Politics Weekly UK

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Guardian political columnist John Harris hosts a cast of voices from up and down the country as well as across the political spectrum to analyse the week’s political news. For US Politics with Guardian columnist Jonathan Freedland, make sure to search 'Politics Weekly America' wherever you get your podcasts

Recent Episodes
  • Is Labour being outflanked on the left by Nigel Farage? – Politics Weekly UK
    May 29, 2025 – 00:29:27
  • Labour takes action over Gaza: what took them so long? – Politics Weekly UK
    May 22, 2025 – 00:34:55
  • Ghosts of Brexit past haunt new UK-EU deal – Politics Weekly Westminster
    May 19, 2025 – 00:24:51
  • Starmer’s migrant rhetoric: a squalid chapter? – Politics Weekly UK
    May 15, 2025 – 00:36:21
  • How Labour plans to ‘take back control’ on migration – Politics Weekly Westminster
    May 12, 2025 – 00:28:35
  • Rage against the mainstream: did UK politics just change for good? – Politics Weekly UK
    May 8, 2025 – 00:33:43
  • Farage here to stay: the local elections that changed everything– Politics Weekly Westminster
    May 5, 2025 – 00:29:09
  • ‘Reform all the way’: on the road in Doncaster – Politics Weekly UK
    Apr 30, 2025 – 00:39:00
  • Could Reform be the big winners at local elections? – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Apr 28, 2025 – 00:25:10
  • Will rising child poverty be Labour’s legacy? – Politics Weekly UK
    Apr 24, 2025 – 00:25:46
  • How the Beatles helped my autistic son find his voice – Today in Focus
    Apr 21, 2025 – 00:30:04
  • What’s next for British Steel? – Politics Weekly UK
    Apr 17, 2025 – 00:29:52
  • Trump triggers global meltdown while Starmer scrambles – Politics Weekly UK
    Apr 9, 2025 – 00:33:17
  • Trump explodes the world economy: what should the UK do? – Politics Weekly UK
    Apr 3, 2025 – 00:32:59
  • Will Starmer’s approach to Trump tariffs pay off? – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Mar 31, 2025 – 00:21:37
  • Wes Streeting’s plan to fix the NHS – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Mar 28, 2025 – 00:36:11
  • Spring statement: Should a Labour government be making these cuts? – Politics Weekly UK
    Mar 26, 2025 – 00:35:02
  • Spring statement: What to expect – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Mar 24, 2025 – 00:25:57
  • A day on the frontline of England’s social care crisis – Politics Weekly UK
    Mar 20, 2025 – 00:35:52
  • Politics Weekly Westminster: cabinet fears over benefit cuts
    Mar 17, 2025 – 00:22:59
  • Labour loses its way on benefits reform – Politics Weekly UK
    Mar 13, 2025 – 00:33:45
  • Ed Miliband on net zero in the age of Trump – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Mar 10, 2025 – 00:27:27
  • Is Trump’s America still an ally to the UK? – Politics Weekly UK
    Mar 6, 2025 – 00:30:53
  • Will Starmer’s peace plan work after the Trump-Zelenskyy clash? – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Mar 3, 2025 – 00:25:59
  • Special episode: Inside the room when Starmer met Trump – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Feb 28, 2025 – 00:31:03
  • On the road in south Wales: why is Reform UK on the rise?
