Best of the Spectator

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The Edition: Kemi's fightback, the cult of Thatcher & debunking British myths Oct 02, 2025

Show notes

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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Quite right!: is Labour 'racist' too? Oct 01, 2025

Show notes

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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Americano: Prof Mearsheimer on why Trump’s ‘deal of the century’ won’t work Sep 30, 2025

Show notes

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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Coffee House Shots: Shabana Mahmood in conversation with Michael Gove Sep 29, 2025

Show notes

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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Americano: is James Comey going to jail? Sep 29, 2025

Show notes

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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Spectator Out Loud: Matthew Parris, Stephen J. Shaw, Henry Jeffreys, Tessa Dunlop and Angus Colwell Sep 29, 2025

Show notes

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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Reparations: the tyranny of imaginary guilt, with Nigel Biggar & Katie Lam Sep 28, 2025

Show notes

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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Coffee House Shots: Michael Gove interviews Steve Reed Sep 26, 2025

Show notes

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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The Edition: Labour’s Terminator, Silicon Valley’s ‘Antichrist’ obsession & can charity shops survive? Sep 26, 2025

Show notes

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.

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

The Book Club: Rebellion and Resistance of the Enslaved in the Atlantic World Sep 24, 2025

Show notes

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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