-year-old and compared the dumbed-down, one-dimensional version of history portrayed in modern children’s books with the classic Ladybird books of the 1960s. She joined the podcast to discuss this with Dominic Sandbrook, author of the Adventures in Time children’s book series and host of The Rest is History podcast. (17:18)
Are ultra-processed foods really so bad?
On The Edition podcast, we enjoy a fiery debate, and none was more heated than our discussion on ultra-processed foods. This debate, between columnist Matthew Parris and Christoffer van Tulleken, associate professor at UCL and author of the bestselling book Ultra-Processed People, took place in May. It was sparked by Matthew’s column on the myths surrounding ultra-processed foods—foods engineered to be hyper-palatable and typically containing preservatives, emulsifiers, sweeteners, artificial colours, flavours, and so on. Such additives are widely considered detrimental to our health. Matthew says we shouldn’t be worried, but we’ll let you decide. (29:10)
By whose values should we judge the past?
On the podcast, we showcase articles from across the magazine—from the front half to the life pages, to books and arts. One of the most intriguing books of the year was Joan Smith’s Unfortunately, she was a nymphomaniac: A New History of Rome’s Imperial Women. An eye-catching title that is ‘as thought-provoking as it is provocative’, as Daisy Dunn wrote in October. Many popular historians are singled out for their analysis of women in ancient Rome, including Professor Dame Mary Beard. In the interest of granting a right of reply, we invited Mary onto the podcast to discuss the merit of judging history by today’s standards. (49:40)
And finally: the politics of the breakfast buffet
We thought we would leave you with one of the most prescient discussions we had on the podcast this year: the politics of the hotel breakfast buffet. Is it ethical to pocket a sandwich at a hotel breakfast buffet? Laurie Graham explored that question in the magazine back in September. Specifically, she revealed the very British habit of swiping food from free breakfasts to save for lunch later in the day. Laurie joined us alongside Mark Jenkins, a former hotel manager in Torquay, whom listeners may remember from the Channel 4 documentary The Hotel. (01:04:04)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
Which 20th-century Scrooge had the following to say about the celebration of Christmas?
‘It gives on the whole much more pain than pleasure… Anyone can force you to give him a present by sending you a quite unprovoked present of his own. It's almost blackmail… Can it really be my duty to buy and receive masses of junk every winter just to help the shopkeepers?’
Step forward C.S. Lewis, beloved Christian apologist and children’s author, whose splenetic denunciation of ‘the whole dreary business’ of Christmas and mean-spirited comments about carol singers are hard to reconcile with his reputation for benevolence.
To make sense of the author’s views, Damian Thompson is joined by the renowned theologian and C.S. Lewis expert Prof Alister McGrath for a Christmas episode of Holy Smoke. They talk about the influence Lewis had on McGrath’s own conversion, the significance of the nativity and the question of whether the Gospel accounts of Jesus’s birth are apocryphal.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
Why do so many Chinese people choose such curious English names? You must have come across this phenomenon – whether they are names from a past century, or surnames, nouns or even adjectives used as first names, or words that aren’t real at all. I have a particular interest in this because my English name – Cindy – isn’t exactly in vogue these days.
You might think this is a bit of a trivial question, but I think the question of English names goes deeper than just some odd words. I think these names reveal something about the China that gave rise to them. So I was pleased to come across another China watcher recently who is also obsessed by the question. Peter Hessler is an award winning journalist whose 2001 book River Town was highly influential for its depiction of life in a changing China. I spoke to him recently upon the publication of his latest book, Other Rivers. Tune in to hear where I also reveal the origins of my English name.
On this week’s Christmas Out Loud - part two: Andrew Watts goes to santa school (1:11); Marcus Walker reads his priest’s notebook (7:20); Ali Kefford spends Christmas on patrol with submariners (12:34); Roger Lewis says good riddance to 2024, voiced by the actor Robert Bathurst (20:57); Ayaan Hirsh Ali argues that there is a Christian revival under way (32:41); and Christopher Howse reveals the weirdness behind Christmas carols (38:34).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
It’s been a historic year in British politics. At the start of 2024, the UK had a different Prime Minister, the Tories had a different leader, and The Spectator had a different editor! Michael Gove, Katy Balls, and Quentin Letts join Cindy Yu to review the biggest political stories of 2024.
On the podcast, the panel discuss the rise of Reform UK and Nigel Farage as a political force, Labour’s adjustment to government, and Michael reveals his reaction to Rishi telling Cabinet that he was going for a summer election.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Megan McElroy.
Dame Maureen Lipman has been a fixture of stage and screen for over five decades. She has been a member of Laurence Olivier's National Theatre company and the Royal Shakespeare Company; she is well known for her roles in acclaimed films like Educating Rita and The Pianist; and most recently she has had an award-winning run in soap Coronation Street. For a generation she will always be 'Beattie': the grandmother from the BT adverts.
On the podcast, Maureen talks to Katy Balls about her journey from 'the cobbler of Kazimierz Dolny to the cobbles of Corrie'. They discuss selling comedy as a commodity, whether you can separate art from the artist and her most recent role in a Christmas panto.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons. Photo credit: Jay Brooks.
Springfield Ohio became a talking point in this year's Presidential election after Donald Trump referred to Haitian migrants 'eating the cats and dogs'. Steven Edginton, GB News US Correspondent has been to Springfield Ohio to speak to some of the migrants there, investigate some reports that migrants are fleeing America in fear of a Trump presidency, and find our from locals about how Springfield has changed since the arrival of around 15,000 Haitian migrants.
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Chris Ware — author of Jimmy Corrigan, Building Stories and Rusty Brown, and a man widely regarded as one of the greatest living cartoonists.
Chris's new book, The Acme Novelty Datebook Volume Three, opens his sketchbooks for public consumption: a potentially painful move for an artist as self-conscious and perfectionist as Ware. He tells me a bit about the relationship between cartooning and architecture, what he's trying to do with his graphic novels, the importance of R Crumb and Art Spiegelman to his work, and what gave him the confidence to turn his back on fine art.
Elif Shafak is a novelist, political scientist and essayist. She has published 21 books – 13 of which are novels – and her books have been translated into 58 languages. Her most recent novel There Are Rivers in the Sky, is out now.
On the podcast, Elif tells Liv about the significance of food and drink in her writing, the many places she takes culinary inspiration from and reveals her love of heavy metal music.
New research last week suggested that a majority of Brexit voters would accept the return of freedom of movement in exchange for access to the EU single market. The poll, conducted by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), found that 54% of Brexit voters – and 68% of all respondents – would accept this. Facing their own changing domestic concerns, how close can the UK and EU governments really get? Could Defence hold the key for collaboration? And how much is this driven by a more volatile geopolitical landscape ahead of Trump’s return as US president?
James Heale speaks to Anand Menon, director of the think-tank UK in a Changing Europe, and Mark Leonard, director at the ECFR.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
Thousands of Brits will be attending Christmas and carol services throughout December. Yet festive attendance masks the reality that church congregations just aren’t holding up. The most optimistic of estimates suggest that regular church attendance has almost halved in the UK since 2009. This is just one of the factors that has led the historian and writer A.N. Wilson, in the Christmas edition of The Spectator this week, to declare that the end of Christendom is nigh.
On this episode of Holy Smoke, A.N. Wilson joins Damian Thompson to discuss his thesis. Like Platonism, is Christianity doomed to become extinct in practice? When was the last time England was truly, and fervently, religious? And are innovations such as female priests a symptom – or a cause – of the Church’s decline?
You can read more from A.N. Wilson on his Substack.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Christmas Out Loud - part one: Katy Balls runs through the Westminster wishlists for 2025 (1:26); Craig Brown reads his satirist’s notebook (7:06); Kate Weinberg explains the healing power of a father’s bedtime reading (13:47); Craig Raine reviews a new four volume edition of the prose of T.S. Eliot (19:10); Lisa Haseldine provides her notes on hymnals (28:15); and Melissa Kite explains why she shouldn’t be allowed to go to church (31:19).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Freddy Gray is joined by an Americano favourite, Jacob Heilbrunn, to reflect on 2024 in American politics. They discuss why Trump appears to be the de facto President, whether a good Democratic candidate could have beaten Trump and what the future cabinet could bring in 2025.
Welcome to a special festive episode of The Edition podcast, where we will be taking you through the pages of The Spectator’s Christmas triple issue.
Up first: our review of the year – and what a year it has been. At the start of 2024, the outcome of the US election looked very different, the UK had a different Prime Minister, and The Spectator had a different editor! Luckily, The Spectator’s regular columnists are on hand to declare what they got right – and wrong – throughout the year, and whether they’re optimistic for 2025. Rod Liddle, Matthew Parris, Mary Wakefield and Lionel Shriver take us through everything from Trump to trans (03:24).
Next: ‘Good riddance 2024’ – in his own alternative review of the year, Roger Lewis declares 2024 one to forget. The actor Robert Bathurst voices a special out-loud version of the article, taking us through the year in Roger’s typically acerbic style (28:37).
Then: the unsung heroes at Christmas time. While most of the country will be sitting down to Christmas dinner, hundreds of people will face an atypical day, not least of all those deployed on the Royal Navy's Continuous At Sea Deterrent mission. Journalist Ali Kefford takes us through the relentless schedule of Royal Navy submariners in the Christmas issue, and explores the strangely isolating but oddly communal experience of Christmas at sea, where the traditions of land meet the peculiarities of life under the water. To explain what it’s really like, Ali joins the podcast alongside naval officer Alex Kubara (42:56).
And finally: the prescient politics of Tintin. Few characters have captured the spirit of adventure quite like Tintin, the intrepid boy reporter with a knack for stumbling into international intrigue. From the deserts of Arabia to the jungles of South America – and even to the moon – Tintin has been a global icon of curiosity and courage for nearly a century. In the Christmas magazine former foreign correspondent and ‘Tintinologist’ Michael Farr celebrates the genius of the Belgian reporter and how politics was never far from Hergé’s agenda. To take us through a history of Tintin, and to understand its appeal and influence, we're joined by Michael and another author who took inspiration from the character, Anthony Horowitz (52:18).
Throughout the podcast, you will also hear from The Spectator’s agony aunt Dear Mary, and the special celebrity guests who have sought her advice in this year’s Christmas magazine, including Jacob Rees-Mogg (27:07), James MacMillan (50:51) and Sophie Winkleman (1:09:49).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
In this week’s Books podcast, I am joined by the writer Daniel Tammet, whose new book Nine Minds: Inner Lives on the Spectrum is a pen portrait of nine lives of people on the autism spectrum. On the podcast, he tells me how he happened upon these nine lives, whether ‘spectrum’ is a helpful term when understanding autism and Asperger’s syndrome, and how popular culture’s most famous depiction of autism – Dustin Hoffman’s Rain Man – is based on an individual who wasn’t autistic at all.
Over the weekend, the rebels from the Syrian opposition claimed Damascus and president Assad had fled to Russia. Keir Starmer has welcomed the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s barbaric regime in Syria and called for civilians to be protested after rebel forces took control of Damascus. Freddy Gray speaks to Michael Weiss, an editor at The Insider, and Owen Matthews, writer and historian. They discuss how this story could develop on the international stage, whether this is the reinvention of the Arab Spring, and what is left of Iran, now that several of its proxies have been destroyed.
More than a year after Xi Jinping purged two senior generals in the People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force unit, China’s investigation into its military seems to be ongoing, with more scalps taken. In recent weeks, Miao Hua, another senior general who had been a member of the Central Military Commission, has been suspended; while reports abound that the country’s current defence minister, Dong Jun, is under investigation too. If suspended, Dong would be the third consecutive defence minister that Xi has removed. To paraphrase Oscar Wilde, to lose one defence minister may be regarded a misfortune; to lose three looks like carelessness.
So what is happening at the top of the PLA? Is all of this movement a sign of Xi failing to get on top of corruption within the military or, in fact, a sign that he is gearing up for serious military action, perhaps over Taiwan? Just how effective have the military reforms that Xi instigated in 2015 been?
Joining the podcast today are Oriana Skylar Mastro, an expert on the Chinese military at Stanford University and author of Upstart: How China Became a Great Power, and Demetri Sevastopulo, US-China correspondent for the Financial Times.
As we approach the end of a uniquely painful year for the Royal Family, the King's trusted biographer, Robert Hardman, joins Damian Thompson to discuss the Monarch’s faith. As Robert recently revealed in his updated biography of Charles III, the cancer-stricken King has been drawing solace from a Christian faith that has become increasingly explicit over the years. He still thinks of himself as the ‘defender of faith’, but now also unapologetically uses his ancient title of ‘Defender of the Faith’, meaning Christianity. Specifically, he is more attracted than ever to the traditions of the Orthodox Church into which his father was baptised.
But, as Robert has revealed, the current Prince of Wales is emphatically not religious (unlike his wife, who is reported to be exploring her own spirituality in the wake of her own diagnosis). What will this mean when William eventually inherits the position of Supreme Governor of the Church of England?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Alexandra Shulman reads her fashion notebook (1:13); Sean Thomas asks if a demilitarised zone in Ukraine is inevitable (6:02); Matthew Parris argues against proportional representation (13:47); Adrian Dannatt explains his new exhibition Fresh Window: the art of display and display of art (21:46); and Philip Hensher declares he has met the man of his dreams: his Turkish barber (28:17).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
In this special edition of Coffee House Shots Katy Balls speaks to Lord Liam Booth-Smith, Rishi Sunak’s former chief of staff.
In his first interview since leaving government: Liam takes us inside Rishi’s No. 10 and the characters that made it tick; sets the record straight on the infamous Sunak–Johnson arm wrestle to decide who would run for leader after Truss; gives his take on when would have been the optimal time to have a general election; offers a different version of events on Rishi’s ‘doomed’ campaign; and provides advice to a Labour government struggling in government.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
This week: are we drowning in a sea of twee?
Gareth Roberts writes the cover article this week, arguing against what he sees as the hideous triviality of our times. ‘The British have lost their aversion to glutinous sentimentality,’ he declares. How did we get here, and who are the worst offenders? Gareth argues that the triumph of twee has left us unable to face serious things with seriousness. Could there be sinister consequences if we don’t take this more seriously? Gareth joined the podcast to make his case, alongside Josh Cohen, psychoanalyst and author of All The Rage (00:49).
Then: was Graham Brady the ‘kingmaker’ or the ‘kingslayer’ of the past Tory era?
The shadow cabinet member and Conservative M.P. Alex Burghart has reviewed Graham Brady’s new book Kingmaker: Secrets, Lies and the Truth about Five Prime Ministers in the books section of the magazine this week. Looking back on his time as chair of the influential 1922 Committee, Graham provides his reflections on what has been an historic, and often turbulent, period in British politics. Having now taken a seat in the Lords, Graham joins the podcast with The Spectator’s political editor, Katy Balls, to reveal what he really thought about that time in office and what his advice to his successor would be (16:07).
And finally: are pigs in blankets the best Christmas food?
It would seem so, according to The Spectator’s data editor Michael Simmons, who provides his notes on the festive treat in the magazine this week. His only gripe, as a proud Scot, is that they should really be called ‘kilted sausages’. He reveals that Brits are expected to eat a whopping 668 million of them over the Christmas season. Why are they so good, and how can you elevate your Christmas meal over the coming season? Michael joins the podcast alongside Martyn Lee, head of product at Yeo Valley and the former executive chef of Waitrose and Tesco. Plus, a guest appearance of pigs in blankets from The Spectator’s local pub, The Two Chairmen – will they pass Michael’s taste test? (26:58).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons, Oscar Edmondson, and Cindy Yu.
In this week’s Book Club podcast, my guest is Jonathan Coe, talking about cosy crime, the tug of nostalgia, the joys of satire, and his brilliant new novel, The Proof of My Innocence.
Richard Madeley is a presenter, author and journalist who has been on our screens since the 1980s, most notably presenting This Morning with his wife Judy and more recently on Good Morning Britain.
On the podcast, he discusses his early memories of Heinz tomato soup, implores Lara and Liv to try 'tuna casserole' – his mother’s speciality made from tinned tuna, canned soup and crisps – and makes the case for fish paste as the 'food of the gods'.
The government is trailing a major policy speech ahead of Thursday, in which the Prime Minister will set out key 'milestones' that he wants to hit, in terms of healthcare, living standards, the climate and so on. It's all sounding a little like a previous prime minister... Cindy Yu talks to Katy Balls and James Heale about the opportunities and perils in setting public targets.
Produced by Cindy Yu.
On November 7th, the finalists for the 2024 Innovator of the Year Awards joined The Spectator and Rathbones at a gala evening in central London. There, they found out the regional and category winners for this year's awards. In this episode, our business editor Martin Vander Weyer, one of the founders of the awards, announces the winners for listeners who've followed our previous episodes in this year's series.
If you missed any of the discussion, you can catch up at the links below:
AI, gene therapy and challenges of the NHS – Britain’s health Innovators of the Year
Carbon capture, vertical farming and coding for girls – Britain’s environmental and social purpose Innovators of the Year
Wonky fruits, supplements for pets and smart walking sticks – Britain’s consumer Innovators of the Year
AI studios, ethical advertising and software for defence – Britain’s business services Innovator of the Year
Bespoke batteries, recyclable electronics and drone ports – Britain’s manufacturing and engineering Innovators of the Year
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Kate Andrews examines the appointment of Scott Bessent as US Treasury Secretary (1:20); Mark Galeotti highlights Putin’s shadow campaign across Europe (7:10); Adrian Pascu-Tulbure reports on the surprising rise of Romania’s Calin Georgescu (15:45); Michael Hann reviews Irish bands Kneecap and Fontaines D.C. (22:54); and Olivia Potts provides her notes on London’s Smithfield Market, following the news it may close (27:28).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Freddy Gray is joined by Tara Palmeri, senior political correspondent for Puck. They discuss how the presidential transition is going. Is the breakneck speed with which he appointed his cabinet even more chaotic than last time? Is the process rife with backstabbing? And are your really ever 'in' or 'out' when it comes to Trump?
This week: SAS SOS
The enemy that most concerns Britain’s elite military unit isn’t the IRA, the Taliban or Isis, but a phalanx of lawyers armed with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), writes Paul Wood in The Spectator. Many SAS soldiers now believe that if they kill a terrorist during an operation, they’ll spend decades being hounded through the courts. Paul speaks to former SAS soldiers who say that stories of men being ‘dragged back to be screamed at in interview rooms’ are ‘flying around the canteens now’. Soldiers feel like ‘the good guys have become the bad guys – and the bad guys are now the good guys’. This is hurting morale and may eventually hit recruitment. Paul joins the podcast to discuss further, alongside Colonel Richard Williams, a former SAS commanding officer in Iraq and Afghanistan. (01:36)
Then: how much more punishment can Ukrainian city Odesa take?
The Black Sea port of Odesa occupies a unique role in Ukrainian – and Soviet – history. Added significance has been thrust on it by the Russian invasion: both symbolically, as well as practically, given how central it is to grain exports. But while war weariness sets in for Ukrainians – and their allies – the battle for Odesa is ever more crucial; further deadly aerial attacks took place only days ago. In the magazine this week, journalist Peter Pomerantsev reviews a new book looking at the port city by Julian Evans. Undefeatable: Odesa in Love and War is part-history book, part-memoir exploring many of the human stories that make up the city. How has the conflict changed the people of Odesa? And for Ukrainians who grew up consuming Russian-speaking media and culture, did the war challenge their identity? Peter joins the podcast alongside the author of the Spectator’s Ukraine newsletter, Svitlana Morenets. (18:24)
And finally: do we secretly love a good film flop?
‘I’ve fallen out of love with cinemas,’ declares long-standing (or should that be long-suffering?) film critic Chris Tookey in the magazine this week. He argues the experience isn’t as good, and Hollywood is partly to blame. Perhaps films are getting worse? Some people love a good film flop though – the big-budget blockbuster disasters. Fellow film critic Tim Robey is one such person, and he explores his love of Hollywood flops in his new book Box Office Poison, out now. But how has the experience of cinema changed? And what’s the worst film they’ve ever seen? Tim and Chris join the podcast. (32:58)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
Former prime minister Boris Johnson joins The Spectator’s political editor Katy Balls to divulge the contents of his new book, Unleashed. He reflects on his premiership as PM during the pandemic, describing the time as a ‘nightmare’ for him. He also details how he managed to suppress the force of Nigel Farage, and gives advice to Keir Starmer on how to build a relationship with Donald Trump.
Watch the full interview on The Spectator's YouTube channel.
MPs are set to vote on the legalisation of assisted dying this week, the first such vote in almost a decade. The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill was tabled by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater and follows a campaign by broadcaster Dame Esther Rantzen and others.
The biggest change since the last vote in 2015 is the make-up of parliament, with many more Labour MPs, as well as newer MPs whose stances are unknown. Consequently, it is far from certain that the bill – which would mark one of the biggest changes to social legislation for a generation – will pass. What are the arguments for and against? And how could the religious beliefs of MPs inform their votes?
Damian Thompson is joined by Rabbi Dr Jonathan Romain, director of the Maidenhead Synagogue and a supporter of legalisation, and Martin Vickers MP, a Conservative MP and opponent of assisted dying, to understand the dynamics of the debate. But first, Isabel Hardman joins the programme to talk through the parliamentary arithmetic – is Parliament any more or less religious than in 2015?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the novelist Nick Harkaway, whose new book Karla's Choice sees him pick up the mantle of his late father, John le Carré, in writing a new novel set in the world of George Smiley. He tells me why, having spent a career trying to put clear blue water between his own work and that of his father, he’s now steering in the opposite direction; about growing up with Smiley; about his relationship with the man so many outsiders have seen as secretive and opaque; about seeking advice from Stephen King’s son, Joe Hill; and why moving from his own style to that of his dad is just a ‘turn on the dial’.
John Bolton has served under both Republican administrations of the 21st century: first as US Ambassador to the United Nations under George W. Bush, and then under Donald Trump where he was – surprisingly – his longest serving National Security Advisor.
In this episode of Americano, Freddy Gray discusses the incoming second Trump administration with Amb. Bolton. From Tulsi Gabbard to Elon Musk, what does he make of Trump’s appointments? How could US foreign policy change? And what are the implications for Ukraine?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
The Darien Gap is a 60 mile stretch of jungle that hundreds of thousands of migrants from all over South America trek through in order to reach the US-Mexico border. From there, they enter America in search of better lives.
These are usually migrants from Venezuela, or Colombia or Panama. But in recent years, a new group of people have appeared at the border, having paid people smugglers and hacked through the jungle. They often bring young children, clutch on to smartphones with which they check their routes, and watch social media videos that set out, step by step, the journey they are embarking on.
These are the Chinese, which in the last two years have been the fastest growing group of migrants being encountered at America’s southern border – over 37,000 last year, up from under 4,000 the year before. This year, there have already been over 21,000.
What brings them, and how unusual is this method of emigration when it comes to people from China?
On this podcast are Professor Meredith Oyen, an expert on US-China migration, and Amy Hawkins, senior China correspondent at the Guardian, who has come across a similar phenomenon on Europe’s borders.
Claire Ainsley is a stalwart of left-wing politics. Formerly an executive director at social change organisation the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, she is currently leading a project on the renewal of the centre-left at the Progressive Policy Institute. Her first book, The New Working Class: How to Win Hearts, Minds and Votes, brought her to the attention of the Labour leadership. Not long after Keir Starmer’s successful leadership bid, she was invited to join him as Executive Director of Policy, a position she held for over two years.
On the podcast, Claire talks to Katy Balls about her journey on the left, from a Labour-supporting family to radical university politics and then to a more moderate position. They discuss the changing dynamics of the left and how to define ‘working class’, how her book came about because of the Clacton by-election, and her reflections on British politics following the election.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: pondering AI, Matthew Parris wonders if he is alone in thinking (1:10); Joanna Bell meets the leader of the Independent Ireland party, Michael Collins, ahead of the Irish general election later this month (8:41); Professor Peter Frankopan argues that the world is facing a new race to rule the seas (17:31); Mary Wakefield reviews Rod Dreher’s new book Living in wonder: finding mystery and meaning in a secular age (28:47); and, Flora Watkins looks at the Christmas comeback of Babycham (34:10).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
The nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr to be secretary of health and human services in the second Trump administration has horrified ‘experts’. A left-wing Democrat who admires the late Venezuelan Marxist dictator Hugo Chavez, hates big business, rails against the ultra-processed food that Donald Trump likes to eat and wants climate sceptics jailed.
But in the magazine this week Matt Ridley explains how the experts who now bash him have contributed in putting him where is, and that official Covid misinformation has contributed to his rise. So what could he do in office? Will he release these Covid files? Matt joins Freddy to discuss.
This week: Wild Wes.
Ahead of next week’s vote on whether to legalise assisted dying, Health Secretary Wes Streeting is causing trouble for Keir Starmer, writes Katy Balls in the magazine this week. Starmer has been clear that he doesn’t want government ministers to be too outspoken on the issue ahead of a free vote in Parliament. But Streeting’s opposition is well-known. How much of a headache is this for Starmer? And does this speak to wider ambitions that Wes might have?
Katy joins the podcast to discuss, alongside Labour MP Steve Race. Steve explains why he plans to vote in favour of the change in the law next week (00:57).
Then: how concerned should we be about medical misinformation?
President-elect Donald Trump has announced vaccine sceptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as his pick for Secretary of Health and Human Services in the US. In the magazine this week, Matt Ridley explains that it’s not the man himself that’s as interesting, as the reasons how he has ended up in such a position: scientific misinformation has fuelled his rise. So how concerned should we be about medical misinformation? Firstly, Matt joined the podcast to explain his thesis and why reactions to the covid pandemic are to blame (16:24).
Later, Sander van der Linden, professor of social psychology at the University of Cambridge, also joins the podcast to discuss his concerns and how susceptible we are here in Britain to misinformation (23:46).
And finally: did you know that crude graffiti has a storied history?
Harry Mount examines the notorious penis gang that has appeared in Dulwich, daubing penises across trees. Whatever you think of such graffiti, scribbling phalluses, and even erotic art, are actually as old as time – from ancient Rome to India. What’s the line between graffiti and erotic art? And should Westerners be less prudish when confronted with these images? Harry joins the podcast alongside academic, and author of Pha(bu)llus: A Cultural History, Dr Alka Pande (30:50).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the psychoanalyst and writer Josh Cohen. With anger seemingly the default condition of our time, Josh’s new book All The Rage: Why Anger Drives the World seeks to unpick where anger comes from, what it does to us, and how it might function in the human psyche as a dark twin of the impulses we think of as love.
Photo credit: Charlotte Speechley
Freddy Gray sits down with Jacob Heilbrunn, a longstanding friend of Americano to discuss Biden's decision to allow Ukraine to send long range missiles into Russia, how significant this decision is ahead of an incoming Trump administration, and what the rest of foreign policy could look like with Trump.
Julian Metcalfe is a British entrepreneur and one of the most influential individuals on the London high street. He revolutionised the grab-and-go lunchtime food industry in 1986 by co-founding Pret and did the same again in 1997 when he commercialised Japanese cuisine with the first Itsu.
On the podcast, he tells Liv and Lara about the influence of his Ukrainian mother; why he decided to start Itsu, in many ways a competitor to Pret; what he thinks is the future of the grab-and-go industry; and why uni is the ultimate comfort food.
As Donald Trump selects his new cabinet, Elon Musk has been chosen to head up the new efficiency department. Douglas Murray, Spectator columnist, joins Americano host Freddy Gray to discuss. How will their relationship shape Trump’s presidency? What will Musk’s ownership of X, formerly Twitter, mean for free speech? And will their newfound friendship last the stretch of Donald Trump’s second term?
The Spectator's Michael Gove, Katy Balls, and Kate Andrews are joined by Paul Abberley, Chief Executive of Charles Stanley, to discuss and unpack Labour's first budget in 14 years. Now the dust has settled from the policies, key questions continue to arise. Can Labour create the growth it desperately needs? Why are farmers so upset with the budget? And can they define a working person yet?
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Nadine Dorries reads her diary (1:12); Katy Balls analyses the politics behind the Assisted Dying debate (5:58); Edmund West allows us a glimpse into Whitby Goth Week (11:55); reviewing Avinash Paliwal’s book India’s New East, Sam Dalrymple looks at the birth of Bangladesh (17:39); and Tanjil Rashid reveals William Morris’s debt to Islam (21:23).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Freddy Gray is joined by Todd Bensman, journalist and fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies. They discuss the border crisis that Trump will inherit from the Democrats, and whether he can do anything to solve it.
This week: welcome to Planet Elon.
We knew that he would likely be a big part of Donald Trump’s second term, so it was unsurprising when this week Elon Musk was named – alongside entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy – as a co-leader of the new US Department of Government Efficiency, which will look at federal government waste. When Musk took over Twitter, he fired swathes of employees whose work was actively harming the company, so he’s in a perfect position to turn his sights on the bloated federal government. It is, writes Douglas Murray, a once-in-a-generation opportunity to strip a whole layer of rot from the body politic. But can he translate his success in the private sector to the public sector? James Ball, political editor of The New European, and Bridget Phetasy, Spectator World contributing editor, joined the podcast to discuss. (02:17)
Then: what’s next for the Church of England?
The nature of Justin Welby’s resignation as Archbishop of Canterbury has no historic precedent in the C of E, writes William Moore, of this parish. One certainty is that the Church leadership will now be under enormous pressure to create a new independent body for safeguarding, but who could be next? The Smyth scandal means that appointing a conservative evangelical would be difficult, but appointing an out-and-out progressive would have its own problems. Whoever eventually succeeds Welby, he or she will inherit a Church more at war with itself than at any time in living memory. Joining the podcast is Rev Julie Conalty, the Bishop of Birkenhead and deputy lead bishop for safeguarding. (20:58)
And finally: can you tell your Claret from your Beaujolais?
In the magazine this week, drinks writer Henry Jeffreys discusses Beaujolais Day, the festivities started in the famous French appellation d’origine contrôlée that celebrate the first wine of the season. He joined us to discuss everything Beaujolais with Johnny Ray, The Spectator’s wine critic. (35:39)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is the writer, musician and editor Michael Moorcock, whose editorship of New Worlds magazine is widely credited with ushering in a 'new wave' of science fiction and developing the careers of writers like J G Ballard, Iain Sinclair, Pamela Zoline, Thomas M Disch and M John Harrison. With the release of a special edition of New Worlds, honouring the 60th anniversary of his editorship, Mike tells me about how he set out to marry the best of literary fiction with the best of the pulp tradition, how he fought off obscenity charges over Norman Spinrad's Bug Jack Barron, about his friendship with Ballard and his enmity with Kingsley Amis – and why he's determined never to lose his vulgarity.
Freddy Gray speaks to the Spectator's Russia editor Owen Matthews about Trump's plan for Ukraine. How much leverage does he have in negotiations with Putin? Plus, what does a Trump presidency mean for the future of NATO itself?
After mounting pressure, the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has resigned. His resignation comes days after a damning report into the child abuser John Smyth who was associated with the Church of England. Welby was apparently made aware of the allegations in 2013, yet Smyth died in 2018 before facing any justice. Since the report was published, Welby and the Church have faced questions about the failure to act and the lack of urgency. The Spectator’s editor Michael Gove joins Damian Thompson to discuss what Damian calls ‘not just a shocking moment in the history of the Church of England, but in the history of English Christianity’.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Natasha Feroze.
There have been reports that over 11,000 North Korean troops are present in Russia and preparing to take part in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. While not acknowledged by either country, if true, this would mark a historic milestone: the first East Asian troops present in Europe since the Mongol Empire.
North Korea shares land borders with three countries: China, South Korea, and Russia. Despite this, the North Korea-Russia relationship has received less attention geopolitically. With Russia's increasing international isolation, it's pushed Putin to seek alternative alliances. What does this tell us about the geopolitics of the region? How aware was China of North Korea's decision to help Putin? And could the incoming Trump administration impact relations?
Historian John Delury joins Cindy Yu to try and disentangle these complicated diplomatic relations.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Cindy Yu.
Kate Andrews, standing in for Freddy Gray, is joined by Nick Gillespie, host of The Reason Interview, and Freddy Gray himself. They discuss whether Trump 2.0 could be different in his final time in office. Will he 'drain the swamp'? And will the Democrats learn the lessons from their election loss?
Since the election of an overwhelmingly secular Labour government, people who describe themselves as humanists have a spring in their step: for example, there's a prospect that humanist weddings will be legally recognised in England and Wales (they already are in Scotland).
But what exactly is a humanist? Definitions vary and there's a heated debate about to what extent the ethical but firmly atheist beliefs of the rather loosely organised modern humanist movement are descended from Christianity. In this episode of Holy Smoke we'll hear from Andrew Copson, CEO of Humanists UK since 2010 & President of Humanists International, and the theologian and Spectator contributor Theo Hobson, author of God created Humanism: the Christian Basis of Secular Values. Damian Thompson spoke to them earlier and, as you'll hear, it was a lively encounter.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
Kamala Harris has delivered her concession speech, signalling the start of the Democrat post-mortem. Donald Trump has secured a total victory, the kind which gives him a mandate to make some pretty radical reforms. Americano guest host Kate Andrews is joined by Jacob Heilbrunn, editor of The National Interest, to discuss what a second Trump term will look like: from domestic to foreign policy. And what about the Democrats? Where do they go from here?
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Paul Wood analyses what a Trump victory could mean for the Middle East (1:16); Sean Thomas gets a glimpse of a childless future while travelling in South Korea (8:39); in search of herself, Imogen Yates takes part in ‘ecstatic dance’ (15:11); a second selection of our books of the year from Peter Parker, Daniel Swift, Andrea Wulf, Claire Lowdon, and Sara Wheeler (20:30); and notes on the speaking clock from the voice himself, Alan Steadman (25:26).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Shivani Raja holds two Parliamentary honours: the youngest Tory MP and, in Leicester East, the only Conservative gain at the recent election; she is also the first of the new 2024 intake to appear on Women With Balls. With a background in science and business, not politics, she fought a whirlwind election campaign – not just against the Labour Party, but against her two most recent predecessors.
On the podcast, Shivani talks to Katy Balls about how she got into politics, why she is proud of Leicester’s multiculturalism, and about challenging her colleagues’ perceptions of ‘young people’. Shivani introduced James Cleverly at his leadership launch in September – what are her diagnoses of the 2024 election, Labour’s performance so far, and what the Conservatives need to do to win back the support of the British public?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
This week: King of the HillYou can’t ignore what could be the political comeback of the century: Donald Trump’s remarkable win in this week’s US election. The magazine this week carries analysis about why Trump won, and why the Democrats lost, from Freddy Gray, Niall Ferguson and Yascha Mounk, amongst others. To make sense of how Trump became only the second President in history to win non-consecutive terms, we’re joined by the journalist Jacqueline Sweet and Cliff Young, president of polling at Ipsos (00:58).
Next: is Labour blind to rural communities?The changes to inheritance tax for farmers are one of the measures from Labour’s budget that has attracted the most attention. In the magazine this week The Telegraph’s Simon Heffer argues that it needs to be seen as part of a wider attack on rural communities. But is it intentional, or simply a blind spot Labour has to the countryside? Simon joined us alongside Ed Barker from the Agricultural Industries Confederation (16:42).
And finally: what makes World of Warcraft so addictive?The Spectator’s literary editor Sam Leith joins the podcast to talk about the gaming phenomenon that is World of Warcraft. In just two decades, it has now made more money than three times the most successful Hollywood film ever. Why is it so successful and what makes it so addictive? And, as the landscape of gaming has changed over the decades, should parents still really be worried about their children spending time online or has gaming opened new areas for kids to socialise? Sam joined us to discuss and reveals the inspiration behind his avatar’s name… (27:37).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
Donald Trump has won the election and will be 47th President of the United States after winning the key battleground states of Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Georgia. ‘America has given us an unprecedented and powerful mandate,’ the Republican candidate told supporters. ‘This is a magnificent victory for the American people, that will allow us to make America great again,’ he said at the rally in Florida. It has been total victory, with the Republicans also winning Senate and the popular vote.
Kate Andrews is joined by Sarah Elliott and Rick MacArthur to unpack a historic election night.
On this week's Book Club podcast we're celebrating the 100th anniversary of a landmark in children's publishing, When We Were Very Young — which represented the first collaboration between A A Milne and E H Shepard, who would (of course) go on to write an illustrate Winnie-the-Pooh. Sam Leith is joined by James Campbell, who runs the E H Shepard estate. He tells Sam how the war shaped the mood and success of that first book, why Daphne Milne's snobbery and ambition left Shepard out in the cold, what happened to Christopher Robin... and how Pooh became Pooh.
Terry Wiggins is a chef who led the catering team at Westminster’s Portcullis House. During his time, he served 13 prime ministers and received an MBE for services to Parliament. He has recently retired.
On the podcast, Terry reminisces about 50 years of service in Parliament, reveals some of the weirdest requests he has received and gives the inside scoop on the eating habits of some of the House of Commons’ most recognisable names.
As the 2024 US election goes into the final day, a poll giving Kamala Harris a lead in the historically Republican state of Iowa has bolstered the Democrats. Is momentum really with her? And what appears to be the most important issue to voters - the economy, or abortion rights?
Guest host Kate Andrews speaks to John Rick MacArthur, president and publisher of Harper's Magazine, about his views on America's election process from postal voting, trust in the system, and whether the electoral college needs reform.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
The Spectator Economic Innovator of the Year Awards, in partnership with Rathbones, celebrate the passion and creativity of British entrepreneurs. From hundreds of entries we have narrowed down to some 50 finalists across the United Kingdom. In this episode, the judges discuss the innovators within the Manufacturing and Engineering category – 3D printing hydraulic systems, making plastic alternatives out of plant-based polymers, creating recyclable electronics, and more.
The judges in this episode are Ian Ritchie, an angel investor and a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering; Gabriel Fysh, an entrepreneur working with numerous companies on areas of sustainability and material science; Michelle White, Head of Private Office for Rathbones; and Martin Vander Weyer, The Spectator's business editor.
The awards and this podcast series are sponsored by Rathbones, a leading provider of individual wealth management.
With just a day until election day, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump's respective campaigns continue to ramp up, with rallies and gimmicks, and even advertising on the Las Vegas Sphere. Despite this, Spectator contributor Lionel Shriver declares she is America's 'last undecided voter'. Why? Is it the candidates' characters that put her off voting for them, or the policies they represent? Lionel joins guest host, and fellow American, Kate Andrews to discuss further.
Produced by Megan McElroy and Patrick Gibbons.
The Spectator Economic Innovator of the Year Awards, in partnership with Rathbones, celebrate the passion and creativity of British entrepreneurs. From hundreds of entries we have narrowed down to some 50 finalists across the United Kingdom. In this episode, the judges discuss the innovators within the Business Services and Logistics category – the companies that help other innovators and companies operate day to day.
The judges in this episode are mechanical engineer and venture capitalist Adrian de Ferranti; Caroline Theobald CBE, managing director of Bridge Club Ltd which helps connect entrepreneurs with investors, expertise and skills; Michelle White, Head of Private Office for Rathbones; and Martin Vander Weyer, The Spectator's business editor.
The awards and this podcast series are sponsored by Rathbones, a leading provider of individual wealth management.
Kemi Badenoch has won the Tory leadership election. She beat Robert Jenrick in a tight race, winning 53,806 votes against his 41,318. What will a Badenoch opposition look like? What are her strengths? Her weaknesses?
Cindy Yu speaks to Michael Gove and Katy Balls.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Christopher Caldwell asks what a Trump victory could mean for Ukraine (1:07); Gus Carter argues that leaving the ECHR won’t fix Britain’s immigration system (8:29); Ruaridh Nicoll reads his letter from Havana (18:04); Tanya Gold provides her notes on toffee apples (23:51); and a selection of our books of the year from Jonathan Sumption, Hadley Freeman, Mark Mason, Christopher Howse, Sam Leith and Frances Wilson (27:08).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
As we get closer to the US election, Kate Andrews, The Spectator's economics editor, joins Freddy Gray to host Americano. On this episode, she speaks to Megan McArdle, columnist at the Washington Post. They discuss why Donald Trump and Kamala Harris aren't campaigning in swing states, and why it's so difficult to predict the election result.
This week: Team Trump – who’s in, and who’s out?To understand Trumpworld you need to appreciate it’s a family affair, writes Freddy Gray in the magazine this week. For instance, it was 18-year-old Barron Trump who persuaded his father to do a series of long ‘bro-casts’ with online male influencers such as Joe Rogan. In 2016, Donald’s son-in-law Jared Kushner was the reigning prince; this year, he has been largely out of the picture. Which family figures are helping Trump run things this time around, and which groups hold the most influence? Freddy joins the podcast alongside economics editor Kate Andrews. What are the most important personnel decisions facing Trump if he wins next week? (0:58).
Next: do astrologers predict elections better than pollsters?When pollster Nate Silver declared that dissecting an individual poll is like ‘doing astrology’, it led Andrew Watts to ponder what sorts of predictions astrologers make about elections. Could there be some merit in consulting them? And are astrologists better predictors than pollsters? Andrew joined the podcast to discuss further alongside The Oxford Astrologer’s Christina Rodenbeck, host of podcast Astrology Talk. What do the planets tell us about next week’s US election? (13:18).
And finally: by whose values should we judge the past?Joan Smith’s new book Unfortunately, she was a nymphomaniac: a new history of Rome’s imperial women is reviewed in the Books section of the magazine this week. An eye-catching title which is ‘as thought provoking as it is provocative’ Daisy Dunn writes. Many popular historians are singled out for criticism for how they analyse women from ancient Rome, including Professor Dame Mary Beard. Is there merit in judging history by today’s standards? Well Mary Beard joined us to provide her thoughts (26:32).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is John Suchet whose new book In Search of Beethoven: A Personal Journey describes his lifelong passion for the composer. He tells me how the ‘Eroica’ was his soundtrack to the Lebanese Civil War, about the mysteries of Beethoven’s love-life and deafness, why he had reluctantly to accept that Beethoven was ‘ugly and half-mad’; and how even in the course of writing the book, new scholarship upended his assumptions about events in the composer’s life (from his meeting with Mozart to the circumstances of his death).
The Spectator Economic Innovator of the Year Awards, in partnership with Rathbones, celebrate the passion and creativity of British entrepreneurs. From hundreds of entries we have narrowed down to some 50 finalists across the United Kingdom. In this episode, the judges discuss the innovators within our consumer goods and services category, from suppliers of wonky fruits to producers of supplements for pets.
The judges in this episode are Merryn Somerset Webb, senior columnist at Bloomberg and the founder of MoneyWeek; entrepreneur and investor Gordon Black, whose company Peter Black Holdings was a major supplier of the UK's leading retailers; Michelle White, Head of Private Office for Rathbones; and Martin Vander Weyer, The Spectator's business editor.
The awards and this podcast series are sponsored by Rathbones, a leading provider of individual wealth management.
This episode of Chinese Whispers with Cindy Yu was recorded in front of a live audience as a part of the Battle of Ideas Festival 2024.
Is China in decline?
I was born in China in the 90s, and growing up it felt like the future was always going to be brighter. My parents were wealthier, more educated, better travelled than their parents, and it seemed assured that my generation would only have even better life chances.
But in the 2020s, China’s economic growth has slowed down. Some of the once-bright spots in its economy, like real estate, are in slow motion meltdown. In the last couple of years foreign direct investment into the country has been falling at a record pace. The youth unemployment rate from this summer shows that just under a fifth of people under 24 are jobless.
So how much of this is a considerable decline in the progress that China has made in the last miraculous half century, or is it just perhaps 'western bias' that’s blinding us to what is still a very positive picture?
On this live podcast, I discuss this question with a lively and experienced panel of China-watchers: Tom Miller, a senior analyst at Gavekal Research and author of two books on China; Isabel Hilton, a veteran international reporter and founder of the website China Dialogue; and Austin Williams, an architect by training who is also the author of numerous books on China, and teaches at the Xi'An Jiaotong-Liverpool University.
The Spectator Economic Innovator of the Year Awards, in partnership with Rathbones, celebrate the passion and creativity of British entrepreneurs. From hundreds of entries we have narrowed down to some 50 finalists across the United Kingdom. In this episode, the judges introduce those start-ups rethinking and finessing the battle against climate change, from vertical farming to carbon capture technology; as well as those working for a greater social purpose, such as getting more women into tech.
The judges in this episode are Eva-Maria Dimitriadis, CEO of the Conduit Connect, which backs exceptional founders whose businesses generate positive change; Clive Bawden, director of Governance360 and a previous winner of the Innovator Awards; Michelle White, Head of Private Office for Rathbones; and Martin Vander Weyer, The Spectator's business editor.
The awards and this podcast series are sponsored by Rathbones, a leading provider of individual wealth management.
In this week’s Spectator, William Finlater reveals that some of the Church of Scotland’s most precious architectural heritage is being flogged off quickly, cheaply and discreetly. Most western denominations are being forced to close churches, but the fire sale of hundreds of Scottish churches is unprecedented in British history. In this episode of Holy Smoke, Damian talks to William about the Kirk’s apparently panicky reaction to losing half its members since 2000, and asks new Spectator editor Michael Gove – once a Church of Scotland Sunday School teacher – why his former denomination is staring into the abyss.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Philip Womack wonders why students can't tackle university reading lists (1:12); Ian Thomson contemplates how much Albania has changed since Enver Hoxta’s dictatorship (6:12); Silkie Carlo reveals the worrying rise of supermarket surveillance (13:33); Francis Young provides his notes on Hallowe’en fairies (20:21); and Rory Sutherland worries that Britain may soon face a different type of migrant crisis (24:08).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
In this special live edition of the Americano show, Freddy Gray chairs a panel discussion with The Spectator's Kate Andrews, The Telegraph's Tim Stanley and pollster James Kanagasooriam on the upcoming US election. He's then joined by Nigel Farage, MP for Clacton, leader of Reform UK, and friend of Donald Trump, to unpack how the presidential race is going for the Republican nominee.
There is just over a week to go and the race to the White House is on a knife-edge. Team Harris and Team Trump both believe it is theirs to lose. But 10 days is a very long time in politics and, if the rest of the year is any guide, it seems certain to bring plenty more surprises. Kamala looked to be on top after a unanimous victory in the presidential debate but her latest media blitz has backfired. Meanwhile Trump seems to have rediscovered his mojo. Will this election be a referendum on Trump?
Daisy Cooper has been a stalwart of the Liberal Democrats for over a decade. From councillor to MP, she has served as the deputy leader of the party since 2020. First elected to parliament in 2019, she came to prominence when she represented the party in two of the general election debates earlier this year.
On the podcast, Daisy talks to Katy Balls about her ambition to be a conductor, how she created her first job, and whether she’d like to be leader one day. As the Liberal Democrats are now the largest third party in Parliament for 100 years – with 72 MPs – Daisy tells Katy what it’s like to have so many colleagues, and provides her diagnoses about both the Labour government and the Conservative leadership race.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
This week: Decline and Fall – how our greatest universities are betraying students.
Our greatest universities are betraying students, writes David Butterfield, who has just resigned from teaching Classics at Cambridge after 21 years. What went wrong? First, class lists of exam results became private, under alleged grounds of ‘data protection’, which snuffed out much of the competitive spirit of the university. Now even the fate of examinations hangs in the balance. Grade inflation is rampant, and it is now unheard of for students to be sent down for insufficient academic performance. For students, the risks have never been lower. ‘The pace of change over the past decade has been astonishing, driven on by three forces: an administrative class that wants to minimise complaints, a subset of academics who actively resent the no-nonsense traditions of the university, and a proportion of students who will take the easiest path proffered.’ David joined the podcast alongside the author Philip Womack, who recalls his own run-in with university administrators in the magazine. (01:46)
Next: the return of Trump the stand-up comedian.
There had been a lot of talk that Trump had lost some of his spark, with declining attendance at his rallies and his jokes failing to land. But, as The Spectator’s economics editor Kate Andrews writes this week, he appears to have his mojo back. At the Al Smith dinner, he delivered a series of wicked barbs aimed at his opponent Tim Walz and Kamala Harris, to a rapturous reception in the room. So what has changed? And why is humour so important to Trump? Kate joined the podcast alongside journalist and former speechwriter to Tony Blair, Philip Collins. (18:06)
And finally: could AI lead to a revival of decorative beauty?
In her arts lead for the magazine, Lara Prendergast meets the founders of a company in Stoke-on-Trent using AI technology to mass-produce uncannily authentic Delftware tiles, the iconic blue and white ceramics. ‘Josiah Wedgwood would have loved what we are doing… I suspect William Morris would have hated it,’ says the co-founder of Not Quite Past – the company creating these tiles – and who joins the podcast to discuss further. (37:55)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Keir Starmer can’t even fly to Samoa without another international British embarrassment breaking out. The latest is an angry accusation from Donald Trump’s campaign that Labour is committing the crime of ‘election interference’ in the United States. ‘The British are coming!’ screamed a typically camp Trump-Vance official press release last night. The campaign denounced Britain’s ‘far-left’ governing party for attempting to subvert democracy by sending almost 100 of its activists across the pond to sway American voters. But are the British actually coming?
Freddy Gray speaks to James Heale, The Spectator's political correspondent.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is Rachel Clarke, author of the Baillie Gifford longlisted new book The Story of a Heart. Rachel tells me how she came so intimately to tell the story of 9-year-old Keira, whose death in a car accident and donation of her heart gave a chance at life to a dying stranger, Max. She describes the medical and conceptual changes that led up to that extraordinary possibility and explains how, as a medic, you have to be able to combine technical professionalism with a sense of the sanctity of the human beings you work with. And she catches us up on how Max is doing eight years on.
This podcast is in association with Serious Readers. Use offer code ‘TBC’ for £100 off any HD Light and free UK delivery. Go to: www.seriousreaders.com/spectator
Tim Spector is a leading professor of genetic epidemiology at King’s College London and a renowned expert in nutrition, gut health, and the microbiome. He is the founder of the Zoe Project, which focuses on personalised nutrition and how individual responses to food impact health. His new book, The Food for Life Cookbook, is out now.
On the podcast, he tells Lara about his time growing up in Australia, how a skiing accident changed his view on nutrition, and why ham-flavoured crisps are his guilty pleasure.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Joe Bedell-Brill.
Click here for tickets to our Americano live event, with Nigel Farage.
The Spectator Economic Innovator of the Year Awards, in partnership with Rathbones, celebrate the passion and creativity of British entrepreneurs. From hundreds of entries we have narrowed down to some 50 finalists across the United Kingdom. In this episode, the judges introduce those cutting edge healthcare companies who are amongst the finalists and compare and contrast what they do with the latest biotech, AI, and how well they fare when trying to introduce innovation into the NHS.
The judges in this episode are Jonny Ohlson, founder and chairman of biotech firm Touchlight; Nicholas Hardie, entrepreneur and non-executive director on the board of Moorfields Eye Hospital; Michelle White, Head of Private Office for Rathbones; and Martin Vander Weyer, The Spectator's business editor.
The awards and this podcast series are sponsored by Rathbones, a leading provider of individual wealth management.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Richard Dawkins reads his diary for the week (1:21); Nicholas Farrell argues that Italy is showing the EU the way on migration (6:33); Mary Wakefield reflects on the horrors, and teaching, of the Second World War (13:54); Lisa Hilton examines what made George Villiers a favourite of King James I (19:10); and a local heroin addict makes Philip Hensher contemplate his weight (27:10).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
The House of Lords contains 26 Church of England archbishops and bishops who possess an automatic right to sit and vote in the House, as established by ancient usage and by statute. But for how much longer?
Labour have big plans for the Lords and have been pushing ahead with their crackdown on hereditary peers. But this week we learnt that Tory MP Gavin Williamson will table an amendment calling for them to reconsider the role of bishops as well. Gavin says that a clergy-free Lords would be more representative of modern Britain and is expecting to gain cross-party support, including from the likes of Jeremy Corbyn. The Spectator’s features editor William Moore thinks this is ‘institutional vandalism’ and opens the door to the removal of faith from parliament.
Gavin and William join The Spectator’s political editor Katy Balls to debate.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Oscar Edmondson.
This month Pope Francis announced that he’s creating 21 cardinals, and once again his list includes unexpected names that will baffle commentators who assume that he’s determined to stack the next conclave with liberals.
For example, Australia now finally has a cardinal – but he’s a 44-year-old bishop from the Ukrainian Greek Catholic diaspora rather than the actual head of the Ukrainian Church in Kiev. There’s also a new English cardinal who isn’t even a bishop, the Dominican theologian Timothy Radcliffe. He’s nearly 80, so will soon have to step down as an elector – but, believe it or not, one of the new cardinals is 99 and therefore old enough to be his father.
In this episode of Holy Smoke, Vatican analyst Serre Verweij joins Damian Thompson to discuss the significance of this consistory. He suggests that this Pope, famously hostile to traditionalists, is nonetheless moving to the right at this late stage in his pontificate. But why?
This week: the Chancellor’s Budget dilemma.
‘As a former championship chess player, Rachel Reeves must know that the first few moves can be some of the most important of the game,’ writes Rupert Harrison – former chief of staff to George Osborne – for the cover of the magazine this week. But, he says, the truth is that she has played herself into a corner ahead of this month's Budget, with her room for manoeuvre dramatically limited by a series of rash decisions. Her biggest problem is that she has repeatedly ruled out increases in income tax, national insurance and VAT. ‘So which taxes will rise, given that the easy options have been ruled out? The answers appear to be evolving rapidly when ministers are confronted with the OBR’s harsh reality.’ Rupert joined the podcast alongside The Spectator’s economics editor Kate Andrews. (01:29)
Next: Charlie Falconer and Charles Moore debate assisted dying. As Kim Leadbeater’s private member’s bill comes before the Commons, the former justice secretary Lord Falconer (who introduced a similar bill to the Lords) and The Spectator’s chairman Lord Moore debate assisted dying. The full conversation can be found on SpectatorTV but we have an extract from their conversation on the podcast. (19:01)
And finally: In his Books & Arts lead, Philip Hensher reviews Peter Parker’s history of homosexuality from 1945 to 1967, revealing many of the era’s bizarre and, at times, amusing speculations. They both join the podcast to discuss the demonising of homosexuals in postwar Britain and the role of the tabloids in stirring up fear and distrust. (33:26)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
Polling suggests that the Catholic vote helped Trump win in 2016 and helped Biden win in 2020. Biden is also the most church-going president by far. With issues like immigration and abortion high on the agenda for voters, where will the Catholic vote land? And how important is the idea of being culturally Catholic compared with political religiosity?
Ryan Girdursky, founder of the 1776 Project PAC and the National Populist substack - and Catholic - joins Freddy Gray to discuss.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
In this week's Book Club podcast Sam Leith’s guest is the great Sue Prideaux who, after her prize-winning biographies of Nietzsche, Munch and Strindberg, has turned her attention to Gauguin in Wild Thing: A Life of Paul Gauguin. She tells me about the great man's unexpected brief career as an investment banker, his highly unusual marriage and his late turn to anticolonial activism. Plus: why she starts with his teeth.
This podcast is in association with Serious Readers. Use offer code ‘TBC’ for £100 off any HD Light and free UK delivery. Go to: www.seriousreaders.com/spectator
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
Republican strategist, and friend of Americano, Luke Thompson joins Freddy Gray to talk about the ground game of Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. From postal voting, to party registration, to machine politics, whose is better? And what impact did Biden's exit from the race have on the organised parts of the Democratic Party?
With Luke's unique insight working on two current senate races, and as a longtime consultant to Vice-Presidential nominee J.D. Vance, they analyse the state of an election that continues to be unpredictable.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
** On October 19, Cindy Yu and a panel of special guests will be recording a live Chinese Whispers at London's Battle of Ideas festival, talking the latest on China’s economic slowdown and asking – what are the social and political implications? Is China in decline?
Chinese Whispers listeners can get a 20 per cent discount on the ticket price with the code WHISPERS24. Click here to find out more and get your ticket. **
In the early 2000s, Desmond Shum and his wife, Whitney Duan, were among the richest people in China, with fingers in various real estate, infrastructure and hospitality projects. They also had some of China’s most powerful people on speed dial – including the family of then-premier Wen Jiabao. But that all changed in 2017 when Whitney was disappeared by the Chinese state. Desmond now lives in the UK where he published a memoir in 2021, Red Roulette, and is now an analyst and commentator on Chinese politics.
On this interview, Cindy Yu and Desmond Shum discuss why he thinks Whitney was the victim of a power struggle involving Xi Jinping, the reality of politics and corruption in the China of the 2000s, and how Xi has destroyed the economic trajectory of the once-booming People’s Republic.
Actress and writer Tracy-Ann Oberman is well known for her roles across theatre, radio and television, including Dr Who, Friday Night Dinner, It’s a Sin and, of course, EastEnders. Most recently, she has taken on one of the most famous, and problematic, Shakespearean roles: as Shylock in The Merchant of Venice. Inspired by her great-grandmother, she has reimagined the role as a Jewish matriarch, and the play returns to London’s West End this December.
On the podcast, Katy Balls talks to Tracy about her obsession with the Roman Empire, what it was like spending a term in Moscow towards the end of perestroika, and her career from soap to Shakespeare, hero to villain. As she has found herself viewed as an unofficial spokesperson for the Jewish community, Tracy also talks openly about challenging the hate and abuse that many members of the community sadly receive.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: new Editor Michael Gove discusses his plans for The Spectator (1:08); Max Jeffery heads to Crawley to meet some of the Chagossians based there (5:44); Christopher Howse reads his ode to lamp lighting (12:35); Robert Jackman declares the Las Vegas Sphere to be the future of live arts (19:10); and Mark Mason provides his notes on the joy of swearing (26:50).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Journalist, historian and friend of Americano Thomas Frank joins Freddy Gray to dissect the state of American politics. Author of books, including the famed What's the matter with Kansas? How conservatives won the heart of America and, most recently, The People, No: A Brief History of Anti-Populism, Frank talks about his research into the origins of populism, the strange nature of American conventions, and the fundamental flaws he sees in the candidates ahead of the November election.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Natasha Feroze.
Successive governments have struggled with how to deal with China, balancing them as a geopolitical rival yet necessary trade partner. Recent moves from Labour have sent mixed signals, from the free speech act to the return of the Chagos Islands. Further decisions loom on the horizon. As Rachel Reeves seeks some economic wiggle room, can Labour resist the lure of the Chinese market? The Spectator’s Katy Balls, and visiting fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) James Crabtree, join the podcast to discuss further (02:05).
Plus: as the first issue under The Spectator’s new editor Michael Gove, what are his reflections as he succeeds Fraser Nelson? He reads an excerpt from his diary (19:05).
Next: could the government’s plans for dealing with extremism have unintended consequences on young men? With plans to reclassify extreme misogyny as extremism, Toby Young argues this week that Labour’s broadening of this issue exposes the flaws of the Prevent strategy. For all the focus on ‘toxic masculinity’, do we risk alienating and prematurely criminalising teenagers? Toby joins the podcast, alongside The Spectator’s deputy features editor – often host of this podcast – Gus Carter (22:05).
And finally: the rise of the female fight club. Emily Rhodes talks about her experience taking up kickboxing, and the unexpected consequence of channelling her anger. How should women, and society, understand and deal with female anger? Emily joins the podcast, alongside the author of Rage Becomes Her, Soraya Chemaly, to explain (34:28).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the former Home Secretary Alan Johnson, who joins me to talk about his new biography of Harold Wilson. He tells me about Wilson’s rocket-powered rise to the top, how he learned oratory on the hoof, why he might have been right to be paranoid… and what really went on with Marcia.
This podcast is in association with Serious Readers. Use offer code 'TBC' for £100 off any HD Light and free UK delivery. Go to: www.seriousreaders.com/spectator
Claire Dinhut is known to thousands on social media as CondimentClaire. Raised in a European household in Los Angeles, her upbringing and her background studying history have influenced her other passion, for cooking. Her book The Condiment Book: a brilliantly flavourful guide to food's unsung heroes is out now.
On the podcast, Claire tells hosts Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts about how Anthony Bourdain was her inspiration, the impact of covid on her career, and her French and Greek culinary influences. She also answers important questions such as: should we pair branston pickle with avocado; is cereal a soup; and what's the deal with pumpkin spice?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
On the anniversary of the October 7th attacks on Israel by Hamas, former Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy joins Freddy Gray to discuss everything that has happened since. Does the world still stand with Israel?
This was originally broadcast on Spectator TV. Go to spectator.co.uk/TV to watch more.
The US presidential election looks as if it’s coming down to the wire in a handful of battleground states. Neither Kamala Harris nor Donald Trump has established a clear lead, and that raises the question of whether, even in today’s increasingly secular America, evangelical Christians could give former president Trump a crucial advantage in the rust belt. On the other hand, could his role in the demise of Roe v Wade tilt the race towards Harris?
In this episode of Holy Smoke, Damian Thompson talks to Dr Melissa Deckman, CEO of the Public Religion Research Institute, a specialist in the influence of religion on US politics, and Justin Webb, presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, widely respected as an impartial commentator on presidential campaigns.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Fraser Nelson signs off for the last time (1:30); Cindy Yu explores growing hostility in China to the Japanese (7:44); Mary Wakefield examines the dark truth behind the Pelicot case in France (13:32); Anthony Sattin reviews Daybreak in Gaza: Stories of Palestinian Lives and Cultures (19:54); and Toby Young reveals the truth behind a coincidental dinner with Fraser Nelson and new Spectator editor Michael Gove (25:40).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Israel has launched what it has described as "limited, localised and targeted ground raids" in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah’s deputy leader says they’re ready for a ground offensive. It comes as more than 1000 people have been killed in the past two weeks in Lebanon.
Could they be heading for all-out war? Is it possible that Iran and the US will be sucked into the conflict too? With tensions between Israel and the US on the rise, what will the next few weeks look like – and is there a chance Israel’s attacks on Hezbollah open the way to strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities?
Professor John Mearsheimer joins The Spectator’s deputy editor and Americano host Freddy Gray to discuss what’s next for Israel, and the geopolitical implications.
This episode is also available to watch on Spectator TV.
This week: Israel’s revenge and Iran’s humiliation.
As the anniversary of the October 7th attacks by Hamas approaches, the crisis in the Middle East has only widened. Israel has sent troops into southern Lebanon and
there have been attempted missile strikes from the Houthi rebels in Yemen and from Iran. Is there any way the situation can de-escalate? And how could Israel respond to Iran? Former BBC foreign correspondent Paul Wood and defence and security research Dr Limor Simhony join the podcast (1:03).
Next: it’s the end of an era for The Spectator. This issue is Fraser Nelson’s last as he hands over the reins to Michael Gove. Having spent 15 years as editor, with 784 issues to his name, what are his reflections on his time here at 22 Old Queen Street? You can also hear an extract from Toby Young’s column, where he reveals a coincidental dinner that took place last week (13:25).
And finally: should we mourn the demise of the physical invitation? Yes, says Philip Womack in his Notes on in the magazine this week, as he declares ‘bring back the stiffy!’. They’re a ritual, a pleasure, a memento that will be most missed. Philip joined the podcast to ponder their decline, alongside our Dear Mary columnist Mary Killen (29:00).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Malcolm Gladwell. Twenty-five years after he published The Tipping Point, Malcolm returns to the subject of his first book in Revenge of the Tipping Point: Overstories, Superspreaders and the Rise of Social Engineering. He tells me about the 'magic third', why it's not just Covid that gave us superspreaders, and how what he calls an 'overstory' can have dramatic effects on human behaviour. He talks, too, about why counterintuitive discoveries are easy to find, and why we're all wrong about everything all the time.
The mood at Conservative conference has been surprisingly jubilant considering the turmoil that the party finds itself in. Labour's misfortunes may have contributed to this, but there seems to be a genuine optimism around the four candidates vying for the leadership of the party. What's the latest? Have Kemi Badenoch's comments on maternity pay impacted her position with the members?
Also on the podcast, this evening will see the Vance vs Walz vice presidential debate. They go head to head in an increasingly tight election. What does Trump vs Harris say about the state of American politics? And can any of these candidates – on either side of the pond – expect to be fighting future elections for their parties?
The Spectator's Fraser Nelson speaks to Katy Balls, Kate Andrews and Sarah Elliott from Republicans Overseas UK.
America has a peculiar way of deciding national elections. Instead of a cumulative national vote, the president and vice president are determined by fifty separate state elections. The top ticket in each state (except Nebraska and Maine) receives all that state’s electoral votes, no matter how slim the margin of victory. Each state’s electoral votes are equal to its number of House members plus its senators. The winner needs 270 electoral votes.
What if, in this razor-thin election, both Donald Trump and Kamala Harris fall one vote short? Freddy Gray is joined by Charles Lipson,contributor to The Spectator and political scientist, to answer that question. You can read the rest of his piece here.
Join Freddy Gray a special live recording of Americano on Thursday 24 October. You can buy tickets at www.spectator.co.uk/electionspecial.
** On October 19, Cindy Yu and a panel of special guests will be recording a live Chinese Whispers at London's Battle of Ideas festival, talking the latest on China’s economic slowdown and asking – what are the social and political implications? Is China in decline?
Chinese Whispers listeners can get a 20 per cent discount on the ticket price with the code WHISPERS24. Click here to find out more and get your ticket. **
The release of ChatGPT in late 2022 brought home the sheer potential of artificial intelligence and the speed with which developments are being made. It made AI the hot topic from business to politics and, yes, journalism.
This was true in China too, despite the fact that ChatGPT has never been allowed to be used within Chinese borders. Instead, China has a rich landscape of homegrown AI products, where progress is being led by tech giants like search engine Baidu and TikTok’s owner, ByteDance. So already we are seeing a bifurcation in the AI worlds of China and the West – just like with social media and e-commerce.
This episode will peek over the Great Firewall to update listeners on China’s progress on AI. The country is fast becoming an AI superpower even as it limits the freedoms its generative models can have and keeps out some of the world’s leading companies. Could this be the next arms race?
Cindy Yu is joined by the researcher Matt Sheehan, fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a long time watcher of China’s tech scene.
Freddy Gray is joined by Oliver Bateman, historian and journalist based in Pittsburgh. They discuss how important Pennsylvania will be during the election, the mail-in ballot system, and the state of the race.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Rachel Johnson reads her diary for the week (1:19); James Heale analyses the true value of Labour peer Lord Alli (6:58); Paul Wood questions if Israel is trying to drag America into a war with Iran (11:59); Rowan Pelling reviews Want: Sexual Fantasies, collated by Gillian Anderson (19:47); and Graeme Thomson explores the ethics of the posthumous publication of new music (28:00).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Labour’s Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson returns to Women With Balls in a special live edition of the podcast, recorded at Labour Party conference. The MP for Houghton and Sunderland South since 2010, Phillipson joined Keir Starmer’s shadow cabinet in 2020, and was appointed Shadow Education Secretary the following year. She retained her brief following the general election, and was also appointed Minister for Women and Equalities.
Katy talks to Bridget about her priorities for Education, what she thinks about the idea that too many people go to university, and the recovery of schools and pupils post-pandemic.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
This week: who’s on top in the Conservative leadership race?
That’s the question Katy Balls asks in the magazine this week as she looks ahead to the Conservative Party conference. Each Tory hopeful will be pitching for the support of MPs and the party faithful ahead of the next round of voting. Who’s got the most to lose, and could there be some sneaky tactics behind the scenes? Katy joins the podcast to discuss, alongside Conservative peer Ruth Porter, who ran Liz Truss’s leadership campaign in 2022. We also include an excerpt from the hustings that Katy conducted with each of the candidates earlier this week. You can find the full interviews on The Spectator’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@SpectatorTV (02:07)
Next: should trail hunting be banned? Flora Watkins concedes that the hunting community has not helped its case over the years when considering the future of the sport. However, she argues that a minority should not spoil a sport that is ‘thrilling, sociable and bloodless’. In a heated discussion, Flora joins the podcast to make her case with campaigner Dominic Dyer. (17:43)
And finally: what to make of Sally Rooney’s new novel Intermezzo? In the magazine this week Claire Lowdon argues that the novel is an ‘enjoyable old-fashioned love story… but high literature it is not’. Why? Reviewing the book for the Times James Marriott argues Rooney’s characters are ‘sensitive’ but also too ‘precious and prissy’. How warranted is the criticism of Rooney? Claire and James join the pod. (31:50)
Hosted by William Moore and Gus Carter.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is Alan Garner whose new book of essays and poems is called Powsels and Thrums: A Tapestry of a Creative Life. Alan tells me about landscape and writing, science and magic, the unbearably spooky story behind his novel Thursbitch – and why, three weeks short of 90, he has no plans to retire.
This podcast is in association with Serious Readers. Use offer code 'TBC' for £100 off any HD Light and free UK delivery. Go to: www.seriousreaders.com/spectator
Charlie Bigham founded his eponymous ready to cook meals over 25 years ago. Having left a career as a management consultant, his company has gone on to report annual sales in the tens of millions, with a focus on ‘creating delicious dishes for people who love proper food’. His first cookbook ‘Supper with Charlie Bigham’ is out now.
On the podcast, Charlie tells hosts Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts about recovering from ‘revolting’ school food, the difference between packaged meals and ready meals, and how he views cooking as alchemy.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
A handful of Big Tech companies seem to run our lives, and there's a good argument that they can be considered monopolies within their industries. In a landmark ruling recently, a US judge found that Google acted illegally with their exercise of monopoly power within the online search industry. On this episode, Freddy is joined by Barry Lynn, journalist and an expert on America's antitrust battles, to discuss how liberal societies can combat the power of monopolistic Big Tech.
In the winter of 1951 shots from a Colt revolver rang out in St Paul’s Cathedral in an experiment designed to solve the mystery of how architecture shapes sound. In this episode of Holy Smoke, Damian Thompson talks to Dr Fiona Smyth, author of a new book on the subject, and choral musician Philip Fryer, about the perfect acoustic – an increasingly important topic for churches, since many of them rely on the income from hiring themselves out as concert and recording venues. And it raises the question: should we think of a church as a musical instrument?
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: as Lebanon reels from the exploding pagers, Paul Wood wonders what’s next for Israel and Hezbollah (1:24); Ross Clark examines Ireland’s low-tax project, following the news that they’re set to receive €13 billion… that they didn’t want (8:40); Reviewing Ben Macintyre’s new book, Andrew Lycett looks at the 1980 Iranian London embassy siege (15:29); Laura Gascoigne argues that Vincent Van Gogh would approve of the new exhibition of his works at the National Gallery (22:35); and Henry Jeffreys provides his notes on corkscrews (28:01).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Channel 4's international editor Lindsey Hilsum. In her new book I Brought The War With Me: Stories and Poems from the Front Line Lindsey intersperses her account of the many conflicts she has covered as a war reporter with the poems that have given her consolation and a wider sense of meaning as she travels through the dark places of the earth. She tells me what poets can do that reporters can't, how you put a human face on statistics, how new technology has changed her trade, and why she goes back and back into danger to bear witness.
This week: Nigel’s next target. What’s Reform UK’s plan to take on Labour? Reform UK surpassed expectations at the general election to win 5 MPs. This includes James McMurdock, who Katy interviews for the magazine this week, who only decided to stand at the last moment. How much threat could Reform pose and why has Farage done so well? Katy joins the podcast to discuss, alongside Jovan Owusu-Nepaul, who fought Nigel Farage as the Labour candidate for Clacton (1:02).
Next: who determines the morality of euthanasia? Matthew Hall recounts the experience of his aunt opting for the procedure in Canada, saying it ‘horrified’ him but ‘was also chillingly seductive’. Does Canada provide the model for the rest of the world? Or should we all be worried of where this could lead? Matthew joined the podcast, alongside commentator Richard Hanania. Hanania is president of the Centre for the Study of Partisanship and Ideology and has hailed the Canadian model as ‘moral progress’ (19:52).
And finally: why isn’t China a football superpower? Ian Williams joins the podcast to discuss his article exploring the failure of President Xi to realise his ambitions for Chinese football. Despite spending billions of yuan, why hasn’t China been more successful? Cameron Wilson, founding editor of Wild East Football, the world’s leading English-language news source on soccer in China joins too (35:44).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
We have some new inflation figures today. Inflation rose 2.2 per cent in the 12 months to August. This is pretty much in line with the Bank of England's target and should be good news for Labour, so why do they persist with this doom and gloom narrative?
Elsewhere, Labour's awkward week has got more awkward with the news that Sue Gray, Keir Starmer's chief of staff, is paid more than him. Surely they could have seen this news story coming?
Oscar Edmondson speaks to Kate Andrews and James Heale.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
As if there hadn’t been enough drama in America in 2024, Donald Trump has survived another assassination attempt.
The attempted killing of the 45th president at his golf course in Palm Beach, Florida yesterday afternoon was not nearly as threatening or deadly as the shooting nine weeks ago in Butler, Pennsylvania - but questions remain about how the incident could have happened.
Freddy Gray is joined by Kate Andrews to discuss the second assassination attempt, the state of the race, and what's next for Donald Trump.
As a child, the New York Times journalist Edward Wong had no idea that his father had been in the People’s Liberation Army. But as he grew up, a second generation immigrant in the United States, Edward was hungry to find out more about his father and mother’s pasts in the People’s Republic of China. That hunger took him to study China at university and eventually to become the New York Times’s Beijing bureau chief.
Edward’s new book, At the Edge of Empire, is a marvellously constructed work that traces his father’s journey through China as a soldier in the PLA, and his own reporting in China as an American journalist. It reveals how China has changed between the lives of father and son, but also how some aspects – such as the nature of political power – have not changed at all.
On this episode, Cindy Yu talks to Edward about the yearning of second-generation immigrants to understand their roots, why both China and America can be seen as empires, and the seventy years of change that the lives of father and son span.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Fraser Nelson reflects on a historic week for The Spectator (1:15); David Whitehouse examines the toughest problem in mathematics (6:33); Imogen Yates reports on the booming health tech industry (13:54); Sean McGlynn reviews Dan Jones’s book Henry V: the astonishing rise of England’s greatest warrior king (20:24); and Ruari Clark provides his notes on rollies (26:18).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
From working on the 1997 general election campaign, to serving in the shadow cabinets of three leaders, politician Lucy Powell has been a prominent figure in the Labour Party for many years. First elected to parliament in 2012, she was appointed Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Council following Labour's general election win in July.
As Women With Balls returns from a summer break, Katy Balls talks to Lucy about why she transferred out of Oxford University, what her motivations were for serving under Jeremy Corbyn, and why the 2024 general election felt like Glastonbury festival. Lucy also talks about her focus for the newly formed Modernisation Committee.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
This week:
The US election is back on a knife-edge. Republicans hoped this week’s debate would expose Kamala Harris’s weaknesses. ‘They forgot that, when it comes to one-on-one intellectual sparring matches with candidates who aren’t senile, Donald Trump is very bad indeed,’ writes Freddy Gray. ‘A skilled politician would have been able to unpick Harris’s act, but Trump could not.’ Harris is enigmatic to the point of absurdity, but Trump failed to pin her down and may well have squandered his narrow lead. To discuss further, Freddy joined the podcast alongside Amber Duke, Washington editor at Spectator World. (02:05)
Next: Lara and Will take us through some of their favourite pieces from this week, including Fraser Nelson’s diary on the sale of The Spectator Magazine to Sir Paul Marshall.
Then: how to catch a paedophile. London Overwatch, a paedophile hunting group, pose as children online to snare unsuspecting sexual predators. They then confront the suspect and livestream the arrest to thousands of viewers. The Spectator’s Max Jeffery went along to see them catch a man who believes he has been speaking to a 14-year-old girl. Max was joined on the podcast by Nick, who runs London Overwatch. (18:34)
And finally: is it ethical to pocket a sandwich at a hotel breakfast buffet? Laurie Graham explores the ethics of plundering the hotel buffet in the magazine this week. Specifically, she reveals the very British habit that many Brits swipe food from their free breakfasts to save for lunch later in the day. Laurie joined us alongside Mark Jenkins, a former hotel manager in Torquay who listeners may remember from the Channel 4 documentary ‘The Hotel’ (27:51)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
In this week's Book Club podcast my guest is the satirist Craig Brown, talking about his brilliant new book A Voyage Round The Queen. Craig tells me what made him think there was something new to say about Elizabeth II, how he found himself in possession of the only scoop of his career and about his mortifying encounter with Her Maj.
The Spectator's chairman Andrew Neil and journalist Piers Morgan join Freddy Gray, host of the Americano show, to analyse the presidential race so far. Piers reveals what Donald Trump told him after he was shot, and they both give their predictions on whether Kamala Harris or Donald Trump will win their first debate.
Musician Simon Raymonde is perhaps best known as part of the Scottish band the Cocteau Twins, but he has found further success as the co-founder of Bella Union Records. Bella Union produce music by Father John Misty, the Fleet Foxes, and Beach House, amongst others. His memoir In One Ear: Cocteau Twins, Ivor Raymonde and Me is released on the 12 September 2024.
On this episode of Table Talk, Simon tells Olivia Potts and Lara Prendergast about the influence of Jewish food as he was growing up, life on tour, how he spends his time in his new home of Brighton, and his love of the restaurant chain Dishoom.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
Freddy Gray is joined by Bridget Phetasy, comedian and Spectator World columnist. They discuss whether everyone is suffering a bit of election, and Trump fatigue - including Trump himself. They also cover Putin trolling America, and Bridget gives her predictions for the upcoming presidential debate.
In this week’s copy of The Spectator, Dan Hitchens argues that a lesser reported aspect of Labour’s decision to impose VAT on private schools is who it could hit hardest: faith schools. Hundreds of independent religious schools charge modest, means-tested fees. Could a hike in costs make these schools unviable? And, with uncertainty about how ideological a decision this is, does the government even care? Dan joins Damian on the podcast to discuss.
Raisel Freedman from the Partnerships for Jewish Schools also joins later, to discuss how the measure could threaten Jewish independent schools, when they provide a haven for students from a climate of rising antisemitism.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Ian Thomson reflects on his childhood home following the death of his sister (1:20); Andrew Watts argues that the public see MPs as accountable for everything though they’re responsible for little (7:40); Sam Leith reveals the surprising problem of poetical copyright (13:47); Helen Barrett reviews Will Noble’s book Croydonopolis and explores the reputation of a place with unfulfilled potential (19:48); and, Catriona Olding ponders moving on from loss to love (26:09).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Labor Day is a critical mile-marker on the road to the general election, now just two months away. Pollsters are busy processing data and making predictions, but nobody really knows whether America will end up with Donald Trump or Kamala Harris in the White House. Nate Silver is one of America's most well-respected pollsters. The former poker player set up FiveThirtyEight, a polling company and now writes the Silver Bullet on Substack. Nate Silver's latest book On the Edge: the Art of Risking Everything takes a look at two mindsets: the River and the Village.
Nate joins Freddy Gray on the Americano show to discuss probability in sport and politics, how luck is often undervalued in politics, whether VP picks are an key decision in general elections and why J.D. Vance may be a bad choice for Trump.
This week: Miliband’s empty energy promises. Ed Miliband has written a public letter confirming that Labour plans to decarbonise the electricity system by 2030. The problem with this, though, is that he doesn’t have the first idea about how to do it. The grid doesn’t have the capacity to transmit the required energy, Ross Clark writes, and Miliband’s claim that wind is ‘nine times cheaper’ than fossil fuels is based upon false assumptions. What is more, disclosed plans about ‘GB Energy’ reveal that Miliband’s pet project isn’t really a company at all – but an investment scheme. This empty vessel will funnel taxpayer money into the hands of private companies rather than produce any energy itself. To discuss, Lara and Will were joined by Shaun Spiers, executive director of the Green Alliance and Stanley Johnson, former MEP, environmental campaigner and author of the new book In the footsteps of Marco Polo deals extensively on China’s energy problems and opportunities. (02:26)
Then: Lara and Will take us through some of their favourite pieces from the magazine, including the lead book review and Catriona Olding’s Still Life column.
Next: meet Nigel Farage’s millionaire Reform chairman. The Reform party has a new poster boy, the 37-year-old party Chairman Zia Yusuf. Self-dubbed a ‘British Muslim patriot’, Yusuf is a former Goldman Sachs partner and tech owner with an expensive taste for cars. He is tasked with transforming Farage’s outfit from a limited company into a proper party. You can read James Heale’s full interview with Yusuf in this week’s magazine, but they have kindly allowed us to hear a section of their discussion on the podcast. They talk about the Nigel Farage effect and Lee Anderson’s comments about Sadiq Khan. (18:34)
And finally: should we feel sorry for restaurant critics? Angus Colwell, The Spectator’s assistant online editor, writes about the plight of the restaurant critic and the stresses of doing what many would consider the best job in the world. To discuss further, Angus joined us alongside the Observer’s restaurant critic Jay Rayner, whose new book Nights Out, At Home celebrates his 25 years as a food critic and is available to buy now. (29:41)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the writer, artist and historian Amy Jeffs. Her new book Saints: A New Legendary of Heroes, Humans and Magic aims to recover and bring back to life the wild and fascinating world of medieval saints. She tells me what we lost with the Reformation (all the good swearing, among much else), what was the difference between magic and a miracle, and how what washes up on the Thames foreshore can give us the entry point to a whole vanished imaginarium.
In a CNN interview, Kamala Harris has been pressed on why her policies on immigration have become more moderate since 2019, when she ran for president. Republicans have been accusing her of flip-flopping on her border wall policy. In this episode, Matt McDonald, managing editor of The Spectator's US edition, fills in for Freddy whilst he's on holiday. Matt speaks to Todd Bensman, journalist, author, and fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies.
The South China Sea has been an area of regular clashes and heightened tensions under the leadership of Xi Jinping. It seems that, every few months, Chinese naval or coastguard ships clash or almost clash with vessels from South East Asian nations like Vietnam and the Philippines. Only last week, a Chinese ship clashed with the Filipino coast guard in the Spratly Islands, with both sides levelling angry accusations at each other.
The region is full of disputed claims, making it fertile waters for accidental escalation. China says its claims to the region – encompassed by the ‘nine-dash line’ – are historic; that island sets such as the Spratlys and the Paracels in the South China Sea are as integral to the Chinese empire as Hong Kong or Taiwan. How sound is that claim?
This episode will be digging into the origins of the nine-dash line (roughly pictured here) – and finds them not so much in ancient imperial days. The chaotic formation of China’s claims in the South China Sea is researched and detailed in Bill Hayton’s book, The Invention of China.
To hear more about Bill's book, tune in to our previous episode: What is it to be Chinese?
Writer Guy Stagg threw in his job to undertake a pilgrimage to Jerusalem via Rome - choosing a hazardous medieval route across the Alps. It nearly killed him: at one stage, trying to cross a broken bridge in Switzerland, he ended up partially submerged in the water, held up only by his rucksack.
On this episode of Holy Smoke, from the archives, Guy explains why his journey was a pilgrimage, not just travels. And Damian Thompson talks to Harry Mount, editor of The Oldie, about why he’s irresistibly drawn to church buildings while remaining an unbeliever - albeit an agnostic rather than an atheist.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Joan Collins reads an extract from her diary (1:15); Owen Matthews argues that Russia and China’s relationship is just a marriage of convenience (3:19); reviewing The White Ladder: Triumph and Tragedy at the Dawn of Mountaineering by Daniel Light, Sara Wheeler examines the epic history of the sport (13:52); Igor Toronyi-Lalic looks at the life, cinema, and many drinks, of Marguerite Duras (21:35); and Tanya Gold provides her notes on tasting menus (26:07).
Presented and produced by Patrick Gibbons.
Women With Balls has taken a summer break and will be back in September with a new series. Until then, here's an episode from the archives, with Dame Karen Pierce, who will shortly complete her term as British Ambassador to the United States.
Filmed in 2019, when Dame Karen was the UK’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, she talks to Katy Balls about her career ambitions when she was young, using Lewis Carroll to combat the Russians, and what day to day life is like at the UN.
This week: Alt reich. The Spectator’s Lisa Haseldine asks if Germany’s far right is about to go mainstream, ahead of regional elections this weekend. Lisa joined the podcast, alongside the historian Katja Hoyer, to discuss why the AfD are polling so well in parts of Germany, and how comparable this is to other trends across Europe (1:13).
Then: why are traditional hobbies being threatened in Britain? Writer Richard Bratby joins the podcast, alongside Chris Bradbury, the drone support officer at the BMFA, to discuss his article in the magazine this week about the challenge red-tape poses to model steam engine and aeroplane enthusiasts (18:47).
And finally: how has sound design changed the world of theatre? The Spectator's chief dance critic Rupert Christiansen argues in the magazine this week that amplified sound has become the default, to the detriment of traditional theatre, and he joins the podcast to discuss (30:15). The director Yael Farber also joins to explain why she sees sound design as the primary sensory experience within theatre (37:55).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
The Book Club has taken a short summer break and will return in September. Until then, and ahead of the 85th anniversary of the start of World War Two, here’s an episode from the archives with the author Ian Sansom.
Recorded ahead of the 80th anniversary in 2019, Sam Leith talks to Ian about September 1, 1939, the W.H. Auden poem that marked the beginning of the war. Ian’s book is a 'biography' of the poem; they discuss how it showcases all that is best and worst in Auden’s work, how Auden first rewrote and then disowned it, and how Auden’s posthumous reputation has had some unlikely boosters in Richard Curtis and Osama Bin Laden.
Will Beckett, CEO of Hawksmoor, founded the steakhouse chain with his childhood best friend Huw Gott in 2006. It has since expanded to 13 locations, including three outside the UK, and consistently been ranked one of the best steak restaurants in the world.
On the podcast, Will tells Olivia Potts and Lara Prendergast about his journey from working in a bar to breaking America, how farming is the key to a good steak, and why pasta is actually his favourite food.
Professor John Mearsheimer joins Freddy Gray to discuss the wars in Ukraine and in Gaza, and the influence of both on the US election. The Israel-Gaza conflict has led to internal divisions within the democratic party, how will Kamala Harris deal with this? And as the Russia-Ukraine conflict shows no signs of ebbing, what does he see as the west’s role in the war?
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: William Cash reveals the dark side of Hollywood assistants (1:12); Marcus Nevitt reviews Ronald Hutton’s new book on Oliver Cromwell (7:57); Nina Power visits the Museum of Neoliberalism (13:51); Christopher Howse proves his notes on matchboxes (21:35); and, Olivia Potts finds positives in Americans’ maximalist attitudes towards salad (26:15).
Presented and produced by Patrick Gibbons.
The Americano podcast has been in Chicago this week for the Democratic National Convention, as Kamala Harris is officially nominated to be their presidential candidate. Has the convention gone to plan? How united are the Democrats? And can their strategy sustain until November?
In this compilation episode, Freddy Gray is joined by Labour MPs Lucy Rigby and Mike Tapp, Democratic operative and fundraiser Christopher Hale, editor at large of The Spectator World Ben Domenech, editor in chief of Mediate Aidan McLaughlin and Washington editor of Harper's magazine Andrew Cockburn. For the full episodes, search for Americano or head to the Americano channel on our website.
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Patrick Gibbons.
This week: All hail Harris! As the Democratic National Convention approaches its climax, The Spectator’s deputy editor Freddy Gray explores vice president Kamala Harris’s remarkable rise to the top of the democratic ticket in his cover article this week. Freddy joins the podcast from Chicago (1:30).
Next: live from the DNC. Freddy and Natasha Feroze, The Spectator’s deputy broadcast editor, have been out and about at the convention talking to delegates – and detractors – of the Democratic Party. What do these Americans think? And does Kamala Harris have ‘good vibes’? (7:56).
Then: should misogyny really be classified under anti-terrorism laws? In the magazine this week The Spectator’s economics editor Kate Andrews argues that the measure would do little to solve the fundamental problem. And how would ‘extreme misogyny’ be defined anyway? Kate and author Helen Joyce joined us to discuss their concerns (19:04).
And finally: why does chess attract so many cheats? In the magazine this week The Spectator’s chess columnist, and grandmaster, Luke McShane examines the history of high-profile scandals in cheating. Why do some players stoop so low? Professor Ken Regan, an expert and investigator in anti-cheating in chess, and psychologist Professor Sam Sommers, join the podcast (30:34).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
The Book Club has taken a short summer break and will return in September with new episodes. Until then, here’s an episode from the archives with the theoretical physicist Carlo Rovelli.
Carlo joined Sam in March 2023 to discuss his book Anaximander and the Nature of Science and explain how a radical thinker two and a half centuries ago was the first human to intuit that the earth is floating in space. He tells Sam how Anaximander’s way of thinking still informs the work of scientists everywhere, how politics shapes scientific progress and how we can navigate the twin threats of religious dogma and postmodern relativism in search of truth.
Douglas Murray joins Freddy Gray on the Americano podcast to discuss free speech in Britain following the sentences handed down after the riots, how different free speech is in America, and how Douglas himself became a victim of online hate.
Trump is tough on China, but what really motivates his hawkishness? Does he care at all about China's human rights abuses? Or is he fundamentally a foreign policy disentangler, hoping to rein back America's overseas commitments? How much does the China policy of a second Trump presidency depend on which advisors the president surrounds himself with?
On this episode of Chinese Whispers, The Spectator's China podcast, assistant editor Cindy Yu talks to deputy editor Freddy Gray and Jordan McGillis, economics editor at the Manhattan Institute's City Journal.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Patrick Gibbons.
Women with Balls has taken a summer break and will be back in September with a new series. Until then, here's an episode from the archives, with current Tory leadership hopeful Kemi Badenoch MP.
Widely seen as one of the Conservative Party’s rising stars upon her election to Parliament in 2017, her star has only continued to rise. Serving under successive PMs, this episode was recorded in May 2022 when she was Minister of State for Local Government, Faith and Communities, and for Equalities. Now many consider her the frontrunner to be Tory leader.
On the podcast, Kemi talks about her childhood in Nigeria and the golden ticket that was her UK passport, hacking Harriet Harman and what it's like to be a 'rising star'.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Richard Madeley reads his diary for the week (1:01); Cindy Yu explores the growing trend for all things nostalgic in China (6:00); Lara Prendergast declares that bankers are hot again (11:26); Pen Vogler reviews Sally Coulthard’s book The Apple (17:18); and, James Delingpole argues that Joe Rogan is ‘as edgy as Banksy’ (23:24).
Presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Freddy Gray sits down with journalist and Spectator author Ed West who writes the Substack Wrong Side of History and Richard Hanania who writes the Richard Hanania Newsletter to discuss Elon Musk's interview with Donald Trump on Twitter (X), how much influence Twitter has both in the UK and America, and whether the right-wing men are 'weird'.
This week: Power play. The Spectator’s Svitlana Morenets writes the cover article in this week’s magazine exploring Zelensky’s plan for his Russian conquests. What’s his aim? And how could Putin respond? Svitlana joins the podcast alongside historian and author Mark Galeotti (02:10).
Next: Will and Gus discuss their favourite pieces from the magazine, including Richard Madeley’s diary and Lara Prendergast’s argument that bankers are hot again.
Then: how concerned should we be about falling fertility rates? In the magazine this week Jesus Fernandez-Villaverde argues that the problem is already far more grave, and far more global, than we realise. Why should we worry about this, and what can be done to stem this? Jesus joined the podcast with filmmaker and demographer Stephen J. Shaw (16:56).
And finally: why is nostalgia such a powerful emotion? The Spectator’s broadcast editor – and host of the Chinese Whispers podcast – Cindy Yu writes in the magazine about the ‘thriving industry’ of nostalgia in China. What’s behind this and, more generally, what drives humans to feel nostalgic? Cindy joined the podcast alongside historian and author Dr Agnes Arnold-Forster who argues that nostalgia doesn’t deserve its negative reputation (28:32).
Hosted by William Moore and Gus Carter.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
Sam's guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Adam Higginbotham, whose new book Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space describes the 1986 space shuttle disaster that took the lives of seven astronauts and, arguably, inflicted America's greatest psychic scar since the assassination of JFK. He tells Sam about the extraordinary men and women who lost their lives that day, the astounding engineering involved in the spacecraft that America had started to take for granted, and the deep roots and long aftermath of the accident.
Romy Gill is a British-Indian chef, food-writer and broadcaster who was awarded an MBE in 2016 for her services to hospitality. She is the author of three cookbooks including her newest, Romy Gill's India, which will be published on 12th September.
On the podcast, she tells Liv and Lara about the joys of long train journeys across India, the state of Indian cuisine in the UK and how you can make magic with just cumin and turmeric.
Photo credit: Sam Harris
This week: Gus Carter reports from Rotherham (01:10), Paul Wood asks whether anything can stop full-scale conflict in the Middle East (05:55), Jonathan Aitken takes us inside Nixon's resignation melodrama (16:55), Laura Gascoigne reviews Revealing Nature: The Art of Cedric Morris and Lett-Haines (26:08), and Flora Watkins reads her notes on ragwort (31:24).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
This week: The Spectator’s Gus Carter was in Rotherham and Birmingham in the days after the riots. Locals tell Gus that ‘violent disorder isn’t acceptable but people from down south don’t know what it’s like up here’. A retired policeman in Birmingham adds that ‘it’s just yobs looking for an excuse – and yobbos come in all sorts of colours’. You can hear Gus’ report on the podcast. (02:25)
Next: Gus and Lara take us through some of their favourite pieces in the magazine, including Flora Watkins’ notes on ragwort and Isabel Hardman’s review of Swimming Pretty: The Untold Story of Women in Water.
