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Pod Save the UK | LaughTrack

Podcast

Pod Save the UK

Pod Save the UK

Nish Kumar

Pod Save the UK is your weekly fix of political news, big ideas and a shot of inspiration. Each week hosts, comedian Nish Kumar and journalist Coco Khan are joined by politicians, experts, and famous friends to unpick the latest news, look for solutions, and inspire action. From Crooked Media – the creators of Pod Save America – tune in to new episodes of Pod Save the UK every Thursday wherever you pod.

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Catalog

Episodes

Hasan Piker: “Not Conducive to the Public Good”?Jun 11, 2026 · 1 hr 4 minThis week, as the far-right continues to fan the flames of violence and division, Coco and Nish are joined by Hasan Piker: Twitch streamer, influencer, and left-wing political commentator who was recently blocked from entering the UK. They dig into what makes him “not conducive to the public good”, and why it’s important to speak the truth–however that comes across. They also talk about political allegiances, the future of progressive politics, and the worrying rise of far-right MAGA movements across the world. Does a Labour government have the answer? GUESTS Hasan Piker CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS AURA FRAMES:https://www.auraframes.co.uk Code: PSTUK WISE: https://www.wise.com BT: Search ‘Why BT’ to find out more. Pod Save the UK is an Intelligence Squared production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: podsavetheuk@crooked.com Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
The Mandelson Files: Chaos Inside Labour? Plus: Sabah Choudrey on the Culture War over Public SpacesJun 4, 2026 · 1 hr 9 minThis week, Nish and Coco dig into the latest release of files around Peter Mandelson’s appointment as UK ambassador to the US, and what the hundreds of emails and WhatsApps reveal about Labour’s internal panic, Keir Starmer’s leadership, and a government that seems increasingly unsure of itself. They also unpack Alan Milburn’s major review into youth unemployment. Is Britain dealing with a generation that doesn’t want to work, or a broken system that has stripped away routes into jobs, training and support? Plus: Nish and Coco are joined by Sabah Choudrey, speaker, consultant and founder of Trans Pride Brighton, to discuss the EHRC’s new guidance on single-sex spaces, the worsening climate for trans people in the UK, and how a small network of gender-critical organisations has helped push trans rights into the centre of the culture war. GUESTS Zoë Crowther Sabah Choudrey USEFUL LINKS Updated EHRC Code of Practice: GI’s response | Gendered Intelligence Join the trans lobby on the 25th June: Mass Lobby for Trans Equality CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS SHOPIFY: https://shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk VANTA: https://www.vanta.com/PSTUK AURA FRAMES: https://www.auraframes.com Code: PSTUK BT: Search ‘Why BT’ to find out more. Pod Save the UK is an Intelligence Squared production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: podsavetheuk@crooked.com Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
We Read Tony Blair So You Don’t Have To. Plus: Who Really Owns Britain? w/Hettie O’BrienMay 28, 2026 · 1 hr 6 minThis week, Nish and Coco head back to Makerfield, where the by-election campaign is already turning into a political demolition derby; Andy Burnham is just ahead of Reform, the far right is fighting itself, Elon Musk has wandered into the discourse, and Nigel Farage has reappeared after questions over his £5 million gift. Plus: they’re joined by Hettie O’Brien, journalist and author of The Asset Class, to break down how private equity quietly bought up the services we rely on, from nurseries and care homes to vets and water companies, and why that matters for the broken economy we’re all living in. GUESTS Hettie O'Brien, journalist and author of The Asset Class: How Private Equity Turned Capitalism Against Itself USEFUL LINKS Amnesty Report | Like a snowball: the growth and impact of the gender critical movement in the UK Tony Blair Article | The Labour Party Is Playing With Fire Over Its Future and the Future of the Country by CLIP CREDITS Carol Vorderman via Instagram, (@carolvorders) CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS VANTA: https://www.vanta.com/PSTUK SHOPIFY: https://shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk AURA FRAMES: https://www.auraframes.com Code: PSTUK BT: Search ‘Why BT’ to find out more. Pod Save the UK is an Intelligence Squared production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: podsavetheuk@crooked.com Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Starmer clings on, Burnham steps up w/ MP Nadia WhittomeMay 21, 2026 · 1 hr 6 minThis week, Nish and Coco make sense of another chaotic week in Westminster, as Keir Starmer clings on in Downing Street, Wes Streeting resigns, and Andy Burnham’s route back to Parliament suddenly becomes very real. They’re joined by Nadia Whittome, Labour MP for Nottingham East and one of the earliest MPs to call for Starmer to go, to unpack the mood inside the Labour Party, whether Burnham is really the answer, and what Labour needs to do to win back progressive voters. Plus: after Stephen Christopher Yaxley-Lennon, aka Tommy Robinson’s latest rally in London, how should progressives respond to the far right without simply echoing its politics? And: Nigel Farage faces questions over a £5m gift from a crypto billionaire. Does the man of the people have some very expensive explaining to do? CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS BT: Search ‘Why BT’ to find out more. VANTA: https://www.vanta.com/PSTUK INCOGNI: https://www.incogni.com/podsavetheuk Code: podsavetheuk SHOPIFY: https://shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUESTS Nadia Whittome MP USEFUL LINKS @Femi_Sorry: Tommy Robinson supporters expose themselves so fast! - Unite The Kingdom https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBdc_HsSA5Y CLIP CREDITS Femi Oluwole Nigel Farage Interview: The Sun Pod Save the UK is an Intelligence Squared production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: podsavetheuk@crooked.com Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Starmer’s Survival Week w/NoJusticeMTG, plus Mo GawdatMay 14, 2026 · 1 hr 17 minThis week, as Labour reels from a brutal set of election results, Nish and Coco try to make sense of Keir Starmer’s fight to stay in Downing Street, a story moving faster than political journalists can refresh their phones. They’re joined by Helena, aka NoJusticeMTG, Twitch streamer, YouTuber and Novara Media contributor, to break down Labour’s post-election meltdown, the rise of Reform, and whether the Greens’ surge points to a more hopeful progressive future. They also dig into who might replace Starmer, from Angela Rayner to Andy Burnham and Wes Streeting. Plus, what should we take from Plaid Cymru’s win in Wales, Reform’s new foothold, and the Greens breaking through in places Labour once took for granted? And former Google executive Mo Gawdat joins to discuss Chasing Utopia, the new documentary asking whether AI is about to transform our lives, our politics, and possibly the future of humanity itself. Watch Mo Gawdat in Atlantic Studios new release Chasing Utopia from Friday 15th May 2026 at Everyman Cinemas. Book tickets at everymancinema.com. GUESTS Mo Gawdat NoJusticeMTG USEFUL LINKS Raphael Behr https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/may/13/labour-battle-of-ideas-no-10-keir-starmer-leadership CREDITS BBC ONE: Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg Youtube: Novara Media Pod Save the UK is an Intelligence Squared production for Crooked Media. Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Last orders for Labour? Starmer’s election nightmare and Westminster’s booze problem w/Will Hayward and Zoë GrünewaldMay 7, 2026 · 1 hr 3 minThis week, Nish and Coco make sense of a bruising local election week, as Labour braces for heavy losses, Reform eyes major gains, and the Greens look to break through in London. They’re joined by Will Hayward, award-winning investigative journalist and expert on Welsh politics, to break down what’s happening in Wales, where Labour’s century-long dominance could be coming to an end. He explains the new Senedd voting system, the rise of Plaid and Reform, and what this election could mean for the future of devolution. Plus: Zoë Grünewald joins to unpack Reform’s latest migrant detention centre proposal, Green hopes in the capital, and what a bad night could mean for Keir Starmer. And: should MPs be allowed to drink on the job, or is Parliament’s bar tab finally becoming a political problem? GUESTS Zoë Grünewald, political journalist Will Hayward, Cardiff-based investigative journalist USEFUL LINKS Guide to Senedd voting system: https://senedd.wales/senedd-now/senedd-blog/how-will-the-new-voting-system-work-at-the-next-senedd-election/ CREDITS Radio 4, Today Show Tiktok, Zia Yusef (@ziayusufuk) Instagram, Hannah Spencer (@hannahtheplumbermcr) Pod Save the UK is an Intelligence Squared production for Crooked Media. Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Mandelson, May Elections & Rosie Jones MayhemApr 23, 2026 · 1 hr 10 minBritish politics was shaken to its core this week when we all realised that, maybe, Keir Starmer isn’t as quite across the detail as he tries to make out. He had to explain exactly what he did and didn’t know about the developed vetting carried out for Peter Mandelson’s appointment as the UK’s Ambassador to the US. Right on the heels of that, came Olly Robbins, who was sacked last week from his role as the chief official at the Foreign Office. In a very civil servant way, he revealed the internal pressures and machinations that were happening during the appointment process. Both men had serious questions to answer about what they did but Coco and Nish are joined by political journalist Zoë Grünewald to ask why everyone is obsessing over the process while almost totally ignoring the larger, moral decision to make the appointment in the first place. Plus the comedian Rosie Jones arrives to totally derail the whole podcast with a mix of funny jabs at Nish while still telling us about the work of her brilliant foundation which is celebrating its first birthday! Don’t forget to leave a review - it gives the show a boost and we love to see your comments. **Warning: use of a racial slur during the Labour May election segment** CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS INCOGNI: https://www.incogni.com/podsavetheuk Code: podsavetheuk WISE: https://shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk AURA FRAMES: https://www.auraframes.com Code: PSTUK SHIPSTATION: https://www.shipstation.com Code: PSTUK GUESTS Zoë Grünewald - Journalist, broadcaster and political commentator Rosie Jones - Comedian USEFUL LINKS The Rosie Jones Foundation: https://www.rosiejonesfoundation.com/ CREDITS Sir Keir Starmer MP - Parliament TV Emily Thornberry MP - The Mirror, YouTube Sir Oliver Robbins - Parliament TV David Miliband MP - Mornings with Ridge and Frost, Sky News Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Trump's Jesus Meme Chaos w/ Tommy VietorApr 16, 2026 · 53 minWho says the special relationship is on the ropes? Coco and Nish are joined by Pod Save America’s Tommy Vietor to showcase transatlantic co-operation at its very best. From the battle of slopaganda to the real war in Iran - there’s a lot to talk about. Donald Trump deleted a Truth Social post because he looked a little bit too much like Jesus for the Christian community - many of them have been some of his biggest supporters. Meanwhile Iran has released a series of sometimes-antisemitic, AI, Lego rap videos. In the UK, Keir Starmer is being criticised for not spending enough on defence at a time when the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East are focusing minds. Plus - Your Party hits the skids in Scotland - we hear from an insider about what went down. Don’t forget to leave a review - it gives the show a boost and we love to see your comments. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS AURA FRAMES: https://shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk SHOPIFY: https://www.wise.com WISE: https://shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUESTS Tommy Vietor, Host, Pod Save America and Pod Save The World USEFUL LINKS How to email your MP about NHS Palantir contracts - https://www.amnesty.org.uk/get-involved/take-action/sign-a-petition/mp-demand-no-palantir-in-our-nhs/ CREDITS Donald Trump - @rapidresponse47, X Iranian Propaganda Video - Explosive Media Owen Maitland, Former Your Party Scotland executive committee member Faiza Shaheen, Director, Tax Justice UK - ‘Politics Live’, BBC One Saturday Night Live UK, Sky One Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Can AI really be your friend? w/Jamie BartlettApr 2, 2026 · 58 minCoco and Nish are joined by top author and tech expert Jamie Bartlett. His new book is a deep dive into the ways AI is being used - highlighting its pitfalls and also where it might be beneficial. Jamie even created an AI alter-ego to help people understand how the technology really works, its strengths and its limitations. Plus, your questions, answered! From the new electoral system in Wales to favourite conspiracy theories - you’ll learn and you’ll laugh! Don’t forget to leave a review - it gives the show a boost and we love to see your comments. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS VANTA: https://www.vanta.com/PSTUK SHOPIFY: https://shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk WISE: https://www.wise.com GUESTS Jamie Bartlett, Author, ‘How To Talk To AI (And How Not To)’ and Host of Everything is Fake (And Nobody Cares) on BBC Sounds Special guest appearance: Jimmy Botlett USEFUL LINKS ‘How To Talk To AI (And How Not To)’: Out April 9th. https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/475950/how-to-talk-to-ai-by-bartlett-jamie/9780753561980 Welsh Assembly election guide https://senedd.wales/senedd-now/senedd-blog/senedd-election-2026-what-is-the-d-hondt-formula-and-how-does-it-work/ Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Truth, Lies and Donald Trump w/ Stewart LeeMar 26, 2026 · 52 minComedian and columnist Stewart Lee joins Nish and Coco to discuss the week’s big stories. They talk about Donald Trump’s deadly and yet utterly confusing war with Iran, as the US President continues to contradict his own statements about the Strait of Hormuz and peace talks, almost in the same breath. It certainly means a new, live, UK sketch show has plenty of material - but how should comedy respond to the challenging times we are all living through? Plus - why having a weekly opinion column is good for your mental health and why news organisations need to do more to tackle the lies and extreme rhetoric coming from politicians. Don’t forget to leave a review - it gives the show a boost and we love to see your comments. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS VANTA: https://www.vanta.com/PSTUK SHOPIFY: https://shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk INCOGNI: https://www.incogni.com/podsavetheuk Code: podsavetheuk GUESTS Stewart Lee, Comedian and columnist for The Nerve USEFUL LINKS Guide to Senedd voting system: https://senedd.wales/senedd-now/senedd-blog/how-will-the-new-voting-system-work-at-the-next-senedd-election/ CREDITS Saturday Night Live UK, Sky One Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Can Britain’s myth and magic challenge the far right? w/ Zakia SewellMar 21, 2026 · 35 minLast summer - fuelled by the far right - a rash of St George and Union Jack flags spread across the country. Flag-waving became a symbol of prejudice, not pride. In that context it's hard as progressives to feel particularly patriotic. So what is Britishness… and does it even matter? Someone who is hopeful that our national identity is worth saving is writer, a DJ and broadcaster Zakia Sewell. In this bonus episode of PSUK, she tells Nish and Coco about her journey to uncover an alternative version of Britishness - one that unifies rather than divides. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS BABBEL: https://www.babbel.com/PSUK WISE: https://www.wise.com SHOPIFY: https://shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUEST Zakia Sewell, writer, DJ & broadcaster USEFUL LINKS “Finding Albion: Myth, Folklore and the Quest for Hidden Britain” - out now. https://www.waterstones.com/book/finding-albion/zakia-sewell/9781399735902 Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Farage’s Wild Week: Energy bill stunts and questionable Cameo videosMar 19, 2026 · 58 minReform UK is getting into the lottery business - inviting people to sign up for a chance to have their energy bills paid for a year. But is the real prize a massive database of voters ahead of the next General Election? Plus - party leader Nigel Farage has been caught saying some pretty questionable stuff for money on Cameo. Is that really the kind of thing we should expect from someone who plans to be our next Prime Minister? Nish and Coco are joined by authors Quinn Slobodian and Ben Tarnoff. Their new book Muskism: A Guide for the Perplexed looks at the billionaire manbaby in a whole new way. If you want to understand what’s driving Musk and what it could mean for all of us - this is the chat for you. And POLITICO’s Anne McElvoy is on hand as the former Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner pops up to point out all the ways Labour is getting it wrong at the moment - subtext: without her they’re lost. Reminder to send in your burning questions for Nish and Coco to psuk@reducedlistening.co.uk CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS BABBEL: https://www.babbel.com/PSUK WISE: https://www.wise.com SHOPIFY: https://shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUESTS Quinn Slobodian and Ben Tarnoff, Authors. Muskism: A Guide for the Perplexed Out on March 24th Anne McElvoy, Executive Editor, POLITICO and co-host Politics at Sam and Anne’s USEFUL LINKS The Podcast Show - https://www.thepodcastshowlondon.com/explore-passes Muskism: A Guide for the Perplexed https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/477340/muskism-by-tarnoff-quinn-slobodian-and-ben/9780241805114 CREDITS The Guardian - YouTube The Independent - YouTube Reform UK - YouTube Today in Focus - The Guardian Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
