Best of the Spectator

In this week’s Book Club podcast, I’m joined by the writer China Miéville to talk about his new book A Spectre, Haunting: On The Communist Manifesto. China makes the case for why this 1848 document deserves our attention in the 21st century, why even its critics would benefit from reading it more closely and sympathetically, and why - in his view - the gamble of a revolutionary abolition of capitalism is not only possible, but well worth taking. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nell Hudson has starred in Outlander, Victoria and the latest Texas Chainsaw Massacre film. Her debut novel, Just for Today, is out now: it’s about a group of twenty-somethings in London, having “heady, reckless fun”. Nell speaks to Lara and Olivia about how she’s enjoying veganism and the one meat she misses, growing up on a farm, a peculiar childhood diet and the lonely eating habits of an actor. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week's Holy Smoke I offer some thoughts on the impressive and distinctive Christian faith of the Queen – impressive because it's so refreshingly direct compared to that of many of her politics-obsessed bishops, and distinctive because Elizabeth II is one of a dwindling band of Low Church but not Evangelical Anglicans whose favourite Sunday service is old-fashioned Matins. Questions of churchmanship aside, however, there is no doubting the intensity of her convictions, about which she has spoken with increasing candour and confidence in recent years. Will she turn out to be the United Kingdom's last robustly Christian monarch? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fraser Nelson, The Spectator’s editor, speaks to Louise Perry, author of The Case Against the Sexual Revolution, about why it should be harder to divorce. Elsewhere on the the show, Spectator contributor Christopher Howse discusses the monarchy with our political editor James Forsyth. Cindy Yu, host of our Chinese Whispers podcast, says China hasn’t changed all that much since the Tiananmen Square protests 30 years ago. Former consultant J. Meirion Thomas tells Fraser why GP surgeries are in crisis. Historians Antony Beevor and Serhii Plokhy talk about why Putin might yet win in Ukraine.Get 10 weeks of the magazine, in print and online, for just £1 in our Jubilee flash sale. We'll also send you a commemorative tea towel to mark the occasion. Offer ends on Monday. Go to: www.spectator.co.uk/jubilee   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week's episode, Robert Hardman reads his cover article on the quiet radicalism of Queen Elizabeth II (00:50); J. Meirion Thomas reads his article on the 'total triage' system that is leaving patients unable to see their GPs; and Sarah Ditum reads her review of Sandra Newman's new novel, The Men.Presented by Angus Colwell.Produced by Angus Colwell and Cindy Yu. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week’s episode:Robert Hardman & Angela Levin, two of the UK’s royal specialists, explore the character of the Queen and the impact she has had on the institution of the monarchy. (00:36)Also this week:For now, it seems that Boris Johnson is hanging on after the publishing of the Sue Gray report, but how stable is his position? Could a vote of no confidence be closer than anyone expects? The Spectator’s political editor James Forsyth joins the podcast to discuss. (13:47)And finally:Is Chinese cinema in decline? Cindy Yu writes on this in this week’s Spectator, and she joins the podcast along with Andrew Heskins, the founder of easternkicks.com, a review website specialising in Asian film, and co-founder of the film festival, Focus Hong Kong.(23:33)Hosted by Lara PrendergastProduced by Sam HolmesSubscribe to The Spectator today and get a £20 Amazon gift voucher: www.spectator.co.uk/voucher Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

My guests in this week's Book Club podcast are Daniel Kahneman and Olivier Sibony, co-authors (with Cass R Sunstein) of Noise: A Flaw In Human Judgment. Augmenting the work on psychological bias that won Prof Kahneman a Nobel Prize, this investigation exposes a more invisible and often more impactful way in which human judgments go awry: the random-seeming variability which statisticians call noise. They tell me how it affects everything from business to academic life and the judicial system; and how we can detect it and minimise it. The answers to those questions, it turns out, are very hard for human beings (especially French ones) to accept... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

All eyes are on the Communist leadership this year, as the months count down to autumn’s National Party Congress, where Xi Jinping may be crowned for a third term. But how much do we really know about the Party’s leadership? In particular, can we better understand them through looking at the experiences that they've had?Take Xi Jinping, who is what is known as a 'princeling' – his father was the Communist revolutionary Xi Zhongxun, one of the Party's early cadres. How did that upbringing impact him, and his faith in the Chinese Communist Party?Also consider the Cultural Revolution – the sixtysomethings on the Politburo Standing Committee would have been teenagers during that decade of turmoil. How did it form who they are as leaders today?Joining Cindy Yu on the podcast is Professor Kerry Brown from Kings College London, whose latest book is Xi: A Study in Power, so very knowledgeable on the President himself; as well as Professor Steve Tsang, a historian at SOAS. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Marshall Matters Winston speaks to Rahima Mahmut. Rahima is a Uyghur singer, writer, translator and activist. They discussed the history and genocide of her people, compared CCP narrative to the Uyghur perspective, the Adrian Zenz report, her musical background and her song Tarim. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kate Andrews, The Spectator’s economics editor, speaks to Emma Ashford, a senior research fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center, and Spectator contributor Ian Williams.On the rest of the show, our political team, Katy Balls and James Forsyth, discuss Sue Gray’s report and Rishi Sunak’s announcement of more money to help with the cost-of-living crisis. We also have a sneak preview of tomorrow’s Women With Balls episode – a discussion with Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen. Rod Liddle talks to Kate about his new favourite distraction: Bubbleshooter.This episode is sponsored by Canaccord Genuity Wealth Management.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.