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Oh God, What Now?

562 episodes - English - Latest episode: 1 day ago - ★★★★★ - 70 ratings

Making sense of our political hell every Tuesday and Friday! Oh God, What Now? is the no-bulls**t politics podcast, making the unbearable bearable with top quality guests and analysis, plus poor quality jokes. 
Regulars include: Dorian Lynskey, author of The Ministry Of Truth: A Biography of Orwell’s 1984 and host of Origin Story • Alex Andreou, writer, commentator, cook, actor, secret agent • Writer and commentator Ros Taylor • Rachel Cunliffe of the New Statesman • Writer and host of This Is Not A Drill Gavin Esler • Hannah Fearn of the i paper • Comedian Matt Green • New Statesman policy and politics corresponent Zoë Grünewald • Group Editor Andrew Harrison • Journalist Marie Le Conte • Podmasters Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis
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Oh God, What Now? is a Podmasters production

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Episodes

TASTER: Paper Cuts – Now 5 days a Week!

October 02, 2023 03:00 - 20 minutes

If you haven’t tried our new podcast PAPER CUTS yet, here are some of the best bits from last week... PAPER CUTS is the modern press review and it’s been such a hit that we’re now doing it five days a week. From Monday to Friday, Miranda Sawyer and guests look at what’s behind the biggest stories, and bring you the weirdest headlines, the biggest scoops and the most astonishing manifestations of mass newspaper neurosis. Guests this week include Marcus Brigstocke, Ava Santina, Grainne Maguire,...

The Great Train Robbery

September 29, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

Forget HS2, the current systems of public transport we have barely work. Other countries can manage it, so why can’t we? Are transport issues going to be a big selling point in the next election? Plus, Britons are more liberal now since the National Centre for Social Research began its first survey in 1983. Does that surprise you? And in the extra bit for subscribers, the Hollywood writers’ strike is over, what’s been agreed to get our favourite shows back on our screens? “People like the id...

If I Only Had a Train

September 26, 2023 03:00 - 55 minutes

HS2 was greenlit over a decade ago and now the Manchester extension seems doomed. What does that say about Sunak’s priorities? Does he even have a mandate anymore? And even if he does, is it too late to make it make sense? Plus, hands up, who hates London? Will the UK ever sort out the North vs South debate? That’s Oh God, What Now? with Andrew Harrison, Alex Andreou and Marie Le Conte. “In the end it will just be two steam trains between two villages ironically named HS2.” – Alex Andreou. ...

ExtraCast: Murdoch He Wrote

September 22, 2023 16:39 - 29 minutes

Rupert Murdoch has finally retired… kind of. He’s stepping down as Fox and News Corps chairman. His son, Lachlan, will now take on the role, how will he rule? And what does this all mean for Fox News and the rest of the media mogul’s empire? Dan Cassino is a Professor of Government and Politics at Fairleigh Dickinson University. He’s also the author of Fox News and American Politics: How One Channel Shapes American Politics and Society. “I think we are past a crisis point with Fox News … and...

Green Goblin Sunak is Hostile to the Environment

September 22, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

This week's sponsor is the Disorder Podcast - listen here: https://linktr.ee/disorderpod Rishi Sunak disappoints again on the environment – the panel give their reaction to the delays he announced on key Net Zero deadlines. Plus, ‘Broken Britain’ is a phrase we’ve been hearing for a while but now it’s not just the left saying it. Is there a general consensus across all sides? And the online safety bill is still knocking around but it’s getting ever close to passing. Tech expert and founder of...

No Money for Old Blokes

September 19, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

This week's sponsor is the Disorder Podcast - listen here: https://linktr.ee/disorderpod As Liz Truss defends tanking the economy, the Government is wrangling whether to keep giving more money to OAPs. Is a pension crisis looming? Plus, Starmer’s been trotting around the world in an attempt to fix some of the damage of the last 13 years – will the likes of the EU listen? Or have we pushed it too far? “Starmer wants to see a cultural change in our attitudes to the EU - to take the toxicity ou...

