Niamh Gallagher talks to Thomas Jones about the history of the Irish border, from its origins in the 1920s to today, the way it has shaped Irish politics in both the south and north, and why the Troubles can’t be repeated.Find Niamh Gallagher's piece in the LRB and more here: https://lrb.me/irishborderpodSign up to our Close Readings subscription: https://lrb.me/closereadingspod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tariq Ali talks to Thomas Jones about a newly reissued biography of the Prophet by Maxime Rodinson, and the historic prevalence of Arabic culture in the West, from Don Quixote to Trafalgar Square.Find Tariq Ali's review and other related pieces in the LRB here: https://lrb.me/muhammadcervantespodSign up to our Close Readings subscription: https://lrb.me/closereadingspod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The legendary cartoonist talks to Thomas Jones about his latest book, Street Cop, a collaboration with Robert Coover, and looks back on previous work including Maus and In the Shadow of No Towers, which was originally published in the LRB.Find related pieces in the LRB here: https://lrb.me/spiegelmanpodBuy Street Cop here: https://isolarii.com/Subscribe to the LRB from just £1 per issue: https://mylrb.co.uk/podcast20b Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alan Bennett reads selections from his diary from March 2020 to March 2021.Read more Alan Bennett in the LRB here: lrb.me/alanbennettpodSign up to our Close Readings subscription: https://lrb.me/closereadingspod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Adam Shatz talks to Tareq Baconi and Henriette Chacar about the crisis in Israel-Palestine, the significance of the ceasefire, the context of the war, the politics inside Israel and the Gaza Strip, and the response in Washington.Read Tareq Baconi on the LRB blog: https://lrb.me/afterceasefirepodSign up to our Close Readings subscription: https://lrb.me/closereadingspod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Claire Hall talks to Thomas Jones about Ancient Greek horoscopy, the Ptolemaic model, the mysteries of the Antikythera mechanism, and why astrology was the first data science.Find Claire's LRB pieces and more here: https://lrb.me/perfectcirclespodSign up to our Close Readings subscription: https://lrb.me/closereadingspod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rosa Lyster talks to Thomas Jones about the global water crisis, from the severe droughts in her home city of Cape Town, to the sinking of Mexico City and the damming of the Nile, and the need for all countries to prepare for future shortages.Find Rosa Lyster's pieces (and listen ad free to this podcast) on our website here: https://lrb.me/waterpodSign up to our Close Readings subscription: https://lrb.me/closereadingspod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Peter Geoghegan talks to Thomas Jones about the Greensill lobbying scandal, the refurbishment of Boris Johnson’s flat, the unhealthy relationship between successive British governments and the private sector, and what it might all mean for the future of the Union.Find Peter's pieces others in the LRB here: https://lrb.me/onebigpaydaypodSign up to our Close Readings subscription: https://lrb.me/closereadingspod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jesse McCarthy talks to Adam Shatz about his studies of Black diasporic culture, from Juan de Pareja to Audre Lorde, and his critique of Ta-Nehisi Coates’s case for reparations.Find related pieces in the LRB here: https://lrb.me/blindspotspodSubscribe to the LRB from just £1 per issue: https://mylrb.co.uk/podcast20b Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Irina Dumitrescu talks to Thomas Jones about female authorship in early medieval England, and how the power and freedom that (some) women had in the eighth century challenges the idea of linear social progress.Find more by Irina Dumitrescu in the LRB here: https://lrb.me/dumitrescupodSubscribe to the LRB from just £1 per issue: https://mylrb.co.uk/podcast20b Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.