The Prospect Podcast

His teachings have been transmitted, interpreted, and some may say misappropriated, for centuries. But what did Jesus Christ really believe? Now, as organised religion declines in popularity, does he have anything to teach our secular age? Author Nick Spencer, who recently wrote an essay on the secularisation of Jesus, joins the Prospect Interview to discuss the many lives of Jesus Christ. Hosted...

When the young Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ascended to power in 2017, he was hailed among the west as a liberal reformer, and was welcomed by Hollywood celebrities and world leaders alike. But what’s happened to Saudi Arabia’s supposedly radical programme of reform? Saudi expert Madawi al-Rasheed joins the Prospect Interview and takes us behind the power struggles and social debates gripping...

When the nation headed to the polls for the EU referendum in 2016, the result was almost split down the middle. So how come the Brexit deal that's coming will not be the moderate one of a 48-52 nation, but a hard exit? Leading think tankers Anand Menon and Jill Rutter join the Prospect Interview to talk about the long four years since June 2016, and who is to really to blame for killing soft Brexi...

Booker Prize-winning author Douglas Stuart joins the Prospect Interview to discuss writing his powerful novel, Shuggie Bain , which tells the story of a young boy growing up in working-class Glasgow during the 80s. Douglas talks to Arts and Books editor Sameer Rahim—who sat on this year’s Booker judging panel and was captivated by Shuggie Bain— about the importance of diversity in literature, his...

What has the attention economy done to our attention spans—and our minds? Writer and academic Julia Bell joins the Prospect Interview to discuss her latest book, Radical Attention , an essay on the many hidden, and not-so-hidden, costs of today’s technological systems. In an age of infinite distraction, Julia makes a case for the importance of radical attention: a sharp, focused, and generous way...

Are we seeing a return to normality? CNN journalist and political commentator Fareed Zakaria joins the Prospect Interview to talk about Joe Biden’s victory, what will happen to populism, and how Covid-19 has changed both America and the world. He walks us through what America feels like after the election, and also lessons from his new book, Ten Lessons for a Post-Pandemic World . Hosted on Acast....

Who will win? Author and commentator Diane Roberts joins the Prospect Interview and gives a quick summary of the race so far, including which states to look out for. Plus: what have four years of Trump done to public trust in institutions? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How did America become the world’s predominant power? Historian Stephen Wertheim joins the Prospect podcast this week to discuss the short history of America as the world’s policeman, which he outlines in his new book, Tomorrow the World. He also talks about what might happen next—and what a foreign policy under Joe Biden might look like.  Stephen is Deputy Director of Research and Policy at...

Think Jacques Derrida was an inscrutable fraud? Peter Salmon, biographer and recent author of An Event, Perhaps , implores you to think again. Peter joins the Prospect Interview to talk about the life and work of the controversial, and unavoidable, philosopher, and unpicks some of the myths surrounding his philosophy.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Journalist and author Owen Jones joins the Prospect Interview to talk about his new book, This Land . Editor Tom Clark talks to Owen about the highs and lows of Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour, what he really thinks of the line between campaigning and journalism, and whether it’s just doom and gloom for Britain’s left going forward.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Times journalist Rachel Sylvester joins the Prospect Interview to get us up to date about the state of Brexit talks, and introduce the man behind Britain’s negotiating table, David Frost. Is a hard Brexit inevitable, and what can Frost’s little-known background reveal about where Britain stands with the EU? You can read Rachel’s profile of David Frost here: https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/m...

Writer and broadcaster Eliane Glaser joins the Prospect Interview to make a defense of what she deems “progressive elitism.” In the era of populism, the trust in institutions and experts has plummeted within the left and right alike. Eliane makes the case for excellence in these divided times—and tells us why restoring standards may in fact restore popular democracy.  Elitism: A Progressive D...

Writer Robert Macfarlane joins the Prospect Interview to discuss writing the Earth’s underworld in his new book, Underland: A Deep Time Journey . MacFarlane talks to our arts and books editor Sameer Rahim about exploring the deepest recesses of the world, the mysteries of the anthropocene, and why he’s rejecting the term “nature writer.”  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more inform...