Then: In the magazine this week Edmund West writes about how he learned to embrace his autism and the ways in which technology is making it increasingly easy for people with autism to go about their daily lives. Edmund was diagnosed with autism when he was 26 and now is a freelance journalist and a tutor and carer to kids with autism. He joins the podcast to discuss. (12:07)
And finally: what’s your favourite children’s character? We ran a poll this week asking regular contributors about their favourite children's books characters and you can read responses from Rory Sutherland’s love of Dr Seuss or the affinity Peter Hitchens feels with Badger from The Wind in the Willows. To accompany our poll, Mary Wakefield writes about how the characters we read about as a child embed themselves within us, and inform the way we think as adults. She says that it’s a shame that so few children are reading nowadays. Mary joins the podcast alongside author and regular contributor to The Spectator’s books pages, Philip Hensher to investigate the decline in childhood reading. (18:36)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and Gus Carter.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Nathan Thrall, author of the Pulitzer Prize winning book A Day In The Life of Abed Salama – which uses the story of a terrible bus crash in the West Bank to describe in ground-up detail the day-to-day lives of Palestinians living under Israeli occupation. Speaking to me from Jerusalem, Nathan tells me why he believes it's right to call Israel an 'apartheid state', how the bureaucracy of the Occupied Territories made the fatal crash 'an accident that wasn't an accident'; and what he thinks needs to change to bring hope of an end to the conflict.
The Chinese middle class can now be very discerning about the food that they eat, and who can blame them? In the last twenty years, there seems to have been a steady stream of food safety and hygiene scandals – most infamously melamine-laced milk powder in 2008, which poisoned tens of thousands of babies. Since then, we’ve heard about pesticides being put into steamed buns to improve their texture, used cooking oil being retrieved from gutters to be reused, and lamb meat that might contain rat or fox.
The latest scandal, breaking over the last couple of months, is that of fuel tankers being used to carry cooking oil without the tankers being cleaned in between.
So what gives? Are these scandals a particularly Chinese phenomenon? Why hasn’t government regulation or punishment worked? And how does this impact political credibility in the eyes of the middle class?
Cindy Yu is joined by two brilliant guests to discuss all of these questions and more.
Dali Yang is a political scientist and sinologist at the University of Chicago, whose research has focused on Chinese regulations when it comes to food and medicine. His latest book is Wuhan: How the Covid-19 Outbreak in China Spiralled Out of Control
James Palmer is deputy editor at Foreign Policy and author of numerous books on China. He worked for years as a journalist inside China.
For further listening, check out the Chinese Whispers episode on the gig economy – another huge labour rights issue in the country today: Algorithms and lockdowns: how China’s gig economy works.
In the short time since Joe Biden has stepped aside for Kamala Harris's candidacy, the Democratic party has totally switched on the gears for 'Kamalamania'. On this episode, Freddy Gray talks to Kate Andrews about the disingenuousness of the hype, how social media drives it (and in particular, TikTok), and whether the enthusiasm for Kamala really has or will cut through to voters.
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Cindy Yu.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: James Heale interviews Woody Johnson, the former American Ambassador to the UK, about a possible second Trump term (1:19); Lara Prendergast reflects on the issue of smartphones for children and what lessons we could learn from Keir Starmer’s approach to privacy (6:35); reviewing Patrick Bishop’s book ‘Paris ’44: The Shame and the Glory’, Patrick Marnham argues the liberation of Paris was hard won (12:37); Laura Gascoigne examines Ukraine’s avant garde movement in light of the Russian invasion (20:34); and, Michael Simmons provides his notes on venn diagrams (28:33).
Presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Women with Balls will be back in the Autumn with a new series. Until then, here's an episode from the archives, with the new Chancellor Rachel Reeves.
On the podcast, she talks to Katy about being a teen chess champion (pictured playing), going to a school where her mum worked and what Labour needed to do to turn its losing streak.
This week: Keir Starmer’s plan to soften BrexitKaty Balls writes this week’s cover piece on Labour’s plans to establish close ties with the EU. Every member of Starmer’s cabinet voted Remain, and the government is trying to ‘reset EU relations through a charm offensive’. Brussels figures are hopeful: ‘There was no real goodwill for the Conservative government.’ There are tests coming: the first deal, Katy writes, could be harmonisation on veterinary standards. But will the UK have to abide by the European Court of Justice? Then there’s the issue of Chinese electric cars: will Starmer accept cheap imports, or follow the EU in raising tariffs on them? For now, EU officials see the new PM as ‘workman-like and not playing to the gallery’. How long will that last? Katy Balls is joined by Anand Menon, director of the think tank UK in a changing Europe. (02:03)
Then: In The Spectator this week Jonathan Miller writes about his experiences at the Hampshire public school Bedales. The school’s alumni roster is impressive: royalty, celebrity, and several Spectator writers. But it has also courted controversy and criticism from some previous students. The novelist and writer Amanda Craig was one such former student, so highly critical of the school she authored a book ‘A Private Place’ detailing her experiences. Jonathan and Amanda join the podcast to discuss the cult of Bedales. (19:22)
And finally: is there really reason to believe aliens exist? In the magazine this week, the astronomer and science writer Dr David Whitehouse says if aliens do exist, why can nobody find any proof of them. Despite the evidence, or lack thereof, why does the belief in aliens endure? And how much can we really read into the disclosures in the US about UAPs - Unidentified Aerial Platforms? David joins the podcast to discuss his article alongside space journalist Jonathan O’Callaghan. (31:24)
Hosted by Gus Carter and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is the writer and comedian David Baddiel, talking about his new book My Family: the Memoir. He talks about childhood trauma, what made him a comedian, and how describing in minute detail his mother’s decades long affair with a slightly crooked golfing memorabilia salesman is an act not of betrayal but of loving recuperation.
Fred Smith is Head of Beef at Flat Iron. Having trained at several of London's top restaurants, he later became Head of Food at Byron. He then joined the Flat Iron series of restaurants in 2017.
On the podcast, he tells Lara and Liv about how his love of steak developed, how he got into cooking, and what his comfort food is. His passion for the world-famous Angus breed is evident, but why is British steak so good?
Also, on the podcast Lara let's slip her son's first sentence - safe to say, it's food related...
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Damian Thompson argues that Papal succession plotting is a case of life mirroring art (1:26); Paola Romero reports on Venezuela’s mix of Evita and Thatcher, Maria Corina Machado, and her chances of bringing down Nicolas Maduro (11:39); reviewing Richard Overy’s book ‘Why war?’, Stuart Jeffries reflects that war has as long a future as it has a past (17:38); Ysenda Maxtone Graham provides her notes on party bags (24:30); and, Nicholas Farrell ponders on the challenges of familial split-loyalties when watching the football in Italy (27:25).
Presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Freddy Gray is joined by political consultant Alex Castellanos to discuss the candidacy of Kamala Harris as the Democrats' nominee for President and why, at this moment, she is the biggest threat to Donald Trump – but how long will that last?
This was originally recorded for Spectator TV.
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Patrick Gibbons.
This week: Kamala takes charge. Our cover piece discusses the rise of Kamala Harris, who has only one man standing in her way to the most powerful position in the world. Her's is certainly an unexpected ascent, given Harris’ generally poor public-speaking performances and mixed bag of radical left and right-wing politics. Does she really have what it takes to defeat Trump? Kate Andrews, author of the piece and economics editor at The Spectator, joins the podcast with deputy editor Freddy Gray to discuss. (02:34)
Next: Will and Lara go through some of their favourite pieces from the magazine including Damian Thompson's article on how the upcoming Hollywood film Conclave may be mirroring real-life events at the Vatican.
Then: Olympics on steroids. 2025 will see the debut of the first ever ‘Enhanced Games’, with athletes competing on performance-enhancing drugs. The event will be livestreamed across the world and, while the roster of athletes is being kept under wraps for now, Australian former Olympic swimmer James Magnussen has confirmed he will be competing. Creator of the games Aron D’Souza joins the podcast to discuss his upcoming business endeavour. (26:04)
Finally: why did Sir Arthur Conan Doyle believe in fairies? Robert Gore Langton writes in the magazine this week about a new Edinburgh Fringe play focussing on Conan Doyle’s role in the Cottingley fairy hoax. Was it grief for his late son, or his father's alcoholism that prompted Conan Doyle’s spiritualism? Playwright Fiona Maher and Robert joined the podcast to discuss. (33:49)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
Sam Leith's guest on this week's Book Club is the writer and film director Neil Jordan, who joins the podcast to discuss his new book Amnesiac: A Memoir. He talks, among other things, about writing for the page and the screen, the uses of myth, putting words into the mouths of historical figures, seeing ghosts in aeroplanes, being ripped off by Harvey Weinstein, and failing to persuade Marlon Brando to play King Lear.
‘Swifties’, as Taylor Swift’s fans are known across the world, are extremely dedicated to the cause, and often estimated to drive up local economies wherever they flock, and Chinese fans are no different. Swift didn’t perform in China on the latest global tour, but that didn’t stop more wealthy fans flying to Singapore to see her; or the less wealthy, going to cinemas in China to watch the Taylor Swift Eras Tour documentary – which has broken box office records in China.
So how popular is American, and western, pop music in China in general? Is it considered mainstream, or something a bit more indie compared to Chinese pop? Is the language barrier a problem, or censorship?
On this episode Cindy Yu is joined by two people very much in the know. Alex Taggart is an artist manager who has previously worked as a DJ and a Nightlife columnist in China. Jocelle Koh also works in the music industry and founded the media platform Asian Pop Weekly.
The conversation spans Chinese opera-style covers of Adele to explaining how an American missile system brought down K-Pop in China...
They also mention a range of their favourite viral videos featuring western pop in China. Links here:
Vlogger Lorelei in Singapore
Countryside Nicki Minaj
'Low low low your boat'
Last Emperor Puyi dancing to Harry Styles
Chinese opera Adele
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Kate Andrews argues vice-presidential nominee J.D. Vance is more MAGA than Trump (1:27); Adam Frank explains how super-earths could help us understand what life might look like on another planet (5:15); David Hempleman-Adams recounts his attempt to cross the Atlantic on a hydrogen ballon (14:31); from Ukraine, Svitlana Morenets reports on the battle to save Kharkiv (20:44); and, Michael Beloff takes us on a history of the Olympics (30:12).
Presented by Patrick Gibbons.
In this week's Holy Smoke episode Damian Thompson welcomes back Eduard Habsburg, Hungary's Ambassador to the Holy See and also, to give him his family title, Archduke Eduard of Austria. Last year he published The Habsburg Way: 7 Rules for Turbulent Times, which offered advice on how to live a good life based on the panoramic history of his dynasty.
One reason it was such a success is that Eduard has a cult following on X, formerly Twitter, made up of people who initially followed him because he's a Habsburg but stayed to absorb his spiritual wisdom and good cheer. In this episode, with Damian speaking as someone who frequently gets drawn into (or starts) catfights on that platform (his words!), he asks if Eduard has any advice for struggling social media sociopaths. And he does.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
This week: bulletproof Trump.
The failed assassination attempt on Donald Trump means that his supporters, more than ever, view him as America’s Chosen One. Joe Biden’s candidacy has been falling apart since his disastrous performance in the first presidential debate last month. Trump is now ahead in the polls in all the battleground states. The whispers in Washington are that the Democrats are already giving up on stopping a second Trump term – and eyeing up the presidential election of 2028 instead. Freddy Gray, deputy editor at The Spectator, and Amber Duke, Washington editor at Spectator World, join the podcast to discuss. (02:45)
Next: meeting the mega MAGA fans. The Spectator’s political correspondent James Heale reports from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the Republican National Convention is under way. ‘Brash, flash and full of flair,’ reports James, as he meets Donald Trump supporters who are, he says, wearing their MAGA politics with pride. Border control is a common complaint, while other Trumpists hope his near-death experience will see him embrace his faith.James has kindly shared with us a couple of the interviews that informed his piece in the magazine. (14:43)
Then: Will and Lara take us through some of their favourite pieces in the magazine this week, including Sir David Hempleman-Adams’ notebook and Gus Carter’s scoop on Reform's ‘Wimpy’ voters.
And finally: how techno-optimism became fashionable. Max Jeffery writes in the magazine this week about the ‘New Solutions’, a trio of new ideologies that rich tech savvy ‘geeks’ – as he calls them – have adopted in order to make the world a better place. These are: techno optimism, effective altruism and effective accelerationism. He joined us on the podcast to discuss, alongside Anders Sandberg, effective altruist and senior research fellow at the University of Oxford. (24:49)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Roger McGough, whose new The Collected Poems: 1959-2024 anthologises a poetic career 65 years long and counting. Roger tells me about revisiting his old work and making it new, why he's 'not being serious' about the future of Poetry Please, and how he narrowly missed being on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury.
Journalist Christopher Caldwell joins Freddy Gray to discuss Donald Trump's running mate, JD Vance. Once 'never Trump', now a close ally of the former president; what's JD Vance's route into Trumpian politics? Freddy and Christopher also ask who is JD Vance, what's Hillbilly Elegy, and what's the strategy behind Donald Trump's choice?
Freddy Gray is joined by writer Roger Kimball. With the dust beginning to settle from the attempted assassination of Donald Trump, they look at how this could have happened, and what's gone wrong. They also take a look at how important Donald Trump's Vice President pick will be, and who might be in the running.
Former US President Donald Trump narrowly survived an assassination attempt while speaking at a Republican rally in Pennsylvania. Freddy Gray speaks to The Spectator's economics editor Kate Andrews about what we know so far, and where the Presidential campaign goes from here.
As speculation over whether Biden will remain in the presidential race continues, Freddy Gray speaks to journalist and founder of News Items John Ellis about what could happen next. How did Democrats end up in this situation and who holds the most power in influencing Biden's decision? They also look ahead to next week's Republican National Convention and discuss who is in the running to be Trump's VP.
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: James Heale analyses the state of the Conservative leadership race (1:09); Svitlana Morenets reports from the site of the Kyiv children’s hospital bombed this week (5:56); Philip Hensher examines the ‘Cool Queer Life’ of Thom Gunn (12:13); Francis Beckett reviews ‘The Assault on the State’ arguing in favour of bureaucracy (21:20); and, Rupert Christiansen reveals why he has fallen out of love with Wagner (27:05).
Presented by Patrick Gibbons.
The Spectator’s Freddy Gray sits down with author and professor of politics Eric Kaufmann. They discuss the dangers of DEI, why Eric blames the bleeding heart liberals for the woke contagion and why it is possible much worst than originally thought.
You can also watch this episode on SpectatorTV.
This week: Keir’s reformation. A week on from Labour’s victory in the UK general election, our cover piece looks ahead to the urgent issues facing Keir Starmer. If he acts fast, he can take advantage of having both a large majority and a unified party. The NHS, prisons, planning… the list goes on. But what challenges could he face and how should he manage his party? The Spectator’s political editor Katy Balls joins the podcast, alongside Lord Falconer, Labour peer and former cabinet minister under Tony Blair (2:53).
Next: have smartphones revolutionised home working for women? Our very own Lara Prendergast writes in the magazine this week about the eclectic ways women are taking advantage of digital technology to make a living at home. What’s driving this trend? The Spectator columnist and ad guru Rory Sutherland joins the podcast (26:08).
And finally: why did the Conservatives struggle so much with their digital messaging? The Spectator’s Mary Wakefield writes in the magazine this week about the emails and messages she was inundated with during the election, saying that at times they had ‘serial killer energy’. Political communicator Sean Topham, co-founder of the creative ad agency Topham Guerin, joins the podcast to try and make sense of the Tories campaign. (37:40).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Michael Nott, author of the new biography Thom Gunn: A Cool Queer Life. He tells me about the poet's early trauma, his transatlantic identity, his unconventional family and his compartmentalised life, part teaching and writing, part sex, drugs and rock and roll.
The EU and US are turning up the pressure on Chinese made electric cars, as Cindy Yu discussed with her guest Finbarr Bermingham on the last episode.
This episode is a closer look at how China has come to dominate the global electric car market. Chinese EVs make up 60 per cent of worldwide sales, and a third of global exports. Its leading brand, BYD, now regularly gives Tesla a run for its money in terms of number of cars sold.
How much of a role do subsidies play, versus other factors like its control of rare earths or lower labour costs? Is there really an overcapacity issue that suggests a flooding of Chinese cars globally?
On this episode, Cindy is joined by Zeyi Yang, China tech reporter at MIT Technology Review, who is an expert on the genealogy of China’s EV industry.
The war in Ukraine is only bogging America down, says Elbridge Colby, a former national security adviser to the Trump administration. On this episode of Americano, Colby tells host Freddy Gray why the US should – and likely will – reduce its support to Ukraine and Europe, to focus on the increasing threat China poses over Taiwan. Europe, he says, can pick up the slack on its own continent. Colby has been tipped to become Trump's national security adviser should he win in November this year.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Joe Bedell-Brill.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: after President Biden’s debate disaster, Freddy Gray profiles the one woman who could persuade him to step down, his wife Jill (1:05); Angus Colwell reports from Israel, where escalation of war seems a very real possibility (9:02); Matthew Parris attempts to reappraise the past 14 years of Conservative government (14:16); Flora Watkins reveals the reasons why canned gin and tonics are so popular (21:24); and, Rory Sutherland asks who could possibly make a better Bond villain than Elon Musk? (25:00).
Presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Actress Sophie Winkleman was born in London, educated at Cambridge, and has appeared in television and film roles across both sides of the Atlantic. Perhaps best known for her roles as Big Suze in Peep Show and Zoey in Two and a Half Men, she is now patron to several children's charities.
On the episode, Katy Balls talks to Sophie about how she got into acting, whether she has ever dated a Jez or a Mark, and why she believes in the comfort of strangers. Sophie also talks about her campaign to reduce smart phone use and technology exposure for children, which you can read more about here.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons
This week: the reckoning. Our cover piece brings together the political turmoil facing the West this week: Rishi Sunak, Emmanuel Macron, and Joe Biden all face tough tests with their voters. But what’s driving this instability? The Spectator’s economics editor Kate Andrews argues it is less to do with left and right, and more a problem of incumbency, but how did this situation arise? Kate joined the podcast to discuss her argument, alongside former Cambridge Professor, John Keiger, who writes in the magazine about the consequences that France’s election could have on geopolitics (2:32).
Next: what role does faith play in politics? Senior editor at the religious journal First Things Dan Hitchens explores Keir Starmer’s atheism in the magazine this week, but to what extent does it matter? What impact could it have on his politics? As the UK has an established Church, what implications could there be for our constitution? Dan joined the podcast, along with Father Marcus Walker of Great St Bart’s, to discuss whether politicians can in fact ‘do god’ (17:45).
And finally: how do we interpret sexuality within Shakespeare’s works? Author and professor of creative writing Philip Hensher reviews a new book by Will Tosh in the magazine this week, which examines same-sex attraction within his works. But what can they tell us about the environment at the time, and about the man himself? Philip joined us to discuss alongside Emma Smith, Professor of Shakespeare Studies at Oxford (28:34).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
Join The Spectator next week for a special live recording of Coffee House Shots as Fraser Nelson, Katy Balls and Kate Andrews make sense of the UK’s election aftermath. Taking place on Thursday 11th July at 7pm in Westminster, tickets are £35, or £25 for subscribers. Book online at spectator.co.uk/shotslive
In her new book Cairn, the Scots poet Kathleen Jamie sets a capstone of sorts on her trilogy of short prose collections Findings, Surfacing and Sightlines. She joins Sam Leith on this week’s Book Club podcast to talk about why she hesitates to call herself a nature writer, how prose found her late in life, and why whale-watching isn’t what it used to be.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
Where to begin with Sir David! An English industrialist and explorer, he was the first person to complete the ‘Explorer’s Grand Slam’. This means he has completed both North and South Poles as well as traversing the seven highest peaks across the seven continents. He has received the Polar Medal twice, from Queen Elizabeth II and now King Charles, the first person to do so under two monarchs. This June, David is attempting to cross the Atlantic by hydrogen balloon and break several more records in the meantime.
On the podcast he takes Lara and Liv through what he packs for an expedition, discusses the art of hydrogen ballooning, and explains why the best meal he has ever experienced is simple egg and chips.
Damian Thompson: The other day I received a press release about an intriguing album of keyboard music by 16th- and early 17th-century composers, three Englishman and a Dutchman, played on the modern piano by Mishka Rushdie Momen, one of this country’s most gifted and intellectually curious young concert pianists. It’s called Reformation, and before I’d heard a note of the music – which is performed with thrilling exuberance and subtlety – I knew I wanted to interview Ms Rushdie Momen.
That’s because Hyperion had included with the press release a strikingly perceptive essay by the pianist putting this ostensibly secular keyboard music in the context of what she rightly calls the ‘vandalism’ of the English Reformation, shockingly illustrated by the demolition of the great shrine of Walsingham. At the same time, she recognises the unnerving pressures facing both Catholic and Protestant composers in an era of bewildering and violent cultural upheaval – but also one in which we can glimpse elements of toleration and compromise.
Here’s my Holy Smoke interview with Mishka Rushdie Momen, which begins with a track from her album: a little galliard called La Volta, danced at Elizabeth I’s court even though the Queen knew that its composer, William Byrd, had remained faithful to the Catholic Church.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Katy Balls reflects on the UK general election campaign and wonders how bad things could get for the Tories (1:02); Gavin Mortimer argues that France’s own election is between the ‘somewheres’ and the ‘anywheres’ (7:00); Sean Thomas searches for authentic travel in Colombia (13:16); after reviewing the books Great Britain? by Torsten Bell and Left Behind by Paul Collier, Robert Colvile ponders whether Britain’s problems will ever get solved (20:43); and, Melissa Kite questions if America’s ye olde Ireland really exists (25:44).
Presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Freddy Gray speaks to pollster Patrick Ruffini about the first 2024 presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump. Just how bad was it and can Biden survive his performance? They discuss the reaction to the debate, including a surprising theory going around Republican circles.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
This week: Downfall. Our cover piece examines Nigel Farage’s role in the UK general election. Spectator editor Fraser Nelson argues that Farage has become the left’s greatest weapon, but why? How has becoming leader of Reform UK impacted the campaign and could this lead to a fundamental realignment of British politics? Fraser joined the podcast to talk through his theory, with former UKIP MEP Patrick O’Flynn (02:10).
Next: Spectator writer Svitlana Morenets has returned to Ukraine to report on the war, which is now well into its third year. How are Ukrainians coping and what is daily life like? Svitlana joined the podcast from Kyiv with Ukrainian author Andrey Kurkov (21:53).
And finally: has ‘cancel culture’ been cancelled? With the release of TV series Douglas Is Cancelled, its creator Steven Moffat joins the podcast to discuss whether cancel culture really exists and where the inspiration for the show came from (33:15).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons, Megan McElroy and Oscar Edmondson.
Join The Spectator for a special Live edition of Coffee House Shots on Thursday 11th July at 7pm in Westminster. Fraser Nelson, Katy Balls and Kate Andrews will be making sense of the election results, a new government, and discussing what comes next. Tickets are £35, or £25 for subscribers. Book online at spectator.co.uk/shotslive
My guest for this week's Book Club is the journalist and author Åsne Seierstad. She tells me about her new book The Afghans: Three Lives Through War, Love and Revolt; how and why she constructed a novelistic narrative about real-life people and events, and what her encounters with human rights activist Jamila, Taliban commander Bashir and thwarted student Ariana can tell us about the past, present and future of that troubled country.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
The EU and China are in the foothills of a trade war. After a seven month investigation, the European Commission has announced tariffs of up to 38 per cent on electric cars from China, citing that they’ve found ‘subsidies in every part of the supply chain’. In retaliation, China has ramped up its own investigations into imports from the EU.
This, of course, comes after the US has announced its own 100 per cent tariff on Chinese electric cars.
Listeners will know that Chinese electric cars are becoming ever more competitive. In just three years, the value of the EU’s imports of Chinese EVs have surged tenfold – from $1.6 billion in 2020 to $11.5 billion last year. The Commission has warned that Chinese electric cars could make up 15 per cent of the EU market by next year.
What are the ramifications of these new tariffs? Is there anything that will reverse this new tide of protectionism? On this episode, Cindy Yu talks to Finbarr Bermingham, Europe correspondent at the South China Morning Post.
In this episode of Americano, Freddy Gray is joined by Fareed Zakaria, host of CNN's Fareed Zakaria GPS and columnist for The Washington Post. They discuss liberalism, the state of America, and identity politics.
They also cover Fareed's new book, Age of Revolutions, which asks one central question: what are the causes of the seismic social disruptions we are going through, and the political backlashes that have ensued?
This week: Lawfare
Our cover piece examines how Keir Starmer’s legal experience will influence his politics. Ross Clark argues that Starmer will govern through the courts, and continue what he describes as the slow movement of power away from elected politicians. As poll after poll predicts an unprecedented Labour majority, what recourse would there be to stop him? Ross joined the podcast to discuss alongside solicitor and commentator Joshua Rozenberg (02:15).
Next: we’ve become accustomed to the police wearing cameras, but what’s behind the rise in bodycams in other industries? In her article this week, Panda La Terriere highlights the surprising businesses that have begun using them, but what are the implications for daily life and how concerned should we be? Panda joined us to discuss with Silkie Carlo, director of civil liberties NGO Big Brother Watch (19:39).
And finally: why do we love to be baffled? Mark Mason argues it is more to do with the thrill of deception than a desire to problem-solve. Mark joined us to try and demystify the world of magic with Gustav Kuhn, associate professor of psychology at the University of Plymouth and author of Experiencing the impossible: the science of magic (28:32).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
Join The Spectator for a special Live edition of Coffee House Shots on Thursday 11th July at 7pm in Westminster. Fraser Nelson, Katy Balls and Kate Andrews will be making sense of the election results, a new government, and discussing what comes next. Tickets are £35, or £25 for subscribers. Book online at spectator.co.uk/shotslive
My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is Mark Bostridge. In his new book In Pursuit of Love: The Search for Victor Hugo’s Daughter, Mark describes his quest to uncover the traces of Adele Hugo and the doomed love affair which cost her her sanity. He tells me how Adele’s story chimed in poignant ways with his own life and what it taught him about the unstable emotional contract between biographer and subject.
Hadley Freeman is a journalist and author. She writes for The Sunday Times, having previously written for The Guardian. Her books include House of Glass: The Story and Secrets of a Twentieth-Century Jewish Family and Good Girls: A Story and Study of Anorexia.
Her new book, Blindness: October 7 and the Left, is out now.
On the podcast, she tells Lara about her difficult relationship with food growing up. They also discuss her sentimentality for crepe restaurants, and taco truck culture.
Freddy Gray speaks to Jeremy Carl, Senior Fellow at the Claremont Institute. They discuss his book, The Unprotected Class: how anti-white racism is tearing America apart. They also cover affirmative action, and where America goes from here.
Watch this episode on Spectator TV.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Natasha Feroze reports on the return of ex-Labour MP Keith Vaz (1:10); Robert Ades presents the case against sociology A-level (7:39); Lucasta Miller reviews Katherine Bucknell’s book, Christopher Isherwood Inside Out (15:24); Sam McPhail provides his notes on the lager Madri (23:16); Toby Young explains why he will be voting Reform (26:23); and, Catriona Olding reflects on love and friendship (31:17).
Presented by Patrick Gibbons.
The most recent 'mother of the house', Harriet Harman has been an MP for 42 years. She has served in a number of cabinet positions, under six Labour leaders, both during government and opposition. She was also deputy leader of the Labour Party for eight years.
In some ways, her story is emblematic of how women's roles in society have changed: challenging familial stereotypes, dealing with sexual harassment, and as a trailblazing politician. On this episode, Katy Balls talks to Harriet about the influence of her family, why she got into politics, and why Labour hasn't had a female leader yet.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
This week: Macron’s game.
Our cover piece looks at the big news following the European elections at the weekend, President Macron’s decision to call early parliamentary elections in France. Madness or genius, either way the decision comes with huge risk. And can he still outplay Le Pen, asks writer Jonathan Miller. Jonathan joins the podcast to analyse Macron’s decision alongside Professor Alberto Alemanno, who explains how the decision is realigning French politics, and argues it must be seen in its wider European context. (01:58)
Then: Will and Gus take us through some of their favourite pieces from the magazine, including Catriona Olding’s Life column and Sam McPhail’s notes on Madri.
Also on the podcast: who decides how we see the past? Niger Biggar writes in the magazine this week about organisations which are being given a veto over the representation of Britain's history. Nigel takes issue with those from formerly marginalised communities having the final word on our shared history and joins the podcast to explain why there should be more scrutiny on such groups. (18:14)
And finally: do historians talk down to children? In her column for the magazine this week Mary Wakefield writes about her experience trying to find engaging and challenging history books for her 8-year-old. She says that most children’s history books have dumbed down, in comparison to the classic ladybird books of the 60s. She joined the podcast to discuss with the author of the Adventures in Time children’s book series and host of the Rest is History podcast, Dominic Sandbrook. (31:16)
Hosted by William Moore and Gus Carter.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
The Spectator will be hosting a special Live edition of Coffee House Shots in the aftermath of the election. Taking place on Thursday the 11th July - a week after the election - at 7pm here in Westminster, you can join Fraser Nelson, Katy Balls and Kate Andrews as they try to dissect the election results, a new government, and what comes next.
Tickets are £35, or £25 for subscribers. If you’re interested, you can book online at spectator.co.uk/shotslive
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is Marlon James, who ten years ago published his Booker Prize winning novel A Brief History of Seven Killings. He tells me how that remarkable book came about, how he feared it would be 'my Satanic Verses', what genre means to him, the importance of myth, and what he learned from the X-Men.
In less than a month’s time, Britain may well have a new prime minister – and a different ruling party. Under 14 years of the Conservative party, the UK’s approach to China has swung from the sycophancy of the golden era to fear and loathing under Liz Truss, stabilising in the last couple of years to a compete but engage approach, all while public opinion on China has hardened following the Hong Kong protests and the pandemic.
What will a new government bring? Will the managerialism of Keir Starmer change UK-China relations much from the managerialism of Rishi Sunak? This is not a hypothetical question as Labour looks set to win the election and the question, now, is how big the Conservative losses will be.
Cindy Yu is joined by Sam Hogg, a political analyst who has covered China as seen by Westminster for years, under the newsletter he founded, Beijing to Britain. He last came on the podcast to discuss Liz Truss’s views on China – a lot has changed then.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Joe Bedell-Brill.
Freddy Gray is joined by Alex Castellanos, Republican Party strategist who has served as media consultant to seven U.S. Presidential campaigns. They discuss Donald Trump's presidential campaign, his search for a vice president, and if there's any way Joe Biden can tarnish his image.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Max Jeffery reports on the rise of luxury watch thefts in London (1:18); Melanie McDonagh discusses the collapse of religion in Scotland (5:51); reflecting on the longevity of Diane Abbott and what her selection row means for Labour, Matthew Parris argues that shrewd plans need faultless execution (10:44); Iain MacGregor reviews Giles Milton’s book ‘The Stalin Affair’ (17:30); and, Petronella Wyatt ponders her lack of luck with love (21:49).
Presented and produced by Patrick Gibbons.
Nickie Aiken has been an elected public servant for 18 years. An MP since 2019, she has served as a deputy chairman and a vice-chair of the Conservative Party. She was also a councillor in Westminster for 16 years including as leader of the council and previously worked in public relations.
On the episode, Katy Balls talks to Nickie about how she got into politics, why the tea room is the most useful part of Parliament, and the scourge of pedicabs in London. Not seeking re-election at this general election, Nickie also reflects on the politics of the past few years and on what the future might hold for the Tories.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
Freddy Gray speaks to Ben Smith and Nayeema Raza from the Mixed Signals podcast. They discuss the state of American media, whether the US has any appetite for public service broadcasting, and whether America is too cynical about the press.
This week: The Farage factor. Our cover piece looks at the biggest news from this week of the general election campaign, Nigel Farage’s decision to stand again for Parliament. Farage appealed to voters in the seaside town of Clacton to send him to Westminster to be a ‘nuisance’. Indeed, how much of a nuisance will he be to Rishi Sunak in this campaign? Will this boost Reform’s ratings across Britain? And could it be eighth time lucky for Nigel? The Spectator's political editor Katy Balls joins the podcast to discuss, alongside former Clacton and UKIP MP, Douglas Carswell (2:32).
Then: Gavin Mortimer reports from France ahead of the European and local elections this weekend, where the country is moving to the right. Marine Le Pen’s National Rally is expected to do well, but, he argues, this has as much to do with the Le Pen brand, as it does Macron’s unpopularity. Joining Gavin to discuss is the French journalist Anne-Elisabeth Moutet (19:25).
And finally: what could the future of tourism look like? Travel writer Sean Thomas explores the growing backlash to tourist overcrowding worldwide, and the recent trend to charge fees to some of the most sought-after locations. Will it solve the issue? Venice-based food and travel correspondent Monica Cesarato joins the podcast to discuss alongside Sean (24:50).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
Join The Spectator for a special post-election Coffee House Shots Live on Thursday 11 July. For more information, head to spectator.co.uk/shotslive
In this week's Book Club podcast, my guest is the Booker Prize winning novelist Richard Flanagan, talking about his extraordinary new book Question 7. It weaves together memoir, reportage and the imaginative work of fiction. Flanagan collides his relationship with his war-traumatised father and his own near-death experience with the lives of H G Wells and Leo Szilard, the Tasmanian genocide and the bombing of Hiroshima. He talks to me about the work fiction can do, the intimate association of memory with shame, and the liberations and agonies of thinking of non-linear time.
Theo Randall is a Head Chef, restaurant owner, and food writer. He's currently the Chef Patron of Theo Randall at the InterContinental, and he was famously awarded a Michelin star at The River Cafe. He specialises in Italian cuisine, and his new book Verdura: 10 Vegetables, 100 Italian Recipes, is available now.
On the podcast he tells Lara and Liv about his favourite region in Italy for food, and why he loves home cooking.
Claudia Mendoza is one of the most high profile spokespeople for the Jewish community in Britain. She has studied the Middle East, and worked at various think tanks with a focus on Iran and the transitioning Arab states. But she now serves as CEO of the Jewish Leadership Council.
On the podcast she tells Katy whether Keir's Labour really is a changed party and about the rise in anti-semitism in the UK since the October 7th attacks.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Peter Parker takes us through the history of guardsmen and homosexuality (1:12); Prof. Wayne Hunt explains what the Conservatives could learn from the 1993 Canadian election (9:10); Nicholas Lezard reflects on the diaries of Franz Kafka, on the eve of his centenary (16:06); Mark Mason provides his notes on Horse Guards (22:52); and, Nicholas Farrell ponders his wife’s potential suitors, once he’s died (26:01).
Presented and produced by Patrick Gibbons.
Donald Trump has been found guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records. The Spectator columnist Lionel Shriver joins Freddy Gray to respond to the news. Was it a fair trial? What could it mean for the 2024 presidential election? And what are the wider implications for American democracy?
Produced by Megan McElroy, Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
Professor John Mearsheimer joins Freddy Gray to talk about the powder keg situation in Eastern Europe, why Putin is possibly the least hawkish of possible Russian leaders and why Israel has lost escalation dominance.
This was originally broadcast on SpectatorTV.
On this week's Edition: Wannabes - are any of them ready? Our cover piece takes a look at the state of the parties a week into the UK general election campaign. The election announcement took everyone by surprise, including Tory MPs, so what’s been the fallout since? To provide the latest analysis, The Spectator’s political editor Katy Balls joins the podcast (2:00).
Then: Angus Colwell reports on how the election is playing out on social media, and the increasing role of the political ‘spinfluencer’. These accounts have millions of likes, but how influential could they be during the election? Alongside Angus, Harry Boeken, aka @thechampagne_socialist on TikTok, joins us to share their thoughts on who is winning the social media war (15:08).
And finally: are we in the midst of a new space race? Author of Space 2069, the Future of Space Exploration, Dr David Whitehouse writes in the magazine this week about China’s latest lunar mission. What are the geopolitical implications, and should the global west be paying more attention? David joins us to discuss, alongside journalist and author of The Future of Geography, Tim Marshall (25:12).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and Gus Carter.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
June 3rd marks the centenary of Franz Kafka's death. To talk about this great writer's peculiar style and lasting legacy, I'm joined by two of the world's foremost Kafka scholars. Mark Harman has just translated, edited and annotated a new edition of Kafka's Selected Stories, while Ross Benjamin is the translator of the first unexpurgated edition of Kafka's Diaries. They tell me what they understand by "Kafkaesque", the unique difficulties he presents in editing and translation, and the unstable relationship between his published works, his notebooks and his troubled life.
June 3rd marks the centenary of Franz Kafka's death. To talk about this great writer's peculiar style and lasting legacy, I'm joined by two of the world's foremost Kafka scholars. Mark Harman has just translated, edited and annotated a new edition of Kafka's Selected Stories, while Ross Benjamin is the translator of the first unexpurgated edition of Kafka's Diaries. They tell me what they understand by "Kafkaesque", the unique difficulties he presents in editing and translation, and the unstable relationship between his published works, his notebooks and his troubled life.
Here's an episode of Holy Smoke to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Anton Bruckner later this year. This embarrassingly eccentric genius was, perhaps, the most devoutly Catholic of all the major composers – but you don't have to be religious to appreciate the unique consolation offered by his gigantic symphonies. On the other hand, it's hard to appreciate the unique flavour of Bruckner without taking into account the influence of the liturgy on his sublime slow movements and what the (atheist) composer and Bruckner scholar Robert Simpson called the 'calm fire' of his blazing finales. If you make it through to the end of this episode, you'll hear exactly what he meant.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons
Here's an episode of Holy Smoke to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Anton Bruckner later this year. This embarrassingly eccentric genius was, perhaps, the most devoutly Catholic of all the major composers – but you don't have to be religious to appreciate the unique consolation offered by his gigantic symphonies. On the other hand, it's hard to appreciate the unique flavour of Bruckner without taking into account the influence of the liturgy on his sublime slow movements and what the (atheist) composer and Bruckner scholar Robert Simpson called the 'calm fire' of his blazing finales. If you make it through to the end of this episode, you'll hear exactly what he meant.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons
Since 1978, China has changed beyond recognition thanks to its economic boom. 800 million people have been lifted out of poverty as GDP per capita has grown eighty times. Some 60 per cent of the country now live in cities and towns, compared to just 18 per cent before.
But you know all this. What’s less talked about is what that does to the people and families who live through these changes. What is it like to have such a different life to your parents before you, and your grandparents before then? How have people made the most of the boom, and what about those who’ve been left behind?
A fascinating new book, Private Revolutions, tells the personal stories of four millennial women who were born as these changes took place. Its author, Yuan Yang, is a former Financial Times journalist and now a Labour party candidate, standing in the next election. She joins this episode.
Further listening: Life on the margins: how China’s rural deprivation curbs its success, with Professor Scott Rozelle.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Joe Bedell-Brill.
This week the world may know whether Donald Trump becomes the first US President to receive a criminal conviction. But could this verdict help or hinder him? Tom Lubbock, co-founder of pollsters J L Partners, joins Freddy Gray to discuss. They also analyse the dynamics at play in current polling: why is Trump doing better in the sun-belt states? And is this election a referendum on Biden?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Natasha Feroze.
This week the world may know whether Donald Trump becomes the first US President to receive a criminal conviction. But could this verdict help or hinder him? Tom Lubbock, co-founder of pollsters J L Partners, joins Freddy Gray to discuss. They also analyse the dynamics at play in current polling: why is Trump doing better in the sun-belt states? And is this election a referendum on Biden?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Natasha Feroze.
Freddy Gray speaks to author Jacob Heilbrunn about what another term in office for Donald Trump might mean for America's foreign policy, its relationship with Israel, and the war in Ukraine.
How have his views changed since last time? And what will his relationship with Putin be like?
Freddy Gray speaks to author Jacob Heilbrunn about what another term in office for Donald Trump might mean for America's foreign policy, its relationship with Israel, and the war in Ukraine.
How have his views changed since last time? And what will his relationship with Putin be like?
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Quentin Letts takes us through his diary for the week (1:12); Owen Matthews details the shadow fleet helping Russia to evade sanctions (7:15); Michael Hann reports on the country music revival (15:05); Laura Gascoigne reviews exhibitions at the Tate Britain and at Studio Voltaire (21:20); and, Michael Simmons provides his notes on the post-pub stable, the doner kebab (26:20).
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Quentin Letts takes us through his diary for the week (1:12); Owen Matthews details the shadow fleet helping Russia to evade sanctions (7:15); Michael Hann reports on the country music revival (15:05); Laura Gascoigne reviews exhibitions at the Tate Britain and at Studio Voltaire (21:20); and, Michael Simmons provides his notes on the post-pub stable, the doner kebab (26:20).
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
New York Post writer Miranda Devine joins Freddy Gray to discuss Joe Biden's unpopularity. Why are Americans increasingly not supporting him? And how have Biden family scandals and rumours affected trust in the President? In a week that Biden gave a commencement speech, they also discuss the recent controversy over NFL kicker Harrison Butker's speech. What insight does the reaction to the speech tell us about America today?
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Patrick Gibbons.
It’s a bumper edition of The Edition this week. After Rishi Suank called a surprise – and perhaps misguided – snap election just a couple of hours after our press deadline, we had to frantically come up with a new digital cover. To take us through a breathless day in Westminster and the fallout of Rishi’s botched announcement, The Spectator’s political editor Katy Balls joins the podcast. (01:35)
Next: Our print magazine leads on the electric car bust. Ross Clark runs through all the issues facing electric cars today – from China flooding the market with discounted EVs to Rishi Sunak dropping the unrealistic target of banning new petrol car sales by 2030. ‘Could the outlook suddenly improve for British EVs?’ asks Ross. ‘It’s hard to see how.’ Already, car-makers from Aston Martin to Fiat are delaying or scaling back their EV plans. Ross joins the podcast alongside Spectator columnist Lionel Shriver, to ask whether the great EV revolution is over. (07:35)
Then: Matthew Parris writes his column this week on the myths around ultra-processed foods. These are foods which are engineered to be hyper-palatable and typically include many preservatives, emulsifiers, sweeteners, artificial colours, flavours etc. Such additives are considered to be detrimental to our health, but Matthew says we shouldn’t be worried. He joined the podcast along with Dr Christoffer Van Tulleken, associate professor at UCL and author of the bestselling book Ultra-Processed People. (19:33)
And finally: why is the government making it harder to get an au pair? This is the question which Philip Womack asks in The Spectator. He says that the government’s new childcare plans are pricing regular dual income families out of the traditional agreement between family and au pair. He is joined by the journalist Lucy Denyer. (39:45)
Hosted by William Moore and Gus Carter.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Conn Iggulden, probably the best selling author of historical fiction of our day. This week Conn publishes Nero, the first in a new trilogy about the notorious Roman emperor. He tells me about how he learned to write historical fiction, his years-long path to overnight success, and the advantages (and disadvantages) of having an audience comprised of men who can't seem to stop thinking about the Roman Empire.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Conn Iggulden, probably the best selling author of historical fiction of our day. This week Conn publishes Nero, the first in a new trilogy about the notorious Roman emperor. He tells me about how he learned to write historical fiction, his years-long path to overnight success, and the advantages (and disadvantages) of having an audience comprised of men who can't seem to stop thinking about the Roman Empire.
Tom Hayward is an award-winning food writer, a broadcaster, and proprietor of the bakery Fitzbillies in Cambridge. He writes regularly for the FT Magazine and often appears on BBC Radio 4. Following the bestsellers Food DIY, Knife, and Loaf Story, his eighth book, Steak: The Whole Story, is out on the 23rd May.
On the podcast, Tim tells Liv and Lara about his childhood concoction 'dead man's finger', the secret to great beef and the joys of a 6pm martini.
Tom Hayward is an award-winning food writer, a broadcaster, and proprietor of the bakery Fitzbillies in Cambridge. He writes regularly for the FT Magazine and often appears on BBC Radio 4. Following the bestsellers Food DIY, Knife, and Loaf Story, his eighth book, Steak: The Whole Story, is out on the 23rd May.
On the podcast, Tim tells Liv and Lara about his childhood concoction 'dead man's finger', the secret to great beef and the joys of a 6pm martini.
Matt McDonald, managing editor of the US edition of The Spectator, joins Freddy Gray to discuss whether Biden is losing the swing states, the potential outcome of the Trump-Biden TV debates, and who the polls are spelling trouble for.
Produced by Megan McElroy.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Max Jeffery interviews Afghan resistance leader Ahmad Massoud (1:13); former prisoner David Shipley ponders the power of restorative justice (8:23); Patrick Kidd argues that the Church should do more to encourage volunteers (14:15); Cindy Yu asks if the tiger mother is an endangered species (21:06); and, Hugh Thomson reviews Mick Conefrey’s book Fallen, examining George Mallory’s tragic Everest expedition (26:20).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Shabana Mahmood is the shadow secretary of state for justice. She was born in Birmingham to migrant parents. After studying Law at Lincoln College, Oxford, where Rishi Sunak was a contemporary, she qualified as a barrister and lived and worked in London. First elected to Parliament in 2010, representing Birmingham Ladywood, she was one of the UK’s first female Muslim MPs.
On the episode, Katy Balls talks to Shabana about her upbringing in the UK and in Saudi Arabia; how her faith is central to who she is as a person; and her approach to the tricky issues of abortion and assisted dying.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Cindy Yu.
This week:
Veep show: who will Trump pick for his running mate? Freddy Gray goes through the contenders – and what they say about America (and its most likely next president). ‘Another thought might be buzzing around Trump’s head: he can pick pretty much whoever he wants because really it’s all about him. He might even choose one of his children: Ivanka or Donald Junior. What could sound better than Trump-Trump 2024?’ Freddy joins the podcast alongside Amber Duke, Washington editor at The Spectator World. (02:10)
Next: Will and Lara take us through some of their favourite pieces from the magazine, including David Shipley’s piece on the issues in the criminal justice system and Patrick Kidd’s article on the C of E’s volunteering crisis.
Then: Everest. This year marks 100 years since George Mallory’s doomed expedition. On the 8th June 1924 George Mallory and his climbing partner Sandy Irvine were seen through binoculars 800 ft from the summit of Mount Everest, but sadly were never seen again. Whether they did reach the top – almost 30 years prior to Edmund Hillary’s confirmed summit – has been the source of debate and myth for a century. Two new books will be released this year revisiting the attempt, and the man behind them. One by former political editor at the Sun, Tom Newton Dunn (great nephew of Mallory) and the other by mountaineer Mick Conefrey – which is reviewed this week in The Spectator. Tom and Mick joined the podcast to discuss. (17:51)
And finally: Next week marks the anniversary of the death of Spectator’s Low Life columnist Jeremy Clarke. And on Tuesday a new collection of his columns is being published: Low Life: The Final Years. The book begins with his cancer diagnosis in 2013 and goes up until his last column, published two weeks before his death last year. Regular readers will know that Jeremy’s genius was to capture the beauty and absurdity of the everyday – he chronicled it all with extraordinary frankness and brilliant wit. And so to remember Jeremy, and his peerless writing, we were joined by his widow, the artist Catriona Olding, who writes a guest Life column in this week’s magazine, and his friend Con Coughlin, defence editor at the Telegraph. (33:35)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
If readers would like to buy Low Life: The Final Years, copies are available on the Spectator Shop - go to spectator.co.uk/shop.
Freddy Gray talks to American columnist and commentator Guy Benson about who is in the running to be Trump's VP. Who does Trump want? But more importantly what does the Trump ticket need?
Also: Biden/Trump debates appear to have been confirmed. Who will the debates benefit most? And how relevant are they in the digital age?
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Patrick Gibbons.
A garden is a lovesome thing, God wot! On this week's Book Club podcast I'm joined by Olivia Laing to talk about her new book The Garden Against Time: In Search of a Common Paradise. Olivia explores what it is we do when we make a garden, through her own experience of restoring the beautiful garden in her now home. She tells me about what gardens have meant in literary history and myth, how they have occluded certain real-world injustices even as they stand in for utopias, and why Candide's injunction cultiver notre jardin will always be an ambiguous one.
Last week, President Xi Jinping visited Serbia. An unexpected destination, you might think, but in fact the links between Beijing and Belgrade go back decades. One event, in particular, has linked the two countries – and became a seminal moment in how the Chinese remember their history.
In 1999, the Chinese embassy in Belgrade was bombed by US-led Nato forces. Three Chinese nationals died. An accident, the Americans insisted, but few Chinese believed it then, and few do today. The event is still remembered in China, but now, little talked about in the West.
Xi’s visit was timed to the 25th anniversary of the bombing itself. ‘The China-Serbia friendship, forged with the blood of our compatriots, will stay in the shared memory of the Chinese and Serbian peoples’, Xi wrote for a Serbian paper ahead of the visit.
So what exactly happened that night in May, and what does the event – and its aftermath – tell us about Chinese nationalism today?
Cindy Yu is joined by Peter Gries, Professor of Chinese Politics at Manchester University and author of numerous books on China, including China’s New Nationalism: Pride, Politics and Diplomacy.
Freddy Gray talks to writer and philosopher Curtis Yarvin about how Alexander Hamilton was America's Napoleon, why Putin is more of a royal than King Charles, and why Yarvin admires FDR.
Yarvin is voting for Joe Biden at the next election, but not for the reasons you might think. Could Biden 2024 strengthen the case for American isolationism?
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Megan McElroy.
Freddy Gray speaks to the journalist Nellie Bowles about her new book: Morning after the Revolution: Dispatches from the wrong side of History. As someone who had fit into the progressive umbrella, her book recounts issues that arose when she started to question the nature of the movement itself.Freddy and Nellie discuss the challenges of the progressive-conservative divide, bias within the media, and whether privilege is America's version of the class system.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Philosopher Slavoj Zizek takes us through his diary including his Britney Spears Theory of Action (1:08); Angus Colwell reports from the front line of the pro-Palestinian student protests (8:09); Svitlana Morenets provides an update on what’s going on in Georgia, where tensions between pro-EU and pro-Russian factions are heading to a crunch point (13:51); Cindy Yu analyses President Xi’s visit to Europe and asks whether the Chinese leader can keep his few European allies on side (20:52); and, Philip Hensher proposes banning fun runs as a potential vote winner (26:01).
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Philosopher Slavoj Zizek takes us through his diary including his Britney Spears Theory of Action (1:08); Angus Colwell reports from the front line of the pro-Palestinian student protests (8:09); Svitlana Morenets provides an update on what’s going on in Georgia, where tensions between pro-EU and pro-Russian factions are heading to a crunch point (13:51); Cindy Yu analyses President Xi’s visit to Europe and asks whether the Chinese leader can keep his few European allies on side (20:52); and, Philip Hensher proposes banning fun runs as a potential vote winner (26:01).
Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.
Lisa Cameron was born in Glasgow and grew up in East Kilbride, the constituency she now represents. After three elections under the SNP, she memorably defected to the Scottish Conservatives in 2023. At the time, Humza Yousaf described it as the least surprising news he’d had since becoming first minister.
On the podcast, Lisa tells Katy about the need for increased investment into mental health provision, her defection from the SNP to the Tories and why Scottish independence is a failed experiment.
This week:
On Monday, tents sprung up at Oxford and Cambridge as part of a global, pro-Palestinian student protest which began at Columbia University. In his cover piece, Yascha Mounk, a professor at Johns Hopkins University, explains how universities in both the US and the UK have misguidedly harboured and actively encouraged absurdist activism on campuses. Yascha joined the podcast to discuss further. (01:57)
Next: Bugs, biscuits, trench foot: a dispatch from the front line of the protests. The Spectator’s Angus Colwell joined students at tent encampments this week at UCL, Oxford and Cambridge. He found academics joining in with the carnival atmosphere. At Cambridge one don even attended with their baby in tow. ‘Peaceful protest? Rubbish it does nothing,’ a UCL student tells him. ‘Zionist attitudes start young, and we need our institutions to correct that. None of us are free until all of us are free, until Zionism is gone.’ One Jewish UCL student claims they were spat at by protestors ‘who told us to go back to Poland’. As part of his research, Angus sat down with Anwar, a spokesperson for the protestors at University College London and he sent us that conversation, which you can hear on the podcast. (17:34)
Then: Lara and Will take us through some of their favourite pieces from the magazine, including Philip Hensher’s Life column and James Delingpole’s review of Shardlake on Disney +.
And finally: should we take Beryl Cook more seriously? In his arts lead for the magazine this week, Julian Spalding writes about Beryl Cook whose unique art is celebrated by many as an exuberant take on everyday life. However she is often looked down upon within the art establishment. To coincide with a new exhibition of her work at Studio Voltaire we thought we would reappraise her legacy with Julian and Rachel Campbell-Johnston, former chief art critic at the Times. (29:44)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
This week:
On Monday, tents sprung up at Oxford and Cambridge as part of a global, pro-Palestinian student protest which began at Columbia University. In his cover piece, Yascha Mounk, a professor at Johns Hopkins University, explains how universities in both the US and the UK have misguidedly harboured and actively encouraged absurdist activism on campuses. Yascha joined the podcast to discuss further. (01:57)
Next: Bugs, biscuits, trench foot: a dispatch from the front line of the protests. The Spectator’s Angus Colwell joined students at tent encampments this week at UCL, Oxford and Cambridge. He found academics joining in with the carnival atmosphere. At Cambridge one don even attended with their baby in tow. ‘Peaceful protest? Rubbish it does nothing,’ a UCL student tells him. ‘Zionist attitudes start young, and we need our institutions to correct that. None of us are free until all of us are free, until Zionism is gone.’ One Jewish UCL student claims they were spat at by protestors ‘who told us to go back to Poland’. As part of his research, Angus sat down with Anwar, a spokesperson for the protestors at University College London and he sent us that conversation, which you can hear on the podcast. (17:34)
Then: Lara and Will take us through some of their favourite pieces from the magazine, including Philip Hensher’s Life column and James Delingpole’s review of Shardlake on Disney +.
And finally: should we take Beryl Cook more seriously? In his arts lead for the magazine this week, Julian Spalding writes about Beryl Cook whose unique art is celebrated by many as an exuberant take on everyday life. However she is often looked down upon within the art establishment. To coincide with a new exhibition of her work at Studio Voltaire we thought we would reappraise her legacy with Julian and Rachel Campbell-Johnston, former chief art critic at the Times. (29:44)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
This week, my guest on the Book Club podcast is the poet Jackie Kay, whose magnificent new book May Day combines elegy and celebration. She tells me about her adoptive parents – a communist trade unionist and a leading figure in CND – and growing up in a household where teenage rebellion could mean going to church. We also discuss her beginnings as a poet, her debt to Robbie Burns and Angela Davis and how grief itself can be a form of protest.
This week, my guest on the Book Club podcast is the poet Jackie Kay, whose magnificent new book May Day combines elegy and celebration. She tells me about her adoptive parents – a communist trade unionist and a leading figure in CND – and growing up in a household where teenage rebellion could mean going to church. We also discuss her beginnings as a poet, her debt to Robbie Burns and Angela Davis and how grief itself can be a form of protest.
Michael Zee is an author, cook and the creator of SymmetryBreakfast, which started as an Instagram account, before amassing over 670,000 followers and becoming one of the ‘most popular food books of 2016’. He is now based in Italy and known for his particular brand of British-Chinese fusion food. His third book, Zao Fan: Breakfast of China, is out now.
On the podcast he tells Lara about working in his father's restaurant, the joy of char siu bao and where to find the best Chinese food in Italy.
Freddy speaks to Norman Ornstein, political scientist and emeritus scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. They discuss the possibility of Donald Trump becoming a dictator, his ongoing court cases, and if there's a double standard in the treatment of Trump vs Biden.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Sean Thomas worries that Paris has lost some of its charm (1:21); Kara Kennedy reports on US-style opioids arriving in Britain (8:43); Philip Hensher describes how an affair which ruined one woman would be the making of another (15:32); Damian Thompson reflects on his sobriety and his battle with British chemists (23:58); and, Toby Young argues a proposed law in Wales amounts to an assault on parliamentary sovereignty (29:26).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Freddy speaks to Victor Hanson, classicist, military historian and political commentator.
They discuss his new book The End of Everything, and ask whether the west should be taking note of history in order to avoid annihilation, and where the US is heading.
This week:
Survival plan: is Rishi ready for the rebels? Ever since his election, Rishi Sunak has been preparing for this weekend – where the most likely scenario is that dire local election results are slow-released, leaving him at a moment of maximum vulnerability. He has his defences ready against his regicidal party, says Katy Balls: the Rwanda plan, a welfare reform agenda and a 4p NI cut (with hints of 2p more to come). And while the rebels have a (published) agenda they do not – yet – have a candidate. Katy joins the podcast alongside Stephen Bush, associate editor of the Financial Times. (02:12)
Next: Lara and Gus take us through some of their favourite pieces from the magazine, including Damian Thompson's Life column, and Joel Golby’s notes on ⅓ pints.
Then: Everyone has heard of the ‘Essex Man’ that helped the Conservatives win in 1992, but what about the Hillingdon man? Journalist William Cook identifies a new swing voter in the magazine, the disgruntled Hillingdon man from sleepy Ruislip and the surrounding villages. He says that the reliably Tory voters of Hillingdon could change the habit of a lifetime and vote for Starmer. William joined the podcast to discuss. (15:46)
And finally: Mary Wakefield writes in defence of Victorian parenting in this week's magazine. She says that kids these days could benefit from some 'stiff upper lip' parenting and the resilience she learnt from her time at boarding school. She also warns against encouraging children to focus on their feelings and sending them to therapy. To debate, we were joined by Jean Twenge, author of the Generation Tech substack and the book Generations: The Real Differences between Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers and Silents—and What They Mean for America’s Future and The Spectator’s literary editor Sam Leith. (23:29)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and Gus Carter.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
On this week's Book Club podcast I'm joined by Ariane Bankes, whose mother Celia was one of the great beauties of the early twentieth century. Ariane's new book The Quality of Love: Twin Sisters at the Heart of the Century tells the story of the defiantly bohemian lives of Celia and her twin sister Mamaine, whose love affairs and friendships with Arthur Koestler, George Orwell, Albert Camus, Edmund Wilson and Freddie Ayer put them at the centre of the political and intellectual ferment of their age.
Freddy Gray speaks to writer, podcaster, musician Coleman Hughes. His latest book
The End of Race Politics, The: Arguments for a Colorblind America put forward Martin Luther King's teachings for a colourblind society. On the podcast they discuss Coleman's recently appearance on the The View; whether Coleman thinks Trump is racist and how the Israel-Gaza war exposed the failings of US universities.
Last week, President Joe Biden finally signed into law a bill that would take TikTok off app stores in the US, eventually rendering the app obsolete there. This is not the end of the saga, as TikTok has vowed to take legal action. In the US, the drive to decouple from Chinese tech continues to rumble on.
In this episode, we’ll be taking a look at the reverse trend – the Chinese decoupling from American tech. It’s a story that tends to go under the radar in light of bans and divestments from the US, but you might be surprised at how much China is cutting out American tech too – and doing it much more quietly.
Cindy Yu is joined by the journalist Liza Lin, who has been following this story in her detailed coverage for the Wall Street Journal. She is also a co-author of Surveillance State: Inside China's Quest to Launch a New Era of Social Control.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Joe Bedell-Brill.
You can also join Cindy Yu at The Spectator's Chinese wine lunch on June 14th. To find out more and buy tickets, visit spectator.co.uk/chinesewine.
Freddy speaks to Angus Hanton, entrepreneur and author of Vassal State: How America Runs Britain, and William Clouston, leader of the Social Democratic Party. They discuss the ‘Special Relationship’ between the US and the UK, and ask whether it might be detrimental to British business.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: reporting from St Helena, Douglas Murray reflects on the inhabitants he has met and the history of the British Overseas Territory (1:12); Lionel Shriver opines on the debate around transgender care (9:08); following a boyhood dream to visit the country to watch cricket, Mark Mason reads his letter from India as he travels with his son (17:54); and, Graeme Thomson reviews Taylor Swift’s new album (22:41).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Young, female entrepreneurship is on the rise. Two years ago, 17,500 businesses were founded by women aged 16-25, which is 22 times greater than in 2018. Now, 20 per cent of all businesses across the UK are all-female-led. Yet, when it comes to investment, women consistently underperform their male counterparts. Why? And should more be done to support female entrepreneurs?
To shine a light on some of these issues is Anneliese Dodds MP, the Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities, and Chair of the Labour Party, Jo Overton, the Managing Director for Customer Propositions and Strategy for Business Commercial Banking at Lloyds Banking Group, and Eccie Newton, the co-founder, of Karma Cans, an office lunch delivery company, and Karma Kitchen, that provides commercial kitchen spaces to food businesses.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group.
This week: The Xi files: China’s global spy network.
A Tory parliamentary aide and an academic were arrested this week for allegedly passing ‘prejudicial information’ to China. In his cover piece Nigel Inkster, MI6’s former director of operations and intelligence, explains the nature of this global spy network: hacking, bribery, manhunts for targets and more. To discuss, Ian Williams, author of Fire of the Dragon - China's New Cold War, and historian and Guardian columnist Simon Jenkins joined the podcast.. (02:05)
Next: Lara and Gus take us through some of their favourite pieces in the magazine, including Douglas Murray’s column and Gus’s interview with the philosopher Daniel Dennett.
Then: Tim Shipman writes for The Spectator about ‘hyper history’. This refers to the breathless last ten years in political history, encompassing the breakdown of old electoral coalitions, the formation of new ones and decisive prime ministers who all suffer from the same ‘power failure’ – as he calls it. Tim joined the podcast to discuss further. (17:34)
And finally: How the Jilly Cooper Book Club turned toxic. Flora Watkins joined a Jilly Cooper Book Club whose members got along famously – until lockdown and the ensuing culture wars. Debates over vaccines, lockdown and gender split them up more violently than any of their heroine’s books. Flora is joined by the author and journalist Elisa Segrave to examine the toxicity of women-only book groups. (27:50)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and Gus Carter.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the author and historian Kathryn Hughes, whose new book Catland tells the story of how we learned to love pusskins. Content warning: contains Kipling, Edward Lear, some stinking carts of offal, and the troubled life and weird art of the extraordinary Louis Wain.
Joel Golby is a journalist who has written for – among others – Vice and the Guardian, where he has a regular column, the watcher, reviewing television. He has since translated his skill for wry observations and self-reflection into the new book Four Stars: A life reviewedwhich hilariously grapples with our fascination with opinions
On the podcast Joel tells Lara about his appreciation for square sponge and pink custard, why Mum's roast is always the best roast and where a pint is best enjoyed.
Freddy Gray is joined Alan Dershowitz, American lawyer and author of Get Trump: the threat to civil liberties, due process, and our constitutional rule of law. They discuss Trump’s ‘hush money’ trial, what it means for the election and what it tells us about the flaws in the American legal system.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: In light of the help Israel received, Svitlana Morenets issues a challenge to the West to help Ukraine (1:15); Mary Wakefield questions the slow response to the Ministry of Defence being daubed in paint (7:33); Max Jeffery discusses the aims and tactics of the group responsible for the protest, Youth Demand (13:25); Sam Leith reviews Salman Rushdie's new book (18:59); and Richard Bratby pays tribute to Michael Tanner, The Spectator critic who died earlier this month (27:34).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Freddy speaks to the diplomat and author Dennis B Ross, who worked under presidents George H W Bush and Bill Clinton. He was a special advisor on the Persian Gulf. They discuss the escalation of tensions in the Middle East and the flak that Joe Biden has come under for his response. Can the US still claim to be able to shape events in the Middle East? And what comes next?
This week: the usual targets
First: Trump is on trial again – and America is bored rather than scandalised. This is his 91st criminal charge and his supporters see this as politicised prosecution. As an American, Kate Andrews has seen how the law can be used as a political weapon – so why, she asks, is Britain importing the same system? In less than 18 months, the police have been sent to investigate Rishi Sunak for his seat-belt, Nicola Sturgeon for campaign funds, and Angela Rayner over her electoral registry: each time, the complainant is political and the process is the punishment. Kate joins the podcast alongside The Spectator’s editor Fraser Nelson to discuss. (01:34)
Then: Confessions of a defecting Starmtrooper. Katy Balls speaks to Jamie Driscoll, the former Labour North of Tyne mayor, who failed Keir Starmer’s selection process to be mayor of the soon-to-be-created North East metro mayoralty. He’s now running as an independent, backed by Andy Burnham, while half of the Labour council groups are refusing to endorse the official Labour candidate. ‘I know people who have left the Labour party who describe it as leaving an abusive relationship,’ he says. You can read the full interview in the magazine, but we have a short extract of their discussion on the podcast. (13:44)
And finally: Our reporter Max Jeffery gatecrashed a party of the Extinction Rebellion youth offshoot Youth Demand!, whose stunts have included targeting MPs’ houses and dousing the Ministry of Defence in red ink. ‘I’m so ketty!’ one of the partygoers told him (referring to the drugs she was on). ‘They wrote ideas on big sheets of paper and left them lying at the back of the bar while they celebrated. “Rishi Sunak pool/pond – dyeing it red – pool party?” someone wrote. “CEOs’ houses”; “water (Thames)”; “Planes/private jets”; “Eton”; “Transgressive stuff”.’ Max joins the podcast alongside Youth Demand! spokesperson Ella Ward. (24:18)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and Gus Carter.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
On this week’s Book Club podcast I’m joined by Percival Everett, who has followed up his Booker-shortlisted The Trees with James, a novel that reimagines the story of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the point of view of the fugitive slave Jim. Percival tells me what he learned from Mark Twain, how being funny doesn’t make him a comic novelist, and why Black resistance to racism is a matter of language itself.
It's now 18 months since Liz Truss left Downing Street. She has written a memoir, Ten Years to Save the West, which records her political career since first becoming a cabinet minister. In her first broadcast interview to promote the book, she tells Fraser Nelson about why she thinks the OBR and the Supreme Court should be abolished; how Donald Trump is better for the defense of Ukraine than Joe Biden; and why she didn't listen to her husband when he warned her that her leadership bid would all end in tears.
This interview was originally broadcast on SpectatorTV, The Spectator's regularly updated YouTube channel.
When I recently came across a book review asking the question ‘was Marco Polo a "sexpat"?’, I knew I had to get its author on to, well, discuss this important question some more. The 13th century Venetian merchant Marco Polo’s account of China was one of the earliest and most popular travelogues written on the country. Polo spent years at the court of Kublai Khan, the grandson of Genghis, and whose family founded the Yuan dynasty in China.
My guest today, and the author of that book review, is the historian Jeremiah Jenne. Jeremiah has lived in China for over two decades, and he is also the co-host of the fascinating podcast Barbarians at the Gate, all about Chinese history. He has been doing a series of historical book reviews for the relatively newly established website China Books Review, and in re-reading The Travels of Marco Polo, he noticed that there was a lot of sex.
We talk about all of this, of course, but there’s a serious point here too. How much do Europeans observe when they go to China and how reliable are their accounts, understood and told through the perspective of the outsider? How much has Marco Polo’s portrayal of China moulded the western mindset on the country in the centuries since, and even today? And what does it say about the China of the 13th century that a trio of Venetian merchants could make it to the heart of the Mongol empire?
This week: Matthew Parris questions what's left to say about the Tories (00:57), Laurie Graham discusses her struggle to see a GP (07:35), Rachel Johnson makes the case against women only clubs (13:38), Laura Gascoigne tells us the truth about Caravaggio's last painting (19:21) and Angus Colwell reads his notes on wild garlic (28:58).
Produced by Oscar Edmondson, Margaret Mitchell and Patrick Gibbons.
Presented by Oscar Edmondson.
This week, the Arizona Supreme Court reinstated a law from 1864 that bans nearly all abortions in the state. But where do Trump and Biden stand on abortion, and will it be a deciding factor in the 2024 election?
Freddy's joined by Inez Stepman, Fellow at the Claremont Institute, and Daniel McCarthy, Editor of Modern Age Journal.
Produced by Megan McElroy.
Laura Farris comes from something of a political dynasty, both her father and uncle were MPs. The former even represented the same Newbury seat that she currently holds. She studied PPE at Oxford before working as a researcher for Hilary Clinton but she eschewed a political career to work firstly as a journalist and then as a barrister. In 2019 she became MP for Newbury and she now works across both the Home Office and Ministry of Justice.
On the podcast, Laura tells Katy what she learnt from Hilary Clinton, the things she hopes to achieve by the next election and why Jonathan Sumption has a point about the ECHR.
This week: will Biden support Ukraine’s attacks on Russia?
Owen Matthews writes the cover piece in light of the Zelensky drone offensive. Ukraine’s most successful strategy to date has been its ingenious use of homemade, long-range drones, which it has used to strike military targets as well as oil refineries and petrol storage facilities in Russia. The strikes are working but have alienated the US, who draw a red line when it comes to attacks on Russian soil. Owen joins the podcast alongside Svitlana Morenets, author of The Spectator’s Ukraine in Focus newsletter to debate what comes next. (01:44)
Next: Will and Lara take us through some of their favourite pieces in the magazine, including Rachel Johnson’s thoughts on women’s only clubs and Angus Colwell’s notes on wild garlic and the new foragers.
Then: who is the greater threat to democracy, Biden or Trump? This is the question that Lionel Shriver grapples with in her column, where she expresses total disbelief that the grim state of politics in the US hasn’t thrown up an alternative third party. Lionel joins the podcast to discuss what’s left for American voters. (19:47)
And finally: Astronomer David Whitehouse bids a fond farewell to the Voyager 1 space probe which, due to technical difficulties, may soon stop transmitting back to earth. On the podcast, he looks back on what we’ve learnt about space during the 50 years that Voyager has been travelling through the cosmos with Sasha Hinkley, astrophysicist at the University of Exeter and leading a team of scientists on James Webb Telescope. (33:25)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
We are always looking for ways to improve the podcast, please send any feedback to podcast@spectator.co.uk
Today Freddy is joined by Sarah Elliott, senior advisor for the US-UK special relationship unit at the Legatum Institute. They discuss Lord Cameron's visit to America this week and the news that speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson snubbed a meeting with the foreign secretary. Is the special relationship still special?
In this week’s Book Club podcast my guest is Dorian Lynskey. In his new book Everything Must Go, Dorian looks at the way humans have imagined the end of the world from the Book of Revelations to the present day. He tells me how old fears find new forms, why Dr Strangelove divides critics, and why there’s always a few people who anticipate global annihilation with something that looks like longing.
Suspected Israeli air strikes were launched on targets in Syria this week and Israel's war in Gaza has entered its seventh month. Americano regular Jacob Heilbrunn joins Freddy to discuss what an escalating situation in the Middle East could mean for Joe Biden. What's the Democrats' strategy? And how could this impact the 2024 election?
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Patrick Gibbons.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: James Heale suggests that the London mayoral race could be closer than we think (1:02); Madeleine Teahan argues that babies with down’s syndrome have a right to be born (6:15); Tanya Gold reports from Jerusalem as Israel’s war enters its seventh month (12:32); and William Moore reveals what he has in common with Kim Jong Un (18:25).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
On the podcast this week: what could achieving a large majority at the next election mean for Labour; how much should parents worry about picky eating; and why are humans fascinated with the apocalypse?
First up: The Starmer supremacy.
If the polls are correct, Labour could be on to a record landslide at the next general election. Any political leader would relish such a win. But can achieving such a large majority present internal problems of its own? Labour MP Harriet Harman joins The Spectator’s political editor Katy Balls to discuss. (1:32)
Then: Lara and Gus discuss some of their favourite pieces from the magazine, from Charles Moore’s column to Christopher Matthew’s piece on A. A. Milne’s time at Punch magazine. (16:21)
Next: how much should parents’ fuss over their children? Spectator contributor Hannah Moore argues in the magazine this week that parents shouldn’t worry about picky eating. Hannah joins the podcast, alongside The Spectator’s commissioning editor, Mary Wakefield to discuss this. Look out for a surprise revelation about our usual host William Moore… (18:27)
And finally: why are we so obsessed with the apocalypse? Dorian Lynskey’s new book ‘Everything Must Go’ is reviewed in this week’s magazine. It explores the stories humans tell about the end of the world. Dorian joins us with archaeologist and author Chris Begley who wrote ‘The Next Apocalypse’ about what humans can learn from past disasters. Is there hope for humanity yet? (28:34)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and Gus Carter.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
We are always looking for ways to improve the podcast, please send any feedback to podcast@spectator.co.uk
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the investigative reporter Annie Jacobsen, whose hair-raising new book Nuclear War: A Scenarioimagines – minute by minute – what would unfold if the nuclear balloon went up. But rather than a work of fantasy, this is based on meticulously sourced reporting about the effects of nuclear weapons and the structures and policies that govern them. We all knew it would be bad but Jacobsen tells us just how bad, and how fast, and quite how little the people who push the button will actually know about what's going on.
Over the last week the UK has been rocked by allegations that China was responsible for two cyber attacks in recent years – one on the Electoral Commission, where hackers successfully accessed the open register, which has the details of 40 million voters; and a set of attempts to access the emails of a number of China critics within parliament.
So what do we know about China’s cyber capabilities? What are its goals? And now that the UK knows about these attacks, what should we be doing?
Joining Cindy Yu on the podcast today is Nigel Inkster, senior advisor for cyber security and China at the think tank IISS, formerly director of operations and intelligence at MI6, and author of China’s Cyber Power, a 2016 book on precisely this question.
You can also join Cindy Yu at The Spectator's Chinese wine lunch on June 14th. To find out more and buy tickets, visit spectator.co.uk/chinesewine.
This week: Sophie Winkleman tells us why she's fighting to ban smartphones for children (01:01), Svitlana Morenets details how Ukraine plans to revive its birthrate (05:52), Candida Crewe laments the blight that is UHT milk (12:41), and Ysenda Maxtone Graham mourns the loss of the St John's Voices choir (22:43).
Freddy is joined by evolutionary biologist and host of The DarkHorse Podcast Bret Weinstein. They discuss the Darien Gap, an area of Panama which has become a focal point for America's migrant crisis. Bret has spent some time investigating the area, what's going on?
Anne Jenkin was born in Essex to quite the political family, three of her grandparents were in the House of Lords, and two of them in the Commons as well. Her career in Westminster began in the 1970s and in 2005 she co-founded Women2Win with future Prime Minister Theresa May to encourage more women to get into politics and stand as Conservative candidates. She was made a life peer in 2011 for services to charity and politics.
This week: how forgiveness was forgotten, why the secular tide might be turning, and looking for romance at the British museum.
Up first: The case of Frank Hester points to something deep going on in our culture, writes Douglas Murray in the magazine this week. ‘We have never had to deal with anything like this before. Any mistake can rear up in front of you again – whether five years later (as with Hester) or decades on.’ American lawyer and author of Cancel Culture: the latest attack on free speech, Alan Dershowitz, joins the podcast to discuss whether forgiveness has been forgotten. (02:11)
Then: Will and Lara take us through some of their favourite pieces from the magazine, including Svitlana Morenets’ article on Ukraine’s fertility crisis and Sophie Winkleman’s notebook.
Next: Justin Brierley writes for The Spectator about the return of religiosity. He argues that after a period of decline, the secular tide is turning with young people returning to Christianity. However he expresses some concern that the flag bearers for this new Christianity – the likes of Joe Rogan and Jordan Peterson – might not be the most sincere. Justin joins the podcast alongside Tom Holland, co-host of The Rest is History podcast and author of Dominion: how the Christian revolution remade the world. (13:39)
And finally: looking for love at the British museum. Harry Mount was dispatched to the British museum this week to investigate its new function as a pick up spot. The museum ran a marketing campaign promoting a new exhibition as an opportunity for single women to find single men.The post read: ‘Girlies, if you’re single and looking for a man, this is your sign to go to the British Museum’s new exhibition, Life in the Roman Army, and walk around looking confused. You’re welcome x.’ It added: ‘Come for the Romans, stay for some romance.’ Harry joins the podcast alongside fellow classicist Daisy Dunn. (23:51)
Stay tuned for a short snippet of Rory Sutherland’s proposed new podcast where he interviews leading thinking about trivial topics! (31:27)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast my guest is the Pulitzer prize winning novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen, whose new book is the memoir A Man of Two Faces. He tells me about the value of trauma to literature, learning about his history through Hollywood, falling asleep in class... and the rotten manners of Oliver Stone.
Gennaro Contaldo is an Italian chef, cookbook author and television presenter. He is also known as Jamie Oliver's mentor and Antonio Carluccio's travel partner on Two Greedy Italians. His latest cookbook Gennaro's Verdure – which celebrates seasonal vegetables – is out now.
On the podcast he tells Liv and Lara about his upbringing on the Amalfi coast, what he's learnt from Jamie Oliver and how he came to love fish and chips.
Photo credit: David Loftus
Freddy Gray speaks to editor-at-large of the Wall Street Journal Gerry Baker about whether the media’s wrong reporting of Trump’s ‘bloodshed’ comments have played to his advantage; why America has lost trust in its institutions; and whether voters think the economy was better off under Trump.
Freddy Gray speaks to political science researcher Richard Hanania about his (relative) optimism regarding the future of America, and how Sydney Sweeney might have 'ended wokeness'.
This week: Richard Madeley reads his diary (01:06), Kate Andrews describes how Kate-gate gripped America (06:18), Lloyd Evans warns against meddling with Shakespeare (11:38), Sam McPhail details how Cruyff changed modern football (18:17), and Graeme Thomson reads his interview with Roxy Music's Phil Manzanera (25:23).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Freddy speaks to Rob Henderson, author of Troubled: A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class, in which he coins the term 'luxury beliefs'. These are certain beliefs held by a section of the elite which confirm and elevate the status of those who hold them. As a consequence, they can cause harm to those lower down the social strata. Is Donald Trump the antidote to America’s ‘luxury beliefs’ complex?
On the podcast: Scotland’s new hate crime law; the man who could be France’s next PM; and why do directors meddle with Shakespeare?
First up: Scotland is smothering free speech.
Scotland is getting a new, modern blasphemy code in the form of the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act, which takes effect from 1 April. The offence of ‘stirring up racial hatred’ will be extended to disability, religion, sexual orientation, age, transgender identity and variations in sex characteristics. The new law gives few assurances for protecting freedom of speech writes Lucy Hunter Blackburn, former senior Scottish civil servant. Lucy joins the podcast, alongside Baroness Claire Fox, unaffiliated peer and founder of the Academy of Ideas think tank. (03:18)
Then: William and Gus discuss some of their favourite pieces from the magazine this week, including Sam McPhail’s history of ‘Total Football’ and Richard Madeley’s diary.
Next: Journalist Gavin Mortimer writes about Jordan Bardella for The Spectator. He is Marine Le Pen’s number two in the National Rally party and the man Gavin says could be France’s next PM. Gavin is joined by Telegraph contributor Anne-Elisabeth Moutet to ask: who is Jordan Bardella? (28:22)
And finally: why do directors feel the need to ‘correct’ Shakespeare? That’s the question that Lloyd Evans asks in the magazine this week. He says that directors should go back to basics when it comes to adapting the bard and leave the gimmicks to one side. Yael Farber – who is currently directing King Lear at the Almeida Theatre and has previously adapted Macbeth and Julius Caesar – joins the podcast to discuss. (41:25)
Hosted by William Moore and Gus Carter.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
We are always looking to improve the podcast, please send any feedback to: podcast@spectator.co.uk
My guest in this week's Book Club is Joel Morris, an award-winning comedy writer whose credits run from co-creating Philomena Cunk to writing gags for Viz and punching up the script for Paddington 2. In his new book Be Funny Or Die, he sets out to analyse how and why comedy works. He tells me why there are only three keys on the clown keyboard, what laughter does for us in neurological terms, and why Laurel and Hardy could get away with anything.
Freddy Gray talks to political science lecturer Damon Linker about the latest developments in the Biden and Trump campaigns.
Why did Biden’s fiery State of the Union Address provide him no uptick in the polls? In what ways does Trump fatigue affect each candidate’s chances? And does Trump’s greater popularity with non-white low propensity voters skew the polls in his favour?
In the last episode, I discussed Chinese rural lives with Professor Scott Rozelle. One point he made which particularly stuck with me was the dying out of farming as an occuption – he'd said that most rural people under the age of 35 have never farmed a day in their lives.
So that got me thinking, what do they do instead? In this episode I’ll be looking at one, very high profile, alternative – vlogging. I’ve noticed through my hours of scrolling through Chinese social media that there is a huge genre of rural, pastoral content.
This is an interesting phenomenon both for what it says about the rural population today, as well as what it reveals about the – often – urban viewers on the other end. So today I’m joined by Yi-Ling Liu, a writer on Chinese society who has had bylines in the New Yorker, Harper’s Magazine and WIRED. She’s looked in detail at the phenomenon of the rural influencer.
On the episode, we talk about a few of our favourite rural influencers. You can watch Li Ziqi's videos on YouTube here and 王大姐来了 (the middle aged rappers I mention) here.
Freddy Gray speaks to Matt McDonald, Spectator World's managing editor about the the vote to force a sale of TikTok to a US company, and foreign lobbying for and against the move in Washington.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: William Moore questions if the Church of England is about the apologise for Christianity (1:19); Sean Thomas recounts his experience taking ayahuasca in Colombia (8:13); Matt Ridley argues that private landowners make better conservationists (16:40); Lionel Shriver warns against pathological niceness in the debate about immigration (28:37); and, Kate Andrews reviews a play at the Olivier about Nye Bevan (36:57).
Presented by Patrick Gibbons.
In this episode of Holy Smoke, I'm joined by The Spectator's features editor William Moore, who asks in this week's issue of the magazine whether the Church of England is 'apologising for Christianity'. A report by the Oversight Group, set up by the Church Commissioners to make reparations for African slavery, not only wants to see unimaginable sums transferred to 'community groups' – its chair, the Bishop of Croydon, thinks a billion pounds would be appropriate – it also deplores the efforts of Christian missionaries to eradicate traditional religious practices. But, as Will's article points out, those traditional practices included idol-worship, twin infanticide and cannibalism. Are these part of the religious heritage that the C of E patronisingly wants African Christians to rediscover? Did missionaries and early converts to the faith who gave their lives for the faith die in vain?
When it comes to retirement, working out how much you will need to set aside can seem like a monumental task. The average person has between 8 to 10 jobs over their lifetime. People are living longer – with the median retirement age at 65 and life expectancy at 80. What should people think about when planning for their pension? And what challenges do people face? Women are the most likely to suffer from pension inequality, with single women being the poorest of all pensioners.
Almost a fifth of private sector employees do not do any pension saving, and a third of people expect to retire with only a state pension. To shine a light on some of the pension inequalities, Katy Balls is joined by Wendy Chamberlain, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Work and Pensions, Jackie Leiper, CEO of Embark Group and MD of Pensions at Scottish Widows, both part of Lloyds Banking Group, and Lauren Wilkinson, from the Pensions Policy Institute, and co-author of the Underpensioned report.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group.
On the podcast this week: is Rishi ready for a Red Wall rebellion?
Lee Anderson’s defection to Reform is an indication of the final collapse of the Tories’ 2019 electoral coalition and the new split in the right, writes Katy Balls in her cover story. For the first time in many years the Tories are polling below 25 per cent. Reform is at 15 per cent. The hope in Reform now is that Anderson attracts so much publicity from the right and the left that he will bring the party name recognition and electoral cut-through. Leader of Reform UK Richard Tice joins Katy on the podcast to discuss. (02:23)
Then: Will and Lara take us through some of their favourite pieces from the magazine, including Lloyd Evans’ Life column and Sean Thomas’ description of taking ayahuasca at Pablo Escobar’s cocaine and occasional execution palace.
Next: is the Church of England about to apologise for Christianity?
Our own William Moore writes this week about the C of E’s latest apology, which – if given – he says is tantamount to apologising for Christianity itself. This comes after the Oversight Group suggested the C of E gives £1 billion in reparations to atone for its historic links to the slave trade and instances of ‘deliberate actions to destroy diverse African religious belief systems.’ The Reverend Dr Jamie Franklin, host of the Irreverend podcast, joins Will to discuss. (21:19)
And finally: 'Operation Kenova: Northern Ireland Stakeknife Legacy Investigation’ was precipitated by claims that the British Army had an agent at the heart of the IRA. ‘Stakeknife’ was head of the IRA’s Internal Security Unit and was responsible for questioning, torturing and executing people the IRA suspected of being British agents. He was a British agent, passing on information to his controllers in the British Army. Now the Boutcher report has found that Stakeknife might have instigated more deaths than lives he saved during his time embedded in the terrorist organisation. Alasdair Palmer writes about it for our magazine and argues that infiltrators such as Stakeknife must have licence to do whatever necessary when fighting terrorism. Alasdair joins the podcast alongside Douglas Murray, The Spectator’s associate editor and author of the award-winning Bloody Sunday: Truth, lies and the Saville Inquiry. (34:21)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
We are always looking to improve the podcast, please send any feedback to: podcast@spectator.co.uk
Freddy Gray speaks to author Robert Bryce whose recent docuseries Power Politics & The Grid explores the growing vulnerabilities of America's electric grid. On the podcast they talk about Trump vs Biden energy policy; why Europe needs America's energy and what environmentalism could look like in 2024.
This week's Book Club podcast sees me speaking to the critic and novelist Lauren Oyler about her first collection of essays, No Judgment: On Being Critical. Lauren and I talked about the freedoms and affordances of the essay form; about how making and criticising art has been changed – and hasn't – by the advent of the digital age; why it's weird we all still treat the internet as if it's a new thing; and about why David Foster Wallace can still be a role-model even after his cancellation.
Alex Jackson is the founder of Sardine and currently head chef at Noble Rot, Soho. His cookbook Frontières: the food of France's borderlands is available now.
On the podcast, he tells Lara and Liv why the smell of chip fat reminds him of home, how his interest in cooking was ignited during time spent at university France, and divulges his desert island meal.
On this episode of Spectator Out Loud, Mary Wakefield has a solution to smartphone addition (00:28), Hannah Tomes reviews the latest production of King Lear (07:27) and Cosmo Landesman gets high (11:13).
Freddy Gray is joined by John Rick MacArthur, president and publisher of Harper's Magazine to discuss Robert F. Kennedy junior and his candidacy in the presidential election.
On the podcast: what would Trump’s second term look like?
Vengeance is a lifelong theme of Donald Trump’s, writes Freddy Gray in this week’s cover story – and this year’s presidential election could provide his most delectable payback of all. Meanwhile, Kate Andrews writes that Nikki Haley’s campaign is over – and with it went the hopes of the Never Trump movement. Where did it all go wrong? They both join the podcast to discuss what to expect from Trump’s second coming. (03:11)
Then: Will and Gus take us through some of their favourite pieces from the magazine, including Michael Hann’s Pop review and Cosmo Landesman’s City Life column. (16:38)
Next: Flora Watkins writes in The Spectator about on private schools. She discusses how she is taking her kids out of private school, partly because of a rise in school fees brought about by inflation and the cost of living and partly in anticipation of Labour imposing VAT on school fees. To debate, Julie Robinson – general secretary of the Independent Schools Council – and Fiona Millar – former education advisor to Tony Blair – join the podcast. (20:36)
And finally: the rise of organised shoplifting.
Shoplifting is on the increase, writes Harriet Sergeant, not because of struggling Britons, but because of organised criminals trafficking children, too young to be charged, from around Europe to steal from British shops. They view the UK as poorly policed but rich; the perfect place for stealing goods to sell on quickly. Harriet joins the podcast alongside Xander Cloudsley, a shoplifting activist from the organisation This Is Rigged. (31:36)
Hosted by William Moore and Gus Carter.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
If you have any feedback, please contact us on: podcast@spectator.co.uk
For this Super Tuesday discussion, Sarah Elliot – head of the Special Relationship Unit at the Legatum Institute joins Freddy Gray to chat about the predicted Trump-Biden victory; what Nikki Haley will do next and who could be Donald Trump's vice president.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Peter Pomerantsev. Peter's new book How To Win An Information War: The Propagandist Who Outwitted Hitler tells the story of Sefton Delmer, the great genius of twentieth-century propaganda. Peter tells me about Delmer's remarkable life, compromised ethics, and the lessons he still has to offer us.
Too often our stories about China are dictated by the urban experience, probably because journalists inside and outside of China are often based in the big cities; Beijing specifically. Those who live in the cities also tend to be more educated, more privileged, and so able to dominate the global attention more.
That’s why I’m particularly keen to hear about the lives of those who still live in the countryside, or at least are still considered ‘rural residents’ by the Chinese government. They make up a sizeable proportion of the population, and you’ll hear that in my first question to my guest today, we discuss just how big this group is.
How do the poorest in China live today, considering the government has announced that there is no more extreme poverty? Just how wide are their gaps in living standards, education, health, compared to their compatriots who live in the cities?
Professor Scott Rozelle joins me on this episode. He is the co-director of the Stanford Center on China’s Economy and Institutions, a developmental economist who has been conducting research in China for over three decades. He is also the co-author of Invisible China: How the Urban-Rural Divide Threatens China’s Rise.
Further listening from the archive:
Second class citizens: the lives of China’s internal migrants: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/second-class-citizens-the-lives-of-chinas-internal-migrants/
Is China turning away from the world?: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/is-china-turning-away-from-the-world/
Produced by Cindy Yu and Joe Bedell-Brill.
Freddy talks to political technologist Eric Wilson about the role technology and media will play in the 2024 US election. They cover the differences in strategy between the Democrats and the Republicans, why television is still the best medium for reaching voters, and the role of social media influencers.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Lukas Degutis reports from Riga, exploring Latvia’s policy of expelling Russian speakers (01:16); Ysenda Maxtone Graham explains why she believes applause has no place at a funeral (10:03); paying homage to Christopher Gunning, Richard Bratby argues that composers of ads, film soundtracks and TV theme tunes should be taken more seriously (14:46); and Toby Young questions the Bidens’ choice of dog (21:50).
Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.
Thangam Debbonaire was born in Peterborough to an Indian father and English mother. She has been an MP since 2015 but before Parliament spent over 25 years working to end domestic violence. She served under Jeremy Corbyn as Shadow Minister for Arts and Heritage and has served in Keir Starmer’s Shadow Cabinet since his leadership as the Shadow Culture Secretary. Thangam is no stranger to a lively debate at the dispatch box and despite a busy life as an MP, still finds time for music, playing cello in Parliament as part of the string quartet, The Statutory Instruments.
Welcome to a slightly new format for the Edition podcast! Each week we will be talking about the magazine – as per usual – but trying to give a little more insight into the process behind putting The Spectator to bed each week.
On the podcast this week: plan Bibi
In the early hours of Friday morning, Benjamin Netanyahu leaked his ‘Day after Hamas’ plan for post-war Gaza. But the plan is not a plan, writes Anshel Pfeffer – it is just a set of vague principles that do not stand up to the slightest scrutiny. Its sole purpose is rather to keep the ministers of Netanyahu’s fragile cabinet together to ensure his political survival. Joining the podcast is former National Security advisor to Netanyahu and former head of the Israeli Professor Uzi Arad, to discuss Bibi’s self-interested survival strategy. (03:08)
Also this week: Lara and Will discuss some of their favourite pieces from the magazine. Including Richard Bratby’s arts lead on the composer you should take far more seriously and Ysenda Maxtone Graham’s piece on the ‘sad clappies’.
Then: why Latvia is expelling its Russian speakers. New rules mean that ethnic Russians, many of whom have lived in Latvia for their entire lives, have been told they need to learn Latvian or face deportation. In the magazine, Lukas Degutis, The Spectator’s editorial manager, interviews people affected by the illiberal policy, as well as the politicians defending the change as part of de-Russification of the Baltic states. We spoke to Lukas and Inga Springe, investigative journalist at Re:Baltica who has been across this story on the derussification of the Baltic. (22:16)
And finally: why don’t we have more time, and when we do, why do we waste it? This is the central question of a new book by Gary S. Cross, titled: Free Time: The History of an Elusive Ideal. We thought this was the perfect question to ask our own Wiki Man columnist Rory Sutherland, who had some fascinating things to say about free time and how best to spend it. (34:39)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
If there are any areas of the magazine that you are particularly interested in or any questions you have for Will and Lara, please email: podcast@spectator.co.uk. We will try and answer as many as we can in next week’s episode.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the award-winning novelist Colum McCann, whose new book takes him out of the territory of fiction and into something slightly different. American Mother is written in collaboration with Diane Foley, mother of Jim Foley, the journalist killed by ISIS in Syria in 2014. He tells me how he came to reinvent himself as (not quite) a ghostwriter, why he thinks you can use the tools of the fiction-writer to get at journalistic truth, and about what it was like to sit in the room with Diane Foley and the man who murdered her son.
In this special episode of Americano, The Spectator's editor Fraser Nelson explores Trump's candidacy with political commentator Deroy Murdock, and The Spectator's economics editor Kate Andrews.
They debate the influence of his rhetoric on American politics. How important is language? Will his achievements as President be enough to secure his re-election? Does personality Trump policy?
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Patrick Gibbons
Freddy Gray speaks to James Kanagasooriam who is the chief research officer at Focal Data about the state of the polls. They discuss why vaccines have become a polarising topic for this election; why bookmakers might be underestimating Joe Biden and the importance of the cost of living.
With cases of neurodegenerative conditions rising in the UK, it's crucial to re-examine how we tackle these diseases. The Spectator's assistant editor Isabel Hardman speaks to Debbie Abrahams MP (co-chair of the Dementia APPG), Dr Emily Pegg (associate vice president at Eli Lilly), Dr Susan Kohlhaas (executive director at Alzheimer's Research), and Professor Giovanna Mallucci (principal investigator at the Cambridge Institute of Science).
Eli Lilly and Company has provided sponsorship funding to support this event, and has had no influence over the content of the event or selection of speakers
At a press conference in Rome last week, an ex-nun claiming to have suffered ritual sex abuse at the hands of Fr Marko Rupnik turned the heat on Pope Francis. How much did he know about the stomach-turning charges levelled at the Slovenian mosaic artist, who was a Jesuit until he was thrown out of the order? And, more important, when did he know? Why is Rupnik still a priest? The Pope's allies in the media are desperate for this story to go away. But, as this episode of Holy Smoke argues, the scandal is growing and threatens to engulf Francis himself.
