Best of the Spectator

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Spectator Out Loud: Harry Cole, Max Jeffery, Lisa Haseldine, Lord Sumption & Nicholas Lezard Nov 09, 2026

Show notes

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Harry Cole traverses America during the US midterms; Max Jeffery dissects the problems caused by the early release scheme; Lisa Haseldine explains how to cope with ruinous hen dos; and Jonathan Sumption and Nick Lezard talk through their favourite books of the year.

Produced and presented by Abigail Brierley.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Holy Smoke: Anshel Pfeffer – is religion deciding Israel’s future? Nov 08, 2026

Show notes

Israel has voted in its first general election since the 7th of October attacks, and the result is deadlock. Netanyahu’s bloc took 53 seats, the opposition 48 and the Arab parties a record 19. Shas, the Sephardi ultra-Orthodox party, fell from 11 seats to six, its worst result since 1992, after insisting that haredi men should stay exempt from military service.

Damian Thompson is joined by Anshel Pfeffer, Israel correspondent for The Economist and biographer of Benjamin Netanyahu, to ask how much religion is shaping the country’s future. They discuss the ‘status quo’ deal David Ben-Gurion struck with the rabbis before the state was founded, why Israel still has no civil marriage, the three main branches of ultra-Orthodoxy, and a birth rate that has taken the haredim from 2-3% of the population to 13-14%. Could they be half of Israel within a generation or two? And with the parties promising not to sit with Netanyahu, the Arab parties or the haredim, which of those promises will be broken first?

Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Henry Lloyd

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Coffee House Shots: 'We need to get real' – Claire Ainsley on Starmer, Burnham and Labour’s future Nov 07, 2026

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Labour has a new leader, but does Andy Burnham have a plan to give voters back control?

In this episode of Coffee House Shots, Noa Hoffman speaks to Claire Ainsley, Keir Starmer’s former director of policy, about her new book, Control: How We Lost It and How to Take It Back.

They discuss whether Burnham’s government is doing enough to address immigration and welfare, why Ainsley is sceptical about reopening the Brexit debate, and how Britain can get ahead of the AI revolution.

Plus: Ainsley reflects on Starmer’s downfall, the challenges facing the new Prime Minister and whether Labour can keep Reform at bay.

Produced by Abigail Brierley.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Edition: can the American right recover? | with Tim Stanley Nov 06, 2026

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This week: Lara Prendergast is joined by Michael Gove, Tali Fraser and Tim Stanley.

Has Labour lost control of Britain's prisons? As the government's early release scheme comes under increasing scrutiny, Michael Gove diagnoses the failures of the prison system and the growing strain on probation services.

Meanwhile, following a bruising set of US midterm results for Donald Trump, what next for the American right? Tim Stanley discusses the Republicans' increasingly nasty politics, the battle to succeed Trump and whether the president could escalate the war in Iran.

Plus: are lab-grown diamonds unbearably tacky? And why are the posh flocking to Poundland?

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Book Club: Marina Litvinenko – A Life in Fragments Nov 05, 2026

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In this week's Book Club, Sam Leith is joined by Marina Litvinenko, widow of former Russian FSB agent Alexander Litvinenko, to discuss her new book, A Life in Fragments: Our Love, His Murder, My Resistance.

In 2006, Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned with radioactive polonium in London, in an assassination executed by the Russian state. Marina recounts their life together, from meeting in post-Soviet Russia and Sasha's growing disillusionment with the FSB, to their dramatic escape from Russia and his eventual murder.

How did an officer who once served the Russian security services become one of Vladimir Putin's most outspoken critics? Why was he targeted, and what does his killing reveal about the Kremlin's reach? And, nearly 20 years on, has Britain done enough to hold Russia to account?

Marina reflects on her fight for justice, the personal cost of speaking out against Putin, and her hopes for Russia's future.

Produced by Abigail Brierley.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Quite right!: Reparations row – why Britain should NOT pay up Nov 04, 2026

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As Commonwealth leaders demand slavery reparations from Britain, Michael Gove and Madeline Grant ask whether the UK should pay for the sins of its past. Has the government opened the door to an endless stream of demands? And is the Commonwealth becoming more trouble than it's worth?

Also: is Labour retreating on its immigration crackdown? Michael reflects on his own mistakes in government and warns against opening new migration routes. Plus, following the Budget, has Labour declared war on Britain's businesses?

Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Henry Lloyd.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Americano: John Fund – Can we really trust the midterm polls? Nov 03, 2026

Show notes

In this episode of Americano, Freddy Gray and National Review columnist John Fund analyse the upcoming U.S. midterms, exploring how systemic polling flaws distort voter data, how JD Vance balances loyalty to Donald Trump against his 2028 ambitions, and how persistent inflation and cabinet family ethics scandals expose the administration to congressional oversight.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Spectator Out Loud: Noa Hoffman, John Power, Martin Vander Weyer & Olivia Potts Nov 01, 2026

Show notes

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Noa Hoffman’s Tel Aviv dispatch explains the state of the Israeli elections; John Power looks at Miatta Fahnbulleh’s remarkable family history; Martin Vander Weyer wonders what the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street will mean for London; and Olivia Potts looks at beignets in New Orleans.

Produced and presented by Abigail Brierley.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Edition: How the middle classes pay for the state – but increasingly don’t use it | with Simon Jenkins & Genevieve Gaunt Oct 31, 2026

Show notes

For this week’s Edition, William Moore is joined by the Spectator’s economics editor Michael Simmons, the journalist and author Simon Jenkins and the actress and Spectator book reviewer Genevieve Gaunt.

This week: are the British giving up on the state? Michael’s cover story looks at the growing number of people paying privately for healthcare, dentistry and other services – despite public spending remaining close to record levels. Britons now spend more out of pocket on healthcare than Americans, while satisfaction with the NHS has collapsed from 70 per cent to 26 per cent since 2010. Is the post-war bargain – in which everyone pays in and everyone has a stake – beginning to break down? And would charging to see a GP really be so outrageous?

Also: could the village save Britain? Simon discusses his new book The Village in Britain and argues that, in an age of loneliness and atomisation, we need to recreate village life even in our cities. From pubs and churches to neighbours and home ownership, have we forgotten how to build communities – and has working from home made the problem worse?

Finally, the panel choose their books of the year – from the late Doris Lessing to Sebastian Faulks and Michel Houellebecq. Plus, how much can you trust historical fiction?

Produced by Patrick Gibbons.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Coffee House Shots: The OBR's verdict on Healey Oct 30, 2026

Show notes

John Healey’s budget on Wednesday contained 98 measures, the most since 2010, and yet the OBR appears to be questioning the extent of his £15 billion in headroom. Tim Shipman speaks to the OBR’s David Miles about a tax take heading for a post-war high, the cuts pencilled in for the end of the parliament, and why, by his reckoning, Britain is 25% poorer than it expected to be in 2008.

Produced by Henry Lloyd

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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