The News Agents

Latest Episodes:

Weekend Edition - The Sports Agents Oct 19, 2024

Show notes

This week on The Sports Agents,

England named German coach Thomas Tuchel as the man to lead the Three Lions to World Cup glory - but does his nationality matter more than how good a manager he is? German football writer Raphael Honigstein, joined Gabby & Mark to explore...

How do clubs actually unearth the best talent? Old-school scouting prowess or new-age AI-infused data? We debate it out with former Brentford, QPR and Rangers manager, Mark Warburton, and the 'data-brain' behind Liverpool hiring Jurgen Klopp, former Director of Research, Ian Graham.

Plus, do 'superstars' get special treatment when it comes to drugs in sport? We talk to Ahmad Nassar, the Executive Director of the Professional Tennis Players' Association, and Edmund Willison, investigative journalist and author of the Honest Sport newsletter.

Got a question for The Sports Agents - email us at thesportsagents@global.com

New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.

Q&A - USA Election Special Oct 18, 2024

Show notes

Will this be the most gendered election ever? How late should you stay up to watch the results? And who do Jon and Lewis think will win?

With less than three weeks to go to the US election, we answer your most pressing questions.

Editor: Tom Hughes

Executive Producer: Louis Degenhardt

Producer: Natalie Indge

Digital Editor: Michaela Walters

Social Media Editor: Georgia Foxwell

Video Production: Rory Symon, Shane Fennelly & Arvind Badewal

Digital Journalists: Michael Baggs & Jacob Paul

Don’t forget you can also subscribe to our other News Agents podcasts via the link below:

https://linktr.ee/thenewsagents

You can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The News Agents"

And you can grab your News Agents merch, including t-shirts, hoodies and water bottles at the link below.

https://store.global.com/collections/the-news-agents

The News Agents is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Can Kamala Harris win over Fox viewers? Oct 17, 2024

Show notes

Kamala Harris has been trying to reach the parts of America that Democrats dont easily reach. Her latest foray was on Fox News in a sit-down interview with Bret Baier. She called the network out for failing to correct Donald Trump's falsehood on his election loss. But she struggled more when she had to differentiate herself from Joe Biden, and their past record. Did it work as a strategy?

Later, leaked ministerial letters of complaint and budgetary stalemate. Is Rachel Reeves facing the usual departmental wrangling or are things looking particularly uncomfortable for the Chancellor this time around? And are there now clues to what she actually has to cut.

Lastly, are women allowed to have children AND lead a political party? Well it's not entirely clear...

Editor: Tom Hughes

Executive Producer: Louis Degenhardt

Producer: Natalie Indge

Digital Editor: Michaela Walters

Social Media Editor: Georgia Foxwell

Video Production: Rory Symon, Shane Fennelly & Arvind Badewal

Digital Journalists: Michael Baggs & Jacob Paul

Don’t forget you can also subscribe to our other News Agents podcasts via the link below:

https://linktr.ee/thenewsagents

You can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The News Agents"

And you can grab your News Agents merch, including t-shirts, hoodies and water bottles at the link below.

https://store.global.com/collections/the-news-agents

The News Agents is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Badenoch v Jenrick: Can either candidate get the Tories back to power? Oct 16, 2024

Show notes

Tory leadership ballots have now gone out - and Conservative members must now chose if they want Kemi Badenoch or Robert Jenrick to lead their party. Unusually, both candidates come from the same wing of the party - the right - which begs the question, is there a genuine path for them to win over a wider electorate? We speak to the man spearheading the movement to find the Tories their route back to power, Grant Shapps.

Later, why are we horrified to discover our Prime Minister spent ten minutes speaking to one of the most influential women in the world?

And why is the Daily Mail calling this a DARK DAY FOR ENGLAND?

Editor: Tom Hughes

Executive Producer: Louis Degenhardt

Producer: Natalie Indge

Digital Editor: Michaela Walters

Social Media Editor: Georgia Foxwell

Video Production: Rory Symon, Shane Fennelly & Arvind Badewal

Digital Journalists: Michael Baggs & Jacob Paul

Don’t forget you can also subscribe to our other News Agents podcasts via the link below:

https://linktr.ee/thenewsagents

You can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The News Agents"

And you can grab your News Agents merch, including t-shirts, hoodies and water bottles at the link below.

https://store.global.com/collections/the-news-agents

The News Agents is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Is Rachel Reeves about to tear up a manifesto promise? Oct 15, 2024

Show notes

What exactly is a 'working person'? At the heart of that question is the answer to whether or not you think Labour has fudged its promise not to put up taxes in the budget in two weeks. Yesterday the Prime Minister refused to rule out increasing the national insurance contribution employers pay on their staff - having promised 'no increases on income tax, VAT or NI for WORKING PEOPLE'.

So are they breaking an election promise? And will it damage trust if they do? Later, we talk to Graham Brady, the man whose job was to dispatch Conservative prime ministers when their party no longer wanted them. How does he explain 14 years of Tory chaos? Did the party become addicted to the psychodrama that was damaging a country?

