The Critic Show

As the literary would comes out of its Covid-induced hibernation,  The Critic 's deputy editor, Graham Stewart, discusses with the writer and journalist Alexander Larman, the merits of celebrity authors and literary book prizes. __ Music: “Modern Jazz Samba” Kevin MacLeod ( incompetech.com ) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ See acast....

Are progressive leaders more moral than their conservative rivals or are they just better at doing politics? In this podcast The Critic's Online editor David Scullion discusses with Patrick Hess whether the likes of Jacinda Ardern and Justin Trudeau are more machiavellian than Donald Trump. __ Music: “Modern Jazz Samba” Kevin MacLeod ( incompetech.com ) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribut...

Matthew Roberts, the Minister of Trinity Church York and Jo Bartosch, a writer and reporter for Lesbian and Gay news, share their concerns with The Critic's David Scullion about the proposed legislation to outlaw "gay cure". Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on  Spotify  and  iTunes  to ensure you never you never miss an episode. Right now we’re offering 5 issues for just £10. Go to  thecri...

This week marked the bicentenary of the death of Napoleon Bonaparte on the remote South Atlantic island of St Helena. In this podcast, The Critic 's publisher, Olivia Hartley, talks to Dr Arabella Byrne, a freelance journalist and writer with a doctorate in French Studies, about why, 200 years after his death, Bonaparte remains such a polarising figure in France and beyond. __ Don’t forget to subs...

From fighting gender inequality with power poses to defeating racism with unconscious bias tests, psychologists are not shy when it comes to the claims they make about their field's ability to solve some of society's thorniest problems. In his new book, Quick Fix, the American journalist Jesse Singal exposes much of these claims as bunk that doesn't stand up to close scrutiny. In this podcast, the...

Where has "modernising the royal family" taken Britain's monarchy and where can it go next? If the age of chivalry is dead, what can the crown put in its place? In this podcast, the historian of monarchs and monarchy, David Starkey, talks to  The Critic 's deputy editor, Graham Stewart, about the Crown's delicate balance between reform, revolution, and sustaining a useful role. Don’t forget to sub...

The Chairman of the Northern Ireland Select Committee Simon Hoare and David Hoey, businessman and producer of the PoliticalOD podcast debate the merits of the Northern Ireland Protocol with The Critic's Deputy Political Editor David Scullion. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bo...

Is Beijing's growing assertiveness towards its neighbours and especially with Britain and the United States a reflection of Chinese self-confidence and an alternative world view that requires careful management? Or is it evidence of a determined hostility that requires a clear-headed strategy to address? And if the latter, what should that response involve? In this podcast, the former leader of th...

Alex Salmond is encouraging Scottish nationalists to 'game' Holyrood's electoral system by voting for their SNP constituency candidate but on the regional ballot list voting for Salmond's Alba Party. Would the same tactical voting work for Scottish unionists? In this podcast, All For Unity's leader, Jamie Blackett makes the case for voting for George Galloway's pro-union alliance to The Critic's p...

Is Sinn Fein's current popularity on both sides of the Irish border the fruition of decades of its left-wing campaigning paying off, or a conscious break from the past terrorist activities of Sinn Fein's armed wing, the IRA? How has Ireland's media responded and what part does Brexit play in renewed Irish Anglophobia? For over 40 years, Kevin Myers has been one of the most fearless and outspoken j...

The Critic 's David Scullion talks to Nick Buckley about the reasons why he is standing for Mayor of Manchester. Right now we’re offering 3 months for just £5. Go to  thecritic.imbmsubscriptions.com/  for details.  (Photo by Rahman Hassani/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this...

In this episode of  The Critic 's podcast, the theme is the dangers of our addiction to digital information, social media, and the algorithms that direct us to what to view next. The Critic 's political editor, Graham Stewart, is joined by former olympic rower and broker Alex Story, who has recently written about " How Gen Z became Gen Me ", and Robert Wigley, the chairman of UK Finance whose book...