Calm Before the Starm

September 15, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

With unions gathering for the TUC conference, parties are setting out how to engage with workers. Will Sunak change, and how will Starmer deal with them? Plus, we take a deep dive into Starmer’s leadership. How does he compare to the likes of Harold Wilson - when (if ever) will he have his own ‘white heat’ moment? That’s Oh God, What Now? With special guest Anthony Broxton, who runs the Tides of History project and is author of Hope and Glory: Rugby League in Thatcher’s Britain. https://www....

Chalk It Up to Experience

September 12, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

There’s no escape for Justice Secretary Alex Chalk as he faces questions over the state of our justice system. Daniel Khalife’s runner from HMP Wandsworth is only a small example of its decaying state. So why does a government with such a hardline stance on crime struggle to fund the justice system? Plus, comedian Matt Green tells us why our plight often makes us want to laugh as he discusses political comedy in bleak times. And hope is on the horizon – literally. The UK’s rejoining the EU’s ...

Schools and Hard Knocks – plus guest Barry Gardiner MP

September 08, 2023 03:00 - 57 minutes

There’s concrete evidence the Tories have messed up again – literally. School roofs are crumbling, but the Government is bragging at least most are fine… Plus, the PM says he cares about Net Zero, but does he really? And in the extra bit for subscribers, hot mic moments can reveal more than a whole interview. But are they ethical? That’s Oh God, What Now? With very special guest, Labour MP for Brent North, Barry Gardiner. “It’s a perfect physical manifestation of 13 years of the Tories being...

Every Day I'm Shufflin'

September 05, 2023 03:00 - 54 minutes

As Rishi Sunak wrangles with the school cement fiasco, he’s also been forced into a timid reshuffle. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has also tweaked his top team. Who’s in, who’s out and who cares? And Penny Mordaunt wants to give young people National Service (but not really) to increase "resilience and pride". Out of touch? Or is this a scheme that could actually work?  “It’s not so much mismanagement as it is the entire Conservative approach.” – Ros Taylor “It really is the epitome of everythin...

Crime Week and Punishment

September 01, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

Suella Braverman’s told the police to get tougher on crime – but do they have the resources? She’s also keen to get people back on the Bibby Stockholm and hasn’t ruled out putting tags on migrants. Plus, what slogan should Labour use next? The panel answers your questions. And, for subscribers only, a search for the Loch Ness monster has just taken place – the panel reveals the mysteries they were obsessed with as youngsters. “I think Braverman has come out of this Summer with her position i...

Dorries Seems to be the Hardest Word – plus guest Stella Creasy MP

August 30, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

Nadine Dorries has finally gone (we think), but her behaviour will stick in our minds forever. She’s not the only Tory MP to have let us all down over the last 13 years. So why are the parliamentary standards of this government so abysmal? Plus, a closer relationship with Europe could be key to the UK’s future. So how does Labour go about that, especially when it persists with its messaging that it will ‘make Brexit work’? That’s Oh God, What Now? with special guest, Labour MP for Walthamstow...

Is Britain a poor country?

August 25, 2023 03:00 - 58 minutes

Are we the sick man of Europe? We’ve got all the symptoms: broken economy, falling living standards, we could go on. Does anyone have the remedy to get us back up and running again? Plus, it’s nearly the bank holiday, so let’s look on the bright side. The panel discusses who in politics they admire. And in the extra bit for subscribers, what’s the BEST summer you’ve ever had? That’s Oh God, What Now? With guest We Are History’s John O’farrell. “It’s not just the poor who are poorer, it’s the...

Back to the 50s — Is Britain stuck in a time warp?