Julie Bindel speaks to anti-sexist campaigner and author Jackson Katz, who has been part of a growing movement of men working to promote gender equality. On the podcast, Julie and Jackson discuss the power of bystanders to end rape culture; how men come to be afraid of other men when calling out abusive behaviour; and how men can truly fight against gendered violence.
This week: Max Jeffery writes from Blackpool where he says you can see the welfare crisis at its worst (01:29); Lisa Haseldine reads her interview with the wife of Vladimir Kara-Murza, whose husband is languishing in a Siberian jail (06:26); Christopher Howse tells us about the ancient synagogue under threat from developers (13:02); Philip Hensher reads his review of Write, Cut, Rewrite (24:34); and Calvin Po asks whether a Labour government will let architects reshape housing (34:42).
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Margaret Mitchell.
Freddy speaks to journalist and author of The Age of Entitlement: America Since the Sixties, Chris Caldwell, about the human rights movement. Can America’s influence be considered imperial? Is how we think of human rights outdated? And, what does the Black Lives Matter movement and the 2011 intervention in Libya tell us about the state of human rights today?
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Patrick Gibbons
Welcome to a slightly new format for the Edition podcast! Each week we will be talking about the magazine – as per usual – but trying to give a little more insight into the process behind putting The Spectator bed each week.
On the podcast this week: the cost of Britain’s mass worklessness.
According to The Spectator’s calculations, had workforce participation stayed at the same rate as in 2019, the economy would be 1.7 per cent larger now and an end-of-year recession could have been avoided. As things stand, joblessness is coexisting with job vacancies in a way that should be economically impossible, writes Kate Andrews in the cover story. She joins the podcast alongside Paul Nowak, general secretary of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), to debate the problems plaguing Britain’s workforce. (03:11)
Also on the podcast: Lara and Will discuss some of their favourite pieces from the magazine, including Mark Mason’s piece on anti-depressive quality of cricket and Anne Robinson’s fantastic diary. (18:29)
Then: In the arts section of the magazine, Calvin Po writes the lead. He asks whether a Labour government will allow architects to reshape houses as part of their flagship housebuilding plans. Telegraph columnist and author of Home Truths Liam Halligan joins the podcast to discuss Labour’s plans, whether they are realistic and if we can start to build better and more beautifully under a Labour government. (21:32)
And finally: In his column this week Rod Liddle says that smartphones are all too successful and advocates for banning them altogether for children. Interestingly, he argues that we give children smartphones not for their convenience, but for the convenience of parents. He joins the podcast alongside Miranda Wilson, co-founder of Teched Off, a group which campaigns to keep young people safe online. Our editor Fraser Nelson also stops by to give his thoughts. (33:38)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
If there are any areas of the magazine that you are particularly interested in or any questions you have for Will and Lara, please email: podcast@spectator.co.uk. We will try and answer as many as we can in next week’s episode.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Tom Chatfield, whose new book is Wise Animals: How Technology Has Made Us What We Are. He tells me what we get wrong about technology, what Douglas Adams got right, and why we can't rely on Elon Musk and people like him to save the world.
Freddy speaks to philosopher Slavoj Zizek ahead of what we understand will be Julian Assange's final court appeal against extradition back to the US. The WikiLeaks founder has been wanted by the US authorities after he leaked tens of thousands of highly sensitive documents. On the podcast they discuss the parallels between Assange and Navalny, whether the West is beginning to behave more like the Soviet Union than we ever have, and if WikiLeaks was behind the election of Donald Trump.
The Argentinian football star Lionel Messi has been trending on Weibo – and unfortunately, not for a good reason. It all started when Messi sat out a match in Hong Kong earlier this month. His reason – that he was injured – wasn’t good enough for some fans, and keyboard nationalists quickly took offence when Messi played in Japan, a few days later. The furore has dominated Chinese social media over the last few weeks, and even led to the cancellation of some upcoming Chinese matches with the Argentinian national team, as authorities demanded an apology from Messi.
What a mess. But beyond its seeming triviality, this episode tells us something about the nature of Chinese online nationalism and it might also shed light on how football works within China. After all, why is it that China, which is so good at so many things, has still failed to turn out a competitive national team? That is the multi-billion yuan question that puzzles football fans within and outside of China.
Joining Cindy Yu on the episode this week is Cameron Wilson, an expert on Chinese football and founder of the Wild East Football blog, who has lived in China for almost two decades.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Max Mitchell.
On this week's Spectator Out Loud, Harry Mount reads his diary, in which he recounts a legendary face-off between Barry Humphries and John Lennon (00:45); Lara Prendergast gives her tips for male beauty (06:15); Owen Matthews reports from Kyiv about the Ukrainians' unbroken spirit (12:40); Catriona Olding writes on the importance of choosing how to spend one's final days (18:40); and Jeremy Hildreth reads his Notes On Napoleon's coffee.
Produced by Cindy Yu, Margaret Mitchell, Max Jeffery and Natasha Feroze.
Freddy Gray speaks to Americano regular Jacob Heilbrunn about Lord Cameron's recent visit to DC, where he persuaded Congress to pass a bill sending aid to Ukraine. Jacob and Freddy also discuss why Jacob thinks Biden's mental capacity is over exaggerated, and what Nato could look like under Trump.
Justine Greening was born in Rotherham, the daughter of a steel worker and first in her family to go to university. Campaigning for the Conservatives, she won back a Tory stronghold from Labour in the 2005 general election becoming MP for Putney. She began politics in opposition, but became a Cabinet Secretary in David Cameron’s government, and remained there for Theresa May’s premiership as Education Secretary. Now having left Parliament, Justine is never far from politics – she founded the Social Mobility Pledge and now even runs her own podcast.
Welcome to a slightly new format for the Edition podcast! Each week we will be talking about the magazine – as per usual – but trying to give a little more insight into the process behind putting The Spectator to bed each week.
On the podcast: The Spectator’s assistant foreign editor Max Jeffery writes our cover story this week, asking if Nato is ready to defend itself against a possible Russian invasion. Max joined Nato troops as they carried out drills on the Estonian border. Max joins us on the podcast along with historian Mark Galeotti, author of Putin's Wars. (00:55)
Then: Lionel Shriver talks to us about the sad case of Jennifer Crumbley, the mum who's just been convicted of manslaughter – for her son carrying out a school shooting. Does this set a dangerous moral precedent? (16:05)
And finally: would you stay in a haunted hotel? The travel writer Sean Thomas speaks to us from one in Cambodia, having written for the magazine about the places with grisly pasts that he has stayed in over the course of his career. We're also joined by Judith Blincow, owner of the Mermaid Inn in Rye, one of the most haunted hotels in the country. (26:10)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Cindy Yu.
If there are any areas of the magazine that you are particularly interested in or any questions you have for Will and Lara, please email: podcast@spectator.co.uk. We will try and answer as many as we can in next week’s episode.
Freddy Gray speaks to author Joshua Green who wrote The Rebels: Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and the Struggle for a New American Politics. On the podcast they discuss the three rebels in the book; how they influenced Joe Biden in office; and whether the Democratic Party has given up ‘finance-centered’ liberalism.
Freddy Gray speaks to JL Partners Director Scarlett Maguire about America's swing states which could decide the general election.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Chris Bryant, who tells me about his new book James and John: A True Story of Prejudice and Murder. In it, he seeks to tell what can be known of the lives, world and fatal luck of the last two men executed for homosexuality in Britain.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.
Professor Charles Spence is an experimental psychologist at the University of Oxford. His research focuses on how an in-depth understanding of the human mind will lead to the better design of multi-sensory foods and products. He is the author of several books including his most recent, Sensehacking: How to Use the Power of Your Senses for Happier, Healthier Living.On this episode he talks about how he started experimenting with food and the human senses, working with Heston Blumenthal, and how he doesn't understand ice-cream.
Freddy is joined by Todd Bensman, fellow at the Centre for Immigration Studies and author of Overrun: how Joe Biden unleashed the greatest border crisis in US history. They discuss how to solve what is perhaps the issue of our time, why meaningful reform doesn't seem to happen on immigration, and the extent of Biden's physical and mental frailty after a week of public gaffes.
This week: Svitlana Morenets takes us inside Ukraine's new plan for mass conscription (01:01); Paul Mason says that Labour is right to ditch its £28 billion green pledge (10:49); Robbie Mallett tells us about life as a scientist working in Antarctica (15:48); and Lloyd Evans reads his Life column (21:24).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Julie Bindel speaks to Björn Suttka, anti-sexist campaigner and co-founder of Male Allies Challenging Sexism. On the show they discuss how Björn changed his mind about the liberal approach to porn and sex work and how men can help in the fight for women’s liberation.
Welcome to a slightly new format for the Edition podcast! Each week will be talking about the magazine – as per usual – but trying to give a little more insight into the process behind putting The Spectator to bed each week.
On the podcast: The Spectator's political editor Katy Balls writes our cover story this week about 'the plot' to oust Rishi Sunak. When former culture secretary Nadine Dorries made the claim in her book that a secret cabal of advisors were responsible for taking down prime ministers, she was laughed at. But with shadowy backroom fixers assembling to try and take down the prime minister, did she have a point? Katy joins the podcast alongside the Financial Times' Stephen Bush to discuss what makes a successful 'plot'. (03:11)
Also: Lara and Will take us through some of their favourite pieces from this week's issue, featuring an extract from the 'letter from Antarctica', narrated by its author Robbie Mallet, a polar climate scientist at UiT the Arctic University of Norway. (15:33)
Then: The Spectator's commissioning editor Mary Wakefield writes her column this week about XL Bullies. She says that coming face to face with one forced her to change her tune when it comes to the vilified breed and joins the podcast alongside XL Bully owner Sophie Coultard. (19:45)
And finally: who knew women love flowers?
Henry Jeffreys, for one. Ahead of Valentine's Day he writes this week about his surprise at learning that women do, in fact, love flowers. He speaks with Lara – a former florist herself – about the dos and don’ts of flower purchasing. (32:37)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
If there are any areas of the magazine that you are particularly interested in or any questions you have for Will and Lara, please email: podcast@spectator.co.uk. We will try and answer as many as we can in next week’s episode.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Paula Byrne. In her new book Hardy Women: Mothers, Sisters, Wives, Muses, she investigates the women in the life and work of the great poet and novelist Thomas Hardy. She talks to me about Hardy's romantic life, the torture he inflicted on the women he fell for, and how – in the bitter words of his first wife Emma – 'he understands only the women he invents'.
Freddy Gray is joined by pollster and writer Patrick Ruffini. They talk about why the strengthening economy isn’t improving Biden’s numbers, and the other factors that will influence the 2024 election.
At last count, the Chinese Communist Party has 98 million members, more people than the population of Germany. Its membership also continues to grow, making it one of the most successful and resilient political parties of the last a hundred years, perhaps with the exception of India’s BJP, which boasts 180 million members.
And yet the CCP's track record is strewn with bloody crackdowns and systematic persecution. So what would drive someone to join the CCP, and what accounts for its success? Do party members today all support the atrocities committed by their government? I think these are important questions to ask, because without understanding the answers to them, one couldn’t understand China’s modern history or its society today.
To delve into the psychology of card carrying communists, I’m joined by two great guests in this week's episode.
Xinran Xue is a Chinese journalist, who had a popular radio show in China in the 90s, before moving to the UK and becoming an author of numerous books on China. Her latest book is called The Book of Secrets, which is a memoir of sorts, where her protagonist was one of the founding members of the CCP’s intelligence service. I recently reviewed it for The Spectator.
Professor Kerry Brown is Director of the Lau China Institute at Kings College London and a former diplomat in Beijing where he worked alongside Chinese government officials for many years. His latest book is China Incorporated: The Politics of a World Where China is Number One.
On the episode, we discuss the party membership's divide between the intellectuals and the peasants; how the Cultural Revolution changed the party from an ideological body to a corporate one; and what a new generation of communists might have in store.
Last week Donald Trump was ordered to pay more than seventy million dollars to E. Jean Carroll, the writer who accused him of sexual assault. Freddy speaks to Spectator columnist Lionel Shriver about some of the oddities of this case against the former president.
On this week’s episode, Lionel Shriver asks if Donald Trump can get a fair trial in America (00:39), Angus Colwell speaks to the Gen-Zers who would fight for Britain (08:25), Matthew Parris makes the case for assisted dying (13:15), Toby Young tells the story of the time he almost died on his gap year (20:43), and Harry Mount tells us about the grim life of a Roman legionary (25:38).
Freddy Gray is joined in the office by Mike Baker a former CIA operations officer, CEO of the global intelligence and security firm Portman Square Group and host of the popular news podcast the President’s Daily Brief.
Gina Miller was born in Guyana to a political family, but was sent to England for her education. Fleeing dictatorship, she couldn’t receive financial support from her family, and so began finding work in hotels and handing out flyers. With an entrepreneurial spirit, Gina set up her first company in 1987 – a property photographic company. Since then, her CV boasts a myriad of achievements, degrees, the Vanity Fair Challenger Award and financial services. But she is most well known as the woman who set up the first legal challenge to the government’s attempts to trigger article 50 in 2016. Since then, my guest has worked on many anti-Brexit campaigns and in 2021 she launched The True and Fair Party.
On the podcast: have the Tories given up on liberty?
Kate Andrews writes the cover story for The Spectator this week. She argues that after the government announced plans to ban disposable vapes and smoking for those born after 2009, the Tories can no longer call themselves the party of freedom. Kate is joined by conservative peer and former health minister Lord Bethell, to discuss whether the smoking ban is a wise precedent for the government to set. (01:22)
Also this week: can the UAE be trusted on press freedom?
At The Spectator that’s a question close to our hearts at the moment as we face possibly being sold off to an Abu Dhabi backed fund. In the magazine this week Anna Somers Cocks, co-founder of the Art newspaper, writes about her own experience dealing with the UAE as an art journalist. And it's not exactly a positive one. She joins the podcast alongside The Spectator's editor Fraser Nelson. (20:03)
And finally: can Gen Z be counted upon to defend Britain?
Investigating in this week's magazine, The Spectator's assistant online editor Angus Colwell argues not. He speaks to people his own age about whether they would take up arms to defend King and country. This is of course in light of general Sir Patrick Sanders’ comment that Britain may need to resort to conscription if world events spiral further out of control. Angus joins the podcast alongside Dr Mike Martin, security expert and former British army officer. (31:16)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast my guest is Sathnam Sanghera, author of the new book Empireworld about the effect of British imperialism around the globe. He tells me why he's trying to get beyond the 'balance-sheet' view of imperial history, why we should all read W E B Dubois, and why he's not good at going on holiday.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
Freddy Gray sits down with host and producer of the 538 Politics podcast Galen Druke to discuss whether a Taylor Swift endorsement could sway the general election.
Edward Stourton is a broadcaster who has worked as foreign correspondent for the BBC, Channel 4 and ITN. He is the presenter of BBC Radio 4's Sunday Program, and presented the Today Program for ten years. He has authored eight books including his most recent, Sunday: A History of Religious Affairs through 50 Years of Conversations and Controversieswhich is available now.
On the podcast, he recalls chocolate-stuffed baguettes on Swiss ski slopes, reveals the disappointing breakfast options in the Today Program green room, and explains why heaven is eating oysters to the sound of trumpets.
Julie Bindel speaks to Pala Molisa, an academic and life coach from Vanuatu. Pala has become an outspoken critic of sex work and the left's failure to accept the implications that a sexually liberated culture can have on women's safety. On the show, Pala and Julie discuss how the porn industry deliberately grooms children into becoming a 'customer for life'; Pala's research into post-colonial power structures and the onslaught of criticism Pala received from his academic writing.
Freddy Gray speaks to Jonathan Askonas, assistant professor of politics at the Catholic University of America about Jon Stewart's return to TV, and what role, albeit inadvertent, he played in Tucker Carlson’s success.
On this episode, Richard Dawkins explains how to convert an atheist like him to a Christian (00:37), Lisa Haseldine says the German army is in a dire state (05:53), Douglas Murray looks at the return of the Trump show (12:44), Cindy Yu reviews a Chinese intelligence officers account of life under the CCP (20:14), and Mary Wakefield wonders if it’s wrong to track her child (25:14).
On the podcast: gangsterism or government?
The Covid Inquiry has moved to Scotland and, in his cover story for the magazine, our editor Fraser Nelson looks at the many revelations uncovered by Jamie Dawson KC. Fraser describes how civil servants were enlisted into what he calls an ‘SNP secret state’ and how SNP corruption is threatening devolution. Joining us to discuss is the Coffee House Scots team: Times columnist Iain Macwhirter, The Spectator’s data editor Michael Simmons and The Spectator’s social media editor Lucy Dunn who coordinates our Scotland coverage. (01:26)
Also this week:
With the UK army chief raising the prospect of conscription in the event of war with Russia, spare a thought for Germany whose plans to rebuild its army are already imploding. Lisa Haseldine, The Spectator’s assistant online editor, writes about the dire state of Germany’s army for the magazine and joins the podcast alongside Elisabeth Braw, senior fellow at the Atlantic Council. (14:58)
And finally: is the customer – in fact – always wrong?
The old maxim is that the customer is always right. But Quentin Letts, sketch writer for the Daily Mail, says that the adage has been reversed in recent times. It seems instead that the customer is always wrong, or can never be right. He joins the podcast to discuss the sorry state of modern customer service. (27:48)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
On this week’s Book Club my guest is the writer and psychoanalyst Adam Phillips, whose new book is On Giving Up. He tells me how literature relates to psychoanalysis, why censorship makes life possible, and what Freud got wrong.
Freddy Gray is joined in New Hampshire by Ben Domenech, editor at large of Spectator World. On the podcast they discuss the pro-Trump establishment of the Republican party; how the Republican cohort have changed since the Obama election and what issues Trump can identify that appeal to voters.
Today, the US and China are at loggerheads. There’s renewed talk of a Cold War as Washington finds various ways to cut China out of key supply chains and to block China’s economic development in areas like semiconductors and renewables.
There’s trade, of course, but the imbalance in that (some $370 billion in 2022) tilts in China’s favour and only serves as another source of ammunition for America’s Sinosceptics. China, on the other hand, is also decoupling in its own way, moving fast to cut its reliance on imported technology and energy.
At this moment, it seems like US-China tensions are inevitable – but look into the not so ancient history, and you’ll find a totally different picture. In fact, when it comes to Communist China’s early entry into the global economy, American policymakers and businesspeople were vital in the 1970s and 80s. You could even say that a big part of China’s economic success was ‘Made in America’.
Cindy Yu is joined on the podcast by Elizabeth Ingleson, Assistant Professor of International History at the LSE, whose upcoming book contains some very interesting research on this question. It’s called Made in China: When US-China Interests Converged to Transform Global Trade. Cindy and Elizabeth discuss President Nixon's visit to China and how that opened up decades of American economic support to the Chinese miracle – including at the expense of its own workers.
Julie Bindel speaks Bob Jensen who is an academic and writer based in Toronto. Bob has authored several papers on the damaging and exploitative effects of the porn industry. On the podcast, Julie and Bob's feminist critique of pornography; why they have both become disillusioned by the left and how Bob got cancelled when he weighed into the gender wars.
For this special Americano podcast, Freddy Gray is in New Hampshire with the Spectator US team, Matt McDonald and Zach Christenson covering the chilly primaries. Are both Ron De Santis and Nikki Haley's defeat a foregone conclusion?
This week: Spectator editor Fraser Nelson on why the Emirati ownership of the magazine matters (00:30), Robert Hardman on the time the King could have poisoned Rishi Sunak (06:24) and Michael Simmons on why sobriety isn't worth it (13:02).
Theo Clarke is Conservative MP for Stafford. She is the Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Kenya and sits on the International Development Select Committee. Before being elected she set up and sold her business and then went on to be Chief Executive of an international development charity backed by Bill Gates. Theo got involved in politics after the election expenses scandal and stood in Bristol East in 2015 and 2017. She currently Chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group on Birth Trauma and recently launched a national inquiry into this issue.
This week:
The Spectator’s cover story looks at how Britain is sobering up, forgoing alcohol in favour of alcohol free alternatives. In his piece, Henry Jeffreys – author of Empire of Booze – attacks the vice of sobriety and argues that the abstinence of young Britons will have a detrimental impact on the drinks industry and British culture. He joins the podcast alongside Camilla Tominey, associate editor of the Telegraph and a teetotaler. (01:27)
Also this week: could Mongolia be the next geopolitical flashpoint?
The Spectator’s Wild Life columnist Aidan Hartley writes in the magazine about Mongolia’s fate, as the country tries to juggle a historic relationship with China and Russia, with desires for a stronger association with the West. Aidan joins us alongside Sergey Radchenko, the Wilson E. Schmidt Distinguished Professor at the John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, to discuss Mongolia’s dilemma. (17:10)
And finally: why isn’t Lenin as reviled as some of history’s other villains?
To coincide with the centenary of Vladimir Lenin’s death, James Bartholomew writes about the increase in pro-Lenin sympathy amongst young people. He says that despite Lenin’s many crimes, around 15% of young people approve of him. To discuss James's article, Lara speaks to Robert Service, author of Lenin: A Biography. (27:39)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Applications to join the Spectator’s broadcast team will close on Sunday. So if you noticed any mistakes in this podcast, any inaccuracies or perhaps even a sloppy editing job in this podcast, then you could be exactly who we need. To apply, follow the link: https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/wanted-a-broadcast-producer-for-the-spectator-2/
In this week’s Book Club podcast, I’m joined by Rebecca Boyle to talk about her new book Our Moon: A Human History. She tells me how we know that the moon is more than just an inert lump of rock in the sky and how the whole of human life – and civilisation – may depend on it.
Alexandra Collier is a Melbourne-based writer who has written for theatre, screen and print. She is a MacDowell fellow and a recipient of the RE Ross Trust playwrites' award. Her memoir Inconceivable, about her journey to becoming a solo Mum by choice, is out now.
On the podcast she tells Lara and Liv why restaurants are inherently theatrical places, discusses her experience with IVF, and explains that it takes a village to raise a child.
Photo credit: Karin Locke.
Just before Christmas, the Vatican's new doctrinal chief Cardinal Victor ‘Tucho’ Fernandez unveiled a new style of blessing designed to make gay couples feel at home in church without changing the Church's teaching on marriage. The Argentinian Tucho has for years been Pope Francis's protégé – but for how much longer? The new gay blessings, supposedly blessing the couple but not their union, have been decisively rejected by all the Catholic bishops of Africa, forcing Francis to backtrack and say they could ignore Fernandez’s decree. Then, last week, it was revealed that in 1998 Tucho published a book on, of all things, the theology of orgasms. It is jaw-droppingly graphic, has been widely described as ‘creepy’, and has encouraged leading cardinals hoping to succeed Francis to distance themselves from this pontificate.
Listen to this episode of Holy Smoke if you want to know about the new crisis tearing apart the Catholic Church – but be warned: the erotic musings of the future Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith are not suitable for children.
Julie Bindel speaks to Michael Conroy who teaches boys against rape, domestic violence and porn use. Michael set up Men At Work – an organisation that looks at 'macho culture', the different ways boys are brought up to fight, and in some cases become abusive towards women and girls.
This week: Cindy Yu reads her piece ahead of the Taiwanese elections (00:54), Mary Wakefield discusses the US opioid crisis which she fears has come to the UK (07:13), and Natasha Feroze tells us about the rise of relationship contracts (13:26).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
This week: can anyone stop Trump?
The Spectator’s deputy editor Freddy Guy takes a look at Trump's ‘second coming’ in his cover story. He says that despite Trump’s legal troubles, he is almost certain to receive the Republican nomination. Freddy joins the podcast alongside Amber Duke, who also writes in the magazine this week about the brides of trump: the women hoping to receive the nod as his running mate.
Also this week: the old trope is that there is nothing more ex than an ex prime minister, but what about an ex MP?
In the magazine this week, The Spectator’s political correspondent James Heale says that Tory MPs expecting to lose their seats at the next election are jumping on the 'green gravy train' and taking up consultancy positions in the fast-growing climate sector. He joins the podcast alongside Edwina Currie, author, broadcaster, and former Tory MP, to talk about life after politics.
And finally: is self-publishing the future?
Alison Kervin, author and former sports editor at the Mail on Sunday, discusses the rise of self-publishing for The Spectator. In her piece, she praises its financial benefits and argues that it allows writers to overcome some of the problems caused by gatekeepers at the big publishing houses. Alison joins us alongside author and Spectator columnist, Lionel Shriver.
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
The Spectator is hiring! We are looking for a new producer to join our broadcast team working across our suite of podcasts – including this one – as well as our YouTube channel Spectator TV. Follow the link to read the full job listing: https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/wanted-a-broadcast-producer-for-the-spectator-2/
The Book Club will return next week! In the meantime we are revisiting Sam’s conversation from 2020 with Hadley Freeman whose book House of Glass tells the story of 20th century jewry through the hidden history of her own family. The four Glahs siblings — one of them the writer’s grandmother — grew up in a Polish shtetl just a few miles from what was to become Auschwitz. They fled the postwar pogroms to Paris; and then had to contend with the rise of a new and still more dangerous antisemitism under the Vichy regime. Hadley traced their story through two wars and across continents, and tells Sam how the story reflects both on Jewish history and urgent concerns of the present day. She even offers an intriguing cameo of the teenage Donald Trump…
Freddy Gray is joined by pollster James Johnson, co-founder of JL Partners. They speak about the upcoming Iowa caucuses, the New Hampshire primary, and whether Trump’s opponents have any chance of beating him. They also discuss the impact of Trump’s trials, and JL Partners’ viral word cloud which both Biden and Trump have been attempting to use to their advantage. (Photo credit: JL Partners)
The Spectator is hiring! We are looking for a new producer to join our broadcast team working across our suite of podcasts – including this one – as well as our YouTube channel Spectator TV. Follow the link to read the full job listing: https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/wanted-a-broadcast-producer-for-the-spectator-2/
India is the fifth largest economy in the world, and now has a population larger than China’s. It’s no surprise, then, that officials in Washington often see India as a powerful non-western bulwark to growing Chinese power. On this episode of Chinese Whispers, Cindy Yu look’s at where China and India’s rivalry comes from. How much have long-lasting skirmishes on the China-Indian border damaged relations? How have demographics, economic competition and recent international conflicts affected the relationship between the two countries? And are the domestic politics of China and India in fact more similar than most westerners like to admit?
Cindy Yu speaks to Avinash Paliwal, an international relations expert at the School of Oriental and African Studies, and the author of India’s Near East: A New History.
Julie Bindel speaks to law academic, Michael Foran who is based at the University of Glasgow. Michael played a key role campaigning against Nicola Sturgeon who attempted to push through the Gender Recognition Act (GRA) – a bill allowing self identifying females into women's spaces. Michael wrote a legal paper to explain how the GRA could be in breach of equality laws – and bring down Sturgeon's campaign.
This week: Svitlana Morenets explains why Ukrainians can't trust Putin's hollow promises (00:57), James Heale reads his politics column on Rishi's January blues (05:42), and Theo Hobson describes the joys of middle-aged football (10:54).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
For the first Americano episode of 2024, Freddy Gray is joined by Peter Wood, President of the National Association of Scholars to discuss Claudine Gay's resignation from Harvard University. On the podcast Freddy and Peter discuss Gay's accusations of plagiarism; how the row has became wrapped up in racism, and what this means for the future of affirmative action in America.
The Spectator is hiring! We are looking for a new producer to join our broadcast team working across our suite of podcasts – including this one – as well as our YouTube channel Spectator TV. Follow the link to read the full job listing: https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/wanted-a-broadcast-producer-for-the-spectator-2/
On the podcast:
In his new year’s address this year Vladimir Putin made no mention of the war in Ukraine – despite missile strikes over the Christmas period – and now Owen Matthews reports in The Spectator this week rumours that Putin could be looking to broker a land-for-peace deal. Unfortunately – Owen says – this deal would mean freezing the conflict along its current lines and the de facto partition of Ukraine. Owen joins the podcast alongside The Spectator’s Svitlana Morenets who gives her own take on Putin’s 'peace' deal in the magazine this week. (01:21)
Next: Former Sky News and GB News broadcaster Colin Brazier writes a farmer’s notebook in The Spectator this week about his new life as a farming student. He brings to light how the culture wars have percolated into the world of agriculture and is joined by farmer and former Tory MP Neil Parish, to discuss. (26:18)
And finally: are video games really a waste of time?
The Spectator’s literary editor Sam Leith explains – in advance of his first video games column for the magazine – that video games are not in fact a waste of time but an artform which should be appreciated as such. He joins the podcast alongside Simon Parkin, writer, contributor to the New Yorker and the host of the My Perfect Console Podcast. (39:10).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
The Spectator is hiring! We are looking for a new producer to join our broadcast team working across our suite of podcasts – including this one – as well as our YouTube channel Spectator TV. Follow the link to read the full job listing: https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/wanted-a-broadcast-producer-for-the-spectator-2/
The Book Club is taking a brief Christmas break, so we have gone back through the archives to spotlight some of our favourite episodes. This week we are revisiting Sam's conversation from 2017 with the Pulitzer Prize winning historian (and former Spectator deputy editor) Anne Applebaum about her devastating new book Red Famine.
The early 1930s in Ukraine saw a famine that killed around five million people. But fierce arguments continue to this day over whether the 'Holodomor' was a natural disaster or a genocide perpetrated by Stalin against the people and culture of Ukraine. Sam asks Anne about what we now know of what actually happened — and what it means for our understanding of the present day situation in the former Soviet Union.
Philip Hensher is a novelist and regular contributor to The Spectator’s books pages. His books cover a variety of subjects and often deal with important historical change, such as the fall of the Berlin wall and the war in Afghanistan. His most recent novel is To Battersea Park.
On the podcast, he discusses how he developed an affection for offal as a small child, the secret to an ‘austerely perfect’ carbonara, and why food is a such a great character device for novelists.
The Book Club is taking a brief Christmas break, so we have gone back through the archives to spotlight some of our favourite episodes. This week we are revisiting Sam's conversation from 2017 with Robert Webb. His moving and funny book How Not To Be A Boy turns the material of a memoir into a heartfelt polemic about what he calls 'The Trick': the gender expectations that he identifies as causing many of the agonies of his adolescence and young manhood. What is it to be a man? Are we doomed to lives of inarticulacy, shagging, fighting and drinking — giving pain and fear their only outlet in anger?
Susan Hall is a born and bred Londoner running for one of the most important jobs in the city. After leaving school at 18 she had dreams of being a mechanic and struggled to get into technical college. She was later a business owner, running a beauty salon and hairdressing business.
Susan has been involved in politics for almost twenty years. Starting out first as a Councillor in Harrow, she later ran the Conservative group before leading the Council itself. In 2017 she joined the General London Assembly replacing Kemi Badenoch. Within two years she was running the Conservative group there too. Her rise in Conservative politics continues, as this year she was selected to be the Conservative candidate for the 2024 London Mayoral election.
The Book Club is taking a brief Christmas break, so we have gone back through the archives to spotlight some of our favourite episodes. This week we are revisiting Sam's conversation from 2017 with Philip Collins, former speech writer to Tony Blair, about his book When They Go Low, We Go High: Speeches That Shape The World and Why We Need Them. He takes Sam through the history of rhetoric, how Camus is the original centrist Dad, and why David Miliband’s victory speech is perhaps one of the best speeches never delivered.
Freedom of speech is one of the fundamental tenets of a liberal democracy, and yet threats to freedom of speech today don’t so much come from authoritarians abroad as they do from within. The idea of ‘no-platforming’ those you disagree with, or ‘cancelling’ them, has taken root in all forms of public debate, and increasingly so in science. The word ‘science’ can today often be a shorthand for ‘truth’, which creates an orthodoxy where diversity of opinion is not welcomed. Science is meant to be ongoing process of finding truth, where what each generation takes as given may well be overturned as we discover more.
On this podcast, we will be looking into the question of free speech within science, and asking whether we have lost sight of what science means. Is it simply the case that in an age where misinformation travels at lightning speed, there needs to be greater restrictions on freedom of speech in science?
Cindy Yu, assistant editor at The Spectator, is joined by Professor Jay Bhattacharya, an expert in health policy at Stanford University, David Willetts, a former science minister who sits on the board of a number of scientific bodies, and Dr Gizelle Baker, who trained in biometry and epidemiology and is the vice president of global scientific engagement at tobacco company Philip Morris International.
Philip Morris International are kindly sponsoring this podcast.
Michel Roux Jr. is an English-French chef and is the chef patron of Le Gavroche, the first restaurant in the UK to received one, two and then three Michelin stars. Earlier this year it was announced that Le Gavroche will close its doors in January.
On the podcast, he recalls how his father would hand churn vanilla ice cream, reveals his fondness for both traditional French custard and English packet custard, and tells Liv and Lara why Le Gavroche is closing.
On this week's episode, Peter Hitchens remembers a Christmas in Bucharest, Lionel Shriver says people don't care about Ukraine anymore, Ed West wonders if you can ‘meme’ yourself into believing in God, Mary Wellesley reads her ‘Notes On’ St Nicholas, and Melissa Kite says she had to move to Ireland to escape the EU‘s rules.
Welcome to this festive episode of the Edition podcast, where we will be taking you through the pages of The Spectator’s special Christmas triple issue.
Up first: What a year in politics it has been. 2023 has seen scandals, sackings, arrests and the return of some familiar faces. It’s easy to forget that at the start of the year Nicola Sturgeon was still leader of the SNP! To make sense of it all is editor of The Spectator, Fraser Nelson, The Spectator’s political editor Katy Balls, and Quentin Letts, sketch writer for the Daily Mail. (01:06)
Next: The story that has dominated the pages of The Spectator in the latter half of this year is of course the conflict in Gaza. Writing in the Christmas magazine, Milbank Family Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and Bloomberg Opinion columnist Niall Ferguson discusses the history of generational divide when it comes to geopolitical conflicts. This is partly inspired by a piece that Douglas Murray wrote earlier in the year, pointing out the generational divide in the Anglosphere when it comes to support for either Israel or Palestine. They both join the podcast to ask why the kids aren’t all right? (19:29)
Then: In the Christmas magazine this year Charles Moore discusses the divine comedy of PG Wodehouse, and discloses to readers the various literary and biblical references contained within The Code of the Woosters. To unpack the Master’s references further and discuss the genius of Wodehouse, Charles is joined by evolutionary biologist and author, Richard Dawkins. (41:03)
And finally: who would put on a village Christmas play?
This is the question Laurie Graham asks in her piece for The Spectator where she rues her decision to once again take charge of her community's Christmas play. It’s a struggle that our own William Moore knows all too well. He has written and will star in his local village Christmas play this year. Laurie and William join the podcast to discuss how to put on a great Christmas play. (57:30).
Throughout the podcast you will also hear from The Spectator’s agony aunt Dear Mary and the special celebrity guests who have sought her advice in this year's Christmas magazine, including Joanna Lumley (17:43), Nigel Havers (39:36), Sharron Davies (55:56) and Edwina Currie (01:10:59).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is the food historian Pen Vogler, author of the new Stuffed: A History of Good Food and Hard Times in Britain. Pen tells me how crises have affected British food culture from the age of enclosures onwards, how rows over free school meals are nothing new, and why the Christmas pudding tells the story of Empire.
Taiwan goes to the polls in just over a month. This is an election that could have wide repercussions, given the island’s status as a potential flashpoint in the coming years.
The incumbent President, Tsai Ing-wen, is coming to the end of two elected terms, meaning that she cannot run again. Her party’s chosen successor is William Lai – Lai Ching-te – who is the current vice president. For most of this year, he has been facing off opposition from the Kuomintang, the biggest opposition party in Taiwan, and the Taiwan People’s Party, a third party led by the charismatic Ko Wen-je.
Lai remains in the lead with a month to go, but polls show that the KMT is only a few points behind, meaning that an upset is still possible. Since Taiwan became a democracy, it’s the KMT that has been the party calling for closer relations to China, and Tsai and Lai’s DPP that has been more pro-independence and pro-West. Given Beijing has shut off the hotline with Taipei in protest of the DPP since Tsai was first elected in 2016, if Lai wins in January, relations with Beijing are unlikely to get better. But how can the KMT justify closer relations with China, when it seems like the world is in a different place compared to 2015, the last time the KMT held the presidency?
Joining the episode is William Yang, a Taipei-based freelance correspondent, who has written for Voice of America, Deutsche Welle, the Guardian and the Times.
This week: James Heale reads his politics column on Sunak's migration minefield (00:55), Michael Simmons says that Scotland's 'progressive' teaching methods have badly backfired (05:53), and Mary Wakefield asks: why can't I pray in Westminster Abbey? (11:40)
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Jacqui Smith was born in Malvern, where she joined the Labour party aged 16. After graduating from Oxford, Jacqui moved to London and worked briefly as a parliamentary researcher but trained to be a teacher and became head of economics. The temptation to electoral politics eventually pulled her back. Having failed the first time, Jacqui became the MP for Redditch in 1997 – labeled one of ‘Blair’s babes’.
Within two years, Jacqui joined the government, and under Gordon Brown, she became the first female Home Secretary, a post she later described as a ’poisoned chalice’ to her successor. She resigned over a dispute related to parliamentary expenses, spending a few years as backbench MP. Since leaving politics Jacqui has served as Chair on several public and private posts. Now she co-hosts the LBC weekly show with Iain Dale and chairs two NHS trusts.
In her cover piece for the magazine this week, The Spectator’s political editor Katy Balls writes that whilst Keir Starmer’s accession seems certain, his agenda is less so. She tries to piece together what a Labour government would look like and which areas they will chose to prioritise. Katy joins the podcast alongside Paul Mason, the journalist who is seeking a Labour seat at the next election. They debate: does Keir Starmer stack up?
Also on the podcast:
Journalist and scriptwriter Gareth Roberts writes in the magazine this week about the fading art of the pantomime dame and pleads with us to take the politics out of drag. He is joined by The Spectator’s business editor – and occasional pantomime dame – Martin Vander Weyer.
And finally:
The Spectator’s arts editor Igor Toronyi-Lalic writes the arts lead for the magazine this week about Iris Barry, the pioneering Spectator film critic who he transformed British cinema. He joins the podcast to discuss.
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
How should we think of the 26 million people in the UK living with a long-term health condition? Under the current system, only a handful of long-term conditions are prioritised. This leads to a huge strain on NHS resources and capacity later down the road, as long-term health conditions comprise 50 per cent of all GP appointments and 70 per cent hospital bed days. What's more, 2.5 million working-age adults are out of the labour market because of long-term sickness.
How do we better make the NHS – and politicians – accountable to these patients? With treatment and care of patients with long term conditions estimated to take up around £7 in every £10 of total health and social care expenditure, we urgently need fresh thinking to grasp the scale and scope of this challenge.
Isabel Hardman hosts this special episode of Spectator Briefingswith a panel of expert guests:
Guy Opperman MP, Minister for Employment
Lord Nick Markham, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for the Lords) - DHSC
Richard Sloggett, Founder – Future Health Research
Georgina Carr, Chief Executive – Neurological Alliance
Todd Manning, VP and General Manager – Abbvie UK
Developed in association with and funded by AbbVie.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Arthur Conan Doyle's biographer (and historical consultant to the new BBC TV programme Killing Sherlock) Andrew Lycett. Introducing his new book The Worlds of Sherlock Holmes: The Inspiration Behind the World's Greatest Detective, Andrew tells me about the vexed relation between the great consulting detective and his creator, and the extraordinary afterlife of this apparently ephemeral creation.
Tara Wigley is the in-house writer for the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen, she also has a weekly column in the Guardian and a monthly column in the New York Times which she shares with Yotam Ottolenghi.
On the podcast she reminisces about her father's 'egg in the cup', the secret to a great Ottolenghi recipe, and takes Lara and Liv through her new book How to Butter Toast, which is written completely in verse.
This week: Katy Balls on what the Elgin Marbles row is really about (00:56); Lionel Shriver on feckless politicians when it comes to immigration (06:43) and Marcus Walker on his rage against multi-faith prayer rooms (15:37).
On the podcast:
In her cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator's assistant editor Cindy Yu – writing ahead of the COP28 summit this weekend – describes how China has cornered the renewables market. She joins the podcast alongside Akshat Rathi, senior climate reporter for Bloomberg and author of Climate Capitalism: Winning the Global Race to Zero Emissions, to investigate China's green agenda. (01:22)
Also this week:
Margaret Mitchell writes in The Spectator about the uncertainty she is facing around her graduate visa. This is after last week's statistics from the ONS showed that net migration remains unsustainably high, leaving the government under pressure to curb legal migration. Margaret joins the podcast with Michael Simmons, The Spectator’s data editor. (13:07)
And finally: why not eat man’s best friend?
This is the question that Sean Thomas grapples with in his piece for the magazine this week. He writes in light of the news that South Korea aims to ban eating dogs and recalls his experience sampling dog meat in Cambodia. He is joined by The Spectator’s vintage chef, Olivia Potts. (21:42)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
On this week's Book Club podcast, my guest is Guy Kennaway, whose new novel Good Scammer sprinkles a protective dusting of fiction over the true story of the real-life king of Jamaica's phone scammers. Guy tells me why telephone fraud might be considered ad-hoc reparations for slavery, why James Bond is a Jamaican, and why the island on which he has lived for 35 years is in no danger of turning into Switzerland-in-the-Caribbean.
Across the span of China, a country as big as Europe, there are countless regional dialects and accents – perhaps even languages. Often, they're mutually unintelligible.
The Chinese call these ‘fangyan’, and each Chinese person will likely be able to speak at least one fangyan, while also understanding Standard Mandarin, the official language of the People's Republic. It means that the Chinese are more multilingual than you might think.
But it also means that the question of language is inherently a political one. Standard Mandarin has a relatively short history, created by the country’s founding fathers to unify the spoken word in a huge country. But with the ubiquity of Standard Mandarin now, is fangyan at risk of dying out?
Joining the episode is Gina Tam, a historian and author of Dialect and Nationalism in China.
This week: David Swift looks at whether hope remains in Jaffa, Isreal (00:51); Mary Wakefield on the civil service’s ‘say my name’ campaign (06:49) and Peter Hitchens on his time in prison (13:17).
Alison McGovern sits on Labour’s front bench as the shadow minister for work and pensions but was first elected as an MP in 2010. Growing up in Merseyside, her grandfather was a folk singer who wrote ‘My Liverpool Home’. Her father was a railwayman that campaigned for better working conditions, but it was her mother that sparked her interest in politics.
Following a successful career as Labour councillor she went onto win her seat for Wirral South. Alison has led several senior posts for Labour, which began as Gordon Brown’s parliamentary secretary, then Opposition Whip, Shadow Minister for international development, Shadow Education, Shadow Treasury Minister and Shadow DCMS Minister.
On the podcast:
Anshel Pfeffer writes The Spectator’s cover story this week. He voices concern that support from Israel’s allies might begin to waver if they don’t develop a viable plan after the war finishes. Paul Wood – former BBC foreign correspondent – and Dennis Ross – former Middle East coordinator under President Clinton and advisor to President Obama – join the podcast to debate whether Israel can rely on its allies. (01:18)
Also this week:
In the Books section of the magazine this week we review Andy Stanton’s new book Benny The Blue Whale. It has a fascinating inception and was co-authored by the machine learning tool ChatGPT. Andy is joined by crime author Ajay Chowdhury, who is also known for using AI as a writing tool, to discuss whether AI is the future of fiction. (23:02)
And finally: when is it acceptable to date a widower?
This is the question that Elisa Segrave ponders in her piece in the magazine. She says that recently bereaved men are much sought after, and joins the podcast alongside Cosmo Landesman, journalist and former dating columnist for the Times. (35:45)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Freddy Gray talks to McKay Coppins, author of the New York Times bestselling book 'Romney: A Reckoning'.
Romney has announced he will not seek reelection in 2024. What next for the 'never-Trumper', could he support the creation of a new centrist party? And how does he feel about the significant losses in his career?
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is the art critic Jonathan Jones. The term 'renaissance' is out of fashion among scholars these days, but in his new book Earthly Delights: A History of the Renaissance Jonathan argues that it points to something momentous in human history. On the podcast, Jonathan makes the case for what that something is – which is perhaps more heretical, and less Italian, than we might have remembered.
Celia Walden is a journalist, novelist and critic whose most recent novel, The Square, is out now. On the podcast she tells Lara and Liv why lentils are her ultimate comfort food, explains the joys of a buttered scotch pancake and discloses her husband Piers' signature dish, 'spaghetti Morganese'.
This week, Svitlana Morenets says Ukraine’s counteroffensive is not living up to the hype (00:59), Sean Thomas says he likes travelling to crappy towns (10:27), and Angus Colwell defends London’s rickshaw drivers (17:38).
Presented and produced by Max Jeffery.
How we achieve net zero is more than just a political or environmental decision. It is one that will have huge societal impacts. How we get our energy translates to how we move around, how we heat our homes. It’s a reminder that the energy transition has many trade-offs, as we navigate achieving net zero while protecting the wellbeing of people and industry, especially during a cost-of-living crisis.
Might hydrogen be part of the answer? In this special podcast, The Spectator’s economics editor Kate Andrews speaks with those working in government, NGOs, and industry about how to unlock this technology. She is joined by Chris Stark, Chief Executive of Climate Change Committee (CCC); Chris Skidmore MP, author of the government’s net zero review; Emma Pinchbeck, CEO of Energy UK; and Jon Butterworth, CEO of National Gas.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by National Gas.
On the podcast:
It's been a busy week in Westminster. On Monday, Rishi Sunak's first major reshuffle saw Suella Braverman sacked and David Cameron make a surprise return to politics. Then two days later, the Supreme Court's Rwanda ruling left the government's pledge to 'stop the boats' in tatters. It was meant to be the week in which Rishi Sunak had hoped to stamp his authority on a fracturing party, but it seems to have only added to the narrative of Tory disrepair. Katy Balls writes about Rishi’s last gamble in the magazine this week, and joins the podcast alongside Kate Andrews, The Spectator’s economics editor. (01:01)
Also this week:
Svitlana Morenets writes a candid account of the current state of the war in Ukraine for The Spectator. After visiting the frontline recently, she concludes that Zelensky needs to start being upfront with the population about the harsh realities on the battlefield and abandon his current line of tactical optimism. She is joined by Owen Matthews, The Spectator’s Russia correspondent, to discuss. (15:05)
And finally: what happened to the golden era of television ?
Zoe Strimpel writes in the arts section of the magazine this week that after a boom in quality TV starting in the early 2000s, we are now in the televisual dark ages. She joins the podcast alongside James Delingpole, regular television reviewer for The Spectator. (32:51)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast my guest is Terry Hayes, author of the squillion-selling thriller I Am Pilgrim. He tells me about invisible submarines, taking advice on crucifixion from Mel Gibson, and why it took him ten years to follow up that first novel with his new book The Year of the Locust.
Controlling history is key to the Chinese Communist Party’s control of the country. Whether it’s playing up the ‘century of humiliation’, or whitewashing past mistakes like the Great Leap Forward or the Tiananmen Protests, the Party expends huge effort and resources on controlling the narrative.
That’s why it’s so important and interesting to look at those Chinese people who are documenting the bits of history that the Party doesn’t want you to know about. They interview survivors from Communist labour camps, or keep their own memoirs of the Cultural Revolution, and try to keep the memory of past horrors alive through film, magazines and paintings.
A new book called Sparks documents their work. Its author is Ian Johnson, a Pulitzer-Prize winning writer and long time China journalist. Ian calls these people the ‘underground historians’. He joins this episode of Chinese Whispers.
Visit https://minjian-danganguan.org/ to see some of their work documented, in an upcoming website founded by Ian and others.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Patrick Gibbons.
When I was in Rome last month, I watched the 'synod on synodality' fizzle out while the Marko Rupnik sex scandal took another sinister turn (and various Catholic journalists shamefully tried to suppress the story). But don't worry: this episode of Holy Smoke is devoted to more uplifting matters. I visited the ancient little church of Saints Cosmas and Damian on the edge of the Forum, which incorporates the remains of a pagan temple and a secular Roman basilica or meeting place. The contrast between the darkness of one and the light of the other had powerful theological significance for those Roman Christians who were encouraged to build their first official churches by Constantine. And I was lucky to have it explained to me by one of the world's leading architectural historians, Dr Elizabeth Lev. We spoke, sometimes sotto voce, inside the little church, with tour guides and visitors swirling around us. So, apologies for the inevitable background noise, but I hope you'll agree that it doesn't get in the way of Liz's gripping narrative.
This week, Michael Simmons looks at the dodgy graph thats justified the second lockdown (00:55), Christopher Howse examines what happened to received pronunciation (05:56), and Melissa Kite wonders whether Surrey’s busybodies have followed her and her boyfriend to Cork (14:47).
Presented and produced by Max Jeffery.
Arlene Phillips was born in Lancashire, but moved to London to pursue her love for dance. She started age 3 and by the age of 20 she became a dance teacher. From here she formed the dance troupe Hot Gossip and made regular appearances on the Kenny Everett show, catapulting her into the public eye. She went on to be involved with some of the biggest productions on West End – including Grease, Guys and Dolls and the Sound of Music. She’s also choreographed films such as 1982’s Annie and has worked with some of the stars like Freddie Mercury and Tina Turner.
In 2004 Arlene was on the original judging panel for Strictly Come Dancing – now one of the nation’s favourite shows. Arlene has no shortage of awards and most recently received royal praise, being awarded a Damehood in the 2021 Birthday Honours.
On the podcast:
In his cover piece for The Spectator Ian Acheson discusses the potential disruption to Armistice Day proceedings in London this weekend. He says that Metropolitan Police Chief Mark Rowley is right to let the pro-Palestine protests go ahead, if his officers can assertively enforce the law. He joins the podcast alongside Baroness Claire Fox to discuss the problems of policing protest.
Next: are smartphones making us care less about humanity?
This is the question that Mary Wakefield grapples with in her column in The Spectator. She says it’s no wonder that Gen Z lack empathy when they spend most of their lives on social media. She is joined by Gaia Bernstein, author ofUnwired: Gaining Control over Addictive Technologies.
And finally:
Alan Hollinghurst writes this week about Ronald Firbank, the innovative but little known English author who has recently been awarded a blue plaque. In the magazine he sets out the reasons why he is so deserving and is joined alongside The Spectator's literary editor Sam Leith, to discuss further.
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast, I'm joined by the novelist Jonathan Lethem. Two decades after his breakthrough book The Fortress of Solitude crowned Lethem the literary laureate of Brooklyn, he returns to the borough's never-quite-gentrified streets with the new Brooklyn Crime Novel. He tells me why he felt the need to go back, and talks about race, intimacy, realism, the 'non-fiction novel' – and why he regrets his beef with the critic James Wood.
Victoria Hislop is a bestselling author and a lover of all things Mediterranean. Victoria’s first book 'The Island', came out in 2005 and became an immediate international best-seller. Victoria’s subsequent novels have explored the Spanish Civil War, Cyprus and the Greek islands, and she’s celebrated for cleverly combining history, culture, family, time and place into fascinating stories. Her latest book ‘The Figurine’, is out now and it deals with the contentious subject of acquiring cultural treasures. Now an honorary Greek citizen, Victoria divides her time between Kent and Athens.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Linden Kemkaran.
Every year, The Spectator travels the country in search of the best and boldest new companies that are disrupting their respective industries. In a series of five podcasts, we will tell you about the finalists for 2023's Innovator of the Year Awards, sponsored by Investec. The awards winners will be announced in a prize ceremony in November.
Listeners will have heard businesses in all sorts of fields – from consumer goods to health technology, from sustainability to the cutting edge of British engineering. But what about the companies that make these businesses work? The behind-the-scenes, boiler room people who offer services to businesses themselves. These days, with advancement in artificial intelligence, their work has been made more effective than ever before. Britain, after all, brought us Alan Turing and Tim Berners-Lee.
Martin Vander Weyer, The Spectator's business editor, judges the awards and hosts this podcast along with three other judges: Melissa Readman, partner and investor director at ESM Investments, a fund which invests in early stage companies; Caroline Theobald CBE, an entrepreneur and co-owner of FIRST, which provides enterprise training to young people and business leaders; and Michelle White, co-head of Investec's private office.
The finalists in this category are:* Igloo Vision, which creates immersive spaces using virtual reality for companies and organisations. * Synthesia, an AI video creation platform that produces videos quickly and cheaply. * ComplyAdvantage, which uses AI and machine learning to carry out financial due diligence for corporate clients. * SoPost, which uses a digital platform to help streamline supply chains for retailers. * Good-Loop, which converts clicks on online ads into revenue for partnership charities. * Yoti, which provides digital IDs for identity verification. * Exclaimer, which provides email signature solutions for the marketing and other needs of businesses. * LegalVision, which provides legal advice on an affordable, subscription basis. * Finboot, which uses blockchain to help businesses track the environmental impact of their supply chains. * Huboo Technologies Ltd, which takes care of the storage and shipping needs of e-commerce businesses that don't have their own warehouses.
Every year, The Spectator travels the country in search of the best and boldest new companies that are disrupting their respective industries. In a series of five podcasts, we will tell you about the finalists for 2023's Innovator of the Year Awards, sponsored by Investec. The awards winners will be announced in a prize ceremony in November.
This episode showcases the finalists in the Sustainability and Social Purpose category. These businesses all want to make the world a better place – whether that’s through helping reduce our emissions or giving back to the local community. They believe that business isn’t just for profit, but for a purpose.
Martin Vander Weyer, The Spectator's business editor, judges the awards and hosts this podcast along with three other judges: Eva-Maria Dimitriadis, CEO of The Conduit Connect, which connects businesses with an eye to social and environmental impact with investors and mentors; Clive Bawden, chief operations officer of Warwick Music Group, a company that makes affordable instruments made from plastic and a former winner of the Innovator of the Year Awards; and Michelle White, co-head of Investec's private office.
The finalists in this category are:* Coracle, which provides digital education to prisoners. * Beam, which supports homeless and other disadvantaged people to get jobs, homes and skills. * Agricarbon, which provides affordable and accurate soil carbon audits in aid of regenerative farming. * Aqua Metrology Systems Ltd, which provides water monitoring to local municipalities, to ensure their water is safe. * Sunamp, which uses patented 'heat batteries' to store heat produced by heat pumps, instead of water tanks. * Celtic Renewables, which produces sustainable chemicals from unwanted wastes and residues. * CeraPhi, which uses the earth's heat, accessible from end-of-life oil and gas wells, to produce clean energy. * NatureSpace Partnership Ltd, which helps housing developers and local authorities check for newts, a protected species, in proposed sites for building.
This week: Katy Balls reads her politics column on Keir Starmer's ceasefire predicament (00:54), Matthew Parris warns us of the dangers of righteous anger (06:48), and Fabian Carstairs tells us how he found himself on an internet dating blacklist (14:29).
Presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Oscar Edmondson.
This week:
The Covid Inquiry has reached its more dramatic stage this week with the likes of Domic Cummings, Lee Cain and Martin Reynolds giving evidence. But in his cover piece for the magazine Carl Heneghan, professor of evidence-based medicine at the University of Oxford and director of the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine, says that the Hallett Inquiry is asking all the wrong questions, and is preoccupied with who said what on WhatsApp. He joins the podcast alongside Tom Whipple, science editor at the Times to go through this week's revelations. (01:43).
Also this week: will Israel succeed in its stated aims?
In the magazine this week Hugh Lovatt, senior policy fellow at the European Council of Foreign Relations, argues that Israel has misjudged growing support for Hamas throughout the Middle East and underestimates how hard the group will be to eradicate. He joins the podcast to discuss. (17:49).
And finally:
Fabian Carstairs, who works for The Spectator’s digital team, writes this week about his surprise at finding himself on the Facebook group, 'Are we dating the same guy?' The group aims to highlight ‘red flag men’ in the hope of protecting women. He is joined by Flora Gill, freelance journalist who investigated the group for the Times. (29:25).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast, my guest is Nicholas Shakespeare, author of Ian Fleming: The Complete Man. He tells me about the astonishing secret life of a writer whose adventures in espionage were more than the equal of his creation's; and about the damaged childhood and serially broken heart of a man far kinder and more sympathetic than his biographer had ever suspected.
Every year, The Spectator travels the country in search of the best and boldest new companies that are disrupting their respective industries. In a series of five podcasts, we will tell you about the finalists for 2023's Innovator of the Year Awards, sponsored by Investec. The awards winners will be announced in a prize ceremony in November.
The businesses in this category are reinventing the very staple goods that we, as consumers, use everyday, from pet food to laundry tabs. You might not think that much can be done to improve on them, but some bright British entrepreneurs have come up with great ideas. Finalists include a subscription service for children’s bikes, so you can trade up as your children grow, and prams that can gently rock your baby to sleep while playing soothing background sounds.
Martin Vander Weyer, The Spectator's business editor, judges the awards and hosts this podcast along with three other judges: Merryn Somerset Webb, senior columnist at Bloomberg and former editor in chief of Moneyweek; Gordon Black, investor and former chairman of Peter Black Holdings, a major supplier of retail goods; and Michelle White, co-head of Investec's private office.
The finalists in this category are:* Rockit, which produces affordable vibrating devices that gently rock prams, strollers and cots to give parents some time off. * The Friendly Chemical Co, which produces eco-friendly household, personal care and laundry products. * Bike Club, which is Europe's largest subscription provider of children's bikes. * Pets Purest, which creates all-natural supplements to treat ailments in pets, such as digestive, skin and joint issues. * Lovat Parks Ltd, which is a provider of holiday homes and caravan parks. * Net World Sports, which sells premium sports equipment at cost. * Cascade Cash Management Ltd, which helps customers get the best returns on their savings. * Smartify, a culture and museums app, which has partnered with more than 700 cultural institutions internationally. * Picture News, which produces thought-provoking and engaging news resources to help teachers explore current affairs with pupils of all ages.
All cultures care about their cuisine, but the Chinese must have one of the most food-obsessed cultures in the world.
You may have come across the classic Chinese takeaway with dishes like sweet and sour pork, or you may like Cantonese dim sum, and some of you may be big fans of Sichuanese cooking.
But China has so much more to offer than what has made across into the West’s Chinese restaurants. Thankfully, that’s changing and quite fast.
Part of the education campaign to bring more of the diversity and richness of Chinese cuisine to the West is the work of people like Fuchsia Dunlop. She trained to cook in Chengdu and is one of the most engaging and thoughtful writers on Chinese cuisine in the English language.
Fuchsia Dunlop joins Cindy Yu on the podcast today, to mark the publication of her new book, Invitation to a Banquet, which is all about the history, meaning and diversity of Chinese cuisine.
Every year, The Spectator travels the country in search of the best and boldest new companies that are disrupting their respective industries. In a series of five podcasts, we will tell you about the finalists for 2023's Innovator of the Year Awards, sponsored by Investec. The awards winners will be announced in a prize ceremony in November.
In the West, the UK was the first country to create a national health service, free at the point of use. And yet 75 years on, it’s rare that a winter goes by without some kind of crisis in the NHS. And that’s not even to mention the impact of the pandemic on waiting lists.
In this category we’re looking at innovations in the British health industry. How can we do things better? Many finalists in this category are relying on AI and better data collection, which can help with screening for cancer and more efficiently distributing medicines; some of them are literally inventing new technologies, patenting new materials to use in dentistry, for example, or 3D-printing personalised vitamins.
Martin Vander Weyer, The Spectator's business editor, judges the awards and hosts this podcast along with three other judges: Jonny Olson, executive chair of Touchlight, a biotech start-up specialising in producing DNA at speed; Nicholas Hardie, non-executive director at Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust; and Michelle White, co-head of Investec's private office.
The finalists in this category are:* Nourished, which uses 3D printing to produce personalised vitamin supplements. * Ethoss Regeneration Ltd, which has developed and patented a novel bone graft material for use in dentistry. * iEthico, which has developed an AI-powered platform to optimise the distribution of medicine to tackle shortages. * Locate a Locum, which has connected locum pharmacists to pharmacies in need using a digital platform. * Nuclera, which enables researchers to obtain active proteins from DNA at speed. * Attomarker, which uses nanotechnology to measure human biomarkers in the diagnostics process. * Kheiron Medical Technologies, which uses AI for early diagnosis of breast cancer.
On this week's Spectator Out Loud, Peter Oborne reads his letter from Jerusalem (00:55), Kate Andrews talks about why Rishi Sunak has made her take up smoking (07:20) and Jonathan Maitland explains his growing obsession with Martin Bashir (12:15).
Presented by Cindy Yu.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Natasha Feroze.
The UK is facing a housing crisis hitting both buyers, renters and those who aren’t in a position to live in a stable home. Factors such as rising mortgage rates and inflation mean that people are increasingly struggling to meet their housing costs, especially those on low incomes – and women disproportionately fall into that bracket.
There are a number of reasons for this: of all jobs that pay less than the living wage – 60 per cent are held by women. Over the course of a woman’s lifetime her income can be seriously affected by taking time out to care for children or elderly relatives. Even in higher paid jobs, women still earn less than their male counterparts.
Katy Balls speaks to a specialist panel of guests to discuss housing crisis from a female perspective: Rachel Maclean – Minister of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities; Esther Dijkstra – the Managing Director of Intermediaries at Lloyds Banking Group; and Clare Miller – the Group Chief Executive for Clarion Housing Group. This podcast is kindly sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group.
On the podcast:
In his cover piece for the mag this week, political scientist, Yascha Mounk has written about why identity politics has polarised our understanding of race. And why the left has come to divide groups into oversimplified categories of ‘the oppressors’ and ‘the oppressed’.
Also this week:
Can we trust photographs to paint a true picture of a story? The Israel-Palestine conflict has been one of the most documented wars to date. But with AI manipulation and staged imagery, is there a way of differentiating between real and fake news? Bryan Appleyard CBE and Eliot Higgins from Bellingcat discuss.
And finally:
There has been a new rise in Paganism over the past few decades and now students can apply for a degree in Magic and Occult Science – but how scientific really is it? Spectator writer Andrew Watts joins the podcast alongside Oxford PhD student Lois Heslop.
My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is the film writer Peter Biskind. In his new book Pandora’s Box, he tells the story of what’s sometimes called “Peak TV” – and how a change in business model (from network to cable to streaming) unlocked an extraordinary era of artistic innovation, and uncovered an unexpected darkness in the public appetite to be entertained.
John Nichol is a former RAF Tornado navigator who, during the first Gulf War in 1991, was famously shot down, paraded on television and held prisoner by Saddam Hussein. John wrote movingly about his experience in his first book, 'Tornado Down', and has gone on to write fifteen more best-selling books. His latest, 'Eject, Eject', is out now. He also loves food, is very fond of cooking and often posts pictures on social media of his many and varied culinary creations.
Presented by Olivia Potts.
Produced by Linden Kemkaran.
Every year, The Spectator travels the country in search of the best and boldest new companies that are disrupting their respective industries. In a series of five podcasts, we will tell you about the finalists for 2023's Innovator of the Year Awards, sponsored by Investec. The awards winners will be announced in a prize ceremony in November.
This episode will be focusing on the manufacturing and engineering category. Some of the nominees have found novel uses for old materials, often finding a much more sustainable way of producing things. A couple of them use cutting edge engineering – including graphene, a miracle material rediscovered right here in the UK, by the University of Manchester. Britain is, of course, the home of the industrial revolution. These modern homegrown champions are keeping that legacy alive.
Martin Vander Weyer, The Spectator's business editor, judges the awards and hosts this podcast along with three other judges: Gabriel Fysh, entrepreneur and Director at Transcend Packaging, a former winner of the awards; Ian Ritchie CBE, an engineer and entrepreneur, who sits on the board of a number of companies in Scotland and in the IT and engineering sphere; and Michelle White, co-head of Investec's private office.
The finalists in this category are:* The Cheeky Panda, which makes tissue and hygiene products from bamboo. * THIS™, which makes meaty-tasting plant-based foods, from sausages to chicken. * QLM Technology Ltd, which has invented a quantum gas lidar technology to detect greenhouse gases. * MacRebur Limited, which uses waste plastic to replace bitumen in road surfacing. * Partful, which helps manufacturers with an end-to-end repair process by locating components and parts. * Graphene Innovations Manchester, which aims to replace highly-emitting cement with graphene in construction. * Equipmake, which produces ultra-high-performance electric motors, power systems and vehicle drivetrains. * Paragraf, which mass produces graphene-based electronic devices using standard semiconductor processes.
This week:
Katy Balls discusses the SNP’s annual conference and asks what will it take to hold the party together if things get much tougher over the next twelve months (01:10), Christina Lamb goes to Ukraine, only to be told that she’s 'at the wrong war' as events unfold rapidly in the Middle East (06:55), and Sam Leith chats to the man who heads up the tiny publishing house that regularly churns out Nobel Prize winners (12:13).
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran.
This week Freddy speaks to Dennis Ross, former Middle East coordinator under President Clinton and current Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy at Georgetown University. They discuss Biden's visit to Israel this week, how his policy towards the Middle East borrows from Trump and Obama, and how we can discern between the public posturing and private desires of Middle Eastern states.
Kate Mosse is an international best-selling author who’s sold millions of books, translated into 38 different languages. She describes herself as a feminist and has worked hard to champion other female authors by creating the Women’s Prize for Fiction and non fiction - now the UK’s most prestigious annual book award.
Kate isn’t afraid to use her platform to address issues she feels strongly about. In 2013, she was awarded an OBE for services to women and literature. Born in West Sussex, my guest still lives there now, alongside her childhood sweetheart and they have two children.
On the podcast:
In The Spectator's cover piece Jonathan Spyer writes that as America's role in international security diminishes history is moving Iran’s way, with political Islam now commanding much of the Middle East. He is joined by Ravi Agrawal, editor in chief of Foreign Policy and host of the FP Live podcast, to discuss whether America is still the world's policeman.
Also this week:
In the magazine this week, The Spectator’s literary editor Sam Leith speaks to Jacques Testard, publisher at Fitzcarraldo Editions, the indie publishing house which has just won its fourth nobel prize in under ten years. They have kindly allowed us to hear a section of their conversation in which they discuss the joy of translations, how a literary publishing house should exist as a work of art in and of itself and why winning prizes isn’t everything.
And finally:
In his arts lead, journalist Dan Hitchens reviews Georgian Illuminations, an exhibition at Sir John Soane's Museum on the golden age of public spectacle. He joins the podcast alongside Louise Stewart, co-curator of the exhibition, to uncover how the Georgian's invented nightlife.
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the novelist Sandra Newman, whose new book Julia retells George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four from Julia’s point of view. We discuss the spaces Orwell’s classic left for her own novelistic imagination, what we do and don’t know about the world of Big Brother, and whether the misogyny in Orwell’s original belongs to the author or the dystopia he depicts.
When China brokered a historic detente between Saudi Arabia and Iran earlier this year, it seemed that a new phase in world history – and certainly in Chinese foreign policy – had opened up. Instead of the US being a policeman of the world, it was the rising power, China, that was stepping into that role. Whereas Chinese foreign policy had previously only really cared about promoting trade and silencing dissidents, it seemed that perhaps, now, Beijing was taking a more leadership role in global diplomacy and security issues.
And yet the events of the last week and China’s response to them have shown that perhaps the country isn’t ready for that responsibility just yet. In response to the horrors unfolding in Israel and later Gaza, Beijing has given only lukewarm statements, calling for 'relevant parties to remain calm, exercise restraint and immediately end the hostilities to protect civilians'. At no point has it condemned Hamas by name.
So what does this mean for China’s grander ambitions in the Middle East? With me to discuss is Tuvia Gering. During peacetime, his full time role is as a researcher on China and the Middle East, with the Israeli thinktank the Institute for National Security Studies and he is also a nonresident fellow in the Atlantic Council.
But in the last week, as with all Israelis, his life has been changed forever. He’s now been called up for active duty.
What you’re about to hear is an incredibly well informed but raw contribution from an expert whose research interests have come crashing into his real life.
This week Paul Wood delves into the complex background of the Middle East and asks if Iran might have been behind the Hamas attacks on Israel, and what might come next (01:11), James Heale ponders the great Tory tax debate by asking what is the point of the Tories if they don’t lower taxes (13:04) and Robin Ashenden on how he plans to introduce his half Russian daughter to the delights of red buses, Beefeaters and a proper full English (18:36).
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran
This week Freddy speaks to Andrew Cockburn, Washington editor of Harper's Magazine, about America's response to the developments in the Middle East. On the podcast they discuss the 'squad' (a section of Democrats who have been making pro-Palestinian noises), how America and Israel's surveillance system allowed the attack to happen, and the importance of the conflict ahead of next year's presidential election.
This week:
Paul Wood writes for The Spectator about the role that Iran potentially played in the Hamas attack on Israel over the weekend. He says that it is unlikely that the proscribed terrorist group acted alone and joins the podcast alongside Uzi Arad, former national security advisor to Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. (01:22)
Also this week:
Labour conference in Liverpool has come to end and, as always with conference season, the best events took place on the fringes. Katy Balls our political editor spoke to London mayor Sadiq Khan and they have kindly allowed us to hear a section of their discussion, where they cover anti-seminitism, ULEZ and the upcoming mayoral election in May. (27:29)
And finally:
Former Labour MP Sion Simon writes in the magazine this week about his experience losing his sight and his battle with ‘internalised ableism’. He joins the podcast to tell us what he has learned from going blind. (43:39)
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast, we're celebrating 50 years of a unique classic – Richard Adams's Watership Down – and its forthcoming adaptation in graphic novel form. I'm joined by Richard Adams's two daughters Juliet and Rosamund, who tell me how a story that their dad started telling them to beguile a long car journey became one of the best selling children's books of all time, how that changed their father's life, and how Fiver's prophesy, alas, is finally coming true.
Ewan Venters is the former chief executive of Fortnum & Mason and is now the CEO of Artfarm and Hauser & Wirth. Ewan is launching Artfarm’s first London venture combining food, drink and art which will also mark the revival of the historic Mayfair landmark, The Audley.
Presented by Olivia Potts.
Produced by Linden Kemkaran.
Fraud, by some margin, is the biggest crime in Britain. How did it spin out of control? Who is responsible? And who do we call to tackle and prevent the biggest menace in the digital era? The Spectator's economics editor, Kate Andrews is joined by an esteemed panel for this discussion, kindly sponsored by TSB and hosted at Conservative Party Conference. Also on the panel: Tom Tugendhat MP, Minister of State – Minister for Security, Victoria Atkins MP, Finance Secretary, Bob Wigley, Chair – UK Finance, Richard Hyde, Senior Researcher and Lead on Fraud - Social Market Foundation and Paul Davis, Fraud Director - TSB.
This week Melissa Kite mourns the Warwickshire countryside of her childhood, ripped up and torn apart for HS2, and describes how people like her parents have been treated by the doomed project (01:15), Nigel Biggar attempts to explain the thinking behind those who insist on calling Britain a racist country, even though the evidence says otherwise (06:38) and Matt Ridley enters a fool’s paradise where he warns against being so open-minded, that you risk your brain falling out (13:01).
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran.
Freddy speaks to Roger Kimball, editor of the New Criterion and columnist for The Spectator's US edition. After Kevin McCarthy was ousted as speaker of the House this week, they discuss why the Republican party is such a mess.
Rosie Duffield is the Labour MP for Canterbury and one of the most well-known faces in British politics. She first became an MP in 2017, a historic win which overturned 99 years of Tory rule. Since becoming an MP, Rosie has spoken out against issues such as Brexit, the two-child policy and most famously for her views on self-ID. On the podcast she talks how she never expected to win her seat; the isolation she has faced from inside her party as a gender-critical feminist and why she thinks that the Labour Party is slowly moving back towards her.
This week:
Katy Balls writes in her cover piece that after Tory conference the battle lines have now been drawn between the two main parties. She says we should prepare for a 'presidential campaign' ahead of the 2024 election and joins the podcast alongside The Spectator’s editor Fraser Nelson to discuss the dividing lines between Labour and the Conservatives. (01:17).
Also this week:
In her column Lionel Shriver says that she is leaving the UK for the sunnier climes of Portugal. She argues that Britain has lost its way both economically and culturally and is joined by another American expatriate Kate Andrews, The Spectator’s economics editor. (15:37).
And finally:
Matt Ridley writes that we are entering a new age of gullibility. He says that our fascination with monsters, aliens and everything in between has overcome our common sense. He joins the podcast with Ian Keable, magician and author of The Century of Deception: The Birth of the Hoax in Eighteenth-Century England to debate whether as a country we are uniquely gullible. (26:53).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
This week Winston speaks to David Goodhart, author of The British Dream: Successes And Failures Of Post-War Immigration, which celebrates its 10 year anniversary this year. On the podcast they discuss the state of immigration in the UK. Is home secretary Suella Braverman right to suggest that immigration an existential threat to the West? Has multiculturalism failed?
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Caspar Henderson, whose new book A Book of Noises: Notes on the Auraculous really is a journey into sound. He tells me why the music of the spheres – at least in this solar system – is a terrible racket, what we can learn from whale earwax, and why bat-squeaks are, in fact, very very loud indeed.
This week Freddy Gray takes a trip to Planet Biden and imagines what would happen if little green men invaded earth and found a big orange one back in the White House (01:15), Kate Andrews finds herself appalled by the so-called ‘advice’ routinely handed out to women that can be at best, judgemental, and at its worst, slightly bullying (12:51), and Lloyd Evans spills the beans on searching for love on his recent blind date, courtesy of the Guardian (07:13).
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran
This week Freddy is joined in The Spectator offices by regular contributor and fellow of urban studies at Chapman University, Joel Kotkin. They discuss Biden and Trump's respective attempts to burnish their credentials with the unions this week, how the cultural agenda is alienating voters, and whether technology could prevent the coming of neo-feudalism.
On the podcast this week:
Lord Sumption makes the case for leaving the ECHR in The Spectator's cover piece. He says that the UK has strong courts and can pass judgement on human rights by itself and joins the podcast alongside Dr Joelle Grogan – legal academic and head of research at UK in a Changing Europe – to discuss whether the Strasbourg has lost its appeal. (01:22).
Also this week:
Rory Sutherland takes a look at the rise of dynamic pricing in the magazine, a new trend where prices can surge at peak times and a phenomenon which has now made its way into pubs. He says that it’s not necessarily the cost that matters, but the way it is framed and is joined by Times business columnist Ryan Bourne to debate. (17:10)
And finally: is a Guardian Blind Date the most effective way of finding love?
This is the question that Lloyd Evans wonders in his piece for the magazine, detailing his experience being set up by the national newspaper. He joins the podcast alongside journalist Cosmo Landesman, whose dating columns I’m sure many listeners will remember. (33:02).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the writer, broadcaster and academic Mary Beard. In her new book, Emperor of Rome, she explores what we can and can’t know about the men who ruled the Roman Empire, and what the lurid stories about so many of them tell us about the anxieties and fantasies of Rome’s ordinary citizens and the remarkable resilience of the regime. We also discuss, among other things: decapitated ostriches, fatal rose petals, and Mary’s robust reappraisal of Marcus Aurelius’s 'sub-Stoic' maundering.
Diana Henry is a critically acclaimed, multi-award winning cook, food writer and author of 12 books including the classic cookbook 'Roast Figs, Sugar Snow', which has just been updated and re-released twenty years after it was first published. Diana also writes for newspapers and magazines, and presents food programmes on TV and radio.
On this podcast Diana shares childhood memories of her mother's baking, how 'Little House on the Prairie' influenced her writing and when, on a French exchange trip, she learned how to make the perfect vinaigrette.
Presented by Olivia Potts.
Produced by Linden Kemkaran.
Matthew Parris, just back from Australia, shares his thoughts on the upcoming referendum on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice (01:08). Dan Hitchens looks at church congregations and wonders why some are on the up, while others are in a spiral of decline (08:32), and Leah McLaren describes the delights of audio and tells us why young children should be heard, but not seen (17:57).
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran
This week:
Christopher Caldwell writes The Spectator's cover piece on Italy’s new wave of migrants. This is in light of the situation in Lampedusa which he argues could upend European politics. Chris joins the podcast alongside Amy Kazmin, Rome correspondent at the Financial Times, to debate Europe’s escalating migrant crisis. (01:23)
Also this week:
In his column, Matthew Parris writes about Australia’s Voice vote, a yes/no referendum being held on whether to establish a new body which will advise parliament on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It is a source of real controversy in the country, and Alexander Downer – former Australian minister for foreign affairs and leader of the Liberal Party between 1994 and 1995 – joins Matthew to discuss. (16:07)
And finally: why do some Churches rise and others fall?
In the magazine, journalist Dan Hitchens writes a tale of two churches by comparing the fastest growing – Elim Pentecostal church – and the fastest shrinking church in the UK – United Reformed church. He is joined by Revd Marcus Walker, Rector of the Priory Church of St Bartholomew the Great, London. (31:29)
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
This week Winston speaks to journalist Mary Harrington about her new book, Feminism Against Progress.
In this week's Book Club podcast I'm talking to Sarah Ogilvie about the extraordinary story of the making of the Oxford English Dictionary, as told in her new The Dictionary People: The Unsung Heroes Who Created the Oxford English Dictionary. She tells me why the OED was different in kind from any previous English dictionary, how crowdsourcing made it 'the Wikipedia of its day', and how – as she discovered – quite so many cranks, murderers, perverts and foreigners took such an interest in it.
Two years ago, Richard Moore, head of MI6, said that China was now the organisation’s ‘single greatest priority’.
Parliamentarians and the British public have been starkly reminded of this by last week’s news that a parliamentary researcher had been arrested on suspicion of spying for China.
This episode won’t be commenting on the ins and outs of that case, but talking more generally about Chinese espionage. What forms does it take, what are its goals and how successful are the Chinese secret services at achieving those?
Cindy Yu is joined by Nigel Inkster, the former director of operations and intelligence for MI6. He has served in Beijing and Hong Kong, and is now the senior adviser on cyber security and China at the think tank IISS.
Produced by Cindy Yu.
Cindy Yu tells the story of how she got to know Westminster’s alleged Chinese agent and the astonishment of seeing herself pictured alongside him when the story broke (01.12), Charlie Taylor, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons, talks breakouts, bureaucracy and stabbings, and wonders – where have all the inspirational leaders gone? (06.45), and Petroc Trelawney shares his classical notebook and describes a feeling of sadness as the BBC Proms wraps up for another year (11.54).
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran.
On the podcast this week:
Boris Johnson writes The Spectator’s cover piece, urging the West to supply more military assistance to Ukraine, in order to bring a swift end to the war. Former commander of the joint forces Sir Richard Barrons and The Spectator’s Svitlana Morenets join the podcast to ask why aren't we giving Ukraine what it needs? (01:21)
Also on the podcast:
Charlie Taylor, His Majesty’s chief prisons inspector, writes in the magazine about the state of crisis in British prisons. This is in light of Daniel Khalife's escape from Wandsworth prison last week. Charlie is joined by David Shipley, commentator and former inmate at Wandsworth to discuss the state of crisis in British prisons. (16:37)
And finally:
In the arts section of the magazine Rod Liddle writes about the new Rolling Stones single, supposedly their best in decades. He joins the podcast alongside Will Hodgkinson, chief rock and pop critic at the Times to debate whether rock and roll really is dead. (25:34)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Winston speaks to Silkie Carlo, director of Big Brother Watch, about the Online Safety Bill, the Digital Services Act and whether Britain will be the next surveillance state.
In this week's Book Club podcast, i'm joined by Francesca Peacock to talk about the remarkable life and extraordinary work of Margaret Cavendish, the 17th-century Duchess of Newcastle. Famous in her own day for her bizarre public appearances and nicknamed "Mad Madge", the author of The Blazing World has been marginalised by posterity as an eccentric dilettante -- but in her new book Pure Wit, Francesca sets out to reclaim her as a serious feminist writer before feminism was generally thought of, and as a radical thinker in natural philosophy. She tells me about the contradictions of this "Lady Bashful" who lived to be famous, this happy wife who wrote scaldingly about marriage, and this autodidact who nevertheless wasn't afraid to take on Hobbes, Descartes and the dusty fellows of the Royal Society.
In this episode: Sam Leith / Francesca Peacock
Kate Andrews talks crumbly concrete, overcrowded trains, NHS waiting lists, and describes the general air of despair and asks – who broke Britain? (01.15). Katy Balls analyses Keir Starmer’s reshuffle and describes the appearance of a New Labour restoration as the party prepares for power (11.20), and Max Pemberton outlines the worrying increase of Tourettes and tics in children, neglected during lockdowns and possibly damaged for life (17.25).
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran.
Kate Andrews talks crumbly concrete, overcrowded trains, NHS waiting lists, and describes the general air of despair and asks – who broke Britain? (01.15). Katy Balls analyses Keir Starmer’s reshuffle and describes the appearance of a New Labour restoration as the party prepares for power (11.20), and Max Pemberton outlines the worrying increase of Tourettes and tics in children, neglected during lockdowns and possibly damaged for life (17.25).
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran.
On the podcast:
In her cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator’s economics editor Kate Andrews writes that political short termism has broken Britain. She joins the podcast alongside Giles Wilkes, former number 10 advisor and senior fellow at the Institute for Government, to ask what went wrong? (01:12)
Also this week:
In his column Douglas Murray writes about Burning Man, the festival which has left Silicon Valley’s finest stuck in the mud. He is joined by David Willis, who has been covering the festival this year for the BBC, to discuss the schadenfreude of Burning Man. (14:41)
And finally:
Travel writer Sean Thomas argues in The Spectator that having a pet is far worse for the planet than flying and warns that all pet owners should watch their ‘carbon pawprint’. He joins the podcast alongside Rachel Spencer, freelance writer and pet blogger. (25:13)
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Linden Kemkaran.
The Book Club podcast returns next week. In the meantime, here's another from the archives, and one which looks more timely now even than it was when we recorded it in 2017. Here's perhaps Russia's most prominent dissident writer, Masha Gessen, talking about their book The Future Is History: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia.
The Book Club podcast returns next week. In the meantime, here's another from the archives, and one which looks more timely now even than it was when we recorded it in 2017. Here's perhaps Russia's most prominent dissident writer, Masha Gessen, talking about their book The Future Is History: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia.
For thousands of years, Confucianism has run through the fabric of Chinese society, politics and culture. Decades of Communism has taken its toll on China, so can it still be considered a Confucian country?
Joining the episode is one of the world’s leading experts on the philosophy, Professor Daniel Bell. In 2017, he was appointed the dean of Shandong University, an unusual appointment for a foreigner in China but one based on his expertise in Confucianism, in the province of Confucius’s birth. His new book, The Dean of Shandong: Confessions of a Minor Bureaucrat at a Chinese university, details some of the ups and downs of his time in that position.
This week Katy Balls asks whether Rishi is a risk taker or whether he’ll choose to play it safe as Conference season approaches (01.17), Owen Matthews explains why America is still Ukraine’s best hope for victory (07.27), Kate Andrews is totally baffled and exasperated by the British refusal to get checked out by a doctor (15.34) and Ian Thomson reports from Sicily on the Godfather, Greek Temples and a misunderstanding involving mascarpone cheese (20.50).
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran.
This week Freddy speaks to Jacob Heilbrunn, editor of the National Interest, about Vivek Ramaswamy. What does he stand for? Could he be the ideal candidate for Trump's vice president?
This week:
In his cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator’s political correspondent James Heale writes that the PM’s visit to New Delhi for the G20 Summit next week could be a defining moment in the special relationship between Britain and India. He is joined by Shanker Singham, former advisor to UK Secretary of State for International Trade, to discuss Rishi's Indian summer. (01:18)
Also on the podcast:
Owen Matthews The Spectator’s Russia correspondent expresses his concern about the US’s waning support for Ukraine in the magazine this week. He argues that ultimately it is America – and the outcome of next year's presidential election – that could decide Ukraine’s fate. He is joined by Jim Townsend, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence (DASD) for European and NATO Policy, under the Obama administration. (12:08)
And finally: when was the last time you cleared out your freezer drawer?
Ysenda Maxtone Graham celebrates the joys of freezer food for the Spectator’s notes on this week and joins the podcast alongside The Spectator’s vintage chef and co-host of The Spectator’s food and drink podcast, Table Talk, Olivia Potts. (28:24)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Listen to Lara and Olivia's fortnightly food and drink podcast here: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk/
This week:
In his cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator’s political correspondent James Heale writes that the PM’s visit to New Delhi for the G20 Summit next week could be a defining moment in the special relationship between Britain and India. He is joined by Shanker Singham, former advisor to UK Secretary of State for International Trade, to discuss Rishi's Indian summer. (01:18)
Also on the podcast:
Owen Matthews The Spectator’s Russia correspondent expresses his concern about the US’s waning support for Ukraine in the magazine this week. He argues that ultimately it is America – and the outcome of next year's presidential election – that could decide Ukraine’s fate. He is joined by Jim Townsend, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence (DASD) for European and NATO Policy, under the Obama administration. (12:08)
And finally: when was the last time you cleared out your freezer drawer?
Ysenda Maxtone Graham celebrates the joys of freezer food for the Spectator’s notes on this week and joins the podcast alongside The Spectator’s vintage chef and co-host of The Spectator’s food and drink podcast, Table Talk, Olivia Potts. (28:24)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Listen to Lara and Olivia's fortnightly food and drink podcast here: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk/
As Sam is still away, we've dug out one our favourite podcasts from the archives. Back in 2019 Sam spoke to the historian Tom Holland, about his book Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind. The book, though as Tom remarks, you might not know it from the cover, is essentially a history of Christianity and an account of the myriad ways – many of them invisible to us – that it has shaped and continues to shape Western culture. It’s a book and an argument that takes us from Ancient Babylon to Harvey Weinstein’s hotel room, draws in the Beatles and the Nazis, and orbits around two giant figures: St Paul and Nietzsche. Is there a single discernible, distinctive Christian way of thinking? Is secularism Christianity by other means? And are our modern-day culture wars between alt-righters and woke progressives a post-Christian phenomenon or, as Tom argues, essentially a civil war between two Christian sects?
This week James Heale describes the mess the Conservative Party has got itself into when selecting its parliamentary candidates (01.17), Svitlana Morenets is in Ukraine witnessing first hand the tragedy of how troops are dying for want of proper medical supplies and training (06.59), Melanie McDonagh discusses the art of kissing and when a kiss is not just a kiss (18.22) and Richard Madeley shares with us his diary in which he ponders Queen songs and cancel culture and the shocking case of Lucy Letby (22.07).
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran
On the podcast this week:
In his cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator’s deputy editor Freddy Gray says that he was hardly surprised that Donald Trump chose not to participate in last night’s Republican candidates debate. He argues that Trump no longer needs the TV networks and joins the podcast alongside Douglas Murray, who profiles the no-hoper Republican candidates looking to pip Trump to the nomination in his Spectator column. (01:21)
Also this week:
Mark Millar, the comic book writer and producer behind Hollywood hits such as Kingsman, Kick Ass and a host of Marvel films, writes The Spectator’s notebook. He discusses everything from London’s fading glory to his new Netflix series The Chosen One, and joins the podcast to tell us how to shock a Satanist. (11:29)
And finally: should trans women be allowed to compete in women’s chess?
It seems a fairly obvious question on the surface, with no physical advantage to be gained in games of chess. However, John MacGhlionn argues that there are hormonal and cognitive factors which give men the advantage in this week’s magazine. This is in light of the decision by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) to ban trans women from competing in women’s events. Chess enthusiasts and regular Spectator contributors Debbie Hayton and Zoe Strimpel join us to set out the arguments for and against FIDE’s controversial decision. (16:08)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
178 miles to the east of Beijing, there’s a beach resort called Beidaihe. The water is shallow and the sand is yellow and fine. Luxurious holiday villas dot the coastline. Starting from the 1950s, leaders of the Chinese Communist Party have moved their families and work to Beidaihe in the summer, making the beach resort something of a summer capital. Secrecy clouds the gatherings, and though this tradition continues, today the resort seems to serve a much more leisurely purpose when the CCP visits.
On this episode, I’m joined by the historian James Carter and Bill Bishop, editor of the very popular Sinocism newsletter, to discuss where Communist leaders go, when they go on summer holiday. What is the changing role of Beidaihe, and what does this tell us about the changing nature of Communist leadership?
Presented by Cindy Yu.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Joe Bedell-Brill.
This week: James Heale reads his politics column on why the Tories should fear the Greens (00:56), Lisa Haseldine outlines some of the changes to Russia's school curriculum (06:04) and Neil Clark extols the joys of non-league football (13:02).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
This week:
The cover of The Spectator magazine looks at whether after years of Covid-based disruption, rising cost and lecturer strikes, university students are getting what they paid for. The Spectator’s data editor Michael Simmons writes a sidebar in which he rails against some of the changes that are happening to university freshers’ week and joins the podcast alongside Emma de Saram, Guild president at the Exeter University Student’s Guild. (01:26)
Also this week:
In the magazine we are running an interview by The Spectator's special projects editor Ben Lazarus with professor Jim Skea – the new head of the UN intergovernmental panel on climate change (IPCC) and arguably the most important man in climate science. Ben and Jim kindly allowed us to share a section of their discussion, where they talk about the 1.5 degree target, activist groups and if the messaging on climate has failed. (14:55)
And finally: do dogs want ice cream?
That’s the question that Mary Wakefield wrestles with in her column this week in The Spectator. With supermarkets now stocking everything from dog ice cream to dog caviar, she argues that we have lost our collective minds. Sir Cary Cooper, professor of organisational psychology at the University of Manchester, joins the podcast. (24:00)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Freddy Gray speaks to Inez Stepman, a Lincoln Fellow at the Claremont Institute who was last on Americano to discuss the overturning of Roe vs Wade last year. As seen in the November midterms, could this be a winning issue for the Democrats who are gearing up for the general election?
This episode of Spectator Out Loud features Katy Balls on the new divisions within the Labour Party and what Jeremy Corbyn might run for next (01.08); Peter Hitchens describes the joys of cycling and his dislike of e-bikes and scooters (07.40); and Anthony Horowitz joins us from Crete where he ponders the end of the world, becoming a grandfather and travel limitations after Brexit (13.11)
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran
Freddy Gray is joined by Spectator columnist Lionel Shriver and Rob Henderson to discuss Putin’s view of the western world and ask – does he have a point? Also on the show... William Moore takes aim at the covert 'lawfare' crushing countryside field sports; Ben Schreckinger talks about the Hunter Biden trial; Peter Hitchens and Henry Mance debate the menace of e-bikes and Julie Bindel explains why she’s fed up with sourdough bread.
To watch Spectator TV click here
This week:
It’s a special episode of the Edition podcast because our very own William Moore writes The Spectator’s cover piece, on how rural pursuits are being threatened by lawfare from countryside groups. Jonathan Roberts, who leads the external affairs team at the Country Land and Business Association, joins us to discuss whether disillusioned rural Tories could look to Labour at the next election.
Also this week:
In his piece in The Spectator, journalist Andrew Kenny writes about the rise of Julius Malema and his Economic Freedom Fighters. He warns that South Africans should beware its new rising political star and joins the podcast alongside Ernst Roets, author of Kill the Boer: Government Complicity in South Africa’s Brutal Farm Murders.
And finally:
Could testosterone be the missing piece in HRT treatments for menopause symptoms? This is what The Spectator’s Linden Kemkaran investigates in the magazine and she joins us alongside Dr Sarah Ball, GP and Menopause Specialist.
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the journalist and author Celia Brayfield whose new book Writing Black Beauty: Anna Sewell and the story of animal rights, takes us back to the 19th century. Celia describes how Anna Sewell's writing of the Black Beauty book ultimately led to the kinder treatment of horses, and we both recall fondly the popular TV adaptation with its soaringly emotive theme tune.
Laura Dodsworth is a photographer, artist and author. In her most recent book Free Your Mind: The New World of Manipulation and How to Resist it, Laura draws on the Nudge Unit, behavioural psychology and fact checking services to analyse the range of ways in which our minds are manipulated. On the podcast, Laura talks about the government propaganda machine and how this all relates back to issues such as climate catastrophe, the pandemic and free speech.
At the end of last year, some thought that the Chinese economic recovery after three years of zero Covid could happen just as fast as zero Covid itself ended being government policy. I admit, that included me.
And yet, more than halfway into 2023, that recovery looks increasingly elusive. The Chinese economy has failed to shake off its own long Covid while other structural problems have reared their heads.
What does the future hold for the Chinese economy? Is this the new normal? And if so, is that really a problem?
I’m joined on this episode by the economist Keyu Jin, author of The New China Playbook: Beyond Socialism and Capitalism. Keyu is an associate professor at the London School of Economics and advised and consulted for the World Bank and the IMF.
Keyu has divided opinion. Unlike some other English-language economists, she is sympathetic to the Chinese political and economic structure, arguing, as you’ll hear, that Chinese state intervention can often virtuous; that the Chinese people value stability more than liberty. On the episode, I challenge these views as we discuss what the macro data tells us about the health of the Chinese economy, and whether there are reasons to be optimistic for China's politics and economy in the years to come.
Produced by Cindy Yu.
This episode of Spectator Out Loud features Professor Robert Tombs on Canada's willingness to believe anything bad about its own history (00:55); the farmer Jamie Blackett on the harms of wild camping (12:10); and Tanya Gold on the reopening of Claridge's Restaurant.
Presented and produced by Cindy Yu.
The US government is apparently hiding a programme to capture and reverse-engineer UFOs. At a congressional hearing last week, David Grusch, a former intelligence official who worked with a Pentagon team looking into UFOs, said 'non-human' objects had been recovered by the government. Are they finding aliens, or Chinese and Russian drones? What's behind the American obsession with extraterrestrials? And is the government making up sightings to justify higher defence spending?