    Feb 27, 2025 – 00:38:13
  • Can Starmer stop Trump’s Ukraine sell-out? – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Feb 24, 2025 – 00:26:34
  • What role could the UK play in ending the Ukraine war? – Politics Weekly
    Feb 20, 2025 – 00:31:24
  • Is the assisted dying bill doomed? – Politics Weekly UK
    Feb 13, 2025 – 00:31:50
  • Can Kemi and Keir combat the rise of Reform UK? – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Feb 10, 2025 – 00:26:01
  • Special episode: Behind the scenes of David Lammy’s Ukraine trip
    Feb 7, 2025 – 00:25:28
  • Starmer’s diplomatic dance with Trump and the EU – Politics Weekly UK
    Feb 6, 2025 – 00:30:49
  • Jeremy Hunt on Trump and the Tories’ future – Politics Weekly Special
    Feb 4, 2025 – 00:19:08
  • Back to Brexit – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Feb 3, 2025 – 00:23:03
  • Fury over Reeves’ climate climbdown – Politics Weekly UK
    Jan 30, 2025 – 00:30:46
  • Trump speaks with Starmer, and Reeves tries to reset – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Jan 27, 2025 – 00:23:36
  • Could the Southport attack have been prevented? – Politics Weekly UK
    Jan 23, 2025 – 00:34:29
  • The return of President Trump – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Jan 20, 2025 – 00:25:10
  • Can Labour fix the broken NHS? – Politics Weekly UK
    Jan 16, 2025 – 00:33:03
  • Could AI save the UK economy? – Politics Weekly Westminster podcast
    Jan 13, 2025 – 00:26:32
  • Grooming gangs: do we need another inquiry? – Politics Weekly UK podcast
    Jan 9, 2025 – 00:34:06
  • Elon Musk v UK Politics – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Jan 6, 2025 – 00:26:10
  • Politics Weekly UK’s 2024 culture list
    Jan 2, 2025 – 00:07:04
  • Politics Weekly UK is on holiday
    Dec 26, 2024 – 00:00:25
  • Review of the year: how will we remember 2024? – Politics Weekly UK
    Dec 19, 2024 – 00:51:20
  • Chinese spy allegations stun UK establishment – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Dec 16, 2024 – 00:26:07
  • What next for Britain’s Syrian refugees? – Politics Weekly UK
    Dec 12, 2024 – 00:30:38
  • How does the UK respond to the regime change in Syria? – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Dec 9, 2024 – 00:28:56
  • Revisited: Carla Denyer and the Green party: four MPs v the climate crisis
    Dec 5, 2024 – 00:35:44
  • Labour’s missions and what next for the Assisted Dying bill – Politics Weekly Westminster
    Dec 2, 2024 – 00:20:14
Recent Reviews
  • /:;()&@$(:-
    Insightful
    Always look forward to a new episode of the Guardian Politics UK and Politics America. Great to get an informed, on-the-ground perspective.
  • do' not have one
    my review
    i like this show a lot
  • *Mr. Joshua*
    Awful
    My experience with this podcast left much to be desired, as it failed to deliver the necessary elements for an engaging and memorable listening journey. Unfortunately, the hosts' monotonous delivery hindered the potential for a captivating experience. Moreover, the podcast's production quality was subpar, resulting in distractions and detracting from the overall enjoyment. The lack of structure and excessively long episodes further contributed to a lackluster and forgettable experience. Additionally, the guest selection failed to impress, missing the opportunity to bring fresh insights and perspectives to the table. In today's vast array of exceptional podcasts, this particular offering fell short of meeting even the most basic standards of quality and entertainment. I encourage exploring alternative options that showcase engaging hosts, well-produced episodes, and thought-provoking content to ensure a truly fulfilling podcast listening experience.
  • justarando123
    Really bad audio
    Terrible sound quality and audio editing. Do the producers even listen to the episodes before publishing them? Episodes have audio bits in them that are clearly not meant for publication.
  • dkcholo
    Essential Listening from the USA
    Week after week, this podcast delivers a concise, intelligent analysis of UK issues. The recent NHS pod with reps from the nurses unions rejecting the Tory government proposals was excellent.
  • AA34786
    Big sound quality issues
    Terrible sound quality, which is a shame because it really distracts from the content. The hosts would do well to listen to their show to see how bad the sound is - the recent 19 Jan 2023 episode is a good example.
  • trouser roller
    Uneven audio volume
    The producers of each episode need to make sure that the volume of each speaker is consistently audible. Sometimes they might be whispering.
  • bicycle wheel
    Uk politics weekly
    This is basically a critique of the current politics in the UK from a Labor Party perspective. A bit predictable and hence not very interesting.