August 22, 2023 03:00 - 53 minutes

Living standards are falling to the lowest standards since the 1950s, so why is this government shouting about the so-called success it’s had? Plus, we need to build more homes - pure and simple. But how, and how can it be done? Hannah Fearn has 4 points Labour needs to hit if it gets into government. “This politics of nostalgia pretends that it can fix problems by going back to times before they existed.” – Tom Peck. “We have moved on, we just have a government that’s going nuts because it...

Have the Tories found their next Brexit?

August 18, 2023 04:00 - 57 minutes

The Tories have been way behind in the polls for a long time. But could a comeback be on the cards? The data shows that a Labour government isn’t guaranteed after 2024’s general election. What does Keir Starmer need to do? And has Sunak found the next Brexit in the European Court on Human Rights. Not many people fully understand what it is, but perhaps that plays into the Tory’s hands. Could they take us out? And in the extra bit for subscribers, our panel recounts the worst paid jobs they’ve...

Boaty McVolte-Face

August 15, 2023 03:00 - 56 minutes

“Small Boats Week” was a horrific failure. Why do the Tories keep getting it so horrendously wrong? Plus, are politicians playing up to the cameras to gain viral popularity? We unpack whether our politicians are more camera conscious ever as they chase online moments. We discuss with this week’s guest Ed Campbell from PoliticsJOE.  “The further we strip real human lives out of this, the more we avoid an actual human solution.” – Yasmeen Serhan “The problem is that Braverman does know how to...

Bibby Stockholm syndrome

August 11, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

The Tories have ramped their anti-immigration rhetoric up to eleven – can it help their election fortunes? With Lee Anderson going all in with belligerence and asylum seekers being moved on to the Bibby Stockholm barge, we pick apart the Government’s motives. Plus, who are the elite? Is it you? Is it us? Is being elite bad now? The panel tries to unpack it all. And in the extra bit for subscribers, is doing things by yourself always empowering?  “I think the Tories have decided that they wan...

Top of the populists

August 08, 2023 03:00 - 59 minutes

We’ve been governed by populism for over a decade now, as has a lot of Europe. Will it ever blow over? Or are we stuck with it forever? Well, there is one ray of hope and that’s Millennials. Statistics show they're becoming more liberal and overtaking the older right-wing generation in number. But how long could that take? And how could this millennial invasion REALLY impact British politics? “There is this deeply believed thing that the arch of history leads toward progress, and I don’t kno...

The Great Rishi Sunak Swindle

August 04, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

Were we all conned by Calm, Collected, Competent Sunak? Have oil, cars, migration and woke-bashing revealed him to be the most right-wing PM since Margaret Thatcher? We look at the real Rishi who was unveiled last week, and how he’ll govern in the year (?) he’s got left. Plus, rent controls: a great fix for our housing hell or totally impractical? And in the Extra Bit, tat’s entertainment. We look at political merchandise. Joining Dorian Lynskey are Hannah Fearn, Geri Scott of The Times and ...

One Man and His Smog

August 01, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

Sunak is turning climate change policy into the next frontier of his party’s neverending culture war. Why have the Tories lost their minds over green policy? And first, Suella Braverman came up with the big barges. Now it’s massive marquees for migrants. How has the Home Office got this issue so horribly wrong? That’s Oh God, What Now? With special guest, lawyer and author, Sam Fowles. “There’s a danger here that Labour and the Tories are becoming too similar.” – Zoe Grunewald. “It does see...

Appetite for Construction

July 28, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

The Tories are failing on their housing promises. Quelle surprise. Up steps Michael Gove to save the day – or is he? Are his newly announced plans actually anything new? And will they make a difference? Then, as the world heats up and our political parties abandon key pledges on climate, are you losing hope? We discuss climate despair. And in the extra bit for subscribers, the panel unpacks Oppenheimer and how its dual release with Barbie could impact Hollywood. “They’re simply announcing th...

