Oh God, What Now?

What if they gave a War on Woke and nobody came? The Government decides to both defend free speech (if you’re a right winger on campus) and restrict it (if you run a stately home named after a slave owner). So that makes sense. Plus: As there’s no credible recovery programme for education, Gráinne Hallahan of the Times Education Supplement joins us to set one out. Gav, call us yeah?  Meanwhile… Ro...

Piles of fish, cheese, bees, toys, guitar cases and banking deals are LITERALLY rotting at Britain’s ports. How long can the government keep claiming we’ve only got import/export “teething problems” when it’s full-blown trade/dental collapse? Politicshome’s Brexit and Westminster Correspondent Adam Payne joins us on the dock of the bay. Plus: Have virus truthers finally hit Britain’s bullsh*t ceil...

Last week’s EU:UK vaccine stand-off put Ursula von der Leyen squarely in the spotlight, but what makes the President of the European Commission tick? And is there a sane Conservative Party somewhere in our political future? Matthew d’Ancona – formerly deputy editor of the Sunday Telegraph and the Spectator, now partner-editor of the slow news site Tortoise – joins us to look at what might come aft...

Has Brussels just handed Brexiters the killer argument they so desperately needed? The EU’s bizarre decision to impose and then cancel restrictions on COVID vaccines crossing the border from the Republic of Ireland into Northern Ireland exasperated pro-Europe campaigners and left the Brexit press crowing. Naomi Smith and Alex Andreou look at what this terrible error means.   Presented by Andrew Ha...

As the EU considers restricting exports of the COVID vaccines, are we in the midst of the first authentic post-Brexit row between the EU and the UK – or are Brexiters just using it as a distraction from their own failures? And who’s really to blame for the vaccine shortage? Plus, what has the Year of Living Isolatedly done to Britain’s appetite for alcohol and “miscellaneous stimulation”? What wil...

It’s a little bit later than usual but still early for Patreon backers… Our long international nightmare is over – for now. As Trump exits the White House to fester in Mar-A-Lago, former UK Ambassador to the USA Kim Darroch joins us to look at what the Biden/Harris Era will mean for British trade, British foreign policy, and Boris “Britain Trump” Johnson. Plus: What does that huge exodus of immigr...

This podcast recorded before the impeachment vote. As Republicans distance themselves in horror from Donald Trump’s violent sedition, can we finally conclude that yes, he was a fascist all along? Will the GOP or Johnson pay any price for their years of fawning before Agent Orange? Special guest Philip Stephens of the Financial Times joins us to talk about his new book Britain Alone: The Path from...

This podcast recorded before the invasion of the Capitol building in Washington DC. “Happy” New Year! With Britain’s kids getting one whole day of virus-spreading schooling, is a third lockdown any use in the absence of a coherent COVID policy? And how are we coping with yet more home schooling and working from home without even a takeaway pint to assuage the misery? Plus trade expert David Henig...

Intra-Christmas Emergency Edition. Having cancelled Christmas, Johnson then ruined what was left of it by crowing about his Deal. But what’s in it? How should Remainers feel about it? Where did Britain cave? Have British fish been sold down the river? Why is nobody talking about services? And exactly how much of that tasty, tasty control has Brexit Britain really taken back? “The dominant narrativ...

The new mutant strain of COVID has shattered the Government’s Christmas strategy and plunged Britain into isolation and chaos. Is government dithering to blame or are the hard right, libertarian, chlorinated chickens coming home to roost? Are we really looking at 20,000 new hospital admissions and 5,000 deaths a day in the New Year? And how is Britain going to cut a Deal with the EU when Johnson h...

Out early to beat potential Deal obsolescence! All we want for Christmas is… a deal. Any deal. Has an agreement already been concluded and is it just waiting for the window-dressing? We assemble the full panel to explain where Johnson has caved, how Labour might have a get-out-of-jail clause, and why there’s not much wriggle room on fish. Oh, and the Government’s incomprehensible Christmas advice....

As Boris Johnson joins Ursula von der Leyen for the worst dinner since Mr Creosote in The Meaning Of Life, we’re joined by LBC frontline key worker and friend of the ’cast James O’Brien to discuss Britain on the brink of No Deal and his new book How Not To Be Wrong: The Art of Changing Your Mind. Plus, who decided that this catastrophe was Remainers’ fault all along?  “I’m walking the tightrope be...

What does the arrival of a COVID vaccine really mean for No.10’s virus strategy? Who’s the real opposition? Cool, calm and perhaps-too-collected Keir Starmer, or the wild men and women of the CRG – the disaster artists formerly known as the ERG? Plus special guest Giles Whittell of Tortoise Media joins us to explain Britain’s national security future and tell us why we should be optimistic about R...

