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Best of the Spectator — News & Politics
Best of 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.

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

Latest Episodes:

Marshall Matters: Yeonmi Park Jul 18, 2023

Show notes

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.

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Americano: What went wrong for Ron DeSantis? Jul 18, 2023

Show notes

Freddy is joined this week by Roger Kimball, editor of the New Criterion to talk about the diminishing power 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?

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Can Britain’s grid take the strain? Jul 17, 2023

Show notes

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.

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The Week in 60: Barbie Britain & Yudkowsky on death by AI Jul 16, 2023

Show notes

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.

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Spectator Out Loud: Katy Balls, Olenka Hamilton, Damian Thompson Jul 15, 2023

Show notes

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.

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Women With Balls: Cleo Watson Jul 14, 2023

Show notes

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.

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The Edition: Barbie's world Jul 13, 2023

Show notes

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.

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Marshall Matters: Yoram Hazony Jul 12, 2023

Show notes

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.

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The Book Club: Caitlin Moran Jul 12, 2023

Show notes

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'.

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The Week in 60: The truth about the NHS & Andrew Neil on Europe's riots Jul 09, 2023

Show notes

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.

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