An Uxbridge Too Far

July 25, 2023 03:00 - 47 minutes

Last week’s by-elections left the Tory party wounded, with Labour and the Lib Dems on the front foot. Or are they? The Tories JUST held onto Uxbridge and South Ruislip, and those on the right say that’s down to Labour’s ULEZ policy. Starmer, for some reason, ran with that narrative. Is he losing his nerve over his party’s green policies? And when will the Tories stop shitting on young voters? That’s Oh God, What Now? With this week’s guest, Rachel Cunliffe. “If I were Sunak I’d be tearing my...

By-elections EmergencyCast: Don’t Believe the Tripe

July 21, 2023 13:01 - 47 minutes

The Tories clutch at a straw marked “ULEZ” but can’t hide the fact that they got an absolute hiding in three by-elections. What’s the truth behind the spin? Will Uxbridge tank Labour’s green policies? And who made a bigger fool of himself: Grant Shapps or Johnny Mercer? Jacob Jarvis is joined by Alex Andreou and the New Statesman’s Zoë Grunewald to read the runes of a big night in Somerton and Frome, Selby and Ainsty, and former Boris Johnson stronghold Uxbridge and South Ruislip.  • “It wa...

Two Kids on the Block

July 21, 2023 03:00 - 57 minutes

Is keeping the Tory two-child benefit cap Starmer’s biggest mistake? We look at Labour’s trade-off between maintaining deadly seriousness on the economy and the party’s core beliefs. Plus, in a new irregular series we look ahead at the huge challenges facing the next government. This time: defence. Are Britain’s armed forces fit for purpose and how will Labour deal with troop levels, cyber war and costly nukes in a world where “there is no money left”? Politics professor Richard Whitman of th...

Nasty party to get nastier

July 18, 2023 03:00 - 59 minutes

Will the UK’s new trade deal with the CPTPP fill the massive, gaping hole that Brexit left? No, probably not. So why are the Tories framing this as a huge win? Plus, Rishi and his mates are acting ‘ard. Will this new tough act win them votes, or is it just pushing us all even further away? That’s Oh God, What Now? with special guest Padraig Reidy, political commentator and editor of the literature, science, art and politics magazine littleatoms.com. “The problem here is we’re doing an agreem...

Is Britain begging for boring?

July 14, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

Labour’s policies aren’t exciting or even that clear. But is boring what Britain needs right now? Or is it ultimately leading to a lack of confidence in Labour leadership. Plus, George Osborne's wedding was disrupted by Just Stop Oil, OR WAS IT? Either way, was the extensive coverage of the orange confetti attack proof the group is making an impact? And in the extra bit for subscribers, are Gen Z just slackers who don’t want to work hard? That’s Oh God, What Now? With Paper Cuts’ Miranda Sawy...

Break Class in Case of Emergency

July 11, 2023 03:00 - 54 minutes

Keir Starmer announces plans to break the Class Ceiling. Will inequality be the big issue in the next election? And WTF is “oracy” anyway? As ticket offices disappear from the railways, are we in course of a society without face-to-face contact? Plus, the meaning of Biden’s visit to the UK, the feeding frenzy over the BBC’s SEX STORY, and who are our heroes and villains of the week? Listen for surprise revelations about our panel’s social life…  Listen to our new newspaper review podcast PAP...

Miriam Cates and her Horrible Mates

July 07, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

Meet this week’s Tory game-changer: Miriam Cates and her New Conservatives. Will their wizard scheme to kick out foreign care-home workers and stamp out sex education save the Tories’ bacon? Is she real or a cartoon rightist from a British version of The Handmaid’s Tale? Plus: Farage Against The Cash Machine. Can Zuckerberg’s new idea Threads kill Twitter? Our special guest Henry Morris AKA mischievous mega-tweeter ‘The Secret Tory’ tells how he hoodwinked everyone from your pub pals to the c...