Avni Doshi’s Booker Prize-shortlisted debut novel, Burnt Sugar , follows an artist in Pune, India, whose mother suddenly gets diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. The revelation unravels difficult family histories, uncovering the secrets binding mother and daughter. Avni joins the Prospect Interview to discuss writing the novel—and why it took seven years—and what it’s been like living through the...

Film director Sarah Gavron and writer Theresa Ikoko join this week’s Prospect Interview to discuss their new film, Rocks , a celebratory ode to teenage life in today’s London. Rocks follows the story of a teenage girl—nicknamed Rocks—and the fast friendships she develops at her school. The film was made under quite unusual circumstances: casting was done across schools in London, involving nearly...

The pandemic has shattered economies all over the globe. What can be done about it? Historian Adam Tooze joins the Prospect Interview to talk about the Covid-19 economic crisis. He discusses how the impending recession compares to past crises, what policies ought to be taken, and whether we are really seeing the end of neoliberalism.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more informatio...

In 1990, when he was just nine years old, Prospect’s Sameer Rahim joined his parents and sister on a holiday to Iraq. What was first a family trip quickly turned into an international diplomatic fiasco. As Saddam Hussein was then facing international condemnation for the Kuwait War, Sameer and his family were taken as so-called “human-shield hostages”: Britons kept within Iraq as bargaining chips....

They’ve taken over our cinemas screens (when cinemas were still open)—but where did the superheroes who now dominate our screens come from? Writer and Spectator literary editor Sam Leith joins the Prospect Interview to discuss the history of Marvel Comics and its legendary creative leader, Stan Lee. Lee’s creations—which include Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk, and the Black Panther—aren’t just cr...

Previously confined to the fringes, discussion of white identity has reached a fever pitch in the mainstream in the past few years. In the current issue of Prospect , out now on newsstands, Sarah Churchwell and Kenan Malik reflect on the history of white identity across both sides of the Atlantic. They join this week’s Prospect Interview to talk about Anglo-Saxonism, the rise of the “white working...

Why do some countries succeed in confronting their pasts, and others fail? Authors Ivan Krastev and Leonard Bernardo join the Prospect Interview this week to discuss a question on many people’s minds this summer: how do nations come to terms with the historical crimes they’ve committed? Ivan and Leonard write an essay on the (unsuccessful) Russian case in this month’s issue of Prospect , in which...

One of the most influential statesmen of the 20th century has since been forgotten by history. Why is that? Andrew Adonis joins the Prospect Interview to discuss the life and work of Ernest Bevin, 20th century trade union leader and former Minister of Labour and Foreign Secretary. Bevin, who Adonis calls “Labour’s Churchill” has much to teach the Labour Party about where it goes today.  You c...

Frances Cha had been a journalist based in Seoul for several years, reporting on the culture and trends in South Korea’s megacity for CNN. Then, she decided to explore all she learned in fiction, writing her novel If I Had Your Face . Her debut explores the lives of four women living in Seoul, and takes a forensic look at the many challenges faced by millennials living in the ever-changing city to...

It’s that time of year again. Today, Prospect releases its annual list of top 50 thinkers for our times. The editorial team talks through what it was like making the list, and how they went about finding the intellectuals, artists, scientists and writers who have come to define our time.  You can read the list of top 50 thinkers, and vote for your own favourite (plus tell us who we missed) he...

What’s behind the disproportionate number of Covid-19 ethnic minority deaths? Science writer Angela Saini—most recently author of Superior: The Return of Race Science —joins the Prospect Interview to talk about the intersection between medicine and race, and why she’s surprised that even the respectable scientific community has fallen so easily into pseudo-science. You can read Angela’s essay on t...

Feminism may be becoming increasingly mainstream, but it’s undeniable that women continue to do the lion’s share of housework and child-rearing at home. Historian Emma Lundin joins the Prospect Interview to talk about modern motherhood today, and reflects on the obstacles preventing gender equality, now enshrined in law in theory , from becoming the norm in reality . You can read Emma’s essay on w...