Rock & Roll Politics with Steve Richards

Shaun Woodward was one of the masterminds behind the Conservatives 1992 election victory and subsequently he became a Tory MP. Soon after Labour’s 1997 landslide he changed sides, and ultimately became a Labour cabinet minister. • The first show of 2026 is in the main concert hall at Kings Place on the 11th of February. Tickets are available here . • Subscribe to Patreon here for the main podcast...

Reg Prentice was a Labour cabinet minister after the 1974 elections, but was threatened with deselection by his local Labour party for being on the right. There were rowdy meetings as Prentice’s cabinet allies spoke in his defence and by the time of the 1979 election Prentice had defected to Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative party. • The first show of 2026 is in the main concert hall at Kings Place...

We know more than we think we know … Sometimes what is in front of our eyes is more interesting than speculating about a hazy future. Here is what we know now about Keir Starmer’s fragility and the even more precarious international crisis.  • Tickets for my next live show on the 11th of February are available now! Get them here .   • My biography of Tony Blair is out now, get it here .   • A subs...

Keir Starmer has endured a rough opening 18 months, but so did Tony Blair in quite similar ways. So why was Blair miles ahead in the polls in his early phase in power? And why is Starmer breaking all records for low ratings? The first show of 2026 is in the main concert hall at Kings Place on the 11th of February. Tickets are the perfect Christmas present! Get them here . Subscribe to Patreon here...

Here’s the last live show of the year, recorded in the main concert hall at Kings Place. There’s a dramatic answer to the question, will Keir Starmer be prime minister this time next year? Plus, making sense of Nigel Farage, Zack Polanski, Jeremy Corbyn and much more… Dream Christmas presents... • Tickets for my next live show on the 11th of February are available now. Get them here . • My biograp...

Trump’s National Security Strategy is scathing about Europe, and in interviews he intensified his attack on the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan. Where does this leave Britain’s place in the world? Out of the EU and no longer able to claim there’s a reliable ally in the White House, even if that claim was always partly delusional... Plus, what chance of a Labour/Lib Dem government after the next genera...

Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves have started to become more critical of the ‘Brexit Deal’. David Lammy highlights the benefits of a customs union. The Brexit minister, Nick Thomas-Symonds, is promoted. But does this mean a cautious government is moving towards the customs union, and when would it make such a move? Looking for the ideal Christmas present? My new biography of Tony Blair can be read o...

Few buy newspapers and not many read them. So why do they shape the political agenda, not least in determining how the current government is perceived? Rock & Roll Politics -The Xmas Special is live at Kings Place on Dec 8th.. Get your tickets for Kings Place or the live-stream of the event here . Subscribe to Patreon for live events, bonus podcasts and to get the regular podcast a day early a...

The fickle media and Conservative MPs are hailing Kemi Badenoch’s recent performances, making her more secure in her role as leader. The Tories are still dominant in the media, so could they - not Reform - emerge as the main alternative at the next election?  Plus the furore over Rachel Reeves and the OBR, and why is it shocking for a Labour government to deliver a ‘Labour budget”? To find out mor...

After a thousand leaks, speeches and u-turns, Rachel Reeves has delivered her budget. As predicted there were a range of tax rises and some significant spending increases, not least on welfare. For all the feverish coverage, how much does the budget really change? Rock & Roll Politics - The Christmas Special is live at Kings Place on the 8th of December for the last show of the year. Tickets a...

In spite of the bleak financial inheritance, Rachel Reeves should have some space with a landslide Commons for radical reforms in her budget. Did she partly choose to be trapped, without thinking through the consequences? Plus brilliant questions on how Britain is governed in relation to Covid Inquiry and Shabana Mahmood’s plans for asylum seekers.  Rock & Roll Politics -The Xmas Special is li...

The Cabinet Office Minister, Nick Thomas-Symonds, has written several political biographies. The most recent was on Harold Wilson. What are the differences between being in power now compared with previous Labour governments? How did Wilson deal with leadership threats of the type Keir Starmer faces now? He’s also responsible for the Brexit ’reset’, so does he want to move closer to the EU? And wh...