The Mandelson Files Are OutMar 12, 2026 · 56 minThe first wave of Mandelson files have been published. We all wanted to know what Keir Starmer knew, and when he knew it. Now we can see it in black and white. And as it turns out - Starmer was warned there was a “general reputational risk” over Mandelson’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein ahead of his confirmation as US ambassador. Nish and Coco make sense of this perilous moment for the PM. Then critical theorist and viral creator Louisa Munch helps us make sense of the government’s new social cohesion strategy. But is tackling extremism and yet more surveillance the answer to fraying social ties? Plus - as Iran names its new supreme leader oil prices skyrocket - for a PM obsessed with the cost of living, this is shaping up to be a bit of a nightmare. Remember to send your questions in for Nish and Coco to psuk@reducedlistening.co.uk and they’ll spill the tea! CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS AURA FRAMES: https://www.auraframes.com Code: PSTUK BABBEL: https://www.babbel.com/PSUK GUESTS Louisa Munch, Critical Theorist Minnie Rahman, CEO Praxis USEFUL LINKS “Nish, Don’t Kill My Vibe” + Q&A with James Acaster at The Ritzy, Brixton - 18th March https://picturehouses.com/movie-details/000/HO00017471/nish-kumar-nish-don-t-kill-my-vibe-q-a?filter= Open letter opposing planned changes to the immigration settlement routes: https://act.praxis.org.uk/open-letter-earned-settlement CREDITS Darren Jones MP, Cabinet Office minister - Parliament TV Steve Reed MP, Communities Secretary - Parliament TV Mike Tapp MP, Migration minister - Parliament TV Minnie Rahman, Praxis CEO Frederik Pleitgen, CNN International Senior Correspondent - CNN Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
“No Winston Churchill”: is the special relationship over?Mar 5, 2026 · 53 minA world leader has been assassinated, schools and hospitals have been hit, and Donald Trump thinks that Keir Starmer is no Winston Churchill. It’s all kicking off as the US and Israel’s illegal war escalates across the Middle East. All of this with the open admission of no real plan for what comes next. Struggling to absorb it all? Wondering if there’s another way? British-Iranian peace strategist Sanam Naraghi Anderlini MBE is here to fill us in. She joins Coco and comedian Sophie Duker, who is in the hotseat for Nish this week. Soaring oil prices was not the backdrop Chancellor Rachel Reeves was hoping for ahead of her second Spring Statement. Finalised before the conflict broke out, her economic plan was “Trumped” before it was even delivered - so where does this leave the UK? Plus - just as the UK gets dragged into this latest destabilising conflict, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood rips up the rules on UK asylum. Got a burning question for Nish or Coco? Big or small - they will be answered in a special episode! Email: psuk@reducedlistening.co.uk CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS WISE https://www.wise.com SHOPIFY https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk SURFSHARK https://www.surfshark.com/podsave Code: PODSAVE GUEST Sanam Naraghi Anderlini MBE, founder and CEO of the International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN) USEFUL LINKS Sophie Duker https://thesophieduker.com/ If You Were In Charge with Sanam Naraghi Anderlini and Kavita Nandini Ramdas. https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/if-you-were-in-charge/id1770618616 CREDITS Sophie Duker - Live at the Apollo / BBC One Keir Starmer / X Parliament TV PBS News Hour / YouTube BBC News Zoe Gardner / IG Manchester Evening News Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Are we stuck in never-ending political scandal? w/Ash SarkarFeb 26, 2026 · 56 minThis week Nish and Coco are joined by friend of the pod, Ash Sarkar from Novara Media to talk about political scandal, trust and compromise. Ash’s book, Minority Rule, has a new afterword which talks about two progressive movements which have tried to build different kinds of relationships with voters. Is that the way forward - or are we stuck in an endless cycle of broken promises from our leaders? One of those leaders - Keir Starmer - seems to be lurching from crisis to nightmare, so can he rise above the latest headlines about Peter Mandelson’s arrest and the Labour Together scandal? Plus Reform’s new immigration policies, the new proposals to change the SEND system - and some good news about two protest groups. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS BABBEL: https://www.babbel.com/PSUK WISE: https://www.wise.com SURFSHARK: https://www.surfshark.com/podsave CODE: PODSAVE GUESTS Ash Sarkar, Contributing Editor at Novara Media and author of Minority Rule: Adventures in the Culture War - out now in paperback. USEFUL LINKS Jumaane Williams’ thoughtful response following the outcry about the handling of a racial slur at the Baftas. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgaqKIxS4Hs&t=1s CREDITS Daily Express - YouTube Nigel Farage - YouTube @sendra.uk - Instagram Nida Jafri Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Can she fix it? Hannah the plumber and politician on tackling ReformFeb 19, 2026 · 54 minThis week Coco is joined by the comedian Cody Dahler while Nish takes a brief break and there’s so much to talk about! The Greens' Hannah Spencer has become the unexpected bookies favourite to win the Gorton and Denton by-election but does she have what it takes to turn good odds into a win at the ballot box? We speak to her about the importance of fighting to improve lives, her favourite false rumour and why walking her dogs helped form her political outlook. Plus Keir Starmer is back with another U-turn and another inquiry. We try to work out what he’s hoping to achieve this week. And Amnesty International’s UK Director of Law and Human Rights, Tom Southerden, updates us on their High Court victory as they challenge the proscription of Palestine Action. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS BABBEL: https://www.babbel.com/PSUK SHOPIFY: https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUESTS Hannah Spencer, Green Party candidate, Gorton and Denton by-election Tom Southerden, UK Law and Human Rights Director, Amnesty International USEFUL LINKS Gorton and Denton by-election candidate list https://whocanivotefor.co.uk/elections/parl.gorton-and-denton.by.2026-02-26/gorton-and-denton/ CREDITS TikTok / @mrcodydahler Green Party of England and Wales / Facebook Hannah Spencer / Instagram Paul Holden, Investigative journalist and author of "The Fraud" High Court protest reaction - Amnesty International footage @mrcodydahler / Instagram Otto, Budding Comedian Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
McSweeney: the man who made Starmer and his ties to MandelsonFeb 12, 2026 · 55 minPrime Minister Keir Starmer’s cabinet circles the wagons as he survives another hellish week in office. One that saw the loss of his chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, and his director of communications, Tim Allan, as the scandal over Peter Mandelson's ties to sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein rages on. Nish and Coco are joined by Paul Holden, the “unofficial biographer” of Morgan McSweeney, to discuss his key role in the rise of Keir Starmer to power and his close relationship with Mandelson. Plus - reports that Labour Together hired a PR firm to investigate Paul and others looking into its funding under McSweeney. Also, comedian Stuart Goldsmith on the serious business of being funny about climate change and why it goes all the way to the top of British intelligence. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS AURA FRAMES https://www.auraframes.com Code: PSTUK WISE https://www.wise.com GUESTS Paul Holden, Investigative Journalist and author of The Fraud Stuart Goldsmith, Climate Comedian USEFUL LINKS The Fraud: Keir Starmer, Morgan McSweeney, and the Crisis of British Democracy https://orbooks.com/catalog/the-fraud/ Stuart Goldsmith www.stuartgoldsmith.com CREDITS Sky News / YouTube Sky News / YouTube GOP Oversight / YouTube Sky News Australia / YouTube Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Will Mandelson be Starmer’s downfall?Feb 5, 2026 · 53 minThe release of the latest Epstein files triggered a deluge of revelations, spelling the end for one of UK’s biggest political characters. Nish and Coco chat about Lord Mandelson’s fall and the damage done to Keir Starmer and his government as well as the new police investigation into Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. Economist Ann Pettifor, one of the few who predicted the 2008 financial crash, is the author of a new book “The Global Casino”. She has a lot to say about the Mandelson scandal, the financial systems that control our lives and what governments need to do to challenge the global billionaires who speculate with our money every day. Plus - move over Barbenheimer, Nish and Coco give their take on two premieres: The Moment and Melania. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS SHOPIFY https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk AURA FRAMES https://www.auraframes.com Code: PSTUK GUEST Ann Pettifor, economist and author of ‘The Global Casino’ USEFUL LINKS Nish Tour Tickets https://www.nishkumar.co.uk/gigs/ The Global Casino: How Wall Street Gambles with People and the Planet https://www.versobooks.com/en-gb/products/3258-the-global-casino CREDITS Keir Starmer MP / Parliament TV Lord Mandelson / ‘Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg’ BBC One Melania Trailer Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Will Starmer’s control freakery deliver victory to Reform?Jan 29, 2026 · 52 minKeir Starmer jets off to Beijing, leaving Westminster - once again - bubbling with rumours about his future. The King of the North might be off the cards, but Angela Rayner and even Ed Miliband are eyeing up the top spot. Reform thinks GB News Presenter and right-wing activist Matt Goodwin is the right man to be their MP candidate in Gorton and Denton - if only he can shelve his disdain for Manchester… Nish and Coco chew it all over with political journalist Zoë Grünewald. Away from the psychodrama, controversial plans to overhaul special educational needs education in England risk children’s legal rights to cut costs. Campaigners Rachel Filmer and Carrie Grant share their concerns with Coco. And surveillance firm Palantir is using medical records to target people for ICE in the US - could the UK be next? This podcast has been edited to remove a story about Matt Goodwin after he clarified the context of his comments about Manchester. We regret the error. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS SHOPIFY https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUESTS Zoë Grünewald, journalist, broadcaster and political commentator Dr Carrie Grant MBE, TV presenter and voice coach Rachel Filmer, SEND campaigner USEFUL LINKS Save Our Children’s Rights Campaign https://www.saveourchildrensrights.org.uk/ Stop Palantir in the NHS https://goodlawproject.org/campaign/stop-palantir-in-the-nhs CREDITS Keir Starmer / TikTok Pod Save America / X Good Law Project / Instagram Sky News / YouTube UKLabour / X Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk X: https://x.com/podsavetheuk