Freddy Gray is joined by Spectator contributor Sean Thomas.
In this week’s cover article, The Spectator's political editor Katy Balls takes a look at the bottom-up reform that’s happening in some parts of the country, and asks whether tough policing is making a comeback. Katy joins the podcast together with Kate Green, Greater Manchester's Deputy Mayor of Crime and Policing. (00:50)
Next, the war has finally gone to Moscow. Recently, a number of drone strikes have hit targets in the Russian capital. Though Ukraine hasn’t explicitly taken responsibility, in the magazine this week, Owen Matthews writes that it’s all a part of psychological warfare. Owen is the author of Overreach: The Inside Story of Putin and Russia’s War Against Ukraine and he joins the podcast. (18:20)
And finally, is it ever right – or easy – to cut off your parents? If you look at TikTok, as our columnist Mary Wakefield has been doing, it seems that declaring your parents ‘toxic’ and excising them from your life is all the craze amongst some teenagers. Is this a sign that the fundamentals of family life have moved on from duty, or unconditional love, to a more transactional approach? Mary joins the podcast, together with Becca Bland, founder and CEO of Stand Alone, a charity which supports people estranged from their families. (28:00)
Presented by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Cindy Yu.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the novelist and psychologist Ayelet Gundar-Goshen, whose gripping new book The Wolf Hunt tells the story of an Israeli-American mother who finds herself wondering whether her teenage son Adam could have been responsible for the death of a classmate. She tells me about using the thriller form as a Trojan horse, about fear and what we do with it, and whether, as an Israeli writer, you can ever escape from politics.
Nick Gillespie is an American libertarian journalist and the editor-at-large for Reason magazine. He is also the author of The Declaration of Independence. On the show, Nick talks about censorship in America in the age of information; the recent trend of book banning and why he believes the debates around demographic collapse are actually a sign of improved quality of life.
This week (01.07) James Heale meets the Conservative London Mayoral Candidate, Susan Hall, who is ready and willing to take the fight to Sadiq Khan in next year’s elections, (06.51) Melanie McDonagh examines the effects on children’s publishing as sensitivity readers gain more and more influence and (12.39) Sam McPhail explains why football clubs could be in big trouble if fans start following superstar players, rather than the clubs.
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran
Lucy Frazer is the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. Prior to this role in government, Lucy held several ministerial positions from the Department Transport to the Ministry of Justice. On the podcast, Lucy tells Katy about her background working as a barrister which paved the way for a political career; her vision for how the Conservatives could still win the next election; and how she will choose the next chairman of the BBC.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
In this week’s cover story, The Spectator’s political editor Katy Balls writes about Labour’s new paymasters – Keir Starmer’s party now receives more money from private donors than it does from trade unions. What do the new donors want, and what does Starmer want from them? Katy joins Will and Lara alongside the writer and Labour supporter Paul Mason. (01:00)
Next up, Webb Keane, from the University of Michigan, and Scott Shapiro, from Yale, write in the magazine this week about the dawn of the godbots – you can now chat online to an artificial intelligence that pretends it’s god. Might people soon start outsourcing their ethics to a chatbot? We're joined by Webb and The Spectator’s commissioning editor Mary Wakefield. (14:19)
And finally, The Spectator’s Sam McPhail writes in this week’s magazine about how the football’s biggest stars are changing the way fans enjoy the game, and the way teams play it. To explain, Sam joins alongside Spectator contributor Damian Reilly. (25:09)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Max Jeffery, Joe Bedell-Brill and Linden Kemkaran.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the investigative and tech writer James Ball, to talk about his new book The Other Pandemic: How QAnon Contaminated the World. In it, James traces the rise and disturbing metastasis of what he calls 'the conspiracy theory that ate all the other conspiracy theories', and argues that what looks from the outside as an extreme set of fringe beliefs about Satanic paedophile rings running the Deep State is something we need to take very seriously indeed.
In the 1800s, Qing China’s final century, European powers were expanding eastwards. The industrialised West, with its gunboats and muskets, and the soft power of Christianity, pushed around the dynasty’s last rulers.
But was this period more than just a time of national suffering and humiliation? The British Museum's ongoing exhibit, China’s hidden century, tells the story of Qing China’s final decades. The more than 300 exhibits tell a story not only of decline, but of a complicated exchange between China and the West about culture, fashion, politics and ideas.
Cindy reviewed China’s hidden century in The Spectator last month, and hosted a live Chinese Whispers recording about the exhibition in the British Museum a few weeks ago. Cindy was joined by Jeffrey Wasserstrom, a historian from University of California, Irvine, and by Isabel Hilton, the journalist and founder of China Dialogue.
This week (01.13) Freddy Gray, on why Ron De Santis is no longer ‘de future’ in the race for the Presidency, (09.50) Mary Wakefield recounts the train journey from hell,
(16.10) we hear from Gareth Roberts about the screenwriters and actors striking over AI potentially taking their jobs and (22.24) Rachel Johnson shares her diary of SAS adventures and mishaps in New Zealand.
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran
This week:
In his cover piece for the magazine Ross Clark writes about ‘the war on motorists'. He argues that the backlash against London Mayor Sadiq Khan’s expansion of Ulez is just the beginning, as motorists – and Labour MPs – prepare to revolt. He joins the podcast alongside Ben Clatworthy, transport correspondent at the Times, to discuss whether the Ulez expansion is just a money-grab. (01:11).
Also this week:
In his piece for The Spectator, journalist Ian Williams compares both Labour and Conservative policy on China. He says that Labour is gearing up to take a much more hawkish stance on China. He is joined by Charles Parton, senior associate fellow at RUSI, who worked as a diplomat in China for over two decades. (12:12)
And finally: lights, camera, industrial action.
This is of course the news this week that the Screen Actions Guild are striking in support of the Writers Guild of America over concerns that AI will take over the role of screenwriters. Gareth Roberts argues in The Spectator that there is such a glut of poor scripts that we may not even notice that if AI replaces screenwriters, and is joined by Anna Smith, film critic and host of the girls on film podcast. (26:39)
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast I'm joined by Ferdinand Mount who in his long career has been literary and political editor of this very magazine, as well as editor of the TLS and head of Margaret Thatcher's Number Ten policy unit. We discuss his new book Big Caesars and Little Caesars: How They Rise and How they Fall, from Julius Caesar to Boris Johnson. He tells me why he thinks it's fair to compare our recent former prime minister with a cast of despots and autocrats from Indira Gandhi and Oliver Cromwell to Louis Napoleon and even Adolf Hitler, and why he sees the impulse to autocracy as an ineradicable thread in human history.
Yeonmi Park is a North Korean defector who from fled home country through China where she was saved by Christian missionaries. She is the author of two books, In Order to Live: A North Korean Girl's Journey to Freedom and While Time Remains: A North Korean Defector's Search for Freedom in America. Yeonmi now lives in the US, where she writes and campaigns for freedom of speech. She tells Winston about her astonishing journey to freedom, how China props up the Korea dictatorship and the impact of Jordan Peterson on her life.
Freddy is joined this week by Roger Kimball, editor of the New Criterion to talk about the diminishing of Ron DeSantis. It wasn't so long ago he looked like a serious challenger that could beat Donald Trump to the Republican nomination. Where did it all go wrong?
The way we use energy is changing. As electric heat pumps and electric vehicles become more popular, and as the government tries to phase out fossil fuels to reach its net zero target, some estimate that our electricity demand will increase by 50 per cent by 2035. But can our energy system take that strain?
Cindy Yu is joined by Andrew Bowie, minister for networks at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero; Sir Dieter Helm, professor of economic policy at the University of Oxford; Fflur Lawton, head of policy and public affairs at Smart Energy GB; and Anna Moss, senior consultant at Cornwall Insight, an energy consultancy.
This podcast is sponsored by Smart Energy GB.
James Heale is joined by Tom Hunt MP and Tim Farron MP to debate the illegal migration bill. Also on the show, will AI kill us all? Eliezer Yudkowsky and James Phillips discuss; Katy Balls and Stephen Bush look at Labour’s future relationship with the trade unions; Louise Perry on Britain’s addiction to plastic surgery and Alice Hoxton on Britain’s love for gossip.
00:00 Welcome from James Heale
01:47 How to stop the boats? With Tom Hunt MP and Tim Farron MP
19:03 Will AI kill us? With Eliezer Yudkowsky & James Phillip
33:46 Will Starmer win over the unions? With Katy Balls & Stephen Bush
45:41 Britain's plastic surgery addiction. With Louise Perry
57:55 Why do Britons love to gossip? With Alice Loxton
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
This week: (01:08) Katy Balls on the tricky relationship between Labour and the Unions, (07:11) Olenka Hamilton on why Poland is having a row with Brussels over migrants and asylum seekers and (15:29) Damian Thompson asks whether the Vatican is turning its back on tradition and beautiful art.
Cleo Watson is a former No.10 advisor to Boris Johnson and now author or the recently published book Whips, a novel set in SW1 filled with sex, politics and scandals. On the podcast, Cleo talks about her life growing up in a big family; her career into politics which began in America on Obama's campaign and led to her advising the likes of Theresa May and Boris Johnson; and her recent departure from politics which gave her the chance to finish the book.
This week:
Ahead of the release of the Barbie movie, Louise Perry writes in her cover piece about how social media is fuelling the cosmetic surgery industry. She argues that life in plastic is not, in fact, fantastic. She joins the podcast alongside the Times’s Sarah Ditum, author of the upcoming book: Toxic: Women, Fame and the Noughties, to discuss the normalisation of plastic surgery. (01:11)
Also this week:
In anticipation of the BBC Proms Philip Hensher writes in The Spectator that classical music has gone from being a supreme cultural statement, to just another curious musical genre. He is joined by Sir Nicholas Kenyon, former controller of BBC Radio 3 and director of the Proms and now opera critic for the Telegraph, to discuss the changing face of the BBC Proms. (16:54)
And finally:
The Spectator’s Damian Thompson writes about some of the misguided – as he says – initiatives by both the Church of England and the Vatican to engage with popular culture, prompting him to ask: has the Vatican abandoned beauty? He is joined by Fr Lawrence Lew, Prior and Parish Priest at Our Lady of the Rosary and St Dominic. (27:13)
Presented by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Yoram Hazony is an Israeli-American philosopher, Bible scholar, political theorist and leader of the national conservatism movement. He discusses with Winston the differences between conservatism and liberalism, the future of America and the need for religion in politics.
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Caitlin Moran. Having written one of the bestselling works of popular feminism of the last 20 years – How To Be A Woman – she has turned her attention to the other half of the population with her new book What About Men? I asked Caitlin why she felt she needed to write such a book, and what qualifies her to do so. She tells me why she thinks young men are turning against feminism, what she says to the people who accuse her of trading in stereotypes, and why she thinks Jordan Peterson is a poor excuse for a 'public intellectual'.
Kate Andrews, The Spectator’s economics editor is joined by Andrew Neil and Jonathan Miller to discuss the riots taking place across France. As the NHS turns 75, Sajid Javid gives his thoughts on the future of the health service. Also on the show, Katy Balls takes a look at the Tory’s by-election trouble; Freddy Gray considers the prospect of a ‘Secretary General von der Leyen’ and Tom Slater asks what's the point of trigger warnings.
This week: Kate Andrews on the NHS and the celebrations that marked its 75th birthday (01:05), Igor Toronyi-Lalic is in Marseille watching with interest as the riots happen around him (06:57) and Ivo Dawnay describes how being related to Boris is cramping his style oversees (11:13).
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran.
For 75 years, the most anti-Christian regime in modern history has thrown its citizens into prison camps if they are suspected of the slightest dissent. Ten per cent of people live in modern slavery; perhaps 200,000 are behind bars. I'm talking about North Korea, of course – a regime even more abhorrent than Stalinist Russia, but which attracts suspiciously little attention from Western governments and churches unless they feel threatened by its nuclear arsenal.
My guest in this episode of Holy Smoke is Timothy Cho, a Christian human rights activist who escaped from North Korea. Even as a child, he was sentenced to forced labour for the crime of watching a James Bond film. In school he was subjected to hysterical anti-Christian propaganda, but found his faith when he was thrown into a Chinese jail. (North Korean refugees are routinely rounded up by Beijing, which then returns them to the Kim family's giant prison camp.)
Listen to his extraordinary testimony, and then ask yourself: why are Western governments so relaxed about the human rights abuses of this diabolical regime?
This week:
In the magazine we look at the recent protests in France. The Spectator's Douglas Murray argues that racism is not the problem but that a significant chunk of the unintegrated immigrant population is. He is joined by Dr Rakib Ehsan, author of Beyond Grievance: What the Left Gets Wrong about Ethnic Minorities, to investigate why Europe riots. (01:16)
Also this week:
Journalist Ivo Dawnay and The Spectator’s associate editor Toby Young discuss the plight of 'politically exposed persons' in the magazine this week. This is of course in light of the news that Nigel Farage has had his bank account closed, with many speculating he has been 'debanked' simply because of his political views and associations. Ivo and Toby both join the podcast to discuss the ‘debanking’ crisis. (18:11).
And finally:
Wimbledon might be on, but it is padel that William Skidelsky is more excited about in his piece for the magazine this week, as he charts the rise of the increasingly popular racquet sport. He joins the podcast alongside Tia Norton, British female number one Padel tennis player. (27:45)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Tom Whipple, science editor of the Times and author of the gripping new book The Battle of the Beams: The secret science of radar that turned the tide of the Second World War. He describes the ingenious technological, psychological and espionage battles that made electromagnetic warfare a decisive – if under-appreciated – contributor to Britain's victory in the air war and, finally, in the Normandy Landings.
Francis Fukuyama is an American political scientist and international relations scholar known for his famous book The End of History and The Last Man. Francis and Winston discuss the state of liberal democracy, whether nationalism and liberalism can be reconciled and the case for liberalism.
Amy Newsome is a Kew-trained horticulturalist, beekeeper and author of the new book Honey: Recipe's from a beekeepers kitchen.
On the podcast, she tells Lara and Liv how beekeeping saved her mental health, why you should always keep at least four types of honey in your pantry and details her desert island meal.
Freddy Gray speaks to Spectator columnist, Douglas Murray who wrote in the magazine this week about Joe Biden's endless gaffes and the incompetence which Douglas argues has spilled into the rest of the party.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
It’s now a week since the Wagner Group revolted against the Kremlin.
Though the dramatic uprising was quelled within 24 hours and the group’s leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, is now exiled to Belarus, the episode will have lasting impact on President Putin’s authority.
Among those closely watching the events unfold would have been the Chinese leadership, who sent out a statement of support for Putin, but only after it was clear that the revolt had been put down.
What will those in Zhongnanhai make of the Prigozhin uprising? And could something similar happen in China?
On the episode, Cindy Yu is joined by James Palmer, a deputy editor at Foreign Policy and long time China hand, to discuss.
Produced by Cindy Yu.
This week: Isabel Hardman examines our curious obsession with glucose monitoring gadgets (01:03), Paul Wood wonders what exactly went on between Putin and Prigozhin (07:11), and Alexandra Shulman shares the contents of her weekly diary (12:15).
Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran.
This week Freddy is joined by Jacob Heilbrunn, editor of the National Interest, and Charles Lipson, professor of political science at the University of Chicago. They discuss Charles's recent piece in The Spectator's US edition where he argues that the walls are closing in on old Joe, in relation to the Hunter Biden story. Is the President's involvement in his son's dealings really just 'malarkey'?
Tulip Siddiq is the Labour MP for Hampstead and Kilburn and shadow economic secretary to the treasury. She was born into to a prestigious Bangladeshi family. Her grandfather was the founding father of Bangladesh, and her aunt is the current Prime Minister. After joining the Labour Party at 16, she studied first at UCL followed by completing a masters at Kings College London.
During her time as an MP, Tulip was prominent in campaigning for the return of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, as well as opposing Brexit. She gained national media attention when she delayed the birth of her son for a critical parliamentary vote. On the podcast Tulip talks about growing up in a Bangladeshi household, learning to read, speak and write in Bengali; the challenges she faced when going public about Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s imprisonment; and how she retained the most marginal seat in the country.Produced by Natasha Feroze.
This week:
In the magazine we look at the Wagner Group’s failed coup and its implications for Putin’s reign. The Spectator’s Russia correspondent Owen Matthews examines why the Kremlin permits the existence of private armies such as Prigozhin’s Wagner Group, and joins the podcast alongside Jim Townsend, former deputy secretary of defence for European and NATO policy under the Obama administration. (01:15)
Also this week:
The Spectator’s special projects editor Ben Lazarus writes this week about the claims made in the recent Mirror Group phone hacking trial, and the man orchestrating many of the accusations, Graham Johnson. He is joined by Neil Wallis, commentator and former deputy editor of the News of the World, to investigate the convicted phone-hacker assembling complaints against the tabloids. (13:39)
And finally:
Harry Mount takes a look at the lewdness and lyricism of ancient Roman graffiti in the magazine, and takes us through some of the most rude and amusing examples that have been excavated in Rome and Pompeii. He joins the podcast alongside street artist Sarah Yates, aka Faunagraphic. (27:24)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the art critic Laura Cumming. Her new book Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death talks about her fascination for the paintings of the Dutch 17th-century Golden Age, and in particular the entrancing work of the enigmatic Carel Fabritius. She tells me how her preoccupation links to the story of her artist father, why she thinks academic art historians too often miss the most important thing about paintings, and how looking at a work of art makes it possible to commune with the dead.
Philip Morris International is one of the world's most interesting and controversial companies. Recently, they announced their vision to exit the business of making cigarettes and enter what they describe as a 'smoke-free world'. But what pace are they moving at? And what are the risks involved?
Jacek Olczak the chief executive of Philip Morris International joins The Spectator's editor, Fraser Nelson to discuss what a smoke-free future might look like; the risks and rewards to cigarette alternatives; and why he believes big tobacco can be a force for good.
This week: Matt Ridley reveals the identity of the Chinese scientists in the lab linked to Covid, Martin Newland makes the moral case for becoming a foster carer, and Mary Wakefield has a plan for her old age to rid the world of drones.
Produced by Linden Kemkaran
In the ancient Syro-Malabar Church of south India, clergy who try to change the liturgy do so at their peril. At St Mary’s Cathedral Basilica in Ernakulam last December, a long-standing dispute over whether the priest should face the people led to scenes in which protestors attacked clergy in the middle of the service, sending the sacred vessels crashing to the ground. As a result, the cathedral was closed – and remains so, six months later.
This liturgy war is a hideous embarrassment for the Vatican, because the Syro-Malabar Church is the second largest Eastern Church in Communion with Rome. Traditionally dated back to St Thomas the Apostle's mission to India, it has four millions members worldwide. Members are known for their missionary zeal – the Syro-Malabars are one of the few thriving Catholic communities in Britain – but also passions that in the last few years have spilled over into violence, allegations of corruption and hunger strikes. At the root of the dispute is an attempt by Rome to impose a uniform liturgy on congregations that bitterly disagree about whether the priest should face East or West during the Holy Qurbana, the Syro-Malabar name for the Mass. Bishops have been burned in effigy.
My guest in this episode of Holy Smoke is Luke Coppen, senior correspondent of the Pillar and one the few journalists outside India who has been following the escalation of the Christian world's most spectacular liturgy war. If you thought the Vatican's attempt to crush the Latin Mass was a nasty business, just wait until you hear what Luke has to say about the situation in India, which the Pope seems powerless to control.
This week:
First up: for the cover piece, The Spectator’s economics editor Kate Andrews has written about Britain’s mortgage timebomb, as the UK faces the sharpest interest rate hike since the 80s. In the year leading up to the general election, can the Conservatives come back from this? Kate joins us along with Liam Halligan, economics editor of GB News, Telegraph columnist and author of Home Truths - the UK's chronic housing shortage.
Next: Spectator journalist Toby Young has written about 'furries' – children identifying as animals at school. He joins us now, along with Miriam Cates MP who sits on the education select committee. (17:11)
Finally: in the arts leader this week, Robert Jackman has written about wrestling. From WWE to amateur fights, there's a whole world out there – and it is growing in popularity. Robert joins the show along with Anthony Sinfield, a professional wrestler, also known as 'Tony Sin'. (28:32)
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
Sam Leith's guest in this week's Book Club podcast is the cosmologist Andrew Pontzen. His The Universe In A Box: A New Cosmic History describes how we have learned to simulate first the weather, and then the universe itself – and how we discovered that those simulations don't just mimic reality but allow us to learn new things about it. Dark matter, the Big Bang and the scientific importance of suboptimal pizza: it's all here.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson, Joe Bedell-Brill and Cindy Yu.
Michael Shellenberger, Twitter Files journalist and founder of Public is in London to discuss the international censorship industrial complex. He explains to Winston how the complex web of government, big tech, intelligence and media collude to suppress speech in the UK, America and beyond.
Michael will be continuing the debate on the censorship industrial complex with Russell Brand and Matt Taibbi on Thursday 22nd June at Central Hall, Westminster. Get tickets here: https://www.musicglue.com/good-faith-productions/events/2023-06-22-censorship-industrial-complex-exposed-westminster-central-hall
The word ‘West’ is often used as a shorthand to describe liberal democracies in Europe, and perhaps in Asia too, such that we’ll often talk about ‘the West’s attitude to China’, or the ‘West’s relations with China’. But this is at best a lazy shorthand – because when you dig a little deeper, it’s clear that there is no unified West on China. On this episode, Cindy Yu is joined by Noah Barkin, senior advisor at the Rhodium Group and author of the Watching China in Europe newsletter with the German Marshall Fund, to disaggregate the idea of ‘the West’, focusing especially on the continent of Europe. How do different European nation states, institutions, and even political parties see China differently?
Produced by Cindy Yu and Joe Bedell-Brill.
This week: James Heale takes us through the runners and riders for the conservative nomination for mayor of London (1:00), Paul Wood discusses how Saudi Arabia is trying to buy the world (06:02), and Hermione Eyre reads her arts lead on the woman who pioneered colour photography (12:51).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
This week, Freddy is joined by a great American filmmaker, Oliver Stone, and a great Argentinian filmmaker, Fernando Sulichin. Their new documentary Nuclear Now proposes nuclear energy as the solution to the climate crisis. On the podcast, they address global concerns about adding nuclear to the energy mix, compare the nuclear policy of Presidents Biden and Trump and discuss the opinion that Oliver formed of Vladimir Putin while filming The Putin Interviews.
Isabel Oakeshott is a journalist and author of numerous political biographies, formerly the political editor for the Sunday Times. She's known for a number of scoops over the years, including Chris Huhne's speeding ticket and revealing Matt Hancock's lockdown WhatsApps. On the episode, she talks to Katy about why toughness was a quality her parents particularly emphasised in her upbringing; what it was like to break into the lobby as a female journalist; and why she decided to break her confidentiality agreement to expose the cache of messages that Matt Hancock had given her.
Produced by Natasha Feroze, Saby Reyes-Kulkarni and Oscar Edmondson.
This week:
For her cover piece, The Spectator’s political editor Katy Balls writes that Boris Johnson could be attempting to spearhead an insurgency against the prime minister. She joins the podcast alongside historian and author Sir Anthony Seldon, to discuss whether – in light of the Privileges Committee's findings – Boris is going to seriously up the ante when it comes to seeking revenge against his former chancellor. (01:02)
Also this week:
In The Spectator journalist Paul Wood writes about how Saudi Arabia is buying the world, after the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund negotiated a controlling interest in the main US golf tournament, the PGA. This took many people by surprise. He is joined by New York Times journalist Justin Scheck to debate whether MBS's motivation really is international recognition, or perhaps domestic security. (12:41)
And finally:
In the books section of the magazine Simon Heffer reviews Tim Burrow’s new book: The Invention of Essex: The Making of an English County. They both join the podcast to consider whether the 'Essex Man' as alive and well. (25:00)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is the former FBI director James Comey, who is making his debut as a thriller writer with an engrossing police procedural, Central Park West. Jim tells me how he mined his own early career as a prosecutor in the southern district of New York to produce this world of hard-bitten investigators and murderous mafiosi (and how he was able to bring it up to date because it’s a world his daughter now inhabits). And, as the investigator at the centre of the Scooter Libby and Hillary Clinton email cases – among many others involving classified intelligence – he gives me his take on what Donald Trump’s indictment means and where it’s likely to lead.
Tony Diver is part of the investigations team at the Telegraph who exposed the Government Counter-Disinformation Unit. The unit operated during the pandemic to suppress speech deemed dangerous. Tony explains how and why the government operated with social media companies to silence dissenters on lockdown, masks and more. They also discuss the Lockdown Files and the upcoming Covid inquiry.
Cindy Yu is joined by Neil Wallis and Freddy Gray to discuss Prince Harry’s lone crusade in the hacking trial against the Mirror. Also on the show, Katy Balls on the Prime Minister’s trip to Washington; Christopher Snowdon on why it’s time for Britain to pull out of the WHO; Michael Shellenberger to defends free speech and Helen Joyce on the terf Oxfam advert.
00:00 Welcome from Cindy Yu
02:14 What happened when Prince Harry took the stand? With Neil Wallis and Freddy Gray
16:20 Is the 'special relationship' reciprocated? With Katy Balls
23:19 Is it time Britain left WHO? With Christopher Snowdon
36:26 Why are government's clamping down on free speech? With Michael Shellenberger
48:39 Why is Oxfam weighing in on the gender critical debate? With Helen Joyce
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
This week: Michela Wrong asks whether anywhere is safe for Kagame's critics (00:58), Emily Rhodes charts the rise of fake libraries (07:54), and Cindy Yu reviews a new exhibition at the British Museum on China's hidden century (15:25).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Freddy Gray is joined by Steve Edginton, video comment editor at the Telegraph and host of the Off Script podcast to discuss curious case of Sir Kim Darroch. A former civil servant has accused the government of an attempt to cover up “crimes” by the former British ambassador to the US, who he claims leaked intelligence to his lover. What has this done to the Anglo-American relations on the week Rishi Sunak visited Washington?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Harry Masterson.
This week:
Prince Harry has taken the stand to give evidence in the Mirror Group phone hacking trial which The Spectator’s deputy editor Freddy Gray talks about in his cover piece for the magazine. He is joined by Patrick Jephson, former private secretary to Princess Diana, to discuss whether Harry's 'suicide mission' against the press is ill-advised. (01:22)
Also this week:
In The Spectator professor Robert Tombs details the trouble with returning the Benin Bronzes back to Nigeria, arguing that their restitution is more complicated than some claim. He is joined by Deadria Farmer-Paellmann, executive director of the Restitution Study Group, who have recently screened a short film in Cannes, detailing why they think the bronzes should stay where they are. (14:07)
And finally:
Journalist Emily Rhodes writes this week about the rise of fake libraries and the current online trend for having phoney books on bookshelves. She joins the podcast alongside The Spectator’s literary editor Sam Leith, to discuss whether this fad could spell the end for books as we know them. (22:39)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast I talk to Peter Turchin about his new book End Times: Elites, Counter-Elites and the Path of Political Disintegration. He proposes a scientific theory of history, mapping the underlying forces that have led to the collapse of states from the ancient world to the present day, and warns of very turbulent times ahead indeed.
In much of the conversation surrounding China and Taiwan, the question of invasion seems to be a ‘when’ not an ‘if’. But is an invasion really so inevitable?
No one knows for sure, of course, but there are good reasons to think that speculations of a war have been overblown.
For one, the economic links between Taiwan and China mean that their respective interests are not so zero sum. For another, China may well be causing serious damage to itself through an invasion.
This episode of Chinese Whispers presents the case for the defence – that invasion is not, in fact, inevitable. Cindy Yu is joined by Professor William Kirby at Harvard University and Charles Parton, a former diplomat in China and Taiwan and a foreign policy analyst.
This week: Lionel Shriver argues that we should rise up in our road rage (00:52), Ian Williams discusses the crackdown on China’s stand-up comics (09:42) and Matthew Dennison explains why we shouldn’t cancel Beatrix Potter (16:33).
Produced by Seb Charleton & Natasha Feroze
Penny Junor is a journalist, biographer and author of several books. She began writing at the Evening Standard. Soon into her career, Penny was given an opportunity to write a book about Princess Diana which led to several more books about the Royals – The Firm: The Troubled House of Windsor and Charles: Victim or Villain?
Aside from that, Penny has penned books on key political figures including John Major and Margaret Thatcher. On the podcast, Penny talks about her decision to leave university in second year to get married and become a journalist, she shares how her perspective on the Royal family changed throughout her career and she talks about some writing plans for the future.
James Heale is joined by Kate Andrews and Sebastian Payne to discuss Rishi Sunak’s radical shift to the left. Also on the show, Quentin Letts on the navel gazing civil service; Esperanza Aguirre on the Spanish snap election; Douglas Murray on why we shouldn’t talk about Philip Schofield and Harry Pearson on British folk sport.
00:00 Welcome from James Heale
02:11 Has Sunak become a socialist? With Kate Andrews and Sebastian Payne
16:09 Does the civil service have a victimhood complex? With Quentin Letts
22:37 Why has the Spanish PM called a snap election? With Esperanza Aguirre
32:11 Why are Brits obsessed with salacious stories? With Douglas Murray
44:55 Which folk sports still exist? With Harry Pearson
Produced by Natasha Feroze
On this week’s episode:
Price caps are back in the news as the government is reportedly considering implementing one on basic food items. What happened to the Rishi Sunak who admired Margaret Thatcher and Nigel Lawson? In her cover article this week, our economics editor Kate Andrews argues that the prime minister and his party have lost their ideological bearings. She joins the podcast, together with Spectator columnist Matthew Parris, who remembers the last time price caps were implemented and writes about it in his column.
We also take a look at the experience of being addicted to meth. What is it like, and is it possible to turn your life around after that? The translator Eva Gaida has managed it, and writes powerfully about her experience in this week’s issue. She’s joined by drugs counsellor and Spectator World contributor, Kevin Dahlgren.
And finally, have the Irish lost their famous sense of humour? Melanie McDonagh writes that ‘the country of the fighting Irish, the drinking Irish, the self-deprecating humorous Irish, has turned into a kind of parody of liberal authoritarianism’. She joins the podcast now, together with Irish comedian and impressionist Oliver Callan.
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Cindy Yu.
This week: Niru Ratnam argues that teachers are putting principles before children (00:59), Gus Carter discusses the curious business of fertility (08:14), and Graeme Thomson reviews Beyonce at Murrayfield Stadium (14:24).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
This week:
In his cover piece, journalist Mark Galeotti asks whether Putin can be outsmarted by Zelensky’s counter-offensive. He is joined by The Spectator’s own Svitlana Morenets to discuss Ukraine's next move. (01:08)
Also this week:
Journalist David Goodhart writes a moving tribute to his friend Jeremy Clarke, The Spectator’s much-missed Low Life columnist who sadly passed away earlier this week. David is joined by Cass Pennant and Freddy Gray, The Spectator’s deputy editor, to remember the life and writing of Jeremy Clarke. (12:52)
And finally:
The Spectator’s deputy features editor Gus Carter writes this week about the curious business of fertility. He is joined by Nimco Ali co-founder and CEO of The Five Foundation. (27:06)
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week’s Book Club podcast, we celebrate the life and weigh the literary reputation of Martin Amis, who died at the end of last week. I’m joined by the critic Alex Clark, the novelist John Niven, and our chief reviewer Philip Hensher – all of whom bring decades of close engagement with Amis’s work to the discussion.
Matthew Goodwin, author of the bestseller Values, Voice and Virtue talks to Winston about the divide in British politics between cosmopolitans and traditionalists, the controversy surrounding the National Conservative Conference, and the future of the Conservative and Labour parties.
This week: J. Meirion Thomas tells us about the story of the politician, the street trader and the foiled kidney transplant plot (00:57), Tom Goodenough discusses the blurred lines between sport and entertainment (08:30) and Adam Sweeting reads his interview with documentary-maker Nick Broomfield about the forgotten Rolling Stone (13:42).
Freddy Gray speaks to Nigel Farage and Fraser Nelson about Britain's latest immigration figures, and what this means seven years on from the Brexit vote. Also on the show, Tim Stanley and Mary Harrington discuss the future of Conservatism; Paul Wood looks at Putin's warlord, Yevgeny Prigozhin; and will Tinder swiping be replaced by AI?
00:00 Welcome by Freddy Gray
02:24 Has Brexit meant more immigration than ever? With Fraser Nelson and Nigel Farage
21:19 What do National Conservatives care about? With Mary Harrington and Tim Stanley
41:29 Who is Yevgeny Prigozhin? With Paul Wood
56:11 Will AI take over Tinder? With Jake Kozloski
01:05 Outro
Dambisa Moyo is an economist, life peer and author of five books: from Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There Is a Better Way for Africa to her most recent, How Boards Work: And How They Can Work Better in a Chaotic World. Born in Zambia, Dambisa grew up in a house where discussing politics was a regular occurrence at the family table. Dambisa has a large portfolio of academic qualifications from all over the world and has consulted both public and private sector bank. Having sat on numerous boards, Dambisa received a life peerage and in 2023 when she entered the House of Lords. On the podcast Dambisa talks about growing up in Zambia, six years after independence; her first job aged 23 at the World Bank, and her new role sat in the House of Lords.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
This week:
Spectator editor Fraser Nelson writes in this week’s cover story about how Brexit has led to Britain having more, not less, immigration – Rishi Sunak’s government is masking dysfunction in the welfare system by bringing in people to fill vacant jobs. To make his case, Fraser joins us alongside our economics editor Kate Andrews. (01:04)
Also this week:
Novelist Elif Shafak writes about the Turkish elections in the diary for this week’s magazine. Ultranationalism and religious fundamentalism were the real winners in last Sunday’s poll. To tell us all about it. Elif joins us alongside Spectator contributor Owen Matthews. (23:18)
And finally:
Is reality television ruining sport? The Spectator’s online editor Tom Goodenough writes in this week’s magazine about how a new trend of TV shows following sports teams is taking the joy away for fans. To explain, Tom joins us alongside our deputy editor Freddy Gray. (34:24)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Max Jeffery.
In this week's Book Club podcast, we're talking about a very new version of a very old book. Leo Africanus's The Cosmography and Geography of Africa was the first book to introduce Africa to the people of Western Europe. Part Baedeker, part-natural history, part-memoir, part-history book, it dominated the Western understanding of that continent for hundreds of years. Anthony Ossa-Richardson and Richard J Oosterhoff have just published the first new English translation in more than 400 years, and they talk to me about its tangled manuscript history, its mysterious author, and what it gets wrong about giraffes.
The mail-order bride industry is booming – but today's international dating doesn't look as it used to.
It turns out that it’s not so much young and uneducated Chinese women looking to marry out of the country anymore, and more middle aged and financially well off divorcees, looking for something different.
The mail order bride industry is changing as the women involved are becoming more empowered with their growing wealth – and more demanding.
On this episode, Cindy Yu speaks to sociologist Monica Liu, whose new book, Seeking Western Men, is all about these changing dynamics of race, class, gender and, ultimately, power. She writes about the book in an article for Sixth Tone.
This week Ece Temelkuran on Turkey's upcoming elections (0:54); Lara Prendergast looks at Millenial Millie – a new voter demographic (05:47) and Aidan Hartley on surviving this year's drought (12:12).
Freddy Gray is joined by filmmaker, Alex Holder who had access to Trump’s inner circle when making the documentary Unprecedented. On the podcast, they discuss Trump's supporter base, his relationship with his children, and why Ivanka is the favourite.
This week:
Having been found guilty of sexual assault, is Donald Trump still in the running for the White House? In his cover piece, Niall Ferguson says he could still defy gravity. He joins the podcast alongside Jacob Heilbrunn, editor of The National Interest. (01:00)
Also this week:
Journalist Andrew Watts interviews the Reverend Canon Dr Jason Bray, the Bishop of St Asaph’s ‘deliverance minister’, or the Anglican priest charged with exorcising evil spirits. They both join the podcast. (17:50).
And finally:
Author and journalist Sophia Money-Coutts writes about the British women opting for Danish sperm donors to conceive. She joins us on the show, along with Annemette Arndal Lauritzen, CEO of the European Sperm Bank. (34:07).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Natasha Feroze.
In this week's Book Club podcast my guest is the writer Madeleine Bunting, whose new book is The Seaside: England's Love Affair. She tells me how the great seaside resorts came into their 19th century pomp, how abrupt was their mid-century decline, and of the terrible desolation that has succeeded the idyll of donkey rides, ices and fish and chips.
Niki Segnit is the author of the hit cooking books The Flavour Thesaurus and Lateral Cooking. Her new book The Flavour Thesaurus more flavours: Plant-led pairings, recipes and ideas for cooks, is out this Thursday 11th May.
On the podcast she speaks to Lara and Liv about weird and wonderful flavour combinations, her childhood fascination with Oxo cubes and why she has gone plant-led for her new book.
This week: William Moore recalls the 1953 coronation with those that were there (01:02), Katy Balls reads her politics column (10:13), Dan Hitchens discusses the art of coronation (16:20) and Ysenda Maxtone Graham reads her review of The Seaside by Madeleine Bunting (25:20).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Freddy Gray speaks to journalist Ben Smith, whose new book Traffic is an origins story for digital media. On the podcast they discuss how a new genre of journalism was birthed from a desire to cause trouble online, whether woke culture spawned from digital media and if we are nearing the end for the social internet.
Sam McAlister is a producer and author of Scoops: The BBC's Most Shocking Interviews from Prince Andrew to Steven Seagal. When she worked for Newsnight, she was the producer who secured the infamous interview with Prince Andrew, conducted by Emily Maitlis. This interview eventually led to Prince Andrew being suspended from public duties and stepping back from all of his patronages. McAlister is now being portrayed by the actress Billie Piper in a coming Netflix adaptation of the Prince Andrew interview.
On the episode, she tells Katy about coming from a 'grafting, entrepreneurial' family and how that informed her competitiveness; her brief career in law; and the behind-the-scenes story of how she secured the interview.
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Cindy Yu.
This week:
In his cover piece for the magazine, Daily Mail writer, author of Queen of Our Times and co-presenter of the Tea at the Palace podcast, Robert Hardman looks ahead to the reign of King Charles III. He joins the podcast alongside historian David Starkey, who is interviewed in the arts pages of The Spectator by Lynn Barber (01:10)
Also this week:
Sean Thomas writes about generational reparations, that is: whether families with murky pasts should pay compensation for their ancestors’ wrongdoings. He is joined by Professor Christine Kinealy, historian and author This Great Calamity: The Irish Famine 1845-52, to ask whether generational reparations are simply a token gesture (20:58).
And finally:
Journalist Yannic Rack writes about the battle to restore Britain's hedgerows in The Spectator. He is joined by Clive Matthew, hedgelayer and founder of the National Hedgelaying Society to learn about the art of hedgelaying (30:29).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Shehan Karunatilaka, author of last year's Booker Prize winner The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida. Shehan tells me about writing a novel whose protagonist is dead on page one, about putting the chaos of Sri Lanka's long civil war on the page, and about the importance of Shakin' Stevens to a teenager in 1980s Colombo.
Hidden in March’s GDP figures was a shocking statistic – a fifth of Chinese 16 to 24 year olds are out of work. This is a near record high, and the economic background to a fresh wave of disillusionment among China’s young.
It has led to the creation of a new meme - you’ve heard of lying flat, but young people are now comparing themselves to a Republican-era literary character, Kong Yiji.
On this episode, Cindy Yu is joined by the journalist Karoline Kan, author of Under Red Skies: The Life and Times of a Chinese Millennial. They talk about the Kong Yiji trend, why prospects are so thin for the most educated Chinese generation, and what this all means for the government's claims to economic competence.
This week: Mary Wakefield explains why the NHS is broken; Jenny McCartney on the unproductive 'productivity gurus' and Robert Gore-Langton on Richard Burton’s botched Hamlet.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
Freddy Gray is joined by Ayesha Hazarika and Katy Balls who has written the cover this week on Keir Starmer's centrist army. Also on the show, Cirino Hiteng Ofuho on Sudan's violent civil unrest; Gracy Curley on the upcoming US election and Sean Mathias and Rob Gore-Langton on Hamlet.
00:00 Welcome from Freddy Gray
03:39 Who are Keir's 'Starmtroopers?' With Katy Balls and Ayesha Hazarika
24:59 What's happened in Sudan? With Dr Cirino Hiteng Ofuho
36:29 A look ahead to the US election. With Grace Curley
53:56 Richard Burton's botched Hamlet. With Sean Mathias and Robert Gore-Langton.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
This week:
In her cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator’s political editor Katy Balls writes that as Labour prepares for government, Keir Starmer is rooting out the far left sections of his party and replacing them with moderates. She is joined by John McTernan, former political secretary to Tony Blair, to discuss the return of the Blairites (01:06).
Also this week:
The Spectator’s Russia correspondent Owen Matthews writes about Putin's three most prominent political prisoners. He joins the podcast alongside The Spectator’s assistant online editor Lisa Haseldine to consider the cost of speaking up against the regime (17:50).
And finally:
Damian Thompson, associate editor at The Spectator, writes this week about the rise of America’s Satanists. He is joined by Chaplain Leopold, who co-runs the Global Order of Satan UK, to debate the rifts in modern Satanism (28:41).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast my guest is the theoretical physicist Michio Kaku. In his new book Quantum Supremacy, Prof Kaku explains how – as he sees it – the advent of quantum computers is going to turn the world as we know it on its head. He explains the extraordinary possibilities and perils of the quantum revolution, tells me how Albert Einstein and Flash Gordon set him on his path, and argues why when it comes to trying to make sense of the universe, you need to be prepared to be crazy.
Winston speaks to former Portland State University professor turned international philosopher, Peter Boghossian. Peter was a prominent new atheist author and expert on the Socratic method when he resigned his position at Portland over the percolation of ‘woke’ ideology into the university. In his resignation letter he described how the institution had become a ‘dogma factory’ which had ‘weaponized diversity, equity and inclusion’. Peter and Winston discuss progressive domination of the Academy, how woke spreads, DEI vs free speech, how to have constructive conversations and whether the new atheists led to woke culture.
Freddy Gray speaks to Michael Wolff, author of books on Trump and Rupert Murdoch. On the podcast, they talk about the Dominion vs Fox trial settlement. Why did Fox let this case go on for so long?
This week: Sam Leith explains how he’s been keeping up friendships by playing online scrabble (00:55), Lionel Shriver questions Nike and Bud Light's recent marketing strategy (06:52) and Angus Colwell reads his review of the V&A Dundee’s tartan exhibition (15:24).
As world leaders gathered to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, is violence glorified when it comes to remembering the Troubles? John Connolly speaks to Spectator columnist Douglas Murray and former DUP leader Arlene Foster. This episode can be watched in full on Spectator TV's Week in 60 Minutes.
John Connolly is joined by Andrew Neil to discuss the SNP’s implosion; Douglas Murray and Arlene Foster on the ongoing sectarianism in Northern Ireland; Louise Perry and Kim Cotton on the ethical dilemmas of surrogacy and David Abulafia on Neflix's portrayal of Cleopatra.
00:00 Welcome from John Connolly
01:54 Is the SNP over? With Andrew Neil
13:24 Can Northern Ireland move on from the Troubles? With Douglas Murray and Arlene Foster
32:03 Is surrogacy unethical? With Louise Perry and Kim Cotton
54:26 Why is Netflix pretending that Cleopatra was black? With David Abulafia
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
On this week's episode:
In her cover piece for The Spectator, journalist Louise Perry questions whether it is moral to separate a newborn child from their surrogate. She is joined by Sarah Jones, head of SurrogacyUK and five time surrogate mother, to debate the ethics of surrogacy (01:07).
Also this week:
In the books section of the magazine Olivia Potts reviews several recent books all of which seem to warn against the dangers of our food system and what we are eating. She is joined by Henry Dimbleby, author of Ravenous: How to Get Ourselves and Our Planet Into Shape, to ask if anything is safe to eat these days (14:29).
And finally:
Reverend Steve Morris speaks to modern day Holy Grail-hunters in The Spectator about their obsession with the search for the cup of Christ. He joins the podcast alongside Rat Scabies, Grail-hunter and drummer of the punk band The Dammed, to shed some light on the enduring appeal of the Holy Grail (26:50).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Sam Leith's guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Luke Jennings, the veteran reporter and novelist whose Codename Villanelle trilogy gave rise to the hit TV series Killing Eve. As his new thriller #PANIC is published he tells Sam how he found its inspiration after being drawn into the online fandom for Killing Eve, where he clashed with Phoebe Waller-Bridge... and why he's never going to write a novel about media types in North London having affairs.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Joe Bedell-Brill.
Feminist philosopher, Unherd columnist and author of The Case Against The Sexual Revolution Louise Perry discusses population growth decline, how culture, the state and feminism are failing mothers and what can be done about it.
Just before Christmas, it was reported that the billionaire Jack Ma had moved to Tokyo after getting into trouble with the Chinese authorities. If he's still living there, he'd be one of several well known Chinese who seems to have made Japan their home after run ins with Beijing.
In so doing, they’re following in the footsteps of those who came over a century ago – other Chinese exiles who holed out in Japan because of a hostile political environment back home.
This episode is all about how important it was that Japan served as a safe haven for these exiles – both reformers and revolutionaries – at the turn of the 20th century. That would later contribute to the establishment of a Chinese national identity and even the creation of the Chinese republic itself. It turns out that Japan was not only an aggressor against modern China, but an inspiration for it.
On this episode, Cindy Yu is joined by the Professor Rana Mitter from the University of Oxford and Bill Hayton, a journalist and author of The Invention Of China.
[Pictured: Sun Yat-sen with Japanese film producer Umeya Shokichi and wife, who helped fund Sun's activities]
Historical timeline:
1839 - 1842 – First opium war
1856 - 1860 – Second opium war
1868 – The 'Meiji Restoration' begins in Japan
1877 – The first Qing delegation arrives in Tokyo, including diplomat Huang Zunxian.
1894/95 – The Sino-Japanese war. China's defeat results in Taiwan being ceded to Japan as a colony.
1898 – The 'Hundred Days Reform', a failed attempt by the Emperor Guangxu and allies (including Liang Qichao, Kang Youwei and Huang Zunxian) to constitutionalise the Qing dynasty. It was quashed by the Empress Cixi.
1899 - 1901 – The Boxer Rebellion, a peasant movement against foreign forces in China and endorsed by the Qing dynasty. It ends in defeat and an influx of Chinese students are sent to Japan as a part of Qing indemnities.
1911 - The last emperor abdicates and the Republic of China is formed.
Further listening:
Jing Tsu on the Chinese language revolution.
Bill Hayton on 'The Invention Of China'.
Dylan Levi Thomas on modern China's psyche surrounding Japan.
This week: James Heale says the gloves are off as Labour campaigning takes a bitter turn (00:54), Mary Wakefield worries that she’s raising a snowflake (17:47), and Gus Carter tells us about the colourful history of the green man (31:34).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Baroness Martha Lane Fox is a dotcom pioneer having started lastminute.com in 1997. She sits on the board of some of the country's most prominent brands, including Marks & Spencer and Channel 4, and has made significant contributions to the government's digital agenda. On the podcast, Martha talks about the early years of the dotcom bubble; the car crash which led to her spending two years in hospital; and some of the campaigning work she has done to promote more accessibility for women in tech.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
On the podcast this week:
In his cover piece for The Spectator, Adrian Wooldridge argues that meritocracy is under attack. He says that the traditional societal pyramid – with the upper class at the top and the lower class at the base – has been inverted by a new culture which prizes virtue over meritocracy. He joins the podcast alongside journalist and author of Chums: How a tiny caste of Oxford Tories took over the UK, Simon Kuper, to debate (01:04).
Also this week:
In the magazine, ad-man Paul Burke suggests how the Tories should respond to Labour’s attack adverts. Released last week, the adverts have caused a stir for attacking the Conservative's recent record on curbing child abuse, and accuses Rishi Sunak directly of negligence on the issue. Paul is joined by Carl Shoben, who leads strategic communications for Survation and was strategy director under Jeremy Corbyn (17:47).
And finally:
In the books section of the magazine Philip Hensher reviews Sarah Bakewell’s new book Humanly Possible: Seven Hundred Years of Humanist Thinking, Enquiry and Hope. Philip says that he admires the humanists of the past, and find them consistently kinder, more decent and generous than their contemporaries. Both Philip and Sarah join the podcast (31:34).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
For over forty years, tens of thousands of girls and young women have been abused, raped and some brutally murdered across Britain by grooming gangs. It is a scandal that should shame the nation, yet it is an issue that gets brushed aside by authorities, clouded out in the media by disputes over racist reporting, and largely ignored by politicians. All at the cost of justice for those young girls. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last week announced policy to – finally – attempt to deal with this horrific issue.
To discuss the policy and the deeper story of the grooming gangs is journalist and documentary filmmaker Charlie Peters.
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is the poet and artist Frieda Hughes, whose new book George: A Magpie Memoir tells the story of what caring for a foundling baby magpie taught her about life. She tells me about chaos, head-bouncing, magpie-poop, and how she managed to write about corvids without imagining her father Ted Hughes looking over her shoulder.
Jonathan Ray is The Spectator’s drinks editor and formerly wine critic for the Telegraph. He has also written several books on the subject of wine and how to buy it.
On the podcast Lara, Liv and Jonny share a glass of wine and discuss Jonathan’s earliest memories of food, his go-to hangover cure and his desert island meal.
Megyn Kelly joins Freddy Gray to take a look at the wider picture following Donald Trump's arrest. The presidential candidates' ratings have surged in the polls – has this rejuvenated Trump's campaign? Also on the show, Dan Hitchens and Andrew Doyle discuss the divisions in the Church of England; Charles Moore remembers former Chancellor and editor of The Spectator, Nigel Lawson; and Stuart Jeffries joins Lady Unchained to talk about the therapeutic nature of prison art.
On this week's Spectator Out Loud, Svitlana Morenets talks about how the lines between patriotism and profiteering are being blurred in Ukraine; Owen Matthews interviews Leonid Volkov, Alexei Navalny's chief of staff; and Ysenda Maxtone Graham calls for help from a 15-minute city.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Cindy Yu.
Galen Druke, host of the FiveThirtyEight podcast, joins Freddy Gray on this episode to talk about what to take away from Chicago's election this week, how well the Biden team is handling the progressive wing of the Democratic party, and whether the Democrats would prefer to face up against Ron or Don as the Republican nominee.
Produced by Natasha Feroze, Saby Kulkarni and Cindy Yu.
On the podcast this week:
In his cover piece for the magazine, journalist Dan Hitchens examines whether Justin Welby and Pope Francis can heal the divisions threatening to tear apart the Church of England and the Catholic Church. He is joined by Telegraph columnist Tim Stanley to ask whether these two men – once heralded as great unifiers by their respective Churches – can keep their flocks in order. (01:05)
Also this week:
In his column, The Spectator’s associate editor Douglas Murray questions whether the English countryside can be considered exclusionary, after the news that the green and pleasant land will be studied by ‘hate crime’ experts. He is joined by the explorer and broadcaster Dwayne Fields to ask is the countryside racist? (13:44)
And finally:
Journalist Ysenda Maxtone Graham writes for The Spectator about the madness – in her view – of Low Traffic Neighbourhoods. She is joined by Jason Torrance, CEO of UK100 which works closely with local governments and is in favour of the scheme. (32:28)
Presented by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast, my guest is the historian Katja Hoyer, whose new book Beyond The Wall: East Germany 1949-1990 tells the story of four decades which are vital to understand modern Germany, but which tend to be quietly relegated to a footnote in history. Born in the GDR herself, Katja tells me how much more there is to the East German state than the Berlin Wall, the Stasi, and the grey totalitarian dystopia of popular imagination. She tells me about Erich Honecker's wild side, about the importance of coffee to East German morale, and about how inevitable or otherwise were the historical forces that saw Germany first divided, and then reunited.
Posie Parker, aka Kellie-Jay Keen, is back from her Let Women Speak tour of Australia and New Zealand, where she was mobbed and hounded by radical trans activists. She tells me what happened, why she went in the first place, the state of the gender wars down under and her plans to run against Keir Starmer at the next election. We also look back into her own history and how it is she became the lightning rod of the feminist movement today.
Until a few years ago, Hollywood dominated Chinese cinemas. In the People’s Republic, Marvel’s superhero romps were the people’s favourite, with Avengers: Endgame taking in over £510 million at Chinese box offices.
Hollywood is desperate to crack the Chinese market – after all, it’s a country with a fifth of the world’s population and a growing middle class. But there’s just one problem – the small issue of the Chinese Communist Party, which tightly controls the films people can see.
Since the success of Avengers: Endgame, Marvel films had effectively been blacklisted until earlier this year, with other Hollywood blockbusters failing to break through either. This episode is about the complicated love affair between Beijing and LA.
Cindy Yu is joined by Wall Street Journal journalist Erich Schwartzel, author of Red Carpet: Hollywood, China, and the Global Battle for Cultural Supremacy; and Chris Berry, Professor of Film Studies at Kings College London – you might remember him from a previous episode discussing the golden age of Chinese films.
This week: Katy Balls discusses why Humza Yousaf is the Union's best hope (01:00), Lisa Haseldine reads her interview with former Georgian defence minister David Kezerashvili (07:00), and Graeme Thomson asks whether supergroups are really that super (13:54).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Penny Mordaunt is the Conservative MP for Portsmouth North and one of the most recognisable women in British politics. She has served in several ministerial roles from International Development to Defence and she is currently Leader of the House. On the podcast, Penny talks about the last two tumultuous years; some of her proudest moments in politics – increasing armed forces pay and leading a Lords reform rebellion, and adding some humour to business questions in parliament.
On the podcast:
In his cover piece for the magazine, journalist Jonathan Miller argues that President Macron is pitting himself against the people by refusing to back down from his plans to raise the age of retirement. He is joined by regular Coffee House contributor Gavin Mortimer, to ask whether this could be Macron's last adventure (01:06).
Also this week:
In the magazine, travel journalist Sean Thomas says that – in comparison to other cities he has visited – American cities are uniquely struggling to bounce back from the impacts of the covid pandemic. He is joined by Karol Markowicz, columnist at the New York Post and contributing editor at Spectator World, to discuss the decline and fall of urban America (16:29).
And finally:
Mary Wakefield writes in the magazine about her fear of the advances in artificial intelligence and in particular voice cloning technology. This sort of tech is being increasingly used by fraudsters. James Ball, columnist at the New European, joins the podcast alongside Jay Hacks, an AI practitioner. Would they be fooled by a voice scam? (26:38).
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
On this week's Book Club podcast my guests are the former government food tsar Henry Dimbleby and his wife and co-author Jemima Lewis, to talk about their new book Ravenous: How To Get Ourselves and Our Planet Into Shape. They tell me about the perils and pleasures of working with your spouse, why exercise doesn't make you lose weight, what we don't understand about nutrition, when the state needs to take a hand in consumer choice -- and why sending Liz Truss a picture of a sheep's mutilated backside might not have been the best idea.
Winston speaks with Dutch legal philosopher, writer and political activist Eva Vlaardingerbroek. Three and a half years of farmer demonstrations against technocratic environmentalist policy has culminated in election victory for the farmers of one of the world's great farming nations. What happened? How did it happen? Eva explains the different worldviews in contention, gives her perspective on net zero and argues the Dutch case for 'Nexit'.
Britain’s high energy prices, insecure supply, and climate change commitments mean people’s relationship with energy will need to change. How could consumers change their attitude to energy consumption so that they use less? Will doing so give them a worse standard of living?
On this podcast, Kate Andrews, The Spectator’s economics editor, is joined by Dan Brooke, the CEO of Smart Energy GB, a not-for-profit campaign to help Britons understand the benefits of smart meters.
This podcast is sponsored by Smart Energy GB.
Cindy Yu, the Spectator's assistant editor speaks to Katy Balls about Boris's future – is the show over for the political influencer? Also on Spectator TV, Harriet Sergeant reveals the stories of children who never returned to school after lockdown; Gideon Rachman looks at China's shifting foreign policy; Danny Shaw on the rotten culture inside the Metropolitan Police and Sasha Hinkley believes there may be life on exoplanets.
00:00 Welcome from Cindy Yu
02:00 Is the Boris show over? With Katy Balls
11:01 What happened to lockdown's missing children? With Harriet Sergeant and Miriam Cates MP
25:17 Is the Met Police beyond repair? With Danny Shaw
36:18 Why did Xi visit Putin? With Gideon Rachman
47:18 What is an exoplanet? With Sasha Hinckley
This week: Ian Williams asks how China will cope with the rise of AI chatbots (00:56), Kara Kennedy recounts her upbringing in the Welsh ‘murder capital’ of Pontypridd (08:11), and Oscar Edmondson makes the case for the BBC World Service (13:38).
Presented by Natasha Feroze.
Freddy Gray speaks to the Republican strategist and advisor Roger Stone about the Trump's possible arrest; his views on Ron De Santis and the end of honest journalism.
This week:
In her cover piece for The Spectator, Harriet Sergeant asks what's happened to the 140,000 pupils who have been 'severely absent' from school since the pandemic. She is joined by The Spectator's data editor Michael Simmons to account for the staggering number of children who were failed by the government's Covid response (01:08).
Also this week:
Owen Matthews, The Spectator's Russia correspondent, looks at the opposition candidate who could usurp President Erdogan in Turkey. He joins the podcast alongside Turkish journalist Ece Temelkuran to discuss whether it really could be the end of Erdogan's two decade long hold over Turkish politics (14:48).
And finally:
Kara Kennedy, staff writer at Spectator World, writes this week about her upbringing in the Welsh 'murder capital' Pontypridd, and her own near miss with a recently convicted killer. She is joined by Welsh crime writer and psychologist Emma Kavanagh, to examine Wales's murderous reputation (24:36).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the writer Victoria Smith, whose new book Hags: The Demonisation of Middle-Aged Women explains why one of the oldest forms of misogyny is seeing a vicious resurgence in our own age. She says some of the worst of it now comes from young women. She tells me why she thinks feminists of each new generation seem destined to forget or reject the lessons learned by the previous one, and why female bodies – and the life experiences which go with them – are something that can't be wished away by postmodern theory.
As Xi Jinping visits Vladimir Putin in Russia this week, this episode of Chinese Whispers is returning to one of the missions of this podcast series – to look at things as the Chinese see them.
My guest today is Zhou Bo, a retired Senior Colonel of the People’s Liberation Army whose military service started in 1979. He is now a senior fellow at the Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University. He’s an eloquent and informed advocate of Beijing’s perspective.
On the podcast, we discuss why China hasn’t criticised Russia more, despite its purported support for sovereignty, to what extent it really means its peace plan, and whether China is about to invade Taiwan.
We recorded most of this podcast two weeks ago, so when Xi’s visit to Moscow was announced last week, Bo kindly agreed to rejoin the podcast and give his take on the visit too.
Chances are, you won’t agree with most of the things Bo says, and as you’ll hear, I didn’t on some issues either. Even so, Beijing will continue to play a crucial role in the war, and so it remains important for the West to understand how the Chinese see things.
Freddy Gray is joined by Joe Weisenthal, co-host of the Odd Lots podcast at Bloomberg. On the podcast, Joe talks about the recent collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, and the moral hazard of state intervention. How gloomy should people be?
This week: Cindy Yu discusses Britain’s invisible East Asians (00:51), Leah McLaren discloses the truth about single motherhood (06:02), and Hannah Tomes reads her notes on dining alone (12:08).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Ash Regan is the MSP for East Edinburgh who has served as minister for community safety. Since Nicola Sturgeon’s resignation, she has put herself forward to be the next First Minister for Scotland. Born in Biggar, Ash moved to England as a child and grew up in Devon. She surprised her family during the referendum for Scottish Independence, deciding she would vote to leave.
Ash began her foray into politics as a campaigner before running for elected office. She was little known outside of the Holyrood bubble until she quit as community safety minister over plans to allow people to self-identify their gender.
On the podcast, Ash talks about life before politics; the challenges of the campaign trail; her plans for an independent Scotland, and why she voted against the Gender Recognition Act.
On the podcast:
The Spectator's economics editor Kate Andrews looks back on a week of economic turbulence and asks whether we should be worried, for her cover piece in the magazine. She is joined by the economist – and former 'Trussketeer' – Julian Jessop, to discuss whether we are entering a new era of economic uncertainty (01:06).
Also this week:
In the magazine, The Spectator’s deputy features editor Gus Carter says that the culture of toxic masculinity has gone too far, and that young men are being marginalised in schools and online as they are repeatedly told that they are a danger to women. He is joined by the Times columnist Hugo Rifkind, to explore how today's sexual politics is impacting young men (13:21).
And finally:
In the books section of the magazine, Philip Hensher reviews Oliver Soden’s new biography of the actor, writer, singer and playwright Noel Coward. Oliver joins the podcast alongside regular Spectator contributor Alexander Larman to consider Coward's life and legacy (27:44).
Hosted by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Sam Leith's guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the writer and editor Ian Buruma, to talk about his new book Collaborators: Three Stories of Deception and Survival in World War Two. A Chinese princess who climbed into bed with Japanese nationalist gangsters; an observant Jew who sold his co-religionists to the Nazis; and Himmler’s personal masseur. Ian describes how their stories link and resonate, and how murky morality gets in a time where truth loses its meaning altogether.
Produced by Cindy Yu.
Winston speaks with Twitter files journalist David Zweig just as the Twitter files scandal goes to congress. They discuss the significance of the hearing, Big Tech/government censorship, what he uncovered when working on the story, the failure of journalists and government during Covid, myocarditis, mask-efficiency, and the link between free speech and bodily autonomy.
Eleanor is a features writer and columnist for the Daily Telegraph where she writes the the regular food column The Art of Friday Night Dinner. Her new book – of the same name – is released on the 30th March and includes recipes for every kind of Friday night.
On the podcast she reminisces about her mother's famous tomato sauce, takes us through her perfect Friday night and explains why she has always loved gathering friends around the kitchen table.
(Photo credit: Sophie Davidson)
Freddy Gray The Spectator’s deputy editor speaks to Andrew Cockburn and Danielle Lee Tomson about the battle for the American right – who will win out of Ron DeSantis and Donald Trump? Also on the show, Katy Balls looks at the Home Secretary’s plans to stop migrant crossings; Ann Törnkvist on Swedish gang violence; Mary Wakefield debates Mary Dejevsky on whether cyclists should be allowed on pavements and Francesca Peacock talks about the politics of corsets.
00:00 Welcome from Freddy Gray
02:54 Who will win the American right? With Andrew Cockburn and Danielle Lee Tomson
23:44 Is Suella Braverman in trouble over the illegal migrant bill? With Katy Balls
31:16 Why has Sweden become so violent? With Ann Tornkvist
44:24 Should cyclists be allowed on pavements? With Mary Wakefield and Mary Dejevsky
56:20 Are corsets cancelled? With Francesca Peacock
Theme song written and performed by Jon Barker © 2020 Jonathan Stewart Barker
Publisher Jonathan Stewart Barker 100%, administered by prsformusic.com
Recording © 2020 Jonathan Stewart Barker 100%, administered by ppl.com
This week: James Heale asks whether the cabinet secretary Simon Case can carry on (01:00), Cosmo Landesman tells the story of when a man – and his axe – came to visit his home in London (05:03), and Miranda Morrison warns against the damaging obsession with STEM in secondary schools (11:10).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Photo Credit: © The Estate of Tom Picton
Freddy Gray speaks to Shawn McCreesh, a features writer at New York Magazine who recently spent time with Republican Congressman, George Santos.
In the cover piece of this week's magazine, deputy editor Freddy Gray writes about the fight for the American right: it's Don (Trump) vs Ron (DeSantis). Who will win? On the podcast, Freddy is joined by Amber Athey, Washington editor of The Spectator's world edition. (00:37)
Political editor Katy Balls writes in this week's magazine that small boats are a big election issue. Rishi Sunak has promised to stop the illegal crossings, but what will it cost him? Katy is on the podcast with Spectator contributor Patrick O'Flynn. (10:49)
And finally, would you let a man with an axe into your house for the sake of art? Cosmo Landesman's father did, and he writes about it in the magazine's arts pages this week. Cosmo joins the podcast with Igor Toronyi-Lalic, The Spectator's arts editor, to talks about destructive art. (20:28)
Presented by William Moore and Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Max Jeffery.
On this week's Book Club podcast, my guest is Sara Wheeler, who looks back on her travelling life in Glowing Still: A Woman's Life on the Road. She tells me why it's "a book about tits and toilets", as well as a meditation on the past and future of travel writing and a lament for the books – in one case thanks to having children and the other to the modern fatwa on "cultural appropriation" – she didn't get to write.
Winston speaks with Perrier Award-winning comedian, writer, author and co-founder of gay rights charity Stonewall, Simon Fanshawe. They discuss the history of Stonewall, Fanshawe’s recent book ‘The Power of Difference’, his new company Diversity by Design, and how it aims to promote diversity in the workplace. Together they debate the case for and against diversity and Stonewall's 'strategic pivot' towards trans rights.
The Chinese Communist Party likes to blame its domestic political problems on foreign interference, and it has done so since the days of Chairman Mao.
But sometimes, does this paranoia, this narrative, have a point? Or at least during the depths of the Cold War, when the United States, via the CIA, was countering communism across the world through so-called ‘covert operations’.
Cindy Yu's guest today is Professor John Delury, a historian at the Yonsei University in Seoul, and author of a new book looking at the history of the CIA in China. It’s called Agents of Subversion – some of the incredible exploits detailed in there are nothing short of what you'd find in a spy thriller.
Pictured here is CIA agent John T. Downey, who was imprisoned by China for over two decades after an exfiltration mission over Manchuria failed. He was eventually released following Nixon's visit to China.
Further listening:
Bill Hayton on Liang Qichao and the other Chinese reformers whose followers became the so-called 'Third Force' discussed in this episode: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/what-is-it-to-be-chinese/.
Professor Rana Mitter and Jessica Drun on the history of Taiwan and what happened after Chiang Kai-shek fled there: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/why-does-china-care-about-taiwan/
In response to Seymour Hersh's recent appearance on Americano, Freddy speaks with open-source intelligence analyst Oliver Alexander, who unpacks his argument against Hersh's claims about the U.S. blowing up the Nordstream pipeline.
This week: Max Jeffery reads his letter from Abu Dhabi where he visited the International Defence Exhibition (00:56), Emily Rhodes discusses the tyranny of World Book Day (05:59), and Daisy Dunn tells us about the mysterious world of the Minoans (10:22).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Women make up half of the workforce in the UK. Yet when it comes to high-skilled, high-income jobs in tech, just 26 per cent of the workforce are women and 77 per cent of tech leaders are men. Jobs in tech filter into almost every sector and women from all walks of life are discovering they don’t need a maths or tech background to retrain and reinvent themselves. Over the last five years the UK’s tech sector has seen massive proliferation and investment, but given this level of growth, where are all the women? The government’s approach to bridging the gap has focused on teaching in schools. While evidently, the issue starts from a young age, should more emphasis be placed on encouraging women of all ages to learn new skills and explore opportunities that could offer a higher salary and career progression?
On the podcast, Katy Balls is joined by Sharon Doherty who is the Chief People and Places Officer and Lloyds Banking Group. Nusrat Ghani, Conservative MP for Wealden and East Sussex and Minister for both Business and Trade and the Cabinet Office. Finally, Anneliese Dodds, Labour MP for Oxford East and Shadow secretary of state for Women and Equalities.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group.
This week:
Is Putin winning?
In his cover piece for the magazine, historian and author Peter Frankopan says that Russia is reshaping the world in its favour by cultivating an anti-Western alliance of nations. He is joined by Ukrainian journalist – and author of The Spectator's Ukraine In Focus newsletter – Svitlana Morenets, to discuss whether this could tip the balance of the war (01:08).
Also this week:
The Spectator's assistant online foreign editor Max Jeffery writes a letter from Abu Dhabi, after he visited the International Defence Exhibition. He is joined by author and former member of the ANC Andrew Feinstein, to uncover the covert world of the international arms trade and how governments seek to conceal it (17:52).
And finally:
Ysenda Maxtone Graham searches for the cheapest flat in Greater London in The Spectator this week. She is joined by The Spectator's newsletter editor Hannah Tomes, to investigate whether renting may be the better option for generation rent (29:33).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
On this week’s Book Club, I’m joined by the theoretical physicist Carlo Rovelli to talk about his new book Anaximander and the Nature of Science, in which he explains how a radical thinker two and a half centuries ago was the first human to intuit that the earth is floating in space. He tells me how Anaximander’s way of thinking still informs the work scientists do everywhere, how politics shapes scientific progress and how we can navigate the twin threats of religious dogma and postmodern relativism in search of truth.
Winston speaks with American author, film-maker, political commentator and activist Matt Walsh. They discuss Matt’s film ‘What Is A Woman’ and its cultural and political impact, the difference between the transgender and women’s movement in the UK and the US. Winston asks about TikTok trans activist Dylan Mulvaney and the censorship of conservative media.
Tom Athron is the CEO of luxury brand Fortnum and Mason, a position which he undertook during the pandemic having held senior roles at John Lewis and Waitrose.
On the podcast he talks about his earliest memories of food, the produce he grows in his vegetable patch and what makes Fortnums so special.
This week: Isabel Hardman asks whether politics and religion can mix (00:58), Christopher Howse discusses the transformative power of folk costume (08:06), and Lucy Dunn reads her notes on meal deals (19:18).
On this week's show, Kate Andrews The Spectator's economics editor speaks to historian Andrew Roberts about Britain's hollow army; Arlene Foster on the Northern Ireland Protocol; Andrew Drury on why he has has changed his mind about Shamima Begum; David Robertson on faith in politics and Lucy Dunn defends the meal deal.
00:00 Welcome from Kate Andrews
02:14 Can Britain restock its army? With Andrew Roberts and Tobias Ellwood MP
17:00 Will a deal be reached on the Northern Ireland Protocol? With Arlene Foster
29:42 Is Shamima Begum dangerous? With Andrew Drury
43:36 Can politicians separate faith from politics? With David Robertson
58:04 Is the meal deal on its way out? With Lucy Dunn
Theme song written and performed by Jon Barker © 2020 Jonathan Stewart Barker
Publisher Jonathan Stewart Barker 100%, administered by prsformusic.com
Recording © 2020 Jonathan Stewart Barker 100%, administered by ppl.com
This week:
In his cover piece for the magazine, Andrew Roberts says that the British Army has been hollowed out by years of underfunding and a lack of foresight when it comes to replacing the munitions we have sent to Ukraine. Historian Antony Beevor and author Simon Jenkins join the podcast to discuss Britain’s depleted military (01:04).
Also this week: do religion and politics mix?
In The Spectator Isabel Hardman asks why it is that only Christian politicians are forced to defend their beliefs. This is of course in light of the news this week that Kate Forbes’s bid for SNP leadership may be derailed by her views on gay marriage. She is joined by former leader of the Liberal Democrats Tim Farron, who also writes for the magazine this week about his experience of – what Isabel calls – the secular inquisition (17:16).
And finally:
Christopher Howse writes about the transformative power of folk costume in his arts lead for The Spectator. He is joined by Mellany Robinson, project manager at the Museum of British Folklore and co-curator of the new exhibition Making Mischief: Folk Costume in Britain (27:55).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
This week: Anshel Pfeffer discusses Bibi's recent misstep (00:54), Laura Gascoigne reads her arts lead on Vermeer's women (06:54), and Simon Barnes examines the cultural life of orcas (14:32).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
For this special episode of Women With Balls, the government’s Attorney General, Victoria Prentis joins Katy along with Vika … a young Ukrainian woman who came over to the UK under the Homes For Ukraine scheme after the war began.
On the podcast, Victoria talks about how life has changed since Vika joined the family and as part of her role in government, working with the Ukrainian prosecutor general who will conduct war crimes tribunals. Vika tells Katy about the steps taken to escape Kyiv at the start of the war; her new life in Oxfordshire having been taken in by the community and what she misses about her home in Ukraine.
This week:
What next after Sturgeon?
In her cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator's political editor Katy Balls considers what Sturgeon's exit means for the future of Scotland – and the Union. She is joined by Iain Macwhirter, author of Disunited Kingdom, to discuss whether Scottish independence can survive after Sturgeon (01:09).
Also this week:
Elif Shafak writes a moving diary in The Spectator, reflecting on the terrible earthquakes that hit her homeland Turkey, and neighbouring Syria. She is joined by Turkey correspondent at the Financial Times Adam Samson, to assess President Erdogan's reaction to the disaster (15:03).
And finally:
In the magazine this week journalist Andrew Stuttaford writes about America's fascination with unidentified flying objects, and is joined by Michael Garrett, director of the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics (26:23).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is the scholar and biographer Richard Bradford, whose new book Tough Guy: The Life of Norman Mailer looks at the rackety life and uneven oeuvre of one of the big beasts of 20th-century American letters. Mailer, as Richard argues, thought his self-identified genius as a writer licensed any amount of personal bad behaviour – up to and including stabbing one of his wives. As the book makes clear Mailer was a racist, misogynist, homophobe, thug and a boor. But was he also, actually, any good? And will he last?
Alexander Downer is an Australian former politician and diplomat, whose roles have included Leader of the Liberal Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs and High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.
On the podcast he discusses his earliest memories growing up on a farm in Southern Australia, the role of food and wine in successful diplomacy, and why George W Bush is the perfect dinner party guest.
This week: James Heale reads his interview with Lee Anderson MP (00:54), Hannah Moore writes in defence of amateur sleuths (05:33), and Matthew Wilson discusses the rehabilitation of the rose (09:54).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
This week: the haunting of Rishi Sunak.
In her cover piece for The Spectator Katy Balls says that Rishi Sunak cannot escape the ghosts of prime ministers past. She is joined by former Chief Secretary to the Treasury and New Statesman contributor David Gauke to discuss pesky former PMs (01:05).
Also this week:
In the magazine Julius Strauss writes about Black Tulip, a volunteer-led humanitarian organisation who recover the war dead from the front line in Ukraine. He is joined by Mark MacKinnnon, senior international correspondent at the Globe and Mail in Canada, to talk about the time they spent with the Black Tulip (16:45).
And finally:
The Spectator’s vintage chef Olivia Potts writes this week about the rise of nursery apps which allow parents to spy on their children whilst they are at daycare. She is joined by The Spectator’s executive editor Lara Prendergast (28:34).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the American writer, reporter and foreign policy expert Robert Kaplan, whose new book The Tragic Mind: Fear, Fate and the Burden of Power argues that it's in Greek tragedy that we can find the most important lessons in how to navigate the 21st century. He tells me how the reflections in the book arose from his remorse at having influenced the Bush administration with his support for the Iraq War, why it still makes sense to think about 'fate' in a world without gods and why George H W Bush was a paragon of the tragic mindset while his son George W Bush was a tragic hero.
Winston speaks with Stanford University professor, physician, epidemiologist, health economist and public health policy expert, Dr Jay Bhattacharya. They discuss the history of the Great Barrington Declaration which he co-authored, advocating against lockdowns, and its censorship by Big Tech and at Stanford. He tells Winston about meeting Elon Musk at Twitter HQ, how censorship kills and why public health lies undermine trust.
What went wrong for Liz Truss? In her first interview since leaving 10 Downing Street, she talks to Spectator TV about her leadership election, her 49-day premiership and her plans for the future. Truss admits to some mistakes, says her premiership was probably doomed after she fired her chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng, and says Whitehall orthodoxy stopped her from doing what she wanted.
Freddy Gray speaks to Professor John Mearsheimer, American political scientist and international relations scholar about America's foreign policy on the war in Ukraine.
This week: Svitlana Morenets explains why Ukraine won't accept compromise in any form (00:56), Rana Mitter details Japan's plans for an anti-China coalition (05:43), and Mia Levitin reads her review of Muppets in Moscow by Natasha Lance Rogoff (13:17).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Miriam Cates is the Conservative MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge. Before becoming a Member of Parliament, Miriam worked as a science teacher and business owner and spent some years raising her three children at home.
On the podcast, Miriam talks about her entry into politics through village life as the local Parish Councillor; how her life as a mother has shaped her views on gender and online harm; and how the 2019 caucus operates.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
On the podcast this week:
How will the war on Ukraine end?
This is the question that Russia correspondent Owen Matthews asks in his cover piece for The Spectator. He is joined by Rose Gottemoeller, former deputy secretary general of Nato, to discuss whether the end is in sight (01:02).
Also this week:
Matthew Parris interviews the theologian and ethicist Nigel Biggar on the legacy of Empire. They have kindly allowed us to hear an extract from their conversation, printed as a dialogue in this week's issue. They discuss Nigel's motivations for writing his controversial new book Colonialism: A Moral Reckoning, and reconsider the economics of colonialism (18:52).
And finally:
Neil Clark writes that greyhound racing should not be banned, despite the news that the RSPCA has changed it position to oppose the sport. He is joined by Vanessa Hudson, leader of the Animal Welfare Party, to debate whether dog racing has had its day (29:03).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is the reporter Tania Branigan, whose experience as a correspondent in China led her to believe that the trauma of the Cultural Revolution was the story behind the story that made sense of modern China. In her new book Red Memory: Remembering and Forgetting China's Cultural Revolution, she explores how the memory of that bloody decade, and the drive to forget or ignore it, shapes the high politics and daily lives of the Chinese nation. She tells me why official amnesia on the subject is a surprisingly recent development, how 1989's Tiananmen Square protests changed the course of the country, and why so many ordinary Chinese people still, extraordinarily, pine for the days of Mao.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine exposed the insecurity of the UK’s energy supply. We may not have been reliant on Russian gas like our European neighbours, but that didn’t mean we avoided higher energy bills. The government had to seriously consider how the UK would cope with a blackout.
Britain’s experience this winter has prompted a discussion about how we can safeguard our energy supply and avoid another precarious winter. On this podcast, Cindy Yu, The Spectator’s assistant editor, is joined by Laura Sandys, a former Tory MP who also chaired the government’s Energy Data Taskforce; James Murray, an environmental journalist who founded the website BusinessGreen; and Greg Jackson, the founder and CEO of Octopus Energy Group.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Octopus Energy Group.
Katy Balls, The Spectator’s political editor is joined by Isabel Hardman and John Curtice to talk about her cover piece on the latest Tory sleaze scandals. Also on the show, Mike Martin and Richard Barrons on European tanks; Freddy Gray on Biden’s docudrama; Lionel Shriver is fighting a war against words and Igor Toronyi-Lalic looks at the highs and lows of art restoration.
00:00 - Welcome from Katy Balls
00:52 - Can Sunak stop Tory sleaze? With Isabel Hardman and John Curtice
14:27 - Tank weaponry with Mike Martin and Richard Barrons
27:01 - Is Biden in trouble? With Freddy Gray
35:51 - Is there a war on words? With Lionel Shriver
45:40 - Art restoration– the good, the bad and the ugly with Igor Toronyi-Lali
On this week’s episode, Matthew Parris wonders what ‘winning’ in Ukraine really means (00:52), Lionel Shriver says she’s fighting her own war against words (08:43), and Gus Carter wonders whether it’s a good idea to reintroduce Bison into Britain (18:28).
Freddy Gray talks to the Bloomberg journalist and podcaster Joseph Weisenthal about the likely rise America’s debt ceiling… once again.
On this week's podcast, Katy Balls, The Spectator’s political editor, writes about the return of Tory sleaze. She’s joined by Jill Rutter, a senior fellow at the Institute for Government, to discuss the problems piling up for Rishi Sunak and the Tories. (00:50)
Also this week, security expert Mark Galeotti writes about why Europe has been reluctant to give Ukraine tanks. Journalist Owen Matthews and Ben Hodges, former commanding general of the United States Army (Europe), join the podcast. (18:44)
And finally, Gus Carter, The Spectator’s deputy features editor, writes in this week’s magazine about bison being reintroduced into the UK. He joins the podcast with the environmentalist Stanley Johnson. (33:40)
Sam's guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the palaeobiologist Thomas Halliday, whose book Otherlands: A World In The Making takes us on an extraordinary journey through the whole history of life on earth. Thomas tells Sam why tyrannosaurus rex didn't eat diplodocus, why if you had to live in a swamp the carboniferous might be a good time to do it, and gives a jaw-dropping sense of what the night sky looked like when the earth was young.
Winston speaks with sceptical environmentalist Bjorn Lomborg, author of the book False Alarm: How Climate Change Panic Costs Us Trillions, Hurts The Poor, And Fails To Fix The Planet. They discuss climate change and climate change policy. Lomborg explains how net zero and the Paris agreement will do more harm than good and suggests some alternative sustainable development goals which would balance environmental protection with human prosperity.
Three years ago, as people across China welcomed the Year of the Rat, a new virus was taking hold in Wuhan. In London, the conversation at my family’s New Year dinner was dominated by the latest updates, how many masks and hand sanitisers we’d ordered.
Mercifully, Covid didn’t come up at all as we welcomed the Year of the Rabbit this weekend, though my family in China are still recovering from their recent infections. The zero Covid phase of the pandemic is well and truly over.
So what better time to reflect on the rollercoaster of the last three years? In exchange for controlling the virus, China’s borders were shut for most of that time, while the economy has tanked and a general of children had their schooling disrupted. Yet after some remarkable protests last November, the country has opened up at a breakneck pace.
The government is now keen to move on, focusing now on this year’s economic recovery. But can a country of 1.4 billion people move on quite so quickly? The exceptional nature of the pandemic and the collective trauma of the last three years need to be processed, and yet I wouldn’t say that the Chinese Communist Party is usually good at allowing people to come to terms with historical suffering, especially when it’s the Party at fault…
So on this episode we’ll be looking at the social legacy of the pandemic on China, and the collective memory of this exceptional time.
Joining me are the Financial Times’s Yuan Yang, who was the paper’s deputy Beijing bureau chief during the first two years of the pandemic, and Guobin Yang, Professor of Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania and author of The Wuhan Lockdown, a book looking at how the Wuhan people documented the world’s first brush with Covid-19.
On the episode I also mentioned the Chinese Whispers episode on the civil backlash against facial recognition. Listen here.
This week: Ricard Madeley reads his diary in the magazine, including recallections of his Sunday lunch with George Michael (00:58). Also, Daniel Johnson shares a touching tribute to his late father Paul Johnson (05:36) and Melinda Hughes asks why BBC Radio 3 is dumbing down (12:28).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Nimco Ali is an activist, government advisor, author and FGM survivor. Born in Somaliland, Nimco moved to the UK as a child fleeing civil war. On holiday in Djibouti aged 7, she was subjected to female genital mutilation, a traumatising moment in her life that led her to become one of the world’s leading anti-FGM activists today. She went on to set up Daughters of Eve, a survivor-led organisation that has helped transform approaches to ending FGM, as well as the Five Foundation, a global coalition for the same cause. Now, Nimco travels the world to lobby governments to ban FGM and recognise the practice as a human rights issue. She is the author of What We Are Told Not To Talk About - containing 42 stories from 152 interviews and in 2019 was awarded an OBE for her groundbreaking activism.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
On the podcast this week:
In his cover piece for the magazine Iain Macwhirter writes in the aftermath of the government’s decision to block the Scottish Gender Recognition Reform Bill from gaining Royal Assent. He joins the podcast with Observer columnist Sonia Sodha to discuss the Union’s new battle line (01:03).
Also this week: why are our prisons still in lockdown?
Charlie Taylor, HM’s Chief Inspector of Prisons writes about some of his recent observations visiting institutions around the country. He says that control measures are failing both inmates and the taxpayer. He is joined by journalist David James Smith to examine this post-Covid inertia in UK prisons (16:48).
And finally:
In The Spectator this week opera singer and comedian Melinda Hughes says that BBC Radio 3 is failing classical music fans by copying the likes of Classic FM and Scala Radio. She is joined by Sir Nicholas Kenyon, former controller of Radio 3 and the Telegraph’s opera critic, to debate whether the station is dumbing down (27:01).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Ashley Ward, author of Sensational: A New Story of our Senses, which takes us on a cultural, historical and neurobiological tour of the sensorium. Along the way he tells me why Aristotle's notion of five senses is a convenient but cockeyed idea, why men are best letting their wives pick out the curtains, why we call ginger-haired people "redheads" and, oddly, how a pooping dog might do in a pinch as an aid to navigation.
Luke Farrell is a restauranteur and founder of two of London's fieriest new openings, Plaza Khao Gaeng and Speedboat Bar. He has spent the last few years dividing his time between Thailand and his nursery in Dorset, where he grows a 'living library' of south-east Asian herbs and spices.
On the podcast they discuss memories of Chinese cuisine, the thrill of Thai speedboat racing and why, despite his adventurous pallet, he can no longer eat raw oysters.
Freddy Gray speaks to author and founder of the venture capitalist fund 1517 Michael Gibson, about his new book Paper Belt on Fire.
On the podcast they discuss the parallels between universities and the 16th century Church and how investors are spearheading a revolt against these old institutions.
On the show, journalist Petronella Wyatt and historian David Abulafia discuss Prince Harry’s new book, Spare, journalist Owen Matthews explains why Putin’s plan to freeze Europe failed, Spectator editor and academic Matthew Goodwin discuss whether a Keir Starmer government is something to be afraid of, political editor Katy Balls and Financial Times journalist Stephen Bush discuss Sunak's plan to save the Tories, and critic John Maier says Quentin Tarantino’s writing isn’t quite as good as his directing.
00:00 – Welcome from John Connolly
01:42 – Why fear Keir? With Fraser Nelson and Matthew Goodwin
13:52 – Can the Tories stop the boats? With Katy Balls and Stephen Bush
26:24 – What on earth his Prince Harry thinking? With Petronella Wyatt and David Abulafia
41:24 – Why Putin's plan to freeze Europe failed, with Owen Matthews
52:09 – Can Quentin Tarantino write? With John Maier
This week: Lionel Shriver asks whether we are kidding ourselves over Ukraine (00:56), Theo Hobson discusses Martin Luther King and the demise of liberal Protestantism (09:28), and John Maier reads his review of Quentin Tarantino's new book Cinema Speculation (18:11).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
This week:
Who's afraid of Keir Starmer?
In his cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator's Editor Fraser Nelson says that without a Labour demon to point at the Tories stand little chance in the next election. He joins the podcast alongside journalist Paul Mason, to discuss why Keir Starmer is so hard to vilify (01:10).
Also this week:
In the magazine, The Spectator's newsletter editor Hannah Tomes exposes the social media campaign targeting young women, such as herself, to freeze and donate their eggs. She joins the podcast alongside Sophia Money-Coutts, host of the Freezing Time podcast, to consider whether it is right to market this as an altruistic undertaking (16:58).
And finally:
This week saw Prince Harry's bombshell memoir Spare hit the shelves. Novelist and critic Philip Hensher writes a scathing review for the magazine and is joined by Kara Kennedy, staff writer at the Spectator World, to go through the best – or perhaps the worst – details in the book (26:39).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast, my guest is the distinguished poet A. E. Stallings, whose new selected poems This Afterlife marks her first UK publication in book form. She tells me why the idea that formal verse is stuffy is wrong, how she thinks Greek myth is a living tradition, and why women poets have to be both Orpheus and Eurydice.
President Biden is visiting Mexico this week to meet with President Obrador, and Prime Minister Trudeau of Canada. Biden is expected to bring up illegal immigration with Obrador, and hopes that he can offer him some way out of what is becoming a spiralling crisis. But is any help coming?
Freddy Gray speaks to Todd Bensman, author of the upcoming book Overrun: How Joe Biden Unleashed the Biggest Border Crisis in US History.
Should Confucius Institutes be shut down? There are hundreds of these centres across six continents, funded by the Ministry of Education, with the stated goal of public education on and cultural promotion of China. They offer classes on language, history and culture of China, and some would say they help to plug a crucial shortage of Chinese language skills in host countries, especially across the West.
And yet, these have become deeply controversial. Criticism of the institutes range from their CCP-sanctioned curriculum which do not include sensitive topics, to allegations of espionage and erosion of academic independence with Confucius Institutes as the core. Sweden closed all of its CIs two years ago, and universities in countries including the US and Japan have also shut their centres down.
This is a live debate in the UK right now. Last November, security minister Tom Tugendhat confirmed that the government would be seeking to ban Confucius Institutes in the UK, repeating a pledge that Rishi Sunak had made during the Tory leadership race. But is this the right decision?
In this episode, Cindy is joined by Charles Parton, senior associate fellow at the thinktank RUSI, who worked in or around China as a diplomat for two decades. He is an expert on Chinese interference and espionage in the UK.
My interview with Raffaello Pantucci on how Confucius Institutes play a role in central Asia: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/the-new-great-game-how-china-replaced-russia-in-kazakhstan-and-beyond/.
Kevin McCarthy’s hopes to be voted House Speaker reaches day four still without a resolution. How much will he have to concede in order to win over the Republican rebels? Freddy Gray speaks to Amber Athey, The Spectator’s Washington Editor.
This week: Stuart Ritchie asks how worried we should be about falling sperm counts (0:29). Mary Wakefield wants to end the term ‘making memories’. (9:00), and Toby Young shares his disastrous Airbnb experience (15:10).
Produced and presented by Natasha Feroze.
On the podcast this week:
The Spectator’s deputy editor Freddy Gray writes the cover piece looking ahead to the possibility of another 6 years of President Biden. He is joined by Amie Parnes, senior staff writer at The Hill and co-author of Lucky: How Joe Biden barley won the presidency, to discuss whether anyone can stop Biden running in 2024 (01:00).
Also this week:
In the magazine Fr Patrick Burke writes a moving tribute to Pope Benedict XVI. He joins the podcast to discuss Benedict’s intellectual legacy and what the Church gained from his theological work (16:05). We are also very lucky to have a special recording from Melanie McDonagh who dials in from St Peter’s Square to give her reflections on the late Pope’s funeral (29:43).
And finally:
In her article for The Spectator this week Tanith Carey, author of Never Kiss a Man in a Canoe: Words of Wisdom from the Golden Age of Agony Aunts, writes in celebration of the high-handed and unflinching advice of Victorian agony aunts. She is joined by The Spectator’s own agony aunt Mary Killen – aka Dear Mary – to consider whether today’s agony aunts are going soft (33:32).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Amber Guinness is a cook, author, journalist and co-founder of The Arniano Painting School. Her first book, A House Party in Tuscany, is out now.
On the podcast she discusses growing up in Tuscany, how to host a successful Tuscan dinner party and the best places to eat in Florence.
Covid 19 has been a crisis without borders. In a highly interconnected world, every country has felt the impacts of the pandemic, from supply chain disruption to low productivity and high inflationary pressures. Should the post-pandemic economic recovery be a global project? For decades, the UK has been a key player on the economic world stage, but is this still relevant today at a time when the UK faces domestic financial challenges and global supply chains are decoupling? Or can the ripple effect of lending a hand to one economy, become a good investment for Britain's future?
The Spectator’s economics editor, Kate Andrews speaks to Simon Clarke, MP for Middlesborough South and East Cleveland who was chief secretary to the Treasury at the start of the pandemic; Professor Nouriel Roubini, economics expert and author of the book MegaThreats: The ten threats the imperil our future and how to survive them; Megan Greene, the global chief economist at the Kroll Institute and Michael Jacobs, who is a professor of political economy at the University of Sheffield.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Since the pandemic, the nature of working has changed, and in some cases, revealed the weaknesses in the experience of work for women. With some companies eager to get back to business as usual, women are now demanding more from work, and they are leaving jobs in unprecedented numbers to get it. Women could benefit from the flexibility that comes with a hybrid office policy. At the same time, it could present challenges for those with caring responsibilities or disabilities who may wish to stay home when other employees would happily go into the office. How can businesses create a working environment that supports women in work? And with that, offer opportunities for women to expand their career potential.
To discuss this Katy Balls is joined by Caroline Nokes, MP for Romsey and Southampton who also chairs the Women's Equalities Committee; Fiona Cannon, who is the Group Sustainable Business Director for Lloyds Banking Group; and Tulip Siddiq, Labour MP for Hampstead and Kilburn and Shadow Minister for Cities.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group.
Dame Rachel de Souza is the Children’s Commissioner for England. Having spent more than 30 years in education, she grew a reputation for her unconventional but effective ways of turning poor-performing schools around and increasing pupil attendance. She was selected as Children’s Commissioner in December 2020, weeks before the Covid 19 pandemic. Since this time, she has been tracking down absent children, working on the Online Harms Bill in Westminster, and is conducting a nationwide study of the impacts of the pandemic on young people.
On the podcast, Rachel tells Katy about growing up in Scunthorpe where she came from an Irish Catholic/Ukrainian background. Being educated by the nuns in a local comprehensive school, Rachel remembers her career advice; that she ‘couldn’t wash up and would never get a husband.
Freddy Gray and Jacob Heilbrunn reflect on an eventful year, looking back at the response to the invasion of Ukraine, the American economy and the makeup of the new Congress. Plus, will Joe Biden or Donald Trump be making a return to the White House? And will Jacob be buying a Trump NFT..?
Putin’s invasion of Ukraine shocked the world. Whilst fighting is happening in Europe, repercussions have been felt around the globe. Disruption to trade and supply chains means a rapidly worsening outlook for international development, making it harder to reach those that need support the most. Meanwhile the UK’s Covid recovery and the growing fiscal blackhole have forced Britain to make tough decisions on where our money goes, throwing into question our position as a world leader when it comes to international development and, with it, the reputation of ‘global Britain’.
Britain has always been a nation with a global mindset. But in times of crisis, do we need to reprioritise our commitments? What does the future look like for international development projects around the world?
