Faking plans for Nigel – What would a Reform government actually look like?
Let’s be honest, Reform UK gets a lot of coverage but not enough scrutiny. Say Nigel Farage did become Prime Minister (God forbid), what would a Reform UK-led UK look like? Is their manif … sorry, ‘contract’ full to the brim of wishful thinking? Plus, with u-turns inbound on the 2-child benefit cap and winter fuel payments is Labour sorting its act out? Or does this make Starmer look weak? Paul Nowak is the General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress and joins the podcast to give his thoughts. And in the Extra Bit for subscribers following the death of BBC arts titan Alan Yentob, we ask: Is the dream of culture for the masses still alive?
• Read Sam Freedman’s Substack here: https://samf.substack.com/p/what-would-a-reform-government-be
• Listen to The Bunker including Duncan Weldon on the economics of war.
• Don’t miss the latest edition of Crime Scene on the Liverpool parade car collision and what it means for policing.
ESCAPE ROUTES
• Paul recommends Bruce Springsteen live and Race Across The World on BBC iPlayer.
• Matt saw Mary Poppins at the Bradford Alhambra.
• Rachel recommends listening to Magic At The Musicals on RadioPlayer.
• Dorian recommends Gang Of Three (keep an eye out in case in gets a transfer) and Electric Dreams at Tate Modern.
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Presented by Dorian Lynskey with Rachel Cunliffe and Matt Green. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio Production by: Robin Leeburn. Music by Cornershop. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.
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1:16:45
Cruel Summer – Can Starmer handle the heat?
Rebellious MPs, a nightmare spending review, the endless Two Child Benefit Cap row, dire polling… is Labour in for a summer of discontent? We ask whether the Government can bend with the wind to succeed, what policies will change, and whether Starmer/Reeves is a double act with two straight men? Plus: Have researchers found a new way to deal with digital disinformation? And in a special bonus, Jonn and Andrew discuss why the best political drama of the decade so far is the Star Wars spin-off Andor.
• Don’t miss Oh God, What Now? Live at 21Soho on Weds 11 June.
• Listen to the new Crime Scene – the truth about true crime.
ESCAPE ROUTES
• Ros recommends The Midwich Cuckoos by John Wyndham.
• Jonn recommends Paradise on Disney+.
• Marie recommends Six Of Crows by Leigh Bardugo.
• Andrew recommends Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin and Murderbot on Apple TV+.
• Back us on Patreon for ad-free listening, bonus materials and more.
Written and presented by Andrew Harrison with Marie le Conte, John Elledge and Ros Taylor. Audio production by Robin Leeburn. Theme music by Cornershop. Produced by Chris Jones. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.
www.podmasters.co.uk
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The Tory press and pundits reacted as rationally as you’d expect to the new UK-EU deal, accusing Starmer of sneaking back into the EU, betraying the British taxpayer, and all their favourite themes. But exactly what are they saying and how much of it is legit? Plus, with the potential abolition of the Department for Culture, Media, and Sport, we ask why governments can’t see the positives of culture? And in the Extra Bit for subscribers, it’s 20 years since The Thick of It hit our screens. Politically, does it still hold up?
Today’s special guest is Emma Kennedy, writer and host of our sibling science and psychology podcast Why? – new series out now!
• Get tickets for Oh God, What Now? Live at 21 Soho, London, with special guest Marcus Brigstocke.
• Don’t miss our fascinating new series Crime Scene. Latest episode: Who killed the Essex Boys?
www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow
Presented by Dorian Lynskey, Rafael Behr and Zoë Grünewald. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio. Production by Robin Leeburn. Music by Cornershop. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.
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1:11:17
Deadliest Catch – Starmer reels in an EU deal
The fish and the fury… As dead-end Brexiters rage against the “betrayal” of the Great British Haddock, we look at what REALLY matters in Starmer’s EU reset. Plus, polling giant YouGov’s Patrick English joins us to bust some opinion poll myths and explain the Reform Surge. And is Generation X really the most hard done-by of the postwar era? We don our Blur t-shirts and crack a Smirnoff Ice to discuss the 90s generation taking financial responsibility for their kids and their parents.
• Join us for Oh God, What Now? Live in London with special guest Marcus Brigstocke on Weds 11 June.
• Listen to Crime Scene’s interview with Tory Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp.
ESCAPE ROUTES
• Ros recommends Delizia: The Epic History of Italians and Their Food by John Dickie.
• Seth recommends The Radical Print by Esther Chadwick.
• Andrew recommends Andor on Disney+.
www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow
Presented by Andrew Harrison with Ros Taylor and Seth Thévoz. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio production by Robin Leeburn. Music by Cornershop. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.
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1:08:35
Without a care worker in the world – The case for immigration
After possibly the most aggressive speech on immigration ever made by a British Prime Minister, we attempt the adult conversation on the topic that politicians won’t have. Why can’t Britain accept the benefits of immigration? Who’s going to bail out the care system when it collapses? And what the hell is Labour playing at anyway? Plus: Politicians think artificial intelligence will fix everything. Have they bought the snake oil? And in the Extra Bit for Patreon people, should we fight to save the after-work pint?
• Come to Oh God, What Now? Live at 21Soho, London on Weds 11 June. Tickets on sale here.
• Listen to the latest edition of Crime Scene – the truth about true crime.
ESCAPE ROUTES
• Hannah recommends Jamie Oliver on the Louis Theroux podcast.
• Jonn recommends This City Is Ours on BBC iPlayer.
• Marie recommends The Border: A Journey Around Russia by Erika Fatland.
• Dorian recommends This Mortal Coil .
• Back us on Patreon for ad-free listening, bonus materials and more.
Written and presented by Dorian Lynskey with Marie le Conte, John Elledge and Hannah Fearn. Audio production by Robin Leeburn. Theme music by Cornershop. Produced by Chris Jones. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.
www.podmasters.co.uk
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Making sense of our political hell every Tuesday and Friday! Oh God, What Now? is the no-bulls**t politics podcast, making the unbearable bearable with top quality guests and analysis, plus poor quality jokes.
Regulars include: Dorian Lynskey, author of The Ministry Of Truth: A Biography of Orwell’s 1984 and host of Origin Story • Writer and commentator Ros Taylor • Rachel Cunliffe of the New Statesman • Writer and host of This Is Not A Drill Gavin Esler • Social affairs journalist Hannah Fearn • Comedian Matt Green • The Lead's Westminster Editor Zoë Grünewald • Group Editor Andrew Harrison • Journalist Marie Le Conte • Podmasters Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis • New Statesman columnist Jonn Elledge • Guardian writer Rafael Behr
Sign up and get ad-free shows earlier than anyone else: patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow.
Oh God, What Now? is a Podmasters production
Ireland