Starmer’s new Trump headache and making comedy under occupationJan 22, 2026 · 55 minDonald Trump brings his particular brand of terrible speeches to the billionaires and bankers at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Nish and Coco try to work out how Keir Starmer can keep on track when facing the threat of US tariffs over Greenland as well as criticism of a lease deal with the Chagos Islands - which the US had previously praised. Liam Thorp, the Liverpool Echo’s Political Editor, is on hand to break down Labour’s big plan to make homes warmer, the fortunes of Reform and the latest delay to the Hillsborough Law Plus comedian Alaa Shehada, fresh from his show ‘The Horse of Jenin’, talks to Nish and Coco about the ‘Palestine Comedy Club’, a documentary which follows a group of Palestinians as they take their comedy show on tour in an occupied state. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS SHOPIFY Shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk WISE Wise.com GUESTS Liam Thorp - Political Editor, Liverpool Echo Tess Ingram, UNICEF Alaa Shehada - Comedian USEFUL LINKS Palestine Comedy Club collective https://www.palestinecomedyclub.com/ Palestine Comedy Club documentary https://filmsandfestivals.britishcouncil.org/projects/palestine-comedy-club Starting Feb 27th: London - Rich Mix and Bertha Doc House Tywyn - Magic Lantern Cinema Birmingham - Mockingbird Cinema Brighton - Komedia Gloucester - Guildhall Belfast - Queen’s Film Theatre CREDITS Donald Trump - BBC Online ‘Palestine Comedy Club’ - Tough Crowd Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukX: https://x.com/podsavetheuk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Grok AI Scandal: should we treat Big Tech like Big Tobacco? w/ Rutger BregmanJan 15, 2026 · 54 minX has been firmly in the firing line after its Grok AI tool was used to create sexualised images of women and children. Elon Musk’s company could face a fine of up to 10% of its global earnings by internet regulator Ofcom, or a ban in the UK. He denies that the AI has done anything illegal and says users are responsible for the images they create. How can we regulate AI? Nish and Coco speak to Rutger Bregman, historian and author who called out billionaires at Davos. He argues Big Tech should be treated like Big Tobacco, and gives his take on Iran, as thousands of protestors take to the streets, and what a radical policy platform looks like for the UK Left today. Plus - what on earth is UKIP proposing as a terrifying rebrand? *Update on Palestinian Hunger Strikers*: On 14th Jan Heba, Kamran, and Lewie collectively paused their hunger strike. They made British history, lasting 73 days. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS SHOPIFY Shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk BABBEL https://www.babbel.com/PSUK GUESTS Rutger Bregman - Historian and Author of Moral Ambition, out in paper back on 15th Jan USEFUL LINKS https://www.moralambition.org/book Let us know your experiences of SEND support in schools - or any other stories. CREDITS Liz Kendall MP, Technology Secretary - Parliament TV Rutger Bregman - Publicae Rutger Bregman and Tucker Carlson - Now This Tehran protests - Shaparak Khorsandi/Instagram Donald Trump - New York Times Laila Cunningham - Daily Express/YouTube Nadim Zahawi - Sky News Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Instagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukX: https://x.com/podsavetheuk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Trump’s explosive start to 2026 - will Starmer find a backbone?Jan 8, 2026 · 55 minThe US President put the season of goodwill behind him with a New Year Venezuelan coup and the threat of further action across Central America and the Caribbean. Then there’s the little matter of his promise to seize control of Greenland. Nish and Coco try to make sense of the senseless - and to assess the possibility that Donald Trump could end up destroying NATO - with Tommy Vietor from our sister podcasts Pod Save America and Pod Save the World. Plus, comedian Cody Dahler gives us his take on how 2026 will shape up for politicians and satirists. How easy is it to make jokes while the world - literally and metaphorically - is on fire? CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS WISE https://wise.com/ BABBEL https://www.babbel.com/PSUK GUESTS Cody Dahler, Comedian and Presenter of The Truth (In My Opinion) Tommy Vietor, Co-Host of Pod Save America and Pod Save the World Nida Jafri USEFUL LINKS Palestine Action Hunger Strikers: How to write to your MP https://www.parliament.uk/get-involved/contact-an-mp-or-lord/contact-your-mp/ Petition calling for action from the Justice Secretary https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/call-on-mp-and-secretary-of-justice-david-lammy-to-intervene-and-protect-the-hunger-strikers/ CREDITS Parliament TV Cody Dahler/TikTok Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg/BBC One Tonight with Andrew Marr/LBC Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Like and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukTwitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Why does the Left make it so f***** hard? Question Time - PSUK-styleJan 1, 2026 · 50 minYou asked, Nish and Coco answered! What are their most conservative opinions? Why do both the left and right hate NATO so much? Should we ditch GDP? Why doesn’t the UK have compulsory voting and why do some many progressives stay true to Labour when the party is failing to measure up? All that plus the latest on Coco’s love-hate relationship with AI and a quickfire round to make sure no question is left unanswered. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS BABBEL Babbel.com/PSUK SHOPIFY Shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk CALM Calm.com/PTSUK Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk Support PSUK! Don’t forget to like and subscribe. Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2025 in British politics: from Starmer’s flop-flops to AI slopDec 18, 2025 · 55 minWarning: this episode contains a use of a racial slur. From the rollback of human rights and Trump’s BBC lawsuit to AI slop in politics - what the %@£! was that? Nish and Coco are joined by comedian Shappi Khorsandi and political commentator Jovan Owusu-Nepaul to make sense of the wild year that was. Labour’s first full year in office was marked by u-turns and an inability to use the word ‘genocide’ but there were some significant new bills that boosted the rights of renters and employees. Reform’s polling and local election success had mainstream parties running scared - but the reality of actually running stuff may have revealed the party’s limits. While Starmer focused on the threat from the right, the left was revitalised by the resurgence of the Greens and the (albeit chaotic) energy of Your Party - can they shift the political dial? As 2025 draws to a close - Nish and Coco hand out some very special awards and can we get a Palestinian lullaby to Christmas No.1? CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS AURA FRAMES https://www.auraframes.com Code: PSUK CALM calm.com/PTSUK SHOPIFY Shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUESTS Shappi Khorsandi, Comedian Jovan Owusu-Nepaul, Co-Host of What’s Left? USEFUL LINKS https://togetherforpalestine.bandcamp.com/album/lullaby CREDITS Labour Party/TikTok Parliament TV Sky News/YouTube Channel 4 News/YouTube Channel 4 News/YouTube BladeoftheSun/X Shaparak Khorsandi/TikTok The Last Leg/Channel 4 Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg/BBC Basil the Great/X Sky News/YouTube 5 Live/BBC Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Trump blasts Europe and Sadiq Khan - but will his strong man act backfire?Dec 11, 2025 · 53 minDonald Trump has taken another swipe at Europe’s “weak” leaders over Ukraine and immigration including a special mention for - surprise surprise - Sadiq Khan, who got a shout out for being a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”. Honestly, why is he SO obsessed?! But a Labour government trying to convince European allies to water down human rights law to deport people faster seems perfectly in line with Trump's vision. Nish and Coco are joined by Sky’s Deputy Political Editor Sam Coates. They also take a dive into the latest allegation swirling around Reform UK - this time the party’s election spending in Nigel Farage’s Clacton constituency is under the spotlight. And the scale of the homelessness crisis always seems more acute at this time of year - so the Minister for Local Government and Homelessness, Alison McGovern, joins PSUK to explain how their new plan will be the one to finally make a difference. Finally - PSUK has watched the first episode of the Liz Truss Show, so you don’t have to. Nish and Coco give it a rating out of one to limp lettuce. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS BABBEL https://www.babbel.com/PSUK AURA FRAMES https://www.auraframes.com Code: PSUK SHOPIFY Shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUESTS Sam Coates, Deputy Political Editor at Sky News Alison McGovern MP, Minister of State for Local Government and Homelessness USEFUL LINKS: Nish’s Carol Performance CREDITS Politico The Liz Truss Show / YouTube Keir Starmer MP / TikTok Rishi Sunak MP / TikTok Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Will cutting juries fix our maggot-ridden courts?Dec 4, 2025 · 45 min“Dead and rotting seagulls within the roof insulation” and “maggots literally raining down on to the lobby” - this quote from a court in South Tyneside sums up the state of our creaking judicial system. So what are we going to do about it? Cut jury trials. Deputy PM and Justice Secretary David Lammy is hoping to clear the court backlog by scrapping jury trials for crimes with sentences of less than three years - but stories like these make Nish and Coco doubtful it will be the silver bullet Lammy hopes. Is removing one of the fundamental building blocks of our justice system worth some sweet sweet efficiency gains? Then - is this the next post office scandal? Nish and Coco are joined by Liz Sayce OBE to discuss her damning report into how the Department of Work and Pensions failed to notify unpaid carers that they were accruing enormous debt for years. And Your Party had its founding conference this weekend… and surprise surprise… it was a spicy one. In the end, Team Zarah’s collective vision for the party defeated Team Jeremy. Will this be a new chapter or - for a party prone to in-fighting - will this leadership model trip them up from the get go? Reminder to send in your questions for our mailbag special to psuk@reducedlistening.co.uk CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS AURA FRAMES https://www.auraframes.com Code: PSUK BABBEL https://www.babbel.com/PSUK WISE https://www.wise.com GUESTS Liz Sayce, OBE CREDITS BBC News Turn Left Media The Mirror Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Reeves’s make-or-break budget: should the rich have paid more?Nov 27, 2025 · 53 minCoco and Nish listened to Rachel Reeves' budget so you don't have to. But hang on, we could all have skipped the speech and read it online. Someone screwed up big time, pressing a button and releasing the budget before Reeves even stood up. That cock up was possibly the most exciting thing about Labour's second budget. A bit vanilla for you? Too much tax for ordinary workers? Too little for the wealthy? Journalist Zoë Grünewald tells Pod Save The UK why this budget might have done enough to pacify the Labour backbenches by lifting the two child benefit cap while soothing the markets with tax and spend plans... Dr Faiza Shaheen, Director of Tax Justice UK, was hoping for bolder action on wealth taxes, but she spots some reasons to be cheerful in the mix. In other news, Nigel Farage gets rattled by questions about his past. Nish and Coco enjoy the novelty of seeing him squirm but wonder if it will harm his electoral chances. And bring a bottle and bury the hatchets, can 'Your Party' make this weekend their kiss and make up moment? Send in your questions for Nish and Coco and they’ll answer them in our mailbag special. Email us at psuk@reducedlistening.co.uk CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS SHOPIFY https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk CALM https://www.calm.com/PSTUK AURA FRAMES https://www.auraframes.com Code: PSUK GUESTS Zoë Grünewald, Journalist Faiza Shaheen, Director of Tax Justice UK USEFUL LINKS https://www.yourparty.uk/founding-documents/ Aditya Chakrabortty Guardian article https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/nov/20/wealth-tax-left-super-rich-britain-budget-2025 CREDITS House of Commons Live Sky News The New Statesman Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mahmood’s Moral Mission: Copy Reform’s homeworkNov 20, 2025 · 48 minWarning: this episode contains strong language and a term of racist abuse. Just when we thought the disasters of the government couldn’t get any worse… New Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has made it her “moral mission” to raise Nish and Coco’s blood pressure. Cruel new plans to end the permanent status of refugees and curb housing and support for asylum seekers do perhaps justify the government’s slogan of the biggest overhaul of the system “in modern history” - but at what cost? But - not to be outdone in terms of parties completely out of touch with reality - Your Party’s latest act of in-fighting leaves Nish and Coco with palms glued to their faces. Let’s face it - things have never been anything but fractious within the upstart political movement, but as their conference approaches the wind has never seemed further from their sails. And ahead of the budget next week Chancellor Rachel Reeves is entertaining big cuts to the Warm Homes Plan in efforts to bring down energy bills. Nish and Coco chat to Robert Palmer, Deputy Director of environmental organisation Uplift, about why this quick fix is wrong-headed and short sighted. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS AURA FRAMES https://www.auraframes.com Code: PSUK CALM https://www.calm.com/PSTUK GUESTS Robert Palmer, Deputy Director of Uplift USEFUL LINKS Claims of racism and antisemitism in Nigel Farage’s adolescence https://www.theguardian.com/politics/ng-interactive/2025/nov/18/deeply-shocking-nigel-farage-faces-fresh-claims-of-racism-and-antisemitism-at-school CREDITS Shabana Mahmood / X Reform UK Parliament TV Ed Miliband / IG Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Much a-coup about nothing? Labour take all the wrong notes from the ToriesNov 13, 2025 · 54 minAre knives being sharpened by disgruntled MPs planning a coup against the PM? As Keir Starmer’s team dig in against a supposed threat to the Prime Minister from Health Secretary Wes Streeting - has the Tory-brand of Westminster psychodrama come back for a new series? Meanwhile the BBC is under fire from the left, the right, the centre and the US president. Nish and Coco dig into an existential crisis for the public broadcaster. And as COP30 kicks off in Brazil - can we rescue the 1.5C climate target? Alex Reid from Global Witness drops in to give us a reality check. Later - as Robert Jenrick begins posting AI generated slop to attack his political rivals - Coco speaks to the AI and Online Safety Minister Kanishka Narayan. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS SHOPIFY https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk BABBEL https://www.babbel.com/PSUK AUDIO CREDITS BBC Radio 4 GUESTS Alex Reid, Head of Forests team at Global Witness Kanishka Narayan MP, AI and Online Safety Minister Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
What can the left learn from Zohran Mamdani’s win?Nov 6, 2025 · 53 minNish and Coco celebrate the win of Progressive New York Democratic Mayoral candidate, Zohran Mamdani - and ponder what British lefties can learn from his social-media friendly campaign. And is Chancellor Rachel Reeves about to rip up Labour’s manifesto promise not to introduce any new taxes on “working people”? She certainly seems to be laying the groundwork for it, after an unusual pre-budget speech on Tuesday. Nothing was announced - but it’s what wasn’t denied that tells a story… Later - Nish and Coco discuss the disturbing influence of American anti-abortionist lobbies on the UK’s political system and what we can do about it with New York Times investigative reporter Jane Bradley and campaigner for sexual and reproductive health and rights Lisa Hallgarten. To nobody’s surprise, Nigel Farage is involved. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS Babbel https://www.babbel.com/PSUK Calm https://www.calm.com/PSTUK Wise https://www.wise.com GUESTS Lisa Hallgarten - advocate, educator and campaigner for sexual and reproductive health and rights with a recent focus on young people’s right to better sex education. You can follow her on Instagram and Bluesky @FundamentalWrites Jane Bradley - UK investigative reporter at the New York Times USEFUL LINKS Crooked Christmas Gear http://crooked.com/store Jane Bradley's NYT article https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/13/world/europe/uk-abortion-farage.html AUDIO CREDITS CNN Sky News Reform UK Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Britain’s prison and asylum meltdown. Plus - the Renters’ Rights Act w/ Vicky SprattOct 30, 2025 · 54 minIt’s been a painful week for the government, with a migrant sex offender accidentally released from prison and a damning report on the spiralling costs of the asylum system. But is a plan to house asylum seekers on military sites really the answer? Political journalist Zoë Grünewald - standing in for Coco as Nish’s co-host this week - dives into how this re-hashed Conservative plan has managed to piss off, well, just about everyone. In better news - it’s curtains for the hated section 21 ‘no-fault evictions’ notices. The long-awaited Renters’ Rights Act has become law! Nish and Zoe talk to housing journalist Vicky Spratt about how big a