On this special podcast from The Spectator, economics editor Kate Andrews has spoken to some of those on the frontline of international development. She's joined by Rory Stewart, former secretary of state for international development who is currently the CEO of the NGO Give Directly; David Davis, former Conservative party leader; Daniel Hannan, former Conservative MEP and now advisor to the government's Board of Trade; Degan Ali, CEO of Kenya-based NGO Adeso; and Professor Zulfiqar Bhutta, a global health expert at the University of Toronto.
This podcast is the second of a mini-series taking a look at Britain in the world, sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. You can listen to the first episode here.
On this episode, Owen Matthews examines the original sin of Russia’s exiled media (00:44), Christopher Howse says Handel’s Messiah is as much a Christmas tradition as a pantomime (09:08), and Olivia Potts gives her recipe for boiled fruit cake (18:01).
Get the full recipe to Olivia’s boiled fruit cake here: https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/a-last-minute-alternative-to-christmas-cake-boiled-fruit-cake/
Many are already feeling the pinch of the cost-of-living crisis. Choices between ‘heating and eating’ have become routine for some households, as bills and food costs rise. With money at the forefront of everyone’s minds, feelings of stress, shame, and embarrassment are causing a decline in mental health. Research has shown that the cost-of-living crisis is having a significant impact on people’s mental health, disproportionately affecting women and those from low-income households. Combatting mental health can come from peer support, professional help and public policy, but is the issue ever taken seriously enough? What can be done to address the shame and guilt linked to money worries?
For this episode, Katy Balls is joined by Maria Caulfield, who is the Minister for Mental Health where her department also oversees Women’s Health. Catherine Rutter, the Director for Customer Inclusion at Lloyds Banking Group. And Kim Leadbeater, Labour MP for Batley and Spen, who received an MBE for her services to social cohesion and combatting loneliness.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group.
This week:
For his cover piece in The Spectator Freddy Gray asks who will win in the battle between the Waleses and the Sussexes. He is joined by royal commentator Amanda Foreman to discuss the fallout Harry and Meghan's new Netflix documentary (01:00).
Also this week:
Should the House of Lords be reformed or even abolished?
This is the question James Heale considers in the magazine. He is joined by Baroness Fox of Buckley to unpack Gordon Brown's recommendation to do away with the second chamber of Parliament (13:14).
And finally:
In the books section of The Spectator Chloë Ashby reviews Con/Artist, the memoir of notorious art forger Tony Tetro. She is joined by Tony and investigative journalist Giampiero Ambrossi, who co-authored to book (31:53).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is Matthew Hollis, author of The Waste Land: A Biography of a Poem. In the tail end of this centenary year of the great monument of modernist poetry, Matthew tells me about the private agonies that went into the making of the poem. We discuss how not just Ezra Pound but Vivien Eliot had a hand in editing it, and why we misunderstand Eliot’s famous claim about the impersonality of poetry.
Winston speaks with Irish comedy writer Graham Linehan, creator of Father Ted, The IT Crowd and Black Books. Graham took a stand as a women’s rights activist which led to Father Ted: The Musical being cancelled. He was also suspended from Twitter for writing “men aren’t women tho”. Winston asks why he took a stand, and how his comedy career unravelled.
On this week's episode, Jade McGlynn reads her article on the Russian mothers and wives turning against Putin, because of their sons and husbands missing in the war (00:55). Lucy Dunn, a former junior doctor, asks whether pharmacists aren't part of the solution to the crisis in the NHS (09:45). And Graeme Thompson reads his Notes On protest songs (15:50).
Presented and produced by Cindy Yu.
Freddy Gray discusses 'Ye' 2024 with writer, musician and host of the podcast Conversations with Coleman, Coleman Hughes. They consider whether Kanye has a messianic complex or if he is simply trolling the nation.
Kezia Dugdale was the leader of the Scottish Labour party from 2015 to 2017, taking on the job at a tough time following a near-wipeout defeat at Westminster. She served as an MSP for the Lothian region until 2019, and now runs the John Smith Centre for Public Service at the University of Glasgow.
On the podcast, Kezia talks about her rapid rise through the ranks, the impact of the independence referendum on Scottish Labour; her own stint on 'I'm a Celebrity...'; whether she is ‘SNP curious’ and what can be done to stop young people leaving politics.
This week:
In his cover piece Douglas Murray writes that museums are turning against their own collections. He is joined by the historian Robert Tombs to discuss whether a culture of self-flagellation is harming British museums (00:56).
Also this week:
For the magazine The Spectator’s assistant editor Cindy Yu writes that the tune is changing in China. She is joined by Professor Kerry Brown, director of the Lau China Institute at King’s College London to consider what the recent protests could mean for the Chinese Communist Party (13:24).
And finally:
Nicholas Lezard writes in The Spectator about how to beat London's expanding Ultra Low Emissions Zone. He is joined by journalist Tanya Gold to investigate an elegant loophole in the plans (24:56).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Rupert Shortt, whose stimulating new book The Hardest Problem addresses one of the oldest difficulties in theology: "the problem of evil". Is this something the religious and the secular can even talk meaningfully about? What's the great challenge Dostoevsky throws up? And what did Augustine get right that Richard Dawkins gets wrong?
It’s fair to say that the tobacco industry is one of the most controversial ones out there, with the phrase ‘Big Tobacco’ almost a meme, a shorthand for unscrupulous business practices. No wonder then that tobacco companies are trying to remake themselves, companies like Philip Morris International. PMI has a history dating back to the 1840s, and yet, today, their tagline is now ‘Delivering a smoke-free future’. Over the course of ten years, they’ve seen a third drop in the volume of cigarette sales. They’re keen to talk about their story of ‘transformation’, which is why they’ve sponsored this podcast. So what’s really going on?
Cindy Yu talks to David Miller, a lecturer at Princeton where he specialises in faith and ethics. He’s been commissioned by PMI to author a report all about ‘corporate change’.
We also speak to Moira Gilchrist, Vice President of Strategic and Scientific Communications at PMI, Martin Vander Weyer, the Spectator’s business editor, and Professor John Kotter, a leading business theorist at Harvard Business School.
This podcast was sponsored by Philip Morris International (PMI) but produced under the sole editorial control of The Spectator. Therefore the views expressed represent those of the commentators featured and do not necessarily represent the views of PMI.
As Britons live longer and the population ages, society will soon have to rethink what it means to be of ‘working age’. Training and learning will have to be offered to older age groups who are healthier and more capable of work than their predecessors; while healthcare room to improve in making sure that health conditions are not barring those who wish to work from working. What can employers and the government do, armed with the right information and analysis, to prepare for this transition?
On the special podcast episode, Martin Vander Weyer, The Spectator’s business editor is joined by Guy Opperman, Minister for Employment at the Department of Work and Pensions, Dame Carol Black DBE, FRCP who is a physician and academic; and Catherine Foot, who is the Director of Phoenix Insights.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Phoenix Group.
Comparisons with 1989’s Tiananmen Square protests are too often evoked when it comes to talking about civil disobedience in China. Even so, this weekend’s protests have been historic. It’s the first time since the zero Covid policy started that people across the country have simultaneously marched against the government, their fury catalysed by the deaths of ten people in a locked down high rise building in Xinjiang. Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan, Xi’An, Urumqi, Nanjing (Cindy Yu's home city) have all seen protests over the weekend. Most of them attack the zero Covid policy, but some have called out ‘Down with Xi Jinping’.
After two days of protests, these cities, especially Shanghai, now see heavy police presence, with the authorities searching phones of any seeming troublemakers. This weekend’s burst of free speech may already have been snuffed out. Can the protestors sustain their momentum given the tight grip of the state?
Cindy is joined by Professor Jeff Wasserstrom at UC Irvine, an expert on protests in the mainland and Hong Kong, and Isabel Hilton, a long time China watcher and founder of China Dialogue.
This week: James Heale reads his interview with former Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs George Eustice (00:50), Lionel Shriver asks what's the price of fairness (05:38), and Tangil Rashid reflects on the BBC at 100 (14:01).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
On this week's podcast:
Could China be the key to peace in Ukraine?
In his cover piece for the magazine this week Owen Matthews reveals the covert but decisive role China is playing in the Ukraine war. He is joined by The Spectator's Cindy Yu, to discuss what Xi's motivations are (00:53).
Also this week:
Harriet Sergeant writes that the Iran is at war with its own children as it cracks down on young protesters. She is joined by Ali Ansari, founding director if the Institute for Iranian Studies, to consider the fragility of the Iranian regime (14:32).
And finally:
Julie Bindel says in the magazine this week that after recent controversy the Society of Authors is no longer fit for purpose. She is joined by historian, author, and former chair of the society Tom Holland, to debate whether it's time to replace the institution (23:56).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week’s Book Club podcast, I’m talking to two of the brave souls who turn recent political dramas into the sort of quickly written books we might call the second draft of history. I’m joined by the FT’s Sebastian Payne, author of The Fall of Boris Johnson, and our own James Heale, co-author of a Liz Truss biography, Out Of The Blue, which notoriously was so rapidly overtaken by events that she was out before it was. They tell me how they disentangle their duties in their day jobs as political reporters from what they owe their book readers, how differently sources will speak to authors than journalists, what the day to day press got wrong – and whether they think history will look more kindly on their subjects than the front pages.
Freddy Gray talks to the comedian and media and culture editor of American Greatness Tim Young, about Twitter, Donald Trump and the Republican race for president in 2024.
This week: Paul Wood writes about meeting Syria’s underground drug lords (0:30) Mary Wakefield warns us of the perils of psychoactive drug therapy (10:30) and Melissa Kite defends her friend who has been excluded from AA (17:13).
Emma Sayle is the founder and CEO of Killing Kittens, a sexually liberated social network where women come first. She grew up in a military family, and when not in boarding school, Emma would visit her parents all over the world.
On the podcast, Emma talks to Katy about her 'outsider's mindset' – never truly feeling like she could fit in; becoming an entrepreneur in the sex tech industry and where the name Killing Kittens came from.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
This week:
How long will the pain last?
The Spectator's economics editor Kate Andrews asks this in her cover piece this week, reflecting on Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt's autumn statement. She joins the podcast with Professor David Miles, economy expert at the Office for Budget Responsibility, to discuss the new age of austerity (00:58).
Also on the podcast:
After Donald Trump announced that he will be running for office in 2024, Freddy Gray writes in the magazine about the never ending Trump campaign. He speaks to Joe Walsh, 2020 Republican presidential candidate, about whether Trump could win the nomination (18:42).
And finally:
In the arts lead in The Spectator Mathew Lyons celebrates the bleak brilliance of the Peanuts comic strip. He is joined by Christian Adams, political cartoonist at the Evening Standard and long-time fan of the strip (29:02).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is Edward Mendelson, who with the publication of the Complete Poems of W H Auden in two volumes now sets the crown on more than half a century of scholarship on the poet. There’s nobody on the planet who knows more about this towering figure in twentieth-century poetry. He tells me what he finds so inexhaustibly rewarding about Auden’s work, talks about the shape of the poet’s career, the personal encounters that set him on this path… and about sex, religion and semicolons.
With climate activists around the world vandalising great works by Monet, van Gogh and Goya, Winston speaks with environmentalist, conservationist and pro-nuclear activist Michael Shellenberger. They discuss the validity of Just Stop Oil's methods and environmental imperialism at this years United Nations Climate Change Conference. They take a deep dive into Shellenberger's book 'Apocalypse Never', evaluate the environmentalist case for fracking and consider why nuclear will save us all.
When the city of Zhengzhou, home to the world’s largest iPhone factory, locked down recently, some of its factory workers had nowhere to go. Hoping to escape Covid restrictions, many of them walked miles along motorways to their hometowns, their journey captured by video and shared on social media in China and out.
This episode is all about China’s migrant working class – poorly paid and often poorly educated people from the countryside who go to cities like Zhengzhou for better lives. There are hundreds of millions of these so-called ‘internal migrants’, making their story an important part to understand if you want to understand modern China.
Even now, 'on average urban residents are making at least more than 2.5 times the income as the average rural resident', Professor Cindy Fan tells me on this episode. She's an expert on Chinese migration and population patterns at UCLA. Most commonly, migrants will send their earnings back to home villages and towns, where they have left behind family members. Often, children are being looked after by grandparents while the parents are earning away from home.
Cindy and I discuss the role played by these migrants – often unwelcomed in the cities but vital for urban areas to develop, grow and function. We go deep into the hukou system – household registration – that gives urban residents rights and privileges that migrant workers cannot access, making them second class citizens. But ultimately, as the Chinese are wont to do, many migrant workers make the system work for them. They don't necessarily want to swallow urban life wholesale:
'Rural migrants are pretty smart... Yes they are victims… but at the same time, they are also weighing their options, they’re also strategising. They’re not just passive.'
This week: Isabel Hardman asks how Ed Miliband is the power behind Kier Starmer's Labour (00:57), Matthew Parris says we've lost interest in our dependencies (05:03), Graeme Thomson mourns the loss of the B-side (11:57), and Caroline Moore reads her Notes on... war memorials (16:51).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
This week Freddy is joined by Matt McDonald, US managing editor of The Spectator, who is covering the midterms from Georgia. What will the result of the run-off be there and could this decide who takes control of the Senate?
On the podcast:
In his cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator's deputy editor Freddy Gray says the only clear winner from the US midterms is paranoia. He is joined by The Spectator's economics editor Kate Andrews to discuss whether the American political system is broken (00:52).
Also this week:
Isabel Hardman writes that Ed Miliband is the power behind Kier Starmer's Labour. She is joined by former Labour advisor Lord Stewart Wood of Anfield, to consider whether Starmer is wise to lend his ear to the former Leader of the Opposition (12:48).
And finally:
King Charles III is known for his love of classical music, and Damian Thompson writes in this week's arts lead that he is the most musical monarch since Queen Victoria. He is joined by editor of Gramophone magazine Martin Cullingford, to examine the great royal tradition of musicality (25:32).
Presented by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
On the podcast:
In his cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator's deputy editor Freddy Gray says the only clear winner from the US midterms is paranoia. He is joined by The Spectator's economics editor Kate Andrews to discuss whether the American political system is broken (00:52).
Also this week:
Isabel Hardman writes that Ed Miliband is the power behind Kier Starmer's Labour. She is joined by former Labour advisor Lord Stewart Wood of Anfield, to consider whether Starmer is wise to lend his ear to the former Leader of the Opposition (12:48).
And finally:
King Charles III is known for his love of classical music, and Damian Thompson writes in this week's arts lead that he is the most musical monarch since Queen Victoria. He is joined by editor of Gramophone magazine Martin Cullingford, to examine the great royal tradition of musicality (25:32).
Presented by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
On the podcast:
In his cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator's deputy editor Freddy Gray says the only clear winner from the US midterms is paranoia. He is joined by The Spectator's economics editor Kate Andrews to discuss whether the American political system is broken (00:52).
Also this week:
Isabel Hardman writes that Ed Miliband is the power behind Kier Starmer's Labour. She is joined by former Labour advisor Lord Stewart Wood of Anfield, to consider whether Starmer is wise to lend his ear to the former Leader of the Opposition (12:48).
And finally:
King Charles III is known for his love of classical music, and Damian Thompson writes in this week's arts lead that he is the most musical monarch since Queen Victoria. He is joined by editor of Gramophone magazine Martin Cullingford, to examine the great royal tradition of musicality (25:32).
Presented by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest in this week's Book Club Podcast is Christopher de Hamel, author of the new The Posthumous Papers of the Manuscripts Club. He tells me about the enduring fascination of illuminated manuscripts, and the fraternity over more than a millennium of those who have loved, coveted, collected, sold, illustrated and – in one case – forged them.
Melissa Thompson is an award-winning food writer and cook who started a supper club, serving Japanese food in her front room in 2014.
In September 2022, Melissa released her debut cookbook, Motherland. It explores the evolution of Jamaican food, from the island’s indigenous population to today.
On the podcast, she talks to Liv Potts about the evocative smells of Jamaican food that remind her of childhood, why she’s more of a savoury than sweet person and the first meal she ever cooked for her mum.
Melissa Thompson is an award-winning food writer and cook who started a supper club, serving Japanese food in her front room in 2014.
In September 2022, Melissa released her debut cookbook, Motherland. It explores the evolution of Jamaican food, from the island’s indigenous population to today.
On the podcast, she talks to Liv Potts about the evocative smells of Jamaican food that remind her of childhood, why she’s more of a savoury than sweet person and the first meal she ever cooked for her mum.
Melissa Thompson is an award-winning food writer and cook who started a supper club, serving Japanese food in her front room in 2014.
In September 2022, Melissa released her debut cookbook, Motherland. It explores the evolution of Jamaican food, from the island’s indigenous population to today.
On the podcast, she talks to Liv Potts about the evocative smells of Jamaican food that remind her of childhood, why she’s more of a savoury than sweet person and the first meal she ever cooked for her mum.
This week: Mark Galeotti tells us why Ukraine has become a weapons testing ground (00:53), Katja Hoyer discusses Germany’s extreme monarchists (09:12), and Tanya Gold reads her Notes on … espressos (15:24).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
This week: Mark Galeotti tells us why Ukraine has become a weapons testing ground (00:53), Katja Hoyer discusses Germany’s extreme monarchists (09:12), and Tanya Gold reads her Notes on … espressos (15:24).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
On this week's podcast:
Can Rishi Sunak steady the ship?
Patrick O'Flynn argues in his cover piece for The Spectator that the asylum system is broken. He is joined by Sunder Katwala, director of the think tank British Future, to consider what potential solutions are open to the Prime Minister to solve the small boats crisis (00:52).
Also this week:
Should we give Elon Musk a break?
In the aftermath of his sensational purchase of Twitter, Mary Wakefield writes in defence of the tech billionaire. She is joined by James Ball, global editor of The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, to ask what his plans are for the social media platform (14:27).
And finally:
Ysenda Maxtone Graham writes in the magazine this week about the joy of hating the Qatar World Cup. She is joined by Spectator columnist Rod Liddle to lament why we may have to get used to tournaments like this one. (24:47).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
On this week's podcast:
Can Rishi Sunak steady the ship?
Patrick O'Flynn argues in his cover piece for The Spectator that the asylum system is broken. He is joined by Sunder Katwala, director of the think tank British Future, to consider what potential solutions are open to the Prime Minister to solve the small boats crisis (00:52).
Also this week:
Should we give Elon Musk a break?
In the aftermath of his sensational purchase of Twitter, Mary Wakefield writes in defence of the tech billionaire. She is joined by James Ball, global editor of The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, to ask what his plans are for the social media platform (14:27).
And finally:
Ysenda Maxtone Graham writes in the magazine this week about the joy of hating the Qatar World Cup. She is joined by Spectator columnist Rod Liddle to lament why we may have to get used to tournaments like this one. (24:47).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
This week’s Book Club podcast is a live special, recorded at this year’s inaugural Braemar Literary Festival. I’m talking to Sir Ian Rankin, in an exclusive pre-publication event, about his new Rebus novel A Heart Full of Headstones. You can see images from the event and more details of the festival at https://www.braemarliteraryfestival.co.uk
This week’s Book Club podcast is a live special, recorded at this year’s inaugural Braemar Literary Festival. I’m talking to Sir Ian Rankin, in an exclusive pre-publication event, about his new Rebus novel A Heart Full of Headstones. You can see images from the event and more details of the festival at https://www.braemarliteraryfestival.co.uk
This week’s Book Club podcast is a live special, recorded at this year’s inaugural Braemar Literary Festival. I’m talking to Sir Ian Rankin, in an exclusive pre-publication event, about his new Rebus novel A Heart Full of Headstones. You can see images from the event and more details of the festival at https://www.braemarliteraryfestival.co.uk
Winston speaks with American author, conservative commentator and activist Candace Owens. They discuss why she and Kanye West wore White Lives Matter shirts at Paris Fashion Week, Kanye’s offensive tweets, the rise of Black Lives Matter, her new film ‘The Greatest Lie Ever Sold’ exploring the death of George Floyd and much more…
Winston speaks with American author, conservative commentator and activist Candace Owens. They discuss why she and Kanye West wore White Lives Matter shirts at Paris Fashion Week, Kanye’s offensive tweets, the rise of Black Lives Matter, her new film ‘The Greatest Lie Ever Sold’ exploring the death of George Floyd and much more…
Winston speaks with American author, conservative commentator and activist Candace Owens. They discuss why she and Kanye West wore White Lives Matter shirts at Paris Fashion Week, Kanye’s offensive tweets, the rise of Black Lives Matter, her new film ‘The Greatest Lie Ever Sold’ exploring the death of George Floyd and much more…
This week Xi Jinping has taken his new Politburo Standing Committee on a group trip – to Yan’An, the base of Mao Zedong’s Communist revolution after the Long March. The symbolism is easy to see.
On this episode of Chinese Whispers, Bill Bishop, author of the popular Sinocism newsletter, and Professor Victor Shih, author of Coalitions of the Weak, have returned to reflect on the Party Congress just past. It's been a more dramatic event than many (inside and outside the party) expected, starting with a brave, lone protestor hanging a 42-character banner off a popular bridge in Beijing, lambasting the authoritarian regime; and ending with the forcible removal of former general secretary Hu Jintao in front of the world's media.
At the congress itself Xi overturned decades-long norms dictating the top leadership of the party – age no longer seems to necessitate retirement, while the Politburo has not a single woman. Above all, Xi has started his third term as general secretary with a loyal cabal of men around him. Did he not want more competent people in the top jobs? 'Loyalty is merit', Bill suggests.
What does this mean for China, and the world? Victor makes the point that Xi is putting the pieces in place to push through unpopular decisions – for example, an invasion of Taiwan. 'If you think about it, why would you want people whom you trust absolutely to fill every single position? Because even Chairman Mao didn’t do this'. It also means that as Xi becomes more truly dictatorial, the West needs to engage with him more, not less.
We just don’t know the kind of information about the US, about other countries, that are landing on Xi Jinping’s desk. And this information can be incredibly distorted. So if anything, just presenting an alternative view of how the world works could be helpful. He may not believe you… but if you’re able to look him in the eye and tell him something, at least he’ll be forced to think about it.
As for the party itself, the three of us digest the Hu Jintao incident. Regardless of what you think happened, one thing is for sure – it was a deep and utter humiliation for Hu, especially given China's deep-set Confucian respect for elders. The idea that there is any organised CCP opposition against Xi has been put to bed.
This week Xi Jinping has taken his new Politburo Standing Committee on a group trip – to Yan’An, the base of Mao Zedong’s Communist revolution after the Long March. The symbolism is easy to see.
On this episode of Chinese Whispers, Bill Bishop, author of the popular Sinocism newsletter, and Professor Victor Shih, author of Coalitions of the Weak, have returned to reflect on the Party Congress just past. It's been a more dramatic event than many (inside and outside the party) expected, starting with a brave, lone protestor hanging a 42-character banner off a popular bridge in Beijing, lambasting the authoritarian regime; and ending with the forcible removal of former general secretary Hu Jintao in front of the world's media.
At the congress itself Xi overturned decades-long norms dictating the top leadership of the party – age no longer seems to necessitate retirement, while the Politburo has not a single woman. Above all, Xi has started his third term as general secretary with a loyal cabal of men around him. Did he not want more competent people in the top jobs? 'Loyalty is merit', Bill suggests.
What does this mean for China, and the world? Victor makes the point that Xi is putting the pieces in place to push through unpopular decisions – for example, an invasion of Taiwan. 'If you think about it, why would you want people whom you trust absolutely to fill every single position? Because even Chairman Mao didn’t do this'. It also means that as Xi becomes more truly dictatorial, the West needs to engage with him more, not less.
We just don’t know the kind of information about the US, about other countries, that are landing on Xi Jinping’s desk. And this information can be incredibly distorted. So if anything, just presenting an alternative view of how the world works could be helpful. He may not believe you… but if you’re able to look him in the eye and tell him something, at least he’ll be forced to think about it.
As for the party itself, the three of us digest the Hu Jintao incident. Regardless of what you think happened, one thing is for sure – it was a deep and utter humiliation for Hu, especially given China's deep-set Confucian respect for elders. The idea that there is any organised CCP opposition against Xi has been put to bed.
On this week's podcast: former Business Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg tells us why it's good to back on the back benches (01:00), Julian Jessop reflects on his part in Liz Truss's downfall (06:41), and Melanie McDonagh reads her Notes on... candles (12:57).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
On this week's podcast: former Business Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg tells us why it's good to back on the back benches (01:00), Julian Jessop reflects on his part in Liz Truss's downfall (06:41), and Melanie McDonagh reads her Notes on... candles (12:57).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Alicia Kearns is the Conservative MP for Rutland and Melton; and the first female chair of the foreign affairs select committee. Alicia built a reputation as a foreign policy powerhouse working in communications and counter-terrorism for the civil service. After leaving, she spent some time in the private sector before deciding to become an MP. In 2019 she was elected in the Conservative safe seat, Rutland and Melton where she now lives with her family.
On the podcast, Alicia talks about why she left the civil service and the time she ‘came out’ as a Conservative. She also shares her love for her Rutland and Melton, describing her constituents as ‘her people’. But makes no bones about how hard she finds the job: ‘I love being able to campaign and change policy. But I can’t say I enjoy the job’. Now, as the chair of the foreign affairs select committee in Parliament, Alicia wants to improve the UK’s resilience in diplomacy and ensure Rishi Sunak won’t back away from Britain’s international responsibilities.
Produced by Natasha Feroze
On this week's podcast:
We have a new prime minister, but is Rishi Sunak ready to take on the numerous problems that James Forsyth outlines in his cover piece for The Spectator this week? James is joined by writer and pollster Matt Goodwin to debate whether the Conservatives can turn it around in time for 2024 (00:50).
Also this week:
Is the future of feminism conservative?
Louise Perry writes for the magazine this week that there has been a rightward shift in feminist thought, spearheaded by mothers coalescing online. She is joined by Victoria Smith, author of Hags: The Demonisation of Middle-Aged Women (15:30).
And finally:
The Spectator's diary editor James Heale and the Sun's political editor Harry Cole, are the authors of the new book Out of the Blue: The Unexpected Rise and Rapid Fall of Liz Truss. Now immortalised as a Twitter meme, they discuss the agony of rewrites and trying to keep pace with Truss's doomed premiership (28:09).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Author and journalist Helen Joyce speaks to Winston about the most contentious issue of the age: the transgender debate. They discussed Mermaids, Tavistock, the Scottish Gender Bill and her new book; perhaps the most authoritative on the subject. Is the growing phenomenon what Jung called a 'psychic endemic'? Listen to find out…
Author and journalist Helen Joyce speaks to Winston about the most contentious issue of the age: the transgender debate. They discussed Mermaids, Tavistock, the Scottish Gender Bill and her new book; perhaps the most authoritative on the subject. Is the growing phenomenon what Jung called a 'psychic endemic'? Listen to find out…
When Uber arrived in Britain ten years ago, the app transformed the way people came to view taxis. All of a sudden, city dwellers could order a taxi, for a third of the price, at the click of a button which would arrive within minutes.
To the Conservatives, this hailed a new way of working and putting consumers first. Since then, a lot has changed. Uber came under strict regulatory obstacles and they have had many more competitors. But the business has transformed with the times. Whilst emblematic of the gig economy, are the critics right about driver exploitation? And does more regulation create barriers for the customer?
Fraser Nelson, The Spectator's editor is joined on this special podcast by an Uber driver, Kasey to talk about her experience working for the company; Andrew Brem, who heads up Uber's UK business, Robert Colville, Sunday Times columnist and director of the Centre for Policy Studies; and Kirsty Innes who is the head of digital government at the Tony Blair Institute.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Uber.
When Uber arrived in Britain ten years ago, the app transformed the way people came to view taxis. All of a sudden, city dwellers could order a taxi, for a third of the price, at the click of a button which would arrive within minutes.
To the Conservatives, this hailed a new way of working and putting consumers first. Since then, a lot has changed. Uber came under strict regulatory obstacles and they have had many more competitors. But the business has transformed with the times. Whilst emblematic of the gig economy, are the critics right about driver exploitation? And does more regulation create barriers for the customer?
Fraser Nelson, The Spectator's editor is joined on this special podcast by an Uber driver, Kasey to talk about her experience working for the company; Andrew Brem, who heads up Uber's UK business, Robert Colville, Sunday Times columnist and director of the Centre for Policy Studies; and Kirsty Innes who is the head of digital government at the Tony Blair Institute.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Uber.
For the final round of The Spectator’s Economic Innovator of the Year Awards, our kind sponsors, Investec, hosted us at their offices on Gresham Street, London. We met 11 finalists for lunch — out of a record total of 176 entries across the whole of the UK — to pitch their ventures to our distinguished panel of judges.
Our finalists are: UpCircle Beauty, Elvie, Ultromics, Silverstream, eConsult Health,
Itaconix, Thought Machine, Recycleye, Project Etopia and Housekeep.
The judges; Matthew Robinson who works in Private Equity with ICG;
Eva-Maria Dimitriadis CEO of Conduit Connect, and finally Kate Gribbon and Michelle White from Investec.
We hope all the companies we meet gain from the networking opportunities, benefit from the accolade of being selected as finalists and enjoy the buzz, the conversation and the lunch. We hope Spectator readers and podcast listeners also enjoy following the search for this year’s ultimate winners to be announced at the gala dinner on the 11th November – and will take a few minutes to explore the finalists' websites and products.
For the final round of The Spectator’s Economic Innovator of the Year Awards, our kind sponsors, Investec, hosted us at their offices on Gresham Street, London. We met 11 finalists for lunch — out of a record total of 176 entries across the whole of the UK — to pitch their ventures to our distinguished panel of judges.
Our finalists are: UpCircle Beauty, Elvie, Ultromics, Silverstream, eConsult Health,
Itaconix, Thought Machine, Recycleye, Project Etopia and Housekeep.
The judges; Matthew Robinson who works in Private Equity with ICG;
Eva-Maria Dimitriadis CEO of Conduit Connect, and finally Kate Gribbon and Michelle White from Investec.
We hope all the companies we meet gain from the networking opportunities, benefit from the accolade of being selected as finalists and enjoy the buzz, the conversation and the lunch. We hope Spectator readers and podcast listeners also enjoy following the search for this year’s ultimate winners to be announced at the gala dinner on the 11th November – and will take a few minutes to explore the finalists' websites and products.
This week on Spectator Out Loud: Mary Wakefield tells us about her frustrating experience trying to give blood (00:49), James Ball says that it may be the beginning of the end for Mark Zuckerberg (07:04), and Christopher Howse reads his Notes on... signatures (16:44).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
This week on Spectator Out Loud: Mary Wakefield tells us about her frustrating experience trying to give blood (00:49), James Ball says that it may be the beginning of the end for Mark Zuckerberg (07:04), and Christopher Howse reads his Notes on... signatures (16:44).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Republican strategist Luke Thompson returns to Americano to give Freddy Gray the lowdown on how things are shaping up ahead of the midterm elections in November.
Republican strategist Luke Thompson returns to Americano to give Freddy Gray the lowdown on how things are shaping up ahead of the midterm elections in November.
For this year's Midlands and Southwest Innovator of the Year Awards, the judges met four finalists at each region respectively. These eight finalists were shortlisted down from a record 176 applications.
In Birmingham lunch, the finalists in this podcast were MoM incubators, Hybrid Air Vehicles and Bambino Mio. The judges, Martin Vander Weyer, business editor of The Spectator met Steve Hewitt, non-executive director of Gymshark; Clive Bawden. COO of Warwick Music and former finalist of the Innovator of the Year Awards and Michelle White representing Investec.
The judges faced the tough task of comparing businesses in very different sectors and stages of development. But all four made compelling pitches – and the variety of entries is part of the fun of these Awards.
We hope all the companies we meet gain from the networking opportunities, benefit from the accolade of being selected as finalists and enjoy the buzz, the conversation and the lunch. We hope Spectator readers and podcast listeners also enjoy following the search for this year’s ultimate winners – and will take a few minutes to explore the finalists' websites and products.
More Economic innovator of the Year Awards podcasts coming shortly!
For this year's Midlands and Southwest Innovator of the Year Awards, the judges met four finalists at each region respectively. These eight finalists were shortlisted down from a record 176 applications.
In Birmingham lunch, the finalists in this podcast were MoM incubators, Hybrid Air Vehicles and Bambino Mio. The judges, Martin Vander Weyer, business editor of The Spectator met Steve Hewitt, non-executive director of Gymshark; Clive Bawden. COO of Warwick Music and former finalist of the Innovator of the Year Awards and Michelle White representing Investec.
The judges faced the tough task of comparing businesses in very different sectors and stages of development. But all four made compelling pitches – and the variety of entries is part of the fun of these Awards.
We hope all the companies we meet gain from the networking opportunities, benefit from the accolade of being selected as finalists and enjoy the buzz, the conversation and the lunch. We hope Spectator readers and podcast listeners also enjoy following the search for this year’s ultimate winners – and will take a few minutes to explore the finalists' websites and products.
More Economic innovator of the Year Awards podcasts coming shortly!
On this week's podcast:
After the markets saw off Kwarteng, Trussonomics and now Truss herself, James Forsyth writes in The Spectator that the markets will be driving British politics for the foreseeable future. He is joined by Britain economics editor at the Economist Soumaya Keynes to discuss the institutions now dictating government policy (00:56).
Also this week:
Looking ahead to the American midterms next month, are we heading for a 'red wave'? Freddy Gray says in his piece for the magazine that the Democrats could be in for a shellacking come November. He is joined by Washington editor at Spectator World, Amber Athey (13:41).
And finally:
Should the Parthenon Marbles be returned to Athens?
In The Spectator this week, Noel Malcolm says this age-old question is far from simple. He is joined by Lord Vaizey, chair of the new advisory board The Parthenon Project, to consider whether we can really justify keeping the Elgin Marbles in the British Museum (21:00).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
On this week's podcast:
After the markets saw off Kwarteng, Trussonomics and now Truss herself, James Forsyth writes in The Spectator that the markets will be driving British politics for the foreseeable future. He is joined by Britain economics editor at the Economist Soumaya Keynes to discuss the institutions now dictating government policy (00:56).
Also this week:
Looking ahead to the American midterms next month, are we heading for a 'red wave'? Freddy Gray says in his piece for the magazine that the Democrats could be in for a shellacking come November. He is joined by Washington editor at Spectator World, Amber Athey (13:41).
And finally:
Should the Parthenon Marbles be returned to Athens?
In The Spectator this week, Noel Malcolm says this age-old question is far from simple. He is joined by Lord Vaizey, chair of the new advisory board The Parthenon Project, to consider whether we can really justify keeping the Elgin Marbles in the British Museum (21:00).
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Fraser Nelson, James Forsyth, Katy Balls and Kate Andrews discuss plans to stop spiralling inflation – and a spiralling government.
Fraser Nelson, James Forsyth, Katy Balls and Kate Andrews discuss plans to stop spiralling inflation – and a spiralling government.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the art historian Dr Matt Lodder, whose new book is Painted People: Humanity in 21 Tattoos. He tells me how much more there is to the history of painting on the body than we commonly suppose; and how over the years the history of tattooing (and public attitudes to it) has been shaped by religion, imperialism, class and fashion. Plus, we discover the one thing on which Boomers and Gen Z can agree…
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the art historian Dr Matt Lodder, whose new book is Painted People: Humanity in 21 Tattoos. He tells me how much more there is to the history of painting on the body than we commonly suppose; and how over the years the history of tattooing (and public attitudes to it) has been shaped by religion, imperialism, class and fashion. Plus, we discover the one thing on which Boomers and Gen Z can agree…
How can we justify keeping the Elgin marbles in the British Museum? Join The Spectator’s James Forsyth and special guests as they discuss how to bring an end to the Parthenon Sculptures dispute.
A Conservative party conference event, sponsored by The Parthenon Project.
How can we justify keeping the Elgin marbles in the British Museum? Join The Spectator’s James Forsyth and special guests as they discuss how to bring an end to the Parthenon Sculptures dispute.
A Conservative party conference event, sponsored by The Parthenon Project.
28 per cent of the world's fertiliser supply comes from Russia and Ukraine. Since war broke out in February, fertiliser prices have rocketed to record highs because of the disruption. British farmers are under pressure as the industry deals with higher energy costs at the same time; while consumers are facing higher food prices.
Is there a way to reshore our fertiliser supply chain? CCm Technologies in Swindon thinks so – and reduce emissions at the same time. They say they can make high efficiency and low polluting fertiliser from organic waste, gathered from British farms, creating a completely self-sufficient production line.
For their cutting edge science, CCm Technologies won the Spectator’s Innovator of the Year awards last year, beating dozens of Britain’s most brilliant start ups. In this tense geopolitical moment, Kate Andrews caught up with Pawel Kisielewski, CEO of CCm Technologies.
28 per cent of the world's fertiliser supply comes from Russia and Ukraine. Since war broke out in February, fertiliser prices have rocketed to record highs because of the disruption. British farmers are under pressure as the industry deals with higher energy costs at the same time; while consumers are facing higher food prices.
Is there a way to reshore our fertiliser supply chain? CCm Technologies in Swindon thinks so – and reduce emissions at the same time. They say they can make high efficiency and low polluting fertiliser from organic waste, gathered from British farms, creating a completely self-sufficient production line.
For their cutting edge science, CCm Technologies won the Spectator’s Innovator of the Year awards last year, beating dozens of Britain’s most brilliant start ups. In this tense geopolitical moment, Kate Andrews caught up with Pawel Kisielewski, CEO of CCm Technologies.
I recently caught a rare viewing of a 2001 Chinese film, Lan Yu. It tells the story of two gay men falling in love and finding domestic life throughout the reform and opening years of China. The filmmakers never bothered to apply for approval from the censors, knowing that its homosexual storyline would never make it past the moralistic Communist censors.
On this episode, I take a look at the place of homosexuality in the traditional Chinese mindset and under these years of Communism. My guests are Zhang Yongning, the producer of Lan Yu, and Liu Yiling, a a writer covering Chinese society, technology and internet culture who has written about the the dating apps that millennial gay men now use. We discuss the homosexuality rooted in traditional Chinese literature, like Dreams of the Red Chamber, balanced against the Confucian need to procreate and pass on lineage. It turns out that, much like ancient Greece, the problem wasn’t so much the gay sex so long as you still set up families and had children, Yongning says.
With the influx of Christianity through missionaries, there took on a ‘pathological’ view of homosexuality, more akin to the western homophobia, says Yiling.
When it comes to political attitudes, Yiling makes the astute point that ‘Chinese history has always moved in patterns of fang shou (open and close)’. Under Communism, you might expect the kind of restrictive attitudes towards divergent lifestyles, but much of this had moved in more liberal ways since reform and opening, forming the backdrop to Lan Yu’s story. Yet the sticking point is always whether these minority groups ask for political or civil rights. Unlike feminists under the MeToo movement which has been shut down by the government, gays haven’t united politically. ‘If they start asking for rights, then they will be in huge trouble’, Yongning says.
We don’t get much time to talk about other LGBT communities, but I’ll certainly come back to those in future episodes.
If you enjoy this podcast, you can now register your interest for an upcoming Chinese Whispers newsletter, at www.spectator.co.uk/whispers. It'll be everything you love about the podcast.
I recently caught a rare viewing of a 2001 Chinese film, Lan Yu. It tells the story of two gay men falling in love and finding domestic life throughout the reform and opening years of China. The filmmakers never bothered to apply for approval from the censors, knowing that its homosexual storyline would never make it past the moralistic Communist censors.
On this episode, I take a look at the place of homosexuality in the traditional Chinese mindset and under these years of Communism. My guests are Zhang Yongning, the producer of Lan Yu, and Liu Yiling, a a writer covering Chinese society, technology and internet culture who has written about the the dating apps that millennial gay men now use. We discuss the homosexuality rooted in traditional Chinese literature, like Dreams of the Red Chamber, balanced against the Confucian need to procreate and pass on lineage. It turns out that, much like ancient Greece, the problem wasn’t so much the gay sex so long as you still set up families and had children, Yongning says.
With the influx of Christianity through missionaries, there took on a ‘pathological’ view of homosexuality, more akin to the western homophobia, says Yiling.
When it comes to political attitudes, Yiling makes the astute point that ‘Chinese history has always moved in patterns of fang shou (open and close)’. Under Communism, you might expect the kind of restrictive attitudes towards divergent lifestyles, but much of this had moved in more liberal ways since reform and opening, forming the backdrop to Lan Yu’s story. Yet the sticking point is always whether these minority groups ask for political or civil rights. Unlike feminists under the MeToo movement which has been shut down by the government, gays haven’t united politically. ‘If they start asking for rights, then they will be in huge trouble’, Yongning says.
We don’t get much time to talk about other LGBT communities, but I’ll certainly come back to those in future episodes.
If you enjoy this podcast, you can now register your interest for an upcoming Chinese Whispers newsletter, at www.spectator.co.uk/whispers. It'll be everything you love about the podcast.
For the next round of The Spectator’s Economic Innovator of the Year Awards sponsored by Investec, we met in Leeds at the Dakota hotel and restaurant.
For the Yorkshire and Northeast region, three finalists joined us for lunch — out of a record total of 176 entries across the whole of the UK — to pitch their ventures to our distinguished panel of judges. The finalists you’ll hear about on this podcast are: Testcard, in the healthcare sector; MudDaddy, a portable dog shower and Tofooco. After lunch, we also met Powersheds via Zoom who couldn’t make it to the pitching lunch.
The judges were Gordon Black, venture capitalist and former manufacturer; Caroline Theobald, entrepreneur and chair of the Newcastle Business School at Northumbria University. Finally from our sponsors Investec; Dan Sheahan, Michelle White and Rowena Huston.
The judges faced the tough task of comparing businesses in very different sectors and stages of development. But all four made compelling pitches – and the variety of entries is part of the fun of these Awards.
We hope all the companies we meet gain from the networking opportunities, benefit from the accolade of being selected as finalists and enjoy the buzz, the conversation and the lunch. We hope Spectator readers and podcast listeners also enjoy following the search for this year’s ultimate winners – and will take a few minutes to explore the finalists' websites and products.
More Economic innovator of the Year Awards podcasts coming shortly!
For the next round of The Spectator’s Economic Innovator of the Year Awards sponsored by Investec, we met in Leeds at the Dakota hotel and restaurant.
For the Yorkshire and Northeast region, three finalists joined us for lunch — out of a record total of 176 entries across the whole of the UK — to pitch their ventures to our distinguished panel of judges. The finalists you’ll hear about on this podcast are: Testcard, in the healthcare sector; MudDaddy, a portable dog shower and Tofooco. After lunch, we also met Powersheds via Zoom who couldn’t make it to the pitching lunch.
The judges were Gordon Black, venture capitalist and former manufacturer; Caroline Theobald, entrepreneur and chair of the Newcastle Business School at Northumbria University. Finally from our sponsors Investec; Dan Sheahan, Michelle White and Rowena Huston.
The judges faced the tough task of comparing businesses in very different sectors and stages of development. But all four made compelling pitches – and the variety of entries is part of the fun of these Awards.
We hope all the companies we meet gain from the networking opportunities, benefit from the accolade of being selected as finalists and enjoy the buzz, the conversation and the lunch. We hope Spectator readers and podcast listeners also enjoy following the search for this year’s ultimate winners – and will take a few minutes to explore the finalists' websites and products.
More Economic innovator of the Year Awards podcasts coming shortly!
This week: Harriet Sergeant writes about why ethnicity matters in sexual abuse cases (0:30), Lionel Shriver takes aim at the American university students failing their exams, (8:06), Martin Vander Weyer looks at the latest forecasts for housing prices (17:01), and Philip Patrick thinks Japanese food is overrated (25:19).
Produced and presented by Natasha Feroze.
Fiona Hill is a seasoned political advisor, consultant and strategist. Born in Glasgow, she began her career as the first-ever female football reporter in Scotland. Then after moving into politics, she later became the first female chief of staff in No.10 under Theresa May.
In her first interview since leaving Downing Street five years ago, Fiona Hill speaks to Katy Balls about how difficult she found it being attacked in the press after the Tories’ election disappointment in 2017. ‘Luckily I’m a strong person. But if I’d been a lesser person I may have thrown myself in the Thames.’ She also reveals that in the month after the election, Hill came face to face with someone who had broken into her flat.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
The second regional podcast for The Spectator’s Economic Innovator of the Year Award sponsored by Investec was set in the picturesque city of Edinburgh where the judges and finalists met for lunch at the Dome on George Street.
We invited four finalists for the Scotland and Northern Ireland region — out of a record total of 176 across the whole of the UK — to pitch their ventures to our distinguished panel of judges. The finalists you’ll hear about on this podcast are: Cardinal Analytics a fintech business that predicts when enterprises are about to go bankrupt; MacRebur a novel invention for road surfacing; Roslin Technologies which make lab-grown meat; and Synaptec which work in manufacturing for fault sensors in power networks.
The judges were Merryn Somerset-Webb, editor and chief of MoneyWeek magazine and Financial Times columnist, Irene McAleese, co-founder and CEO of See.Sense, an early winner of these awards; finally our friends from Investec, Michelle White and Arlene Ewing.
The judges faced the tough task of comparing businesses in very different sectors and stages of development. But all four made compelling pitches – and the variety of entries is part of the fun of these Awards.
We hope all the companies we meet gain from the networking opportunities, benefit from the accolade of being selected as finalists and enjoy the buzz, the conversation and the lunch. We hope Spectator readers and podcast listeners also enjoy following the search for this year’s ultimate winners – and will take a few minutes to explore the finalists' websites and products.
More Economic innovator of the Year Awards podcasts coming shortly!
This week:
In his cover piece for the magazine Owen Matthews writes about the power struggle at the heart of Russia. He is joined by Jade McGlynn, specialist in Russian Studies at the Monterey Initiative, to discuss whether Putin might be running out of time (01:00).
Also on the podcast:
Has America’s pot policy gone to pot?
In The Spectator this week Mike Adams says that US cannabis legislation has been a total failure, a view contested by Katya Kowalski, Head of Operations at drug policy think tank Voltface. They both join The Edition podcast to debate the way forward for cannabis legalisation (16:26).
And finally:
Should we pity privileged men?
For our magazine Damian Reilly writes about The Privileged Man, the support group for men that have it all. He is joined by co-founder of the community Esmond Baring to consider why everyone should be encouraged to speak up about their struggles (30:44).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
This week:
In his cover piece for the magazine Owen Matthews writes about the power struggle at the heart of Russia. He is joined by Jade McGlynn, specialist in Russian Studies at the Monterey Initiative, to discuss whether Putin might be running out of time (01:00).
Also on the podcast:
Has America’s pot policy gone to pot?
In The Spectator this week Mike Adams says that US cannabis legislation has been a total failure, a view contested by Katya Kowalski, Head of Operations at drug policy think tank Voltface. They both join The Edition podcast to debate the way forward for cannabis legalisation (16:26).
And finally:
Should we pity privileged men?
For our magazine Damian Reilly writes about The Privileged Man, the support group for men that have it all. He is joined by co-founder of the community Esmond Baring to consider why everyone should be encouraged to speak up about their struggles (30:44).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest on this week's podcast is best known as a stand-up comic, and co-host of the hit second world war podcast We Have Ways of Making You Talk. Now Al Murray has produced a book – Command: How The Allies Learned To Win the Second World War – in which he looks at the progress of the war through case studies of the men who, one way and another, made a difference to it. He tells me how we turned round a war we spent three years losing so badly, and along the way provides some sharp reassessments of (among other eminences) Orde Wingate, George Patton and the two-pound gun.
My guest on this week's podcast is best known as a stand-up comic, and co-host of the hit second world war podcast We Have Ways of Making You Talk. Now Al Murray has produced a book – Command: How The Allies Learned To Win the Second World War – in which he looks at the progress of the war through case studies of the men who, one way and another, made a difference to it. He tells me how we turned round a war we spent three years losing so badly, and along the way provides some sharp reassessments of (among other eminences) Orde Wingate, George Patton and the two-pound gun.
Ayesha Hazarika is a journalist, broadcaster, stand-up comic and former advisor to three Labour leaders.
On the podcast, she discusses memories of her mother's chicken curry, navigating bacon sandwich-gate with Ed Miliband and why all cooked orange coloured food is 'minging'.
Ayesha Hazarika is a journalist, broadcaster, stand-up comic and former advisor to three Labour leaders.
On the podcast, she discusses memories of her mother's chicken curry, navigating bacon sandwich-gate with Ed Miliband and why all cooked orange coloured food is 'minging'.
This week Winston speaks with actor James Dreyfus, star of Gimme Gimme Gimme, The Thin Blue Line and Notting Hill. They discuss his cancellation from Dr Who, the misogyny and homophobia of Trans Radical Activists, Stonewall, the LGB Alliance, and why he’s willing to put his neck on the line.
This year’s regional podcast series for The Spectator’s Economic Innovator of the Year Awards kicked off with news of a fascinating lunch at The Ivy Cafe in Manchester.
We invited four finalists for the North West region — out of a record total of 176 across the whole of the UK — to pitch their ventures to our distinguished panel of judges. The finalists you’ll hear about on this podcast are: LoveRaw which makes vegan chocolate; Ordo which makes electric toothbrushes; Interact, which drives energy efficiency in data centres and IT systems; and Better2Know, which provides sexual health testing services.
The judges were Gabriel Fysh, whose company Transcend Packaging, in South Wales, is one of our former winners in this region; private equity and venture capital investor Steve Morris; and Richard Greenhalgh and Michelle White representing our sponsor, the wealth manager and investment bank Investec.
The judges faced the tough task of comparing businesses in very different sectors and stages of development. But all four made compelling pitches — and the variety of entries is part of the fun of these Awards.
We hope all the companies we meet gain from the networking opportunities, benefit from the accolade of being selected as finalists and enjoy the buzz, the conversation and the lunch. We hope Spectator readers and podcast listeners also enjoy following the search for this year’s ultimate winners — and will take a few minutes to explore the finalists websites and products.
More Economic innovator of the Year Awards podcasts coming shortly!
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
Freddy Gray, The Spectator’s deputy editor, speaks to former Pentagon official, and the author of The Strategy of Denial, Elbridge Colby about the risk of nuclear war with Russia:
‘I’m very suspicious of the ability to control the escalation.’ – Elbridge Colby
Mark Galeotti, a Spectator contributor and the director of Mayak Intelligence, joins Elbridge, and says we ned to get tougher with Putin. On the rest of the show, our politics team James Forsyth and Katy Balls discuss Truss’s speech at the Conservative party conference, our economics editor Kate Andrews and Mark Littlewood, the director general of the Institute of Economic Affairs, look at whether Trussonomics is doomed already, and our columnist Rod Liddle explains how he gave up smoking.
This week: Kate Andrews laments how Truss is hurting the free-market cause (00:51), Anthony Whitehead explains the 'arrogance' of the latest environmental activist movement the Tyre Extinguishers (06:42) and Michael Simmons reads his notes on barcodes (12:54).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
This week Freddy speaks to Madeleine Kearns, staff writer at the National Review, about President Joe Biden's decree that cannabis possession should no longer be a federal crime. Is this a vote winner or will the decision end in disaster?
Justine Roberts is the CEO and founder of Mumsnet. A website that makes parents’ lives easier by pooling knowledge, advice and support on everything from baby names, and household tips, to who they’re voting for in the next election.
On the podcast, Justine talks about being a young girl from Surrey, mad about Liverpool football club and spending her years at Oxford University on the sports field. She worked as an investment banker and journalist before having a light-bulb moment on holiday with her one-year-old, which inspired the inception of Mumsnet.
Produced by Matt Taylor and Natasha Feroze.
On this week's podcast:
As Liz Truss returns from Conservative Party Conference with her wings clipped, has she failed in her revolutionary aims for the party?
James Forsyth discusses this in the cover piece for The Spectator, and is joined by former cabinet minister and New Labour architect Peter Mandelson to discuss (01:08).
Also this week:
Is it time that the West got tough with Putin?
Mark Galeotti writes in this week's magazine about the likely scenarios should Putin make good on his thermonuclear threats. He is joined by Elisabeth Braw, fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, to consider how the West should respond (13:14).
And finally:
Anthony Whitehead writes about the 'arrogance' of the Tyre Extinguisher movement in The Spectator this week, a new environmental activist organisation letting down the tyres on SUVs all around the world. He speaks to Tusk, one such 'extinguisher' about the motivations and aims of these activists (25:07).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is Peter Stothard, whose new book Crassus: The First Tycoon tells the story of the third man in Rome’s great triumvirate: landlord, power-broker, Spartacus’s nemesis and leader of a hubristic expedition to the east that was to see his glorious career end in bitter failure.
Image © Teri Pengilley
As the NHS turns 74, the service has never been under so much strain. The pandemic has created record waiting lists of almost seven million in England alone. Every month, tens of thousands of accident and emergency patients are left to wait for more than 12 hours with ambulances queuing up outside. Other long-term challenges such as an ageing population are coming to a head.
On this podcast, Isabel Hardman, The Spectator’s, assistant editor and her guests take a look back at the history of the NHS to talk about what the service was founded for, and why it is in crisis now. Isabel is joined by a panel of specialists; Alan Milburn, the former secretary of state for health from 1999 to 2003; Anne Milton, former minister for health from 2010-2015, and deputy chief whip for the Conservative party; and Philip Schwab, Abbvie’s regional director for government affairs in Europe.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Abbvie.
In this episode of Chinese Whispers, we look ahead to the 20th National Party Congress, where senior members will gather to review the future direction of the party and unveil new leaders. What should China-watchers expect? Will Xi be able to fill the standing committee with those loyal to him?
To discuss this important moment in the communist calendar is author of the Sinocism substack Bill Bishop and Professor Victor Shih, expert in Chinese elite politics and author of the new book Coalitions of the Weak.
If you enjoy this podcast, you can now register your interest for an upcoming Chinese Whispers newsletter, at www.spectator.co.uk/whispers.
This week on Spectator Out Loud, Jenny McCartney argues that tomorrow belongs to Sinn Fein in Northern Ireland. What could this mean for reunification (00:55)? Then, Dan Hitchens asks why Oxford killed a much loved catholic college (11:44) before Gus Carter reads his notes on the tabletop game Warhammer (20:12).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
The UK was the first country in the world to begin its formal vaccine rollout, starting with the 91 year old Margaret Keenan. In the years since, the pandemic has been almost entirely routed in this country (though its impact on the economy, on healthcare, on the criminal justice system, continue to be suffered). But the British vaccine – developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca – was a key part of the global fight against the pandemic. What was it like to be on the inside during those crucial first months? The Spectator has brought together politicians, advisors and scientists who played key roles during that time, to reveal a picture of dealing with unprecedented crisis in smart ways.
On this episode: Kate Andrews, The Spectator's economics editor, talks to Nadhim Zahawi (Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster who had been the first Vaccines Minister during the pandemic); Jamie Njoku-Goodwin, head of UK Music who was a special advisor to then-Health Secretary Matt Hancock; Professor Andrew Pollard, chief investigator for the clinical trials of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine; and Isabel Hardman, The Spectator's assistant editor.
This episode is the first of a mini-series taking a look at Britain in the world, sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
On this week's podcast:
For the cover of the magazine Kate Andrews assesses the politics of panic, and the fallout of last week's so-called fiscal event. She is joined by Robert Colvile, director of the Centre for Policy Studies think tank to discuss where the Conservatives go from here (00:57).
Also this week:
Does the future belong to Sinn Fein in Northern Ireland?
This is the claim that Jenny McCartney makes in this week's Spectator. We speak with journalistMelanie McDonagh and politician Mairia Cahill about what this could mean for Irish reunification (15:58).
And finally:
Are red kites magnificent or a menace?
Paul Sargeanton says in his article for The Spectator that red kites should have never been reintroduced back into the UK. His claim is contested by naturalist and author of The Red Kites Year, Ian Carter (28:19).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week's Book Club podcast my guest is the doyen of war studies, Lawrence Freedman. His new book Command: The Politics of Military Operations from Korea to Ukraine takes a fascinating look at the interplay between politics and conflict in the post-war era. He tells me why dictators make bad generals, how soldiers are always playing politics, how the nuclear age has changed the calculus of conflict and gives me his latest read on the progress of the war in Ukraine.
This week Freddy is joined by political theorist Yoram Hazony. They discuss Yoram's new book Conservatism: A Rediscovery, the origins of American conservatism and whether the family unit will be the defining feature of the modern conservative movement.
Andy Burnham has served as Mayor of Greater Manchester since 2017. Before this he held prominent positions in Gordon Brown's cabinet, including health secretary and culture secretary.
On the podcast he recalls Friday night 'chippy teas' as a child, the oddity of having food items named after him and discusses his work tackling food insecurity in Greater Manchester.
Katy Balls, The Spectator's deputy political editor, is joined by journalist Peter Hitchens; Spectator contributor Paul Wood; The Spectator's economics editor Kate Andrews; political editor James Forsyth; assistant editor Isabel Hardman; news editor John Connolly; and assistant online editor Lisa Haseldine.
On the episode:
00:00 – Welcome from Katy Balls
01:21 – Would Putin use a nuclear bomb? With Paul Wood and Peter Hitchens
15:39 – The politicians speaking out against Putin, with Lisa Haseldine
27:41 – Why does Truss want to be unpopular? With James Forsyth and Isabel Hardman
40:58 – What's behind the violence in Leicester? With John Connolly
46:04 – Could Truss's gas price freeze cost less than planned? With Kate Andrews
This week on Spectator Out Loud, Oliver Basciano warns that we should brace ourselves for a coup in Brazil (00:53). Then, is three – or more – a crowd? Mary Wakefield discuses this in her Spectator column (08:41), before Fiona Mountford tells us about the sad demise of church pews (14:55).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week’s episode:
For the cover of the magazine, Paul Wood asks whether Putin could actually push the nuclear button in order to save himself?
He is joined by The Spectator’s assistant online editor Lisa Haseldine, to discuss (01:03).
Also this week:
Why is there violence on the streets of Leicester?
Douglas Murray writes about this in his column this week and we speak to journalist Sunny Hundal and research analyst Dr Rakib Ehsan about what’s caused the disorder (13:44).
And finally:
Is three – or more – a crowd?
Mary Wakefield discusses the poly-problems or polyamory in her column in The Spectator and is joined by comedian Elf Lyons, who has written about her experience of polyamory before (26:46).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
This week Freddy speaks to journalist and political analyst Sean Trende about what we can expect from the November midterms. Is there a red wave incoming? Or will the Democrats do better than expected?
On this week’s Book Club podcast we’re talking about the best crime writer you’ve (probably) never heard of. As Penguin reissues three of Josephine Tey’s classic Golden Age novels, I’m joined by Nicola Upson, whose own detective stories (most recently Dear Little Corpses) feature Tey as a central character. She tells me about the unique character of Tey’s writing, her discreet private life, and about how she made possible the psychological crime fiction that we read now.
In the last four decades, hundreds of millions of Chinese have moved into cities. Today, two thirds of the country live in urban areas (compared to just one third in 1985), and many of these are hubs with tens of millions of people – mega-cities that many in the West have never heard of before.
On this episode, Cindy is taking a look at urban life in China – so new to so much of the population. She is joined by Austin Williams, who is an architect turned journalist, and author of two books on Chinese architecture. What is life like for people living in these dense city centres? Would they prefer a closer relationship with nature? And what about the housing slump, discussed recently on this podcast, and its impact on urban communities?
If you enjoy this podcast, you can now register your interest for an upcoming Chinese Whispers newsletter, at www.spectator.co.uk/whispers
This week on Spectator Out Loud, Owen Matthews evaluates Russia’s ultra-nationalist threat (00:55), Cindy Yu reviews Perhat Tarsun’s The Backstreets (12:36) and ex-royal ladies maid Alicia Healey tells us why a handbag was the Queen’s secret weapon (15:22).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
On this week’s podcast:
We reflect on the life and the reign of Queen Elizabeth II.
For The Spectator, A.N. Wilson writes that Queen Elizabeth was a constant in a country that has changed so much, and he is joined on the Edition podcast by Graham Viney author of Last Hurrah: The 1947 Tour of Southern Africa and the End of Empire (00:59).
Also this week:
Michael Hall takes us inside the Royal Collection and discusses the Queen’s relationship with art. He is joined by Susan Ryder, who was commissioned to paint her portrait in 1997 (13:28).
And finally:
Scott Methven recalls his time as piper to the sovereign with Anne Denholm, a former personal harpist to the now King Charles III (22:58).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is A.M. Homes. She talks about her new novel The Unfolding, which imagines a conspiracy of angry Republicans forming after John McCain’s 2008 election defeat in the hopes of taking their America back. She talks about her history of prescience, about the deep weirdness of the Washington she grew up in, and why there’s more than one “deep state”.
Oliver Woodhead is founder of L'Entente, the British brasserie in Paris. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Liv about what the French think about a traditional English breakfast, explains how he was inspired by London's St. John restaurant, and asks what our hosts' favourite ingredient is.
This week on Marshall Matters, Winston speaks with actor turned political activist Lawrence Fox on his new film My Son Hunter, Biden corruption, being ostracised from the film industry and the importance of free speech.
This week on Spectator Out Loud: after the sad passing of our longest reigning monarch, the great Queen Elizabeth II, Melanie McDonagh reads her poignant piece on how Britain, as a nation, will be lesser without her (01:09). Then, turning to politics, Katy Balls gives us an update on how Liz Truss is shaking up Number 10 (05:18) before Nigel Richardson, author of the new book The Accidental Detectorist, tells us about his new hobby, metal detecting (10:55).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week’s episode:
As the Liz Truss era begins, we assess the bumpy road that lies ahead of her.
James Forsyth and Rachel Wolf, co-author of the 2019 conservative manifesto, join the Edition podcast (01:04).
Also this week:
From generation rent to generation buy: has Help to Buy been a success or a failure?
Emma Hollender speaks with economist – and ‘Trussketeer’ – Dr Gerard Lyons (12:29).
And finally: is metal detecting becoming popular?
Nigel Richardson discusses this in his piece in The Spectator this week and is joined by Julian Evan-Hart, editor of Treasure Hunting magazine (25:17).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Sam Leith's guest in this week’s Book Club is Ian McEwan – whose latest novel Lessons draws on his own biography to imagine an 'alternative life' for himself. He tells Sam about what drew him, in his late career, to using autobiography; about why there’s no contradiction in combining realism with metafiction; about the importance of sex; the rise of cancel culture – and why literary fiction by 'comfortable white men of a certain age' may have had its day, but he’s not complaining.
After a long summer of hustings, Liz Truss has finally been confirmed today as the next leader of the Conservative party. As she gets the keys to Downing Street, she'll finally be able to carry out her vision of Sino-British relations. But what is that vision?
On the latest Chinese Whispers, Cindy Yu speaks to Sam Hogg, editor of the must-read Beijing to Britain newsletter, about what we know about Truss's views on China so far. Will she declare a genocide in Xinjiang? What is an acceptable level of trade with Beijing?
The difficulty for Truss is that she has never had to balance her opinions on China with the wider remit of government (for example, when it comes to the trading relationship that she lambasted her rival Rishi Sunak for pursuing, while at the Treasury). As Sam points out, taking the example of declaring a genocide in Xinjiang (something she has privately expressed support for):
‘When you officially recognise that a genocide is taking place, that puts an onus on the country that has done so to try and actively stop that, using a variety of means (that could be sanctions for example). With that in mind, one can see why it’s a useful campaign pledge, but a difficult policy to carry out once in power’
Then she might be held hostage by China hawks on the backbenches – those MPs like Iain Duncan Smith who have lent her his support, but may want to see her be as vocally sceptical of China in Downing Street as she has been so far. In that case, there could be a vibe similar to how the hardline Brexiteers held previous Conservative prime ministers to ransom on seeing through their visions. ‘She’s made a series of political contracts with various backbenchers about how hawkish she is going to be towards China. And each of these backbenchers will have a limited amount of patience’, Sam points out.
We won't have long to find out as she gets her feet under the desk at No. 10 and, in a couple of months, meets with President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit in Indonesia.
John Connolly, The Spectator's news editor, is joined by deputy editor Freddy Gray; political editor James Forsyth; business editor Martin Vander Weyer; assistant editor Isabel Hardman; contributors Louise Perry and Simon Kuper; historian Robert Service; journalist Anne-Elisabeth Moutet; Times royal correspondent Valentine Low; deputy editor Freddy Gray; political editor James Forsyth; business editor Martin Vander Weyer; and assistant editor Isabel Hardman.
This week on Spectator Out Loud: Keiron Pim discusses what young Ukrainians can learn from the works of Joseph Roth (01:00), Miranda Morrison reflects on her decision to quit her job as a teacher (11:26), and Cosmo Landesman asks whether successful writers can be friends with less successful ones (19:39).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Freddy Gray speaks to Julia Yost about her recent New York Times column, 'New York's Hottest Club Is the Catholic Church'.
In this week's episode:
We look ahead to Harry and Megan’s UK tour next week, how will they be received?
Freddy Gray and Tanya Gold join the Edition podcast to discuss (01:01).
Also this week:
In the Spectator magazine, our Economics Editor Kate Andrews sat down with the three economists, or 'Trussketeers', that are informing the would-be PM’s economic plan.
She joins us along with Julian Jessop, one such economist that has been advising Liz Truss (13:51).
And finally: can successful writers be friends with less successful ones?
Cosmo Landesman asks this question in the magazine this week and is joined by the author Ian Rankin (27:07).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
This week we spotlight our most popular episode of the last year, Sam's conversation with Francis Fukuyama about his book Liberalism and its Discontents. He tells Sam how a system that has built peace and prosperity since the Enlightenment has come under attack from the neoliberal right and the identitarian left; and how Vladimir Putin may end up being the unwitting founding father of a new Ukraine.
Al and Kitty Tait run the Orange Bakery in Watlington, and are the authors of Breadsong: How Baking Changed Our Lives. On the podcast, the father-and-daughter pair explain how cooking changed their relationship, why baking helped Kitty out of depression, and why Watlingtons make such great customers.
Winston speaks with author and human rights activist Yasmine Mohammed. They discuss Salman Rushdie’s Fatwa, The Satanic Verses, Islamic blasphemy laws and how liberals empower radical Islam.
This week on Spectator Out Loud, Svitlana Morenets discusses the changes to the syllabus in Ukraine and the difficult decisions parents are having to make over whether to send their children back to school (00:59). Cindy Yu argues that she would be the perfect communist shill (07:45), and John Connolly tells us why cow attacks are no laughing matter (13:26).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week’s episode:
What has Rishi Sunak revealed about the lockdown decisions made behind closed doors?
Fraser Nelson, Katy Balls and Kate Andrews join the Edition podcast to discuss (1.14).
Also this week:
From aid to trade: when will the West start to deal with Africa on its own terms?
Spectator columnist, Aidan Hartley is joined by Degan Ali, founder and principal of DA Global (16.24).
And finally: are handsy yoga teachers pushing their pupils away?
Rachel Johnson makes this case in the magazine this week. She's joined by Sasha Brown-Worsham who is a yoga teacher and author of the book Namaste the Hard Way (32.32).Hosted by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
This week Sam is on holiday, so we have taken the opportunity to repost his conversation with Sir Salman Rushdie, recorded just before the pandemic. ‘Things that would have seemed utterly improbable now happen on a daily basis’, Sir Salman Rushdie said to Sam when they spoke in an interview for the Spectator's 10,000th edition. They discuss everything from his latest book Quichotte, to his relationship with his father, who we learn made up the surname 'Rushdie', and how he feels about The Satanic Verses now.
Yesterday Liz Cheney lost the Republican nomination for Wyoming's House seat to the Trump-backed candidate Harriet Hageman. Freddy Gray is joined by the author and journalist James Pogue to discuss the impact of the result.
What does China want with Xinjiang? Its systematic repression of the Uyghur people and other regional minorities has shocked the world, eliciting accusations of genocide from politicians and activists across the West. The Chinese Communist Party claims that its re-education camps are an anti-terrorism measure, but surely if anything is going to radicalise vast swathes of a non-Han population, it’s their forced internment and (for many) subsequent incarceration. So what is the CCP’s long term aim?
According to Raffaello Pantucci, senior associate fellow at the think tank Rusi, ‘the Central Government recognises that a very strong security crackdown is not necessarily going to deal with these problems in perpetuity’. Instead, ‘long-term stability for Xinjiang is going to come from economic prosperity’.
That’s where Central Asia comes in. On this episode, I talk to Raffaello about China’s relations with the five ‘Stans that sit cushioned between China (to their east) and Russia (to their north). As with China’s relationship with any developing region, Beijing is motivated by access to its significant oil and mineral resources. But there’s something special about Central Asia - Raffaello argues that it’s an extension of Beijing’s Xinjiang strategy: ‘It’s really about trying to improve the prosperity in this border region around Xinjiang to help improve its prosperity and stability… If you’re going to make Xinjiang economically prosperous, you’re going to have to find a way of connecting it to the world.’
Raffaello’s new book is Sinostan: China’s Inadvertent Empire, based on a decade of travel in and around the region (there were two when they started, but Raffaello’s co-author, Alexandros Petersen, died in a Taliban attack in Kabul eight years ago). As well as the Xinjiang implications, Sinostan looks at China’s oil and gas trade with these resource-rich countries, the cultural exchanges (or lack thereof, and often promoted by Confucius Institutes) and the difference in approach between Moscow and Beijing, all of which we discuss on the episode.
On China’s usurpation of Russia in the region, it’s striking that some public opinion is deeply suspicious of the new power in the region, a general Sinophobia that crystallises in numerous conspiracy theories (for example that roads built by Chinese companies are specifically designed to the weight of Chinese tanks). Welcomed by governments keen to benefit from the economic clout of their neighbour, some Chinese companies end up trying to hide their presence to avoid the ire of the locals. Raffaello recounts that ‘there are some cities in Kazakhstan, particularly in the oil regions, where we know CNPC [China National Petroleum Corporation] is a big player, but we just couldn’t find evidence of them. You’d ask the locals “where are the CNPC guys” and they’d say “we don’t know what you’re talking about”’.
But China’s influence is very much there. It remains a ‘huge lacuna in Western strategic thinking’ that cannot be ignored, Raffaello says. Tune in to get ahead on this next geopolitical hot topic.
Fraser Nelson, The Spectator’s editor, speaks to our columnist Lionel Shriver about the attack on Salman Rushdie:
‘Publishing has become completely paranoid about putting out anything that might be insulting to Islam.’ – Lionel Shriver
On the rest of the show, our economics editor Kate Andrews explains why the jobs market is so good, but the economy is heading for a recession. Jonathan Sumption, a former Supreme Court judge, says the Online Harms Bill is ‘illegitimate’. Our deputy political editor Katy Balls and assistant editor Isabel Hardman look at who might be in Liz Truss’s cabinet. Journalist Francesco Giubilei argues that Giorgia Meloni, the favourite to become Italy’s next prime minister, isn’t a fascist. Spectator contributor Matthew Lynn says crypto is back.
On this episode of Spectator Out Loud, Katy Balls discusses the challenges facing prospective PM Liz Truss (00:52). Toby Young shares why he is defending a pro-Putin apologist (06:45) and Mark Palmer reads his notes on hand luggage (11:29).
Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
In this week’s episode:
Is Giorgia Meloni the most dangerous woman in Europe?
Spectator contributor, Nicholas Farrell and political correspondent at Bloomberg, Chiara Albanese join us to discuss the road ahead for Italy’s next likely leader. (01.10)
Also this week: Are we entering a new age of digital censorship?
Lord Sumption unpicks the Online Safety Bill in this week’s magazine. He’s joined by Baroness Nicky Morgan, a firm supporter of the bill. (17.53)
And finally: why has holiday hand luggage become such a hassle this summer?
Spectator contributor and marketing guru, Rory Sutherland joins us to get to the bottom of this. (31.56)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and Gus Carter
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones – whose new book A Question of Standing: The History of the CIA looks at the real-life story behind one of the most mythologised agencies of American power. How does the world's first democratically answerable spy agency actually work? Were all those dirty tricks, extra-legal shenanigans and attempted assassinations – sorry: "health adjustments" in the lingo of Langley – really the work of an agency gone rogue? Did the CIA fail to foresee the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Iranian Revolution, the Arab Spring and the Twin Towers – or has it been made to take the fall for political ineptitude? And what is its standing now?
Paul Feig is an actor, comedian and acclaimed filmmaker. He has been behind films such as Bridesmaids, The Heat and the 2016 remake of Ghostbusters as well as episodes of Parks and Recreation and The Office.
On the podcast, Paul talks to Lara and Olivia about growing up thinking food was bland and tasteless, the secrets of on set catering and how to make the perfect Martini.
Winston speaks with American indie legend Ariel Pink. The accomplished singer-songwriter had his life turned on its head for the great crime of supporting Trump. Listen to find out what happened and why. They discuss January 6th, Alex Jones, life after cancellation and more.
Freddy Gray questions Biden’s supposed ‘hot streak’ (00:55), Mary Killen warns that a neighbourly feud is worse than a hosepipe ban (07:19) and Jonathan Miller talks about France’s sexual civil war (11:43).
In this week’s episode:
Who’s to blame for the water shortages?
James Forsyth, The Spectator’s political editor and Ciaran Nelson from Anglian Water join us to discuss the UK’s deteriorating water supply. (0.29)
Also this week: Is it time for some old-fashioned Tory state-building?
Tim Stanley from the Telegraph shares his vision for a Conservative future. He’s joined by Annabel Denham, Director of Communications at the Institute of Economic Affairs. (11.19)
And finally: What’s behind France’s new sexual politics?
Jonathan Miller writes about a new civil war in France between the nudes and prudes. He’s joined by Louise Perry, columnist and author of The Case Against the Sexual Revolution. (23.08)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
In this week's Book Club podcast, I'm joined by Andrea Wulf to talk about the birth of Romanticism at the end of the 18th century. Her new book Magnificent Rebels tells the story of the "Jena set" – a staggering assemblage of the superstars of German literature and philosophy who gathered in a small town and collectively came up with a whole new way of looking at the world. Goethe, Schiller, Fichte, Schelling, Novalis, the Schlegel brothers, the von Humboldt brothers – and their brilliant and daring wives and lovers... their intellectual fireworks were matched by a tangle of literary feuds and hair-raising sexual complications. Here's a piece of the jigsaw of intellectual history that most British people will only vaguely know of if at all – and it's fascinating.
It’s estimated that the average age of a British farmer is 59. This raises questions about the future of British farming. Are young people just not interested?
On this episode, The Spectator’s economics editor, Kate Andrews takes a look at the next few decades for British farming. Young farmers are part of the picture, but we’ll also be discussing the role played by immigration especially post Brexit. The agricultural pressures and questions around self-sufficiency given the war in Ukraine. And how to balance all of this with greater concern for climate change. Kate Andrews is joined by George Eustice, the Secretary of State for DEFRA, Tom Bradshaw, deputy president of the Farmers’ Union and Beth Hart, vice president for Supply Chain and Brand Trust at McDonald’s.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by McDonald's.
On this week's episode: Katy Balls has written about what foreign policy would look like under a Liz Truss government (0:54). Rachel Johnson young boys and men can learn from the Lioness’s victory (06:55) and Neil Clark shares Jim Corbett’s tiger hunting stories (12.23).
Presented and produced by Natasha Feroze.
Nancy Pelosi’s controversial trip to Taiwan made headlines across the world this week, after President Xi’s warnings to the US ‘not to play with fire’. Furious, Beijing has responded with economic sanctions and a flurry of missiles over and around the island, as well as sanctioning Pelosi and her family. But as the West frets about possible escalation, often lacking from the discussion is what Taiwanese people actually think. In fact, as Taipei-based journalist Brian Hioe explains to Cindy Yu in this episode, most people there were less worried about the visit than you might expect. ‘There’s been so much in terms of Chinese military drilling or activity directed at Taiwan for a decade, people are quite used to it.’
Comparisons to the calm in Ukraine before the Russian invasion are unfounded: ‘we are not seeing troops massing’. That is not to say, though, that the situation is without danger. A more limited and realistic threat is of China imposing a blockade, or attacking one of Taiwan’s outlying islands. Other possible repercussions include a salvo of cyberattacks, one pro-China actor having already hacked supermarkets and train station displays on the island this week.
So given all these dangers, why did Pelosi come at all? Perhaps telling is the Taiwanese government’s silence over whether it actually invited her. US domestic politics is probably a factor, as is her own legacy. Regardless of her motivation, President Biden said the move was unwise, and the situation remains delicate.
Careful diplomatic management of the crisis requires reliable information. But in the context of Taiwan, that is by no means a given. Brian explains the bizarre dynamic that exists between international and Taiwanese media, where each assumes the other is better informed. ‘The two sides are actually somewhat bad at fact-checking each other. Then they’re just amplifying what is sometimes discrimination but primarily misinformation.’
Tune in to hear more about the view from Taipei.
In this week’s episode:
Is China heading for a demographic disaster?
Rana Mitter and Cindy Yi discuss China’s declining birth rate and what this could do to their economy. (0.52)
Also this week:
What would foreign policy look like under a Liz Truss government?
The Spectator's deputy political editor, Katy Balls is joined by Rishi Sunak supporter, Dr Liam Fox who is the MP for NorthWest Somerset, Former Defence and Trade Secretary. (13.40)
And finally:
As Rishi comes face-to-face with the Tory members, can he win them over?
Fiona Unwin, who is the vice president of the West Suffolk Conservative Association writes that to wow the grassroots, all Rishi Sunak has to do is meet them. But not all the members were persuaded.
Fiona is joined by her fellow member and triple-hatted Councillor, Andy Drummond who was elected for Newmarket town, West Suffolk district and Suffolk county council. Andy is also the vice chair of the West Suffolk Conservative association and remains firmly in favour of Liz Truss. (27.30)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the critic, novelist and art historian Chloë Ashby. In her new book Colours of Art: The Story of Art in 80 Palettes she takes a look at how the history of colour - how it was made, how much it cost, what it was understood to mean - has shaped the history of painting. She tells me about the age-old disagreement between the primacy of drawing and colour in composition, where Goethe and Gauguin butted heads with Newton, why Matisse was so excited by red, how Titian got blurry… and how the first female nude self-portrait was, astonishingly, as recent as 1906.
Aidan Hartley is a writer and entrepreneur. Born in Kenya, he grew up in Africa and England and has worked as a reporter for Reuters all over the world. Aidan has also written The Spectator’s Wild life column for the past 21 years. On the podcast, Aidan talks about spending his younger years on safaris in the wilderness, where mealtimes consisted of handfuls of rice cooked from metal tins on an open fire.
As a reporter, he talked about reporting on famine in Somalia and why that led him to where he is now – living on a remote family farm, as a disciple of John Seymour’s guide to self-sufficiency.
Winston speaks with dancer and choreographer Rosie Kay. Rosie is returning to the world of dance after being forced to resign from her eponymous company in 2021 when she ran afoul of trans ideologues.
Rosie discusses the world of dance, controversial choreography, ideological capture, emotional impact of being cancelled, Virginia Woolf and much more.
On this week's episode: Sam Leith looks at what TikTok and tech have done to our memories (0:34). Kate Andrews is in two minds about Trussonomics (06:50) and Toby Young tells us about a holiday to Iceland with teenage sons (12.34).
Freddy Gray is joined by Kate Andrews, the Spectator’s economics editor; and Mark Asquith, a fund manager, to discuss if the worst of America's inflationary pressures will soon be a thing of the past.
In this week’s episode:
Can Rishi catch up?
Katy Balls and Kate Andrews discuss Rishi Sunak’s mad dash to catch up with his rival, Liz Truss in the polls (0.55)
Also this week:
Is it time the UK severed ties with Chinese-made tech?
Charles Parton argues this in the magazine this week. He is joined by Dr Alexi Drew, a consultant in emerging technologies and international relations (13.33)
And finally:
What’s not to love about country-pop music?
Sam Kriss writes about this in the magazine. Joining him for the podcast is Rod Liddle, the associate editor at The Spectator (31.01)
Hosted by William Moore.
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher: www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is Anne Weber, author of Epic Annette: A Heroine’s Tale. She tells me how she came to uncover the remarkable story of Annette Beaumanoir, heroine of the French Resistance, partisan of the Algerian independence struggle, jailbird, exile and survivor – and why when she came to write that story down she chose to do it in verse…
China’s property market accounts for something between 20 and 29 per cent of the country’s total GDP. The seemingly never-ending rise of residential blocks were how ordinary people like my family could see and touch China’s miraculous economic growth. Home ownership was to be expected, especially for young men looking to marry and start a family. Across the country, 70 per cent of household wealth is held in real estate.
But in recent months, China's property hasn’t been so hot. The sector has shrunk 7 per cent year on year. Developers have run out of money to complete complexes that they've already sold; while consumers across dozens of cities are refusing to pay their mortgages in protest. 'The thing about real estate is that it's intensely pro-cyclical – everything that's good feeds on itself in the boom, and everything that's bad feeds on itself in the downturn', the economist George Magnus tells me in this episode of Chinese Whispers. He's the author of Red Flags: Why Xi's China is in Jeopardy and has been warning about the underlying problems in China's economy for years.
Also on the podcast is Lulu Chen, a Bloomberg journalist reporting on real estate trends in Asia. She was one of the first to break the story of the mortgage protests. The picture they paint is one of a long overdue bust in the cycle.
Back in the 90s when the country was fresh out of communism, most housing was still allocated by the state or employers. Since then, market reforms allowed people to buy and sell their own places (China's home ownership rate is 95 per cent). The market became hotter and hotter, and the proliferation of new builds (in order to keep up with demand) meant that developers were selling homes before they'd even built them. Real estate companies ran on borrowed money.
All good and well when the money was flowing. But in the last few years, the amount of corporate debt wracked up by this model concerned policymakers in Zhongnanhai, who then put forward the 'three red lines' stipulating debt controls on real estate companies. Evergrande was the first to trip, but since then, even companies thought to be in the green have fallen to an industry-wide contagion of fear and default. Then came the harsh and sudden lockdowns of zero Covid which added fuel to the fire as consumer confidence and earnings were destroyed.
Tune in to hear about just how bad the situation is this time (as I suggest to George, haven't warnings sounded about China's property bubble for years now?) But remember, economic problems can quickly turn into political ones for a government that bargains for legitimacy from economic growth. I ask Lulu what the ramifications of a property bust that makes the middle class poorer could be. She sums up the stakes nicely:
'[The Chinese] have this idea of the world and what it’s like. Life is always going upwards, and tomorrow is going to be better than yesterday. And that’s kind of the mentality of people born in the 70s, especially 80s, 90s... They’ve never experienced a full economic cycle… So it really changes their world view of what life is going to be like for them in the future. It really casts doubt on whether the economy and the future of the country is going to as they envisioned when they were growing up’
That's why this moment is one to watch.
John Connolly, The Spectator’s news editor, is joined by Spectator chairman Andrew Neil, along with the magazine's politics team, James Forsyth and Katy Balls, to discuss the latest in the Tory leadership race.
On the rest of the show, The Spectator’s deputy editor Freddy Gray and National Interest editor Jacob Heilbrunn talk about whether Trump will run for the US presidency again. Spectator editor Fraser Nelson asks whether Rishi Sunak’s background is really so different from Liz Truss’s. Our Wild Life columnist Aidan Hartley explains why country music is so popular in Africa.
Watch the episode at www.spectator.co.uk/tv
On this episode of Spectator Out Loud, Hamish Badenoch says he's married to his political hero. (00:32) Martin Vander Weyer asks whether we should fire the boss of Heathrow. (05:57) Aidan Hartley looks at why country music is so popular in Africa. (14:14) Douglas Murray wonders if the Tory party has a future. (22:03)
Until July 6, Victoria Atkins was the Minister of State for Refugees and Minister of State for Prisons and Probation. But as dozens of her colleagues quit in the wake of Rishi Sunak and Sajid Javid's resignations (which themselves followed No. 10's messy handling of the Chris Pincher affair), Atkins resigned too, writing that 'values such as integrity, decency, respect and professionalism' have ‘fractured’ under Boris Johnson's leadership.
On this episode of Women With Balls, Katy Balls hits the rewind button with Atkins, taking us through the turbulent events of those few days. They discuss what it's like to resign from government while on a school run; unforced errors from No. 10 itself; and whether the Conservative party can properly heal after this divisive time.
Produced by Cindy Yu.
In this week’s episode:
Will Donald Trump have a second shot at the US presidency?
Freddy Gray and Sarah Baxter discuss. (1.10)
Also this week:
A look at the history of Scotland’s paradoxical relationship between Scottish identity and the Union.
The Spectator’s Scotland editor, Alex Massie talks with Murray Pittock about his book Scotland: The Global History, 1603 to Present. (21.49)
And finally:
What happened to bad taste humour?
Screenwriter Gareth Roberts wrote about this in the magazine. He’s joined by comedian and podcast host of NonCensored, Rosie Holt. (32.30)
Hosted by William Moore
Produced by Natasha Feroze
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher: www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
One of Penny Mordaunt, Rishi Sunak or Liz Truss will be Britain's next prime minister. What are the contenders' answers to the big questions facing Britain? Isabel Hardman spoke to Mordaunt (00:36), Sunak (21:17) and Truss (42:15).
Thom Elliott is the co-founder of Pizza Pilgrims. On the podcast, Thom tells Lara and Liv about growing up above a pub, learning to make pizza while touring Italy with his brother, and starting Pizza Pilgrims on his lunch break.
On this week's episode: Mary Wakefield on why we should resist Stonewall’s gospel (0:31). Leo McKinstry on the worrying rise of apostrophe laws (07:02) and Melanie McDonagh on the lost art of letterheads (13.33).
Presented and produced by Natasha Feroze.
The Catholic Church is half way through a two-year consultation exercise that will culminate in a 'Synod on Synodality' in the Vatican next year.
A synod on what? Don't worry if you're confused. No one in Rome seems to be able to define synodality, either. What will the world's bishops discuss? Probably not the figures revealing how many Catholics have taken part in this exercise, because they're acutely embarrassing. The English and Welsh bishops couldn't even get 10 per cent of Mass-goers to take part in a consultation process that many observers suspect has been shamelessly rigged by Pope Francis's bureaucrats. And in Belgium, a country where some six million people identify as Catholic, the number of participants is somewhere between 2,000 and 4,000.
Damian Thompson's guest on this episode of Holy Smoke is Ed Condon, editor of the influential Pillar website. His judgment is as impartial as ever – but, make no mistake about it, we're looking at one of the most expensive and self-indulgent fiascos in recent Catholic history.
Produced by Damian Thompson and Cindy Yu.
In this week’s episode:
The knives are out in the Tory leadership fight, who looks likely to make the final two?
Fraser Nelson writes this week’s cover piece about the Tory leadership race. He’s joined by the Telegraph’s Allison Pearson (0.49).
Also this week:
Mary Wakefield challenges Stonewall's guidelines for parents with trans children. One of these parents is Tammy Plunkett, a former nurse, life coach and author ofBeyond Pronouns (21.43).
And finally:
James Ball reviews Matthew Ball’s The Metaverse: And How It Will Revolutionise Everything for the magazine this week. James is joined by Sid Venkataramakrishnan from the Financial Times to discuss the future of the Metaverse (36.21)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast & William Moore
Produced by Natasha Feroze
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher: www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Sam's guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is Kavita Puri, whose book Partition Voices excavatesthe often traumatic memories of the last generation to remember first-hand the mass migration and bloody violence of the partition of India. She tells Sam why the story has been so shrouded in silence – there isn’t a memorial to Partition, she says, anywhere on earth – and yet how it has shaped the UK’s population and politics ever since, and she says why she believes it’s vital that empire and the end of empire be taught in every British school.
Staying on top of your personal finances has never been easier. Anyone can now buy and sell stocks at the tap of a phone screen, with even more progress in fintech just around the corner. What does this bold new world of investing mean for markets, policymakers and everyday investors? Does smart technology mean easy decisions? Will technology ever replace the human touch? And what tools are out there for the less digitally savvy?
Semiconductors are the most important thing that you've never heard of. These little computer chips provide the processing power for everything from cars and iPhones, to unmanned drones and missiles. In Beijing's Made in China 2025 industrial strategy, through which China seeks to move up the value chain to become a high-tech superpower, semiconductor self-sufficiency was one of the targets.
Beijing is falling far behind on this target. MIC 2025 stated the aim of meeting 70 per cent of China's demand through domestic production by 2025, but, seven years on, it is only meeting 20 per cent of its domestic needs (by one estimate). The world's leading manufacturer of semiconductors is in fact in Taiwan. The Taiwanese Semiconductor Manufacturing Company dominates more than half the global market, and controls 90 per cent of the cutting edge 5 to 10 nanometre sector (in this industry, size matters; the smaller the chip, the better). Even American companies like Intel outsource a substantial amount of production to TSMC.
A tech arms race is underway. In order to control the supply of this small but vital component, China and the US are desperately funnelling money into their own national champions, whilst 'kneecapping' each other's efforts, as Nigel Inkster tells Cindy Yu on this episode. He's the former director of operations and intelligence at MI6 and author of The Great Decoupling: China, America and the Struggle for Technological Supremacy.
They discuss Washington's relatively effective efforts on this front – from instituting export controls on western companies (not just American) that supply Chinese semiconductor companies, to pressurising TSMC to share its know-how worldwide (TSMC will open an Arizona branch in two years, thanks to pressure from President Trump). It's got wolf warrior and Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian hopping mad; he has accused the Americans of practising 'technological terrorism'.
Yet America's approach could be instructive for the UK, where there's a live political question over the Chinese acquisition of Newport Wafer Fab, a relatively low-end semiconductor manufacturing site that is the subject of an ongoing national security review.
Some in the West also fear that TSMC's success will lure China to invade Taiwan, while some in Taipei see the company as their 'silicon shield', Nigel says, as its accidental destruction (or at the hands of the Taiwanese or American governments) may deter China from an aggressive incursion.
On the episode, Nigel and Cindy discuss all this and more (whether China is inherently less innovative, how painful and inevitable a tech arms race would be, and Nigel's reaction to MI5 and the FBI's recent joint warning about Chinese espionage).
On this week's episode: Kate Andrews on why Rishi quit (0:26). Sean Thomas on Russian émigrés who hate the war but will fight for Russia (08:32) and Toby Young on his appreciation for the other Toby Young (13.13).
Presented and produced by Natasha Feroze.
Freddy Gray speaks to the journalist and The Atlantic staff writer Graeme Wood about Joe Biden’s upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia and what he will discuss with the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
In this week’s episode:
After Boris, who's next?
On the day the Prime Minister resigns, Katy Balls and James Forsyth discuss the aftermath of Boris Johnson’s premiership. Who might be the next Tory leader? (0.51).
Also this week:
Who are the wealthy Russian émigrés ready to fight in the war?
Sean Thomas talks with Moscow-based journalist, Gabriel Gavin about the Russian émigrés who hate the war, but know they have to win it (19.56).
And finally:
Are 20mph speed limits causing more trouble than Brexit?
Ysenda Maxtone Graham makes this case in the magazine this week. She's joined by Cllr Johnny Thalassites from the Kensington and Chelsea borough. (22.26)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast & William Moore
Produced by Natasha Feroze.
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher: www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
My guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Lindsey Fitzharris – whose new book is The Facemaker: One Surgeon's Battle to Mend the Disfigured Soldiers of World War I. At its centre is the compelling figure of Harold Gillies – ace golfer, practical joker, and pioneer of the whole field of plastic surgery. Lindsey tells me about the extraordinary advances he made and the will and skill that drove them; and the poignant story of how victims of facial disfigurement were the invisible casualties of the conflict.
Lily Dunn is a writer, teacher and lecturer in creative writing and narrative non-fiction at Bath Spa University. Her latest book Sins of my father: a daughter, a cult, a wild unravelling is out now. On the podcast, Lily talks about her first memories picking blackberries in Cornwall, her love for all kinds of toast and her culinary experiences in Italy.
Will the government's plans for revitalising the north be hampered by its plans for decarbonisation? There's increasing concern in Whitehall that these agendas contradict each other, but there's no reason that green jobs and projects can't benefit Britain's 'forgotten communities' too.
How do we ensure the north benefits from a greener, more prosperous future? How can industry best play a role? Join The Spectator's Kate Andrews as she hosts Clare Harbord,Group Director of Corporate Affairs, Drax. Rt Hon Jake Berry MP,Chairman, NRG. Tom Pope, Deputy Chief Economist, Institute for Government and Valentine Quinio, Analyst, Centre for Cities.
The event was kindly sponsored by Drax.
On this week's episode: Douglas Murray on Hispanic Conservatives in US politics (0:26). Katja Hoyer on East German sentiment towards Russia (08:32) and Lara Predergast on the rise of the sex bore (13.13).
Presented by Natasha Feroze.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Freddy Gray, The Spectator’s deputy editor, speaks to journalist Jamie Bartlett about his new book on the multi-billion dollar crypto-scam of missing businesswoman Ruja Ignatova:
‘The whole thing was a brilliantly designed pyramid scheme with a crypto-currency branding.’
– Jamie Bartlett
On the rest of the show, analyst Wolfgang Münchau and FT chief foreign affairs correspondent Gideon Rachman discuss whether Putin could shut off Germany's gas, The Spectator's economics editor and resident American Kate Andrews breaks down what American legislators can do to protect abortion rights after the overturning of Roe v Wade, journalist Rachel Johnson pays homage to rock's graying stars and from The Spectator’s political team, James Forsyth and Katy Balls discuss the political situation that the Prime Minister returns home to, after an eight-day tour abroad.
00:00 - Welcome from Freddy Gray.
