The Trawl

Another week trying to wade through and make sense of an insane news cycle. The Trawl ladies hadn't had Trump bombing Iran on their bingo card but that's exactly what happened last weekend when Trump single-handedly decided that that was the way to win the Nobel Peace Prize. At time of record, Trump's own intelligence reports state that the strikes weren't wholly successful. He says they're wrong,...

From the brink of WW3 following Israel’s attack on Iran, to the hypocrisy of Western leaders, Jemma and Marina unpack the realities of war, nuclear tensions, and the unchecked power of certain world leaders. They chat about Netanyahu’s latest warmongering, expose how some leaders operate without accountability (because who needs rules, right?), and call out the West’s Olympic-level hypocrisy when...

This week on  The Trawl , Jemma Forte and Marina Purkiss sift through the latest chaos so you don’t have to. As the world teeters on geopolitical uncertainty, they dive into the headlines—from Trump’s embarrassingly sparse birthday parade and the powerful No Kings protests sweeping the U.S., to the chilling political violence in Minnesota. Plus, the G7 Summit gives us Trump fumbling paperwork...

Marina and Jemma begin the episode with a quick round up/ precis of the recently announced spending plans from Rachel Reeves. There's stuff to like but it's not the most scintillating, partly because it's pretty sensible which doesn't create massive headlines, as it shouldn't. Acknowledging that politics  should  be dull but that 'dull' doesn't make for a very entertaining podcast, the T...

One of the juiciest Trawls of all time starts in a very dramatic manner. Jemma and Marina want you to dig out the popcorn while they spill the tea on everything that has happened since they last gathered behind their mics.  What a time to be alive! Last week, Musk broke the internet as his bromance with Trump imploded in real time via increasingly outlandish tweets between the two billionaire...

When Trump told Zelensky he didn't hold any of the cards, what he didn't know was the Zelensky actually had an entire Royal Flush up his sleeve and that he was demonstrating a rather brilliant Poker Face. Last week Ukraine completed its biggest long-range attack which destroyed 40 Russian warplanes, wiping out a large percentage of their military hardware. It was in the planning for at least 18 mo...

It's all happening. That said, potholes might not be getting fixed, loft extensions might not be getting signed off and bins might not be getting collected -  those  things may or may not be happening, but Doge has been announced. Yes, this episode goes into what is happening in various Reform led councils. Firstly, having decided that Musk's Doge has gone 'so well' in the States (spoile...

This episode begins with Jemma and Marina explaining why they weren't aligned this week for pretty much the first time in Trawl history, though their disagreement was quickly put to rest once they'd consulted listeners and asked what you think.  There's a quick goodbye to the MOTD version of Gary Lineker and then, it's straight into what's happening in politics here in the UK. However, before...

What can we say... Sadly, this pod isn't a laugh a minute, although Jemma does manage to squeeze in a little humour when discussing Marina's social algorithm which has taking scrolling to another level of doom.  Jemma landed back from a few days away from the news to the harrowing events in Liverpool and the grim state of affairs that saw Merseyside police rush to declare the ethnicity of the...

Marina and Jemma were thrilled to talk to one half of Rizzle Kicks, writer and communicator extraordinaire Jordan Stephens. They discuss connection, love, heartbreak, what’s happening to men right now and whether or not the patriarchy has entirely ‘benefited’ men. The Trawl ladies find him positive, compelling to listen to and super smart. They hope you do too. Enjoy! Thank you for sharing and do...

It's like 2019 all over again... Yes Trawlers, were debating Brexit all over again following Starmer's EU-UK reset, and as night follows day, all the usual suspects are up in arms crying betrayal. The grift never ends.  Marina and Jemma play a game of Brexit bingo where Jemma accurately predicts the all-too expected reactions to what is seemingly a very sensible approach from Labour - indeed...

The UK government have  finally  condemned Israel for withholding aid, the same week The Guardian has reported that 14,000 babies will die unless food is allowed into the region immediately.  Jemma and Marina can't help it, they have to ask, what changed? What took so long? They are pleased but aggrieved In this episode the Trawl ladies share what happened when Marina went onto LBC...