deal this is for renters across England. Plus - why Housing Secretary Steve Reed's Maga-style 'build, baby, build' crusade looks likely to end in affordable housing targets more pathetic than they are now. Then later – from spending £75,000 on flags to their only black party chair quitting - is Reform out-reforming Reform? And why is Jeremy Corbyn swapping parliament for panto this Christmas. GUESTS Vicky Spratt USEFUL LINKS Peckham Not For Sale https://www.crowdjustice.com/case/acapeckham/ CREDITS Sky News X / Steve Reed Talk TV LBC Reform UK ITV News IG / Pleasance Theatre Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Pod Save the Truth w/ Wikipedia founder Jimmy WalesOct 23, 2025 · 56 minEnough is enough! Nish stages an intervention with Coco about her troubling relationship with Chat GPT. Or as Coco puts it: her mate “Chatty G”. But Coco’s not the only one embracing generative AI - it’s creeping into politics. From MPs using it in their daily work to the Swedish prime minister turning to it for a second opinion on running the country. Is AI a useful and harmless political tool or will it erode trust even further? Despairing, Nish catches up with internet pioneer and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales. What can our increasingly polarised and trust-depleted world learn from the man who turned a crazy idea into one of the most popular websites in the world? Nish and Jimmy cover Musk’s “Wokepedia” attacks, the rise of AI and the Online Safety Act. And Nish and Coco check in on some other questionable distortions of reality - featuring everyone’s favourite charlatan Nigel Farage and Prince Andrew’s infamous inability to sweat. CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS CALM https://www.calm.com/PSTUK SPOTIFY https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUESTS Jimmy Wales CREDITS Al Arabia BBC The Sun Reform UK Donald Trump Bloomberg Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Why can’t the UK get over Thatcher? Plus - “Your Party” infighting is Definitely Maybe over…Oct 16, 2025 · 50 minIt’s been an emotional week after the arrival of a Hamas-Israel ceasefire. This is good news - but issues of humanitarian aid, human rights, and accountability are all still up in the air. The struggle for a lasting peace continues... Closer to home - Nish and Coco check in with Plaid Cymru's leader Rhun ap Iorwerth, to talk about seeing off Reform, what a new co-operative era in Welsh politics might look like and why voters may find themselves a little "indie-curious". If Oasis can bury the hatchet, so can we! That's Your Party's message, but Nish and Coco aren’t totally sold on the Corbyn-Sultana reunion. In the wake of a Green membership surge, the party without a name is drawing dividing lines… But are they picking the right battles? And - the Iron Lady turns 100 - as lavish celebrations begin Nish and Coco ask why the UK is soooooooooo obsessed with Mags. From Right to Buy to Section 28 - her legacy isn't looking so great in 2025. And a scary revelation that Coco is spookily good at imitating her. NB. A previous version of this episode contained an incorrect fact about Katy Perry. We regret the error. CHECK OUT THIS DEAL FROM OUR SPONSOR WISE - https://www.wise.com GUESTS Rhun ap Iorwerth CREDITS The World Transformed Turn Left Media CNBC USEFUL LINKS Medical Aid for Palestinians https://www.map.org.uk Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Solidarity in the face of hatred: how to unite after the Manchester attackOct 9, 2025 · 45 min“Shocking... but not surprising” - the words of Stephen Bush, Associate Editor at the Financial Times and Chair of the Commission on Racial Inclusivity in the Jewish Community for the Board of Deputies of British Jews in 2020. Stephen joins Nish and Coco to discuss the fallout from the shocking attack on a synagogue in Manchester last week. The trio discuss solidarity and protest, and why the government’s response to the Manchester attack is not making all British Jews feel safer. Stephen has also spent the weekend in an all-but empty exhibition hall, at Tory conference in Manchester. It’s a land of misspelt chocolate bars and retro racism - have the Tories given up the ghost? Later - Coco and Nish try their hand at some data analysis - introducing Pod Save the UK’s brand-spanking-new diarrhoea index - before checking in on a bold new idea straight out of the Green’s conference - abolishing landlords. CHECK OUT THIS DEAL FROM OUR SPONSOR https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUESTS Stephen Bush CLIP CREDITS ITV The Green Party of England & Wales BBC The Guardian Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Decency or division: Starmer takes aim at ReformOct 2, 2025 · 51 minIt’s conference season, and at the Labour conference in Liverpool - flagshagging, snake-oil merchants and leadership jockeying - is it Keir Starmer’s final chance for a reset? Nish and Coco are joined by political journalist Zoë Grünewald. And later - as Trump reveals his plans for peace in Gaza, including a bizarre role for former PM Tony Blair - is the UK doing enough for Gaza? Nish speaks to Labour MP for Stroud, Dr Simon Opher, who earlier this month was denied entry into the occupied West Bank. Simon also fills Nish in on an innovative new prescription medicine - Laughter. Finally - we open the mailbag to share your wonderful stories of immigration in the UK - and Nish furthers his feud with a beloved British comedy icon. CHECK OUT THIS DEAL FROM OUR SPONSOR https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUESTS Zoë Grünewald Simon Opher MP USEFUL LINKS I am an Immigrant Podcast https://iceandfire.co.uk/project/i-am-an-immigrant/ Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Your loss, Zack’s gain? Polanski’s vision for the UKSep 25, 2025 · 53 minOh dear lefties… We just can’t stop tearing each other apart, huh? One short month into the evolution of the new political party experiment undertaken by independent MPs Zarah Sultana and Jeremy Corbyn - and the whole thing has descended into acrimony. After a weekend of legal threats, “your” party is suddenly seeming to be a house of cards built amidst a hurricane. Meanwhile, Nigel Farage has seized the moment to vomit out a new wave of inflammatory anti-migrant rhetoric. The need for a unified left movement has never been more urgent - and new Green Party leader Zack Polanski is ready to meet the moment. Zack joins Nish and Coco in our (fully powered) studio - to talk about his vision for the future of the left, his plans to fight inequality and why he’s not actually thrilled to see Zarah and Jez at each others throats. He also brings up his ever-so-slightly hypnotherapy boobjob and in revenge, helps us pip the Sun to the post on a saaaaaucy exclusive. Later - Nish weighs in on the Jimmy Kimmel saga… It couldn’t happen here, right? Oh, wait… CHECK OUT THIS DEAL FROM OUR SPONSOR https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUESTS Zack Polanksi - Green Party Leader Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Anger, Rage and Love - Trump’s visit to the UK and Tommy Robinson’s far right rallySep 18, 2025 · 49 minIt’s been a hellish week for our Disunited Kingdom. First Tommy Robinson mobilised ten of thousands in his ‘Unite the Kingdom’ march. Before we could recover from that toxic side show, the headline act arrived: President Trump. He was kept behind a ring of steel in Windsor where he enjoyed British brown nosing at its best from flatterers-in-chief, the Royal Family. What a state we’re in. Coco and Nish reflect on what they learned about their fellow Brits this week and the conclusion is scary. But before they abandon hope there was another march. Thousands of ‘Stop Trump’ protestors came out onto the streets of London - to hear from a range of the UK’s loudest progressive voices, from Zarah Sultana, to Zack Polanski and Jeremy Corbyn. Two protests, two faces of Britain. Can we ever bridge the divide? Finally - to round off the show, an injection of hope. Josie Naughton CEO of charity ‘Choose Love’ joins the pod to show us that there definitely is a way through this. USEFUL LINKS Choose Love https://choose.love/ Stop Trump Coalition https://stoptrump.org.uk/protest/ Guests Josie Naughton Zarah Sultana Zack Polanski Jeremy Corbyn George Monbiot Zoe Gardener Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Liberated from Labour: Zarah Sultana and Bimini Bon-Boulash - Live!Sep 9, 2025 · 57 minChaos, what chaos? Rayner's out. The cabinet's reshuffled. The lurch to the right hasn't stopped. But in the words of Homer Simpson, could Keir Starmer's shit show be a "crisitunity" for the left? To tell us how we can seize this moment, Nish and Coco are joined by leftwing royalty - Zarah Sultana MP and Bimini Bon-Boulash - live at the London Podcast Festival. Zarah shares why she feels liberated from Labour, has zero sympathy for Angela Rayner and zero tolerance for colleagues who don’t agree on trans rights. And as the government goes flag crazy, the gang reclaim some patriotic merch for the left. Zarah champions her Princess Diana mug and Bimini channels their inner Spice Girl by reclaiming the Union Jack. CHECK OUT THIS DEAL FROM OUR SPONSOR https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk GUESTS: Zarah Sultana Bimini Bon-Boulash IMAGE CREDIT: Kings Place / Monika S. Jakubowska Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Stop The Genocide! w/ Wael Al-Dahdouh, Jen Brister and Alexei SayleSep 4, 2025 · 1 hr 14 minPod Save the UK teamed up with Amnesty International UK for a powerful live recording to raise awareness