TALKING POLITICS
411 episodes - English - Latest episode: 12 months ago - ★★★★★ - 619 ratingsCoronavirus! Climate! Brexit! Trump! Politics has never been more unpredictable, more alarming or more interesting: Talking Politics is the podcast that tries to make sense of it all. Every week David Runciman and Helen Thompson talk to the most interesting people around about the ideas and events that shape our world: from history to economics, from philosophy to fiction. What does the future hold?
Can democracy survive? How crazy will it get? This is the political conversation that matters.
Talking Politics is brought to you in partnership with the London Review of Books, Europe's leading magazine of books and ideas.
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Episodes
S01-EP11 - Sherry Coutu on education, stimulating business & coalitions
April 22, 2015 12:39 - 43 minutes - 78.8 MBIn this election the economy has been centre stage - we know what the politicians think, but what about the business community? Are the fortunes of British business rising or falling? Can the UK economy really compete with the likes of China and the US? How can our education system prepare the next generation for the global marketplace? David puts these questions to Sherry Coutu - one of this country’s most respected entrepreneurs and investors - to discuss the relationship between business,...
S01-EP10 - Barbara Sahakian on psychology, politics & well-being
April 15, 2015 15:22 - 48 minutes - 88.1 MBAre our brains hardwired to be left-wing or right-wing? How did mental health become a hot political issue? What advice can brain scientists give politicians to help get their message across? This week David interviews Professor Barbara Sahakian – the renowned neuropsychologist who has worked with the U.K. government on questions of mental health and well-being – to discover the lessons of new scientific research for our politics. The team then discuss the Labour and Conservative manifestos a...
S01-EP09 - Simon Szreter on conspiracy theories, trust in politics & solutions
April 08, 2015 18:45 - 44 minutes - 81.4 MBIt is said that trust in politics is at an all-time low. Our politicians are seen as out of touch and out to fill their own pockets. But when does mistrust become something more profound? This week we discuss this phenomenon in its most extreme form: conspiracy theories. What conspiracy theories do the British public believe? How commonplace are they, and how have they spread? Are people really so wrong to believe that the world is run by a secret elite? We interview a team of Cambridge resea...
S01-EP08 - Robert Tombs on Britishness, Britain's place in Europe & the NHS
April 01, 2015 18:20 - 45 minutes - 83 MBWhat makes our politics uniquely ‘British’? Why is there no English Independence Party? How did the NHS become a sacred cow? And will Britannia ever rule the waves again? David puts these questions to Professor Robert Tombs – historian and author of a new epic history of England – to discover the impact of culture and foreign affairs on British political life. The team also review David Cameron and Ed Miliband’s favourite books, the pros and cons of the fixed-term Parliament, the neglected bu...
S01-EP07 - SPECIAL: Michael Howard & Stephan Shakespeare on Margaret Thatcher, the true power of polls, and the impact of UKIP in 2015
March 25, 2015 15:04 - 48 minutes - 89.2 MBCould Margaret Thatcher have won this election? How would the Iron Lady have handled UKIP? Who would win more seats in 2015 – her or David Cameron? In a special episode featuring remarkable research, we put these questions to Michael Howard, former Conservative Leader and member of Mrs Thatcher’s Cabinet, and Stephan Shakespeare, founder of the polling firm YouGov. Other insights include the untold story of how polling impacted the Westminster vote for the Iraq War, why Cameron was wrong to r...
S01-EP06 - Rae Langton on Charlie Hebdo, free speech vs hate speech & blasphemy
March 18, 2015 19:36 - 45 minutes - 84 MBWhat constitutes hate speech? Does the Press do more harm than good in our democracy? When should words become the government’s business? We put these questions to Professor Rae Langton – award-winning philosopher and the world’s ‘fourth most influential woman thinker’ – and discuss whether free speech can ever be reconciled with a need to suppress hateful voices. The team then discuss the fallout of Ed Miliband’s ‘second kitchen’, whether politicians can – or should – keep their families out...
S01-EP05 - Clare Jackson on the United Kingdom, Scotland & the politics of memory
March 11, 2015 17:16 - 40 minutes - 74.4 MBWill the United Kingdom stay together? What have England’s politicians got wrong that Scotland’s have got right? Which had the greater impact on the Scottish Independence Referendum result – people’s views of the past, or of a possible future? We put these questions to the historian and documentary-presenter Clare Jackson, whose widely acclaimed BBC series on the Stuart dynasty was broadcast in the run-up to Referendum last year. The team then discuss the potential impact of Scotland in the u...
S01-EP04 - John Naughton on Facebook in Politics, Edward Snowden, & Surveillance
March 04, 2015 15:19 - 43 minutes - 79.7 MBCould Facebook really decide the outcome of this election? Is the Internet a positive force for democracy? Why is global surveillance, as unveiled by Edward Snowden, not an electoral issue? We put these questions to Prof John Naughton – author of A Brief History of the Future and early advocate of the Internet’s power to change the world – and ask if politicians are tuned-in to the transformative potential of social media. Putting cynicism to one side, the team then give their good-points ab...
S01-EP03 - Martin Jacques on the global perspective, Britain’s decline, & China’s rise
February 25, 2015 13:36 - 44 minutes - 81.8 MBDavid asks Martin Jacques – journalist, academic, and author of the bestseller When China Rules the World – if this election matters in global terms. Will the transformation of China overshadow short-term political events in Britain and Europe? How does China adapt in the absence of democratic elections? Is it possible for our politicians to successfully supervise Britain’s steady decline? The team also discuss the week’s political events. Posted 25/2/15. For more information about this episo...
S01-EP02 - Martin Rees on surviving this century, scientists in politics, and 2015
February 18, 2015 16:07 - 42 minutes - 78.4 MBHow can we reconcile short-term politics with the long-term global problems we face? Should scientists wield more political power? Is it fair to criticise politicians for faults in our political system, or is it our failing? Or is democracy itself to blame? David puts these questions to Lord (Martin) Rees – cosmologist, Astronomer Royal, and former President of the Royal Society – and someone who believes that mankind only has a 50% chance of making it through this century without a serious g...
S01-EP01 - Maurice Glasman on democracy, creative destruction and Wolf Hall
February 13, 2015 14:38 - 45 minutes - 82.8 MBDavid interviews Lord (Maurice) Glasman - Labour peer, academic, and architect of ‘Blue Labour’ – for his predictions on the outcome of 2015, the future of the Labour Party, and what modern politicians can learn from Wolf Hall. The team then give their forecasts for the Election and scrutinise this week’s political events. For more information about this episode and others go to http://www.cam.ac.uk/podcasts/election