Best Spectator Out Loud Podcasts (2025)

1
Spectator Out Loud: Owen Matthews, Matthew Parris, Marcus Nevitt, Angus Colwell and Sean Thomas 30:46

18m ago30:46

30:46

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Owen Matthews reads his letter from Rome (1:21); Matthew Parris travels the Channel Islands (7:53); Reviewing Minoo Dinshaw, Marcus Nevitt looks at Bulstrode Whitelocke and Edward Hyde, once close colleagues who fell out during the English civil war (15:19); Angus Colwell discusses his Marco Pierre White obsession…

1
Owen Matthews, Matthew Parris, Marcus Nevitt, Angus Colwell and Sean Thomas 30:46

8m ago30:46

30:46

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Owen Matthews reads his letter from Rome (1:21); Matthew Parris travels the Channel Islands (7:53); Reviewing Minoo Dinshaw, Marcus Nevitt looks at Bulstrode Whitelocke and Edward Hyde, once close colleagues who fell out during the English civil war (15:19); Angus Colwell discusses his Marco Pierre White obsession…

1
Coffee House Shots: John Curtice on the local elections 20:35

9m ago20:35

20:35

Legendary pollster Prof Sir John Curtice joins the Spectator’s deputy political editor James Heale to look ahead to next week’s local elections. The actual number of seats may be small, as John points out, but the political significance could be much greater. If polling is correct, Reform could win a ‘fresh’ by-election for the first time, the mayo…

1
The Edition: See change, A.I. ghouls & long live the long lunch! 37:43

27m ago37:43

37:43

This week: the many crises awaiting the next pope ‘Francis was a charismatic pope loved by most of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics’ writes Damian Thompson in the cover article this week. But few of them ‘grasp the scale of the crisis in the Church… The next Vicar of Christ, liberal or conservative’ faces ‘challenges that dwarf those that confront…

1
The Book Club: why are Gen Z turning to Christianity? 40:13

8m ago40:13

40:13

My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is Lamorna Ash, author of Don’t Forget We’re Here Forever: A New Generation’s Search for Religion. She describes to me how a magazine piece about some young friends who made a dramatic conversion to Christianity turned into an investigation into the rise in faith among a generation that many assumed would b…

1
Table Talk: Roger Pizey, Head of Pastry at Fortnum and Mason 20:14

18h ago20:14

20:14

Roger Pizey is a baker, chef and one of the most influential pâtissiers in the UK. He started his culinary journey as an apprentice at La Gavroche under Albert Roux before taking on the role of head of pastry at Marco Pierre White’s Harveys, during the time it achieved three Michelin stars. He has since worked at a number of London institutions and…

1
Women With Balls: Deborah Mattinson 28:50

1d ago28:50

28:50

Deborah Mattinson joined the House of Lords as a Labour peer in February. Her involvement in politics began when she worked alongside Peter Mandelson and Philip Gould to create Labour’s Shadow Communications Agency for Neil Kinnock. In 1992 she co-founded Opinion Leader Research, and she went on to advise Tony Blair ahead of the 1997 election and l…

1
Holy Smoke: Pope Francis dies – what will his legacy be? 29:09

2d ago29:09

29:09

Pope Francis, the head of the Roman Catholic Church, has died. The Argentinian, the first Latin American – and the first Jesuit – to lead the Church, has been the head of the Holy See for 12 years, succeeding Pope Benedict XVI who resigned in 2013. Francis presided over the funeral of his predecessor, who died in 2022 – a first in modern history. B…

1
Coffee House Shots: How the Liberal Democrats conquered Middle England 16:46

2d ago16:46

16:46

The Liberal Democrats’ foreign affairs spokesperson Calum Miller, elected as the new MP for Bicester and Woodstock last year, joins James Heale to talk about the ambitions of the party that became the largest third party in Parliament in 100 years at the 2024 general election. They want to overtake the Conservatives to be the second party in local …

1
Holy Smoke Easter special: in praise of faithful dissent, a conversation with Nigel Biggar and Mary Wakefield 23:46

3d ago23:46

23:46

The Easter issue of the Spectator includes two provocative articles exploring aspects of Christianity. Nigel Biggar, Regius professor emeritus of moral theology at Oxford University, now a Conservative peer, celebrates the heroic ‘faithful dissent’ of Christian heroes such as Thomas More and Helmuth von Moltke, who lost their lives rather than defe…