and support to end the genocide in Gaza. Nish and Coco are joined by Palestinian journalist Wael Al-Dahdouh, Gaza Bureau Chief of Al Jazeera, who shares first-hand experiences of reporting under unimaginable circumstances in Gaza and the deadly toll on journalists. Comedians and activists Jen Brister and Alexei Sayle join the stage to reflect on the importance of speaking truth to power in a time of immense crisis and a dangerous escalation in the criminalisation of dissent. It’s an urgent and timely discussion that delves beyond the headlines, exploring the personal stories of those that have lived through the genocide in Gaza. It highlights the devastating realities and the glimmers of resilience and solidarity that persist and the urgent need to raise our collective voices to demand an end to the genocide. The conversation is book-ended with live performances from internationally acclaimed Palestinian musician Adnan Joubran, who brings the spirit and sounds of Palestine to life through his playing. USEFUL LINKS Sign Amnesty International's petition to demand an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza! https://www.amnesty.org.uk/actions/demand-immediate-and-permanent-ceasefire-psuk Donate here to support Amnesty’s work on the ground in Gaza https://www.amnesty.org.uk/giving/donate/help-protect-civilians-gaza-POD Come to our next live show w/ Zarah Sultana and Bimini Bon-Boulash - this Sunday! https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/comedy/pod-save-the-uk/ GUESTS Wael Al-Dahdouh Jen Brister Alexei Sayle Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Friends of PSUK - Sara & Cariad’s Weirdos Book ClubAug 28, 2025 · 48 minPSUK is taking a week off - so we’re bringing you a podcast from some of our friends - Sara and Cariad’s Weirdos Book Club! In this first episode - PSUK’s very own Nish Kumar turns up to discuss the internet, vegetables, wet boyfriends and so much more! USEFUL LINKS Stop the Genocide Special W/ Amnesty International- Tuesday 2nd https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/words/pod-save-the-uk-x-amnesty-international-uk-stop-the-genocide/ Future of the left - Sunday 7th https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/comedy/pod-save-the-uk/ Sara & Cariad’s Weirdos Book Club Live! https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/comedy/sara-cariads-weirdos-book-club/ Follow Sara & Cariad’s Weirdos Book Club on Instagram @saraandcariadsweirdosbookclub and Twitter @weirdosbookclub Recorded and edited by Naomi Parnell for Plosive. Artwork by Welcome Studio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Does the UK have a gambling problem? Out and about w/ Dawn ButlerAug 21, 2025 · 52 minHigh streets across the UK are being overwhelmed by betting shops. They gobble up £4.6 billion from punters every year - and local councils have almost no powers to block them. Labour MP Dawn Butler’s constituency, Brent East in North-West London, has 81 licensed enterprises alone. Jumping into “Betsy”, Dawn’s prized old-banger, Coco is taken out and about in Willesden to see first hand how betting shops are popping up everywhere and hear what local residents think. Along with 37 council leaders and mayors, Dawn is calling for a reform of the Gambling Act 2005 and a hike in gambling duties. With hints she might stand to be London mayor at the next election - could this be the first glimpse of her campaign? Then, Nish and Coco give their assessment of Keir Starmer and the European moral support squad’s visit to the White House - is Putin still calling the shots on Ukraine? And as Starmer’s Government slumps to an all-time low in the polls, Sadiq Khan has a spicy take on Labour’s first year in power. But a glimmer of hope: is that a don’t-call-it-a-wealth-tax on the horizon? On a less hopeful note, what on earth is going on with Labour’s social media account? And Nish and Coco struggle to get their head around the new Gen Z additions to the Cambridge Dictionary. Is politics all “delulu with no solulu”? CHECK OUT THIS DEAL FROM OUR SPONSOR https://www.wise.com USEFUL LINKS See us Live in London! Stop the Genocide Special - Tuesday 2nd https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/words/pod-save-the-uk-x-amnesty-international-uk-stop-the-genocide/ Future of the left - Sunday 7th https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/comedy/pod-save-the-uk/ Sign Dawn Butler’s Petition for Gambling Reform https://www.dawnbutler.org.uk/gambling_reform_petition Gambling Support https://www.gamcare.org.uk/ GUESTS Dawn Butler MP CREDITS IG / @UKLabour TikTok / @politicsprincess Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Is the government inflaming protests on the left and right?Aug 14, 2025 · 55 minThree thousand riot police were put on standby after Friday was dubbed “anti-asylum day” by far-right organisers, with 14 protests scheduled nationwide outside of suspected asylum hotels. Tensions are high but with Keir Starmer constantly boasting about cracking down on “illegal” migrants - is the Government simply fanning the flames of unrest? The New Statesman’s Britain Editor Anoosh Chakelian has been speaking to locals and asylum seekers at asylum hotels. She joins Nish and Coco to discuss why they’ve become such a lightning rod and what else the Government could be doing. And Labour Minister Chris Bryant has had an unorthodox path into politics - from growing up in Franco’s Spain to being ordained as an Anglican priest. He answers some tricky questions on the Palestine Action arrests and landlord MPs. And digging into the mailbag, Nish gets an education on audio porn. CHECK OUT THIS DEAL FROM OUR SPONSOR https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk USEFUL LINKS See us Live in London! https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/comedy/pod-save-the-uk/ Chris Bryant - A Life and A Half: The Unexpected Making of a Politician https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/life-and-a-half-9781526680914/ National Youth Theatre Statement https://www.nyt.org.uk/news/nyt-statement-3-august-2025 Girl On The Net - blog https://www.girlonthenet.com/blog/age-verification-whats-the-harm/ Paid Parental Leave Review https://www.gov.uk/government/calls-for-evidence/parental-leave-and-pay-review-call-for-evidence GUESTS Anoosh Chakelian Chris Bryant MP CREDITS Twitter / White House Twitter / Keir Starmer Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Is criticism of the Online Safety Act actually right wing?Aug 7, 2025 · 56 minThis week - we’re talking about the internet, Coco’s proclivities toward the disembodied voice of Pedro Pascal and Nish’s struggles to find any time to work on himself. Strap in - it’s a juicy one. Nish and Coco are joined by technology journalist Chris Stokel-Walker to make sense of the UK’s new online safety laws - which restrict access to harmful and inappropriate content for young people - while simultaneously clamping down on free speech and digital privacy. The conversation is becoming a culture war topic - but are the political class actually having a sensible discussion about this seismic, world’s-first legislation? And - guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission could see trans people excluded from public life. And now it might become law - with no debate, no scrutiny and no vote. We’ll be speaking to journalist Freddy McConnell about the risk to all of our rights and how we can fight back. And later - we’re getting Jezzy with it - we dive into the mailbag to hear your thoughts on the party definitely not called “your party”. CHECK OUT THIS DEAL FROM OUR SPONSOR https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk USEFUL LINKS See us Live in London! https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/comedy/pod-save-the-uk/ Write to your MP https://www.parliament.uk/get-involved/contact-an-mp-or-lord/contact-your-mp/ Trans Solidarity Alliance https://www.transsolidarityalliance.com/ehrc-code Freddy’s latest article https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jul/31/transgender-rights-ehrc-guidance-single-sex-spaces Guardian article about Lord Dannet https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/aug/05/lord-dannatt-urged-ministers-to-crack-down-on-palestine-action-at-request-of-us-firm GUESTS Chris Stokel-Walker Freddy McConnell AUDIO CREDITS Sky News Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Is the new left party what the UK needs?Jul 31, 2025 · 41 minPSUK is back - and this week Keir Starmer has swung open the door to recognising Palestinian Statehood - with caveats. Nish and Coco discuss the massive change in the UK’s foreign policy stance. Later, they’re joined by suspended Labour MP Brian Leishman (and his Dachshund Hugo) who voted against the government’s welfare cuts, to discuss the direction of Labour and Zarah Sultana and Jeremy Corbyn’s new political party. And - since Palestine Action was banned as a terrorist organisation back in July, more than 100 people have been arrested across the UK in protest. Nish and Coco discuss the future of civil disobedience with former Government lawyer and member of Defend Our Juries, Tim Crosland. CHECK OUT THIS DEAL FROM OUR SPONSOR https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk USEFUL LINKS See us Live in London! https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/comedy/pod-save-the-uk/ Guests: Brian Leishman, MP for Alloa & Grangemouth Tim Crosland, Former Government Lawyer and Founder of Plan B Audio Credits: The White House Sky News Channel 4 News Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