03:00 - Could Putin shut off Germany's gas? With Wolfgang Münchau and Gideon Rachman
19:25 - Politics update with Katy Balls and James Forsyth
28:55 - Can Democrats do more to protect abortion rights? With Kate Andrews
40:15 - The missing cryptoqueen: Jamie Bartlett on a multi-billion dollar crypto-scam
49:50 - Rachel Johnson on music's ageing rockstars
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Anne-Marie Trevelyan is the Secretary of State for International Trade and the MP for Berwick-Upon-Tweed. In the episode, she tells Katy about what it was like to join the City in the 90s, what she calls 'the mysterious management by the civil service of its ministers' and what she makes of the rumours that she could be sacked in an upcoming reshuffle.
In this week’s episode:
Can Russia turn off Germany’s gas?
Wolfgang Münchau and Katja Hoyer discuss Germany’s looming energy crisis (0.51).
Also this week:
What are relations like between Boris Johnson and Prince Charles?
The Spectator’s diary editor, James Heale talks with Camilla Tominey from the Telegraph talk about the growing tensions between the Prime Minister and future King (19.56).
And finally:
Are sex parties becoming a cliché?
Emma Sayle, CEO of Killing Kittens and James Innes-Smith, talk about the rise of sex parties and why they’ve become an open secret. (27.48)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast & William Moore
Produced by Natasha Feroze
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher: www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
My guest in this week’s book club podcast is Simon Jenkins. His new book The Celts: A Sceptical History tells the story of a race of people who, contrary to what many of us were taught in school, never existed at all. He tells me how and why “Celts” were invented, what it has meant and continues to mean for the nations of the Union, and where he thinks we need to go next…
You probably wouldn’t expect to see the Cultural Revolution in Chinese films, or the Great Leap Forward, or the Tiananmen Square protests. But for a certain generation and a certain corner of the Chinese film industry, these were actually common themes to deal with. Their films weren’t always welcome to the censors, but they weren’t always banned, either.
Cindy Yu recently wrote a column for The Spectator on Chinese cinema, and the golden age it experienced just after the end of the Cultural Revolution. You’d be surprised at the amazing political – and social – subversiveness of directors like Chen Kaige and Zhang Yimou. On this episode, Cindy talks about that golden age and also about what has come after, where, depressingly, it’s now films like Wolf Warrior 2 that dominate the box office.
Joining her is Chris Berry, Professor of Film Studies at Kings College London who specialises in Chinese cinema. They talk about how their trauma of living through the Cultural Revolution drove the so-called 'Fifth Generation' directors; the bold portrayal of queer characters which got them into trouble with the censors; and how commercialisation has changed the landscape for Chinese directors who are now dictated by the box office. Pictured here is Leslie Cheung in Chen Kaige's Farewell My Concubine, where Cheung portrays a queer Beijing opera singer.
On this week's episode: Melvyn Bragg on the continuing genius of Paul McCartney and what makes the BBC great (0:55). Svitlana Morenets, a Ukrainian refugee now working at The Spectator on why her country will never accept a peace deal with Putin (06:00). Matthew Parris says we're being unfair on Carrie Johnson (15:43), and Lionel Shriver reads her column on the madness of the central bankers (22.18).
Presented by Angus Colwell.
Produced by Angus Colwell and Cindy Yu.
‘We can talk about sanctions all we want, but the West is still very much funding Putin's war chest.’ – Kate Andrews
The economist Julian Jessop joins Kate to discuss what else the West can do to put pressure on Russia. On the rest of the show, oncologist Professor Karol Sikora and science journalist Matt Ridley discuss the viability of a vaccine for cancer, Spectator intern and Ukrainian refugee Svitlana Morenets explains why Ukrainians want to keep fighting, Jonathan Miller champions the budget airline Ryanair and The Spectator's home political team, James Forsyth and Isabel Hardman, update on the political ramifications of this week's rail strikes.
00:00 – Welcome from Katy Balls
02:15 – Politics update with James Forsyth and Isabel Hardman
12:05 – Are sanctions backfiring? Kate Andrews discusses with Julian Jessop
27:15 – Svitlana Morenets on why Ukraine wants to keep fighting
34:45 – Can we find a vaccine for cancer? With Matt Ridley and Professor Karol Sikora
51:15 – Is Ryanair in fact the best airline of all? Jonathan Miller makes the case
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In this week’s episode:
Are Russian sanctions backfiring?
The Spectator’s economics editor, Kate Andrews and Elisabeth Braw from American Enterprise Institute discuss why sanctions against Russia may be playing into Putin’s hands. (0.57)
Also this week:
Does Carrie Johnson get a hard time from the British public?
Spectator columnist, Matthew Parris talks with the Daily Mail columnist about the role of a Prime Minister’s wife and why they are given such a bad time. (13.56)
And finally:
What’s so special about our cars?
Juliet Nicolson & Tanya Gold, a Spectator contributor chat about their shared love for cars. (24.06)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast & William Moore
Produced by Natasha Feroze
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher: www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
In this week’s Book Club podcast, my guest is the historian Philip Mansel. We talk about his new biography King of the World: The Life of Louis XIV. He tells me what really drove the great megalomaniac, whether he was a feminist avant la lettre, how his depredations in the Rhineland anticipated Putin’s in Ukraine – and why, if he hadn’t revoked the Edict of Nantes, the first man on the moon might have been speaking French.
On a slightly different episode of Table Talk, chef and food writer, Olia Hercules joins Olivia Potts for a second time on the podcast to talk about #CookForUkraine. Created with Russian friend and food writer Alissa Timoshkina, #CookForUkraine encourages people to post and share Ukrainian recipes and celebrate the comfort of food during this difficult time. On the podcast, Olia tells Olivia Potts about the personal cost of the war on her and her family, how she grappled with guilt when cooking at the start of the war, and the ways we can offer support to the besieged cities in Ukraine.
For more information about Olia, visit her Patreon account here.
Today begins a chaotic week for commuters who face major travel disruptions as rail staff stage the biggest walkout in 30 years. Union leaders have accused the government of 'inflaming tensions', as Grant Shapps has refused to negotiate with the unions over pay, conditions, job cuts and safety.
Also on the podcast, what could be the outcome of Thursday's two by-elections?
Isabel Hardman is joined by Katy Balls and James Forsyth.
On this week's episode: Mary Wakefield asks why no one's mentioning the cult Tom Cruise belongs to (00:54), John R. MacArthur asks if Macron should be scared by an ascendant Jean-Luc Mélenchon (06:58), and Daisy Dunn orients herself after listening to the Gucci Podcast (17:57).
In this week’s episode: Why is there a lack of faith in western leaders? Spectator deputy editor Freddy Gray, Callum Williams from the Economist & Harvard professor Barbara Kellerman discuss why the world feel so leaderless. (00:44)
Also this week: How do you escape the church of scientology? Spectator Columnist Mary Wakefield talks with former scientologist Claire Headley about her life inside the organisation and how hard it was to leave. (15:07)
And finally:
Should we all give boxing a go?
Anil Bhoyrul & James Amos organiser of Boodles Boxing Ball on the strange world of White Collar Boxing. (27:40)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast & William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher: www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
In this week's Book Club podcast I'm joined by the New York Times's Andrea Elliott, who won the Pulitzer Prize for her book Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival and Hope in New York City. She tells me how she came to spend seven years reporting on a single, homeless family in Brooklyn, how she negotiated her duty to observe rather than participate – and what their telenovela-like experiences tell us about American history.
Winston speaks with writer, musician and host of Conversations with Coleman, Coleman Hughes. They discuss blasphemy in the music industry, counter-culture, race, reparations, colourblindness and much more...
Presented by Winston Marshall
Produced by Sam Holmes
China's social credit system is notorious. This Black Mirror-esque network supposedly gives citizens a score, based on an opaque algorithm that feeds on data from each person's digital and physical lives. With one billion Chinese accessing the Internet and the growing prevalence of facial recognition, it means that their every move can be monitored – from whether they cross the road dangerously, to whether they play too many video games and buy too much junk food. Those with low scores have lower socio-economic status, and may not be able to board planes and trains, or send their children to school. It's all part of a Chinese Communist Party directive to further control and mould its citizens.
Except it's not. Speak to any Chinese person and you'll quickly realise that their lives are not dictated by some score, with their every move monitored and live-feeding to some kind of governmental evaluation of their social worth. In fact, the western narrative of the social credit system has deviated so far from the situation on the ground that Chinese Internet users went viral mocking western reporting on Weibo: '-278 points: Immediate execution'.
Telling Cindy Yu this story on this episode of Chinese Whispers is Vincent Brussee, a researcher at the Mercator Institute for China Studies (Merics), who has recently released a detailed paper looking at what the social credit system really entails on the ground (Merics was part of the group of European organisations and individuals sanctioned by Beijing last year).
The reality of social credit is unfortunately much less exciting and sexy than you might fear. For one, the technology simply isn't there. ' When the social credit system was envisioned, or when it was designed in the early 2000s, government files in China were still held in dusty drawers… In 2019 when I worked in China I still had to use a fax machine. That was the first time in my life that I ever saw a fax machine', Vincent says. The system is not linked with someone's digital data, but fundamentally only their interactions with the government (for example, permits and licences). Data that e-commerce and social media companies collect on their users, which must be extensive, are not connected with the government's own data (probably because of the CCP's growing suspicion of Chinese tech firms).
But more fundamentally, the social credit system is not just one system. 'It's more of an umbrella term', Jeremy Daum says. He is the senior research fellow at Yale Law School's Paul Tsai China Center, who also runs the blog China Law Translate (which does what it says on the tin). Jeremy has spent years myth-busting the social credit system. He says that for some institutions, social credit is a financial record ('credit' as in 'credit card'); for others, it is a way of black-marking unscrupulous companies that in the past fell short of, say, food safety standards (a particularly sensitive topic in China, given the milk powder scandal). In fact, social credit often functionally works as a way of determining how trustworthy a company is, like a government-run Yelp or Trustpilot system (the Merics report found that most targets of are companies rather than individuals).
So how did reporters get the social credit story so wrong? In reality, though the social credit system itself is fairly boring, the way this narrative exploded and took hold is a cautionary tale for the West in our understanding of China. 'The western coverage of social credit has hardly been coverage of social credit at all. It is coverage of us, seen through a mirror of China', says Jeremy, arguing that it tapped into our deep fear of unbridled technology and surveillance. On the episode Cindy also speaks to Louise Matsakis, a freelance journalist covering tech and China, who was one of the first to point out the disparity in the social credit narrative and the reality on the ground. Together, they unpack what lessons there are for studying, understanding and reporting on China from this whole saga.
For further reading, here are the sources we mention in the episode:
-
The Chinese Whispers episode with Jeremy Daum on the fightback against facial recognition: https://www.spectator.co.uk/po...
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The Merics report: https://merics.org/en/report/c...
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China Law Translate's Social Credit section: https://www.chinalawtranslate....
-
Louise Matsakis in WIRED, ' How the West Got China's Social Credit System Wrong': https://www.wired.com/story/ch...
John Connolly, The Spectator’s news editor, speaks to historian Anthony Seldon about whether Boris Johnson might resign:
‘Why on earth would he want to carry on and have more of this humiliation? Why wouldn’t want to take the dignified path of saying: “I’m going to fall on my sword.”'
On the rest of the show, Spectator contributor Owen Matthews and our Wild Life columnist Aidan Hartley discuss how far Putin is to blame for global food shortages, the Refugee Council’s Enver Solomon says the Home Office is in crisis, and sports journalist Neil Clark explains why, despite the danger, the Isle of Man TT should be celebrated, not banned.
Watch the full episode at: www.spectator.co.uk/tv
On this week's episode:
Katy Balls reads her article on the cadets gunning for the Tory leadership. (00:52)
John Connolly reads his investigation into the new warehouse ghettos where Britain is sending migrants. (06:36)
Gus Carter reads his piece on why he's not getting invited to any dinner parties. (12:05)
Presented by Angus Colwell.
Produced by Angus Colwell and Sam Holmes.
In this week’s episode: Is the Prime Minister a dead man walking? Spectator Political Editor James Forsyth and MP Jesse Norman who expressed no confidence in Monday's vote discuss the future of Boris Johnson and the Conservative Party. (00:45)
Also this week: Why is there so much virtue signalling in modern advertising? SpectatorColumnist Lionel Shriver and veteran copywriter Paul Burke discuss its origins, its prevalence, and its effectiveness. (20:20)
And finally: Is the dinner party dead? Gus Carter writes in The Spectator this week about how he is never invited to any. He’s joined by Mary Killen to give him some tips on planning a sophisticated bash on a budget. (34:45)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast & William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher: www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Julie Bindel is a radical feminist, journalist and activist. Growing up in Darlington, she left school aged 15 and moved to Leeds in search of – in her own words – 'scary-sounding feminists'. In the 90s, she founded Justice For Women, a feminist campaigning organisation that supports, and advocates on behalf of, women who have fought back against or killed violent men. On the podcast, Julie talks about her upbringing in the North East, her fight in the gender ideology debate, and she shares her thoughts on Pretty Woman.
To read more on Julie Bindel, visit her Substack page here.
In this week’s Book Club podcast, I’m joined by the writer China Miéville to talk about his new book A Spectre, Haunting: On The Communist Manifesto. China makes the case for why this 1848 document deserves our attention in the 21st century, why even its critics would benefit from reading it more closely and sympathetically, and why - in his view - the gamble of a revolutionary abolition of capitalism is not only possible, but well worth taking.
Nell Hudson has starred in Outlander, Victoria and the latest Texas Chainsaw Massacre film. Her debut novel, Just for Today, is out now: it’s about a group of twenty-somethings in London, having “heady, reckless fun”.
Nell speaks to Lara and Olivia about how she’s enjoying veganism and the one meat she misses, growing up on a farm, a peculiar childhood diet and the lonely eating habits of an actor.
In this week's Holy Smoke I offer some thoughts on the impressive and distinctive Christian faith of the Queen – impressive because it's so refreshingly direct compared to that of many of her politics-obsessed bishops, and distinctive because Elizabeth II is one of a dwindling band of Low Church but not Evangelical Anglicans whose favourite Sunday service is old-fashioned Matins. Questions of churchmanship aside, however, there is no doubting the intensity of her convictions, about which she has spoken with increasing candour and confidence in recent years. Will she turn out to be the United Kingdom's last robustly Christian monarch?
Fraser Nelson, The Spectator’s editor, speaks to Louise Perry, author of The Case Against the Sexual Revolution, about why it should be harder to divorce. Elsewhere on the the show, Spectator contributor Christopher Howse discusses the monarchy with our political editor James Forsyth. Cindy Yu, host of our Chinese Whispers podcast, says China hasn’t changed all that much since the Tiananmen Square protests 30 years ago. Former consultant J. Meirion Thomas tells Fraser why GP surgeries are in crisis. Historians Antony Beevor and Serhii Plokhy talk about why Putin might yet win in Ukraine.
Get 10 weeks of the magazine, in print and online, for just £1 in our Jubilee flash sale. We'll also send you a commemorative tea towel to mark the occasion. Offer ends on Monday. Go to: www.spectator.co.uk/jubilee
On this week's episode, Robert Hardman reads his cover article on the quiet radicalism of Queen Elizabeth II (00:50); J. Meirion Thomas reads his article on the 'total triage' system that is leaving patients unable to see their GPs; and Sarah Ditum reads her review of Sandra Newman's new novel, The Men.
Presented by Angus Colwell.
Produced by Angus Colwell and Cindy Yu.
In this week’s episode: Robert Hardman & Angela Levin, two of the UK’s royal specialists, explore the character of the Queen and the impact she has had on the institution of the monarchy. (00:36)
Also this week: For now, it seems that Boris Johnson is hanging on after the publishing of the Sue Gray report, but how stable is his position? Could a vote of no confidence be closer than anyone expects? The Spectator’s political editor James Forsyth joins the podcast to discuss. (13:47)
And finally: Is Chinese cinema in decline? Cindy Yu writes on this in this week’s Spectator, and she joins the podcast along with Andrew Heskins, the founder of easternkicks.com, a review website specialising in Asian film, and co-founder of the film festival, Focus Hong Kong. (23:33)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast Produced by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher: www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
My guests in this week's Book Club podcast are Daniel Kahneman and Olivier Sibony, co-authors (with Cass R Sunstein) of Noise: A Flaw In Human Judgment. Augmenting the work on psychological bias that won Prof Kahneman a Nobel Prize, this investigation exposes a more invisible and often more impactful way in which human judgments go awry: the random-seeming variability which statisticians call noise. They tell me how it affects everything from business to academic life and the judicial system; and how we can detect it and minimise it. The answers to those questions, it turns out, are very hard for human beings (especially French ones) to accept...
All eyes are on the Communist leadership this year, as the months count down to autumn’s National Party Congress, where Xi Jinping may be crowned for a third term. But how much do we really know about the Party’s leadership? In particular, can we better understand them through looking at the experiences that they've had?
Take Xi Jinping, who is what is known as a 'princeling' – his father was the Communist revolutionary Xi Zhongxun, one of the Party's early cadres. How did that upbringing impact him, and his faith in the Chinese Communist Party?
Also consider the Cultural Revolution – the sixtysomethings on the Politburo Standing Committee would have been teenagers during that decade of turmoil. How did it form who they are as leaders today?
Joining Cindy Yu on the podcast is Professor Kerry Brown from Kings College London, whose latest book is Xi: A Study in Power, so very knowledgeable on the President himself; as well as Professor Steve Tsang, a historian at SOAS.
This week on Marshall Matters Winston speaks to Rahima Mahmut. Rahima is a Uyghur singer, writer, translator and activist. They discussed the history and genocide of her people, compared CCP narrative to the Uyghur perspective, the Adrian Zenz report, her musical background and her song Tarim.
Kate Andrews, The Spectator’s economics editor, speaks to Emma Ashford, a senior research fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center, and Spectator contributor Ian Williams.
On the rest of the show, our political team, Katy Balls and James Forsyth, discuss Sue Gray’s report and Rishi Sunak’s announcement of more money to help with the cost-of-living crisis. We also have a sneak preview of tomorrow’s Women With Balls episode – a discussion with Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen. Rod Liddle talks to Kate about his new favourite distraction: Bubbleshooter.
This episode is sponsored by Canaccord Genuity Wealth Management.
On this week's episode, Douglas Murray says the world is becoming claustrophobic, (00:55) Lionel Shriver struggles to get through South African airport security, (08:29) Julian Glover maps out the countryside battle lines, (16:52) and James Bartholomew buys a tank. (22:13)
Produced by Angus Colwell
Entries for this year's Innovator Awards, sponsored by Investec, are now open. To apply, go to: www.spectator.co.uk/innovator
Freddy Gray speaks to award-winning author and Spectator columnist Lionel Shriver about mass shootings and gun culture in the United States, in the wake of the tragedy at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.
Frances Haugen is an American data scientist, most well known for her whistleblowing of Facebook's failures at controlling misinformation. Her insider knowledge allowed the Wall Street Journal to publish a series of exposés about the social media platform, which became known as 'The Facebook Files'. She has testified before the US Congress, the European Parliament and the British Parliament on online safety and Silicon Valley.
On this episode, she talks to Katy Balls about first experiencing sexism in tech when she joined Google at her first job; the shocking reality of how Facebook's algorithm worsens civil strife across the world; and what she wants to see changed from the British government's Online Safety Bill, which Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries recently joined the series to talk about.
Produced by Natasha Feroze and Cindy Yu.
In this week’s episode:
Ian Williams, author of The Fire of the Dragon: China’s New Cold war, and Alessio Patalano, Professor of War and Strategy in East Asia at King’s College London, talk about how the war in Ukraine has changed the thinking in Taiwan. (00:37)
Also this week:
Was Sue Gray’s report on Downing Street parties a game-changer or a damp squib? The Spectator’s editor, Fraser Nelson, and our political editor, James Forsyth, join the podcast to discuss the fallout from partygate. (15:39)
And finally:
If rising restaurant prices are causing you grief, you're not alone. Writer Yesenda Maxtone Graham and The Spectator’s Wikiman columnist, Rory Sutherland, join the podcast. (27:55)
Hosted by William Moore
Produced by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher: www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Freddy Gray speaks to Sergey Radchenko a Cold War historian and Wilson E. Schmidt Distinguished Professor at the Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and visiting professor at Cardiff University. They discuss a recent speech by Henry Kissinger who believes that Ukraine should made territorial concessions to Russia – is he right?
My guest in the Book Club podcast this week is my namesake (but no relation) William Leith – whose new book The Cut That Wouldn't Heal: Finding My Father describes the death of his father and the way it caused him to revisit and re-evaluate his childhood. We talk about the perils and possibilities of autobiography, the difficulty of looking death in the face, and an awkward moment with Karl Ove Knausgaard.
Born in Lisbon, Portugal. Nuno Mendes grew up on a farm which inspired a passion and understanding for food. He attended the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco but after over a decade in North America, he decided he wanted to return to Europe. Moving to London, Nuno founded the cult domestic pop-up known as The Loft Project and later went on to take over the restaurant at the Chiltern Firehouse, and his latest venture Lisboeta has already made the Estrella Damm awards shortlist.
On the podcast, Nuno talks about his Portuguese roots, his love of Japanese cooking and how he could see London's gastronomic revolution coming.
On this week’s episode, we’ll hear from Katy Balls on Boris Johnson’s plans to divide and conquer (0.33).
After that, James Heale on the broadcast battle obsessing British media (6.20).
And to finish, Melissa Kite on the politics of horse muck (11.16).
Produced by Natasha Feroze
Entries for this year's Innovator Awards, sponsored by Investec, are now open. To apply, go to: www.spectator.co.uk/innovator
This week Lara Prendergast and William Moore talk to James Forsyth and the academic, Dr Alexander Clarkson about Zelensky's possible path to peace (00:42). Followed by Owen Matthews, The Spectator's Russia correspondent on Turkey's power over Nato expansion (13:28). Finally, a chat between two bowls fanatics, Michael Simmons, The Spectator's data journalist and Andrew Gibson from the bowls green in Streatham (22:00).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast & William Moore
Produced by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher: www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Freddy Gray speaks to the Republican strategist Luke Thompson, discussing the nail-biting race between Pennsylvania's candidates for the US Senate, featuring Trump-backed candidate Dr. Oz.
In this week's Book Club podcast, I'm talking to Wendy K Pirsig – widow of Robert M Pirsig, author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, the bestselling book of philosophy of all time. Wendy tells me about her late husband's big idea – the "Metaphysics of Quality", as set out in a new collection of his writings, On Quality, which she has edited – how fame (and bereavement) changed him, and how he sought to undo years of dualism in the Western philosophical tradition by recourse to Eastern teachings and, of course, the odd monkey-wrench.
It’s clear now that Vladimir Putin didn’t expect his army to perform quite so badly when invading Ukraine. As much as that is celebrated in much of the world, it will be a cause for concern – or at least a moment for learning – amongst Beijing’s military leaders. Because Russia has always been a heavy influence and source of strategy and equipment for China’s People’s Liberation Army, ever since the days of the Soviet Union. So could the PLA – which hasn’t been in active combat since Vietnam in 1979 – similarly flounder?
That's the burning question Cindy Yu and guests discuss in the latest episode of Chinese Whispers. Timothy R. Heath is an expert on the Chinese military at the American think tank, the RAND Corporation, and tells her that: 'A lot of the issues that we're seeing in the Russian military is going to be of high concern to the PLA because there's a very good chance the Chinese military could have some of the similar issues'.
They also discuss the possibility of low morale when it comes to fighting an enemy who looks and speaks like you – as some Russian soldiers have found disconcerting in Ukraine. Could an invasion of Taiwan throw up similar problems? Tim argues that it could, and draws parallel with another event – the enlisting of the PLA for suppressing the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989. It was a decision that saw many soldiers (though not enough) refusing to obey orders. 'The experience of the PLA was such a shock for the military and the CCP that a decade later, the Chinese government took the PLA out of the job of suppressing domestic dissent.'
In fact, the lack of trust in its soldiers' loyalty is such that today's PLA is one of the only armies to offer a 'suicide pill', so says Professor Li Xiaobing, a Chinese military historian at the University of Central Oklahoma who served in the PLA himself. '20,000 Chinese soldiers were captured during the Korean war. After the war, 70 per cent of the Chinese POWs didn't want to go back to China, and they went to Taiwan. So that's really embarrassing for the Chinese government in the Cold War'.
Tune in to this episode to hear more incredible insights about this most elusive yet important modern military force.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from Michael Simmons on some of the most ridiculous Covid fines. (00:52)
After, C.J. Farrington on the light and darkness of Russian culture. (04:10)
And, to finish, Aidan Hartley on the return of the buffalo. (11:07)
Produced and Presented by Sam Holmes
Entries for this year's Innovator Awards, sponsored by Investec, are now open. To apply, go to: www.spectator.co.uk/innovator
Though inflation has recently gone down a little in the States, it is still at a 40-year high. Inflation is an issue affecting most of the world due to several external factors, but many critics of Biden say that his policies are worsening this crisis rather than fixing it. Is that the case?
Freddy Gray sits down with The Spectator's economics editor Kate Andrews to discuss what this cost of living crisis will mean for the future of the Biden administration.
Kemi Badenoch is the MP for Saffron Walden and a minister in Michael Gove’s Levelling Up department.
On entering parliament in 2017, Kemi was quickly pegged as one of the Conservative Party’s rising stars and an example of what she calls the “British Dream”, going from immigrant to parliamentarian in the space of one generation. After a career as a software engineer, she made her move into politics as a Conservative member of the London Assembly. Then beat Theresa May’s own special advisor to the ballot of Saffron Walden.
On the podcast, Kemi talks about her childhood in Nigeria and the golden ticket that was her UK passport, hacking Harriet Harman and how her conservative views were formed.
This week Lara Prendergast and William Moore talk to Katy Balls and the journalist Paul Mason about the future of Labour (00:40). Followed by historian David Abulafia and the Sunday Times education editor Sian Griffiths on the announcement of Cambridge University's plans to limit the number of their private school students (15:20). Finally, a debate between author Michele Kirsch and Laura Biggs from the Menopause Mandate on the question 'Are we talking about menopause too much?' (31:50).
Hosted by Lara Prendergast & William Moore
Produced by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
In this week's Book Club podcast, Sam's guest is Caroline Frost, author of the new Carry On Regardless: Getting to the Bottom of Britain's Favourite Comedy Films. She tells Sam what those movies tell us about British social history, makes the case for their feminism, argues that their special magic belongs to a British sensibility that no longer exists – and explains why it took twenty or more attempts to get Barbara Windsor out of her bra.
Tommy Banks is the youngest ever UK Michelin-starred chef, awarded in 2013 when he was aged 24, and is the owner of the restaurant The Black Swan which Tripadvisor named the best restaurant in the world.
On the podcast, Tommy talks to Lara and Liv about how he turned to food after his dreams of being a professional cricketer were dashed, his struggles with imposter syndrome, and his new canned wine business Banks Brothers.
For more recipes and recommendations, sign up to The Spectator’s free monthly food and drink email, The Take Away, at www.spectator.co.uk/oliviapotts
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from Melissa Kite on the ambitions of Ben Wallace. (00:48)
After, Mary Wakefield on our misplaced faith in forensics. (09:35)
And, to finish, and James Heale on Eton’s great ‘awokening’. (16:33)
Produced and Presented by Sam Holmes
Entries for this year's Innovator Awards, sponsored by Investec, are now open. To apply, go to: www.spectator.co.uk/innovator
In this week’s episode: Is Boris Johnson planning to tear up Britain’s deal with the EU? James Forsyth says in his Spectator cover story this week that Boris Johnson plans to reignite the Brexit voter base by taking on the EU again over Northern Ireland. He joins the podcast along with Denis Staunton, the London editor of the Irish Times, who writes in this week’s magazine about how Sein Finn has benefited from the DUP’s collapsing support. (00:50) Also this week: Does overturning Roe V. Wade stand up to constitutional scrutiny? Douglas Murray has written in his column this week about America’s abortion debate, in the wake of the leaked draft of a Supreme Court opinion set to overturn the 1973 decision in Roe V Wade. He joins the podcast along with The Spectator’s economics editor Kate Andrews. (15:09) And finally: Is Eton College going through an ‘awokening’? In this week’s magazine, The Spectator’s diary editor James Heale turns his attention to Eton College, which he says is having an uncharacteristic identity crisis. James joins the podcast to talk about the direction of the school, along with The Spectator’s literary editor, and Old Etonian, Sam Leith. (28:29) Hosted by William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Freddy Grays talks to Inez Stepman of the Independent Women's Forum about the leaked Supreme Court draft decision which points to the seminal Roe v Wade verdict being overturned.
Sam's guest in this week's Book Club podcast is the writer Simon Kuper, whose new book – Chums: How a Tiny Caste of Oxford Tories Took Over the UK – argues that to understand the social and psychological dynamics of our present government, you need to understand the Oxford University of the 1980s, where so many of those now in power first met. He argues that the PM's love of winging it was nurtured in the tutorial culture of his Balliol days, that the dynamics of Tory leadership contests are throwbacks to the Oxford Union, and that Brexit – the grand project of this generation – was at root a jobs-protection scheme for the old-fashioned ruling class. Can that be the whole story? He tells Sam why he thinks we need to decommission the UK's rhetoric industry and learn to be more like Germany.
This week on Marshall Matters, Winston speaks with Comedian, author and TV host Andrew Doyle. They discuss his book Free Speech and Why it Matters, Elon Musk, Twitter, Andrew’s creation Titania McGrath, Stonewall the comedy industry and much more.
Watch the episode at spectator.co.uk/tv
China is often accused of breaking international rules and norms. Just last week at Mansion House, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: 'Countries must play by the rules. And that includes China'.
So what are its transgressions, and what are its goals for the international system? My guests and I try to answer this question in this episode through looking at China's attitude to and involvement in international organisations, past and present. Professor Rana Mitter, a historian at the University of Oxford and author of China's Good War , points out that there's a fundamental difference in China's approach compared to, say, Russia. 'Russia perceives itself as, essentially, a country that is really at the end of its tether in terms of the international system. Whereas China still sees plenty of opportunities to grow and expand its status'.
To that end, China is actually a member of dozens of international organisations, most notably – as we discuss in the episode – sitting on the United Nations Security Council, which gives it veto power on UN resolutions (though, Yu Jie, senior research fellow at Chatham House, points out that China is most often found abstaining rather than vetoing). It wants a seat at the table, but it also frequently accuses our existing set of international norms and rules as designed by the West. To begin with, then, China is seeking to rewrite the rules in its own favour – Jie gives the example of China's ongoing campaign to increase its voting share in the IMF, on the basis of its huge economy. 'It's not exactly overthrowing the existing international order wholesale, but choosing very carefully which parts China wants to change.'
This multilateral engagement has a historical basis. Nationalist China was keen to be seen as an equal and respected partner in the international community, and Rana points out – something I'd never thought of before – that China after the second world war 'was a very very unusual sort of state… Because it was the only state, pretty much, in Asia, that was essentially sovereign… Don’t forget that 1945 meant liberation for lots of European peoples, but for lots of Asian peoples – Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaya, wherever you want to name – they basically went back into European colonialism'. This (together with its then-alliance with the United States) gave the Republic of China a front row seat in the creation of the United Nations and, before then, the League of Nations.
It didn't take long for Communist China to start building links with the rest of the world, either. Mao 'had not spent decades fighting out in the caves and fields of China to simply become a plaything of Stalin’, Rana points out, making its multilateral relations outside of the alliance with the USSR vitally important. After it split with Moscow, and before the rapprochement with the US, the Sixties was a time of unwanted isolationism, ' which is well within living memory of many of the top leaders', says Rana, adding more to its present day desire to have as much sway as possible in the world, which still comes through international organisations.
Finally, my guests bust the myth – often propagated by Beijing – that China had no role in the writing of today's international laws, pointing out that Chinese and other non-western thinkers played a major role in the creation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights . What's more, do western ideas have no place in guiding and governing China? After all, Karl Marx was certainly not Chinese, and that doesn't seem to bother his Chinese Communist believers.
Freddy Gray talks to the journalist James Pogue about his latest piece for Vanity Fair magazine, in which he details the key figures and thinking behind the 'new right'. Pogue is the contributing editor at Harper's Magazine and author of 'Chosen Country: A Rebellion in the West'.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from James Bartholomew on how taking in a Ukrainian refugee has improved his social clout. (00:50)
After, Freddy Gray on the Republican fight against Disney. (06:27)
And, to finish, Kate Andrews on overcoming her arachnophobia. (13:46)
Entries for this year's Innovator Awards, sponsored by Investec, are now open. To apply, go to: www.spectator.co.uk/innovator
In this week’s episode: Is Elon Musk heading for a clash with the British Government over free speech? Elon Musk is buying Twitter. But might the Tesla CEO be in for a battle he wasn’t expecting with the UK government? Spectator Editor Fraser Nelson writes about this potential clash in this week’s issue and he joins the podcast to expand on his thesis. (00:49) Also this week: Where is it ever ok to stare at someone? If you’ve been on the tube recently you might have spotted a rather startling sign. This poster warns passengers about intrusive staring on public transport, so as to protect women from feeling intimidated on their commute. But who, we ask, will speak up for those who love staring at people on public transport? The answer is Cosmo Landesman who defends his love of people watching in this week’s Spectator. He joins the podcast along with Emily Hill who also has written for us on how silly she thinks this policy is. (09:56) And finally: Is getting a fringe a cry for help? Martha Gill writes in this week’s Spectator on the subject of fringes. Why have they come to signify a difficult or traumatic phase in a woman’s life? She joins the podcast along with celebrity hairdresser Cristiano Basciu who has a defence of the fringe. (17:35) Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
Nadine Dorries is the Secretary of State for the Department of Culture, Media and Sports and MP for Mid Bedfordshire. After leaving school at 16, Dorries went on to become a nurse and an entrepreneur before entering politics at the age of 49. She was a minister in the Department of Health during the pandemic, and in her current role is leading five bills at DCMS through Parliament, including the controversial Online Safety Bill.
On the podcast, she talks to Katy Balls about her plans for the BBC and Channel 4, why she believes much of the criticism against her comes from those unable to accept her background, and where her red line would be in sticking up for Boris Johnson, as one of his most loyal allies.
In this week's Book Club podcast, our subject is the Japanese writer Yukio Mishima - whose novel Beautiful Star is being published in English for the first time this month. My guest is its translator Stephen Dodd, who explains the novel's peculiar mixture of profound seriousness and humour, and its mixture of high literary seriousness with, well, flying saucers. He tells me about Mishima's sheltered life and shocking death, his place in Japanese literary culture, and the way the hydrogen bomb hangs over this remarkable and strange novel.
Ameer Kotecha is a British diplomat, pop-up chef and food writer. His first cookbook the Platinum Jubilee Cookbook, in which he chronicles 70 recipes related to the Royals, Diplomacy and the Commonwealth comes out on April 28th. He has also launched alongside Fortnum & Mason's the Platinum Pudding competition, which hopes to discover the next best British dessert.
On the podcast, Ameer talks to Lara and Liv about how his childhood was the perfect blend of British food with Indian influences, how he ran a school-wide campaign for seconds and how in all of his years as a diplomat, he has never been offered a Ferrero Rocher.
For more recipes and recommendations, sign up to The Spectator’s free monthly food and drink email, The Take Away, at www.spectator.co.uk/oliviapotts
The UK's vaccine programme was hailed by the government as a success story for Global Britain. It became an example of how Britain could speed up regulation, reduce bureaucracy and become a worldwide home for tech and innovation in life sciences.
The government recently published a Life Sciences Vision, but how much vision was there? This podcast will look at the importance of the industry, the hurdles that it faces and its contribution to the government's Global Britain agenda.
Fraser Nelson, the editor of The Spectator is joined by Anthony Browne, Conservative MP for South Cambridgeshire; Zoe Martin, a policy manager at Cancer Research and Samin Saeed who is the medical director & chief scientific officer for Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Ltd.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Ltd.
John Connolly, The Spectator's news editor, is joined by Mark Galeotti, director of Mayak Intelligence; Freddy Gray, The Spectator's deputy editor; Cindy Yu, The Spectator's broadcast editor; Jade McGlynn, a Russia expert from the University of Oxford; James Forsyth, The Spectator's political editor; Katy Balls, The Spectator's deputy political editor; Isabel Hardman, The Spectator's assistant editor; and Spectator contributor Jonathan Miller.
This episode:
(01:35) Can Boris Johnson keep going? With Katy Balls, James Forsyth and Isabel Hardman
(16:17) Why are Russians supporting the Ukraine war? With Mark Galeotti and Jade McGlynn
(34:32) – Shanghai lockdown: when will it end? With Cindy Yu?
(48:53) – Marcon vs Le Pen: who won the TV debate? With Freddy Gray and Jonathan Miller
On this week's episode, Jonathan Miller says that whoever wins France's election on Sunday, the country is going to the dogs. (01:00) After, Cindy Yu says that China's online censors are struggling to suppress critics of the Shanghai lockdown. (07:47) And, to finish, Laura Freeman reviews a Walt Disney exhibition at the Wallace Collection. (12:06)
Entries for this year's Innovator Awards, sponsored by Investec, are now open. To apply, go to: www.spectator.co.uk/innovator
The cost of living is rising, as is the cost of renting. Zoopla estimates that rents are rising at the fastest rate in 14 years, which means that the average rent in the UK is now over £1000 a month.
This is partly a pandemic effect, especially in London as people return to offices. But Covid has also shaken people’s financial security - the Citizens Advice Bureau found that more than one in three renters felt insecure about their ability to stay in their tenancy during the pandemic. And women were disproportionately impacted - during the pandemic, mothers were more likely to be put on furlough or even lose their jobs.
Rising prices are not the only problem with the UK’s private rentals market - slow or unethical landlords, unsafe properties or short term tenancies are all problems faced by renters. What more can be done for the almost five million private renters in the UK?
Katy Balls, The Spectator's deputy political editor is joined by Nickie Aiken, the Conservative MP for Cities of London and Westminster; Karen Buck, the Labour MP for Westminster North, who is also the vice-chair for the All-Party Parliamentary Group on the private rental sector; and Esther Dijkstra, managing director of Intermediaries at Lloyds Banking Group, who are kindly sponsoring this podcast.
In this week’s episode: Is Boris going to limp on?
In her cover piece this week, Katy Balls writes that although Boris Johnson believes he can survive the partygate scandal, he has some way to go until he is safe, while in his column, James Forsyth writes about why the Tories have a summer of discontent ahead of them. They both join the podcast to speculate on the Prime Minister’s future. (00:44)
Also this week: Why is the Rwandan government taking our asylum seekers?
We have heard the arguments behind the Home Office’s plan to send migrants to Rwanda. But why is Rwanda up for this arrangement? Michela Wrong, the author of Do Not Disturb: The Story of a Political Murder and an African Regime Gone Bad, explores this question in this week’s Spectator and she joins the podcast along with MP Andrew Mitchell. (14:50)
And finally: Can AI take on the art world?
Sean Thomas writes in this week’s magazine about how some AI programs appear to have become rather good at painting. But what does this mean for the future of art? He joins the podcast along with Lukas Noehrer the organiser of The Alan Turing Institute’s AI & Arts group and Professor Stefano Ermon of Stanford whose research has made much of this technology possible. (28:16)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore
Produced by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
Sam's guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the FT’s foreign affairs columnist Gideon Rachman. In his new book The Age of the Strongman, he takes a global look at the rise of personality-cult autocrats. He tells Sam what they have in common, what’s new about this generation of strongman leaders - and why his book places Boris Johnson in a cast including Putin, Orban, Bolsonaro and Duterte.
This week on Marshall Matters Winston speaks with Seth Dillon, CEO and owner of American political satire site The Babylon Bee. The Babylon Bee are currently locked out of their Twitter account for a joke that has been deemed “hate speech” by the social media site. But the Bee are refusing to accept this. Seth and Winston discussed comedy through the American cultural divide, the legal issues behind free speech on social media, Elon Musk and more.
‘One Shanghai courier uses own 70,000 yuan to buy necessities for people’, one Weibo hashtag trended last week. Instead of being seen as a damning indictment on what the state’s strict lockdown has induced people to do, the courier was lauded as a community hero and the story promoted by the censored platform. These kuaidi xiaoge (‘delivery bros’) are most likely gig economy workers. The industry was already an integral part to the Chinese urbanite’s life before the pandemic, but Covid has consolidated that role, as low-paid and hardworking gig economy drivers literally became critical to the survival of millions.
The Chinese gig economy is in many ways more advanced. The services are more extensive (grocery shopping and even designated drivers – a stranger to drive your car home on drinking nights – have been the norm for years) and the algorithms are more ruthless (closely monitoring and continuously shaving off delivery times. ‘The pandemic really brought the plight of these workers into the mainstream consciousness for the first time’, Viola Rothschild, my guest on this episode, tells me.
She is a PhD candidate at Duke University, and one of the few people – academics and journalists alike – who have looked into the Chinese gig economy. I’ve known Viola for years – we first met when we read for a masters in contemporary Chinese studies together.
On the episode, we discuss what working conditions are like (she recommends this article), the interactions between the state and the private sector (the largest players in the field are Alibaba and Didi Chuxing, both companies that have been penalised by the Chinese government in recent years), and what the pandemic – and particularly the Shanghai lockdown – has done to workers. We discuss the government’s efforts to improve working environments, but Viola tells me:
‘What workers get through unionisation is really about what the state wants to give them, if their goals align with the state’s at any given time in terms of pressuring these companies. This is especially thrown into clear relief when we see how the state treats workers who try to organise outside of this apparatus’
By that, Viola is referring to the kuaidi xiaoge who’ve been arrested for organising their own unions – it’s still deeply ironic that the most successful purportedly Marxist state in the world today is deeply suspicious of workers creating their own unions.
But fundamentally, as I push back at Viola, the problem is not only the private companies or the communist state, but also the consumers who demand faster and cheaper services. In that, ‘I think that the Chinese gig economy has a tonne in common with its American and British, and worldwide, counterparts’, Viola says. I totally agree.
On this episode: Mark Drew explains how Putin weaponised the Russian Orthodox church (00:49); Luke Coppen says the war in Ukraine has revitalised Poland’s Catholic church (08:17); and Edward Behrens reads his notes on violets. (17:27)
Freddy Gray speaks to Kat Rosenfield, the author and UnHerd columnist, about Elon Musk's proposal to buy a controlling stake in the social media giant.
Rosenfield's latest book, No One Will Miss Her, is published by HarperCollins and is available to buy now.
In this week’s episode: How are the people of both Russia and Ukraine processing the war? Our Russia correspondent Owen Matthews writes in this week’s Spectator that he has been stunned at how easily some of his Russian friends have accepted the Kremlin’s propaganda. He joins the podcast to explain why he thinks this is, followed by journalist and author of This Is Not Propaganda, Peter Pomerantsev, who has travelled to Kyiv to celebrate the festival of Passover. (00:48) Also this week: Is Rishi Sunak politically incompetent? Until recently Rishi Sunak was once a favourite to succeed Boris Johnson, but this week his popularity plummeted to new lows. Our Deputy Political Editor Katy Balls writes about the Chancellor’s challenges in this week’s Spectator and she joins the podcast along with Chris Curtis from Opinium Research to talk about Rishi’s nightmare week. (20:20) And finally: Why do so many of Africa’s leaders support Putin? Our wildlife correspondent, Aidan Hartley argues in this week’s Spectator that this is because many previously colonised nations still see the West as their old enemy and that the enemy of their enemy is their friend. Aidan joins us now. (31:40) Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
Michael Heath is a British strip cartoonist and illustrator and has been working nonstop since the 1950s. He has been cartoon editor of The Spectator since 1991. On the podcast, he talks to Lara and Liv about carrying German bombs into the local pub like milk bottles during the second world war, being given chewing gum by American soldiers, and how during the heydays of Soho, the focus was a lot more on the drinking than the eating.
On this week's episode, we'll hear from Katy Balls on the changing face of No.10. (00:49)
Next, Michael Bryant on the history of War Crimes. (06:16)
And finally, Michael Simmons on Nicola Sturgeon’s secret state. (11:08)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher.
Arlene Foster is the former first minister of Northern Ireland and was the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party from 2015 to 2021. She was the first woman to hold either position. Arlene moved into politics after joining the Ulster Unionist Party as a Law student at Queen’s University Belfast.
Having grown up in conflict during the Troubles, she remembers an attempted murder of her father by the IRA. During her long career in politics, Arlene has consistently fought for the Union between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. She resigned from her positions in politics to become a broadcaster and campaigner where she host a weekly show on GB News. During the podcast, Arelene reflects on her long career in politics, the Brexit negotiations as part of Theresa May's coalition government and Article 16
In this week’s episode: Is Putin guilty of war crimes? For this week’s cover piece, The Spectator’s Editor Fraser Nelson looks at the risks and rewards of labelling Vladimir Putin and Russian soldiers war criminals. He joins the podcast, followed by Michael Bryant, the author of A World History of War Crimes, who writes in the Spectator this week about what the limits put on acts of war in the past can teach us about atrocities committed today. (00:52) Also this week: Is Europe facing a political stand-off between progressives and populists? This week Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban was elected for a fourth term in office with a large majority. While in France, Emmanuel Macron faces a much harder fight from Marine Le Pen than many expected. Paris-based author, Gavin Mortimer analyses the changing faultline in European politics in this week’s Spectator and joins the podcast along with journalist and author Tibor Fischer. (19:44) And finally: Why are overpriced English kitchens so hot right now? How much would you be willing to spend on your kitchen? The answer for some seems to be a lot. And the fashionable choice at the moment is faux traditional English. Writer and art critic, Laura Freeman explores this phenomenon in this week’s Spectator and she joins the podcast along with Stacey Sheppard, creator of the design blog The Design Sheppard. (32:25) Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
In this week’s Book Club podcast, my guest is the historian Felipe Fernández-Armesto. 500 years after Ferdinand Magellan’s expedition circumnavigated the globe, Felipe’s gripping new book Straits: Beyond the Myth of Magellan goes back to the original sources to discover that almost everything we think we know about this hero of the great age of exploration is wrong.
After defeat in the Second Opium War, Chinese intellectuals wracked their minds for how the Chinese nation can survive in the new industrialised world. It’s a topic that has been discussed on this podcast before – listeners may remember the episode with Bill Hayton, author of The Invention of China, where we discussed the reformers and revolutionaries like Liang Qichao and Kang Youwei. But for some reformers, the problem with China wasn’t just feudal politics or Confucian staleness, but its ancient language.
Spoken Chinese could be any of a vast number of regional dialects which were too often mutually unintelligible. Meanwhile, written Chinese was extremely complicated, not helping the rock bottom literacy rates of the common people (30 per cent for men and 2 per cent for women). Literary and official writing were also uniformly written in 'classical Chinese', a concise poetic form of the language which was not the way that people spoke (the vernacular). The difference can be thought of as the difference between Latin and English pre-Reformation. Of even more concern was the fact that Chinese wasn’t easily adaptable to the new communication technologies that were revolutionising the world at the time, like telegraphy and typewriters (above, a picture of a 1986 model of the Chinese typewriter). These western-invented methods were based on alphabetic languages – which Chinese simply isn't.
Earlier this year, I reviewed Kingdom of Characters, the new book from Jing Tsu, who is Professor of East Asian Languages and Literatures at Yale. Jing’s book is an excellent account of the efforts to simplify, modernise and adapt this ancient language from Chinese and westerners alike. She joins me on this episode to talk through all of the problems outlined briefly here, and how a series of reformers, politicians and linguists throughout the 20th century tried to resolve these problems – sometimes with solutions nothing short of extraordinary. Of her mission, Jing says: 'I wanted to put a western reader in the shoes of these adorable, curmudgeonly, hard to take but utterly human Chinese characters'.
We discuss the different upbringings we had – me in the People's Republic of China and Jing in the Republic of China (Taiwan) – and how that impacts our relationship to the traditional and simplified versions of the Chinese script and how important that script is to the Chinese national identity. We talk about the incredible and often positive influence westerners had on this language revolution (a narrative to do with that century of humiliation I didn't hear much about in a traditional Chinese upbringing). And explore whether Chinese could ever be the lingua franca that English is.
On this week's episode, we'll hear from Christopher Howse on the destruction of Ukrainian churches. (00:50)
Next, Richard Florida on how Covid has changed London for the better. (13:52)
And finally, Olivia Potts on her love of the crisp sandwich. (23:56)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
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The Spectator's contributing editor Paul Wood interviews Dr Fiona Hill of the Brookings Institution, who also served as a director within President Trump's national security council, where her brief focused on Europe and Russia. This conversation was a joint production with the Institute for War and Peace Reporting.
Founded in 1991, IWPR is a non-profit organization that works with independent media and civil society to promote positive change in 30 countries around the world. IWPR has been working with media and civil society in Ukraine since 2016 and has local staff in Kyiv, Lviv, and Bila Tserkva, as well as contacts at more than 50 local media and civil society organizations. IWPR’s Executive Director, Anthony Borden, has himself been leading coordination efforts in Ukraine and we are currently supporting local journalists through the Ukraine Voices initiative.
In this week’s episode: Is Biden’s approach to the war in Ukraine more calculating than it seems?
For this week’s cover piece, in this week’s cover piece, Matt Purple examines Biden’s response to the situation in Ukraine. The good, the bad and the gaffs. He joins the podcast along with the founder of Political Human Emma Burnell. (00:52)
Also this week: How many of Ukraine’s churches have been destroyed?
In this week’s issue, Christopher Howse writes poignantly on the destruction of Ukrainian churches and how Vladimir Putin, a man claiming to be a defender of Christianity is desperate to keep the images of destroyed holy sites out of the news. He joins the podcast along with the head of the Greek Orthodox Church in Great Britain, His Eminence Archbishop Nikitas Loulias. (11:26)
And, finally: 40 years on from the Falklands War, why are there still tensions over the islands?
It has been 40 years since the war between the UK and Argentina over the Falklands and in this week’s Spectator Robert Taylor writes about the impact that conflict still has on the territory. He joins the podcast along with native Argentinian and Professor of International Law of The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Marcelo G. Kohen. (22:43)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore
Produced by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
In this week's Book Club podcast, we ask: did the chroniclers of the early Church cover up evidence that the disciples and evangelists of Christ were as often women as men? Sam's guests are the scholars Helen Bond and Joan Taylor, authors of Women Remembered: Jesus' Female Disciples. They pick out the hints and clues that, they say, indicate that women were doing more than just cooking, mourning and anointing in first-century Judaea – despite the difficulties of keeping track of all those Marys and Salomes.
Lance Forman is the owner of H. Forman & Son, Britain's leading salmon smokers and author of Forman's Games. He was elected a Brexit Party MEP for London in the 2019 European election but quit the party to endorse the Conservatives.
On the podcast, Lance reflects on his childhood in a traditional Jewish upbringing, eating smoked salmon sandwiches every day for his packed lunch. Lance brings in some of the foods made by his gourmet food delivery company, Forman & Field. This included smoked salmon blinis with cream cheese and their latest creation, a Victoria sponge ahead of the Queen's Jubilee.
Come to the East End to learn all about curing and smoking salmon with Lance Forman of H. Forman & Son, suppliers of our celebrated Spectator Winemaker Lunches. Buy your tickets here
On this week's episode, we'll hear from Damian Thompson on the Patriarch in league with Putin. (00:58)
Next, Jade McGlynn on how Russian TV is presenting the war to its people. (08:46)
And finally, Nick Newman asks how should cartoonists respond to war? (17:35)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes and Max Jeffery
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Anji Hunter is the former gatekeeper to Tony Blair's Labour government. She was once described as the most influential non-elected person in Downing Street and became one of Blair's closest confidantes. Acting as an alliance broker, Anji worked across businesses and the media, including Murdoch's empire.
After decades by Blair's side, Anji moved to the private sector to take up various roles across industries from BP to the Royal College of Engineering. As Boris Johnson welcomes the new Anji Hunter of 10 Downing Street, Samatha Cohen, Anji reflects on what it takes to do her former job – you've got to have balls.
In this week’s episode: could President Erdogan broker a peace deal between Putin and the West?
For this week’s cover piece, Owen Matthews has written about how Turkey’s President Erdogan became a key powerbroker between Vladimir Putin and the Western alliance. On the podcast, Owen is joined by Ece Temelkuran, a political thinker, author, and writer of the book How to Lose a Country. (1:13)
Also this week: a look at Tina, the drug devastating the gay community.
Dr Max Pemberton has written about Tina, a dangerous drug often used at chemsex parties. Max joins us now along with Philip Hurd, a chemsex rehabilitation professional and trustee of Controlling Chemsex. (14:02)
And finally: Are The Oscars losing their relevance?
Toby Young writes for The Spectator this week about The Oscars ceremony. John Ringo once coined the term ‘get woke and go broke’ to describe businesses that drive consumers away with their politically worthy causes. Could the same be said for The Oscars? Toby joins The Edition podcast along with Fiona Mountford, a theatre critic and regular contributor for The Spectator. (24:51)
Hosted by William Moore.
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Taiwan is not Ukraine. But despite the very important differences in their situations, the Russian invasion can still shed much light on Taiwan's future. Even many Taiwanese think so – and have followed the developments closely, with solidarity marches held for Ukraine, protests at the Russian embassy and the Ukrainian flag lighting up Taiwanese buildings.
On this episode of Chinese Whispers, my guests and I discuss the mainstream take on Ukraine (and also the not so mainstream – such as the view that America can't be relied upon, given it hasn't despatched troops to Ukraine). I'm joined by Brian Hioe, editor of New Bloom, an online magazine covering youth culture and politics in Taiwan, and Professor Kerry Brown from Kings College London, author of The Trouble with Taiwan.
We give a primer on Taiwanese politics – what does the thriving democracy look like? How are elections held, and what are the major political parties? We discuss how China – instead of particular social or economic issues – is the main political topic dividing the left and the right (the 'Greens' and the 'Blues'), and whether, with mainstream Taiwanese opinion becoming ever hawkish on China in the aftermath of the Hong Kong National Security Law, the more pro-China forces in Taiwanese politics, such as the Kuomintang, really have a future in the country (Kerry says: ‘I don’t think the KMT can be written off.')
In a crowded continent, there are also other power-brokers. We talk about the influence of America, and where Japan – Taiwan's erstwhile coloniser – fits in with all this. There have been calls for Japan to be more heavily armed in order to deter a Chinese invasion. How would the Taiwanese feel about that? Brian tells me:
‘Views of Japan differ sharply between the pan-green and the pan-blue camp. For the KMT, they remember a lot of the Sino-Japanese war and the crimes committed by the Japanese from that period. But for the pan-greens, who are sometimes descended from those that were in Taiwan for the Japanese colonial period, [remember] the period as a time of higher living standards and improved education, and in which Taiwan is being brought up as a colony rather than these political killings and mass violence, etc. They have a much more romanticised views of a Japanese colonial period.’
In the end, economics may supersede politics. If President Tsai Ing-wen can't deliver on the economy given her tough stance on China (which is still Taiwan's biggest trading partner), then domestic politics may be in for another shakeup. As Kerry says: ‘It’s the issue that we all wrestle with. Their biggest economic partner is also their biggest security threat’.
Additional listening: do tune in to a previous episode with Professor Rana Mitter, if you need a primer on why exactly Taiwan's history means that it is in this position and how the shared language and culture with the People's Republic of China came about
https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/why-does-china-care-about-taiwan-.
In this week’s Book Club podcast Sam is joined by Francis Fukuyama to talk about his new book Liberalism and its Discontents. He tells Sam how a system that has built peace and prosperity since the Enlightenment has come under attack from the neoliberal right and the identitarian left; and how Vladimir Putin may end up being the unwitting founding father of a new Ukraine.
On this week's episode, we'll hear from Lionel Shriver on if western populations would fight to defend their homeland in the way we have seen the Ukrainians have. (00:53)
Next, Kate Andrews on the real reasons behind the rise in the cost of living. (09:17)
And finally, Nicholas Farrell asks if the war in Ukraine will boost populism? (13:50)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
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In this week’s episode: Has Putin’s invasion of Ukraine exposed the West’s weakness - or its strength? For this week, Sergey Radchenko, a Cold War historian writes about the draconian anti-war measures that Putin has imposed in Russia. He joins the podcast along with Dr Jade Glynn, a specialist in Russian memory and foreign policy at the Monterey Initiative in Russian Studies. (01:00) Also this week: has Russia’s invasion of Ukraine highlighted the hubris of the West? While Western countries unite in a chorus of criticism against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Rod Liddle writes that the invasion only highlights the impotence of the West. He is joined by James Forsyth, The Spectator’s political editor. (18:20) And finally, what’s happened to Durham University? Has its reputation plummeted? Nathan Risser writes in The Spectator this week about the decline of Durham University. It was once at the top of the league tables just under Oxford and Cambridge but has this all changed? Nathan who is a writer graduated from Durham in 2017. Joining Nathan is Imogen Usherwood, another writer who recently graduated from Durham University in 2021. (35.40) Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
This week Winston is joined by Russian-British comedian, podcaster and author Konstantin Kisin. Konstantin gives his insight into the ongoing war in Ukraine, the Russian mindset, the potent myth of fighting Nazis and a little on his forthcoming new book ‘An Immigrant’s Love Letter To The West’.
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is Colm Toibin. Best known as a novelist, Colm’s new book is his first collection of poetry, Vinegar Hill. He tells me about coming late to poetry, the freedoms and austerities it offers, and why writing isn’t fun. Plus: surviving cancer and outstaying his St Patrick’s Day welcome at the White House…
Freddy talks to Anatoly Karlin, author of the Powerful Takes Substack. Speaking from Moscow, Anatoly discloses the extent of support for anti-war protests in Russia and the role of the US in inciting nationalism in Ukraine.
Mitch Tonks is an award-winning restauranteur and chef. He runs the Rockfish restaurant group in Devon and Dorset, and the Seahorse restaurant in Dartmouth. He has written six cookbooks. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Liv about playing cards after dinner, enjoying his school's 'bright green custard with chocolate pudding', and inventing his own fish curries.
On this episode of Spectator Out Loud, Douglas Murray starts by explaining why C. S. Lewis was right about war. (00:56) Mary Wakefield is up next, looking at the founding myth that Russia and Ukraine are fighting over. (10:18) Nicola Shulman finishes the podcast, reading her piece about Philip Larkin's big problem. (16:53)
Suella Braverman is the Conservative MP for Fareham and became the first female elected Attorney General in 2020. Formerly known as one of the Brexit Spartans, she talks on the podcast, about growing up surrounded by politics where she first laid the foundations for a career as a Conservative politician.
As a young woman, she studied law in Cambridge, the US and in Europe where she could excel as a linguist. Since taking her role as Attorney General, she made history by rewriting the law to become the first female Cabinet Minister to take maternity leave - named Gabriella's Law after her daughter who is now one year old.
In this week’s episode: is the UK dragging its feet when it comes to Ukrainian refugees?
For this week’s cover piece, Kate Andrews and Max Jeffery report from Calais, where they have been talking with Ukrainian refugees hoping to make it to Britain. Kate joins the podcast along with former MEP Patrick O’Flynn to discuss the UK’s handling of the refugee crisis. (00:48)
Also this week: are commodity traders finding a moral compass?
In the wake of colossal sanctions on Russia are commodity traders feeling pressured to look more critically at the people they buy from? In this week’s issue, Javier Blas, Bloomberg’s commodities columnist and the co-author of The World for Sale, reveals what’s going on in the world of commodity trading. He joins the podcast along with Martin Vander Weyer who also writes about how effective these sanctions might be. (19:21)
And, finally: is offal making a macho comeback?
Gus Carter writes in The Spectator this week about offal. It’s having a comeback, he says, thanks to macho men following internet advice about what to eat. He joins the podcast with Natasha Lawson, T he Spectator’s designer and a keen organ fan, who bought in one of her favourite products for Lara, Gus and William to try. (30:19)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore
Produced by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
The UK has recently lifted almost every Covid restriction and with that, thousands of commuters will return to their offices. Will those memories of delays, cancellations, costly tickets and overcrowding come back to haunt the commuter? Most of the problems are linked to the patchwork of Victorian infrastructure that has struggled to meet the demands of the modern-day passenger.
With grandstanding projects like Hs2 dominating the headlines, is this the kind of investment that's best spent for the consumer? And with other issues on the rise, such as extreme weather conditions, inflation and flexible working patterns, how will the industry prepare itself?
Joining Kate Andrews for this Spectator Briefings podcast is writer, broadcaster and specialist in railways, Christian Wolmar, Caroline Donaldson who is the managing director of West Coast Partnership Development. Finally, Wendy Morton, the Rail Minister at the Department for Transport.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by West Coast Partnership.
During the pandemic, we spent more time online than ever before and this has seen a boom in online fraud. It's estimated that scam adverts have tricked 1 in 10 people on the biggest online platforms into paying for fake products. In 2020, almost 150,000 fraud cases were recorded with losses reported of up to £500 million.
For the scammers, they will do anything to convince you to key in your card details and this problem has shown no sign of slowing down. The online safety bill is expected to pass Parliament in March 2022. As things stand, the government hasn't included online fraud as a type of harm when it comes to certain adverts. So could the online safety bill be an effective solution?
To discuss this, Katy Balls is joined by Nicky Morgan, former Culture Secretary and chair of the Treasury Select Committee. Now a member of the House of Lords, Nicky is chairing a new inquiry into digital fraud. Also on the podcast is Lucy Powell, the Shadow Culture Secretary for Labour and Liz Ziegler who is the retail bank fraud and financial crime director at Lloyds Banking Group.
This podcast is kindy sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group.
In this week's Book Club podcast, Sam talks to the investigative reporter Tom Burgis – just days after the High Court threw out an attempt from a London-based company run by eastern European oligarchs to suppress his book Kleptopia: How Dirty Money Is Conquering the World. Tom tells Sam how massacres in Kazakhstan connect to the City of London, how western legal frameworks struggle to cope with international crime, how international kidnapping can be perfectly legal, why Tony Blair helped launder the reputation of a blood-soaked dictator – and how the conflict in Ukraine is the new front line of an ongoing world war between kleptocracy and democracy.
Freddy sits down with Casey Michel, author of the book American Kleptocracy. On the podcast Casey talks about the curious and rather shady financial ties between Ukraine and America.
During the pandemic, we spent more time online than ever before and this has seen a boom in online fraud. It's estimated that scam adverts have tricked 1 in 10 people on the biggest online platforms into paying for fake products. In 2020, almost 150,000 fraud cases were recorded with losses reported of up to £500 million.
For the scammers, they will do anything to convince you to key in your card details and this problem has shown no sign of slowing down. The online safety bill is expected to pass Parliament in March 2022. As things stand, the government hasn't included online fraud as a type of harm when it comes to certain adverts. So could the online safety bill be an effective solution?
To discuss this, Katy Balls is joined by Nicky Morgan, former Culture Secretary and chair of the Treasury Select Committee. Now a member of the House of Lords, Nicky is chairing a new inquiry into digital fraud. Also on the podcast is Lucy Powell, the Shadow Culture Secretary for Labour and Liz Ziegler who is the retail bank fraud and financial crime director at Lloyds Banking Group.
This podcast is kindy sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group.
On this week's episode of Marshall Matters, Winston speaks with Svyatoslav Vakarchuk in Ukraine. Svyatoslav is the lead singer of Ukraine’s biggest band, Okean Elzy. He has also served in the Ukrainian parliament. Speaking to him on the eleventh day of conflict he describes his experience so far, the atmosphere of his invaded country and what he hopes for looking forward.
This episode of Chinese Whispers is slightly different – instead of taking a look at a theme within China, Cindy and her guest see China through the eyes of the psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud. Professor Craig Clunas, chair of art history at Oxford University, has curated a new exhibition at London’s Freud Museum, which displays Freud’s collection of Chinese antiquities. On this episode, Cindy talks to Craig about what these pieces – jades and figurines – meant to Freud, especially in the context of 20th century Europe, where there was appreciation of Chinese art but, as they discuss, not quite the matching level of knowledge. They also chat about the reception of Freud’s theories in China, especially given the country’s turbulent intellectual history since the May Fourth Movement a hundred years ago. Craig sums up the love affair between Freud and China nicely:
‘Just like Freud is using his Chinese things to think with, Chinese thinkers are using Freud to think with.’
The exhibition itself is small but fascinating, and runs until 26 June.
As mentioned in the episode, here is the link to a previous edition of Chinese Whispers with Rana Mitter, for those who want to hear more about China since the May Fourth Movement: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/china-s-long-history-of-student-protests.
On this week's episode, we'll hear from Freddy Gray on his time spent on the Poland–Ukraine border. (00:52)
Next, Lionel Shriver on the return of actual badness. (06:28)
And finally, Philip Patrick on the strange east Asian practice of hiring a ‘White Monkey’. (15:13)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
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In this week’s episode: What’s the mood on the ground in Ukraine and Russia? For this week’s cover piece, Owen Matthews asks whether the invasion of Ukraine will mean the end of Putin’s regime. And in this week’s Spectator diary, Freddy Gray reports on pride and paranoia on the streets of Lviv. They join the podcast, to talk about Russia’s future and Ukraine’s present. (00:49) Also this week: Is Germany ready to tackle its dependence on Russian gas? In response to Russia’s invasion, Germany has abandoned its Nord Stream 2 pipeline, sent lethal weapons to Ukraine and, most strikingly of all, has committed to the Nato target of spending 2 per cent of GDP on defence - a €100 billion fund. James Forsyth, who writes about Germany’s new reality in this week’s magazine, joins the podcast along with Stefanie Bolzen, a journalist for Welt. (17:18) And finally: Are traditional British brands losing their soul? Harry Wallop, in this week’s Spectator, wonders why some of Britain's oldest and most distinctive brands are trashing their reputation. They are selling out, changing the very thing that made them special in order to appeal to foreign millionaires. He joins the podcast along with a popular culture expert. Nick Ede. (29:40) Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
In this week’s Book Club podcast, Sam is joined by the historian Christopher de Bellaigue to talk about The Lion House, his scintillating and idiosyncratic new book about the great Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent. It’s all here: massacres, sieges, over-mighty viziers, Venetian perfidy, and… true love?
On this week’s episode of Marshall Matters, Winston speaks with Russian author, journalist and culture and music historian Artemy Troitsky. Troitsky has had a long history of being anti-establishment. In the 80s he was blacklisted by the Soviet Union. But it wasn’t until Putin's rule that he felt he finally had to leave his motherland. We discuss the current conflict, Putin and the mindset of Russians today.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from John Keiger on Emmanuel Macron’s brand of performative diplomacy. (00:53)
Next, Mary Wakefield on the few pros and many cons of the lady carriage. (10:30)
And finally, Sean Thomas on how learning to work from home opens the door to working in paradise. (16:17)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
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In this week’s episode: What does Putin really want for Russia? For this week’s cover story, Niall Ferguson writes about how Putin seems to be trying to recreate the Russia of the Past, while this week's diary by Timothy Garton Ash says the West has misunderstood his intentions, Niall and Timothy join the podcast along with Mary Dejevsky a columnist for the Independent. (00:48) Also this week: Should there be women-only spaces on trains? Jeremy Corbyn suggested it when he was Labour party leader and now Scotland seems to be flirting with the idea. Mary Wakefield says in this week’s Spectator that although she enjoys the idea of lady carriage, it doesn’t make much sense. She joins the podcast along with women's rights activist Kelly Given, one of Young Women’s Movement Scotland, 30 under 30. (15:15) And finally: Should we all get naked? Cosmo Landesman believes that once men reach a certain age, they quite enjoy taking their clothes off no matter where. He has written about his theory in this week’s magazine and he joins the podcast along with Andrew Welch from British Naturism. (23:31) Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
In this week's Book Club podcast, we're going back 100 years to 1922 – the year which is usually seen as heralding the birth of literary Modernism. Sam's guests are Richard Davenport-Hines, author of A Night At The Majestic: Proust and the Great Modernist Dinner Party, and the scholar and critic Merve Emre, who has worked extensively on Joyce and Woolf. Sam asked them how much Modernism really did represent a break with the past, and how much it looked like a coherent movement at the time. Along the way we learn what Proust and Joyce found to discuss when they met, why Virginia Woolf was so rude about Ulysses, and what the mainstream story of Modernism left out...
China’s population is ageing. It’s estimated that a quarter of Chinese people will be elderly within three decades. The relaxing of its one child policy – first to two children in 2016 and then to three last year – hasn’t stimulated fertility rate, which is still stagnant at 1.7 births per woman. In November last year, nappy producers supposedly pivoted their marketing towards elderly clients over parents of babies.
Demographers and economists warn about the problems that an ageing – and eventually shrinking – population will cause, in China and elsewhere. On this episode, I speak to the demographer Wang Feng, Professor of Sociology at University of California, Irvine, about what awaits China. For Professor Wang, care of the elderly will soon become an issue, with more than 365 million over 65s expected by 2050. The Chinese welfare state is minimal (ironic given its socialist pretensions), something of a ‘postcode lottery’, I put to Professor Wang. He says that ‘China has already missed the time window for establishing an equitable national social security system’ – it has already become too expensive, too fast.
We also discuss the one child policy at length – its logic at the time, whether Communist leaders foresaw the problems it would cause for their successors and, fascinatingly, whether there was any opposition within the Chinese Communist Party to the policy (the answer is yes – and if you caught my episode on the legacy of Deng Xiaoping, you will not be surprised to learn that the resistance was led by Hu Yaobang and Zhao Ziyang). Professor Wang points out that one of the reasons why the policy took so long to go even as China liberalised relatively in the 1990s and 2000s, under the helm of Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao:
‘They were people who grew up, like myself, at the end of the Cultural Revolution. Their knowledge of population was all learned from the time when China implemented the one child policy, when there was so much propaganda about how population would be the root of all problems for China. I think that generation of leaders were deeply intoxicated by these teachings’
In a way, there’s poetic justice for a government who thought that, in Professor Wang’s words, ‘you can just plan [births] and constrain them as you would grow trees or wheat’. Today’s China, regardless of the loosening of the one child policy (to two in 2016; and three last year, which I wrote about at the time), is just not having babies. For the Professor, there’s a fundamental truth: ‘The ageing society is not something that China, or any other country, can reverse’. The crux lies in how to adapt society to be better prepared – fixing the welfare state, the healthcare system, and maturing the financial system so the ageing population can invest for retirement.
This week on Marshall Matters Winston is joined by British actress Tracy-Ann Oberman, star of Afterlife, Toast of London, Ridley Road and Eastenders, to name but a few. Tracy-Ann discussed the problem of anti-Semitism with relation to Equity - the trade union for actors - as well as in the entertainment industry more broadly and beyond.
Freddy Gray talks to Dr Julie Norman, lecturer and co-director of the Centre on US politics at University College London, about the case for the defence of the Biden presidency so far.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from Katy Balls on Labour’s strategy – would Starmer actually prefer Boris Johnson to stay in place? (00:51)
Next, Julie Bindel on the rise of lesbian divorce (06:12)
And finally, Douglas Murray on the hellish new trend of having to bring your ‘whole self’ to work. (14:00)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
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In this week’s episode: What is the next act in Putin’s theatre of war? For this week’s cover story, James Forsyth writes about Putin’s dangerous dramatics on the Russian-Ukrainian border and where they might lead. James joins the podcast along with Paul Wood, who writes in this week’s magazine that Putin’s bluff may be backfiring. (00:49) Also this week: How important is gallows humour? The BBC’s new comedy-drama, This Is Going To Hurt, based on the best-selling book of the same title by trainee doctor turned comedian Adam Kay depicts some truly gut-wrenching scenes with a touch of gallows humour. This week in The Spectator, Andrew Watts writes a defence of making dark jokes in serious situations as not only a stress relief exercise, but a genuine necessity for getting through the day. He joins the podcast along with Ed Patrick, a comedian and NHS anaesthetist whose new book Catch Your Breath about working in the NHS during the pandemic is out now. (16:05) And finally: why have we stopped whistling? Whistling can be seen as a bit annoying at best and rude at worst. But in this week’s Spectator, Steve Morris laments the loss of everyday whistling. He considers it a way of bringing music into one’s life for those who don’t own a piano. He joins the podcast along with whistling world champion David Morris, who has released six albums of his whistling. (25:50) Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
Sam's guest in this week's Book Club podcast is the historian Anna Keay. In her new book The Restless Republic: Britain Without A Crown she describes the short but traumatic period between the execution of Charles I and the restoration of the monarchy. She tells Sam about the religious turmoil, the explosion of the newspaper industry, the sympathetic side of Oliver Cromwell... and parallels with our own age of constitutional upheaval and viral propaganda.
Former Tory MP, Rory Stewart, has played many roles through out his life. An academic, a diplomat, and a soldier. Rory is currently a senior fellow at Yale University's Jackson Institute for Global Affairs.
On the podcast, he talks about eating sandwiches on a homemade raft as a boy in Malaysia, his university days spent talking to girls in Pizza Express and his revelation that he doesn't really like pudding.
This week Winston is joined by American songwriting legend Don McLean. Don discusses his work, the atmosphere of America when he was starting in the 60s compared to now, and how he predicted the state of the world today in his all time classic “American Pie”.
Freddy sits down with Lauren Southern a former YouTube personality and now a documentary filmmaker. Lauren has been described as one of the leaders of the Alt-Right movement. Which is a label Lauren herself thinks doesn't actually mean anything. On the podcast, Lauren and Freddy get into what direction the online right will go next, what feminism looks like in modern conservative circles, and how hypocrites can sometimes be right.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from Kate Andrews on the NHS’s waiting list crisis. (00:52)
Next, Kevin Hurley on the impact of demonising the police force. (07:04)
And finally, Lawrence Bernstein on the secretive world of speech writing. (12:41)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
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Carolyn Harris is a Welsh Labour Party politician serving as the Deputy Leader of Welsh Labour since 2018, and has been the Member of Parliament for Swansea East since 2015. On the podcast she talks to Katy about her three successful campaigns, menopause, and the time she accidentally turned on the No.10 Christmas lights.
In this week’s episode: What’s the mood like in Boris’s bunker? For this week’s cover story, James Forsyth writes about the defensive bunker mentality inside No. 10 and the PM’s strategy of keeping MPs sweet to hold back a no confidence vote. James joins the podcast along with Spectator Editor Fraser Nelson to discuss. (00:50) Also this week: Have we forgotten how to take a joke? Jimmy Carr has caused an online outcry after an off-colour joke from his new show, His Dark Material was clipped and posted without context on social media. Ministers, such as Nadine Dorries and Sajid Javid, have now criticised a comedian for telling a joke. In the Spectator this week both in print and online, two of our writers came to Carr’s defence. The Spectator’s associate editor Douglas Murray joins the podcast, along with Sam Holmes, who is The Spectator’s Podcast Producer by day, and a stand up comedian by night. (11:38) And finally: Has Covid permanently changed how people take Communion?
During the Covid pandemic, churches had to rethink the way they gave communion to their congregations. But will we ever go back to the old normal? Ysenda Maxtone Graham mourns the loss of the tradition of the communal cup in this week's Spectator. She joins the podcast along with Revd Dr Andrew Atherstone, a Tutor in Church History at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, who has written a study entitled, Drink This, All of You’: Individual Cups at Holy Communion.(21:42) Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
This year marks the centenary of the birth of Jack Kerouac. As Penguin publishes a lavish new edition of On The Road to mark the occasion, I'm joined by two Kerouac scholars. Holly George-Warren is working on the definitive biography of Kerouac (her previous work includes Lives of Gene Autry and Janis Joplin), and Simon Warner co-edited Kerouac on Record: A Literary Soundtrack and runs Rock and the Beat Generation. They tell me how On The Road came to be written, how it stands up now, and what made 'the Beats' beat.
In 2008, President George Bush was the star guest at Beijing’s opening ceremony. Fourteen years later, under a cloud of diplomatic boycotts led by the US, the guest of honour spot was filled instead by President Putin. Under a confluence of factors over the last decade, China and Russia are closer now than they have been since the Cold War.
On this episode of Chinese Whispers, Cindy Yu talks to Alexander Gabuev, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Moscow Center, about how this situation came about. If the beginning of the end of the Cold War can be traced back to the Sino-Soviet split – allowing a bipolar world to be split into three when China began rapprochement with Nixon’s America – then what does today’s alliance mean at this moment in geopolitics?
For Alex, there were three reasons why China and Russia have got closer. China’s hunger for oil and gas makes Russia a much-needed new trading partner (and vice versa). The two were able to fudge territorial disputes along the 3000 mile border they share (Alex points out that Russia has only been able to amass troops on the Ukrainian border because their military presence on the Sino-Russian border is the lightest it has been for a century). They share similar political cultures - strongman-ship supported by powerful and corrupt oligarchs and a nationalistic society - and similar national leaders (‘for the first time after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, we have two leaders that are age mates and soul mates’).
‘The secret sauce’ that binds the collaboration together, according to Alex, is the US’s increasing confrontation with both. What we see from Washington today is a reverse Kissinger - where the two authoritarian countries are being pushed closer together by an increasingly hawkish America. Take Nord Stream 2 - any weaning off of the German market from Russian gas will simply make the Chinese market even more important for Moscow. But it’s not clear that the West has many alternatives.
Getting closer to China is not necessarily a good thing for Russia, either. For one, the relationship is unbalanced. In a reversal of Cold War dynamics, the size of China’s high value economy today means that Chinese business matters more to Moscow than Russian to Beijing. ‘Ten, fifteen years down the road,’ Alex says, ‘China will have more leverage’. Could a more powerful China try to bully its weaker ally in commercial and security spheres? Possibly, but the die may already have been cast: ‘unfortunately, the sources of grievances and conflict between Russia and the US run so deep [that] the Russian leadership is so emotionally invested that there is no easy way out.’
On this episode Cindy and Alex also discuss the malleability of national memory (Russian aggression during the 19th century often flies under the radar of Chinese nationalists), in what ways China’s relations with the US are still better than with Russia and exactly how China could react to any transgression on the Ukrainian border. Tune in.
In Episode 2 of Marshall Matters, Winston speaks with David Baddiel on his powerful book 'Jews Don’t Count', the experience of writing the alternative National anthem 'Three Lions' and his recent stand up show 'Trolls - Not The Dolls'.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from James Heale on the Zac Goldsmiths’ secret shadow cabinet. (00:49)
Next, Leah McLaren on Covid in Canada. (07:20)
And finally, Nicholas Farrell on the march of the Italian Wolves. (13:58)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
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Freddy Gray talks to Guy Clapperton, the tech journalist and host of the Near-Futurist podcast about the recent collapse in Facebook’s share price, and the social media giant's prospects long-term.
In this week’s episode: Is China stuck in a zero-Covid trap?
For this week’s cover story, Cindy Yu looks at Xi Jinping’s attempt to grapple with Covid. She joins the podcast, along with Ben Cowling, Chair Professor of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong. (01:42)
Also this week: Whose in The Zac Pack? And what is their influence in No.10?James Heale, The Spectator’s diary editor has written in this week’s magazine about The Zac Pack. A group made up of Carrie Johnson, Lord Goldsmith and some highly influential figures in the Westminster corridors. James is joined by Christian Calgie, a senior reporter at Guido Fawkes to discuss the power this group have in No.10. And their role in Pen Farthing’s animal evacuation out of Afghanistan. (16:40)
And finally: A glance back 70 years ago, the Queen as a Princess. This weekend marks the 70th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s accession to the throne. Graham Viney, author of The Last Hurrah: South Africa and the Royal Tour of 1947, writes this week's magazine about how she was prepared for that moment. He joins the podcast, along with the royal commentator and biographer, Angela Levin, author of ‘Harry: A biography of a Prince’. (28:41)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William MooreProduced by Natasha Feroze
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Sam's guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Philip Oltermann, whose new book The Stasi Poetry Circle: The Creative Writing Class that Tried to Win the Cold War, unearths one of the most unexpected corners of East German history. At the height of the Cold War, members of the GDR's notorious secret police got together regularly to workshop their poems. Was this a surveillance exercise, a training module for propagandists – or something stranger than either? And were their poems any good? Philip tells me about why poetry was such a big deal in the Eastern Bloc, how – had Petrarch but known – the sonnet was the perfect model for dialectical materialism, and where those poets are now...
Russell Norman is an award-winning restauranteur, writer and broadcaster, and the founder of the Polpo restaurant group. Last year he launched Trattoria Brutto. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Olivia about enjoying Spam fritters, blagging his way onto the Orient Express, and how he changed careers from teaching to cooking.
In this inaugural episode of Marshall Matters, Winston interviews Ignat Solzhenitsyn on the pursuit of art, the state of classical music, the lasting influence of his father Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn and the thunderous (or gentle) essay ‘Live Not By Lies’...
My dear sister Carmel died aged 57 on November 23, after a three-year cancer ordeal during which she displayed the most astonishing courage. I interviewed her twice on this podcast about her faith, her illness and her unquenchable optimism. I knew at the time that one day I'd have to record an episode paying tribute to her after she died, and here it is.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from Martin Vander Weyer on the crash of crypto. (00:47)
Next, Laurie Graham on the difficulties of downsizing. (04:20)
And finally, Michael Mosbacher on the history of the fur industry. (12:20)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
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Emma Gormley is managing director of daytime at ITV studios, where she controls flagship shows on the channel such as Good Morning Britain, Lorraine, This Morning and Loose Women. On the episode, she talks to Katy about what got her into broadcast journalism, the pressures of looking after some of the most popular shows on TV ('Having those four shows, which are juggernauts and are always in the press scrutiny, have A-lister talent... The role is everything'), and what it was like to work with Piers Morgan ('My ambition isn't to make vanilla television').
On Spectator TV this week Freddy Gray interviews the Fox News host Tucker Carlson on what role the US should play in the Russia/Ukraine conflict. Here is the full unedited conversation.
'Western European nations — which I think we at this point can trust to have weapons — should defend themselves. I mean, that's the idea of the nation state!' - Tucker Carlson
Watch the full Spectator TV episode here: https://youtu.be/YbaLQKhqwFc
In this week’s episode: Will Putin invade Ukraine? For this week’s cover story, Owen Matthews argues that if Putin is going to invade Ukraine, he will do so later rather than sooner. He joins the podcast, along with Julius Strauss who reports on the mood in Odessa for this week’s magazine. (00:42) Also this week: Is Brexit working? This week marks the second anniversary of Brexit. But how successful has it been? Joining the podcast to answer that question is Lord Frost who was Chief Negotiator of Task Force Europe from January 2020 until his resignation in December last year - and the journalist Ed West, who runs the Substack, Wrong Side of History (13:12) And finally: What is the allure of a classified ad? In the age of Google, classified adverts have become something of a rarity. In this week’s magazine, Anthony Whitehead explores the history, influence, and appeal of back-page ads. He joins the podcast along with Lawrence Bernstein who has been running a classified ad in the back pages of The Spectator for years. (26:18) Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectatortoday and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
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In this week's Book Club podcast, Sam is joined by Christopher Prendergast, Professor Emeritus of Modern French Literature at Cambridge and the author of the new book Living and Dying With Marcel Proust. In the centenary year of Proust's death (and the English publication of Swann's Way) he tells Sam (among other things) how the structure of A La Recherche is more straightforward than many think, why that madeleine was nearly a slice of toast, and about the great unsayable at the heart of Proust's great story.
All political parties have weaknesses for jargon and buzzwords, and the Chinese Communist Party more than most. It's why Party documents – whether they be speeches, Resolutions or reports – can be hard going. Sentences like the following (from the Resolution adopted at the Sixth Plenum) abound:
‘All Party members should uphold historical materialism and adopt a rational outlook on the Party’s history.’
‘We need to strengthen our consciousness of the need to maintain political integrity, think in big-picture terms, follow the leadership core, and keep in alignment with the central Party leadership’
In other words, full of platitudes and dense Marxist terminology.
So what is, then, the purpose of official Party documents? Can they ever reveal division within the Party, or say anything new at all? And throughout the fusty rhetoric, who is the audience, who are these words designed for?
On this episode, Cindy is joined by two guests expert at reading the Communist tea leaves. In this wide ranging – and slightly longer than usual – Chinese Whispers, they discuss the power of political language and how the Chinese Communist Party makes the most of it, why it’s important to control the historical narrative, and exactly what, if anything, does Xi Jinping Thought entail.
Her guests are Professor Rana Mitter, a historian of China at the University of Oxford and author of numerous books, the latest being China’s Good War;and Bill Bishop, who curates the newsletter Sinocism. Bill’s newsletter is a must-have round up of the most important political and economic China news, in your inbox four times a week. Very much worth every penny, and frequently featuring translated Party documents and Chinese articles.
To continue the conversation, they also mention a couple of past episodes of Chinese Whispers:
Cindy interviews the exiled Professor Sun Peidong about the witch hunt against her at a top Shanghai University: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/healing-the-cancer-of-the-cultural-revolution.
Cindy discusses just why Taiwan is so important to China with Rana and analyst Jessica Drun: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/why-does-china-care-about-taiwan-.
You can also find Cindy's review of Jing Tsu's Kingdom of Characters here: https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-great-chinese-puzzle-how-to-adapt-the-language-to-modern-communication-technologies.
On this week's episode, we'll hear from Nick Moar on Twitter’s decision to suspend Politics for All.
Next, Tanya Gold on the importance of chicken soup. And finally, Cindy Yu who has reviewed The Kingdom of Characters, a book on Chinese language.
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Freddy Gray and Lionel Shriver discuss Joe Biden's first year at the helm of the United States, and whether he is capable of tackling the challenges poised by Vladimir Putin, rampant inflation and his own capacity for gaffes.
In this week’s episode: Will the Red Wall crush Boris Johnson? In this week’s Spectator, our political editor James Forsyth and our deputy political editor Katy Balls report on the plot to oust the Prime Minister by Red Wall MPs, and No.10’s battle to save Boris. They join the podcast to give their up to date diagnosis. (00:43) Also this week: How to save the BBC? This week Nadine Dorries announced that she is planning a licence fee freeze. In the Spectator this week Paul Wood, a veteran journalist of the BBC writes about his love-hate relationship with the broadcaster. He joins the podcast now along with Domonic Minghella, writer, producer and former showrunner of the BBC’s Robin Hood. (14:45) And finally: Is it moral to do good with bad money? The Sackler family - whose fortune was built on getting thousands of Americans addicted to OxyContin, contributing to the country’s devastating opioid crisis - are now returning to philanthropy in the UK. But should their ill-gotten money be accepted for good causes? That’s the question Sam Leith and Matthew Parris have both asked for the Spectator’s website and magazine respectively. They both join the podcast to continue their moral musings. (28:07) Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectatortoday and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
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In this week's Book Club podcast, my guest is the gallerist James Birch - whose new book Bacon In Moscow describes how he achieved the seemingly impossible: taking an exhibition of Francis Bacon's work to Moscow in the late 1980s. James tells me how he negotiated between the volatile artist and the implacable Soviet bureaucracy with the help of a suave but menacing KGB middleman; and how, along the way, he nearly acquired an original Francis Bacon painting and nearly acquired a Russian wife.
Ed Smith is a food writer and chef who started his acclaimed blog Rocket and Squash while he was working as a solicitor. On today’s podcast, he tells Liv and Lara about how his passion for good food started, why he left the world of law, the changing nature of the London food scene, and the ingredients for the perfect restaurant review. Since 2017, he has authored On the Side and The Borough Market Cookbook, and his latest book, Crave: Recipes Arranged by Flavour, to Suit Your Mood and Appetite, was published last May.
On this week's episode, we'll hear from Katy Balls on who may take Boris Johnson’s place if he resigns. (00:49)
Next, Nicholas Farrell on the potential return of Silvio Berlusconi. (06:21)
And finally, And Lisse Garnett on what’s it like to date and influencer. (18:00)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
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Michelle Donelan was elected in 2015 as a Conservative MP for Chippenham. Since then, she has been re-elected twice and has risen in her political roles. Starting as a member of the education select committee and becoming a whip, to then being appointed a minister, first of children and families, and then in the latest cabinet reshuffle, becoming minister of state for higher and further education. On the episode, Michelle talks about how she had decided on a career in politics at the age of six, working for World Wrestling Entertainment, and what surprised her when she first entered politics.
In this week’s episode: Is Boris Johnson done for? In this week’s Spectator cover story, our political editor James Forsyth and our deputy political editor Katy Balls write about Boris Johnson’s perilous position in the aftermath of the Partygate scandal. They join the podcast to predict the Prime Minister’s fate. (00:40) Also this week: Is there a dangerous side to self-improvement? The hashtag manifesting has had billions of impressions on social media in the last year. Younger generations love it and Mary Wakefield explores this viral phenomenon in her column this week. She joins the podcast along with Ally Head, the health and sustainability editor for Marie Claire UK who has interviewed a number of manifestation experts. (14:36) And finally: how attractive are your feet? Kate Andrews, the Spectator’s economics editor, made an unusual discovery at the end of last year. Pictures of her in flip flops had made it onto a particular website, Wikifeet – ‘the internet’s largest collaborative celebrity feet website’. Kate wrote about her surprising discovery in this week’s magazine, and she joins the podcast along with Theresa Bedford, a personal finance and investing expert who has written about the best ways to sell pictures of your feet online. (28:59) Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectatortoday and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
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This week's Book Club podcast addresses one of the most misunderstood and vilified concepts in the culture wars: postmodernism. How did this arcane theoretical position escape from academia to become a social media talking point? What the hell is it anyway? What does Jeff Koons have to do with Foucault? Is postmodernism out to destroy capitalism, or is it capitalism incarnate? And what comes after postmodernism? Stuart Jeffries - author of Everything, All The Time, Everywhere: How We Became Postmodern - puts it all in quotes for us.
'If table tennis set the stage for China’s international diplomacy, then volleyball rebuilt the nation’s confidence', ran one article in the People's Daily around the time of the 2016 Rio Olympics. Sports has had a long political history in China, Cindy Yu's guest in this week's Chinese Whispers tells her. She is Dr Susan Brownell, Professor of Anthropology at the University of Missouri. She has been in and out of China since the 1980s, when she went to Peking University as a student and ended up represented the institution as a track runner.
On this episode, Cindy finds out why exactly China cares about the Olympics just so much. And it certainly does – Susan and Cindy reminisce about 2008, when China spent $100 million on a four-hour long opening ceremony and $7 billion on the whole Games. Working in Beijing that year, Susan saw, firsthand, the excitement that local officials and people put into the preparations ('There were huge programmes to teach English to everybody, especially in Beijing. You know, the old ladies and the taxi drivers'), but also the fear and intensity that came with this – 'all the government officials involved in the effort were just kind of quaking'.
The reason for all this – and the reason why a snub at the imminent Winter Olympics, as numerous countries around the world announce boycotts, will be remembered by China – is because sports has long been political. In the ping pong diplomacy of the 1970s, games played between Chinese and American teams allowed Nixon's America and Mao's China to get closer to each other. In the five women's volleyball team world victories of the 1980s, China was able to find a new source of national pride, as its people tried to recover from the wounds of the Cultural Revolution. In 2008, seven years after accession to the WTO and at a time when a more liberal China could still be imagined, the Summer Olympics provided a chance to show the world what 21st century China was all about. 'It was China's coming out party', Susan says.
To be sure, this Olympics matters less – winter Olympics always do, and after all, China has 'already emerged as a superpower'. But even so, it will have a political dimension – just see how China eagerly invited President Putin last year.
On the episode, they also make a brief digression into the demolitions that happened in Beijing – leading to headlines in the New York Times like 'Olympics Imperil Historic Beijing Neighborhood'. Susan corrects media reports and says that, in fact, in the areas reconstructed for the Games, it was mainly small shops not residences that were destroyed. She befriended one man who was dislocated from his mechanical repair shop there and became a taxi driver because of the Olympics, and Cindy reflects on her memories of a 'demolition era', where China's rapid growth meant the words chaiqian (demolish and relocate) were commonly marked on old buildings across Chinese cities. But tune in to hear how some ingenious Chinese – including members of Cindy's family – welcomed the destruction of their property as it allowed them to game the system of government compensation.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from Douglas Murray on why he thinks that the Coronavirus is over. (00:51)
Next, Nyrola Elimä on her family’s experiences as Uighurs living under the rule of the CCP. (08:27)
And finally, Theo Hobson on why the different factions of the Church of England need to come together. (16:54)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
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2022 has only just begun but a lot of minds in American politics are already looking towards the next presidential election in 2024. For the Republicans, the big question is will Donald Trump be their nominee and if he isn't who will fill that very large hole? Freddy Gray sits down with the editor of Modern Age, Daniel McCarthy.
In this week’s episode: Is it time to rip up the idea of vaccine passports? In The Spectator’s cover story this week, our economics editor Kate Andrews writes about her disdain for the idea of vaccine passports after being exposed to their flaws first hand. She joins the podcast along with Professor Julian Savulescu from the University of Oxford. (01:01) Also this week: Is Covid putting a spotlight on understudies? In this week's Spectator, Sarah Crompton champions the understudy as one of the heroes of the pandemic. These are the community of stand-in actors who have kept productions alive during Covid. She is joined on the podcast by Chris Howell, understudy to Michael Ball in Hairspray last year and currently stand-in for Julian Clary at the Palladium, to discuss. (18:06) And finally: Is being cancelled a badge of honour? The comedian Stewart Lee announced his pedal bin list for the new year. Essentially people he wants to put in the bin. In The Spectator this week Julie Burchill who is on the list writes about her excitement to be featured. Joining the podcast are two others who made the list: journalist Martha Gill and Winston Marshall formally of the band Mumford and Sons, but who this year is joining The Spectator family with his new show, Marshall Matters. (28:59) Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
www.spectator.co.uk/voucher Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
It's been one year since a large number of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol building in Washington DC to try and prevent the certification of the 2020 presidential election. There are still many questions surrounding that infamous day and to look for some answers Freddy Gray talks with John Daniel Davidson, a senior editor at the Federalist.
Sam's guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Natalie Livingstone – whose new book The Women of Rothschild: The Untold Story of the World's Most Famous Dynasty gives the distaff dish on the banking family's long history. She discovers that the Rothschild women have been just as remarkable as the men – from early modern matriarchs to jazz-club butterflies.