Editor: Tom Hughes

Executive Producer: Louis Degenhardt

Producer: Natalie Indge

Digital Editor: Michaela Walters

Social Media Editor: Georgia Foxwell

Video Production: Rory Symon, Shane Fennelly & Arvind Badewal

Digital Journalists: Michael Baggs & Jacob Paul

Audio clips courtesy of BBC Breakfast and Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg on BBC One.Don’t forget you can also subscribe to our other News Agents podcasts via the link below:

https://linktr.ee/thenewsagents

You can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The News Agents"

And you can grab your News Agents merch, including t-shirts, hoodies and water bottles at the link below.

https://store.global.com/collections/the-news-agents

The News Agents is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Is EU free movement about to fall apart? Oct 14, 2024

Show notes

Last month Germany suspended free movement at some of its borders, citing growing migration concerns. Critics of the move believe it’s dealt a body blow to the integrity of the European project, leading to an angry outburst from Poland’s PM - and former European Council President - Donald Tusk about “unfair unilateral” action from a fellow EU member state. This weekend, however, Poland followed suit and has threatened to suspend the right to asylum in the country. Tusk believes Vladimir Putin is trying to destabilise the EU by abusing its asylum policy and luring in thousands of migrants from the Middle East and Africa, in turn fuelling a resurgent far-right. So what becomes of the Schengen Area and free movement now?

Later, we discuss how to write Alex Salmond’s obituary. Tributes flooded in following his death this weekend, but have the media glossed over his own admission of inappropriate conduct?

Editor: Tom Hughes

Producers: Natalie Indge & Rory Symon

Digital Editor: Michaela Walters

Social Media Editor: Georgia Foxwell

Video Production: Rory Symon, Shane Fennelly & Arvind Badewal

Digital Journalists: Michael Baggs & Jacob Paul

Don’t forget you can also subscribe to our other News Agents podcasts via the link below:

https://linktr.ee/thenewsagents

You can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The News Agents"

And you can grab your News Agents merch, including t-shirts, hoodies and water bottles at the link below.

https://store.global.com/collections/the-news-agents

The News Agents is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Weekend Edition - The Sports Agents Oct 12, 2024

Show notes

This week on The Sports Agents,

Gabby & Mark Pougatch welcomed ex-Formula One Team Principle at Haas, Guenther Steiner, to talk about swearing and the unexpected F1 title race, with a bonus question for our weekend listeners.

And after Rafa Nadal announced his retirement during our recording, tennis presenter Marcus Buckland helped us pay tribute to the tennis great.

Plus we quizzed one of the UK’s top sports lawyers and Partner at Sheridans, Daniel Geey, on the landmark ruling in the legal battle between Man City and the Premier League about sponsorships.

Got a question for The Sports Agents - email us at thesportsagents@global.com

New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.

The most powerful man in politics - who is Morgan McSweeney? Oct 11, 2024

Show notes

Less than a week ago, the woman who was supposed to ease Labour's passage into government, Sue Gray, left her job as Chief of Staff following mounting pressure and rumours of fallouts behind the scenes.

Her replacement is Morgan McSweeney - now the most powerful man in politics that you've probably never heard of. The architect of Labour’s election victory, Starmer’s campaign manager, and now his main man in Downing Street. So, who is Morgan McSweeney? What motivates him? And what kind of power does he have in Number 10?

Editor: Tom Hughes

Producer: Natalie Indge

Digital Editor: Michaela Walters

Social Media Editor: Georgia Foxwell

Video Production: Rory Symon, Shane Fennelly & Arvind Badewal

Digital Journalists: Michael Baggs & Jacob Paul

Don’t forget you can also subscribe to our other News Agents podcasts via the link below:

https://linktr.ee/thenewsagents

You can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The News Agents"

And you can grab your News Agents merch, including t-shirts, hoodies and water bottles at the link below.

https://store.global.com/collections/the-news-agents

The News Agents is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Did Tory MPs go rogue? The mystery solved Oct 10, 2024

Show notes

Lewis, Jon and Emily have all been speaking to various Tory MPs either running the campaigns or voting in the leadership race. Together we work out what actually happened behind the scenes, and the buyers regret some are now feeling.

Later, Yuval Noah Harari, author of Sapiens and now Nexus, on why information and truth are two completely different things.

And lastly, the GetJimAJingle campaign reaps succulent rewards from our listeners.

Editor: Tom Hughes

Producer: Natalie Indge

Digital Editor: Michaela Walters

Social Media Editor: Georgia Foxwell

Video Production: Rory Symon, Shane Fennelly & Arvind Badewal

Digital Journalists: Michael Baggs & Jacob Paul

Don’t forget you can also subscribe to our other News Agents podcasts via the link below:

https://linktr.ee/thenewsagents

You can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The News Agents"

And you can grab your News Agents merch, including t-shirts, hoodies and water bottles at the link below.

https://store.global.com/collections/the-news-agents

The News Agents is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

WTF just happened in the Tory race?! Oct 09, 2024

Show notes

It's very rare you see the News Agents speechless. But today is one of those rare moments. James Cleverly, Tory MPs favourite as of yesterday has just been knocked out of the leaders race by Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick.

You can hear from our voices, that we spend the entire episode trying to work out what on earth has happened. Did Team Cleverly's maths go wrong?

Did MPs have a sudden change of heart over the direction of the party? And what does it mean for what happens to the Tory party now? One man who's probably breathing his first sigh of relief for a month is Keir Starmer.

Later, Rachel Reeves' budgetary gymnastics, and our campaign to 'help Jim get a jingle'.

Editor: Tom Hughes

Producer: Natalie Indge

Digital Editor: Michaela Walters

Social Media Editor: Georgia Foxwell

Video Production: Rory Symon, Shane Fennelly & Arvind Badewal

Digital Journalists: Michael Baggs & Jacob Paul

Don’t forget you can also subscribe to our other News Agents podcasts via the link below:

https://linktr.ee/thenewsagents

You can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The News Agents"

And you can grab your News Agents merch, including t-shirts, hoodies and water bottles at the link below.

https://store.global.com/collections/the-news-agents