This episode begins with some good news - the goons who cut down the beautiful tree in the Sycamore Gap for no reason whatsoever, have gone to prison. So that's one reason to be cheerful. Meanwhile, the Vatican have elected a new Pope, quicker than it takes to hire someone in most normal offices these days and newsflash, the MAGA lot are not fans. Apparently he's a Marxist lefty loon (ie he seems...

There is no doubt, immigration is a huge point of contention for much of the electorate, but why did Starmer use language that could be compared to language used by Enoch Powell in the 60's, even if it wasn't exactly the same? Given that Farage has taken the opportunity to condemn him for it, has it backfired completely? And, if we all agree that boat crossings aren't safe and that having huge num...

This rollercoaster podcast kicks off with showbiz and Royal stories that Marina makes her feelings clear on, before delving into the meat of the episode: Trump and Palestine.  It's been a wild week of Trawl-gold clips from Trump, so much so the laddies struggled to shortlist them, starting with Trump's admission that he's clueless regarding the oath he swore (TWICE) to protect the constitutio...

This Trawl begins with a theological question inspired by Trump's wildly disrespectful sharing of an AI generated image of himself dressed as....the Pope. Yes, that's the point we've reached folks, the President of the United States is playing fancy dress for all the world to see. Marina's Catholic mother is not impressed!  After a somewhat un Trawl like discussion about religion, the Trawl l...

At time of record, people in some parts of the UK will be voting in their local elections. Also at time of record Mark Carney is the new Prime Minister of Canada, having beaten previous favourite, conservative candidate Poilievre.  Had it not been for Trump, the result probably would have looked very different so Marina and Jemma conclude that it's arguably the best thing Trump's done in his...

This episode begins with a tribute to Virginia Giuffre who sadly died this week. Marina and Jemma touch on what she suffered at the hands of various abusers and talk about how she took on some of the world's most powerful men. The Trawl ladies consider how much bravery that would have required and let Emily Maitlis have the final word.  And then to America we go for this week's Trump digest:...

Things kick-off with an aptly updated version of Green Day's song 'American Idiot' which they performed at Coachella last week before a sassy, direct and frankly refreshing take on the state of affairs in the US from news channel, MSNBC. BBC take note... Then fetch the sick-bags as the ladies share with you a montage of obnoxious obsequiousness from Trump's cabinet who couldn't be further up his b...

The ladies open with a tale of rising from the dead... No, not Jesus Christ, but Jemma Forte when she overdid it at Marina's house last week.  Conversation quickly turns to Pope Francis' passing and the reminder that often until someone dies, we don't quite realise the incredible impact they made on the people around them. And as many mourned, others memed... Jemma and Marina discuss the best...

This episode begins with Jemma trying to find things to cheer Marina up with. Funnily enough, learning that Gove is getting a peerage doesn't do it, but the song Dame Andrea Jenkins has chosen to promote her bid to be Mayor nearly does.  Then we're off to Scunthorpe where Labour have been trying to ensure that the furnaces don't go out for once and for all on British Steel. China have decided...

Jemma and Marina hardly know where to begin such has been the fallout from Trump's crazed tariffs spree. Oh, and what can you even say about the transparent insider (and outsider) trading that has been admitted to, on camera, by the President? Who cares if ordinary people are going to pay for the nose for everything when all his rich cronies are making a killing. Seems fair.  Amidst the chaos...

The second Trawl in one week centred on the economic recklessness of Trump. But hey, when one guy's wiped nine trillion off global markets, there's a lot to unpack. There are theories as to why the Donald has chosen this path, some deeper than others. Jemma and Marina have clips to illustrate the first two and bleeps to cover up the third, which, to be fair, probably carries more weight.  Do...

What the hell is he doing? Jemma and Marina aren’t the only ones asking that, or a version that. This week Trump managed to wipe 9 trillion off global markets so if you have a private pension, probably best not to look.  This episode is crammed full of hard-hitting, funny and enlightening tweets.  The Trawl ladies aren’t convinced Americans will want to wait decades for an Industrial Rev...

This episode starts with the delightful news that Marine Le Pen is going to 'le pen.' Then there's a review of Reform's rally in Birmingham, mainly because Led By Donkey's managed to infiltrate and lit up the NEC with pictures of Farage's pal, Putin, amongst others.  And then Jemma and Marina ponder, not for the first time, why on earth Labour won't tax the uber rich as opposed to imposing cu...