Poppy O'Toole (known online as Poppy_Cooks) is a Michelin-trained chef who lost her job in March of 2020 due to Covid. To pass the time during lockdown she started posting cooking videos on TikTok. Her potato series made her a viral sensation, garnering millions of views. This success has led to her publishing her first cookbook, Poppy Cooks: The Food You Need. On the podcast Poppy talks to Lara and Olivia about learning from a very young age how to cook with her grandma, the pressures of cooking in a bank, and what is needed to make the perfect TikTok food video.
Camilla Tominey is known on both sides of the pond as one of the world's go-to Royal correspondents. She began her career in journalism at the Hemel Hempstead Gazette before moving to cover the Royals for the Daily Express and is now the associate editor at the Telegraph. On the episode, she talks to Katy about how studying law ended up inspiring her to get into journalism, the differences between coving politics and the Royal family and the perils of engaging on social media.
'I've been accused on the same day of being a far-right extremist and a socialist.'
Had Covid-19 not continued to dominate the headlines this year, there's little doubt that the outcomes of the Brexit deal would have been at the forefront of our policy discussions. Britain has left the EU with a bespoke trade agreement, but it's far from perfect, as the Northern Ireland Protocol continues to cause problems, especially for trade flow between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. What have digital solutions done so far to get closer to our goal of seamless trade? Has it been enough? What problems are still left to solve and do the realities of Brexit simply mean that we can now never fully escape these new regulatory burdens?
To discuss, Kate Andrews is joined by Frank Dunsmuir, Head of Customs and International Trade Practice at Fujitsu; Stephen Kelly, Chief Executive of Manufacturing NI; and Shanker Singham, Chief Executive of Competere and an advisor to Fujitsu.
This podcast is sponsored by Fujitsu.
Pope Francis renewed his campaign against the Latin Mass this month, permitting his liturgy chief Archbishop Arthur Roche to issue all manner of threats to clergy celebrating the ancient liturgy. This 'clarification' has been greeted with horror by bishops around the world, including many who aren't keen on the old rite.
This episode of Holy Smoke puts this outrage in the context of what one distinguished priest calls the 'Wild West' of the Bergoglio pontificate. Never have I known such widespread despair among all but the most hardline liberal clergy. That this should be happening at Christmas underlines the grim unfairness of it all – and the desperate need for regime change in the Church. And if that means the Vatican as we know it ceases to exist, perhaps that isn't such a bad thing.
What are the greener solutions for heating Britain's homes? The government estimates that heating residential homes accounts for around 15 per cent of the UK's greenhouse gas emissions. For this reason, many households are concerned about the future of their gas boilers and energy bills. The government laid out its heat and building strategy this October, but do their plans address these worries? And if heat pumps and hydrogen boilers are inevitable, can we find a fair way to achieve that green future, without unnecessarily burdening the poorest in society?
Kate Andrews, The Spectator's economics editor discusses all this with three experts in the field: Chris O'Shea, the chief executive officer at Centrica, Dr Tina Fawcett, the acting leader of the energy research team at the Environmental Change Institute at the University of Oxford, and the co-director of the Centre for Research Into Energy Demand, and Jacob Young, who is the MP for Redcar and chairs the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Hydrogen.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Centrica.
Everyone knows somebody who has asthma. 5.4 million people in the UK are currently receiving treatment and 200,000 of them have severe asthma. A form of the condition that doesn’t typically respond well to medication. For many, asthma is a severe and debilitating condition but there exists a disconnect between its severity and the organisation of resources to treat it. When it comes to treating an illness, remission is rarely black and white, but for asthma it's commonly steroids.
What if anything is the alternative? Steroids have become the frenemy of both patients and the healthcare system. On the one hand, they’re cheap to administer and largely effective. But on the other, the side effects they produce can be very difficult for patients and costly.
Joining Kate Andrews to discuss all this is Gabby Perry, who is a student and has severe asthma; Syed Ali, medical affairs manager at AstraZeneca; David Price, professor of primary respiratory medicine at the University of Aberdeen who's currently leading the first international severe asthma registry.
This podcast is kindly sponsored and co-created by AstraZeneca. The patient's individual experience of severe asthma and discussion in this podcast are not medical advice. If you have questions about your own health please discuss with your health care professional.
Beatrice ‘Bee’ Wilson is an acclaimed food writer and journalist, who has authored several books on topics from how bees make honey to the history of the sandwich. On the podcast, Bee discusses the fad of clean eating, how the internet has changed food culture, working with her charity TasteEd, her time as a contestant on Masterchef, and the experience of working on her first cookbook, The Secret of Cooking. She has also written the foreword for the reissue of Kathleen le Riche’s 1950s book ‘Cooking Alone’, which is available now in all good bookshops.
The world economy is bouncing back from the economic impacts of Covid 19. It has been bumpy year of recovery with labour shortages and consistent inflationary pressures. But it hasn't been all doom and gloom.
Kate Andrews, the Spectator's economic's editor reviews this financial year. She is joined by Martin Vander Weyer, the Spectator's business editor and Paul Abberley, chief executive of Charles Stanley group.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by Charles Stanley. The recording took place just before the Bank of England announced the rise of interest rates to 0.25%.
On this week's very special Christmas episode, we'll hear from Lara Prendergast on why she’s planning to party hard this Christmas. (00:57)
Next, Christopher Howse on those helping to preserve the UK’s medieval churches. (06:31)
Then it's, Lionel Shriver on the Covid heretics she admires most. (16:41)
Followed by, Peter Hitchens on Christmas in Russia during the last days of the Soviet Union. (25:23)
Penultimately, we have Joanna Lumley on getting the key to the Sistine Chapel. (35:69)
And finally, Caroline Moore on how ghost stories became a British Christmas tradition. (41:51)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator magazine this Christmas and get the next 12 issues – in print and online – for just £12. Not only that but you’ll also receive a bottle of Taittinger champagne, worth £42, to see you through to the new year. Join the party today at www.spectator.co.uk/celebrate
Douglas Murray joins Freddy Gray for a look back at yet another tumultuous year in American politics. They discuss the irreconcilable divide between left and right, the origins of Covid-19, the war in Afghanistan, the fallout from the 2020 election and much more, including the temptations of a bottle of Glenmorangie whiskey.
Tzipi Hotovely is the current Israeli Ambassador to the UK. She was formerly a politician in Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party, having climbed the ranks to become deputy foreign minister. On the episode, she talks to Katy about her 2,500 strong wedding reception, campaigning for mother's rights in Israel and what modern-day anti-Semitism look like.
They also discuss the time when she had to be escorted out of the LSE for her own safety, in the face of an aggressive student protest. She reflects:
'Think about it. Does it make sense? I’m the only foreign ambassador that needs to have such heavy protection when I go on campus. Aren’t campuses all about freedom of speech?'
Welcome to the special Christmas episode of The Edition! In this episode, we look at five major topics that dominated the news this year and the pages of The Spectator. First up a review of the year in politics with our resident Coffee House Shot's team James Forsyth, Katy Balls and Isabel Hardman. We discuss how Boris seemed to make such a strong start to the year through the vaccine rollout, but squandered this goodwill with several own goals. We also touch on some of the big political moments of the year: Partygate, the Owen Paterson affair and of course Matt Hancock. (00:39) Next, we go global and look at three of the major powerhouses that took headlines this year. The EU, who ends the year in a panic over Russia, extreme Covid measures, and upcoming elections. The US started with an insurrection and ended with President Biden's plummeting poll numbers. Finally, China, who if you ask them say they are doing just fine. Lara Prendergast is joined by Jonathan Miller, Douglas Murray, and Cindy Yu to discuss the state of the world. (22:34) Then, a subject we all hoped to be leaving in the rearview mirror. Covid. With so much misinformation out there, the one important thing to have is good data, which is why we built The Spectator’s Covid data hub, and William Moore is joined on the podcast by three people who spend an ungodly amount of time going through those figures. The Spectator editor Fraser Nelson, Michael Simmons (who puts the data hub together and is making his podcast debut), and our economics editor Kate Andrews. (40:52) We chose our penultimate segment by looking back at all the most read articles of the year and chose the subject that appeared the most. The Royal Family won by a landslide, and it has been a big year for them. To break down the year’s big Royal moments and try and figure out why we are so obsessed with this family, Lara Prendergast and William Moore sat down with Freddy Gray and Patrick Jephson. (59:37) And finally, The Edition's producer has given William Moore an early Christmas present. The Church of England is one of his favourite things to talk about, because of how important he thinks it is for our society, but also because of the many issues he has with how it is run. Will gets stuck into it with four amazing priests – Marcus Walker, Daniel French, Nicholas Cranfield, and Steve Morris – who see out the year by telling us their favourite Christmas carols. (01:13:04) Hosted by Lara Prendergast & Will Moore Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator magazine this Christmas and get the next 12 issues – in print and online – for just £12. Not only that but you’ll also receive a bottle of Taittinger champagne, worth £42, to see you through to the new year. Join the party today at www.spectator.co.uk/celebrate
Sam's guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the writer Siri Hustvedt, whose latest book is a collection of essays: Mothers, Fathers and Others. She tells Sam what literary critics get wrong, why she has a rubber brain on her desk, how Ancient Greek misogyny is still with us, why the 17th-century Duchess of Newcastle has yet to get her due – and how long it took her to stop smiling politely when people said her husband wrote her books…
We've long known that where you live, who you live with, how you grew up and your quality of life can have long-lasting consequences for your health. Socioeconomic backgrounds are directly linked to healthcare outcomes. Those that live in inner-city neighbourhoods with dense populations and traffic are likely to have different health outcomes than residents living in leafy suburban London. But what does this mean for healthcare workers and policymakers? Do doctors now have to think about air pollution and green spaces to encourage a healthier population? is this holistic view of health helpful? Or indeed possible?
Kate Andrews is joined by a panel of experts to tackle these questions. Charmaine Griffiths is head of the British Heart Foundation, Chinmay Bhatt who is the managing director of the pharmaceutical company, Novartis in the UK and Ireland. And Sir Michael Marmot whose been looking at this question in today's Britain.
This podcast episode is sponsored by Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK and editorially owned by The Spectator. Views and ideas expressed are solely those of the contributors and do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the sponsor.
We've long known that where you live, who you live with, how you grow up, and how much money you have can have long lasting consequences for you health. Those that live in inner city neighbourhoods are far more exposed to health risks such as air pollution or drug abuse compared to leafy suburban residents.
Does this connection between socioeconomic background and health fall on the responsibility of healthcare professionals and policymakers? Do nurses and doctors now also have to think about air pollution and green spaces? And is this holistic view of health helpful and indeed possible?
In a special episode, Kate Andrews is joined by a panel of experts in this field. Charmaine Griffiths is the chief executive of the British Heart Foundation. Chinmay Bhatt is the managing director for the pharmaceutical company, Novartis in the UK and Ireland. And Sir Michael Marmot is a professor in epidemiology and public health at University College London.
This podcast episode is sponsored by Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK and editorially owned by The Spectator. Views and ideas expressed are solely those of the contributors and do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the sponsor.
When the tennis star Peng Shuai had a row with her former lover, the retired Party cadre Zhang Gaoli, she took to Weibo, the Chinese social media platform, where she had half a million followers. It was in that statement that she accused Zhang of starting their affair with sexual assault.
The statement was taken down within minutes, demonstrating the power, speed – and, arguably, the manual nature – of China’s online censors. On this podcast, we’ve previously talked about the nature of journalism in China – but what about social media, that inherently decentralised medium? What role does the digital space play in Chinese lives, how reliable is it as a source of Chinese public opinion, and how do people feel about being monitored and, potentially, censored?
On the podcast, Cindy Yu speaks to Manya Koetse, the founder of whatsonweibo.com, which collates and translates the latest trends and topics from the platform into English; as well as Shen Lu, a reporter for Protocol who covers China and tech.
With Manya, they muse about what censorship does to a nation's online discussion: the focus turns to policy issues like health and safety standards, or more superficial discussions like pets and travel. Yet during the early days of the pandemic last year, we both witnessed an incredible night where, on Weibo, WeChat, and other platforms, Dr Li Wenliang's death prompted a universal outpouring of grief. Manya tells Cindy that: ‘Dr Li was a story that was too big to censor... censoring all of those discussions would have actually caused more unrest’.
Since the pandemic, the digital sphere has also become more nationalistic:
'The Hong Kong protests definitely was the moment when I saw this new wave of nationalism online, which you’ve always had, but especially the last two years it’s been so clear. Covid-19 has only strengthened the wave that started back then’
Cindy also speaks to Shen Lu, who tells her about her experience being censored on Weibo when reporting on China's MeToo movement. Censorship has only become worse in recent years – she says: ' I can no longer tell which friend is which, because we started to self-censor'. More optimistically though, Lu tells Cindy that all the same political conversations among liberal minded young Chinese are still happening – simply offline, these days.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from Douglas Murray on the political fate of US vice president Kamala Harris. (00:58)
Next, Mary Wakefield on her experience during storm Arwen and subsequent media coverage. (09:39)
And finally, Peter Hitchens on his fears regarding the future of the city of Oxford. (15:58)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
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The trial of Ghislaine Maxwell has gripped the world, a woman accused of truly horrendous crimes. But have we as a society thrown out the cardinal rule of innocent until proven guilty? Freddy Gray sits down with her brother Ian Maxwell who believes that her treatment pre-trial has been nothing short of torturous.
When the Glasgow climate jamboree ended after two weeks, COP26 President Alok Sharma broke down in tears and seemed to apologise for his failure to get countries like China and India on side. But now that the dust has settled from Glasgow's COP26 summit, but how will this one be remembered? There were protestors, no shows from state leaders and new commitments were made whilst backroom wrangling had mixed results.
What are the key factors that make these summits a success? Given the mammoth task ahead of the countries that have committed to tacking climate change, is it realistic to expect real change?
In this podcast, Cindy Yu is joined by seasoned professionals in climate change and sustainability. Harriet Lamb, CBE and CEO of Ashden which is an organisation that supports and promotes sustainable energy enterprises. Emily Thornberry MP who is shadow attorney general but was Labour's shadow international trade secretary at the time of recording this podcast. Finally, Simone Rossi, who is the CEO of EDF Energy.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by EDF Energy.
In this week’s episode: Is there any substance to the government’s new drugs agenda? In The Spectator this week Fraser Nelson writes the cover story on the government’s new 10 years drugs plan and finds that while on the surface this seems like a new war on drugs, it might actually have some thoughtful and effective policies buried within it. Fraser is joined on the podcast by Christopher Snowden, the head of lifestyle economics at the Institute of Economic Affairs. (00:52) Also this week: Can Islam save Britain’s churches? Britain has for a long time now has been becoming a more and more secular nation. This has meant that many churches that used to have full pews are at risk of turning into luxury flats or another Tesco Express. But in this week’s Spectator, Tanjil Rashid highlights another destiny for these buildings. Conversion into mosques. In the piece, he argues these buildings should continue being a place of faith even if that faith is not Christian. He joins Lara along with Christopher Howse, the author of many a book about religious history and architecture. (13:46) And finally: Are we witnessing the twilight of the necktie? Lockdowns meant we all got used to working from home, which resulted in a much more casual dress code. It feels very strange to wear a suit around your own house. But Jonathan Miller is worried that this may lead to the end of the necktie, a fashion accessory he believes is an important symbol of traditional masculinity. He joins Lara to expand on that idea along with fashion historian Dr. Kimberly Chrisman-Campbell. (25:47) Hosted by Lara Prendergast Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
www.spectator.co.uk/voucher Listen to Lara's food podcast Table Talk: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcasts/table-talk
Sam's guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Kevin Birmingham, whose new book The Sinner and The Saint: Dostoevsky, A Crime and its Punishment, tells the extraordinary story of how Dostoevsky came to write Crime and Punishment – and the under-explored story of the real-life murderer whose case inspired it. Physical agony, Siberian exile, vicious state censorship, old-school nihilists – and the astonishing personal resilience of one of Russia's greatest writers... it's all here.
Lord Alf Dubs is a politician. He moved to the UK as a child when the Nazis invaded what was then Czechoslovakia, and went on to become an MP, a parliamentary under secretary for Northern Ireland, and a member of the House of Lords. He is a campaigner for refugee rights.
On the podcast, he tells Lara and Olivia about his evacuation from Prague, eating langoustine straight from a loch in Northern Ireland, and putting on a 'Stormont stone'.
If you enjoyed this episode, then sign up to Olivia's newsletter, The Take Away. You'll get her delicious recipes, and The Spectator's best food and drink writing. Go to spectator.co.uk/oliviapotts
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from Wolfgang Munchau on the political situation in Germany. (00:49)
Next, Andrew Watts on his year long battle against a parking ticket. (11:01)
And finally, Hannah Tomes on her love of Baileys. (15:33)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
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Bridget Phillipson is the shadow education secretary and MP for Houghton and Sunderland South. On this episode, recorded just before Labour's last reshuffle where Bridget was promoted, she talks to Katy about what it was like to go to Oxford from a humble upbringing, how Labour can win the next election, and why she didn't take career advice from school telling her to be a fence-builder.
In this week’s episode: Is the current NHS crisis a bug or a feature? In the Spectator’s cover story this week, our economics editor Kate Andrews writes about the state of the NHS and why even though reform is so clearly needed it's nearly politically impossible to try to do so. She joins the podcast with Isabel Hardman who is currently writing a book on the history of the NHS. (00:53)
Also this week: How is the nation feeling about the Omicron variant? The news of the Omicron variant has not only worried the public about what may become of their Christmas plans, but the government has also reacted by bringing in new travel restrictions and mask mandates. Two of our columnists Lionel Shriver and Rod Liddle have both given their views on the latest pandemic precautions in week’s magazine and on the podcast they continue those conversations. (16:25) And finally: Now it’s December can we open the Baileys? Now it’s December, Christmas celebrations can begin. Our own Hannah Tomes has written about one of her favourite festive delights. Baileys. She joins the podcast along with another Irish cream connoisseur, Lara Prendergast, and the Spectator’s Deputy Editor Freddy Gray who heard we were drinking Baileys and couldn’t resist. (33:02) Hosted by Lara Prendergast Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
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Listen to Isabel's podcast on the NHS post Covid, Aftershock:
https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/The-NHS-edition
Money is not generally discussed at the dinner table, and inheritance even less so. So, do parents do enough to pass down responsible personal finance habits to the next generation? And if not, how can those conversations be had? On this live recording of The Spectator’s Women With Balls podcast, deputy political editor Katy Balls will be joined by Charlotte Ransom and Dame Helena Morrissey to discuss breaking the taboo around money and offering practical tips on investing across the generations.
Sponsored by Netwealth.
This year Faber and Faber started the project of republishing the late Nobel Laureate William Golding's back catalogue -- starting with Pincher Martin, The Inheritors and The Spire. Sam is joined by his daughter Judy Golding -- author of The Children of Lovers: A Memoir of William Golding By His Daughter-- to talk about Golding the writer and Golding the man. What were the deep fears that drove his work and were eased by drink? How did the war change his worldview? And what was the nature of the religious sensibility that underpinned his visionary allegories of folly and evil?
Sun Yat-sen was the founding father of China's first republic, when the Qing dynasty was overthrown. Here he sits, with his successor Chiang Kai-Shek standing behind. They were two among many intellectuals and politicians whose agitations helped contribute to modern Chinese national identity. In his book, The Invention of China, journalist Bill Hayton argues that this is where 'China' and the key parts that contribute to a modern Chinese identity - territorial claims, ethnicities, history and so on - were moulded into an 'imagined' nationalism.
Cindy Yu interviews Bill in this episode, and they discuss everything from the contribution of foreign aggressors (especially Japan) to China's modern identity, to the ferocious intellectual debate about which ethnicities are 'Chinese' - just Han? Or Mongols, Manchurians, Tibetans and Uyghurs too? Plus - is any national identity around the world not constructed?
Katy Balls speaks to broadcaster Jeremy Vine; Oxford ethics professor Dominic Wilkinson; former Liberal Democrats leader Vince Cable; Penguin books editor Henry Eliot; and Spectator journalists Cindy Yu, Fraser Nelson, James Forsyth and Sam Leith.
We discuss Boris's CBI speech, whether a lockdown of the unvaccinated is morally justifiable, and what makes a classic book.
Click here to watch the full episode.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from Douglas Murray who says that the case of Kyle Rittenhouse shows nothing in America matters more than your identity. (00:55)
Next, Henry Eliot wonders, what makes a book a classic? (08:30)
And finally, Sam Holmes tells us about his time as a Hamleys Christmas elf. (16:31)
Produced and presented by Max Jeffery
Subscribe to The Spectator today and we'll send you a bottle of Johnnie Walker Black Label worth £30
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In this week’s episode: Just who is protesting new Covid rules in Europe? In The Spectator this week we have three articles that cover the riots and protests all over Europe about new covid policies. Two of them report the scene on the ground in different countries. Lionel Barber and Nick Farrell write respectively about the situations in Holland and Italy and talk on the podcast about why this is happening now and how much more it could escalate. (00:45)
Also this week: Is China having its own hand and the #MeToo moment? A spotlight has been shined on China in recent days, due to the troubling series of events surrounding the Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai. Who after making claims of being pressured into a sexual relationship with a CCP official, disappeared for days, as all mentions of her claims were wiped from social media. Cindy Yu writes about this story in this week’s Spectator and talks on the podcast about the history of China’s mistress culture. (14:17) And finally: What does it take to be a Hamleys elf? Christmas is coming and if there are children in your life begging for this season's hottest toy, you might find yourself at Hamleys, the world’s oldest toys store, and as you enter you may well be greeted by a festive elf. But what’s it like being one of these red and green-clad friends of Father Christmas? Our podcast producer Sam Holmes writes in The Spectator this week about his experience as an elf when he was 19. Sam is joined on the podcast by Mark Campbell, the current Lego man at Hamleys and Sam’s old boss from his elf days. (21:00) Hosted by Lara Prendergast Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
www.spectator.co.uk/voucher Listen to Lara’s food-based interview show, Table Talk:
https://www.spectator.co.uk/tabletalk
Freddy Grays talks to Mark P Mills, the energy and tech expert at the Manhattan Institute think tank about his new book 'The Cloud Revolution'.
On this week's Book Club podcast, Sam is joined by one of the most distinguished poets in the language, Paul Muldoon, to talk about his new book Howdie-Skelp. He tells Sam of his unfashionable belief in inspiration; why he thinks poetry – even his – needn't be difficult just because it's difficult; how writing song lyrics differs from writing poetry; and how he came to work with Sir Paul McCartney.
Theo Fennell is a jewellery maker. He has been designing and making jewellery in Fulham, London for over forty years and in 2008 founded The Original Design Partnership. On the podcast, he talks to Lara and Liv about his childhood growing up in the colonies during the last days of the British Empire. He gives his top tips for being the perfect guest (so you never have to cook again), and his love of the fish finger sandwich.
For more from the world of food, subscribe to Olivia Pott's newsletter, The Take Away.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from Katy Balls on the political power of Angela Rayner. (00:49)
Then Lionel Shriver on the unscientific divisions between the vaxxed and unvaxxed. (06:52)
And finally, Nick Newman looks at the differences between British and American cartooning. (15:47)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
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Freddy Gray talks to Pano Kanelos, the president of the newly announced University of Austin, about what his project is hoping to achieve.
Sarah Vine is a columnist for the Daily Mail and formerly wife of Cabinet minister Michael Gove. On the podcast, Sarah talks to Katy about growing up in Italy, working her way up tabloid journalism (including what it was like to work for Paul Dacre), and her reflections on being a columnist with a politician (ex-)husband.
In this week’s episode: Are migrants the new munitions? In our cover story this week, our political editor James Forsyth looks at the growing troubles in Eastern Europe and how this small part of the world stage could end up splintering the scaffolding of global peace. He is joined on the podcast by Mary Dejevsky, a columnist for the Independent. (00:42) Also this week: Will the monarchy survive past Elizabeth II? The royal family is not in a good way, with the Queen missing multiple appearances due to ill health, a prince under investigation, and the continuing cold war between William and Harry, will the monarchy survive past Elizabeth II? That’s the question Freddy Gray asks in this week’s Spectator. He joins the podcast along with Patrick Jephson a former private secretary to Princess Diana, who also covers the royals in this week’s issue. (17:21) And finally: Why is the mullet making a comeback? Mullets. A hairstyle made popular in the 70s, but more recently the butt of many a joke is making something of a fashionable comeback. Hannah Moore writes about the return of the mullet in this week’s Spectator. She joins talks on the podcast with Mike Lawson of Beardbrand who has also noticed this retro return. (29:09) Hosted by Lara Prendergast Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
www.spectator.co.uk/voucher Listen to Lara’s food-based interview show, Table Talk:
https://www.spectator.co.uk/tabletalk
Sam's guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the historian Tessa Dunlop. Tessa's new book is Army Girls: The Secrets and Stories of Military Service from the Final Few Women Who Fought In World War Two. She tells Sam about how she gathered testimony and formed friendships with the nonagenarian veterans of the Second World War amid the Covid lockdown; about the class-ridden rivalries between the women's services; and how while still not officially in the front line, women during the war nevertheless found themselves in the thick of it.
Deng Xiaoping used to say, 'let some people get rich first'. Four decades on from the start of his economic experiment with marketisation, Xi Jinping is, these days, talking about 'common prosperity' instead - prosperity for the many, not the few. But what does this new economic direction mean in practice, and could it, in fact, stifle the very market forces that made so-called 'socialism with Chinese characteristics' so successful?
Joining Cindy to read between the tea leaves is George Magnus, economist and author of Red Flags: Why Xi's China is in Jeopardy. We discuss how unequal China really is, what we know about common prosperity so far (e.g. arm-twisted philanthropy from billionaires like Jack Ma) and what Chinese public opinion might make of it all.
Freddy Gray talks to Iain Dale about his new book 'The Presidents', which takes a look at every holder of the office from George Washington to Joe Biden.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from Mary Wakefield about the pattern of misandry in modern media. (00:48)
Then Lloyd Evans on the British tradition of the pub theatre. (07:19)
And finally, Tanya Gold on getting drunk on tiramisu. (13:55)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
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Freddy Gray talks to Michael Wolff about his latest book 'Too Famous', and looks back at how the quest for fame has affected politics over the last two decades.
In this week’s episode: Who is advising the PM? In our cover story this week, our editor Fraser Nelson takes a deep dive into No. 10 politics and finds a court of chaos inside. With a large parliamentary majority, an extremely young team and the departure of Domonic Cummings is there anyone left in the Conservative party who can stand up to the Prime Minister? Fraser talks on the podcast with former Conservative party chairman, Kenneth Baker on the reign of King Boris. (00:45)
Also this week: Should the West be prepared to defend Taiwan? Tensions over the island of Taiwan are rising at an alarming rate. In The Spectator this week Alessio Patalano, professor of war and strategy at King’s College, and Elbridge Colby, author of Strategy of Denial, both write about what the West can do to defend Taiwan’s autonomy. On the podcast, Alessio and Elbridge talk further about the future of this disputed territory. (17:09) And finally: How do you join the world of underground chess? One of the world’s oldest games is making something of a comeback, with underground chess clubs starting up all over the world. Jamie Njoku-Goodwin, CEO of UK music, writes about this phenomenon in this week’s Spectator. He joins the podcast along with Nick Moar, The Spectator’s social media editor and chess enthusiast to discuss their favourite pastime. Nick and James are also joined by the grandmaster himself, Malcolm Pein who wanted in on the fun. (30:56) Hosted by Lara Prendergast Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
www.spectator.co.uk/voucher Listen to Lara’s food-based interview show, Table Talk:
https://www.spectator.co.uk/tabletalk
Sam's guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Armando Iannucci – the satirist behind Alan Partridge, The Thick of It, Veep and The Death of Stalin. What many of his fans might not know is that he's also a devoted scholar of Milton – whose influence is to be found in his first published poem Pandemonium: Some Verses on the Current Predicament. Armando tells Sam what hurt him into verse, identifies the moment that led him to abandon an English Literature PhD for a career in comedy – and explains why there's as much sadness as savagery in his mock-epic description of the Covid epidemic.
Dee Rettali is an artisan baker. She founded Patisserie Organic in 1998, and afterwards the Fortitude Bakehouse in London. She is the author of Baking with Fortitude: sourdough cakes and bakes. On the podcast, she tells Lara and Liv about enjoying tinned fish, relying on the custom of cyclists in lockdown, and learning from 1970s French patisserie that baking was better without kitchen machinery.
Over 25 million smart meters have been installed in homes across Britain. Does this mean that smart meters have been a success? In 2019, The Spectator hosted Smart Energy GB on a podcast to discuss their rollout and now we are back again to reflect on what we have learnt over the years and where there are still challenges.
Have people’s understanding of smart meters changed? And are they really as efficient as they seem? Joining Kate Andrews to discuss where smart meters can fit into the net zero ambition is Fflur Lawton, head of public affairs at Smart Energy GB; Adam John, a reporter at Utility Week; and Jerome Mayhew, a Conservative MP who sits on the Environmental Audit Committee.
This podcast is sponsored by Smart Energy GB.
Fraser Nelson is joined by Spectator columnist Lionel Shriver; Gavin Schmidt, senior adviser at Nasa; Benny Peiser, director of the Global Warming Policy Foundation; Jacob Heilbrunn, editor of National Interest; Labour MP Stella Creasy; and Spectator journalists.
We discuss whether Biden is on the decline, how the Tories found themselves in another sleaze scandal, and whether there's a problem with buy now, pay later schemes.
Click here to watch the full episode.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear from Lionel Shriver on how the Biden Administration’s border policies are a gift for Trump and the Republicans. (00:52)
Then Kit Wilson on what we can expect from Mark Zuckerberg’s Metaverse. (09:53)
Third, it's Peter Hanington talking about his love of haikus. (18:48)
And finally, Robert Porter’s notes on the bagpipes. (24:32)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
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Freddy Gray talks to Amber Athey and Matt McDonald about the results of the race for the governorship of Virginia and more.
Ruth Davidson is the former leader of the Scottish Conservatives and now sits in the House of Lords as the Baroness of Lundin Links. On the episode, she speaks to Katy about her happy upbringing as an active tomboy despite a near-death car accident at the age of five; her mother's reaction when she left the BBC to join the Scottish Tories ('she was appalled'); and gave a punchy defence of Theresa May ('I absolutely think the Party did her wrong').
In this week’s episode: Has the Biden Presidency stalled or crashed?
In our cover story this week, Freddy Gray assesses the state of the Biden presidency. With steadily lowering approval ratings, a disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal, and this week’s failure of the Democrats to hold on to the Virginia Governorship, how much trouble is the US’s oldest inaugurated president in? Freddy talks to Lara along with Emily Tamkin, the US editor of the New Statesman and co-host of the World Review Podcast. (00:49) Also this week: Should we welcome or fear the Metaverse?
Kit Wilson writes in The Spectator this week about Facebook’s new venture into the Metaverse, a concept that most of us probably hadn’t heard of until last week. To layout the roadmap for what our journey into this new digital reality might look like, Kit joins the podcast along with Tom Renner, a software engineer for NavVis. (12:55) And finally: Is the idea of ‘buy now pay later’ financially precarious for young people?
Gus Carter has been exploring the new Swedish-born app that is blowing up with the youth: Klarna. On its face, it seems to just be a modern replacement for a credit card with some gifts thrown in, but could this ‘buy now pay later’ model have some unexpected consequences for its users? Gus talks about his findings along with the author of the blog Young Money Iona Bain. (27:33) Hosted by Lara Prendergast
Produced by Sam Holmes Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
www.spectator.co.uk/voucher Listen to Lara’s food-based interview show, Table Talk:
https://www.spectator.co.uk/tabletalk
Over the past months, under the weight of a global pandemic, scientists and medical professionals have had to rethink the way they do things. We found not one - but numerous - vaccines within the space of a year; new treatments have been discovered, some repurposed from existing drugs; and manufacturers and politicians alike have had to think creatively to plug the gaps of the pandemic.
There must be lessons we can learn from this experience - things that big pharma and scientists can do better in the future, having this time round done so in emergency circumstances. That’s the topic of this special episode of The Spectator’s podcast, sponsored by the pharmaceutical company Novartis.
I’m delighted to be joined by a panel of expert guests. Chinmay Bhatt, Managing Director in the UK for Novartis, who we pressed on the importance of data science in pharmaceuticals. Professor Paul Martin, a sociologist tasked with finding better ways to collaborate between the medical sector and other sectors, who enlightened us on the un-mined potential of repurposing existing drugs. And Dr Nicole Mather, the Life Sciences Lead at the technology company IBM, who has been crucial to the UK’s pandemic response and working with regulators. She nicely summed up - through the lens of regulation - the kind of corners that can be cut, without compromising on healthcare quality:
'What Covid has been really helpful in, is helping us think about what's really essential. So a lot of the regulatory process has been pared back, or been able to run in parallel. So regulators are not doing away with any steps - just addressing them in a more thoughtful fashion'.
In this week’s Book Club podcast, Sam's guest is Claire Tomalin. Claire’s new book, The Young H G Wells: Changing the World, tracks the extraordinary life and rocket-powered career of one of the most influential writers of the Edwardian age. She talks to Sam about how drapery’s loss was literature’s gain, why casting the goatish Wells as a #metoo villain isn’t quite right - and why we should all be reading Tono-Bungay.Subscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher:
www.spectator.co.uk/voucher
It's not easy to talk about the Cultural Revolution inside China - let alone teach it. In recent years, one of the last professors to have taught the period has been hounded out of her role at a top university. Sun Peidong has now taken a post at Cornell, after Chinese journals stopped publishing her work, the university party secretary banned her lectures, and even her students turned on her - denouncing Sun as if she were an 'anti-revolutionary' of the very period she taught.
In this frank discussion, Cindy Yu interviews Sun about academic freedom and diversity of thought on Chinese campuses; about what it was like to shed light on a taboo subject to younger generations; and why she left China. It's an indictment on modern Chinese discourse that an internationally-renowned scholar such as Sun is now lost to Chinese academia.
‘Look at China, now we have a huge impact. If we cannot handle our own social problems, what kind of impact will we leave to the whole [of] humankind?’ She asked me. And on whether China has got over the Cultural Revolution:
‘If you forbid people, professors, or students, or young generation, to have [the] opportunity to fully discover the history – and the dark side of the history – how can you imagine that our nation can move on?’
As the global shortage of gas continues to drive up energy costs, we take a look at these rising energy prices and the cost of living crisis that looms over the UK. How can we protect people from fuel poverty when bills are predicted to rise by hundreds of pounds? Moreover, as COP26 kicks off, how can this crisis be framed within the government's plans for a green future? Kate Andrews speaks to Rebecca Sedler, the director for policy and regulation at EDF, Alan Brown MP, shadow SNP spokesperson on energy and climate change and Jonny Marshall, who is a senior economist at the Resolution Foundation.
This podcast is sponsored by EDF.
Freddy Gray is joined by Peter Hitchens, Spectator contributor; Glenn Greenwald, journalist and author; Tim Spector, principal investigator on the ZOE app; Rod Liddle, The Spectator's associate editor; Ben Smith, New York Times media columnist; Peter Betts, lead climate negotiator for the European Union, 2010-16; and Spectator journalists.
We discuss the Autumn Budget, whether drugs or mental illness are more to blame for terrorism, and the people behind Frances Haugen's Facebook leak.
To watch the episode, click here.
On this week's episode, we hear from Max Jeffery on his first impressions visiting Israel. (00:45)
Then Kate Andrews on her difficult relationship with Newcastle Football Club. (04:58)
And finally, Maggie Fergusson's review of the new book Blacksmith: Apprentice to Master: Tools and Traditions of an Ancient Craft. (10:53)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
Freddy Gray talks to Ben Schreckinger, political correspondent at Politico, about his new book, The Bidens: Inside the First Family's Fifty-Year Rise to Power.
These days the Conservative party is not just associated with the colour blue - it’s also the winner of the red wall seats; the pursuer of a green agenda. But do these new identities, achieved under Boris Johnson, all fit together? In particular, critics often label tackling climate change as a middle class pursuit, not what ‘real people’ around the country are concerned with. And indeed, the Treasury and BEIS have put the costs of net zero at £70bn a year, so what does that mean for the less well off in society, especially those in the Tories’ new constituencies in the red wall?
This discussion was recorded at Conservative Party Conference on October 5. Cindy Yu, The Spectator's broadcast editor, talks to Andrew Griffith MP, the government's net zero business champion and parliamentary private secretary; Sarah Longlands, chief executive of the Centre for Local Economic Strategies; and Nick Baird, group director of corporate affairs at Centrica, which is kindly sponsoring this podcast.
In this week’s episode: Can Cop26 deliver on its grand promises?
In our cover story this week, Fraser Nelson assesses the state of the upcoming Cop26 summit in Glasgow and questions their very effectiveness in dealing with climate change in a world of global players with very different priorities. He is joined on the podcast by reporter Jess Shankleman, who is covering Cop26 for Bloomberg. (00:48)
‘This one’s in Glasgow, but you’d best think of it as the Edinburgh Festival for environmentalism. Lots of fun, lots of debates, lots of protests, lots of street action, but not really any much of concrete substance.’ – Fraser Nelson
Also this week: Is it moral to bribe your child to go to church?
Theo Hobson is paying his daughter to go to church and get confirmed. But how holy is this practice? Theo's idea is judged on the podcast by a holy trinity of priests: Steve Morris, Daniel French, and Nicholas Cranfield. (13:28)
‘I’d be very worried if there was a suggestion that they as younger people are being prevailed upon to answer the right questions and say ‘actually Dad I do now believe!’ Simply for the exchange of some filthy lucre.’ – Rev. Nicholas Cranfield
And finally: What are the ups and downs of book clubs?
Author Elisa Segrave was cancelled from a book club event after an email of hers apparently ‘hurt’ some members. This inspired her analysis of the book club concept for this week’s Spectator. Along with Simon Savidge the founder of Savidge Reads, she talks about her and her friends' bumpy relationship with book clubs. (25:10)
‘I was always really excited for what that next choice would be because it was like a mystery until that final moment or final glass of wine.’ – Simon Savidge
Hosted by Lara Prendergast
Produced by Sam Holmes
In this week’s Book Club podcast, Sam Leith's guest is the historian Jane Ridley, talking about her new book George V: Never A Dull Moment. She tells him there’s so much more to the 'boring' monarch than shooting grouse and collecting stamps. Hear how he navigated some of the worst constitutional crises in memory, saved the British monarchy as the grand dynasties of Europe started toppling… and then inadvertently imperilled it again by his treatment of his son and heir.
Rachel Roddy is an author and food writer based in Rome. She has written for several publications, including the Financial Times, the Telegraph, Food and Wine, The Spectator, and has a weekly column in the Guardian. On the podcast, Rachel talks to Lara and Liv about growing up in Hertfordshire, coping with an eating disorder, why she chose to move to Italy and life under lockdown there over the past 18 months. Her latest book, An A to Z of Pasta, is available to buy now.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear Douglas Murray on how the Prevent scheme has lost sight of its founding intention. (00:43)
Then Owen Matthews on Rome’s rubbish. (12:35)
And finally, Lionel Shriver gives her review of Dave Chappelle’s transgressive new Netflix Special. (19:20)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
Nikki da Costa is the former director of legislative affairs at No 10 Downing Street. She served under Theresa May and Boris Johnson and was pivotal in the government's wrangles with Parliament over Brexit. On the podcast, she talks to Katy Balls about why she and David Davis didn't quite get on; why she quit May's government and rejoined under Johnson; and what it was like to carry through her brainchild - the prorogation of Parliament - under scrutiny from the entire country and, eventually, the Supreme Court.
In this week’s episode: Who is Eric Zemmour – can he take on President Macron?
In our cover story this week, Freddy Gray looks at the rise of Eric Zemmour, the TV presenter who looks set to stir up French politics ahead of next year’s election. Freddy is joined on the podcast by Sophie Pedder, Paris bureau chief for The Economist and a biographer of French President Emmanuel Macron to discuss. (00:46)
Also this week: Is the Prevent anti-radicalisation programme failing?
Douglas Murray says in this week’s issue that Prevent is failing to tackle Islamic extremism in the UK. He talks about the changes Prevent needs to make along with William Baldet, a Prevent Coordinator. (11:46)
And finally: what’s it like to dine naked?
Last week Cosmo Landesman went to a dinner party with a twist. All the guests were naked. Cosmo gives some nude dining tips along with Olivia Potts, our cookery columnist. (26:19)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast
Produced by Sam Holmes
Freddy Gray talks to the academic Victor Davis Hanson about his latest book The Dying Citizen: How Progressive Elites, Tribalism, and Globalization Are Destroying the Idea of America.
In this week's Book Club podcast Sam is joined by the historian James Holland to talk about his fascinating new book Brothers In Arms: One Legendary Tank Regiment's Bloody War from D-Day to VE-Day. James's story follows the Sherwood Rangers from El Alamein to the D-Day Landings, and on through the last push through Europe into Germany. On the podcast he tells Sam how he put together this richly detailed account and what it was like, hour by hour and day by day, for the men who fought in tanks.
Will the green agenda really create new jobs - or will the cost of net zero dampen economic growth? Katy Balls, the Spectator's deputy political editor is at Conservative Party Conference for a live recording with:
Will Gardiner, CEO of Drax
Jake Berry MP, chair of the Northern Research Group
Bim Afolami MP, chair of the Parliamentary Renewable & Sustainable Energy Group Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce
Ben Houchen, Tees Valley Mayor
Aftershock is an occasional podcast series by award-winning journalist Isabel Hardman. In every episode she asks how we can fix the damage caused by the pandemic to a different part of British society.
In this episode, Isabel looks at how schoolchildren have been affected by 18 months of lockdowns and remote schooling. Some have been hit harder than others: in fact, there are now more children missing from school rolls than at the start of the pandemic. Where have these ‘ghost children’ gone? And does the government’s response come anywhere close to being enough to stop Covid from being a blight on the rest of their lives, rather than an episode most can easily recover from?
Featuring: James Scales, head of the Education Policy Unit at the Centre for Social Justice; two young people from the Leicestershire Cares charity; Jan Appleton, who is the director of the Eagle’s Nest Project; Lord Blunkett who was education secretary in the Blair government, Rachel de Souza, the children's commissioner for England, and Robert Halfon, the chair of the education select committee.
Last week, the US and Canada each sent a warship through the Taiwan Strait and Taiwan has appealed to the US for faster delivery of fighter aircraft. It's been a tense month in the Strait, kicked off by China's celebration of its national day on October 1 through flying a record number of aircraft through Taiwan's air defense identification zone. Could war really happen? Could China really successfully take Taiwan?
Cindy Yu speaks to Oriana Skylar Mastro, fellow at Stanford and the American Enterprise Institute, whose detailed piece for Foreign Affairs took a close look at China's military options: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/china/2021-06-03/china-taiwan-war-temptation.
To find out just why China cares about Taiwan so much, tune into a previous episode of Chinese Whispers where Cindy Yu speaks to Professor Rana Mitter and analyst Jessica Drun: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/why-does-china-care-about-taiwan-.
Can the company that feeds the world beef burgers lead hospitality in reaching net zero? That’s what McDonald’s hopes to do as they lay out their Plan for Change 2021. With 1400 restaurants, over 23,000 British and Irish farmers and four million customers visiting them every day, will it be enough? Or is it just a drop in the ocean? McDonald’s strategy will result in a number of sustainability-oriented improvements in four key areas: Planet, People, Restaurants, and Food. We’ll be taking a look at each one of these, in addition to discussing the challenges the fast-food giant will face. Kate Andrews is joined by a panel of three guests to discuss this and more:
Duncan Baker, Conservative MP for North Norfolk.
Giles Gibbons, founder and CEO, Good Business.
Beth Hart, Vice President Supply Chain and Brand Trust at McDonald’s.
This podcast is sponsored by McDonald’s.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear Douglas Murray on how the pandemic has made cynics of us all. (00:50)
Paul Wood on why after 10 years he and his family are leaving Lebanon. (08:02)
And finally Tanya Gold gives her review of a Batman-themed restaurant. (14:32)
Produced and presented by Sam Holmes
In this week’s episode: Why are a growing number of people putting the planet before parenthood? Madeleine Kearns writes about this phenomenon in this week’s issue and thinks that some of these fears might be unfounded. Tom Woodman author of Future is one of these people that Madeleine’s piece talks about. Tom has very real worries about bringing a child into the world. It's not only the least green thing he could do but also that the standard of living for that child could be severely limited due to a climate catastrophe. (00:47)
Also this week: Has Boris Johnson brought Conservatism full circle? That’s the argument Tim Stanley makes in this week’s Spectator. He joins Lara on the podcast along with one of the MPs mentioned in the piece, Steve Baker. (12:50)
And finally: What is the state of the Booker Prize shortlist? The Booker Prize shortlist has been released and it’s fair to say one of our critics Philip Hensher is not too impressed with the batch. But how are these books selected? What are the criteria? Can a Booker Prize winner be funny? To answer all those questions, Philip joins Lara along with The Spectator’s Books Editor and former Booker judge, Sam Leith. (20:51)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast
Produced by Sam Holmes
In this week’s Book Club podcast Sam's guest is Joan Bakewell, who talks on the podcast about her new book The Tick Of Two Clocks: A Tale of Moving On. Itdescribes how she made the decision to sell the house she lived in for half a century, and what it meant to her to face up to old age, and take stock of the past.
Laurie Woolever is a writer and editor, and for nearly a decade worked as the assistant to the late author, TV host and producer Anthony Bourdain. On the podcast, she talks to Lara and Liv about tending to garden peas from the age of four, finishing co-writing a book with Bourdain after he passed away, and finding comfort at a local bakery during the pandemic.
The University of Nottingham has been forced to abandon its sinister attempt to ban Fr David Palmer from becoming its Catholic chaplain because his defence of unborn life might upset snowflakes. In this episode of Holy Smoke, I talk to one of Fr Palmer's key allies, Ryan Christopher, UK director of Alliance Defending Freedom, about that appalling episode and its backdrop: a sneaky culture of below-the-radar censorship driven in large part by student unions. Needless to say, the latter are furious that this government is passing legislation to protect free speech on campuses. Ryan has the details.
On this week's episode, we’ll hear Matthew Lynn’s thoughts on how the gas shortages could lead to a very cold winter. (00:51)
Then, Tanya Gold with a critical take on critics. (04:41)
And finally, James Innes-Smith bigs up the bungalow. (08:58)
Presented by Sam Holmes
Dehenna Davison is the MP for Bishop Auckland, and a rising star in Boris Johnson's 2019 'red wall' intake. On this episode, recorded just after Conservative party conference, Dehenna tells Katy about what it was like to lose her father to a pub brawl so young, getting her work marked in Latin by Jacob Rees-Mogg and her plans to go to a Taylor Swift concert with the Foreign Secretary Liz Truss.
In this week’s episode: with the energy crisis picking up pace who are set to be the winners and losers in this cold war for gas? Domestically we are seeing queues for petrol, rising gas prices all in the face of the Government’s net-zero agenda. And internationally things are looking just as turbulent, with China buying up as much fuel as possible, America becoming more isolationist when it comes to its energy supply, and Russia feeling more powerful in its place thanks to its Nord Stream 2 pipeline. These are the issues that Seb Kennedy, the founding editor of Energy Flux, addresses in his cover piece this week for The Spectator. He speaks about his findings on the podcast along with Senior Reporter for Energy and Commodities for Bloomberg and co-author of The World for Sale, Jack Farchy. (00:50) Also this week: can the police reform with Cressida Dick still in charge? Leroy Logan writes in this week’s Spectator that if the Met and police are to reform its subculture of racism and misogyny it can’t be done with Cressida Dick still at the helm. He is joined on the podcast by Sharon Haye, a former officer and policing advocate. (14:06) And finally: what is the future for British butchery? Olivia Potts is learning butchery. And in this week’s Spectator, she writes about her experiences as well as the state of the industry in the UK today. Nigel Jarvis is a fourth-generation butcher who has just retired after an unexpected boom in custom during lockdown. (28:52) Hosted by Lara Prendergast Produced by Sam Holmes
On the 15th anniversary of Wikileaks, Freddy Gray speaks to its Editor in Chief Kristinn Hrafnsson about the recent Yahoo article that exposed the fact that the Trump Administration along with the CIA was working on plans to either kidnap or kill Julian Assange while he was still in hiding at the Ecuadorian embassy in London.
Throughout Chinese history, as seen by poems and novels, drinking has been seen as a source for literary inspiration; or a form of manly competition; or, as ever, a status symbol. After a century of political turmoil in which the way people lived was radically disrupted, drinking culture is now coming back with China's growing wealth. As well as the traditional rice and sorghum spirits, grape wine is starting to dominate the Chinese palate.
On this episode, Cindy Yu's guest Janet Z Wang, author of The Chinese Wine Renaissance, tells her all about the then and the now of Chinese drinking. They chat poetry and wine, noughties extravagance (including a Bordeaux sold for $234,000) and the peculiarities of Chinese drinking culture.
Our Midlands regional final took place on Zoom — a blast from the regional past, you might say — but was no less enjoyable and stimulating for that, all four regional entrants giving an excellent account of themselves.
They were Blutick, which is taking maths teaching online to a new level; Petalite, which offers powerful solutions for electric vehicle recharging; Regionally, which connects private investors to high-growth companies seeking capital across the UK regions; and Zipbout, an app to make travelling across transport networks easier and more efficient.
We were delighted to be joined as guest judges by Deloitte partner Claire Evans, Charles Stanley Wealth Managers’ HR Director Kate Griffiths-Lambert and an old friend of the Awards, Clive Bawden, COO of former winner Warwick Music.
Our venue for the Yorkshire & North East regional final was the former Leeds Club — where the entrepreneurs of the region’s textile and other manufacturing industries would once have congregated.
We welcomed back guest judges Caroline Theobald, a leading promoter of entrepreneurship in Newcastle and the North East, and Gordon Black, a venture capitalist and former manufacturer from West Yorkshire — plus a trio of Charles Stanley’s Leeds representatives.
Our four finalists were all in cutting-edge technologies: Honcho in online vehicle insurance; Testcard in easy-access patient testing for healthcare; Element 2 in hydrogen power for truck and bus fleets; and Micropore in pharm manufacturing.
Again, a near-impossible choice but a terrific conversation — and a range of entries from a geographical spread that tells us entrepreneurship is alive and well in the UK provinces.
Kate Andrews is joined by writer and political activist Paul Embery; journalist Ayesha Hazarika; Tory MP Iain Duncan Smith; security expert Elisabeth Braw, resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute; Spectator contributor Matthew Lynn; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss Labour's weekend in Brighton and whether Keir Starmer is taking the party in the right direction, how Britain can be better prepared for crises and why Ursula von der Leyen was the real winner of the recent German elections.
All the way south and west to sunny Exeter to meet three more finalists: Bower Collective, a subscription-based provider of a range of household and personal care products with reusable packaging; CCM Technologies, which creates ‘green’ fertiliser from sources such as wastewater and farmyard slurry; and Psychiatry-UK, which has taken psychiatric consulting online.
Our guest judges were Richard Cobb, senior partner of solicitors Michelmores, and Nicholas Hardie, a former FTSE100 corporate treasurer with interests ranging from housing to NHS trust board work, plus Chris Harris-Deans of sponsor Charles Stanley.
On this week's episode, Douglas Murray examines the left's tactics of victimhood in the wake of the Labour conference. (00:48)
Then James Walton gives us his review of the new Bond film, No Time to Die. (08:34)
And finally, Katy Balls talks about how the CO2 shortage could lead to a lack of her beloved Irn Bru. (11:30)
Freddy Gray speaks to The Spectator's economics editor Kate Andrews about President Biden's Infrastructure Bill and the US debt ceiling.
As the UK faces a rising energy crisis with gas supplies in short supply, questions are arising of not just how we mitigate the problem in the short term but how we hedge against it in the long term? What role might nuclear energy play? What’s slowing down its development? Is it the technology? The funding? Or public attitudes towards nuclear energy. Can hearts and minds be swayed in its favour?
Kate Andrews is joined by Mark Jenkinson MP, vice chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Nuclear Energy and formerly a self-employed contractor in the nuclear supply chain; Wade Allison is emeritus professor at the University of Oxford; and Julia Pyke is the nuclear development director at EDF.
This podcast is kindly sponsored by EDF.
We were very nearly in Edinburgh Castle to meet our Scottish and Northern Ireland finalists: in the Contini restaurant next door to the Castle forecourt at the top of the tourist-filled Royal Mile.
Veteran judges Ian Ritchie — a prominent Scottish tech investor – and former Award winner Irene McAleese of See.Sense in Northern Ireland joined John Porteous of Charles Stanley to meet four finalists.
These were, in relatively low-tech consumer sectors, two very attractive ventures, Highland Soap and Scottish Bee, which markets Heather Honey; in the energy sector, Renewable Parts, which provides recycled components for wind turbines; and in the highest of high-tech healthcare, Sonrai Analytics from Belfast, an AI-driven ‘digital pathology’ spin-out from Queens University.
All very persuasive presentations. Onwards to the final judging…
In this week’s episode: is Boris Johnson running on empty or is a weak opposition giving him the momentum he needs? Kate Andrews asks in her cover story this week if Boris Johnson’s government has run out of ideas – as well as petrol. Katy Balls also writes in the magazine that the opposition seems unable to take advantage of the government’s failures. Katy and Kate join William on the podcast to give their takes on the state of both parties. (00:51) Also this week: what is behind China’s latest crackdown on cryptocurrency? Ian Williams writes in this week’s Spectator that the CCP’s latest move to criminalise anyone dealing in cryptocurrency is to clear the decks for China’s new, state-sanctioned digital currency. He along with George Magnus, author of Red Flags, Why Xi’s China is in jeopardy speak on the podcast aboutBeijing’s crypto future. (14:15) And finally: are the Marvel movies – good? Love them or hate them, these superhero blockbusters have dominated the box office for more than a decade and have redefined pop culture. They may not have received particularly positive reviews in the Spectator over the years, but Rosie Millard has jumped to their defence in the magazine’s lead arts feature this week. She guests on the podcast to try and convince William to give Marvel a chance. (26:18) Hosted by William Moore Produced by Sam Holmes
This year’s regional finals for The Spectator’s Economic Innovator of the Year Awards kicked off with a fascinating session in a private dining room of the boutique hotel One Aldwych.
We managed to pack representatives of all 12 finalists (chosen from 90-plus entrants for the region round one table), plus guest judges Paul Abberley (CEO of our sponsor, Charles Stanley Wealth Managers) and former Award winner Jonny Ohlson of Touchlight, the pioneering DNA manufacturer.
With entrants ranging across the healthcare, fintech, food, energy and education sectors, as well as social media and high-tech engineering — and only around eight minutes for each to present and answer questions — the judges faced a formidable task. And of course the final choice of winners has to be subjective rather than scientific. But all the presentations were clear and concise — and there were several conversations across the table suggesting possible synergies between entrants in related business fields.
So, as always, we hope participants gain from the networking opportunities as well as the accolade of being selected as finalists — and we hope Spectator readers and podcast listeners will take a few minutes to explore their websites and products.
Chuck Palahniuk -- best known as the author of Fight Club -- has just announced that he's publishing his next novel not with a mainstream publisher but through the online subscription service Substack. He joins Sam Leith on this week's Book Club podcast to tell him why; and to talk about how 9/11 changed literature, why he never tires of making his audience feel sick, and how he thinks David Foster Wallace might be alive today if he'd taken some time out to write a few Spider-Man comics.
Grizelda is an award-winning cartoonist for publications including The Spectator, the New Statesman and Private Eye. She was Pocket Cartoonist of the Year in 2018. On the podcast, she tells Lara and Liv about her brother's infamous cooking, how she comes up with ideas for cartoons, and why she only knows four recipes.
Katy Balls is joined by The Spectator's associate editor Douglas Murray; the founder of Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis; former MI6 chief Sir John Sawers; former Australian prime minister Tony Abbott; economist Steve Keen; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss whether America, Britain and Australia can contain China, how Covid has changed economics, and Stephen Toope's time as vice-chancellor of the University of Cambridge.
On this week's episode, Katy Balls gives us her thoughts on the importance of Keir Starmer’s performance this weekend at the Labour Party Conference. (00:54)
Then Nicola Christie raises the curtain on the exciting new wave of British musical theatre. (06:53)
And finally, Hannah Tomes talks about why Facebook won’t let her post about the English waterway Cockshoot Dyke. (15:50)
Presented by Sam Holmes
President Biden has spent the week meeting with foreign leaders including Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Now, the number of people starting to speculate about the state Joe Biden’s health is growing. Freddy Gray sits down with Amber Athey, the Washington Editor for The Spectator to discuss where the cracks are beginning to show and what this could mean for Kamala Harris.
Sarah Rainsford was a BBC foreign correspondent stationed in Moscow for 20 years until August when the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) declared Rainsford a national security threat. They expelled her from Russia and gave her only three weeks to pack up her things, bring home her husband and their dog. On the podcast, Sarah goes back to her youth to share how she fell into learning Russian and the adventures she got up to as a Cambridge student during her year abroad in St Petersburg during the fall of the Soviet Union.
In this week’s episode: can the new Aukus alliance contain China? In his cover piece this week, James Forsyth writes that the new Aukus pact has fixed the contours of the next 30 years of British foreign policy. Britain, he says, is no longer trying to stay neutral in the competition between America and China. On the podcast James is joined by Francis Pike, author of Empires at War: A Short History of Modern Asia Since World War II, who also wrote for the magazine this week, giving the case against Aukus. (00:45)
Also this week: what can be done to save the Church of England’s parishes? Back in February, Emma Thompson, a rural parish volunteer, and the Reverend Marcus Walker, Rector of St Bartholomew the Great, London, wrote pieces for the Spectator expressing their concern for the future of the Church of England’s parish system. The Archbishops of Canterbury and York dismissed these concerns as scaremongering from ‘rascally voices’. Seven months on there is a new threat to the parish, which Emma writes about in this week’s magazine. She is joined by Marcus on the podcast to explain what you can do to save your local church. . (16:35)
And finally: in a time when travel has never been faster, why has so little been done to reform queues? This is the question Harry Mount asks in the magazine this week. He sits down with me now, with the Spectator’s Wiki Man columnist, Rory Sutherland to pitch some transformative ideas on how to update this very British pastime. (29:10)
Hosted by William Moore
Produced by Sam Holmes
In this week's Book Club podcast Sam is joined by Mikkel Borch-Jacobsen, a historian of psychoanalysis whose latest book is Freud's Patients: A Book of Lives. Mikkel has sifted through the archives to discover the real stories anonymised in the case studies on which Sigmund Freud based his theories, and the lives of the patients who submitted to analysis on the great man's original couch. What he discovered is startling. Mikkel tells Sam how Freud falsified the data to fit his theories, kept incurable cases coming back week after week to keep the fees rolling in - and how the global industry of Freudian analysis resembles a religious cult more than a science.
For China, WWII started in 1937 with the Japanese invasion, two years before Hitler invaded Poland. Japan would occupy China until its surrender in 1945, in the process committing atrocities like the rape of Nanjing. This was the second Japanese invasion in fifty years. Yet decades after the war, when I grew up in Nanjing, Japanese food was all the craze and it was Japanese anime that kids watched and Japanese fashion that teenagers craved. So has China got over its wartime hatred of Japan? On this episode, I’m joined by the Tokyo-based Chinese translator Dylan Levi King, who you might remember from our previous conversation on ketamine use in China. We’re going to be chatting about China’s attitude to Japan today, and the contradictions within that, rather than focusing on the history between the two countries. If you want to learn more about that part of things – there’s nowhere better to go than Professor Rana Mitter’s book, China’s War with Japan. Dylan and I chat about the Chinese caricatures of Japanese soldiers on screen, the Japanese porn star who overcame the two countries’ enmity and the jingri – the Chinese who identify as ‘spiritually Japanese’. Dylan reflects on the cognitive dissonance – or disassociation – that the Chinese hold between Japanese politics and Japanese soft power. For example, he tells me that: ‘I used to go to this clothing store when I was a student in China, and in the store they would sell Japanese fashion like BAPE, but on the doorstep walking into the place there was a Japanese flag on the ground, so you could trample on the Japanese flag as you walk into buy all your Japanese fashion.’ Japanese nationalism, in return, seems to be getting louder, whether it’s visits to the Yasukuni shrine housing war criminals, or a continued refusal to acknowledge the war-time trafficking of Chinese and Korean women as sex slaves – euphemistically known as ‘comfort women’. Yet Dylan argues that this is just all bark, no bite: ‘China rising on its doorstep and Japan’s economy, since 1990, not really improving, has exacerbated that feeling in Japan of wanting to stand up, even though they can’t really. So it’s all performative and useless.’
On this week's episode, Fraser Nelson starts by reading the leader. Britain has a labour shortage and our immigration system is a mess - why not have an amnesty for migrants without legal status? (01:00)
Michela Wrong is on next. She found herself in the sights of Rwandan President Paul Kagame after she wrote a book exposing the abuses of his regime. (07:05)
Mark Mason reads his piece to finish the podcast. Ordering at the bar isn't just about buying a drink, he says. (20:00)
Say what you like about Pope Francis, but he's incapable of giving a boring in-flight interview. On Wednesday, coming back from Hungary and Slovakia, he was asked about the problem of pro-abortion Catholic politicians receiving Holy Communion. He immediately launched into a ferocious denunciation of abortion, describing it as homicide, saying there was no middle way and stating that support for abortion was grounds for 'excommunication'.
Francis then slightly qualified this by explaining that these 'excommunicated' Catholics needed to be lovingly shown the error of their ways, but it was hard to escape the obvious conclusion. The Pope regards the President as barred from Communion – which drives a horse and cart through the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy of Biden's own bishop, Cardinal Wilton Gregory of Washington.
In this week's Holy Smoke, Dr Ed Condon, canon lawyer and editor of the brilliant Catholic website The Pillar, offers us an admirably lucid 'explainer' on this complicated topic. His conclusion is basically the same as mine. Though Ed wouldn't put it this way, the Pope has just thrown the fanatically pro-choice President of the United States under the bus.
In this week’s episode: is Brexit to blame for the rise in blue-collar wages? With labour shortages driving wages up, many have blamed Britain’s removal from the single market. However, this week in The Spectator, Matthew Lynn argues that shocks and price signals are how the free-market economy reorganises, and that we are experiencing a global trend just like America and Germany. Simon Jenkins, columnist for the Guardian, joins Matthew to discuss. (00:45)
Also this week: the British Medical Association has dropped its opposition to assisted dying, but is euthanasia really a dignified and painless process? Dr Joel Zivot asks this question in The Spectator magazine, drawing upon his own experience as an expert witness against the use of lethal injection in America. Dr Jacky Davis, radiologist and chair of the Healthcare Professionals for Assisted Dying, disagrees. Davis, who pushed the motion causing the BMA to change its position, calls claims that assisted dying is a painful process 'unscientific shroud-waving', a claim she debates with Dr Zivot this week. (13:43)
And finally, Non-Fungible Tokens are selling at extortionate prices online, and are proudly hanging on the virtual walls of many. But can they really be considered art? Jack Rivlin writes about his own experience of purchasing NFTs in this week's Spectator. He is joined by Nima Sagharachi, director of Middle Eastern, Islamic and South Asian Art at Bonhams. (30:20)
Hosted by William Moore
Produced by Sam Holmes and Oscar Edmondson
This week, Sam is joined by Robert Douglas-Fairhurst - whose latest book is The Turning Point: A Year That Changed Dickens and the World. On the podcast he speaks about how 1851 - the year of the Great Exhibition - served as a pivot in Dickens’s own life, and set him on the path to writing Bleak House.
Ed Balls is an acclaimed broadcaster, writer, economist, professor and former politician who served as shadow chancellor from 2011 to 2015. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Liv about the importance of Sunday lunches growing up, his long history of making bespoke children's birthday cakes and the times he turned his campaign team into a makeshift kitchen staff. All this and more is documented in his new book Appetite, out now.
On this week's episode, Christina Lamb reads her letter from Kabul about the situation on the ground under the new Taliban control (00:56). Simon Clarke makes the case for Covid boosters (06:19). And Hannah Moore talks about the horrors of so-called 'American' sweet shops in the West End (15:18).
On this week's episode: why is the Prime Minister so desperate to support the assetocracy? In The Spectator’s cover story this week, after Boris Johnson revealed his plan to pay for social care with a National Insurance increase, Fraser Nelson says there has been an inversion of the welfare state. It is right to ask the working poor to pay more taxes to help cover the social care of people who could easily fund it themselves? Kate Andrews, The Spectator’s economics editor, joins Fraser to discuss. (00:47)
Plus, why is our knowledge of Soviet atrocities so poor? Attempting to fix this, James Bartholomew has been interviewing and recording the stories of survivors of Soviet oppression and torture. In the magazine this week, he tells a few of these stories, but also asks the question: why is it acceptable, or even trendy, to declare yourself a communist? James discusses his project with Konstantin Kisin, a Russian born comic and host of the Triggernometry podcast whose family lived under a Soviet regime. (16:18)
And finally, why does London have so many American sweet shops? Some of London’s busiest streets are host to them, taking up prime real estate in the capital. Hannah Moore writes about her confusion with this phenomenon in this week’s Spectator. She joins Lara along with food trend expert Shokofeh Hejazi. (26:46)
Hosted by Lara Prendergast
Produced by Sam Holmes
Sam's guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the writer Oliver Burkeman. His new book 4,000 Weeks offers some bracing reflections on time: how much we have of it, how best to use it, and why “time management” and productivity gurus have the whole thing upside down.
Are the Chinese religious? The government’s treatment of Christians and particularly Muslims have been under scrutiny in recent years. But these religious groups only form around 4 per cent of the Chinese population, according to national surveys. So what do the other 96pc believe in?
The CCP is famously atheist, but that doesn’t mean the society is faithless. Even today, most Han families, including Cindy Yu's, still sweep the tombs of our ancestors and burn paper money (and these days paper cars and paper iPhones) for their use in the afterlife.
In particular, Buddhism, Daoism and Confucianism have grown together, over the centuries, to provide what the Chinese call ‘sanjiao heyi’ – three teachings harmonious as one, and these continue to influence Chinese life. Growing up, Cindy never knew which part of my temple visit belonged to which faith. One social scientist has described Chinese faith as ‘an empty bowl, which can be variously filled’.
On this episode of Chinese Whispers, we’ll be taking a look at what the three teachings teach, and how, in modern China, they've perhaps become more cultural than religious.
Joining Cindy on this podcast is Mark Meulenbeld, Associate Professor at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, who is an expert on Chinese folk religion.
With Texas's controversial new 'heartbeat' law seemingly left unchallenged by the Supreme Court the abortion debate is hotting up in the States yet again. Will this success lead the pro-life movement to attempt to get similar laws on the books in other states?
Freddy Gray talks to Mairead Elordi, an investigative journalist for the Daily Wire.
On this week's episode, Kate Andrews argues that the government's social care reform plans simply don't add up (00:55). Mary Wakefield makes the case for church doors to reopen (06:55) and Caroline Crampton reviews Tom Chivers's new book, London Clay (13:25).
On this week's episode: should animal lives be considered as valuable as human lives? It’s often said that Britain is a country of animal lovers, but have we taken it too far? Pen Farthing’s evacuation has shown how some people value animal lives more than human lives. William Moore writes our cover piece this week, arguing that the public outcry is emblematic of our faith-like approach to animal rights in Britain. He joins the podcast together with the FT's Henry Mance, author of How to Love Animals. (00:50)
Plus, will the government’s proposed tax reforms solve the crisis in social care? In this week’s issue, Kate Andrews argues that instead of solving the crisis in care, the plans will only worsen intergenerational inequality. To discuss, Kate joins the podcast with Steve Webb, a pensions expert who was formerly a Lib Dem minister in the Coalition. (13:00)
And finally, what are the benefits of having godparents in this secular age? Although she never wanted children of her own, Fiona Mountford writes in this week’s Spectator that she knew she always wanted godchildren. Why? Fiona joins the podcast, together with Mary Killen, the Spectator’s Dear Mary columnist. (24:00)
Sam Leith's guest on this week’s podcast is the biographer and critic Hermione Lee. Her biography of Tom Stoppard is newly out in paperback, and she tells Sam about the decade of work behind Sir Tom’s overnight success, his unexpected influences, and the challenge to a biographer of getting to the heart of this elusive genius.
Charlie Stebbings is an acclaimed food director and photographer. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Liv about taking photographing M&S's melt in the middle chocolate puddings, treating himself to baked beans and red wine and measuring mayonnaise from a syringe.
On this episode, Aussie journalist Sascha O'Sullivan begs to be let home (00:50); Ian Williams wonders whether China is experiencing its own MeToo moment (04:25); and Toby Young on his trip up north with his two boys (11:35).
Religious freedom is already being mercilessly attacked in Taliban-run Afghanistan: Muslim women in particular face a living hell unless they're happy to submit to their new rulers' psychotic brand of Sharia.
The United States is required by its own laws to do everything it can to champion religious liberty around the world. But Afghan's moderate Muslims, China's Uighurs, Myanmar's Rohynga and Christians in dozens of countries would be foolish to trust President Joe Biden, whose administration can't wait to dismantle the First Amendment Rights of conservative Christians back home.
My guest is Andrea Picciotti-Bayer of the Washington-based Conscience Project, which speaks up for people of faith who commit the thought crime of not subscribing to liberal gender ideology. Like many people, she's worried by Biden's partisan choice of personnel for US international religious freedom posts. None of them are Christians. It's an enlightening but alarming discussion. Don't miss it.
On this week’s episode, we’ll be taking a look at the fortress that Australia has built around itself, and ask – when will its Zero Covid policy end (01:00)?
Also on the podcast: is it racist to point out Britain’s changing demographics (14:35)?
And is trivia just another way for men to compete (27:00)?
With former Australian High Commissioner, Alexander Downer; chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Coronavirus, Layla Moran MP; Spectator columnist Lionel Shriver; York University's Dr Remi Adekoya; Spectator contributor Mark Mason; and QI elf Anna Ptaszynski.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Natasha Feroze.
Michael Bracewell’s new book Souvenir is a vivid and poetic evocation of London on the brink of the digital era - the neglected in-between times between 1979 and 1986. He joins Sam Leith to talk about fine art and post-punk, T S Eliot and William Burroughs - and the dangerous lure of nostalgia.
Freddy Gray speaks to the investigative journalist Katherine Eban, author of Bottle of Lies: the Inside Story of the Generic Drug Boom, about the classified report into the possibility that Covid-19 escaped from a Chinese laboratory. An edited version of the report is expected to be released publicly next week.
On this week's episode, Lara Prendergast asks if it's so wrong to talk about whether the Covid vaccine affects periods. (01:05) Cindy Yu says China's 'zero Covid' strategy can't last. (06:50) And finally, Gus Carter spends an hour in a sensory deprivation tank. (13:05)
Last month, the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi welcomed senior Taliban leaders to Beijing, standing shoulder to shoulder for the photographers. China is carefully watching events unfold in Afghanistan. And while it hasn’t yet recognised the Taliban government, the Beijing meeting was a nod towards a potential alliance.
But replacing America in Afghanistan wouldn’t be without its risks – can Beijing succeed where Washington failed? America's 20 year mission in the country cost lives and money. And what would a closer alliance mean for China’s Xinjiang policy, considering the close links that the Taliban has historically had with militant Uyghur groups?
Cindy Yu speaks to Tom Miller, author of China's Asian Dream, and Dr Mike Martin, author of An Intimate War and former British Army officer in Helmand.
On this week’s podcast:
In the latest issue of The Spectator, we cover the Afghanistan issue extensively, looking at everything from why the West was doomed from the start, to how events in Afghanistan have transformed central Asian politics. On the podcast, journalist Paul Wood and our own deputy editor Freddy Gray, both of whom feature in this week’s issue, join Lara to talk Biden, Boris and the new 'progressive' Taliban. (00:37)
'This is not your father's Taliban' - Paul Wood
Next up, thousands of women whose menstrual cycles have been affected by the Covid vaccine have now come forward to make their symptoms known, including our host Lara Prendergast, who writes about her experience in this week's Spectator. We continue that conversation with Jessica Braun, who was the host of the Periodical podcast and Dr Joe Mountfield from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. (12:12)
‘I don't think your piece is anti-vaxx, I don't think you're anti-vaxx, I think expressing some concerns and airing what's happened to you is absolutely legitimate and valid’ - Dr Jo Mountfield
And finally, while many during the pandemic have fled London for greener pastures, our own Martin Vander Weyer has moved back to the city after more than 30 years of Yorkshire living. He writes about his new Covent Garden lifestyle in this week’s issue, and He joins us on the Edition along with William Moore, who has done the opposite, having left London with his young family to become a country gent. (25:39)
'With the upmost respect, I think you're mad!' - William Moore
Presented by Lara Prendergast
Produced by Sam Holmes
In this week's Book Club podcast Sam Leith is talking to Michael Pye about his new book Antwerp: The Glory Years. For most of the 16th century, as he tells Sam, Antwerp was the most important town in the western world – a city in which, as never before, ideas, information, goods and money circulated free of almost any authority. It was a time of extraordinary excitement – here are Bruegel, Thomas More and William Tyndale – and enormous danger and corruption. Michael tells Sam how it came about, what lessons it offers our own age... and how it reached an abrupt and bloody end.
Rory Bremner is one of Britain's leading comedians, impressionists and political satirists. On the episode, he tells Lara and Liv about his first impression (of a school history teacher), doing shows with Ainsley Harriott, getting stuck in a storm in Turkey at the same time as Betty Boothroyd, and helping refugees and asylum seekers through food.
With Kabul now taken back by the Taliban and the Americans in full retreat after two decades of war, what will the USA learn from this catastrophe, if anything? Freddy Gray talks to author of After the Apocalypse: America’s Role in a World Transformed, Andrew Bacevich about the goals not met, allies abandoned and lives lost.
On this week's episode, Jonathan Miller, author of France, a Nation on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown talks about the French 'vaccine passport' protests; Financial columnist Matthew Lynn reflects on 50 years without the gold standard; and Melissa Kite tells us about her own ways of treating Covid.
In the last episode of Holy Smoke, I discussed Pope Francis's brutal and petty new document which seeks to ban as many Latin Masses as possible. This week we look at the other recent developments, which are arguably just as disturbing: two criminal prosecutions in which close allies of the Pope are accused of a range of hair-raising offences – and the question of how much Francis knew about their activities still hasn't been answered, either by the Vatican or its tame press corps.. Also, I touch on a new explanation for Rome's dreadful pact with China. Did the Pope's Secretary of State sign away the freedom of Chinese Catholics because Beijing was threatening to release data relating to the use of the gay hook-up app Grindr inside the walls of the Vatican? We may never find out. But one day there will be a new pope. Is it too much to hope that the college of cardinals will learn from the disasters of the past eight years?
This week on The Edition:
How expensive will it be to get to net zero and what is the cost of not reaching this goal?(00:48) Also on the podcast: Are international PCR tests a new racket?(17:56) And finally… is the American Dream dead?(27:39)
With journalists Ross Clark & James Kirkup. Producer Matt Quinton & Virginia Messina the acting CEO of the World Travel and Tourism Council. Writer Sean Thomas & the host of our very popular sister podcast Americano, Freddy Gray.
Andrew Cuomo has resigned as governor of New York after an inquiry found he sexually assaulted multiple women. Why was the Governor so loved by Democrats, should he really have resigned over the state's care homes scandal, and might we soon see him as a CNN contributor? Freddy Gray speaks to Spectator World contributor Grace Curley.
Conversations about ‘modernising’ the NHS have been happening for almost as long as the NHS itself. The 2019 Long Term Plan put so-called ‘patient-centred care’ at the forefront, writing that: “The NHS also needs a more fundamental shift in how we work alongside patients and individuals to deliver more person-centred care, recognising – as National Voices has championed – the importance of ‘what matters to someone’ is not just ‘what’s the matter with someone’.”
All well and good, but then, came the pandemic. The new health secretary Sajid Javid has said that that waiting list will rise to 13 million people in the coming months.
Where does that leave efforts to modernise the NHS now, and in particular for that patient-led vision that the Long Term Plan had set out?
Kate Andrews hosts this special episode of Spectator Sounds with a panel of expert guests:
Sir Jim Mackey, head of Northumbria’s NHS Trust and former head of NHS Improvement
Charlotte Augst, head of National Voices, a coalition group of patient-centred health charities
Todd Manning, the Vice-President and General Manager of Abbvie UK.
This podcast is sponsored by Abbvie UK.
It might be an understatement to say that China has a difficult relationship with drugs. Most infamously, the Opium Wars of the 1800s saw British soldiers fight against the Qing dynasty to protect the British right to sell opium to China. When the Qing lost, it wasn’t just the sobriety of their people that they lost – but a series of ports, concessions and reparations signed away in so-called ‘unequal treaties’. Hong Kong was lost to the British at this point, and it’s where the Chinese mark the start of the century of humiliation.
The memory and trauma of opium addiction is still bound up with national decline in the Chinese conscience.
So Cindy Yu was surprised to read about widespread drug use (especially ketamine) in the early 2000s in a recent article by the translator and writer Dylan Levi King. Dylan joins this episode, and they talk about what the popularity of ket says about China's reform and opening, how the Chinese see drug abuse as a disease than a crime, and President Xi's moralistic clampdown on the party scene in the years since.
Cindy Yu is joined by Professor Ciaran Martin, former chair of the National Cyber Security Centre; Robert Bigman, former chief information security officer at the CIA; Andy Owen, author and former intelligence officer; Dr Mike Martin, author of An Intimate War; Rory Sutherland, The Spectator's Wiki Man columnist; Suzanne Moore, Telegraph columnist; and a team of Spectator journalists.
On this week's episode, former intelligence officer Andy Owen gives his reflections on where we went wrong in Afghanistan - based on what he saw on the ground; Spectator columnist Mary Wakefield talks about the rise in neighbourhood crime; and Toby Young asks - why have my suits shrunk in lockdown?
Freddy's guest on this week's episode is the famed journalist Michael Wolff, author of three books on Donald Trump - the bestseller Fire and Fury, its very popular follow up Siege and the latest, Landslide. The final in the trilogy tells the story of the last days of the Trump presidency, including the 2020 election – one that the former president still claims he won.
On the episode, Michael recounts election night and the moment Fox called Arizona, why he has little sympathy for the voters who still believe the election was 'stolen', and what it was like to catch up with Trump at Mar-a-Lago.
This week in The Edition: What is the true threat of ransomware both to our governments and us individually?(00:30) Also on the podcast: What are the Italian ‘Green Pass’ Protests?(15:14) And finally… is it harder to be the good Samaritan in the modern world?(25:28)
With former head of the national cyber security centre Ciaran Martian, white-hat hacker Tommy DeVoss, journalist Manfred Manera, former WHO scientist Francesco Zambon, Spectator contributor Cosmo Landesman and The Revd Lucy Winkett.
In this week's Book Club podcast we anticipate the 60th anniversary of the Berlin Wall going up by talking to Iain MacGregor about his book Checkpoint Charlie: The Cold War, The Berlin Wall And The Most Dangerous Place On Earth. Iain takes Sam on a journey though how, and why, the Russians cut a city in half overnight; and why we let them. He describes how events in Tiananmen Square reached Friedrichstrasse. And how, as the Wall came down, a single British soldier did something that the Red Army never forgot.
Molly Baz is a cook, recipe developer, video host, cookbook author, and a self proclaimed weenie lover. On this episode, Ella talks to Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts about her food revelation with an Italian house-mother in Florence, her time working for Bon Appetit and about her new cook book COOK THIS BOOK, which revolutionises the medium by adding easy to access how-to videos to watch as you cook.
This week we’ll hear Charlotte Eagar on how the arrival of the alpha migrants may be the solution to our labour shortage (00:56), Lionel Shriver on her bewilderment about people still having the Covid app (07:09) and finally Tom Ough's brief history of bidets (15:40).
Joanna Scanlan, an actress best known for her role of Terri in the The Thick of It, had a long and winding road before becoming a star of stage and screen. Born in Cheshire and moved to Wales aged three, she went to two convent schools before an Anglican school where she broke every possible rule she could. On the podcast she talks about her dreams of becoming an actor, working first at the arts council and as a lecturer whilst pursuing her love of acting. In her new film After Love, she plays a woman uncovering the secret life of her late husband, which is out now.
This week on The Edition: Is there a humane solution to Britain’s migrant crisis?(00:52) Also on the podcast: Why is the WHO so down on e-cigarettes?(16:23) and finally... after a year and a half inside how angry will strangers make us?(27:01)
With Douglas Murray; award winning film maker and producer for the Trojan Women project Charlotte Eagar; Christopher Snowdon; Clive Bates the director of The Counterfactual and previous head of ASH; Damian Thompson; and Stuart Prebble creator of the hit TV show Grumpy Old Men.
Presented by Lara Prendergast
Produced by Sam Holmes
Sam's guest in this week’s books podcast is Mary Ann Sieghart, whose new book The Authority Gap accumulates data to show that so-called 'mansplaining' isn’t a minor irritation but the manifestation of something that goes all the way through society: women are taken less seriously than men, even by other women. She says it’s not just 'wokery' to point it out, and she makes the case for how she thinks it came to be, what we can do to change it, and why we should take the trouble.
Responsible for 17 per cent of the UK’s carbon usage, government will be looking to the private sector to reduce its emissions in the years to come. But what does it really mean for a business to achieve ‘net zero’? Should companies - and their sectors - account only for their direct emissions, or must they also measure their indirect impact, related to supply chains or digital carbon footprints? How should businesses address their historic emissions - and what might this mean for once carbon-intensive sectors?
In partnership with Velux
For most people, Mao Zedong and Xi Jinping stand out as the two Communist leaders of the People’s Republic of China. But growing up, it was actually a third man, by the name of Deng Xiaoping, whose legacy I felt the most.
Though less than 5 foot tall, his impact on China’s trajectory was arguably more than Mao’s; and possibly will be more than Xi’s. It was Deng’s vision of reform and opening – which we’ve talked about in passing many times on this podcast – that started a process which transformed China from a Maoist backwater to today’s economic backwater. TIME magazine twice chose him as their Man of the Year.
Yet it was also Deng who gave the final go ahead for the military clampdown of the Tiananmen Square protests. So what sort of leader and politician was he, and how do we reconcile the seeming contradictions between Deng the liberal reformer, and Deng the communist autocrat?
I'm joined by James Carter, Professor of History at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia, and author of Champions Day: The End of Old Shanghai.
Further links:
Chinese Whispers: China's long history of student protests https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/china-s-long-history-of-student-protests
Chinese Whispers: How Hong Kong became what it is today https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/how-hong-kong-became-what-it-is-today
YouTube: Zhao Ziyang's speech at Tiananmen Square in 1989 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZxjV0s2CrA
This week we’ll hear Katy Balls on the government’s dwindling COVID optimism (00:41), Douglas Murray’s prediction of a dull decade of arrested development (04:26) and finally Nigel Farndale of why we owe so much of what we love about the Olympics to the Nazis (12:50).
This week on The Edition:
How free are we after freedom day?(00:27) Also on the podcast: Why does it take hours to refuel your car in Lebanon?(10:19) and finally… Is British gardening wilting or blooming?(21:21)
With The Spectator's economics editor Kate Andrews, Michael Kill, CEO of the Night Time Industries Association, journalists Paul Wood and Tala Ramadan, author James Bartholomew and gardener and writer Ursula Buchan.
Presented by Lara Prendergast
Produced by Sam Holmes
Sam's guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the political journalist Marie Le Conte, whose new book is Honourable Misfits: A Brief History of Britain's Weirdest, Unluckiest and Most Outrageous MPs. She introduces us to some of the dishonourable members of the past, and explains why - despite what we may think - in terms of our present day crop of MPs we may, actually, never have had it so good…
Britain is already making moves on the global stage to back a green agenda, including calls to slash tariffs on ‘green goods’ and to hold countries responsible for heavily polluting practices. But as Britain reopens after Covid-19 and plans for ‘Global Britain’ take off, will the green agenda become a dominant feature of our trade negotiations, or a side-line strategy? What does Britain have to offer its trading partners when it comes to negative emissions and boosting global recovery? Can Britain lead the way in the export of green technologies such as carbon capture and hydrogen? In what areas can international cooperation on climate change be enhanced through trade? In partnership with Drax
On this week's episode, Olivia Potts says angry chefs could soon get their comeuppance. (00:56) Then, Rory Sutherland says over-qualification is leading to collective idiocy. (06:28) And finally, Tanya Gold wonders why people eat lobsters. (10:16)
What are the pros and cons of vaccine passports? (00:33) Also on the podcast: is it time for restaurant kitchens to ditch their toxic masculinity? (18:00) And finally... Cricket, what does the new tournament, the Hundred mean for the sport? (30:14)
With: Fraser Nelson; Melanie Phillips; Olivia Potts; the chef and owner of Darjeeling Express, Asma Khan; Freddie Wilde, an analyst for Cricvis and legendary sports journalist Henry Blofeld.
Presented by Lara Prendergast
Produced by Sam Holmes
Sam's guest in this week’s book club podcast is Frederick Forsyth, whose classic thriller The Day of the Jackal has been in print for 50 years this summer. He talks about banging it out in a few weeks on a typewriter with a bullet hole in it, the shady characters who informed his research - and how he never realised that, for much of its readers, The Jackal would be the hero…
The way the City of London measures success is constantly changing. A new generation of discerning consumers has skyrocketed the importance of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) to company decision-makers. The finance sector is increasingly being seen as the next frontier in climate action. As the City navigates the post-Brexit landscape and our pandemic recovery it will also be tasked with redefining its role on the world stage. How will the government's net-zero commitment and the targets in the Paris Agreement factor into corporate decision-making? How will banks and other financial institutions change how they weigh up sustainable investment choices? And what impact could all this have on the broader economy? Join Spectator journalists, politicians and industry experts as they discuss The City's future climate and environmental agenda. In collaboration with WWF.
Tangping, or 'lying flat', is a new lifestyle tempting China's millennials. Describing a minimalist stress-free life where one opts out of a career and raising family, lying flat is the young person's desperate answer to the infinite rat race of modern Chinese workplaces and society. But while there are few lie-flatters as of yet, the allure of the lifestyle has propelled the term into the mainstream. On this episode, Cindy Yu discusses the phenomenon with millennial journalist Karoline Kan, author of Under Red Skies. They talk about why young people are pessimistic about life in a growing China, whether they are a 'snowflake generation' compared to the struggles of their parents and what this means for the Chinese government's social contract with the people.
On this week's episode:
Revd Marcus Walker shares his concern and disapproval at being described by the Church of England as an 'Key Limiting Factor' (00:26). Then Douglas Murray looks at the tricky subject of transracialism (09:48) And finally Petronella Wyatt gives her two cents on modern day Westminster culture (17:15).
Presented by Sam Holmes
Trudy Harrison is the Conservative MP for Copeland and currently works as the Prime Minster's Parliamentary Private Secretary. On the podcast, she talks about how when she was younger she always thought she'd be a nanny and how that maternal nature developed into her own childcare business, then local politics and finally the House of Commons. Trudy also bought in a bunch of her own home grown flowers for the podcast team, making her one of our favourite guests ever.
What level of control does China have at Cambridge University? (00:48) Also on the podcast: Will the Church of England’s new plans for modernisation leave us with an institution we even recognise? (10:26) And finally let's talk about Streaking, indecent exposure or proud British pastime of joy and humour? (27:26)
With Ian Williams author of ‘every breath you take, a study of China’s surveillance state’; Harry Goodwin, Editor in Chief of The Cambridge Student; Priest Marcus Walker; Dave Male Director of Evangelism and Discipleship for the CoE; writer and amateur streaker Poppy Royds and professional streaker Mark Roberts.
Presented by Lara Prendergast
Produced by Sam Holmes
Who is John Galt? This week's Book Club podcast looks at the life, work and personality of Ayn Rand, probably the most influential writer you've never read. A favourite of our new Health Secretary, the author of Atlas Shrugged -- and the most strident advocate of the idea that "greed is good" -- continues to be revered and reviled four decades after her death. What was it that made her work speak so powerfully to so many? Does her philosophical system add up? How was she shaped -- first by the Russian Revolution and then by Hollywood?And where does prog rock come into it? I'm joined by Professor Lisa Duggan -- author of Mean Girl: Ayn Rand and the Culture of Greed, and Adam Roberts, the science fiction writer and professor of English at Royal Holloway, University of London.
Jack Whitehall is an actor and comedian, however during the pandemic he has also started a food blog, FoodSlut. On the episode, he talks to Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts about his public love of McDonalds, his secret love of The Ivy and the time he once saw a man attempt to make a grilled cheese with his feet.
Building Back is a limited series by award winning journalist Isabel Hardman. In every episode she asks how we can fix the damage caused by the pandemic to a different part of British society.
In this episode, Isabel talks to those working front line in the NHS and the politicians in Westminster who decide its future.
Featuring: Head of the independent health think tank, The Kings Fund Richard Murray; Sri Kalidindi, a psychiatrist at the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust; breast surgeon Julie Doughty; chair of the Health and Care Women Leaders Network Sam Allen; Jeremy Hunt, who was the longest-serving health secretary, and now chair of the Commons health select committee; Chris Hopson chief executive of NHS Providers; and Rob Findlay, an expert on waiting lists at Insource Ltd.
On this week's episode:
Journalist Isabel Oakeshott on how she let the Matt Hancock scandal slip through her fingers a week before it turned up in The Sun (00:59). We’ll also be joined by Melanie McDonagh who's written about how high tea has gone from an affordable British staple to and oversized and overpriced, still delicious monstrosity (06:17). And finally Jon Day takes us into the wonderful world of competitive pigeon racing (11:18).
Presented by Sam Holmes
19 July is approaching but what will life after ‘freedom day’ will look like? (01:19) Also on the podcast: what will Angela Merkel's departure mean for the EU? (14:12) And as many people fled the cities to the countryside during the pandemic, can a case still be made for urban life? (27:26)
With The Spectator’s sketch writer and theatre critic Lloyd Evens; playwright James Graham; director of Eurointelligence Wolfgang Munchau; Independent columnist Mary Dejevsky; writer Ysenda Graham and Rory Sutherland, The Spectator’s Wiki Man columnist.
Presented by William Moore.
Produced by Sam Holmes, Natasha Feroze and Max Jeffery.
In this week’s Book Club podcast Sam's guest is Anne Sebba - whose Ethel Rosenberg: A Cold War Tragedy tells the story of the first woman in US history to be executed for a crime other than murder. On the podcast, she talks about how attitudes to this notorious espionage case changed over the years; and why, while not wanting to relitigate the case, she thinks it’s important to get to a sense of who Ethel really was.
From jabs for joints, to peer pressure in schools, to free lap dances, it seems the power that be are getting more and more aggressive in their mission of getting everyone jabbed as quickly as possible. To discuss this unprecedented vaccination campaign Freddy Gray talks to author of A State of Fear: How the UK government weaponised fear during the Covid-19 pandemic, Laura Dodsworth.
In the 12 months since the enactment of the National Security Law on Hong Kong, opposition leaders, journalists and activists have been arrested; reforms on education and elections begun; and last week saw the emotional closure of the pro-democracy tabloid Apple Daily.
On this episode, I speak to Jennifer Creery, who works for the Financial Times in Hong Kong, about the situation on the ground; and Professor Jeff Wasserstrom, a historian of China at the University of California, about the last year and the city's future. We reflect on the strategic erosion over time of Hong Kong's autonomy, the importance of education that the CCP places on its Hong Kong policy, and whether the 2019 protests actually expedited the choking off of the city.
On this week's episode, Jessica Douglas-Home wants to know why modern British architecture is just so ugly. (01:03) After, Paul Wood warns what Western withdrawal means for Afghanistan (09:23) and finally Andrew Watts explores the history of the ever-updated Pride flag. (19:23)
Presented by Cindy Yu
Katie Perrior is a public relations expert who co-founded inHouse Communications. She's worked for two prime ministers and several senior Tory MPs, and today her clients include the spiritsmaker Diageo and the football Super League. On the podcast, she talks about leaning into Boris Johnson's rambunctious style on the London mayoralty campaign; coming into blows with Theresa May's chief advisors Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill; and, reflecting on the Super League disaster, how there are more liars in football than even in politics.
This week…Why should the first time buyer be so scared of new builds? (00:36) Plus… will the catholic church come to the defence of the word mother? (09:33) And finally… Why does it take so long to understand Japanese culture, even for the Japanese? (18:50)
With John Myers founder of YIMBY, Vickey Spratt housing correspondent of the I newspaper and author of the up coming book Tenants, Spectator Columnist Mary Wakefield, theologian Theo Hobson, former editor of The Tablet and author of Martyrdom: Why Martyrs Still Matter Catherine Pepinster, Professor Philip Patrick and comedian Ollie Horn (@olliehorntweets).
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Cindy Yu, Natasha Feroze and Sam Russell.
Sam's guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the chief librarian of Oxford's Bodleian Library, Richard Ovenden. In Burning The Books: A History of Knowledge Under Attack, he explores the long history and vital importance of libraries and archives -- and the equally long history of their destruction in acts of war, vandalism or censorship and their loss through attrition and neglect. He tells Sam about the librarian heroes of Poland and Lithuania, the accidental survival of Magna Carta and what really happened to the Great Library of Alexandria.