Suell-Air Flight 666 to Rwanda is cancelled

July 04, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

As the Supreme Court grounds Braverman’s Rwanda plan, what will the Tory Right try to pull us out of next? The ECHR, the continent of Europe, or three-dimensional reality itself? Plus, What’s new about the “New” Conservatives? Who’s about to get reshuffled? The NHS’s 75th birthday prompts the Tories to do some of that recruiting stuff, after only 13 years in power. And in a new feature: who are our Heroes and Villains of the Week?  Listen to our new paper review podcast PAPER CUTS here. http...

Don't Look Back in Wagner

June 30, 2023 03:00 - 55 minutes

Matt Hancock appears before the COVID inquiry – can he ever be forgiven? And Prigozhin has been exiled to Belarus – but how has his Wagner mutiny left Putin’s position in the Moscow. And what does this mean for Ukraine? Then in the extra bit for subscribers, yet another pointless news ‘story’ does the rounds. Why do we put up with churnalism? “It’s hard to imagine that Prigozhin will get a long retirement on the golf course.” – Arthur Snell “Prigozhin was acting out of desperation.” – Arthu...

Conflict of Interest

June 27, 2023 03:00 - 57 minutes

Interest rates have reached the highest level for 15 years but don’t worry because Rishi Sunak says he’s: “totally, 100% on it”. Is he? Or is that totally, 100% rubbish? Is Cronyism getting worse? And if it is, how do we stop ministers from appointing their mates into positions of power? Did you see the all-leave BBC Brexit special last week? We did. The panel gives us their thoughts. And we get the latest mutiny news from Doomsday Watch’s Arthur Snell as tempers flare in Russia. Listen to o...

The Seven Year Itch

June 23, 2023 03:00 - 53 minutes

It's been seven years since the Brexit vote. Are you surprised we’re still speaking about it? We’re not. Speaking of votes, there are three by-elections coming up because Tories keep quitting. Is our electoral system fair? Is it democratic? Or is it time for a change? And in the extra bit for subscribers the panel discusses how departed MPs should behave post parliament. That’s Oh God, What Now? With special guest and founder of Fair Vote UK, Kyle Taylor. “Brexit is this massive thing that h...

The Party's Over: Boris Johnson-free edition!

June 20, 2023 03:00 - 52 minutes

The Covid inquiry is well underway but we won’t get the findings well-after 2026 and THEN some. Too long? Suella Braverman’s wish to increase powers to stop street protests has come true with little to no resistance from Labour. Our panel discuss why? Plus, private school officials hurled the most private school insults at Labour’s shadow education secretary. It called her “chippy” and said she knew “diddly” for planning to add VAT to school fees, A-class snobbery or justified comment? “You ...

Taster 📰 PAPER CUTS, our new podcast

June 19, 2023 11:57 - 8 minutes

If you haven’t tried our new podcast PAPER CUTS yet, here’s a taster. Listen to the full episode here. PAPER CUTS is the modern press review. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday Miranda Sawyer and guests look at what’s behind the biggest stories, and bring you the weirdest headlines, the biggest scoops and the most astonishing manifestations of mass newspaper neurosis. Don’t forget to subscribe on your favourite app. PAPER CUTS. We read the papers so you don't have to. Learn more about your ad...

EmergencyCast! – Johnson is Finally, Finally, Finally Finished

June 15, 2023 15:39 - 26 minutes

Boris Johnson was in for trouble. But, bloody hell – the report is worse than even we imagined. So, we’re back to tear through the details in another bonus edition… Dorian, Alex and Naomi gather for a rough and ready EmergencyCast. “Increasingly this does look like the end to Boris Johnson’s political career because of the hurdles between him and returning.” – Naomi Smith “I think this is more explosive than anything we’ve heard before.” – Alex Andreou “He’s basically using a unanimous rep...

