193 | Cameron's Referendum

David and Helen take a step back to unpick the tortuous history of how we got to the Brexit referendum in the first place. Does the justification Cameron offers in his new memoirs stack up? What was he trying to achieve? And why did we end up with an in/out vote when the political risks were so great? A conversation linked to David's review of Cameron's book in the current 40th anniversary issue of the LRB. https://www.lrb.co.uk

98 | Oh Italy!

 A new Italian government spells a heap of trouble for Europe.  We ask how we got to this point and what it means the future of the Euro.  What really spooked the markets?  Who blinked first?  And why does Italian politics have such a soft spot for university professors?  Plus we talk about the new government in Spain and we weigh up the state of democracy across the continent.  Is this how democracy is meant to work or is this really how democracy ends?  With Helen Thompson, Chris Bickerton and Lucia Rubinelli from the LSE