Within weeks of becoming Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood has announced a set of wide-ranging policies aimed at deterring illegal asylum seekers. Will they work practically and politically? Plus, has Rachel Reeves got a coherent vision for the economy? How to define the soft left? And are there too many political journalists? Rock & Roll Politics - The Christmas Special is live at Kings Place o...

There's universal consensus that the briefings from Number 10, warning of a leadership challenge from Wes Streeting and the conduct of "feral" Labour MPs, have rebounded badly on Starmer and those involved. Yet the briefings against key Labour figures are part of a pattern under Keir Starmer's leadership… even if he is the biggest victim of these operations and is now in greater danger. Plus brill...

Tim Davie, Deborah Turness and other senior BBC managers have gone out of their way to please the right, from the treatment of Gary Linker to the selection of political panels where there is often an imbalance that favours the right. Ironically and predictably the right wing newspapers have shown yet again their bullying muscularity by triggering the removal of Turness and Davie. Why has the BBC l...

Labour's so-called 'soft left' is becoming more muscular and vocal, but what binds this part of the party and how does it want this government to change? Plus, can Rachel Reeves make voters recognise the connection between higher taxes and better public services? A key rule for governments: "Make the connections".  Rock & Roll Politics - The Christmas Special is live at Kings Place on the 8th...

Nigel Farage has torn up Reform's 2024 manifesto, pledging big spending cuts and promising tax cuts. Whether on the right or left, has he framed a distinct and credible argument about the economy? Also, is the Royal Family doomed in modern Britain? Plus brilliant questions and a range of notices for the Rock & Roll Politics co-operative.  Rock & Roll Politics - The Christmas Special is liv...

Keir Starmer refused to rule out breaking pre-election tax commitments at Prime Minister's Questions, suggesting that he and Rachel Reeves are contemplating doing so. Can they get away with it? Or will it be the cause of their fall?  Rock & Roll Politics - The Christmas Special is live at Kings Place on the 8th of December. Tickets are available now at the Kings Place website here . Subscribe...

Finally, Rachel Reeves cites the Brexit deal as one reason why the economy is failing and why she will have to raise taxes in the budget. But is it too little, too late?  Rock & Roll Politics - The Christmas Special is live at Kings Place on the 8th of December. Tickets are available now at the Kings Place website here . Subscribe to Patreon to take part in my exclusive live event on the 20th...

With the nationalisation of the railways, the need for economic growth, climate change and a focus on addressing regional inequalities, transport should be at the top of the government’s priorities. But is it? I’m joined by transport guru, author and podcaster, Christian Wolmar, to discuss why Transport is often overlooked by prime ministers and chancellors and how hopeful or gloomy he is now. Roc...

Most of the time the right-wing media scream that government should not interfere with the police. But when the police make a decision the media disapproves of, it screams the opposite. In doing so this tells us much about the blurred lines of responsibility and the confusion about the role of the state – that partly explains why 'nothing works' remains a powerful motif in British politics. Rock &...

In a recording of a recent Rock & Roll Politics live show, the audience became Rachel Reeves… and I became Emma Barnett interviewing some of them. There were many ideas for the real Chancellor in advance of next month’s budget and some mighty dilemmas explored. Here it is! Rock &Roll Politics - The Christmas Special is live at Kings Place on the 8th of December. Tickets are available now a...

The post of deputy leader is ill-defined at best. Yet delving deep, and going back to contests in the 1970s, shows they change the course of Labour's history. The current one will also make waves when the result is declared. Plus Donald Trump.. the peacemaker.  Subscribe to Patreon for bonus podcasts, the main podcast a day early and ad free… plus special exclusive live events. Written and present...

The Conservative Party conference gathers with the party way behind in third place and being hit by defections to Reform, a threat from the right they have never faced before. Can they survive?  Written and presented by Steve Richards. Subscribe to Patreon for bonus podcasts including the latest on Labour's Deputy leadership contest, and to get the regular podcast a day early and ad free. Learn mo...

The Labour Party conference is in a febrile mood – there's much talk of leadership, and also of Farage. Can Starmer bring together those horrified by a Reform government? Or is he too unpopular, not least with those on the left?  Please subscribe to Patreon for bonus podcasts, the main podcast a day early and ad free… plus special exclusive live events. https://www.patreon.com/RockNRollPolitics  ...