Boris Johnson’s Lying Circus

June 15, 2023 13:25 - 1 hour

Recorded before the Privileges Committee report landed. We thought the whole point of resigning was to shut up and go away? On his way out, ex-MP Johnson trashes everything from the Privileges Committee to Tory detente to objective truth itself. We reassemble the original Remainiacs team to look at the squalid final days of Britain’s worst Prime Minister. Could he ever come back? Plus, as Trump ends up in court and Berlusconi goes to the Great Bunga Bunga Party in the Sky, is populism unravel...

The Too Much News Edition

June 13, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

Johnson quits! Trump indicted! Berlusconi dies! Telegraph for sale! Sturgeon nicked! Dorries does… whatever it was she did! This one’s got it all. After a weekend that felt like the ‘Layla’ bit of Goodfellas, the OGWN team convene to look at the aftershocks of Boris Johnson’s flounce, what Trump’s worsening legal woes mean for America’s stability, and who we’d like to take over at the Torygraph. With special guest Eleni Courea, deputy editor of Politico’s London Playbook.   Listen to our new ...

EmergencyCast! – The Pathetic End of Boris Johnson

June 10, 2023 10:05 - 34 minutes

Johnson quitting as an MP caused a stir in the Oh God, What Now? group chat – and it quickly dawned upon us it was EmergencyCast time. So, here we go. Wake me up before you BoJo and so on. The guy we all hate to hate is gone. Jarv, Ros and Alex gather for a bit of quickfire punk rock podcasting to discuss the fallout. Vocal power chords at the ready.  www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow Presented by Jacob Jarvis with Alex Andreou and Ros Taylor. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jac...

Negative Energy

June 09, 2023 03:00 - 53 minutes

The horrifying dam destruction in Ukraine has ruined countless lives and sparked disgust the world over. Will this war crime go unpunished? And how is the West responding? Plus, we unpack the latest Starmer drama. Is Labour’s relationship with the Unions on the rocks? And in the extra bit for backers, TURN DOWN THAT RACKET! Why are noise complaints for late-night venues on the rise? This week’s guest is former FSN bureau chief Laura Makin-Isherwood. “This lays open a bigger question, which i...

Spot the Difference: Labour and Tory Special – with guest Marina Purkiss

June 06, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

Labour might be leading the polls over the terrible Tories, but maybe the two are more similar than most of us think. Have we seen the return of 1950s ‘Butskellism’? With that in mind, a new report suggests that most millennials hate the Tories (shock), does that mean they’ll vote Labour though? And Phillip Schofield’s been plastered across the news, is this the end of his TV career? Or is there a way back from TV cancel culture for disgraced celebs? That’s Oh God, What Now? with special gues...

It’s the End of the World and A.I. Feels Fine

June 02, 2023 03:00 - 56 minutes

So, we’re in the future I guess – and apparently A.I. threatens bringing an end to humanity. With top scientists sounding the alarm – should we be worried or panicked? Plus, vaping is in the Government’s firing line. Why is it on the agenda and how does Sunak balance crackdowns with his apparent Thatcher adoration? And in the extra bit for backers our panel discusses why so many of us get it wrong on recycling… Our guest this week is Zoë Grünewald of New Statesman.  “It’s not the worry that ...

Succession Finale: Goodbye to the Beastie Roys

May 31, 2023 14:00 - 28 minutes

So it be, so it is – Succession has come to an end. We’re all obsessed with the HBO drama, so we thought why not give it the Oh God, What Now? treatment. If you’re scared of spoilers – you have been warned, this will be full of them. Andrew Harrison, Hannah Fearn and Alex Andreou discuss the fate of the Roys and Waystar Royco.  “Everybody in the show is awful to a greater or lesser degree.” – Andrew Harrison “The character development even continues right into the final moments.” – Hannah F...

Redaction Man

May 31, 2023 03:00 - 51 minutes

Boris Johnson’s in hot water…again. The former PM has thrown an epic tantrum over the COVID inquiry wanting unredacted WhatsApp messages. What will the Government do next – and will there be any end to this row? Plus our panel discusses “safe pair of hands” Jeremy Hunt. What’s going on with the MIA Chancellor? “Johnson is the dead cat here and the reticence has to do with how many other people will be implicated.” – Alex Andreou “Where is Hunt? Is he sitting back preparing for his leadershi...