In this podcast, writer, photographer, and face of the March edition of  The Critic , Laura Dodsworth talks about her cover piece,  Faith Masks , which focusses on the ideological significance of mask-wearing and the quasi-religious narrative surrounding lockdown. Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on  Spotify  and  iTunes  to ensure you never you never miss an episode. __ Right now we’re of...

There is no reliable data on the number of people who regret their decision to undergo transgender surgery. James Caspian, a trained psychotherapist who worked for a decade with people who wanted to change their gender decided to find out more but was blocked by Bath Spa University for trying to research a non "politically correct" topic. He's now trying to take his university to court . Laura Dod...

In this  Critic  magazine podcast, Graham Stewart and David Scullion talk to Radomir Tylecote about his research into how academics at British universities are cooperating with organisations linked to the Chinese military on technological projects that may have useful defence applications for Beijing. __ Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on  Spotify  and  iTunes  to ensure you never you nev...

The entrepreneur Jim Mellon has a track record in investing in some of the technologies and innovations that shape our future. The one that is preoccupying him at the moment is the cultured meat market, sometimes called "cell meat". He has also written an investor's guide to the new agrarian revolution entitled  Moo's Law. In this podcast  The Critic 's political editor, Graham Stewart, talks to J...

In this week's Critic Podcast, David Scullion speaks to the DUP leader in Westminster about an aspect of the Brexit deal under so much attention recently, the Northern Ireland Protocol. Boris Johnson and Michael Gove have said freight levels to Ulster are at usual levels for this time of year and that any issues with the Protocol, which came into force at the start of the year, are teething proble...

Only a year ago, Rishi Sunak was a name known only to close followers of Westminster politics. Now the Chancellor of the Exchequer is the most important figure in the government after the prime minister and the man talked about as the most likely future leader of the country, or at least the Conservative party. But who is he? Has he risen so quickly that his views are not fully formed and how broa...

After Michael Gove unexpectedly struck an agreement with EU Commission Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič on Northern Ireland, the the UK agreed to remove controversial clauses in its Brexit legislation. But does this mean we're about to strike a trade deal or the opposite? Graham Stewart speaks to David Scullion on a fast moving day in politics. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out informatio...

The River Thames has been the site of constant human activity for at least two millennia... is it any surprise that so much evidence of this history washes up on the foreshore every single day? Mudlarkers are those who search for such treasure, and they have a fascinating history of their own. In this podcast, Olivia Hartley speaks to Lara Maiklem, author of  The Sunday Times  bestseller  Mudlarki...

The Critic's political team discuss whether the parliamentary arithmetic means Boris Johnson should be worried about the next vote to impose restrictions. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.outpoststudios.net/subscribe Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/priv...

In this week's podcast David Scullion talks to British businessman and longtime Brexit campaigner John Longworth about his role in achieving a vote to leave the EU and why he dramatically broke away from his longtime ally Nigel Farage. During the 2019 General Election campaign he publically called on the Brexit Party leader to stand down candidates in Conservative seats and asked people to vote To...

In the latest issue of The Critic Magazine, Julie Bindel reveals how abused women are being let down by domestic violence perpetrator programmes , while Louise Perry shows how the political labels of ‘left’ and ‘right’ are irrelevant for feminists. In this podcast, David Scullion talks to both Louise and Julie about their articles, and the future of feminism in the West.  -- Don’t forget to subscr...

America is still counting the votes, but as things stand, Joe Biden is on course to be the next president of the United States. Donald Trump's chances of victory are slim, and getting slimmer, while his legal team look set to lodge complaints and demand recounts in several crucial states.   But 48 hours after election day, a couple of things are clear: the polls were a long way off and Democrats h...

The Critic 's political sketch-writer, Rob Hutton, previously spent 16 years reporting on Westminster's comings and goings from the very different vantages of  The Mirro r and Bloomberg. How have politicians as well as journalists adapted to the 24 hour news cycle and is the expectation of instant commentary debasing serious journalism? In this podcast, Rob Hutton talks to  The Critic 's political...