1
Coffee House Shots: 10 years of politics as Balls bows out 21:05

4d ago21:05

21:05

Katy Balls joins Coffee House Shots for the last time as the Spectator’s political editor. Having joined the magazine ten years ago – or six prime ministers in Downing St years – what are her reflections on British politics? Katy’s lobby lunch partner from the Financial Times Stephen Bush joins Katy and Patrick Gibbons to try and make sense of a tu…

1
Spectator Out Loud: Paul Wood, Katy Balls, Olivia Potts, Benedict Allen, Cosmo Landesman and Aidan Hartley 40:06

5d ago40:06

40:06

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Would Trump really bomb Iran, asks Paul Wood (1:38); Katy Balls interviews Health Secretary Wes Streeting on NHS reform, Blairism and Game of Thrones (8:38); Olivia Potts examines the history – and decline – of the Easter staple, roast lamb (18:25); the explorer Benedict Allen says Erling Kagge and Neil Shubin wer…

1
Paul Wood, Katy Balls, Olivia Potts, Benedict Allen, Cosmo Landesman and Aidan Hartley 40:06

5d ago40:06

40:06

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Would Trump really bomb Iran, asks Paul Wood (1:38); Katy Balls interviews Health Secretary Wes Streeting on NHS reform, Blairism and Game of Thrones (8:38); Olivia Potts examines the history – and decline – of the Easter staple, roast lamb (18:25); the explorer Benedict Allen says Erling Kagge and Neil Shubin wer…

1
The Edition: Easter special – assisted dying, ‘bunny ebola’ & how do you eat your creme egg? 34:08

6d ago34:08

34:08

This week: should the assisted dying bill be killed off? Six months after Kim Leadbeater MP launched the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, a group of Labour MPs have pronounced it ‘irredeemably flawed and not fit to become law’. They say the most basic aspects of the bill – having gone through its committee stage – do not hold up to scrutin…

1
Book Club: Philippe Sands 57:48

7d ago57:48

57:48

Sam Leith’s guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is the lawyer and writer Philippe Sands, whose new book 38 Londres Street describes the legal and diplomatic tussle over the potential extradition of the former Chilean dictator General Pinochet. Philippe tells Sam why the case was such an important one in legal history, and presents new evidence s…

1
Americano: Trump v Harvard 23:20

8d ago23:20

23:20

Freddy Gray speaks to Peter Wood who is the President of the National Association of Scholars about Trump's decision to block Harvard funding after the university denied the President's DEI demands.By The Spectator

1
Women With Balls: Lindsey Hilsum 34:08

9d ago34:08

34:08

Lindsey Hilsum is the International Editor for Channel 4 News, where she has worked for over 25 years. Having started her career as an aid worker in Latin America, she transitioned to journalism, and she has now reported from six continents for over three decades. She has covered many major conflicts including Kosovo, Iraq, Syria, Ukraine and acros…

1
Holy Smoke: Was Simeon of Jerusalem the first Christian in recorded history? 27:55

10d ago27:55

27:55

In Luke's Gospel, an ancient inhabitant of Jerusalem named Simeon meets Mary and Joseph when they bring Jesus to be presented at the Temple on the 40th day after his birth. He has been promised that he will not die until he has seen Christ, and as he takes the baby into his arms he utters the words, 'Lord, now let your servant depart in peace, acco…

1
Coffee House Shots: Tariff turmoil – the end of globalisation or a blip in history? 16:56

11d ago16:56

16:56

Globalisation's obituary has been written many times before but, with the turmoil caused over the past few weeks with Donald Trump's various announcements on tariffs, could this mark the beginning of the end for the economic order as we know it? Tej Parikh from the Financial Times and Kate Andrews, The Spectator's deputy US editor, join economics e…

1
Petroc Trelawny, Gareth Roberts, Tom Lee, Leyla Sanai and Iram Ramzan 28:07

12d ago28:07

28:07

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Petroc Trelawny reads his diary for the week (1:14); Gareth Roberts wants us to make book jackets nasty again (6:22); Tom Lee writes in defence of benzodiazepines (13:44); Leyla Sanai reflects on unethical practices within psychiatry, as she reviews Jon Stock’s The Sleep Room (19:41); and, Iram Ramzan provides her…

