x

75% of people globally want unbiased news (Pew Research) but are concerned they're not getting that.

Get balanced coverage with Symby. See how stories are covered across diverse outlets and spot when one side covers a story the other skips.

PODCAST

Coffee House Shots

Daily political analysis from The Spectator"s top team of writers, including Michael Gove, Tim Shipman, Isabel Hardman, James Heale and many others. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

news daily news

All Episodes

32:58

Why did the assisted dying bill fail? | Lord Moore vs...

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/30

The assisted dying bill has stalled in the House of Lords – but is it dead, or merely delayed?After weeks of fraught debate, multiple amendments and accusations of filibuster, supporters of the bill are considering whether it could return to the Commons – and whether the Parliament Act might ultimately be used to force it through. Lord Falconer, who has long championed assisted dying, argues that a small group of peers used procedure to block the will of the elected House. Lord Moore disagrees,

en

17:28

The end of the peer show

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/30

Hereditary peers have left their red leather benches for the final time. The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Act became law earlier this year, which removes all hereditary peers' right to speak and vote in Parliament by virtue of their family ties. Critics have described their role as indefensible, but others accuse Labour of political point-scoring and vandalising the upper house – removing a 'living part of Britain's constitutional inheritance'. James Heale and Megan McElroy discuss – joined by

en

16:07

Starmer vs the basics of politics

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/29

Does Keir Starmer have confidence in Rachel Reeves? Kemi Badenoch pressed the Prime Minister on his Chancellor’s future at PMQs – and he declined to answer, twice. Westminster (and Twitter) is now awash with reshuffle rumours.No 10 has since issued a denial, but the damage may already be done, raising a familiar question: is Keir Starmer just bad at politics?With recess looming and Labour braced for a battering at the local elections, Tim Shipman and Noa Hoffman join Megan McElroy to discuss.Become

en

17:59

Morgan McSweeney faces the music

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/28

It’s a blockbuster day in parliament today. To kick things off, we had Philip Barton pleading ignorance; to close the proceedings tonight we have a vote on a possible Privileges Committee probe. But in between we have Morgan McSweeney, the longtime bete noire of the Labour party left, giving testimony on the appointment of Peter Mandelson as British ambassador. McSweeney pushed hard for Mandy to be given the gig: a decision which he said in his opening statement to the Foreign Affairs Committee was

en

22:45

Can the King handle Trump?

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/27

King Charles is about to travel to Washington to visit President Trump. The brief? Fix the strained relationship. No pressure! Can royal diplomacy steady relations? Will the trip be awkward given Trump's recent words on Starmer, Chagos, The Falklands, and Canada? Does the King have what it takes to navigate such a diplomatic minefield?Elsewhere, Morgan McSweeney will appear before MPs tomorrow to explain his actions relating to the appointment of Lord Mandelson as ambassador to the United States

en

18:22

Isabel Hardman's Sunday Roundup - 26/04/2026

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/26

Isabel Hardman presents highlights from Sunday morning's political shows.President Trump survives another potential assassination attempt, as shots ring out at the White House correspondents' dinner. Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.ukHosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

en

13:15

'I used to be Labour. No more.' – who will win Wales?

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/25

Is Labour about to lose Wales? That’s what the polling suggests. After 27 years, Wales is seeking change. The beneficiaries look to be the outsiders, Plaid Cymru and Reform UK. Why is it this moment in particular that people are seeking new answers?In this special episode of Coffee House Shots, James Heale goes on the road across the Welsh valleys with Luke Tryl, UK Director of More in Common. Attending a series of focus groups, speaking to people on the doorsteps and across towns in the UK, they

en

14:41

Is Lord Hermer fit to be Attorney General?

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/24

The long-debated assisted dying bill is expected to fail in the House of Lords today – described by the bill's leading advocate Lord Falconer as failing 'not on its merits' but 'due to procedural wrangling'. Natasha Feroze speaks to Tim Shipman and James Heale about whether that is a fair description of the bill. Plus the Telegraph investigation into Attorney General Lord Hermer's previous roles taking legal action against British troops who served in Iraq and what this means for his suitability to

en

19:10

‘Worse than the worst of Boris Johnson’ – are Labour...

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/23

Somewhere in the documents surrounding Peter Mandelson’s ambassadorial appointment, the Spectator's political editor Tim Shipman reveals, is a text Keir Starmer sent the night before the announcement. ‘You’ll be brilliant in challenging circumstances,’ he told the Prince of Darkness. ‘And after many years of our discussions, we get to work together side by side. I really look forward to that.’ The message was leaked after a week in which the Prime Minister’s relationship with senior civil servants

en

11:58

'When, not if' – who will move against Starmer?

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/22

It will come as no surprise that Keir Starmer appears to have heard a very different evidence session from Sir Olly Robbins to the one everyone else thought the ex Foreign Office mandarin gave yesterday. The Prime Minister arrived in the Commons for questions today convinced that Robbins had in fact largely backed him up, give or take a few quibbles over whether there was a ‘dismissive’ attitude in Downing Street towards Peter Mandelson’s vetting. What planet is the PM on?Eyes were fixed on his

en

14:38

Why Olly Robbins testimony is 'quietly devastating'...