Why are we calling the Government’s COVID backhanders and gilded inner circle a “chumocracy” when it’s just straightforward corruption? Brace yourselves, it’s going to get worse. Plus, former civil servant Alex Andreou gives the inside track on diminutive bully Priti Patel’s brazen escape from the consequences of her actions. As No Deal comes up against the urgent reality of bringing perishable CO...

What’s the real state of play between Keir Starmer and newly independent MP Jeremy Corbyn? Where does Boris Johnson go now that his external brain Dominic Cummings has put up the GONE BLOGGIN’ sign? Pfizer vs Moderna – whose vaccine is so hot right now?  Plus a taster of our new, extended edition of Oh God, What Now – exclusive to Patreon backers.  “There’s nobody around to fill the Angry Gonad po...

IGNOMINY DOMINIC: As the Prime Minister’s attack weasel Dominic Cummings finally “resigns” to spend more time with his WordPress, Ian Dunt reflects on the meaning and manner of his departure. Can Johnson continue without his external brain, is Carrie Symonds really that powerful, and what are we going to do without SuperDry Gollum to kick around? Includes exciting live radio moments! “At least his...

What does the rise of President Joe mean for Britain and our shapeshifting creep of a PM? If Donald Trump can’t win in America’s democracy, would he really destroy it? And why are politicians so bad at Twitter? We’re thrilled to welcome special guest Emily Bazelon from the podcast that inspired us, the Slate Political Gabfest, to dissect the monsters produced by Trump’s electoral death throes. “I...

After the despair of Wednesday morning, could Biden actually win the US election? Were the polls really so wrong? And why are the Left so bereft at the prospect of President Diamond Joe? Plus Nigel Farage’s new promotional vehicle, Labour’s ongoing problems with “Long Corbyn”, the BBC’s bizarre social media balancing act, and Lockdown: Part Deux. All in the latest edition of the podcast formerly k...

We sure picked the right day to relaunch the podcast. As Labour suspends Jeremy Corbyn after the damning EHRC report shone a light on the party’s antisemitism issues, IAN DUNT and ALEX ANDREOU join Andrew Harrison to explain what it all means. Presented and produced by Andrew Harrison. Assistant Producers Jelena Sofronijevic and Jacob Archbold. Music: Cornershop. Art direction: Mark Taylor. OH GOD...

The secret is out. Remainiacs has a new name – but the same team and the same commitment to dispelling the misery of politics with humour and sharp analysis. On OH GOD, WHAT NOW? this week: There’s no such thing as a free lunch (if you’re a poor kid). The Taming of the Feral Tory Intake. Why the Far Right is actually on the fade across Europe. And as a new podcast era dawns, our panel look to how...

This week: Will that punishment beating for King In The North Andy Burnham make ex-Red Wallers think again about their unwise pre-Christmas fling with raffish Londoner Boris Johnson? Brexit and Coronavirus merge into COVEXIT, the uncontrollable MegaZoid of misery. Are Schrödinger’s Brexit Talks dead, alive, or both at the same time? And for the first time ever, a thrilling cliffhanger – no scrolli...

Is the Government’s piecemeal lockdown driving as big a wedge between the North and South of England as there is between Westminster and the devolved governments? Plus our special guests, Manchester University politics professors Rob Ford and Maria Sobolewska, join us to talk about their new book Brexitland: Identity, Diversity and the Reshaping of British Politics. Do the roots of Brexit really g...

Having lost control of the virus, the economy and now the Conservative Party, can mojo-free COVID casualty Boris Johnson relaunch himself with a war on Lefty Luvvies? Behind the scenes, are we looking at an autumn Sunak vs Gove smackdown? Is the big winner of Donald Trump’s COVID diagnosis really… Donald Trump? And how to fight – and win – a culture war.  “History goes in the direction you fight f...

As the final round of trade talks EU grind into low gear, should we brace ourselves for another heroic climbdown from the Prime Minister? Comedian, podcaster and voice of Trump, Starmer and Johnson on the new Spitting Image MATT FORDE joins us to talk about his new book Politically Homeless and life on the Labour rollercoaster. Plus, could YOU survive… Exile on Priti Island? “The UK will have to m...

This edition recorded before Kent was made an independent statelet… As the Internal Market Bill takes a wrecking ball to the Good Friday Agreement, Alliance Party Deputy Leader and North Down MP Stephen Farry explains why this will shift every aspect of politics in Northern Ireland. Plus, Can Britain face going back to square one on COVID for a further six months? Keir Starmer’s new progressive pa...