Tories of Future Past – Live in London Pt. 2

May 26, 2023 03:00 - 50 minutes

In Part Two of our latest live outing: Who will be the Conservative Corbyn for their impending wilderness years/psychological meltdown? Our panel ponders whether it’ll be Badenoch, Mordaunt, Braverman… or David Frost? And (for your nerves) we wind up with some reasons to be cheerful for the year ahead.  www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow Presented by Ros Taylor with Alex Andreou, Marie le Conte and Arthur Snell. Audio producer: Alex Rees. Producer: Chris Jones. Art: James Parrett. Theme music by ...

A Multitude of Sins – Live in London Pt. 1

May 25, 2023 16:00 - 55 minutes

In part one of our latest live outing: When we look back upon this Government… it’s always with a sense of blame. Join us live in London as we go over the Seven Deadly Sins of 13 years of Toryism. Plus, as cheese sandwiches and Heinz beans are reclassified as luxuries, our panel come up with some modest proposals for economic living that might meet Anne Widdecombe’s approval. Your panel at the Leicester Square Theatre is Ros Taylor, Andreou, Marie le Conte and Arthur Snell. www.patreon.com/o...

Never Did Me Any Harm

May 23, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

Now that cheese sandwiches, Heinz beans and swimming in poo-free water are officially luxuries, have we reached Peak We Had It Hard When I Were A Lad? New figures show that our anti-migration government has managed to, er, double migration to the UK. How will Sunak get out of that? Plus our panel discusses a new survey which says a third of us are too tired to get fit. Comic writer John O’Farrell of the We Are History podcast is our special guest. Listen to We Are History: https://link.chtbl...

The Anti-Nat C League: Inside the far right's Glastonbury for wingnuts

May 19, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

There were some frankly bizarre statements made at the National Conservatism Conference. Now it’s over, we’re left asking: what was the point of it all? Our Seth Thevoz was there and spoke to Andrew Harrison about what he made of it. Plus, Kemi Badenoch: problem solver or is she just making everything worse? We know the answer. And in the extra bit - for subscribers only - our panel talks Succession and the parallels it draws with reality. “It’s like they’re talking about a Conservative Part...

Rats in a Sack: The Tory civil war is a go

May 16, 2023 04:00 - 1 hour

The Tories are at each other’s throats…again. Both Suella Braverman and Priti Patel took a pop at the party’s leadership at recent conservative conferences. Could Sunak survive a looming Tory revolt? And the state pension age may rise to 68, would you return to work if it meant a shot at rebuilding the country? Plus, the panel discusses their favourite accents and why we judge them so much. “The point here about the Conservatives is that they’re finished.” – Tom Peck. “I think it’s a deepen...

The Great British Bog Off

May 12, 2023 03:00 - 58 minutes

The Government’s Illegal Migration Bill is “morally unacceptable” according to the Archbishop of Canterbury. But since when did that stop the Conservatives? We look at the chaos, the confusion and the growing asylum seeker backlog. Plus, Labour did OK in the locals but were the real winners the Greens and the Lib Dems? And what does it mean for the General Election? And in the Extra Bit, for subscribers only, our panel discusses their favourite on-air mistakes.  “The UNHCR says the legislati...

Republic Enemy: The Met’s arrest scandal

May 10, 2023 03:00 - 1 hour

The republicans doth protest too much, according to the Met police. Can the force change? And does it really want to? Speaking of change, should the Tories be terrified by the local election results? And Trump, Carlson and DeSantis – no, not the start of a bad joke, but a trio who are pushing forward the far-right in America.  “In recent years, it’s felt there has been scandal after scandal after scandal from the Met.” – Rachel Cunliffe “If you hand the police sweeping new powers and say yo...

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