
Presidents, Prime Ministers, Monarchs & Dictators
Season One of ‘The Presidents & Prime Ministers brought to life all 55 of Britain's Prime Ministers through interviews with the authors of all 55 essays in Iain Dale’s book The Prime Ministers: Three Hundred Years of History. From the obscure 18th-century figures like the Earl of Shelburne and Henry Pelham to 20th-century titans like Churchill and Thatcher, these podcasts provide a much-needed reminder about their motivations, failures and achievements. Season Two, gives the same treatment to the 45 US Presidents from George Washington through to Joe Biden, with each episode featuring an interview with the author of the essay about a President in Iain Dale’s book ‘The Presidents’. Season Three contained interviews about the various and varied Irish Taoisigh, whilst the new Season 4 takes you through England and the UK's many Kings and Queens, as featured in Iain's book Kings and Queens: 1200 Years of English and British Monarchs. Season 5 looks at the life of 64 Dictators. Buy signed copies of ‘The Prime Ministers’, ‘The Presidents’ and 'Kings and Queens' & 'Dictators' at http://www.politicos.co.uk.
Latest episodes

Jun 8, 2025 • 45min
206. Tito – Yugoslavia (1945-80)
Iain Dale talks to journalist and historian Connor Hand about the extraordinary life of rule of Yugoslavua’s post war ruler, Tito, who started out in life as Josip Broz.

Jun 1, 2025 • 32min
205. Wu Zetian – China (690-705)
Iain Dale talks to historian C J Corn about the only female in the book THE DICTATORS, who he describes as “the most powerful woman the world has ever seen”.

May 25, 2025 • 33min
204. Nicolae Ceaușescu – Romania (1965-89)
Iain Dale talks to Emma Burnell about the man who ruled Romania with an iron fist for a quarter of a century.

May 18, 2025 • 43min
203. Slobodan Milošević – Yugoslavia, then Serbia (1989-97, 1997-2000)
I talk to US historian Alvin S, Felzenberg about the life and rule of a dictator who ended up in The Hague.

May 11, 2025 • 1h 5min
202. Adolf Hitler – Germany (1933-45)
Iain Dale talks to Britain’s pre-eminent expert on the Third Reich, Professor Richard J Evans about the life of German dictator, Adolf Hitler.

May 4, 2025 • 30min
201. Hafez Al-Assad – Syria (1970-2000)
Iain Dale talks to Charles Pitt about the thirty year rule of Syrian dictator Hafez Al-Assad.Buy a signed copy of THE DICTATORS https://www.politicos.co.uk/products/the-dictators-a-warning-from-history-edited-by-iain-dale-signe-copy-coming-in-2024

Apr 27, 2025 • 1h 7min
200. Vladimir Putin – Russia (2000-)
Iain Dale talks to long time Moscow Correspondent Owen Matthews about the life and career of Vladimir Putin. Owen’s book is called ‘Overreach: The Inside Story of Putin’s War Against Ukraine”.Buy a signed copy of THE DICTATORS https://www.politicos.co.uk/products/the-dictators-a-warning-from-history-edited-by-iain-dale-signe-copy-coming-in-2024

Apr 20, 2025 • 50min
199. Manuel Noriega – Panama (1983-89)
Iain Dale talks to Sam Marks about the life and rule of the Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega

Apr 13, 2025 • 36min
198. Muammar Gaddafi – Libya (1969-2011)
Iain Dale talks to former Conservative MP Daniel Kawzcynski about the life of the notorious Libran dictator, Colonel Gaddafi Buy a signed copy of the book THE DICTATOR https://www.politicos.co.uk/products/the-dictators-a-warning-from-history-edited-by-iain-dale-signe-copy-coming-in-2024

Apr 6, 2025 • 44min
197. Juan Peron – Argentina (1946-55, 1973-74)
Iain Dale talks to historian Gareth Russell about the life of the two time Argentinian dictator, Juan Peron Buy a signed copy of the book THE DICTATORShttps://www.politicos.co.uk/products/the-dictators-a-warning-from-history-edited-by-iain-dale-signe-copy-coming-in-2024