A few weeks ago, a company called Darktrace - put together by computer programmers in London and Cambridge - floated on the London Stock Exchange. It was valued at over £2 billion. It’s a pretty good example of a British tech success - its shares surged by 44 per cent, in stark contrast to Deliveroo, a better-known name, whose flotation saw its shares sink by 26%. So what does Darktrace’s success tell us about Britain’s ability to nurture tech companies and floating them here in Britain, rather than sending them to America?
Fraser Nelson speaks to the billionaire entrepreneur behind Darktrace, Mike Lynch, on this podcast. They talk about the true meaning of British tech, why America does it just so well, and whether we are seeing the beginnings of tech nationalism.
Sponsored by Invoke Insights, which is founded by Mike Lynch.
Calum Franklin is executive head chef at Holborn Dining Room, and an internationally renowned pie-maker (dubbed 'The Pie King' by Jamie Oliver). On the episode, he talks to Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts about how his menus try to recreate the nostalgia of his simple childhood meals, like fish pie; the centrality of pies to British cuisine; and why his restaurant is inspired by the copper and brass fronts of Parisian antique stores.
On this week's episode, Katy Balls warns Boris what a pattern of delay could mean for his Premiership. (01:08) After, Laura Freeman takes us on a guided tour of politicians' chosen paintings (07:05) and finally Adam Sisman lays out the landscape of Berlin directly following the end of world war two. (15:13)
Freddy Gray talks to the Spectator's Russia correspondent Owen Matthews about relations between the two presidents.
It seems we are in a new President/Prime Minister alliance of big government spending, should we be excited or concerned? (00:44) Also on the podcast: Are the UK tabloids going woke? (15:00)? And in the wake of the pandemic are we ready to have a grown up conversation about death?(31:11)
With Spectator Political Editor James Forsyth, Spectator Economics Editor Kate Andrews, former Editor of the Sun Kelvin MacKenzie, former Editor of the Observer Roger Alton, writer A.N. Wilson, science journalist Laura Spinney and Palliative Care Physician Kathryn Mannix and author of a With The End In Mind.
Presented by William Moore.
Produced by Cindy Yu, Natasha Feroze and Sam Russell.
This week's Book Club podcast guest is Charles Spencer, whose book The White Ship: Conquest, Anarchy and the Wrecking of Henry I's Dream is new out in paperback. On the pod tells Sam Leith why his story is like "Game of Thrones meets Titanic", about the piety and the startling cruelty of medieval kings, the tantalising suggestion that the wreck of the White Ship may have been found off Barfleur -- and how this 12th-century maritime disaster changed the course of English history.
Exactly 20 years ago, China acceded to the World Trade Organisation. In the decades since, the globalised world became what we know today, with hundreds of millions of Chinese and people around the world lifted out of poverty through free trade. But the promised liberalisation - both economic and political - doesn't seem to have happened. China is now challenging western-led world order, and too difficult to disentangle from the world economy. So was it a mistake to allow China into the WTO, and has engagement failed?
With Stewart Paterson, author of China, Trade and Power, and Yu Jie, senior research fellow at Chatham House.
On this week's episode, Dr Max Pemberton explains that while just as many people are seeing their GP as before the pandemic, something has changed. (00:55) After, Andrew Watts argues that you shouldn't buy a second home in Cornwall. (09:15) Ysenda Maxtone Graham finishes the episode, lamenting the loss of indoor singing. (14:00)
Polly Morgan is an artist whose trade is taxidermy. She recently won the First Plinth Award, and in her time has sold to celebrity clients including Kate Moss and Courtney Love. On the podcast, she tells Katy Balls about her unusual childhood growing up on a farm with ostriches, goats and llamas; why she got fired by Prue Leith; and the ins and outs of taxidermy.
Experts are saying we are now officially in a third wave but how concerned should we be? (00:56) Also on the podcast: What will the mood be like when Boris meets Biden (14:33)? And are UFOs no longer a laughing matter?(23:00)
With Scientist Simon Clarke, mathematician Philip Thomas, spokesperson for Republicans Overseas UK Sarah Elliot, Spectator World editor Freddy Gray, astrophysicist Tim O'Brian & author Lawrence Osborne
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Cindy Yu, Max Jeffery and Sam Russell.
In this week's Book Club podcast, Sam Leith's guest is one of America's foremost magazine journalists, the New Yorker's Lawrence Wright. His new book is The Plague Year: America In The Time of Covid. He tells Sam what a book brings to recent history that week-to-week journalism can't, about the extraordinary happenstance that put him in contact with one of the unsung heroes of the vaccine race, and the three reasons Covid was such a catastrophe for the US.
Craig Brown is an awarding winning critic, satirist and former restaurant reviewer. His most recent book One Two Three Four: The Beatles in Time, won the Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction.
On the podcast, he talks to Lara and Olivia about the horrible food at Eton, his utter failure to bake a cake, and proposes that one of the least important things to him when he was reviewing a restaurant was the food.
On this episode: Chris Daw QC on the blame game that surrounds the Hillsborough disaster and why it's time to move on (01:00); Lionel Shriver suggests we should just give Scottish nationalists what they want and watch the chaos unfold (07:40); and Sam Russell, the Spectator's new broadcast producer, talks about how book lovers are turning TikTok into a book club (16:25).
What was once dismissed by the mainstream media as a right wing conspiracy theory, seems to have made its transition, into credible possibility. It now seems very plausible that COVID came from a Chinese lab. But will we ever know for sure? And even if we did, what would we do about it? Freddy Gray talks to Thomas Frank, who recommends we all read this.
Why is the National Trust in crisis, and can it be fixed? (00:55) Plus, is there going to be a ‘fake meat’ revolution? (14:15) And finally, should wedding readings stick to the classics or is it acceptable to go for something a bit more out there? (24:25)
With Spectator columnist and former editor Charles Moore; Simon Jenkins, chair of National Trust between 2008 and 2014; Anthony Browne, a Conservative MP and chair of the Environment APPG; Olivia Potts, The Spectator’s vintage chef and co-host of our Table Talk podcast; writer Laura Freeman; and Revd Canon Dr Alison Joyce, rector of St Bride's church in London.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Sam Holmes, Cindy Yu and Max Jeffery.
In this week’s Book Club podcast Sam's guest is Lauren Hough - author of an outstanding new collection of autobiographical essays called Leaving Isn’t The Hardest Thing whichdescribe a life that took her from growing up in the Children Of God cult via being discharged from the US Air Force and jobs as a bouncer in a gay bar and a “cable guy” on the road to being a writer. She talks about not writing a misery memoir, what elites don’t know about working class life, “lesbian drama”, and the benefits of revising your work on magic mushrooms.
What is it like to be a journalist in China? There are obvious restrictions on freedom of speech, but, as Cindy Yu finds out on this episode, there are creative ways to navigate the strict system of censorship. The end result is a complex media landscape - some have to litter investigations with state propaganda; others continue to report on sensitive issues (like the Wuhan Covid cover up) and rely on editors for protection; while growing digitisation and a strongman President continue to threaten what little independence flourished at the beginning of the century.
With political scientist Maria Repnikova, author of Media Politics in China, and former journalist Fang Kecheng, now an Associate Professor in Journalism at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
On this week's episode, Lisa Bjurwald reports on the Swedish monarchy going woke (01:20); Douglas Murray argues that the culture wars fit the UK even less well than the US (07:00); and Stuart Jeffries interviews the world's first AI artist.
Also on the podcast: a complaints letter to the Times after their March 2020 story that Carrie Symonds and Boris Johnson were considering giving their dog up for adoption. The letter, though never sent, was revealed on Friday.
The past year has served as a reminder how quickly one's personal circumstances can change. In uncertain times such as these, financial resilience is more important than ever. But whilst savings for some Brits have surged in the pandemic, it's not been the case for everyone. 41pc of UK households could not last more than three months without their main source of income. If you are in a bad place, what are the best steps?
Katy Balls is joined by Tracey Crouch, Conservative MP and former minister for sports, civil society and loneliness, who's also been a leading campaigner on gambling reform; Bridget Phillipson, shadow chief secretary to the Treasury; and Nicola Bannister, Lloyds Banking Group's Collections Effectiveness Director for Retail.
Sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group.
We’re still none the wiser about the origins of coronavirus, but has the lab leak theory just got more credible (00:55) Also on the podcast: are English tourists welcome in Scotland (15:25)? And is being rude the secret to success?
With author Matt Ridley, virologist Dr Dennis Carroll, deputy political editor Katy Balls, hotelier Gordon Campbell Gray, journalists Harry Mount and Rebecca Reid.
Presented by William Moore.
Produced by Cindy Yu, Max Jeffery and Sam Russell.
Sam Leith's guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is Julian Sancton, whose new book Madhouse at the End of the Earth: The Belgica's Journey Into the Dark Antarctic Night, documents the crew of men who were the first to experience an Antarctic winter trapped in the ice, in an attempt to reach the South Pole. Sancton speaks about the background of some of the eccentric characters that made up the Belgica - and the stomach turning cuisine that is penguin meat.
Patrick Jephson is a consultant, journalist, broadcaster and New York Times best selling author. From 1988 to 1996, Patrick worked first as Princess Diana's equerry and then as her private secretary. He is also currently a historical consultant on Netfilx's The Crown.
On the podcast, he talks to Lara and Olivia about bonding over mealtimes with his fellow seamen when in the Navy, having ambassadorial dinners and English Rail sandwiches with the royals, and being cooked for by Pavarotti's personal pasta chef.
As the UK’s vaccine rollout provides a way out of the Covid pandemic, we are set to discover a host of new crises created from over a year spent in and out of lockdown.
The cancer crisis is just starting to unfold, as it’s estimated around 3 million people missed cancer screenings between last April and August alone. How do we begin to catch-up, as NHS waiting lists grow? What could have been done differently? And what lessons can be learned to help cancer patients access faster, and better, care?
Kate Andrews talks to Delyth Morgan, chief executive of Breast Cancer Now; Professor Peter Johnson, National Clinical Director for Cancer at NHS England; Gordon Wishart, chief executive at Check4Cancer; and Neil Pumford, Asset Strategy Lead at Abbvie.
This podcast is sponsored by Abbvie.
In this episode, Richard Dobbs reads his piece on why he's considering giving up his second vaccine for people more in need (00:55); Tanya Gold reports from her Kent road trip in a Ferrari (07:50); and Rory Sutherland on the unexpected joys of lockdown and why we may miss it when it's gone. (12:45)
What does the future of transport look like? From electric vehicles to driverless cars, a smarter way to get around the city may be just around the corner. The future of transport will be more efficient, more digital and greener - but what are the challenges that still stand in the way?
Kate Andrews talks to Rachel Maclean, the Minister for Transport, Roger Hunter, VP for Electric Mobility at Shell, and Professor David Levinson, a civil engineer at the University of Sydney.
This podcast is sponsored by Shell.
In this week’s podcast, we talk to James Ball, author of this week’s cover story on the ‘TikTok Intifada’ about the themes he uncovers in his analysis of the impact of social media on the conflict in the Middle East. The conversation with James continues with our next guest, Professor Gabriel Weinmann of Haifa University in Israel, the author of an in-depth report on the rise of incendiary, unregulated material on TikTok. As Arab and Israeli youngsters create and consume violent footage on the app, is it time that it was reined in - or is it a lost cause?
'This is a platform that targets young audiences. I would say we have a very young, gullible and naïve, unsuspecting type of audience' - Dr Gabriel Weinmann Next up, The Spectator’s deputy editor Freddy Gray meets the Financial Times’s Jemima Kelly, to debate the recent lulls and highs of those mercurial currencies, Dogecoin and Bitcoin. Has the cult of Elon Musk, a new clampdown by China and the erratic unpredictability of a boom built largely on hype, memes and hot air, finally put the kibosh on cryptocash? 'If we talk about bitcoin, there’s really not a difference between bitcoin and dogecoin apart from that fact that one says it’s a joke and one says it's really serious!' Jemima Kelly And finally - the annual Turner art prize rarely fails to spark a bit of controversy and this year’s nominations have reliably provided. There’s been plenty in the way of debate, but not especially in terms of tangible art. The 2021 shortlist comprises five ‘collectives’, most of whom some of whom have barely touched a paintbrush in their lives, has been announced - and in this week’s magazine, art critic Oliver Basciano argues that the politicisation of the Turner is in danger of sidelining values of aesthetics and free expression. He’s joined by critic and author Hettie Judah, to mull over what, how, and why the radical line-up of nominees have been selected and what this means to the British art world. ‘It’s an atypical year - you talk about people going and making weird and exciting stuff in their bedrooms or studios but we’ve not been able to see much of it this year. So, I mean, are we going to have an exhibition of the most-liked works on Instagram?' - Hettie Judah Presented by Cindy Yu
Produced by Arsalan Mohammad
Sam Leith's guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is Frances Wilson, whose new book Burning Man: The Ascent of D H Lawrence sets out to take a fresh look at a now unfashionable figure. Frances tells him why we’re looking in the wrong places for Lawrence’s greatness, explains why the supposed prophet of sexual liberation wasn’t really interested in sex at all - and reveals that after his death Lawrence may have been eaten by his admirers.
In this week’s episode of The Green Room, Deputy Editor of The Spectator's world edition Dominic Green meets the author Sohrab Ahmari for a chat about his new book, The Unbroken Thread: Discovering The Wisdom Of Tradition In An Age Of Chaos.
In it, Ahmari, a writer and New York Post op-ed editor, makes a compelling case for seeking the inherited traditions and ideals that give our lives meaning, via 12 fundamental questions that challenge our modern certainties. Among them: Is God reasonable? What is freedom for? What do we owe our parents, our bodies, one another? Exploring each question through the life and ideas of great thinkers, from Saint Augustine to Howard Thurman and from Abraham Joshua Heschel to Andrea Dworkin, Ahmari invites us to examine the hidden assumptions that drive our behaviour and, in so doing, to live more humanely in a world that has lost its way.
Don’t forget to subscribe to The Green Room for a weekly dose of books, arts and everything else that makes life worth living. Presented by Dominic Green and Arsalan Mohammad.
China has run wild with facial recognition. From using it to ration tissues in public toilets, to identifying highest paying customers in stores and criminals from a crowd, what is a budding technology in the West has furthered state surveillance and corporate snooping in China. But there is a civil fightback happening in the courts, on social media and in public opinion at large. On this episode, I speak to Jeffrey Ding, a DPhil researcher of China's development of AI at the University of Oxford, and Jeremy Daum, Senior Research Scholar in Law at Yale Law School, who also runs the blog China Law Translate. We discuss who is driving the tech growth in China; whether citizens have any recourse to turn back the tide; and how this technology is being used in Xinjiang.
On this week's episode, Leo McKinstry starts by arguing that having to sell the family home to pay for social care is not an injustice. (00:50) Then, Emily Hill reads her piece. She's not looking forward to the return of hugging. (08:00) Daisy Dunn finishes the podcast by examining the underappreciated art of asparagus. (12:30)
Katy Searle is the Executive Editor of Politics at BBC News. She is known for overseeing numerous blockbuster political moments, including the infamous kitchen interviews with Ed Miliband and David Cameron, where the Labour leader showed off his two kitchens. On the podcast, she talks to Katy Balls about leaving school at 16, working with Rod Liddle on the Today programme and what it's like to produce interviews with prime ministers.
In this week’s podcast, we talk to The Spectator's editor Fraser Nelson and associate editor Douglas Murray about the challenges facing a freshly re-elected SNP. What next for Nicola Sturgeon - full steam ahead for IndyRef2? Or have neither Scotland or Number 10 the bottle for an all-out battle for independence? [01:02]
‘When you look at the practicalities, the case for independence really does fall. Nicola Sturgeon is selling it in the abstract: “Do you feel Scottish”?’ - Fraser Nelson
Meanwhile in matters of social etiquette, the new post-pandemic era looms, complete with new modes of social interactions and conversational topics. In this week’s magazine, Rachel Johnson lays down the new laws of conversational topics - sex, art and travel is fine; kids, vaccines and masks are most definitely not. She joins us now, along with Lucy Hume, from that venerable arbiter of taste and decorum, Debrett’s, for some ideas for the upcoming social summer. [12:25]
'I sometimes got emails from people, during lockdown, saying, I’m on my way to my second house, can you confirm this is legal or not, as if I was the ultimate arbiter of the crazy compliance and Covid restrictions!' - Rachel Johnson
Finally, as the government announces its plans to introduce new asset thresholds for households seeking healthcare in old age, Leo McKinstry writes in The Spectator this week of his irritation with middle-class homeowners scandalised at the prospect of selling their homes to finance healthcare in their old age. Should this be a cost collectively borne by the taxpayer or should those with ample assets simply bear the brunt of the cost? Will Heaven, Director of Policy and Communications at the Policy Exchange think tank, joins us to argue the point. [23:00]
'I think if you were to tell most 40-year olds that you’re going to pay one penny extra on income tax over the course of your career but you’re never going to have to worry about high social care costs and parents and grandparents, they’d probably go for it' - Will Heaven.
Presented by Lara Prendergast
Produced by Arsalan Mohammad and Sam Russell
In this week's Book Club podcast, we're celebrating the 80th birthday of Bob Dylan. Sam Leith's guests are the former Poet Laureate Andrew Motion, and Clinton Heylin, the Dylanologist's Dylanologist and author most recently of The Double Life of Bob Dylan: A Restless Hungry Feeling 1941-66. Sam asks what makes Dylan special, whether what he does - even if we admire it - can be called literature, how Dante and Keats found their way into his work, whether there's anything he does badly (spoiler: yes); and if it can really be true that he writes songs with a typewriter rather than a guitar.
Jonathan Drori CBE is a Trustee of the Eden Project and Cambridge Science Centre, an ambassador for WWF, and was for nine years a Trustee of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. In a previous life at the BBC, he was executive producer of more than 50 prime-time science documentaries and popular series, and he is now the author of Around the World in 80 Plants.
On the podcast, he talks to Lara and Olivia about the diverse diet he had as a child of Eastern European Jewish refugees, how he got into botany through eating plants and the time he accidentally ordered a raw chicken milkshake.
On this week's episode, Cindy Yu is joined by the journalist Isabel Oakeshott, Spectator contributor Stephen Daisley, historian Niall Ferguson, and Professor Jay Bhattacharya.
We discuss why Boris can't afford childcare, why India is reluctant to lock down again, and if a second cold war is on the horizon.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this week's episode, Fraser Nelson starts by reading our leading article: the Prime Minister promised 'data, not dates', so should we reopen before 21 June? (01:15) Fiona Mountford is on next, saying she's had enough of corporate faux-friendliness. (07:20) Laurie Graham reads her piece afterwards, wondering what to put in her Covid time capsule. (13:00) Isabel Hardman finishes the podcast by reading her notes on Dandelions - perhaps the 'cheeriest of wild flowers'.
If it hadn't been for the pandemic, the past year would have likely been dominated by a familiar topic - Brexit. The decision to leave, we're told, presents the UK with endless opportunity in a variety of sectors, including healthcare and life sciences. But it hasn't been the easiest year, with supply chains and the Northern Ireland Protocol already under strain. So what are the opportunities to boost Britain's healthcare now that it has left the EU, and where are the pitfalls?
Kate Andrews is joined by Antonis Papasolomontos, Director of External Affairs at Abbvie, Sarah Neville, Global Health Editor at the FT, and Jeremy Hunt, Chair of the Health Select Committee.
Sponsored by Abbvie.
In this week’s podcast, we talk to the author of our cover story, eminent author, historian and broadcaster Niall Ferguson, who says that the West and China are in the throes of a new cold war. Joining the debate is Chatham House's Dr Leslie Vinjamuri. (01:05) Next up, Laura Freeman writes in the magazine this week about the fake facades she has been increasingly noticing whilst out and about in London. She discusses the topic with architectural expert Samuel Hughes, a Senior Fellow at Policy Exchange think tank. (10:20) Finally, as the Prime Minister considers how he’ll stump up the cash to pay for little Wilfred’s babysitter, Isabel Oakeshott writes in the magazine this week about the struggle many working parents have in affording childcare. Isabel is joined by the Labour MP Stella Creasy as they debate what needs to be done so working parents can ensure their children get the care they need. (15:35)
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Arsalan Mohammad.
Sam's guest in this week's Book Club podcast is the writer and critic Ruth Scurr, whose new book marks today's 200th anniversary of Napoleon's death to cast a fresh light on this most written-about of characters. In Napoleon: A Life in Gardens and Shadows, she finds an unexpected thread running through the life of this man of war - his relationship with nature and with gardens, from the plot he tended as a schoolboy to the garden in his final exile in St Helena. She tells Sam about what he owed the Revolution and how he came to turn it, at least apparently, on its head; about his complex relationship with Josephine and its Boris-and-Carrie echoes; and about the single walled garden on which the future of Europe can be argued to have turned.
Covid has put a spotlight on housing in Britain - the inequalities, the challenges, but also the opportunities. As what we want out of our homes, offices, and even the high street, changes, public policy will have to follow suit. So how do we create sustainable towns and cities that ensure quality and access for all?
Kate Andrews is joined by Christopher Pincher, Minister for Housing, Iqbal Hamiduddin, Associate Professor at the Bartlett School of Planning at the UCL, and Kath Fontana, President of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
Sponsored by RICS.
The archaic-sounding notion of 'filial piety' has little direct translation into English, but is a deep-rooted part of Chinese culture and ethics. On this episode, I find out about what motivates the subscription to such an unequal view of family life; how modernity changes expectations (and in particular, the impact of the one child policy); and what happens to those deemed by society to be disrespectful of their parents.
With Professor Charlotte Ikels, an anthropologist at Case Western Reserve University.
On this week's episode, Fraser Nelson is joined by Douglas Murray, The Spectator's associate editor; Professor Tim Spector, principal investigator at ZOE; Professor Simon Wood, from the University of Edinburgh; Adam Ritchie, a vaccine development specialist from the University of Oxford; Professor Noel Sharkey, from the University of Sheffield and formerly of Robot Wars; and Sir Richard Dearlove, the former head of MI6.
We discuss whether Britain needs a first lady, if the UK should send vaccines to India, and if we're ready for cyber warfare.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this week’s episode, Roddy McDougall remembers heroes of the speedway, (01:15) Theo Zanou examines at Stanley Kubrick’s fascination with Napoleon, (07:20) Gus Carter looks at a memorial to everyday heroism, (17:20) and Toby Young explains what’s wrong with Equity’s anti-racism guidelines. (21:35)
Over the last year of intermittent lockdowns, most of us have spent more time staring at the four walls of our living room than we ever thought possible. One of the biggest factors affecting someone's pandemic experience is the type of accommodation they're in, and 8.4 million people in England are living in unaffordable, insecure or unsuitable homes.
There are, however, attempts being made to help fix the problem, with promises to build new homes, a stamp duty holiday, and a new mortgage guarantee system.
To discuss the problem of unaffordable homes, and the potential solutions, Katy Balls is joined on this sponsored podcast by Thangam Debbonaire, the shadow secretary of state for housing; Natalie Elphicke, the Conservative MP for Dover and chair of the New Homes Quality Board; and Esther Dijkstra, the managing director of intermediaries at Lloyds Banking Group.
Sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group.
In this week’s podcast, ITV's political editor Robert Peston joins our deputy political Katy Balls to talk over this week’s cover story on the maelstrom of mayhem surrounding Boris Johnson. (1:29)
Next up, we talk to Professor Noel Sharkey, from the University of Sheffield, and Colonel Richard Kemp CBE, a veteran British Army officer, about the possibility of malevolent foreign forces wreaking havoc on everything from national infrastructure to web-connected sex toys. (10:22)
Finally, in a week when India has seen its healthcare system virtually buckle under the strain of a spiralling Covid infection rate, we ask Dr Rajib Dasgupta, Chairman of the Centre of Social Medicine & Community Health in New Delhi for his take on the current wave of infections, as well as Dr Dipshikha Ghosh, a Calcutta doctor who has been working with critically-ill Covid patients since last March and joins us immediately after another arduous shift at the Apollo Gleneagles hospital. (19:40)
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Arsalan Mohammad.
In this week's Book Club podcast, Sam is joined by Richard Dawkins to talk about his new book Books Do Furnish A Life: Reading and Writing Science. Richard tells Sam - among much else - what makes science writing (and science fiction) exciting; the questions science can (and can't) answer; why he felt it necessary to invest so much of his time arguing against religion; and why the left recurrent laryngeal nerve of the giraffe is such an odd shape.
Sebastian de Souza is an English actor an author. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Olivia about eating too much on set, enjoying cornflakes, double cream and sugar, and writing after a drink. His new book, Kid, is out now.
On this week's episode, Fraser Nelson is joined by Conservative MP and former chancellor Sajid Javid; Dr Jeffrey Barrett from the Wellcome Sanger Institute; former Swedish prime minister Carl Bildt; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss how Joe Biden has fared in his first 100 days in office, whether the government was right to intervene in plans for a European Super League, and if the Indian coronavirus variant is something to worry about.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this week's episode, broadcaster Jonathan Dimbleby reads his diary (00:55), journalist Katja Hoyer reports on the German Greens and their poll surge (06:25) and Melissa Kite on why she's perfectly happy to stay in the country this summer (12:05).
Hwaet! Our guest in this week’s Book Club Podcast is Maria Dahvana Headley, whose new book is a translation of the Anglo-Saxon classic Beowulf. She talks to us about how she has produced what she bills as a 'feminist translation' of this most macho of poems; about the poem’s braided history and complex language; and about what it tells us of the Anglo-Saxon worldview.
Joe Biden is approaching his first 100 days in office. How has he fared, and has he delivered on his promise to bring about a return to normalcy? (1:15) Plus, the proposed European Super League wasn’t super after all. The six English teams invited to join the league pulled out earlier this week, and the plans have now been shelved. But will it still happen eventually? (10:30) And finally, what’s it really like to live in a listed building? (19:30)
With the Spectator's US editor Freddy Gray; our economics correspondent Kate Andrews; journalist Damian Reilly; veteran football reporter Julie Welch; Spectator contributor Hamish Scott; and Liz Fuller, a buildings at risk officer for Save Britain’s Heritage.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Max Jeffery and Sam Russell.
Derek Chauvin, the former police officer who knelt on George Floyd's neck, is currently on trial in Minneapolis. What will the city stay peaceful when the verdict is delivered, do violent viral videos do more harm than good, and should the country's political leaders call for order? Freddy Gray speaks to Scott Johnson, a lawyer and contributor to Power Line.
You might think that in a country as tightly controlled as China, diversity of opinion is hard to come by in written form. But as I find out in this episode, there is a vibrant conversation going on with vastly different views, especially in the intellectual elite amongst professors and journalists. So what do these intellectuals think, and how much can they get away with saying?
With Professor David Ownby, who founded the website Reading the China Dream, which translates writings from Chinese intellectuals into English. He tells me:
'A casual observer of China in the West will think that all Chinese are sitting at home, with the blinds closed, waiting for the Chinese Communist Party to fall apart before the police come and get them... But that's not the life led by most Chinese intellectuals... By knowing what they talk about, it humanises China.'
In the episode, we also discuss Cai Xia, a former CCP professor now living in exile, and the article she wrote from the US. Click here to read it.
On this week's episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Jill Rutter, senior research fellow at UK in a Changing Europe and a former civil servant; Sir Christopher Meyer, former UK ambassador to the United States; environmental campaigner Stanley Johnson; Professor Lawrence Gostin, director of the WHO's Center for National and Global Health Law; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss the Greensill scandal, Boris's plans to rebrand Britain, and how vaccine passports are being used in the US.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this episode, author and journalist Ian Williams starts by looks at how China is using tech to expand its reach. (00:45) Then, Fiona Mountford reflects on how to deal with grief. (12:00) Finally, Deborah Ross reviews the Oscar-nominated Promising Young Woman, 'a wonderfully clever, darkly funny, stomach-knotting' revenge-thriller. (18:10)
Nusrat Ghani is the Conservative MP for Wealden, having previously served as a transport minister under the May then Johnson governments. On the podcast, she tells Katy Balls about her upbringing under a father who was a headteacher; how she narrowly escaped arranged marriage through university; and how it feels to be one of nine Brits to be sanctioned by the Chinese Communist Party.
What’s behind Boris’s plan for a green bonanza? (01:10) Can the West challenge China in the tech arms race? (14:50) Can the British handle grief? (24:05) With Katy Balls, The Spectator’s deputy political editor; Rachel Wolf, a partner at Public First at co-author of the 2019 Conservative manifesto; author and journalist Ian Williams; politician and author Bruno Maçães; writer Fiona Mountford; and comedian and podcaster Cariad Lloyd. Presented by Lara Prendergast. Produced by Arsalan Mohammad.
In this week's Book club podcast Sam's guest is Roland Philipps - whose new book Victoire: A Wartime Story of Resistance, Collaboration and Betrayal tells the morally murky and humanly fascinating story of Mathilde Carre - a vital figure of the early days of resistance in occupied France. Roland's story describes her heroic early work; and its undoing when she was captured and turned collaborator... before she saw, in the figure of an agent for the British secret services, the opportunity for a triple-cross and the hope of redemption.
Carole Hayman is a writer, broadcaster, actor and director. On the podcast, she tells Lara and Liv about facing anorexia, London in the late 70s, smoking on stage and cooking while writing.
What were Prince Philip's religious beliefs? The Duke of Edinburgh had Orthodox Christian ancestry, but how was he drawn to its traditions, was he influenced by the Queen's faith, and why was he critical of Catholicism? Damian Thompson speaks to Gavin Ashenden, chaplain to the Queen from 2008 to 2017.
On this week's episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Jamie Njoku-Goodwin, chief executive of UK Music and former special adviser to Matt Hancock; Spectator contributor Alexander Pelling-Bruce; Alba Party MP Kenny MacAskill; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss whether life will return to normal on 21 June, if a new 'retain and explain' policy will stop statue controversies, and how well Salmond's Alba party will do in May's Holyrood elections.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this week's episode, Philip Eade, biographer to Prince Philip, reads his obituary of the Prince. We're also joined by Dominic Green, Spectator USA's Life and Arts Editor, who reads his article on Prince Harry's new job. Anshel Pfeffer reports on life in Israel under the vaccine passport; and Lionel Shriver on the West's self-doubt and who stands to benefit.
Vaccine passports seem all but inevitable in the UK and parts of the US. While some are relatively relaxed about the prospects of a de facto bio-security ID card, others are not. Spectator US contributor Bridget Phetasy is one of them, and on this episode tells Freddy Gray why she hates the 'vaxport'.
Will life ever return to normal? (00:50) Is the government pandering to statue protestors? (14:30) And what’s Prince Harry’s new job? (27:55)
With Kate Andrews, the Spectator's economics editor; Spectator columnist Matthew Parris; Spectator contributor Alexander Pelling-Bruce; Historic England CEO Duncan Wilson; Dominic Green, deputy editor of the Spectator's US edition; and Sam Leith, literary editor of the Spectator.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Max Jeffery, Cindy Yu and Arsalan Mohammad.
Sam's guest this week is the broadcaster and historian Jonathan Dimbleby. In Barbarossa: Hitler's Greatest Mistake, Jonathan describes the extraordinary and horrifying story of the Nazi campaign against Stalin, and its still more extraordinary strategic and diplomatic background. It's a bloody and sometimes tragicomic parable of how dictators can become detached from reality - and in it he makes the case that, contra the prevailing image of Anglo-American victories in France having been decisive in winning the Second World War, Hitler's goose was actually cooked as early as 1941.
The pandemic has led to a surge in digitisation in so many aspects of our lives. Cloud computing, in particular, has been a cornerstone of this time - not least for stay at home employees to maintain their productivity during a turbulent time. But what actually is cloud computing, and is it all that it's set out to be? Are privacy and security concerns adequately addressed? Kate Andrews speaks to DCMS Minister Matt Warman and Public First's Rachel Wolf about its potentials and pitfalls.
Sponsored by AWS.
Cross-strait relations between China and Taiwan seem to be hotting up, with headlines frequently touting the possibility of a military takeover by Beijing. But why does China care so much about this set of islands that is around a seventh of the size of the UK? Cindy Yu speaks to historian Rana Mitter and analyst Jessica Drun about Taiwan's unique history and its modern identity.
On this episode, writer and physicist Carlo Rovelli, ponder time and space in a world were the meaning of both has shifted. (01:00) Then, David Abulafia talks about the need for conservatives at universities. (07:29) Finally, Laura Freeman gets us ready for easter with the stories and the art depicting St Veronica. (15:27)
The pandemic has changed many aspects of our lives but one of the biggest is the way we work– with 46% of people working from home last year. Perhaps no group has been more impacted by this than the young - from unemployment to the mental health pressures of working from small homes and a tough jobs market, this generation has been dubbed 'the Covid generation'. But at the same time there are also opportunities – could apprenticeships be part of the solution? On this sponsored podcast, Katy Balls talks to a panel of strong women about the challenges and opportunities facing young people in professional life. She's joined by Gillian Keegan, the Minister for Apprenticeships and Skills; Frances O’Grady, General Secretary of the TUC; and Michelle Blayney, Chief Culture and Talent Officer at Lloyds Banking Group.
Sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group.
Can the West take on China? We may need some kind of economic Nato (00:50). Are Mormons misunderstood, by Netflix and everyone else? (14:15) And what does it really mean to be Spiritual But Not Religious? (27:45).
With James Forsyth, The Spectator's political editor; Iain Duncan Smith, former leader of the Conservative Party; Damian Thompson, host of the Spectator's Holy Smoke podcast; James Holt, a Mormon theologian; author James Mumford; and Mary Wakefield, The Spectator's Commissioning Editor.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Cindy Yu, Max Jeffery and Sam Russell.
Sam's guest this week is crime queen Lynda La Plante - talking about her new novel Judas Horse, and three decades of her most famous creation, Prime Suspect's Jane Tennison. She tells Sam how she wrote her way out of acting, why so much crime drama now turns her off, why she thinks it's so important to get police work right and let baddies be baddies - and why she's haunted by Rentaghost.
Lydia Forte is the Group Director of Food & Beverage at Rocco Forte Hotels. On the podcast, she tells Lara and Liv about missing Martini's, cooking in lockdown, and hosting a family Come Dine With Me.
Young people are now more likely to consume marijuana than smoke tobacco. Is weed just a benign stimulant, or is Big Dope pushing a drug that could lead to a schizophrenia epidemic? Freddy Gray speaks to Madeleine Kearns, staff writer at National Review and the author of the cover piece in the new US edition of The Spectator.
On this week's episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Andrew Adonis, a Labour peer and chair of the European Movement; Jackie Baillie, the deputy leader of Scottish Labour who sits on the Holyrood committee investigating whether Nicola Sturgeon broke the ministerial code; Spectator contributor Brigid Waddams; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss whether the EU will ban vaccine exports, whether the UK's rollout was a Brexit success, and what it was like to watch the collapse of the British Raj.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this episode, Katja Hoyer looks at Ursula von der Leyen past mistakes. (00:45) Then, Fraser Nelson says the Defence Review could be a sign that Britain is learning from its foreign policy failings. (04:10) Finally, Toby Young explains the downsides to owning a small dog. (13:05)
A piece of digital art by the illustrator Beeple has sold for $69 million. Is it worth the cash, or just a picture on a screen? Freddy Gray talks to Nima Sagharchi, director of Middle Eastern, Islamic and South Asian art at Bonhams auctioneers.
As the EU threatens a vaccine export ban, is their blind panic a sign of incoming crisis? (1:15) Plus, will a new Instagram account for teenage girls to report sexual assault restart a battle of the sexes? (18:05) And finally, what is it like to be one of the last British babies born under the Raj? (28:30)
With Labour peer Andrew Adonis; Spectator contributors Matthew Lynn, Julie Bindel, Melanie McDonagh and Brigid Keenan; and historian Alex von Tunzelmann.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Cindy Yu, Max Jeffery and Sam Russell.
This week on the Book Club podcast, Sam is joined by the veteran foreign correspondent Michela Wrong to talk about her new book Do Not Disturb: The Story of a Political Murder and an African Regime Gone Bad. While Rwanda's president Paul Kagame has basked in the approval of Western donors, Michela argues, his burnished image conceals a history of sadism, repression and violent tyranny. She tells Sam what our goodies-and-baddies account of Rwanda's genocide missed, and why it urgently needs correcting.
Unreliable, slow and you'll never find a charging point - those are some of the things that come to mind when thinking about electric vehicles for many drivers. But are these outdated myths? The government has less than a decade to meet its 2030 ban on new petrol and diesel cars. With the future of electric vehicles just around the corner, Kate Andrews talks to a panel of special guests about how much progress has been made in the industry, and how much still needs to be done.
With Grant Shapps, the Secretary of State for Transport; Mike Hawes, the CEO of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders; and Chris O'Shea, CEO of Centrica.
Sponsored by Centrica.
'Scratch a communist, you’ll find a nationalist underneath’, Professor Kerry Brown, the director of the Lau China Institute at King's College London, tells me on this episode. Together with Professor Victor Shih of UC San Diego, we talk about what drives the Chinese Communist Party (hint: it's not communism), what membership means today and the policy disputes that happen behind the scenes. And: as it prepares to mark its first centenary this year, will it still be around in another fifty years?
On this week's episode, Andrew Neil is joined by former Supreme Court judge Jonathan Sumption; Spectator contributor Melanie McDonagh; Conservative MP David Davis; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss whether the latest coronavirus data still justifies the current lockdown, how Keir Starmer is becoming irrelevant, and the SNP's efforts to censor Alex Salmond's evidence.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this episode, Cindy Yu starts by reading the leader - The Spectator has a fight on it's hands as the Scottish Crown Office threatens a six-figure fine. (01:30) Then, Douglas Murray says the Church of England has morphed beyond recognition. (06:40) Finally, Philip Hensher says Jordan Peterson's new book, Beyond Order, is 'pretty odd'. (15:05)
Elif Shafak is an award-winning Turkish-British novellist, essayist and activist. On the episode, she talks to Katy about what it was like to grow up in conservative Ankara under the strong women in her family; her prosecution by the Turkish government; and why she thinks too much information is not necessarily a virtue.
Is Keir Starmer becoming irrelevant? (00:50) Do the Oscars really celebrate the best that film has to offer? (15:55) Jordon Peterson is back with his new book, Beyond Order, but is it beyond readable? (25:40)
With the Spectator's political editor James Forsyth; broadcaster and former Labour adviser Ayesha Hazarika; writer Fiona Mountford; the Spectator's arts editor Igor Toronyi-Lalic; novelist Philip Hensher; and the Spectator's associate editor Douglas Murray.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Max Jeffery, Sam Russell and Arsalan Mohammad.
In this week’s Book Club podcast, Sam's guest is the former editor of the Today Programme, Sarah Sands. Sarah tells him how an addiction to the buzz of news and gossip gave way in her to a fascination for the opposite, as described in her new book The Interior Silence: 10 Lessons From Monastic Life. Come for the revelations about grifting nuns and what happened to Boris Johnson’s dongle; stay for her discoveries about how we can all bring a little of the peace of the cloister into our hectic secular lives.
Geordie Willis is the creative director and brand experiences director of Berry Brothers and Rudd, Britain's oldest wine merchants. He is the eighth generation of his family to work in the business, which was founded in 1698. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Liv about his grandmother's homemade mayonnaise, being kicked out of the family business, and the secret to matching wine with food.
This episode is sponsored by Berry Brothers and Rudd.
On this week's episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Dr Remi Adekoya, associate politics lecturer at the University of York; Spectator contributor Olenka Hamilton; Bloomberg's Javier Blas; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss who's to blame in the Royal knockabout, why Britain's Polish community are sceptical of the Covid vaccine, and the murky world of commodity traders.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this episode, Anil Bhoyrul starts by asking if it's racist to wonder what colour your child's skin will be. (01:05) Lionel Shriver is up next, and says the West has used China's totalitarian tactics to suppress Covid. (05:05) Melissa Kite finishes the podcast, and describes her encounter with 'obnoxious Surrey battleaxes'. (14:15)
Freddy Gray talks to historian Patrick Allitt, the Cahoon Family Professor of American History at Emory University, about how much the Harry and Meghan interview has really cut through to the American public.
Is it fair to blame Meghan for the Royal Family's problems? (00:55) Why is China censoring a book of Dante's poetry? (12:40) Would you go to moon? (24:50)
With The Spectator's US editor Freddy Gray; The Spectator's restaurant critic Tanya Gold; author Ian Thomson; Kerry Brown, professor of Chinese Studies at King's College London; The Spectator's commissioning editor Mary Wakefield; and Spectator columnist Matthew Parris.
Presented by Cindy Yu.
Produced by Max Jeffery, Natasha Feroze and Matthew Sawyer.
Sam's guest in this week's Book Club podcast is Horatio Clare - whose superb latest book is about going mad. Heavy Light: A Journey Through Madness, Mania and Healing, tells the story of Horatio's recent breakdown and forcible hospitalisation - what he experienced, how he recovered, how it pushed him to investigate the unquestioned assumptions about 'chemical imbalances' causing mental illness, and the questionable and effectively random ways in which drugs are prescribed.
Tiger mums and dads are infamous in the West, but in China the pressure is ramped up several times higher. From kindergarten to university, exams form the structure of a disciplined and competitive educational environment. It yields result - with even the poorest students in Shanghai scoring higher on maths and reading than the richest in the UK (according to PISA). But does the system value the right things, and what sacrifices are demanded? Cindy Yu speaks to journalist Lenora Chu, author of Little Soldiers, about her research and experience as a mother in the system.
Read Cindy's take on the university entrance exams (gaokao) here.
On this week's episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Sir David Spiegelhalter, a leading statistician from the University of Cambridge; Spectator contributor Stephen Daisley; Spectator contributor Jonathan Miller; and our TV regulars Fraser Nelson, James Forsyth and Kate Andrews.
We discuss whether the government is really following 'data, not dates', if the UK's economic recovery could lead to an early election, and what's next for Nicola Sturgeon.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
This week's episode features a reading of The Spectator's leading article, on how devolution has created a democratic deficit in Scotland (00:50); our economics correspondent Kate Andrews on what keeps the Chancellor up at night (7:00); and Rod Liddle on the real cause of food poverty in the UK. (16:35).
Rachel Reeves is the Labour MP for Leeds West and the shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. On the podcast, she talks to Katy about being a teen chess champion (pictured playing), going to a school where her mum worked and what Labour needs to do to turn its losing streak.
Could a blip in inflation ruin the UK's economic recovery? (00:50) Why is support for the IRA becoming normalised? (12:20) What makes a great diarist? (31:15)
With The Spectator's economics correspondent Kate Andrews; economist Julian Jessop; writer Jenny McCartney; politician Mairia Cahill; satirist Craig Brown; and historian, journalist and author Simon Heffer.
Presented by Cindy Yu.
Produced by Max Jeffery, Alex Valizadeh, Alexa Rendell and Matt Taylor.
The public conversation - especially on social media - is widely agreed to be of a dismally low quality. In this week’s Book Club podcast, Sam is joined by two people who have ideas about how we can make it better. Andrew Doyle’s new book is Free Speech: And Why It Matters; Ian Leslie’s is Conflicted: Why Arguments Are Tearing Us Apart And How They Can Bring Us Together. Andrew, Ian and Sam talk free speech, tribalism, cancel culture - and how we can learn to disagree more productively.
Max Halley is one of Britain's pre-eminent sandwich aficionados. He is the founder of Max's Sandwich Shop, and the author of Max's Picnic Book. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Liv about being exposed to obscure ingredients, working in a pudding factory, and the six essential components in every great sandwich.
This episode is sponsored by Berry Brothers and Rudd.
In the first public appearance since Biden's inauguration, Donald Trump has spoken to CPAC, the annual conservative conference. Freddy Gray reviews his speech with Kate Andrews.
On this week's episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Professor Robert Dingwall, from Nottingham Trent University; Rory Sutherland, vice chair of Ogilvy and The Spectator's Wiki Man columnist; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss SNP turmoil, the roadmap to unlocking, and what makes a good government advert.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this episode, Katy Balls explains how No. 10 infighting could lose Scotland, and reveals how Boris plans to get his side in order. (01:05) Matthew Lynn is next on the show, and tells the story of the Up Crash. (10:10) Craig Brown finishes the podcast, reading his review of a 'dark portrait of sibling hatred': Samantha Markle's memoir. (21:20)
Could No. 10 infighting lose the Union? (00:40) When should the government tell us how to behave? (13:20) Can a relationship work without hugging for a year? (31:30) With The Spectator’s deputy political editor Katy Balls; The Spectator’s Scotland editor Alex Massie; vice chair of Ogilvy and Spectator columnist Rory Sutherland; Deirdre McCloskey, Professor of Economics, History, English and Communications at University of Illinois at Chicago; writer Rob Palk; and journalist Emily Hill. Presented by Lara Prendergast. Produced by Max Jeffery and Charlie Price.
Sam Leith's guest on this week’s Book Club is the bioarchaeologist Cat Jarman, whose fascinating new book River Kings spins a global history of the Vikings out of a single carnelian bead found in a grave in Repton. Cat tells him how much more there was to the Viking culture than our traditional image of arson, rape and pillage in Northumbria - showing how 21st century techniques have helped to expose a culture that raided and traded from Scandinavia as far as Baghdad and Constantinople, and may even have been the ancestral population of the Russian heartland. Plus: real-life Valkyries, slavery and human sacrifice. You never learned all this from How To Train Your Dragon...
After getting off the phone with Xi Jinping, Joe Biden warned his senators that on infrastructure 'and a whole range of other things', China was spending much more than the US, and America risked being left behind. So just how interconnected is modern China and is it really a good growth model to emulate?
With economist George Magnus, author of Red Flags: Why Xi's China is in Jeopardy.
On this week's episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Rod Liddle, associate editor at The Spectator; Trevor Phillips, managing director at Webber Phillips; journalist Dan Hitchens; Harry Mount, editor of The Oldie; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss how England will leave lockdown, the rise of vaccine diplomacy, and why Anglo-Saxon history is so popular.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this episode, Cindy Yu begins by explaining why China and Russia are ahead in the great game of vaccine diplomacy. (00:45) Fraser Nelson is next, and he tells us why The Spectator went to court. (10:35) Josiah Gogarty finishes the podcast, asking how middle-class your dad is. (16:35)
This week's Holy Smoke examines the fragmentation of American Catholicism following the election of pro-choice Catholic Joe Biden. It focuses on the strangest current of thought among the many conservative Catholics calling for an urgent change of approach in order to confront what promises to be an authoritarian liberal administration.
It's called integralism, a label previously attached to distinctly un-American European Catholic reactionaries such as Action française and General Franco's Falangists. In its US incarnation it's less nationalist but in some ways equally extreme. Its proponents want to turn the United States into a nation in which, in the long run, only Catholics will be full citizens eligible to hold office. This new integralism is a medieval fantasy built around the teachings of St Thomas Aquinas.
Suzanne Moore is a journalist. On the podcast, she tells Katy about interviewing to work for Marxism Today, feeling out of place at The Guardian, and standing to be an independent MP.
How are China and Russia getting ahead in the great game of vaccine diplomacy? (00:50) Has the US press lost its way? (11:30) Why is Anglo-Saxon history making a comeback? (27:20)
With The Spectator's broadcast editor Cindy Yu; journalist Owen Matthews; Harper's publisher Rick MacArthur; The Washington Post's media critic Erik Wemple; journalist Dan Hitchens; and Sutton Hoo archaeologist Professor Martin Craver.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Max Jeffery and Matt Taylor.
Sam's guest in this week’s books podcast is the historian Judith Flanders, whose A Place For Everything tells the story of a vital but little considered part of intellectual history: alphabetical order. Judith tells Sam how this innovation both reflected and enabled the movement from oral to written culture, from a dogmatic to a secular worldview, and made possible the modern administrative state. They touch on, among other things, prototypes of the Post-It note, the contribution of the French Revolution to indexing, the bizarre British Library shelfmark for Gawain and the Green Knight, and why Dewey, of decimal fame, was an utter rotter.
Eliot Higgins is an investigative journalist. He is the founder of Bellingcat, a platform specialising in open source intelligence. Bellingcat is known for its work on the Syrian civil war, the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, and the Salisbury poisonings. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Olivia about his love of custard, what he snacks on while working, and why he doesn't eat out.
This episode is sponsored by Berry Brothers and Rudd.
On this week's episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Professor Sharon Peacock CBE, chair of the Covid-19 Genomics UK Consortium; Douglas Ross, leader of Scottish Conservatives; Wolfgang Munchau, director of Eurointellgence; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss how genomics can combat new Covid variants, if the Scottish Tories can stop independence, and why Germany is sidling up to Russia.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
In this episode of Spectator Out Loud, Andrew Sullivan reflects on Trump's second impeachment trial (01:05), Lara Prendergast questions whether vaccine passports are really the solution (08:20) and Deborah Ross reviews an unorthodox film about a school shooting (20:00).
Freddy Gray talks to Republican political consultant Luke Thompson about the demise of the Lincoln Project, the political action committee set up to oppose Donald Trump's re-election.
On this week's episode, we talk vaccine passports (1:10), Nord Stream 2 (14:55) and the appeal of chess (30:50).
With entrepreneur Louis-James Davis, journalist James Ball, analyst Wolfgang Munchau, academic Kadri Liik, chess columnist Luke McShane and chess streamer Fiona Steil-Antoni.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Cindy Yu, Max Jeffery and Alexa Rendell.
In this week’s books podcast, Sam is joined by the philosopher Toby Ord to talk about the cheering subject of planetary catastrophe. In his book The Precipice, new in paperback, Toby argues that we’re at a crucial point in human history - and that if we don’t start thinking seriously about extinction risks our species may not make it through the next few centuries. Asteroids, supervolcanoes, nuclear immolation, killer AI, engineered pandemics... Toby weighs up the risks of each, and tells us why we should care.
The Book Club is a series of literary interviews and discussions on the latest releases in the world of publishing, from poetry through to physics. Presented by Sam Leith, The Spectator's literary editor. Hear past episodes here.
As the first BNO passport holders begin to make their way to the UK and start the path to a new citizenship, Cindy Yu takes a look back at Hong Kong's history and how that special city-state formed its own identity. As SOAS's Professor Steve Tsang tells her on the podcast: 'Not quite British, not quite Chinese'. They talk about how Hong Kongers yearned to find their Chinese roots, the fervour of handover and how 'Cantopop' (Cantonese pop music) took the mainland by storm.
On this week's episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Stephen Daisley, a journalist and Spectator contributor; The Revd Marcus Walker, Rector of Great St Bartholomew's in London; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss whether vaccines are already having an impact, if the UK's relationship with the EU is deteriorating, and if the Church of England has failed its members.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this week's episode, Emma Thompson explains why Church of England cuts could lead to the devastation of the parish network. (00:55) Then, Matt Ridley explains why lockdown could have led to more deadly coronavirus variants. (10:15) And finally, Toby Young asks why he hasn't got a peerage. (18:10)
Mims Davies is the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Employment and the MP for Mid Sussex. On the podcast, she talks to Katy Balls about how her family became lifelong carers when her dad was attacked at work, about why she didn't come out as a Tory in her student days at Swansea University and why her change of seat in the 2019 election was not all that it seems.
Are parish churches about to be devastated by bureaucracy and mismanagement? (00:55) What's the story behind the UK's vaccination efforts? (07:55) Has an intransigent union stopped firefighters from helping the Covid response? (21:55)
With church volunteer Emma Thompson; Rector of Great St Barts Marcus Walker; The Spectator's deputy political editor Katy Balls; senior project manager at the University of Oxford's Jenner Institute Adam Ritchie; journalist Leo McKinsey; and chair of the National Fire Chiefs Council Roy Wilsher.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Max Jeffery, Sam Russell and Matt Taylor.
In this week’s Book Club podcast Sam Leith is joined by one of the funniest writers working today. Shalom Auslander’s new novel is Mother For Dinner, which is set in perhaps the most oppressed minority community in the world. He talks to Sam about cannibalism, identity politics, his beef with tragedy... and an extremely high-risk prayer at the Wailing Wall.
Bip Ling is a model, musician, food writer, visual artist and DJ. On the podcast, she tells Lara and Liv about being inspired by her grandmother's Indian cooking, eating as a model, and why macaroni cheese should be made with almond milk rather than full-fat.
Table Talk is a series of podcasts where Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts talk to celebrity guests about their life story, through the food and drink that has come to define it. Listen to past episodes here.
On this week's episode, Andrew Neil is joined by author and historian Sir Anthony Seldon; former Director of Immunisation at the Department of Health David Salisbury; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss whether the EU's dispute with AstraZeneca is the beginning of a vaccine war, if quarantines for international arrivals will work in Britain, and who have been Britain's best prime ministers.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this week's episode, Matthew Lynn describes the first great geopolitical battle of the century: the vaccine wars. (00:40) Plus, Anthony Seldon makes his case for a museum of British premierships. (09:35) Finally, Sam Leith says Doc Martins are the only footwear you'll ever need. (18:30)
Freddy Gray talks to Joe Weisenthal, co-host of the Odd Lots podcast and presenter of What'd You Miss on Bloomberg TV, about the GameStop short squeeze. Where did wallstreetbets start, have they revolutionised the stock market, and do they know what they're doing?
Why has the vaccine rollout turned nasty? (00:45) What's the sex abuse scandal rocking France's elite? (16:55) Have artists run out of new ideas? (28:35)
With Daily Telegraph columnist Matthew Lynn; science journalist and author of Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 Laura Spinney; Spectator contributor Jonathan Miller; journalist Anne-Elisabeth Moutet; Dean Kissick, New York editor of Spike Art Magazine; and Eddy Frankel, visual art editor of Time Out magazine.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Max Jeffery, Alexa Rendell and Matt Taylor.
Sam's guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the writer Simon Winchester, whose new book takes on one of the biggest subjects on earth: earth. Land: How The Hunger For Ownership Made The Modern World starts from the author's own little corner of New England - what he proudly calculates at a bit more than three billionths of the earth's surface that he can call his own - and roams worldwide and through time and from the first prehistoric boundary lines to the modern age. Simon asks whether capitalism is possible without land rights, whether climate change will alter our relationship to property, why the pioneering map makers of the nineteenth century are now barely heard of - and just what the Dutch are up to.
In November, the IPO of Jack Ma's fintech company Ant Financial was abruptly stopped by Chinese regulators (listen to the episode of Chinese Whispers from then here). But while the move has been seen as counter-productive and political in the West, many Chinese cheered the clipping of Jack Ma's wings. It's in no small part thanks to the consumer lending wing of his company, which is often blamed for a spiralling debt culture in China. Are we seeing the beginnings of a backlash against Big Fintech in the country? Cindy Yu talks to Rui Ma, a former venture capitalist and co-host of the podcast Techbuzz China.
On this week's episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Trevor Philips, managing director of Webber and Phillips and columnist for The Times; author and journalist Owen Matthews; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss whether Joe Biden can unite America, the latest coronavirus data, why less black people want to be vaccinated, and what's next for Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this week's episode, Kate Andrews says the challenges of Joe Biden's administration go beyond governing. (00:35) Plus, Liam Kennedy explains the history of Irish-American identity. (09:25) Finally, Jeremy Clarke wonders why everyone is a log expert (18:20)
Claire Williams OBE is the former Deputy Team Principal of Williams, family-run the Formula One racing team set up by her father, Frank Williams. On the podcast, she talks about what it was like to be seen as 'Frank's daughter', the struggles of trying to turn around an ailing F1 team and how none of her family actually passed their driving test, first time.
Can Joe Biden unite America? (01:05) Why is the UK's vaccine rollout its most important economic policy? (12:10) And how can re-enactments bring history to life? (22:15)
With The Spectator's economics correspondent Kate Andrews; US editor Freddy Gray; political editor James Forsyth; Capital Economics chairman Roger Bootle; re-enactor Chris Brown and historical consultant Justin Pollard.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Max Jeffery, Alexa Rendell, Sam Russell and Matt Taylor.
Sam Leith's guests on this week's Book Club podcast are the writer and Women's Equality Party co-founder Catherine Mayer, and her mother, the arts publicist Anne Mayer Bird. They are mother and daughter -- but a year ago they became 'sister widows', as both lost their husbands within a few weeks of one another. Their new book is called Good Grief: Embracing life at a time of death, and they join me to talk about grief in the time of Covid, how social perceptions of widowhood put pressure on the bereaved, and what they think needs to change at a societal and personal level with regards to how we treat death and bereavement.
Alison Roman is an American food writer, cook, and author of New York Times bestseller Nothing Fancy. On the podcast, she tells Lara and Livvy about the recipes she learnt from her mum, how she plans a dinner party, and craving pizza in lockdown.
This episode is sponsored by Berry Brothers and Rudd.
Table Talk is a series of podcasts where Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts talk to celebrity guests about their life story, through the food and drink that has come to define it. Listen to past episodes here.
On this episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Peter Greenberger, former head of political advertising at Google and Twitter; Francis Balloux, director of UCL's Genetics Institute; Anshel Pfeffer, a correspondent at The Economist; and a team of Spectator journalists.
We discuss whether Twitter was right to ban Trump, what we know about the Brazilian Covid strain, and how Israel has vaccinated so many people.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this week's episode, Lionel Shriver says we believe what we want to believe. (00:45) Then, Matthew Parris says Peter Mandelson, infamously nicknamed the Prince of Darkness, could have been prime minister. (09:50) And finally, Father Jonathan Beswick explains why he's keeping his church open during lockdown. (17:10)
Helen Andrews is Senior Editor at the American Conservative and author of Boomers: The Men and Women Who Promised Freedom and Delivered Disaster. On this episode, Freddy Gray interviews her about the Boomer generation and why she argues they are to blame for the chaos of today's world.
Joe Biden won the US election, but is Big Tech really in power? (00:45) Churches are allowed to open during lockdown, but should they? (13:20) And can comfort eating and cosy socks replace human connections? (25:50)
With historian Niall Ferguson; New York Times editorial board member Greg Bensinger; Father Jonathan Beswick; The Very Reverend Peter Howell-Jones; journalist Laura Freeman and psychology professor Dr Shira Gabriel.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Max Jeffery, Sam Russell and Matt Taylor.
In the first Book Club podcast of the year, we’re marking the moment that George Orwell comes out of copyright. I’m joined by two distinguished Orwellians — D. J. Taylor and Dorian Lynskey — to talk about how the left’s favourite Old Etonian speaks to us now, and how his reputation has weathered. Was he secretly a conservative? Was he a McCarthyite snitch? How would he be remembered had he died before writing Nineteen Eighty-Four? And does 'Orwellian' mean anything much at all?
Since 2017 a succession of re-education camps have sprung up across Xinjiang, the home of the Uyghur people. It's estimated that one in ten Uyghur people are incarcerated to be subjected to patriotic education, but there are reports of forced labour, forced sterilisation and even torture. Much has been written about what is happening in the region, but this episode sheds light on why it's happening. Cindy Yu speaks to Professor James Millward, a renowned historian of the region, to break down China's historic relationship with its ethnic minorities and what Beijing hopes to get out of its treatment of the Uyghurs.
On this episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Jeremy Hunt, chair of the health and social care committee and former foreign secretary, alongside a team of Spectator journalists.
This week, we discuss the implications of the Capitol riots and whether the UK's vaccine rollout has been fast enough.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this week's episode, author and financial columnist Matthew Lynn begins by arguing that the EU has already botched its Covid vaccine rollout. (00:25) Then, Will Knowland, formerly an English teacher at Eton, explains why he was dismissed from the school and criticises its 'stifling monoculture'. (08:20) And finally, Mary Wellesley reflects on the lives of 13th-century hermits. (13:55)
Christina Lamb is an award-winning journalist who has reported on conflicts and politics across the world, for more than three decades. Her latest book is Our Bodies, Their Battlefields, highlighting especially the treatment of women in war.
Coronavirus vaccines are now being distributed across the world, but what are the challenges posed by its delivery? (01:30) Is Boris Johnson the SNP's greatest weapon? (13:55) And is Prince Harry becoming more and more like his mother? (23:35)
With financial columnist Matthew Lynn; former director at the McKinsey Global Institute Richard Dobbs; the UK's former director of immunisation David Salisbury; The Spectator's deputy political editor Katy Balls; The Spectator's Scotland editor Alex Massie; journalist Melanie McDonagh; and royal biographer Angela Levin.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Max Jeffery, Alexa Rendell, Sam Russell and Matt Taylor.
Leroy Logan is a former superintendent at the Metropolitan Police, former chair of the Black Police Association, and author of Closing Ranks: My Life as a Cop. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Livvy about his love of apple crumble, his wife's lunchboxes, and why police officers should always stay dry.
Table Talk is a series of podcasts where Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts talk to celebrity guests about their life story, through the food and drink that has come to define it. Listen to past episodes here.
Damian's guest, the celebrated Irish journalist, broadcaster and playwright Mary Kenny, offers a nuanced analysis of the powerful and paradoxical world in which she grew up: one in which Catholic clergy and lay people could be simultaneously fervently pious, warm-hearted and yet paralysed by petty snobbery. She talks about how the Irish Free State handed far too much power to bishops and priests. In effect, they replaced the disappearing Anglo-Irish nobility as the new aristocracy of rural Ireland, exercising an authority over people's lives that could be generous or malevolent and sometimes a mixture of both.
Holy Smoke is a series of podcasts where Damian Thompson dissects the most important and controversial topics in world religion, with a range of high profile guests. Click here to find previous episodes.
After a year battling coronavirus, the UK's debt now totals more than £2 trillion. In an effort to keep the economy afloat, the Treasury has paid wages, given tax relief, and even paid for people to eat out. As recently as five years ago, Conservatives would have thought this spending unsustainable. But with Boris Johnson's government being elected on a promise to 'level up' the country, will this high-spending, high-debt economy become the new normal?
With Paul Abberley, CEO of Charles Stanley Wealth Managers; Jake Berry, Conservative MP and chair of the Northern Research Group; and David Miles, an economist at Imperial College London and former member of the Monetary Policy Committee.
Presented by Kate Andrews.
Sponsored by Charles Stanley Wealth Managers.
Douglas Murray, the author of The Madness of Crowds, joins the last Americano of the year. On the episode, he and Freddy chat through the most important trends and events of the year, from China and the pandemic, to whether or not 'neocon' is still a usable term.
2020 is drawing to a close but none of us will forget this year anytime soon. For China, has it also been a watershed year? Western rhetoric hasn’t been so hawkish on China in a very long time, with talk of a second Cold War gracing commentary pages and calls to decouple supply chains. Lost in the noise is China's own turning away from the world. In a new strategy called 'dual circulation', the government is encouraging economic self-reliance. On this episode, Cindy Yu talks to Chatham House's Dr Yu Jie to find out how China is instigating its own decoupling.
On this episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Professor Tim Spector, principal investigator of ZOE at Kings College London; Andrew Wilson, former SNP finance spokesperson and founding partner of Charlotte Street Partners; Rod Liddle, associate editor of The Spectator; and a team of Spectator journalists.
This week, we discuss whether all the data supports increased coronavirus restrictions, if there's a case for Scottish independence, and the highs and lows of 2020.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
For the Christmas triple issue, there are four authors in this week's Spectator Out Loud. Fraser Nelson reads the leading article in our Christmas edition; Matt Ridley talks about how mRNA vaccines could revolutionise medicine; Ian Rankin reads his short story; and Cressida Bonas reflects on what it was like to have a lockdown wedding.
To read more brilliant pieces from the Christmas issue, subscribe online at spectator.co.uk/voucher and get a free £20 Amazon gift voucher; or pick it up at all good newsagents.
This week Beethoven celebrates his 250th birthday. To mark the day, Damian Thompson talks to the composer Sir James MacMillan about how Beethoven's faith impacted his music.
How will the UK's economy recover from Covid-19, and what has the pandemic revealed about the West? (01:20) Was 2020 the year we dealt a mortal blow to future viruses? (15:05) And finally, what makes Mary Gaitskill a brilliant writer, and why does Elif Shafak work to heavy metal music? (29:25)
With The Spectator's political editor James Forsyth, deputy political editor Katy Balls, writer and biologist Matt Ridley, behavioural psychologist Dr Stuart Ritchie, The Spectator's literary editor Sam Leith and writer Elif Shafak.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Max Jeffery and Sam Russell.
In this week's Book Club podcast, we remember the great John Le Carre. I'm joined by one of the late writer's longest standing friends, the novelist Nicholas Shakespeare. He tells me about Le Carre's disdain for - and debt to - Ian Fleming, his intensely secretive and controlling personality, his magnetic charm, his thwarted hopes of the Nobel Prize... and why at the end of his life he acquired an Irish passport.
The Book Club is a series of literary interviews and discussions on the latest releases in the world of publishing, from poetry through to physics. Presented by Sam Leith, The Spectator's Literary Editor. Hear past episodes here.
Last month the government released its ten point plan for what it dubs 'The Green Industrial Revolution'. At the top of the list was offshore wind, with a pledge to produce enough power for every home by 2030. Offshore wind currently constitutes over 50 per cent of the renewables in the UK, with costs coming down considerably over recent years. But does offshore wind have its limits? Is it always a good deal for the consumer? And how far can it realistically advance us on our road to Net Zero by 2050?
With Kwasi Kwarteng MP, Minister for Business, Energy and Clean Growth; Benj Sykes, VP for UK Offshore at Orsted; and Sir David King, the former chief scientific adviser to the UK government.
Presented by Kate Andrews.
Sponsored by Orsted.
Jeffrey Archer is a novelist, former politician, and peer of the realm. He has sold 275 million copies of his books - in 97 countries and more than 30 languages. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Liv about food in prison, his wife's jacket potato, and why he loves shepherd's pie.
Table Talk is a series of podcasts where Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts talk to celebrity guests about their life story, through the food and drink that has come to define it. Listen to past episodes here.
On this week’s episode, Andrew Neil is joined by Philip Rycroft, permanent secretary of the Department for Exiting the European Union from 2017 to 2019; Stephen Bush, political editor of the New Statesman; Andrew RT Davies, Wales's shadow health minister and former leader of the Welsh Conservatives; and a team of Spectator journalists.
On this week's episode, we discuss whether a Brexit deal will really be broken by fish and state aid, whether Wales's 'firebreak' lockdown worked, and why China isn't shouting about it's Covid vaccine.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this week's episode, the Spectator's deputy US editor, Dominic Green, argues that if Joe Biden departs from Donald Trump’s foreign policy, American interests will be harmed. (01:00) After, Tanya Gold reads her interview with Belle Delphine, the 21-year-old who earns more than $1 million a month from videos she posts online. (13:25) Lionel Shriver features next; she says that nobody wins from identity politics. (20:00) And finally, Bruce Anderson explains why you can’t trust supermarket cheese. (28:45)
Barbara Amiel, Baroness Black, is a journalist, writer and socialite. She's been married four times - her fourth to the newspaper proprietor Conrad Black. On the podcast, she talks to Katy Balls about her difficult childhood (which she describes as 'slightly unorthodox'), establishing her journalistic career in Toronto and London, comparing bathrooms with Ghislaine Maxwell, her glamorous marriage to Black and their fall from grace when he was jailed for fraud. Her new book, Friends and Enemies: A Memoir, is and out now.
Presented by Katy Balls.
Joe Biden wants his administration to be a departure from the days of Donald Trump, but will a change in foreign policy harm American interests? (01:00) Why is it taking so long to reach a Brexit deal? (17:10) And finally, should cyclists be given priority on London's roads? (29:35)
With The Spectator’s deputy US editor Dominic Green, Chatham House's Leslie Vinjamuri, The Spectator's political editor James Forsyth, EurasiaGroup's managing director Mujtaba Rahman, journalist Christian Wolmar and writer, actor, and comedian Griff Rhys Jones.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Max Jeffery, Matt Taylor and Alexa Rendell.
In this week's Book Club podcast, Sam Leith's guest is the journalist Ed Caesar, whose new book The Moth and the Mountain tells the story of a now forgotten solo assault on Everest that ended in disaster. But as Ed argues, the heroic failure can be a richer and more resonant story than any triumph -- and as he painstakingly excavated the story of Maurice Wilson, it was just such a rich and resonant story he discovered: of a character who became fixated on the mountain as a means of redeeming wartime trauma and a chequered and at times disgraceful romantic history, of getting his own back on hated authority figures, and -- just possibly -- of finding a safe space for his darkest secret of all.
Henry Jeffreys is features editor of Masters of Malt, and author of The Cocktail Dictionary. On the podcast, he tells Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts about living like the Goodfellas in Leeds, being 'portly' at university, and enjoying his mum's apple and bramble pie.
Table Talk is a series of podcasts where Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts talk to celebrity guests about their life story, through the food and drink that has come to define it. Listen to past episodes here.
When thinking about Chinese student protests, you'll inevitably think about Hong Kong or Tiananmen. But there's one that kicked it all off in modern Chinese history, and its reverberations are still felt throughout the century, not least because of its role in the founding of the Chinese Communist Party. It's the May Fourth Movement of 1919, which is the topic of this episode. Professor Rana Mitter, former head of the China Centre at the University of Oxford and author of numerous books on Chinese history, joins the podcast on why China is no stranger to student protests.
Presented by Cindy Yu.
Andrew Neil is joined by Trevor Phillips, managing director of Webber and Phillips, and columnist for The Times; Mark Harper, Conservative MP and former chief whip; Emily Gray, managing director of Ipsos MORI Scotland; and a team of Spectator journalists.
On this week's episode, we discuss why Tory MPs rebelled against the tiered restrictions, whether Scottish independence is inevitable and if critical race theory is flawed.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this week's episode, the Spectator's Scotland editor Alex Massie asks why Nicola Sturgeon's popularity keeps growing, despite her government's underperformance. (00:55) Next, Paul Wood argues that the next six weeks are crucial for the future of the Middle East. (12:00) Finally, Melissa Kite wonders what the new Covid rules mean. (21:00)
From Brett Kavanaugh to Joe Biden, American politics too often seems to be a display of emotions rather than policies. On the podcast, Freddy Gray talks to political analyst Thomas Frank, author of The People, No: A Brief History of Anti-Populism.
Despite her government’s underperformance on education, health and Covid-19, Nicola Sturgeon’s popularity continues to climb – why? (01:10) Does spending more on overseas aid mean we care more? (14:05) And finally, are we all followers of the cult of casualness? (26:25)
With The Spectator’s Scotland editor Alex Massie, former SNP finance spokesperson Andrew Wilson, development adviser Gilbert Greenall, former international development secretary Andrew Mitchell, journalist Melanie McDonagh and editor of The Oldie, Harry Mount.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Max Jeffery, Cindy Yu and Matt Taylor.
Sam's guest on this week's Book Club podcast is the winner of the 2020 Booker Prize, Douglas Stuart. His first novel, Shuggie Bain, tells the story of a boy growing up in poverty in 1980s Glasgow with an alcoholic single mother. It's a story close to the author's own. He joins Sam from the States to tell him about the ten years he spent writing the book and the dozens of rejections he had from publishers, how moving to the States made him see Glasgow more clearly - and how he went from growing up in a house without books to winning the Booker prize for his first novel.
The Book Club is a series of literary interviews and discussions on the latest releases in the world of publishing, from poetry through to physics. Presented by Sam Leith, The Spectator's Literary Editor. Hear past episodes here.
Pen Vogler is the author of Scoff, which describes the history of food in the British class system. On the podcast, she tells Lara and Liv about being vegetarian for a year, eating at Oxford colleges in the 1980s, and why avocados are so popular.
Table Talk is a series of podcasts where Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts talk to celebrity guests about their life story, through the food and drink that has come to define it. Listen to past episodes here.
Joe Biden's supporters say he will restore America's standing in the world, but with his foreign policy team looking like an Obama-era reunion, will the country simply become more interventionist? Freddy Gray speaks to Kelley Beaucar Vlahos, senior adviser at the Quincy Institute, about whether a Biden presidency will mean more wars.
Americano is a series of in-depth discussions on American politics with the best pundits stateside. Presented by Freddy Gray, editor of Spectator USA. Click here to listen to previous episodes.
Andrew Neil is joined by Sir Ivan Rogers, the UK's permanent representative to the EU between 2013 and 2017; Dr Stuart Ritchie, a behavioural scientist at Kings College London; and a team of Spectator journalists.
On this week's episode, we discuss how the government plans to pay for coronavirus; whether you can persuade vaccine sceptics; and if a Brexit deal is on the horizon.
To watch the show, go to www.spectator.co.uk/tv.
On this week's episode, Rod Liddle reflects on the public sector pay freeze, and wonders why teachers won't teach. (00:50) Next, Paul Embery argues that the Labour Party has become disassociated with the working class. (07:03) Finally, Rachel Johnson explains why she wishes Christmas was cancelled. (17:40)
Gillian Keegan is the minister for apprenticeships and skills, and Conservative MP for Chichester. She previously worked at Natwest, Mastercard, Travelport and Amadeus. On the podcast, she tells Katy about growing up in a Labour stronghold, working in a car factory, pitching to be apprenticeships minister, and having her social life ruined by a friend's advice to have a perm.
Women With Balls is a podcast series where Katy Balls speak to women at the top of their games. To hear past episodes, visit spectator.co.uk/balls.
The vaccine might be just around the corner, but can the country truly recover? (01:00) How can the Labour party win back the working class? (11:15) And finally, should we celebrate the new statue of Mary Wollstonecraft? (23:10)
With The Spectator's political editor James Forsyth, chair of the Health Select Committee Jeremy Hunt, firefighter and writer Paul Embery, Times Radio presenter and former Labour MP Gloria de Piero, The Spectator's radio critic Kate Chisholm, and Spectator contributor and feminist writer Julie Bindel.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Cindy Yu, Max Jeffery, Matt Taylor and Sam Russell.
On this week's Book Club podcast, we're talking about a subject that never ceases to arouse strong feelings: Auntie Beeb. Sam's guests, Patrick Barwise and Peter York, say - in their new book The War Against The BBC: How an unprecedented combination of hostile forces is destroying Britain's greatest cultural institution... And why you should care - that if we lose the BBC we will miss it. But isn't it a soft-left Establishment mouthpiece, riddled with groupthink and funded by an anachronistic and unjustifiable tax? Isn't it a market-distorting, bureaucratic, top-heavy behemoth that we're better off without? They make the case, here, for why not.
Marcus Wareing is a celebrated, Michelin-starred chef, a judge on Masterchef: The Professionals and Chef Patron at Marcus in Knightsbridge. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Livvy about eating in school canteens, working with Gordon Ramsay, and catering during coronavirus.
Table Talk is a series of podcasts where Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts talk to celebrity guests about their life story, through the food and drink that has come to define it. Listen to past episodes here.
As the UK and much of the West continues to struggle against Covid, in China, things largely seem back to normal. Pictures from the 'Golden Week', a week of state holidays to celebrate the People's Republic's founding, showed mountains and seas of people. On this longer episode than usual, Cindy Yu takes a deep dive into China's Covid response - finding out about life in China right now, China's 'Zero Covid' strategy and the economic ramifications.
Chinese Whispers is a fortnightly podcast on the latest in Chinese politics, society, and more. Presented by Cindy Yu. Listen to past episodes here.
On this week's episode, Douglas Murray is first, reflecting on the US election, and wondering why people who see the same thing can come to different conclusions. (00:51) Lara Prendergast is next, with her profile of the Prime Minister's fiancee, Carrie Symonds. (09:07) Finally, Andrew Wilson, who makes the case for an independent Scotland. (14:37)
With essayist Mary Eberstadt, whose recent article for First Things argued that the riots in the wake of George Floyd's killing come down to the sexual revolution and fatherlessness.
Americano is a series of in-depth discussions on American politics with the best pundits and experts stateside. Presented by Freddy Gray, editor of Spectator USA. Click here to listen to previous episodes.
After two of Boris Johnson's most influential advisers left Downing Street last week, can the PM reset his relationship with the Tory party and find his way again? (00:58) Lara is joined by the Spectator's deputy political editor, Katy Balls, and former director of communications for David Cameron, Craig Oliver.
A coronavirus vaccine seems to be the only way out of continued lockdowns, so should everyone be forced to have the jab? (13:49) The Spectator's literary editor, Sam Leith, joins the podcast with Professor Mona Siddiqui, who sits on the Nuffield Council on Bioethics.
And finally, should we start referring to people by their surnames again? (25:30) Historian Guy Walters thinks so, and he's joined by the Spectator's etiquette expert, Mary Killen.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Matt Taylor.
In this week's Book Club podcast, Sam Leith's guest is James Hawes. The bestselling author of The Shortest History of Germany turns his attention in his latest book to our own Island Story: The Shortest History of England. He tells Sam why he thinks there's real value in so brief an overview of our history, how Jurassic rock formations doomed our politics, why we never got over the Conquest, how the break-up of the Union is now an inevitability, and why the Cross of St George is a funny emblem for English nationalists to rally behind.
The Book Club is a series of literary interviews and discussions on the latest releases in the world of publishing, from poetry through to physics. Presented by Sam Leith, The Spectator's Literary Editor. Hear past episodes here.
Sharmadean Reid is an entrepreneur and the founder of Beautystack. On the podcast, she tells Lara and Livvy about her grandfather's allotment, cooking roasts and trying crab for the first time.
Ant Group is the business magnate Jack Ma's fintech subsidiary, the company behind the ubiquitous 'Alipay' app, which has one billion users. Last week, it was due to begin trading on the Shanghai and Hong Kong stock exchanges. Set to raise US$37 billion, it would have been the biggest IPO ever. But at the eleventh hour, the Chinese government scuppered the plans with crippling new financial reforms. So why won't China allow this homegrown fintech champion to go global? Rumours abound that Ma stepped on the wrong toes. Cindy Yu speaks to Duncan Clark, author of Alibaba: The House that Jack Ma Built, on this episode.
On this week's episode, Dr Simon Clarke tells us why a vaccine may not be as close as we've been led to believe. (00:51) Next, Simon Barnes gives us a history of the mink. (07:13) And finally, Jeremy Clark tells us about his US election night from an olive grove. (11:08)
Alice Bunn is a scientist and international director at the UK Space Agency. She tells Katy about falling in love with the stars, finding the right career and the threat of space debris.
First, France has been shaken by a series of gruesome terror attack – yet western leaders seem remarkably reluctant to support President Emannuel Macron. (01:04) Lara speaks to The Spectator's associate editor Douglas Murray and writer Ed Husain.
Next, this year's US election was truly remarkable – but what was it like to report on it? Lara is joined by the editor of The Spectator's US edition Freddy Gray and Washington editor Amber Athey. (17:31)
And finally, the British pub has historically been remarkably adept at circumventing restrictions on drinking – but how has it dealt with lockdown? Lara talks to journalist John Sturgis and Spectator writer Mark Mason. (27:21)
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Gus Carter and Matthew Taylor.
In this week's books podcast, Sam Leith is joined by the sculptor Antony Gormley and the art critic Martin Gayford to talk about their new book Shaping The World: Sculpture from Prehistory to Now. They talk about the special place sculpture occupies in the arts, the lines of connection between its ancient origins and the avant-garde, and their views on the new fashion for tearing down statues. Plus, Antony talks about his own work from Field to the Angel of the North — and why he and Martin can't see eye-to-eye on the Baroque.
Dan Keeling is a wine writer behind the magazine and restaurant Noble Rot. He tells Lara and Livvy about how he discovered his love of wine; working in the music industry; and how to start a restaurant with zero experience.
Presented by Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts.
The fallout from the election is ongoing, but Joe Biden has reached 270 electoral college votes, and he last night vowed to 'unify' the country. What kind of president will he be? Freddy Gray speaks to Tim Stanley.
On this week's episode, Sam Carlisle, a mother of a disabled child, says her family has been abandoned during the pandemic; Alberto Giubilini considers the ethics of lockdown; and Taki explains why New Yorkers are leaving the city in droves.
What are the latest developments in the US presidential election? (01:15) - Lara is joined by the Spectator's economics correspondent Kate Andrews and the Spectator US's editor Freddy Gray, who is currently in Pennsylvania.
What is it like to care for a disabled child during a time of lockdown? (09:19) - The journalist Sam Carlisle discusses the lack of support for her daughter Elvi with the Education Select Committee Chairman Robert Halfon.
And finally, should churches keep their doors open throughout the pandemic? (20:42) - Journalist Laura Freeman thinks so, and considers the issue with Reverend Steve Morris from St Cuthbert's Church in North Wembley.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Matthew Taylor.
Sam's guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the publisher and historian Carmen Callil, whose new book Oh Happy Day: Those Times and These Times, tells the story of how her 18th-century ancestors were transported to Australia. She uses their story as a window into a densely imagined account of English and Aussie social history, and of the darker side of empire. She tells Sam why the Industrial Revolution wasn’t always a good thing, why it isn’t over the top to compare the British state apparatus to the Nazis - but also about her own childhood in Melbourne and why as a fervent anti-imperialist she accepted a Damehood.
Olia Hercules is a chef and food writer. On the podcast, she tells Lara and Olivia about growing up in Cyprus; being disappointed by British ingredients; and teaching her son to love Ukrainian cooking.
With Americans heading to vote, the final polls continue to give Joe Biden a clear lead. What do they say, and what are the early signs on the night that his support might not be as strong as expected? Freddy Gray speaks to YouGov's Marcus Roberts.
On this episode, Matthew Parris talks about how, on free school meals, he's truly fallen behind the zeitgeist; Lionel Shriver on why she's voting for Biden, warts and all; and Douglas Murray's reflections from America in the days before the election.
Tell us your thoughts on our podcasts and be in for a chance to win a bottle of Pol Roger champagne by filling out our podcast survey. Visit spectator.co.uk/podcastsurvey.
Anneliese Dodds is the shadow chancellor. On the podcast, she talks to Katy about protesting tuition fees in a university exams hall, life before politics, forcing Rishi Sunak into the Commons on his birthday, and whether the Conservatives are spending too much money.
Why does the government think the second wave will be worse than the first? (00:49) Will a Biden presidency restore America's fortunes? (18:45) And finally, does Covid mark the end for the silver screen? (30:10)
Spectator editor Fraser Nelson talks to Carl Heneghan, professor of evidence-based medicine at the University of Oxford; editor of The Spectator's US edition Freddy Gray is joined by columnist Lionel Shriver; and reviewer Tanya Gold is in discussion with The Spectator's arts editor Igor Toronyi-Lalic.
Presented by Lara Prendergast.
Produced by Gus Carter, Max Jeffrey and Sam Russell.
In this week's Book Club podcast, Sam's guest is the writer and broadcaster Natalie Haynes, whose new book Pandora's Jar: Women In The Greek Myths investigates how the myths portrayed women from Pandora to Medea, and how those images have been repurposed in the retellings of subsequent generations. She tells Sam why Theseus isn't quite the hero we imagine him, how Erasmus's mistranslation of a single word crocked Pandora's reputation for good, why Euripides was a feminist avant la lettre, and how the Gorgon got her body.
Tell us your thoughts on our podcasts and be in for a chance to win a bottle of Pol Roger champagne by filling out our podcast survey. Visit spectator.co.uk/podcastsurvey.
Ian Rankin is a bestselling crime writer, most known for his Inspector Rebus novels. On the podcast, he tells Lara and Livvy about living in a motel during his first year at university; how eating curry for the first time was 'a revelation'; and the snacks that keep him going while he writes.
Tell us your thoughts on our podcasts and be in for a chance to win a bottle of Pol Roger champagne by filling out our podcast survey. Visit spectator.co.uk/podcastsurvey.
A recent poll showed that a fifth of Chinese-Americans are thinking about voting for Trump come November. But given Trump's hawkish position on China, what is it about him that appeals to these voters? As I find out, it's not all about the politics - much of it comes down to shared values of social conservatism. On the podcast, I speak to political researcher Sunny Shao and journalist Marrian Zhou about intergenerational political values, ethnic identity and the paradox of WeChat.
Chinese Whispers is a fortnightly podcast on the latest in Chinese politics, society, and more. Presented by Cindy Yu. Listen to past episodes here.
On this week's episode of Spectator Out Loud, comedian Griff Rhys Jones complains about London's war on motorists (00:45); Toby Young on how he's become an English nationalist (08:55); and Cosmo Landesman on the joys of drinking alone (13:30).
The UK was the first major economy to set a net-zero carbon emission target. But our work is cut out for us: 23 million homes fuelled by natural gas will need upgrading, while nearly 98% of vehicles on UK roads are still powered by petrol or diesel. Reaching net-zero will require big changes, but will also need to sustain our standards of living and quality of life.
As we make this transition, and start to recover from the economic damage Covid-19 has inflicted upon the world, we have the opportunity to merge the levelling up agenda with green solutions and advancements. While the government has yet to establish a clear plan to achieve net-zero by 2050 goal, it’s clear that new technology, such as greenhouse gas removal technologies, will need to play a role in leading the charge to carbon neutrality.
Join Kate Andrews and a panel of special guests for a discussion on how new forms of energy and technology can bring together levelling-up, net-zero and the Covid recovery. This episode is an edited version of the live panel discussion at The Spectator's Alternative Conference.
With Andrew Griffith MP, Dr Jonathan Marshall, Emma Pinchbeck and Will Gardiner.
Sponsored by Drax.
China has come out on top from this pandemic year - what does this mean for the world? (00:50) Was Test and Trace doomed from the start? (12:35) And what's with all these Covid excuses? (22:35)
With historian Rana Mitter; security expert Nigel Inkster; analyst Richard Dobbs; virologist Elisabetta Groppelli; editor of the Oldie Harry Mount; and Real Life columnist Melissa Kite.
Presented by Cindy Yu.
Produced by Cindy Yu, Max Jeffery and Matt Taylor.
In this week's books podcast, Sam is joined by the irrepressible Gyles Brandreth - whose latest book is the fruit of a lifelong love of the theatre. The Oxford Book of Theatrical Anecdotes is a doorstopping compendium of missed cues, bitchy put-downs and drunken mishaps involving everyone from Donald Wolfit to Donald Sinden. Gyles explains how he always wanted to be Danny Kaye but also the Home Secretary, why live theatre is magical in a way cinema never can be, and how he got round the dismaying insistence of his publishers that all these anecdotes needed to verifiably true.
Dolly Alderton is an author, journalist and podcaster who hosts 'The High Low' podcast. On the episode, she talks to Lara and Livvy about campaigning for gender equality (and cooked breakfasts) at her boarding school; how taste in food can make or break the attractiveness of a man; and the importance of planning a desert island dish.
Table Talk is a series of podcasts where Lara Prendergast and Olivia Potts talk to high profile guests about their life story, through the food and drink that has come to define it. Listen to past episodes here.
For The Spectator’s 2020 Economic Innovator of the Year Awards, sponsored by Julius Baer, we have introduced a new award for Social Impact to reflect the fact that today’s entrepreneurs, especially younger ones, tend to believe that business should aspire beyond profit (even though they recognise that profit is essential for any business to survive, grow and reward its investors) towards trying to make the world a better place.
The panel of guest judges comprised Priya Lakhani OBE, founder of pioneering edutech venture and last year’s overall winner Century Tech; Jonny Ohlson, founder and chief executive of the 2018 overall runner-up Touchlight, which manufactures DNA for medical laboratories and is currently involved in several Covid vaccine projects; and David Durlacher, UK chief executive of Julius Baer.
There was a point in the Watergate scandal when revelations came so thick and fast that journalists struggled to keep up with them. And we seem to have reached an equivalent point in respect to the scandals engulfing Pope Francis's Vatican. To quote the title of Lionel Shriver's celebrated novel, we really need to talk about Kevin. Listen to this episode to discover why.
Holy Smoke is a series of podcasts where Damian Thompson dissects the most important and controversial topics in world religion, with a range of high profile guests. Click here to find previous episodes.
Kate Andrews explains why she's voting for Biden despite being a lifelong Republican (00:35); Matthew Parris urges you to go to Sweden while you still can (7:30); and Rory Sutherland wonders whether he's cracked the Covid problem (14:45).
Rachel Johnson is a journalist, author and broadcaster. On the podcast, she talks to Katy about what it was like to go to a boys' boarding school, why university had been so eye-opening after her childhood, her brief foray into politics for Change UK, and the worst pieces of advice she's ever got (both from her mother).
Women With Balls is a podcast series where Katy Balls speak to women at the top of their respective games. To hear past episodes, visit spectator.co.uk/balls.
Americans look like they're going to put Joe Biden in the White House - so what would his premiership look like? (00:45) Plus, Boris Johnson's impossible bind on coronavirus (13:55) and how should you sign off an email? (28:35)
With editor of the Spectator's American edition Freddy Gray; Biden biographer Evan Osnos; political editor James Forsyth; editor of Conservative Home Paul Goodman; Evening Standard columnist Melanie McDonagh; and etiquette expert William Hanson.
Presented by Cindy Yu.
Produced by Cindy Yu, Max Jeffery and Sam Russell.
In this week’s edition of the Book Club podcast Sam is joined by two guests. One is Rowland White, whose new book, Harrier 809: Britain’s Legendary Jump Jet and the Untold Story of the Falklands War, tells the story of the air war in the Falklands from the frantic logistical scrambling when 'the balloon went up', via spy shenanigans in South America, to the decisive action in theatre. The other is Tim Gedge, the commanding officer of 809 Squadron who flew in that war.
Which are the companies that will rewrite the rules and help rebuild the economy in 2020 and beyond? The Spectator and Julius Baer have come together once again to celebrate creative entrepreneurship across the UK. On this podcast, The Spectator's business columnist Martin Vander Weyer talks to a panel of high profile judges from the business world about the finalists in Scotland and Northern Ireland - from reprogramming people's relationship with alcohol to an 'Uber for careworkers'.
Joining him on the judging panel were Irene McAleese, co-founder and chief strategy officer of See.Sense, the Northern Ireland-based ‘smart bike lights’ and road-use data analysis venture that was our regional winner in 2018; Ian Ritchie CBE, a leading figure in Scottish tech circles, having been involved as an investor or director in more than 40 start-up businesses; and Gordon Scott is a regional team head at Julius Baer, based in its Edinburgh office.
Chairman Mao famously said that 'women hold up half the sky'. It was a revolutionary statement in a feudal society (though it did help him, very much, with a labour shortage). But the recent high-profile murder of a young vlogger at the hands of her ex-husband has reignited a national conversation - have Chinese women every truly held up half the sky? With Leta Hong Fincher, author of Betraying Big Brother.
Chinese Whispers is a fortnightly podcast on the latest in Chinese politics, society, and more. Presented by Cindy Yu. Listen to past episodes here.
On this week's episode, Katy Balls interviews Thérèse Coffey about her plans to get millions back into work; Rachel Johnson reveals the hidden cost of buying a puppy in lockdown; and Jeremy Clarke wins big at the horse racing.
The UK has the most severe economic contraction of any country, coupled with a looming unemployment crisis, as a result of the pandemic. Innovative ideas are needed more than ever to get the economy back on track. With the coming defence review - thought to be the biggest since WWII - now is the time to look at how defence, engineering and manufacturing can lead a recovery.
Kate Andrews speaks to a panel of special guests: Tony Danker, CEO of Be the Business and the incoming Director General of the CBI; Tobias Ellwood MP, Chair of the Defence Select Committee; and Charles Woodburn, CEO of BAE Systems.
Sponsored by BAE Systems.
In this second round of restrictions, the lockdown is no longer national. But a regional approach is full of political perils (00:45). Plus, the real reason to be disappointed in Aung San Suu Kyi (12:50) and is Sally Rooney's Normal People just overrated (26:15).
With The Spectator's political editor James Forsyth; Middlesbrough mayor Andrew Preston; historian Francis Pike; the Myanmar bureau chief for Reuters Poppy McPherson; journalist Emily Hill; and The Times's deputy books editor James Marriott.
Presented by Cindy Yu.
Produced by Cindy Yu and Max Jeffery.
The latest national poll from CNN puts Joe Biden 16 points ahead of Donald Trump. Has the President's short stint in hospital dented his re-election chances, or is an unsettled news cycle and an unrepresentative sample skewing the numbers? Freddy Gray, editor of The Spectator's US edition, speaks to Marcus Roberts, director of international projects at YouGov.
Which are the companies that will rewrite the rules and help rebuild the economy in 2020 and beyond? The Spectator and Julius Baer have come together once again to celebrate creative entrepreneurship across the UK. On this podcast, The Spectator's business columnist Martin Vander Weyer talks to a panel of high profile judges from the business world about the finalists in London and the South East - from making IVF easier to painless end of life arrangements.
Joining him on the judging panel were Priya Lakhani OBE, founder of last year’s overall winner Century Tech; Charles Watson, an entrepreneur in financial communications and advertising who’s now involved in venture capital and environmental projects; and Matthew Garnham, an executive director of Julius Baer.
The Vatican is in the grip of a paranoia reminiscent of the days when Renaissance popes (and their dinner guests) were forced to employ food-tasters.
Cardinal Angelo Becciu, until 2018 the sostenuto at the Secretariat of State – that is, the Pope's hugely powerful chief of staff – has been sacked by Francis, who has accused him of stealing vast amounts of money. The Pope, who once showered him with favours, stripped Becciu of all the privileges associated with the position of cardinal – a twist of the knife worthy of a Netflix drama, or perhaps one of the Godfather films.
And now, in an equally extraordinary sequel, Becciu's arch-foe Cardinal George Pell, until recently languishing in an Australian jail cell, is heading back to Rome to advise Francis on resuming the Pell financial reforms that Becciu torpedoed.
Damian Thompson's guest for this episode of Holy Smoke is the journalist who can take the most credit for uncovering Becciu's activities: Ed Condon, Washington Bureau Chief of the Catholic News Agency.
On this week's episode, Douglas Murray argues that Boris's new picks to take charge of the BBC and Ofcom will give the institutions a much-needed shake-up; Sam Leith defends 'wokeness'; Melissa Kite argues that fly-tipping is a good thing; and Toby Young explains why Laurence Fox's new political party should frighten the Conservatives.