1
Spectator Out Loud: Petroc Trelawny, Gareth Roberts, Tom Lee, Leyla Sanai and Iram Ramzan 28:07

12d ago28:07

28:07

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Petroc Trelawny reads his diary for the week (1:14); Gareth Roberts wants us to make book jackets nasty again (6:22); Tom Lee writes in defence of benzodiazepines (13:44); Leyla Sanai reflects on unethical practices within psychiatry, as she reviews Jon Stock’s The Sleep Room (19:41); and, Iram Ramzan provides her…

1
The Edition: Trump shock, cousin marriage & would you steal from a restaurant? 38:44

13d ago38:44

38:44

This week: Trump’s tariffs – madness or mastermind? ‘Shock tactics’ is the headline of our cover article this week, as deputy editor Freddy Gray reflects on a week that has seen the US President upend the global economic order, with back and forth announcements on reciprocal and retaliatory tariffs. At the time of writing, a baseline 10% on imports…

1
The Book Club: What Is Free Speech? 44:28

14d ago44:28

44:28

My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is Fara Dabhoiwala, whose new book What Is Free Speech? The History of a Dangerous Idea looks not just at the origins of free speech as an idea, but also its uses and misuses. Fara tells me the bizarre story of how he found himself ‘cancelled’, gives us the scoop on who actually invented free speech and exp…

1
Americano: has trump stopped the oligarchy? 20:45

15d ago20:45

20:45

Global financial markets are experiencing significant declines following the announcement of new tariffs by President Trump. These tariffs led to widespread panic among investors and sparked debates about their potential impact on the economy. In this episode of Americano, host Freddy Gray is joined by Joe Weisenthal, co-host of Bloomberg’s Odd Lo…

1
Table Talk: Gok Wan 25:29

15d ago25:29

25:29

Gok Wan is a renowned stylist and television presenter. Over the years, Gok has transformed the way we think about style and body image with his much-loved series How to Look Good Naked and Gok’s Fashion Fix – his focus on body positivity was the antidote to the crash-dieting fads which dominated the 2000s. Later in his career, Gok drew upon his Ch…

1
Chinese Whispers: what does it take to be an 'old friend of the Chinese people'? 37:44

16d ago37:44

37:44

** Chinese Whispers is coming to an end. Later this year, Cindy Yu will be joining The Times and The Sunday Times to write a regular column on China. To stay abreast of her latest work, subscribe to her free Substack at chinesewhispers.substack.com ** The term ‘old friend of the Chinese people’ might seem a colloquial, almost sentimental, phrase to…

1
Women With Balls: Katie Lam 28:45

16d ago28:45

28:45

Katie Lam was elected as a new Conservative MP, for Weald of Kent, at the 2024 election. While studying at Cambridge she was president of the Cambridge Union and chairman of the Conservative Association, and she was later a special advisor – first under Boris Johnson in the business unit at Number 10, and then later working on counterterrorism with…

1
Spectator Out Loud: Gavin Mortimer, Colin Freeman, Lawrence Osborne, Lionel Shriver and Anthony Cummins 34:10

17d ago34:10

34:10

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Gavin Mortimer looks at how the French right can still win (1:48); Colin Freeman interviews Americans who have fought in Ukraine and feel betrayed by Trump (11:01); Lawrence Osborne details his experience of last week’s earthquake, as he reads his diary from Bangkok (18:38); Lionel Shriver defends traditional, mon…

1
Coffee House Shots: Marine Le Pen – justice or lawfare? 14:04

18d ago14:04

14:04

Marine Le Pen, president of Rassemblement National (National Rally) was found guilty this week of embezzling EU funds to boost her party’s finances. The guilty verdict was widely expected, however her sentence was far harsher than even her strongest critics expected – part of which saw her banned from standing for office for five years, with immedi…

1
Gavin Mortimer, Colin Freeman, Lawrence Osborne, Lionel Shriver and Anthony Cummins 34:10

19d ago34:10

34:10

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Gavin Mortimer looks at how the French right can still win (1:48); Colin Freeman interviews Americans who have fought in Ukraine and feel betrayed by Trump (11:01); Lawrence Osborne details his experience of last week’s earthquake, as he reads his diary from Bangkok (18:38); Lionel Shriver defends traditional, mon…

