Best of the Spectator
Home to the Spectator's best podcasts on everything from politics to religion, literature to food and drink, and more. A new podcast every day from writers worth listening to.
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- Update frequency
- every day
- Average duration
- 33 minutes
- Episodes
- 2369
- Years Active
- 2016 - 2025
The Edition: Judgment call
On the podcast this week:
Lord Sumption makes the case for leaving the ECHR in The Spectator's cover piece. He says that the UK has strong courts and can pass judgement on human rights by itself and j…
Lord Sumption makes the case for leaving the ECHR in The Spectator's cover piece. He says that the UK has strong courts and can pass judgement on human rights by itself and j…
00:42:15 |
Thu 28 Sep 2023
The Book Club: Mary Beard
My guest in this week’s Book Club podcast is the writer, broadcaster and academic Mary Beard. In her new book, Emperor of Rome, she explores what we can and can’t know about the men who ruled the Rom…
00:47:37 |
Wed 27 Sep 2023
Table Talk: Diana Henry
Diana Henry is a critically acclaimed, multi-award winning cook, food writer and author of 12 books including the classic cookbook 'Roast Figs, Sugar Snow', which has just been updated and re-release…
00:42:06 |
Tue 26 Sep 2023
Spectator Out Loud with Matthew Parris, Dan Hitchens and Leah McLaren
Matthew Parris, just back from Australia, shares his thoughts on the upcoming referendum on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice (01:08). Dan Hitchens looks at church congregations and won…
00:23:37 |
Sat 23 Sep 2023
The Edition: Italy's new wave
This week:
Christopher Caldwell writes The Spectator's cover piece on Italy’s new wave of migrants. This is in light of the situation in Lampedusa which he argues could upend European politics. Chris …
Christopher Caldwell writes The Spectator's cover piece on Italy’s new wave of migrants. This is in light of the situation in Lampedusa which he argues could upend European politics. Chris …
00:45:01 |
Thu 21 Sep 2023
Marshall Matters: Mary Harrington
This week Winston speaks to journalist Mary Harrington about her new book, Feminism Against Progress.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
01:02:32 |
Wed 20 Sep 2023
The Book Club: Sarah Ogilvie
In this week's Book Club podcast I'm talking to Sarah Ogilvie about the extraordinary story of the making of the Oxford English Dictionary, as told in her new The Dictionary People: The Unsung Heroes…
00:44:36 |
Wed 20 Sep 2023
Chinese Whispers: What we know about Beijing's spies
Two years ago, Richard Moore, head of MI6, said that China was now the organisation’s ‘single greatest priority’.
Parliamentarians and the British public have been starkly reminded of this by last wee…
Parliamentarians and the British public have been starkly reminded of this by last wee…
00:31:58 |
Mon 18 Sep 2023
Spectator Out Loud: Cindy Yu, Charlie Taylor and Petroc Trelawney
Cindy Yu tells the story of how she got to know Westminster’s alleged Chinese agent and the astonishment of seeing herself pictured alongside him when the story broke (01.12), Charlie Taylor, His Maj…
00:17:00 |
Sat 16 Sep 2023
The Edition: Bombshell
On the podcast this week:
Boris Johnson writes The Spectator’s cover piece, urging the West to supply more military assistance to Ukraine, in order to bring a swift end to the war. Former commander of…
Boris Johnson writes The Spectator’s cover piece, urging the West to supply more military assistance to Ukraine, in order to bring a swift end to the war. Former commander of…
00:35:32 |
Thu 14 Sep 2023
Marshall Matters: Silkie Carlo
Winston speaks to Silkie Carlo, director of Big Brother Watch, about the Online Safety Bill, the Digital Services Act and whether Britain will be the next surveillance state.
Hosted on Acast. See a…
00:56:39 |
Wed 13 Sep 2023
The Book Club: Francesca Peacock
In this week's Book Club podcast, I'm joined by Francesca Peacock to talk about the remarkable life and extraordinary work of Margaret Cavendish, the 17th-century Duchess of Newcastle. Famous in her …
00:45:58 |
Wed 13 Sep 2023
Spectator Out Loud: Kate Andrews, Katy Balls and Max Pemberton
Kate Andrews talks crumbly concrete, overcrowded trains, NHS waiting lists, and describes the general air of despair and asks – who broke Britain? (01.15). Katy Balls analyses Keir Starmer’s reshuffl…
00:24:36 |
Sat 09 Sep 2023
The Edition: Broken Britain
On the podcast:
In her cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator’s economics editor Kate Andrews writes that political short termism has broken Britain. She joins the podcast alongside Giles Wilkes…
In her cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator’s economics editor Kate Andrews writes that political short termism has broken Britain. She joins the podcast alongside Giles Wilkes…
00:33:24 |
Thu 07 Sep 2023
The Book Club: Masha Gessen
The Book Club podcast returns next week. In the meantime, here's another from the archives, and one which looks more timely now even than it was when we recorded it in 2017. Here's perhaps Russia's m…
00:23:32 |
Wed 06 Sep 2023
Chinese Whispers: Is China still a Confucian country?
For thousands of years, Confucianism has run through the fabric of Chinese society, politics and culture. Decades of Communism has taken its toll on China, so can it still be considered a Confucian c…
00:28:51 |
Mon 04 Sep 2023
Spectator Out Loud: Katy Balls, Owen Matthews, Kate Andrews and Ian Thomson
This week Katy Balls asks whether Rishi is a risk taker or whether he’ll choose to play it safe as Conference season approaches (01.17), Owen Matthews explains why America is still Ukraine’s best hop…
00:28:46 |
Sat 02 Sep 2023
Americano: what does Vivek Ramaswamy stand for?
This week Freddy speaks to Jacob Heilbrunn, editor of the National Interest, about Vivek Ramaswamy. What does he stand for? Could he be the ideal candidate for Trump's vice president?
Hosted on Ac…
00:21:15 |
Fri 01 Sep 2023
The Edition: India's century
This week:
In his cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator’s political correspondent James Heale writes that the PM’s visit to New Delhi for the G20 Summit next week could be a defining moment in t…
In his cover piece for the magazine, The Spectator’s political correspondent James Heale writes that the PM’s visit to New Delhi for the G20 Summit next week could be a defining moment in t…
00:34:18 |
Thu 31 Aug 2023
The Book Club: Tom Holland
As Sam is still away, we've dug out one our favourite podcasts from the archives. Back in 2019 Sam spoke to the historian Tom Holland, about his book Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind. The boo…
00:45:05 |
Wed 30 Aug 2023
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