A People's History with John McDonnell

What should the UK government be doing to protect people from the impacts of the cost-of-living crisis, both in the UK and around the world, to improve public services and to help tackle the household debt crisis? Nearly ten million people are heavily in debt in the UK. We are in a personal debt crisis. Rent debt, credit cards, and utility bills have all piled up £2.4 billion owed in energy debt a...

The last decade has seen wages and benefits cut or frozen while the assets and incomes of the rich have grown hugely, with our tax system guaranteeing the rising wealth of the super-rich in particular. UK private wealth has been growing substantially over time. There is currently no comprehensive tax on ownership of wealth in the UK, but as with other countries there are many taxes which relate to...

Please note: this session also contained a visual presentations of the graphs and stats to back up Professor Danny Dorling's arguments. We suggest listening to the podcast with the aide of the slides that you can view here .    In this episode Professor Danny Dorling discusses the wide range of inequalities in family incomes and other key measures, and how these have changed over time, using socia...

For most of human history, the oceans have been seen as a global commons, which belong to us all. But our seas are now being ravaged by exploitation for corporate profit, resulting in a social, economic and ecological crisis that threatens the life support system of Earth.   Guy Standing’s book, ‘ The Blue Commons ’, argues the only way forward is to revive the ethos of the sea as a commons, manag...

Exploring the state of the left across Europe, the fight against the rising far-right, the European Union movement and one of its core principles - the concept of free movement and the role it played in the Brexit debate - John McDonnell speaks to Dr Philippe Marlière and Dr Maya Goodfellow.   Dr Maya Goodfellow is a writer and academic, specialising in the relationships between race, bordering an...

Explore the history of anti-colonialism, struggles against neo-colonialism, and the continued fight against global inequality - John McDonnell discusses these themes in-depth with Asad Rehman and Heidi Chow.  Asad Rehman has worked in the non-government and charity sectors for over 25 years. Today, his expertise puts him at the forefront of the climate justice movement in the UK, and around the wo...

Explore the formation, impact and goals of environmental movements globally and how they intersect with the fight against global inequality - John McDonnell discusses these theme in depth with Vijay Prashad and Asad Rehman.  Vijay Prashad is an Indian Marxist historian,editor and commentator. He is an executive-director of Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, the Chief Editor of LeftWord...

A discussion on the context and events of the Russian Revolution including the nature of Russian society prior to the revolution; the emergence of the revolutionary movements and the Bolshevik Party; what sparked the revolution and the civil war; and the lasting international impact of the revolution.  John McDonnell speaks to two expert historians and activists: Professor Mary Davis and Paul Feld...

A discussion on the rise of fascism and the far-right in Italy and Spain, resulting in the brutal regimes of Franco and Mussolini.  This episode explores the conditions that led to their rise and the left struggles in both country during and after the establishment of both fascist regimes - John McDonnell speaks to three expert historians: Jessica Thorne; David Broder and Professor Paul Preston. ...

On the background to and the formation of the Attlee Government in 1945.   With Francis Beckett, author, journalist, biographer and historian; Rebecca Long-Bailey, Member of Parliament for Salford and Eccles, and former Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy; and Paul Dimoldenberg, Labour Councillor in Westminster since 1982 and author of 'Building the New Jerusalem...

Explore the rise of the trade union movement and eventual foundation of the Labour Party in 1900, with John McDonnell and three expert historians and activists: Matthew Worley, Simon Hannah and Baroness Pauline Bryan. Matthew Worley is a Professor of Modern History at the University of Reading, where he focuses on twentieth-century British culture and politics, with a particular interest in the Br...

The Chartist movement of the 1830s and 1840s was the first mass movement driven by Britain’s working classes. But how and why did the movement arise? What was society really like for working people at the time? And what were the lasting impacts and implications of the Chartists’ struggle? Explore this fascinating area of our history with John McDonnell and three expert historians: Emma Griffin, Ka...

What caused the English Civil War (1642–1651)? What was society like for working people in this period? And what impact did the Civil War have on society then - and now, more than three centuries on? Explore this fascinating area of our history with John McDonnell and three expert historians: Ann Hughes, John Rees and Ted Vallance. Ann Hughes is a Professor of Early Modern History at Keele Univers...

What caused the people's revolts? What was society really like in this period? And what were the lasting consequences for working people in Britain?  John McDonnell explores this area of our history with historians Martin Empson, Ted Vallance and Justine Firnhaber-Baker, and a more recent employer of camp tactics in Climate Camp and Occupy, Joe Ryle.  Martin Empson is an author and activist living...