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/21

'The most gripping testimony' since Dominic Cummings which could prove 'extraordinary and quietly devastating' for Keir Starmer. That's the verdict of the Spectator's political editor Tim Shipman following sacked Foreign Office chief Sir Olly Robbins's testimony today before the Foreign Affairs Committee. Tim and former FCDO mandarin Ameer Kotecha join James Heale to explain why the hearing over the Mandelson appointment was so important, the questions the session has raised – and the holes in the

en

20:20

'They expect us to believe this?' – Starmer’s...

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/20

Westminster is braced ahead of two key interventions in the Mandelson scandal. This afternoon, the prime minister will give a statement in which we understand he will convey his ‘anger’ at being kept in the dark about Peter Mandelson’s (failed) vetting process. Then tomorrow morning, we are expecting to hear Olly Robbins’s side of the story when he appears in front of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee. Whose testimony will be the most compelling? Will it be the case – as we expect – that

en

16:02

'When not if': why the Lib Dems are aiming for second...

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/19

Liberal Democrat peer Mark Pack and MP for Surrey Heath Al Pinkerton join James Heale to explain that it is a matter of 'when not if' the party become the second biggest in local government. Overtaking the Conservatives would be 'seismic' but they see it as inevitable, following a 'long-run of sustained wins' in the post-coalition Lib Dem era.Faced with criticism that the Lib Dems are too focused on community and that leader Ed Davey is more interested in stunts than policy, they explain that a

en

28:49

Danny Kruger: Reform’s plan to tear up the system

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/18

Danny Kruger joins James Heale to set out Reform’s plan to overhaul the British state – from taking on the civil service to restoring ministerial control – and why he believes the system will resist change.Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.ukHosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

en

19:42

Mandelson latest: can we trust Starmer's ignorance?

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/17

The Peter Mandelson scandal just got more scandalous. Last night the story broke that Mandeslon actually failed his enhanced vetting before being made US Ambassador. Number 10 are pleading ignorance. Their defence sits on the suggestion that the Foreign Office’s most senior official unilaterally decided to ignore the findings and – what’s more – that he told no one. It’s a stretch and, as Tim Shipman says MPs' 'fury is overwhelming'.There are a number of outstanding questions, including: what could

en

22:30

Inside parliament’s ‘summer of sex’ | Cindy Gallop &...

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/16

It is a hard time to be a Labour MP. The polls are flagging, the economy is stagnating and the Middle East remains in crisis. But facing electoral armageddon in three weeks’ time, one brave backbencher has taken it up on herself to raise her party’s spirits. Samantha Niblett, the Honourable Member for South Derbyshire, is launching a campaign to make 2026 the ‘summer of sex’.On today's podcast, Tim Shipman and James Heale make sense of the story with Cindy Gallop, the sextech entrepreneur who's

en

14:08

Why won't Starmer answer the question!?

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/15

PMQs is back and – predictably – Lord Robertson’s intervention on the state of the armed forces dominated proceedings. The Prime Minister gave six responses to questions about defence spending, none of which addressed the criticism properly. While it was not a painful session for Starmer, it did show how little he has to say and how little authority he seems to have over such a serious matter. Why can’t he just answer the question? Does he want to be back in opposition?Megan McElroy speaks to Tim

en

11:11

Are the Treasury & the MOD at war?

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/14

George Robertson (pictured), a former defence secretary and former NATO secretary-general, has accused the government of 'corrosive complacency' towards defence, which puts the UK 'in peril'. This is all the more stinging because the Labour peer was one of the authors of the government's Strategic Defence Review – and that makes two of the three who have since criticised it. How much trouble does this spell for Starmer? And is this just the latest battle in the ongoing war between His Majesty's

en

13:20

Keir Starmer thinks he's Henry VIII

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/13

Two big stories to chew over on today’s podcast, starting with Viktor Orban’s landslide defeat in Hungary. The left have been celebrating this as a victory over populism, but have they misunderstood Peter Magyar’s politics? He’s hardly the Hungarian Ed Davey – as figures such as Zack Polanski would have you believe – and shares a lot of similarities with the outgoing leader when it comes to his conservatism. What are the real lessons from this weekend’s result? And why should Donald Trump be

en

12:41

Isabel Hardman's Sunday Roundup - 12/04/2026

Coffee House Shots ·

2026/04/12

Isabel Hardman presents highlights from Sunday morning's political shows.No end in sight to the conflict in the Middle East, as negotiations in Pakistan between the US and Iran end without an agreement.Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.ukHosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

en

3,257 results

Similar Podcasts

Expres Ráno

Expres FM

PBS News Hour - Full Show

PBS News

CD Voice

China Daily

Israel Today: Ongoing War Report

Noa Levi

Jeffrey Epstein: The Coverup Chronicles

Bobby Capucci