1
Americano: Trump's tariffs – madman or mastermind? 28:51

19d ago28:51

28:51

President Donald Trump has announced sweeping new tariffs, including a 10 per cent duty on all UK exports to the United States, as part of his 'Reciprocal Tariffs' plan aimed at addressing trade imbalances and bolstering American manufacturing. This move is expected to impact approximately £60 billion worth of UK exports, with sectors such as autom…

1
The Edition: Cruel Labour, the decline of sacred spaces & Clandon Park’s controversial restoration 50:51

20d ago50:51

50:51

This week: Starmerism’s moral vacuum ‘Governments need a mission, or they descend into reactive incoherence’ writes Michael Gove in this week’s cover piece. A Labour government, he argues, ‘cannot survive’ without a sense of purpose. The ‘failure of this government to make social justice its mission’ has led to a Spring Statement ‘that was at once …

1
Americano: will Trump’s tariffs unravel the neoliberal global order? 32:55

21d ago32:55

32:55

Freddy is joined by James Fishback – writer, investor and chief executive of investment firm Azoria – on ‘Liberation Day’, when Donald Trump is set to announce a raft of new tariffs (at 9 p.m. UK time). They discuss the impact of Trump’s tariffs on the market, whether this marks the upending of the neoliberal economic world order, or if Donald Trum…

1
The Book Club: Joe Dunthorne 39:35

21d ago39:35

39:35

My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the poet and novelist Joe Dunthorne, who is here to talk about his new non-fiction book Children of Radium: A Buried Inheritance. In it, he describes how he criss-crossed Europe in search of the truth about his great-grandfather, a Jewish scientist who found himself working on chemical weapons for the Na…

1
Holy Smoke: the tin ear of Justin Welby 28:47

22d ago28:47

28:47

The former Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, is back in the news following his interview this week with the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg. The interview – his first since he resigned last November – was clearly Welby's attempt to draw a line under the abuse scandal that cost him his job. The 2024 Makin report concluded that the Church of England mis…

1
Americano: Douglas Murray on JFK, Covid-19 & conspiracy culture 27:18

22d ago27:18

27:18

The Spectator's columnist Douglas Murray joins Freddy Gray to discuss his recent column on why the JFK conspiracies just won't die. They also discuss the moon landing, the emergence of American self-hatred, and the return of the post-truth era.By The Spectator

1
Women With Balls: Kim Leadbeater 35:45

23d ago35:45

35:45

Kim Leadbeater has been an MP since winning the Batley & Spen by-election for Labour in 2021. She was elected to the constituency that her sister, Jo Cox, had served until she was murdered during the 2016 Brexit referendum campaign. Having pursued a career in health and fitness, Kim hadn’t initially intended on a life in politics, but she went on t…

1
Spectator Out Loud: Owen Matthews, James Heale, Francis Pike, Christian House and Mark Mason 32:06

24d ago32:06

32:06

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Owen Matthews argues that Turkish President Erdogan’s position is starting to look shaky (1:19); James Heale examines the new party of the posh: the Lib Dems (7:51); Francis Pike highlights the danger Chinese hypersonic missiles pose to the US navy (13:54); Christian House highlights Norway’s occupation during the…

1
Coffee House Shots: Michael Heseltine on Thatcher, Boris and Badenoch 29:36

25d ago29:36

29:36

An MP for 35 years, Michael Heseltine served as Environment Secretary and then Defence Secretary in Margaret Thatcher’s government. Following his well-publicised resignation in 1986, he returned to government under John Major and was Deputy Prime Minister for the last two years of Major’s premiership. Once seen as a potential successor to Thatcher …

1
Holy Smoke: who is actually running the Catholic Church? 11:25

26d ago11:25

11:25

A greatly enfeebled Pope Francis is now living in enforced isolation in a suite at his Santa Marta residence that has been converted into hospital accommodation. He won't be resuming public duties for two months, we are told – and even his senior advisors have limited access to him. As a result, it's really not clear who is in charge of the Catholi…