PSUK’s Green Leadership Debate: The Friendliest FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT You’ve Ever HeardJul 17, 2025 · 55 minThe co-Leadership bid of Ellie Chowns and Adrian Ramsay represents continuity for the Greens - they sit in Parliament and have proven they can win seats, but is their friendly language enough to cut through to the British public? Rival Zack Polanski says his alternative “eco-populist” vision can bring the fight to Reform and win. Ellie and Zack sit down with Nish and Coco to make the case for their competing visions for the future of the Green Party - and answer your questions. Elsewhere - Nish and Coco dive into Labour’s union troubles and take a peek at Ed Miliband's “radical truth telling.” CHECK OUT THESE DEALS FROM OUR SPONSORS WISE https://www.wise.com SHOPIFY https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk Guests: Ellie Chowns Zack Polanski Useful links: Join the Green Party https://join.greenparty.org.uk/ Audio Credits BBC Parliament TV Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Live! One year of Keir - how can we fix the mess? - with Gary Stevenson and Oliver CoppardJul 8, 2025 · 1 hr 2 minThis week’s episode of Pod Save the UK comes live from Sheffield’s Crossed Wires Festival. Nish and Coco sit down with two special guests: former trader and economics commentator Gary Stevenson and South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard. Cracking open cans of Nish, provided by local brewery Triple Point, Nish and Coco discuss the recent vote on labelling certain protest groups as terrorist organisations and the not-so-slow creep in the loss of our rights. One year into Government - backflips on Labour’s Welfare Bill have led to a new round of supermassive black holes for the Chancellor Rachel Reeves to plug. Gary Stevenson gives us some ideas on how to do it… And what about tackling economic inequalities on a local level? Oliver Coppard reflects on the Government’s push to go further and faster on devolution and the difficult decisions he’s made to achieve his priorities for South Yorkshire. Finally, with Independent MP Zarah Sultana quitting Labour to form a new progressive party, everyone gives their two cents on what this will mean for the future of the left. Guests: Gary Stevenson Mayor Oliver Coppard Useful links: Gary’s Economics https://www.youtube.com/garyseconomics Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
[Moral] Panic on the streets of GlastonburyJul 3, 2025 · 56 minNish’s inappropriate occurrences report at Glastonbury is in: there were people kissing, some people had their butts out and nobody seemed to be slapping on the SPF - all very inappropriate. But this isn’t what the right-wing press or the government has taken issue with… You’ve heard it already - the controversy around Kneecap and Bob Vylan’s sets engulfed the political discourse over the festival weekend. But is the controversy the real story here? Nish and Coco shine a light on some of what was REALLY said at Glastonbury and question why those messages didn’t receive as much airtime. Later, as the government recovers from the brink of political crisis and the Chancellor’s position is drawn into question, Nish and Coco are joined by journalist and author Frances Ryan to discuss the u-turns on u-turns that led to the government’s welfare bill passing. But the battle isn’t over yet. Finally, Men’s health in the UK is in a sorry place. Nish is joined by Movember’s Dr Zac Seidler to discuss the government’s upcoming Men’s Health Strategy and why young men are being sucked into the manosphere. SEE US LIVE! https://crossedwires.live/podcast/pod-save-the-uk Useful Links: Contribute your thoughts to the Men’s Health Strategy https://consultations.dhsc.gov.uk/mens-health-strategy Frances Ryan: Who Wants Normal? https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/455467/who-wants-normal-by-ryan-frances/9780241629437 Write to your MP about the Welfare Benefit Cuts! https://www.writetothem.com/ Guests: Frances Ryan Dr Zac Seidler Audio credits: BBC Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Does Trump know what the F#@! he’s doing?Jun 26, 2025 · 51 minAfter a rollercoaster week of news - the threat of World War 3 suddenly felt a little overstated. But a few short hours after a ceasefire between Israel and Iran - both countries returned to a war of words and missiles - leading to President Trump delivering an outburst for the ages: “They don’t know what the F*** they’re doing”. But does Trump? Nish and Coco don’t think so. The UK has been swept up in the maelstrom - with the pomp and circumstance of diplomatic theatrics making little impact in a world where the US president acts unilaterally. Then, the gang speak to urban sociologist Dr Abi O’Connor about a potential way out of the affordability crisis in housing - rent controls. Abi breaks down the concept for us all to digest, with some listener questions along the way. Then, finally - the home secretary Yvette Cooper is seeking to proscribe Palestine Action as a terror group… WTF. SEE US LIVE! https://crossedwires.os.fan/pod-save-the-uk CHECK OUT THIS DEAL FROM OUR SPONSOR https://www.auraframes.com CODE: AURA20 Useful Links Write to your MP https://www.parliament.uk/get-involved/contact-an-mp-or-lord/contact-your-mp/ Homes for Us Alliance https://homesforus.org.uk/ Guest: Dr Abi O’Connor, Urban Sociologist & Researcher for Homes for Us Alliance Audio Credits: The Guardian BBC Pod Save the World Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
U-turn after U-turn: who is the real Keir Starmer?Jun 21, 2025 · 55 minKeir Starmer is not afraid of a U-turn. From abandoned policy pledges to reinstating the winter-fuel allowance, the list is growing. To add to this - this week, the PM has expressed his support for Israel’s military action against Iran, despite criticising Israel’s actions in Gaza. Then he caved in to calls for a full national inquiry into grooming gangs, despite earlier dismissing them as amplifying far-right demands. Whether you think these are sensible or sly, these political backflips have certainly led to a lot of headscratching when it comes to one question: what does our Prime Minister actually stand for? Nish and Coco sit down with New Statesman Editor in Chief, Tom McTague, who has spent months with Starmer trying to find out what lies beneath the title. The Government’s new Welfare Reform Bill is introduced in Parliament this week, which experts say will lead to nearly a quarter of a million more families being pushed into poverty. Nish heads down to Westminster to meet with hundreds of people who have gathered to call for an end to the rising tide of hunger and hardship in the UK. Nish speaks to Labour MP Brian Leishman, Liberal Democrat Wendy Chamberlain and Green Siân Berry about the calls for an essentials guarantee - while hearing from the lived experience of people working at food banks around the UK. And as the Government's new data bill finally passes in the House of Lords, Nish and Coco voice their concerns about what it means for the creative industries. CORRECTION: A previous version of this podcast included an incorrect statistic about the rate of foodbank usage within the UK - which is estimated by the DWP to be at around 3% of households. We regret the error. CHECK OUT THIS DEAL FROM OUR SPONSOR https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk Guests: Tom McTague Siân Berry Brian Leishman Wendy Chamberlain Helen Barnard Emma Revie Useful links: Tom McTague’s profile of Keir Starmer https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2025/06/what-keir-starmer-cant-say Support the Trussell Trust’s call for an Essential Guarantee! https://www.trussell.org.uk/support-us/guarantee-our-essentials Write to your MP https://www.parliament.uk/get-involved/contact-an-mp-or-lord/contact-your-mp/ Audio Credits: BBC Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Is Labour finally being Labour?Jun 12, 2025 · 53 minRachel Reeves has delivered her very first spending review, promising to ‘renew Britain’ with big cash boosts for the NHS, housing and defence. It’s a marked change of tone but the Tories are calling her approach “spend now, tax later”. Nish and Coco dig into the details and are left with some questions. Are tax rises in the Autumn inevitable? Are high-stakes promises, like vowing to end spending on controversial asylum hotels, ill-thought-out? Will all this be enough to change the public mood? And as we’ve seen across the pond in LA this week, face masks have been critical to protect the identity of protestors demonstrating against immigration raids and deportations. But the UK government plans to ban them. Nish and Coco speak to Akiko Hart, director of human rights organisation, Liberty, about how we can uphold the right to protest and the latest on challenging the Supreme Court ruling on the definition of a woman. And finally - it gives us great joy to announce - Reform UK is in meltdown with (now former) party chairman Zia Yusuf performing the political equivalent of the hokey-cokey… is he in or out? CHECK OUT THIS DEAL FROM OUR SPONSOR SHOPIFY: https://www.shopify.co.uk/podsavetheuk Useful Links: See us live! https://crossedwires.live/podcast/pod-save-the-uk Liberty Human Rights https://www.libertyhumanrights.org.uk/ Guests: Akiko Hart Audio Credits BBC Parliament TV Instagram / Richard Tice Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media. Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.com Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Nish Kumar

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