  • 487659284738
    John Harris is insufferable
    I don’t disagree with his sentiment, but if I have to hear John Harris say “so-called cost-of-living crisis…but it’s really a social emergency” one more time, I will lose my mind. STOP TRYING TO MAKE FETCH HAPPEN!!!
  • Peter Jarka-Sellers
    Great podcast
    Good discussions every week
  • GiveMeRealNewz
    Left wing ultra Liberal
    Stick with UK politics; Your left wing ultra liberal commentary about US politics is not needed. We have plenty of that nonsense provided by 99% of US media.
  • nick van praag
    Must-listen listen
    I like this podcast a lot. And always listen. But I was disappointed by Heather Stewart’s take on the PM and his ministerial entourage in the US this week. I am sure it’s hard to keep your distance when you are so close to ‘power’ during these visitbut please guard against being propinqued by propinquity. Its not cool and undermines your credibility. Which is normally high.
  • Cito F
    Misleading headlines
    Often the headline asks a question which the programme itself doesn’t actually address.
  • legaleagle22
    Mediocre
    A more civil version of pundits yelling at each other on TV. Most of the guests are partisans blatantly trying to spin rather than analyze, which isn’t really my cup of tea. Tends to run long for the amount of content as well; there are a lot of empty calories here.
  • arron2234324
    Great selection
    Great show
  • apflor
    Fine
    Fine, but the panelists talk over each other which makes difficult to listen.
  • rm9897
    Quality of contributors is too mixed
    Generally a good weekly analysis of what is going on, though the contributors vary widely in terms of quality. Polly Toynbee is the worst. Full of opinions presented as facts combined with shallow analysis e.g. ERG = crazy fanatics. Owen Jones and Will Tanner much higher quality.
  • TylerProctor
    Great Political Podcast - From Florida
    I live in the United States, in Florida to be exact(yes, it’s very hot here). I’m very interested in UK politics. Even though I’ve never visited, I dream too one day. This podcast presents different viewpoints(conservative, labour, lib dem) and is a useful source for hearing discussions about political issues throughout the UK. It’s nice to hear a little about US politics too. - Tyler from Pensacola, FL
  • Gorman the Librarian
    Curate's eggy
    I am a decades long Guardian reader and am beyond disappointed by this bland, uninformative podcast. Instead of featuring established and informative Guardian journalists (Toynbee, White, Kettle, etc.) they have a juvenile sniggering line-up who do not engage with the real issues. The latest episode is a case in point. They featured a Tory apparatchik (the kind of Mockney who pronounces the t in 'often' and thinks the world of Lynton Crosby), the pseudo-progressive Baer and a moderator who sounds like a teenager. Later, the Guardian Election Daily podcasts are quite a different matter. Owen Jones and Jonathan Freedland and their guests (including the excellent Stepehn Bush) are knowledgable, articulate, and informative. These are vastly superior to the regular podcasts and one can only hope that, when the election is over, the podcasts can keep up the "Election Daily" standards.
  • Aggiejamz
    Difficult for an American
    The most recent episode talks in-depth about economics and how actions improve the U.K. There's very few political shows in the US that speak to people on this level. It's good but I would have to actively listen to an episode to get it.
  • Egomet Bonmot
    Best poli podcast on the web
    The other reviewer is a nut -- it doesn't get better than this Guardian podcast. Political "slant" is left-center of course. Eminently bright & witty conversation to be had here. [8/25/11 addendum: "Let's all pencil in a 30-day vacation for August! That's certain to be a slow news month."]
  • hAAPpy
    Excellent multi-view analysis by grown ups
    Center left with Julian providing the Conservative party slant. Great way to keep up with UK politics.
  • clarkesq
    Conservative Flak
    This podcast seems to be an extension of the Conservative Party perspective. It is not balanced, so the listener should have the expectation of such bias. There may be better sources for fair-minded discussion of the issues, especially as relating to the PM. Not all that Labour does is bad - in fact, Labour has done some great things that have made the UK one of the best places to live.
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