83 | Ed Miliband & Geoff Lloyd

David talks to the hosts of the Reasons to be Cheerful podcast about why they are so darned perky about politics.  We discuss whether the political surprises are likely to keep coming and Ed and Geoff pick their favourite ideas from the ones they've covered on the show.  Plus we ask Ed the question we asked his brother David a few months back: if there are so many good progressive ideas out there, why didn't the Blair government act on more of them?  He gives a slightly different answer.  Recorded in Geoff's loft.
 

82 | Who is Jeremy Corbyn?

We talk about one of the central questions of British politics: what does Jeremy Corbyn really want? In the week he's been forced to answer questions about what he did in the Cold War, we ask where his past connects to his present and how long he can maintain his delicate balancing act on Europe. Plus we discuss his attack on the press barons who are attacking him: where does power now lie in the new media landscape? With Helen Thompson and Chris Brooke.

81 | Educated

David talks to Tara Westover about her incredible new book Educated, which tells the story of how a girl brought up by survivalists in Idaho and who never went to school ended up with a PhD from Cambridge.  Along the way we discuss what education means and what Tara's journey has taught her about politics and about life.  Really, this is a conversation about the important stuff.

80 | The Fundamentals

 With stock markets swooning and financial volatility back, we talk about the deeper trends underpinning our politics and our future.  Why have British governments never managed to fix the housing crisis?  What does the state of the American economy mean for Trump's long-term prospects?  And will a period of economic growth make our politics more stable, or are the wild times set to continue?  These are the fundamentals.  With Helen, Chris Brooke and Aaron.

79 | A Second Referendum?

This week David and Helen chew over the big issues of British politics.  How vulnerable is Theresa May?  What is Philip Hammond playing at?  What would be the point of a second referendum on Brexit?  Lots of questions, lots of answers, not so much agreement on which answers are the right ones.  You decide!

78 | Nadia Urbinati on Italy

With Italians elections coming up, we talking to the leading philosopher of democracy Nadia Urbinati about what's going on. How is Berlusconi still in the game? What is the role of the Five Star movement? Are Italian politicians learning any lessons from Trump or Macron? Plus we address the perennial question: is Italy a good indicator of where democracy is heading?