1
Owen Matthews, James Heale, Francis Pike, Christian House and Mark Mason 32:06

26d ago32:06

32:06

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Owen Matthews argues that Turkish President Erdogan’s position is starting to look shaky (1:19); James Heale examines the new party of the posh: the Lib Dems (7:51); Francis Pike highlights the danger Chinese hypersonic missiles pose to the US navy (13:54); Christian House highlights Norway’s occupation during the…

1
Coffee House Shots Live with Maurice Glasman, David Frost and James Kanagasooriam 1:10:29

26d ago1:10:29

1:10:29

Join Katy Balls, Michael Gove, Lord Glasman, Lord Frost and pollster James Kanagasooriam as they unpack the highly anticipated Spring Statement and its implications for national policy and global security. Listen for: Michael’s plan for how to deal with the Donald, and why the Treasury is not fit for purpose; Maurice on his influence in the White H…

1
The Edition: The age of the strongman, Tesla under attack & matinee revivals 34:37

27d ago34:37

34:37

This week: welcome to the age of the strongman ‘The world’s most exclusive club… is growing,’ writes Paul Wood in this week’s Spectator. Membership is restricted to a very select few: presidents-for-life. Putin of Russia, Xi of China, Kim of North Korea and MBS of Saudi Arabia are being joined by Erdogan of Turkey – who is currently arresting his l…

1
The Book Club: Francesca Simon 31:38

28d ago31:38

31:38

My guest in this week’s Book Club is Francesca Simon. Best known for her Horrid Henry series of children’s books, Francesca has just published her first novel for grownups, a haunting reworking of a Welsh folk tale called Salka: Lady of the Lake. She tells me how she came to shift direction, what myths offer in terms of storytelling possibility – a…

1
Americano: what did we learn from the war chat leaks? 26:17

29d ago26:17

26:17

Jeffrey Goldberg’s story in the Atlantic is so mind-blowing it’s hard to know what to say in response. It defies belief that Donald Trump’s National Security Adviser, Mike Waltz, appears to have accidentally added a top journalist to a Signal messaging group with senior government officials – including the Vice President, Secretary of State, Defenc…

1
Table Talk: Loyd Grossman 24:03

29d ago24:03

24:03

Loyd Grossman is a man of many talents: from appearing on our screens as the host of MasterChef and Through the Keyhole, to crafting a beloved line of pasta sauces. Loyd has left his mark on both the culinary and cultural worlds. On the podcast, Loyd talks to Lara about hazy memories of ‘sipping a Shirley Temple cocktail aged 6 or 7’, the secret be…

1
Chinese Whispers: from Chimerica to Cold War II 36:32

30d ago36:32

36:32

** Chinese Whispers is coming to an end. Later this year, Cindy Yu will be joining The Times and The Sunday Times to write a regular column on China. To stay abreast of her latest work, subscribe to her free Substack at chinesewhispers.substack.com ** It’s easy to forget that, as recently as the start of this century, the US was China’s biggest all…

1
Women With Balls: Caroline Lucas 34:14

1M ago34:14

34:14

Caroline Lucas was elected as the first ever MP for the Green Party and served as their leader three times. Having completed a PhD in English, worked for Oxfam, and been involved in local Green Party politics, she went on to serve in the European Parliament for a decade. In 2010, she was elected to Parliament as the MP for Brighton Pavilion and, du…

1
Spectator Out Loud: Henry Jeffreys, Marcus Walker, Angus Colwell, Nicolas Farrell and Rory Sutherland 28:28

1M ago28:28

28:28

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Henry Jeffreys looks at the potential impact of Trump’s tariffs on British drinkers (1:31); on the 400th anniversary of Charles I’s accession to the throne, Marcus Walker explains what modern Britain could learn from the cavalier monarch (7:10); Angus Colwell provides his notes on beef dripping (13:55); Nicolas Fa…

1
Coffee House Shots: were we right to lock down? Michael Gove vs Toby Young 31:09

1M ago31:09

31:09

On 23 March 2020, then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the unprecedented decision to put the UK into lockdown. To mark the 5th anniversary of that announcement this weekend, we have brought together our editor Michael Gove – then a cabinet minister under Boris – and our associate editor Toby Young – an ardent critic of the decision – to answ…

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Spectator Out Loud Podcasts

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