New Culture Forum

2.21 Lionel Shriver: Coronavirus, Woody Allen & Defending Free Speech by New Culture Forum

Peter's guest this week is Darren Grimes, the political activist and commentator who took on the might of the establishment and won. Darren was wrongly fined by the Electoral Commission and faced financial ruin at the age of 23 when he decided to fight back and took his case all the way to the High Court. He shares with us his journey so far, his thoughts on current affairs and what the future might hold in newly-blue 'red wall' seats the Tories picked up at the last election.

* Simon Evans (BBC Live At The Apollo; Michael McIntyre's Road Show; Rado 4 News Quiz, etc.) * Konstantin Kisin (Jewish Comedian of the Year; Triggernometry, free speech media pundit, etc.) * Dominic Frisby (co-Host's "Money Pit" on Dave; "17 Million F*&K Offs" Brexit hit song; Brexit Party PPC, etc.) * Rafe Heydel-Mankoo (Historian & Broadcaster with huge knowledge of 20th C. British Comedy) On this week's #NCFCounterCulture with Marc Sidwell, our expert panel, including three seasoned veterans of the stand-up circuit -- some of whom are often "accused" of being right wing -- believe great comedy is out there...just not necessarily on the BBC. BBC comedy is regularly criticised for its dominance by comedians sharing a left-wing / liberal / woke viewpoint. Critics claim this imbalance excludes comedians and comedic subjects that do not fit with this world view -- and thus falls flat for a large % of the British public. Are they correct? If so, is this an issue for the BBC alone? Or is it evidence that comedy as a whole is struggling in the era of "Woke", where comedians must constantly self censor for fear of causing offence or having promising careers curtailed by a Twitter storm? Our panel believes that comedy is in fact thriving & maybe in a new Golden Age -- if only the British public were better exposed to it or knew where to look. Thankfully, the rise of Netflix, YouTube and other new online platforms means that viewers no longer need to have their comedy "approved" by the state broadcaster's commissioning editors. The market now decides who is funny -- and many of the comedians faring best have had little to no exposure on the mainstream media. FOR TOURING DATES & OTHER INFO ON OUR PANELISTS, PLEASE SEE: * Simon Evans: www.thesimonevans.com - Twitter: @TheSimonEvans * Dominic Frisby: www.dominicfrisby.com - Twitter: @DominicFrisby * Konstantin Kisin: www.konstantinkisin.com - Twitter: @KonstantinKisin * Rafe Heydel-Mankoo: www.heydel-mankoo.com - Twitter: @RafHM

"If you're young and not a liberal you have no heart. If you're over 35 and still a liberal you have no head." How accurate is that oft-quoted stereotype? If only those aged 18-25 were eligible to vote in the recent General Election, then Jeremy Corbyn's Labour would have had a majority of over 500 seats, with Boris Johnson's Tories reduced to a pitiful 4 seats. With this in mind, does the Conservative Party have a future in British politics? How will they be able to get re-elected decades from now? Or are reports correct that the youngest generation (Generation Z) proving to be more conservative than the preceding generation of Millenials? Joining Peter Whittle this week to discuss this is a panel of Young Tories: Emily Hewertson: 19 year old member of the Conservative Party who became a national sensation following her spirited contribution during an episode of BBC's Question Time. Dominique Samuels: Originally of Turning Point UK, Dominique left TP to become President of the newest voice for conservative youth: Orthodox Conservatives Jake Scott: A Ph.D. candidate who is Head of Philosophy & Ideology at Orthodox Conservatives Rafe Heydel-Mankoo of the New Culture Forum, resident guest panellist on CounterCulture and an "old" High Tory, Historian and Broadcaster.

THE PANEL: Dr. John Barry: chartered psychologist, honorary lecturer with the Department of Psychology at University College London (UCL), member of the British Psychological Society (BPS), founder of the Male Psychology Network and the Gender Equity Network. In addition, he is a campaigner for the creation of a Male Psychology Section of the BPS, author of over 40 publications in peer-reviewed journals, a clinical hypnotherapist and Director of Research for the Male Psychology Network. Belinda Brown: Journalist who writes for the Daily Mail and Conservative Woman on gender issues and feminism. Martin Daubney: Best known as a Member of the European Parliament for the Brexit Party, Martin Daubney is also co-founder of the "Men & Boys Coalition" and was also a long-time editor of lad's mag "Loaded" magazine. Rafe Heydel-Mankoo of the New Culture Forum, historian & broadcaster. On #NCFCounterCulture this week, our panel discuss the myth of Toxic Masculinity and highly questionable statements on the "harmfulness" of "traditional masculinity" by gender studies academics as well as the American Psychological Association. Questions addressed: Are men under attack? Is there a gender pay gap? Why are white working-class males the most disadvantaged group in the United Kingdom? Why do men account for 3/4 of suicides? And why is suicide the leading cause of death for males under the age of 50? The panel argue that it is a LACK of masculinity that is the problem facing society today. (Such as fatherless families)

What type of Conservative is Boris Johnson? On this week's episode of #NCFCounterCulture we discuss the future of conservatism now that Boris Johnson has been returned as Prime Minister with a large majority following the 2019 General Election. The Tories could be in power for the next 10 years. But what kind of conservatism will steer the ship of state? Will the Thatcherites in cabinet take back control? Or will Boris Johnson find himself needing to pander to his new voters in the North of England, taken from the Labour Party in their collapsing Red Wall? Is there even such a thing as "Johnsonism"? Joining host Marc Sidwell on this week's panel to discuss this are: Douglas Chirnside, Documentary Maker and PPC for the Brexit Party in the 2019 Election Rafe Heydel-Mankoo of the New Culture Forum, Historian & Broadcaster Mark Wallace, Chief Executive of Conservative Home Jamie Whyte, Editor of Smith Magazine & past Research Director at the Institute for Economic Affairs

On this week's NCF CounterCulture, our panel look 10 years into the future and make their predictions on what Britain might look like in 2030. With 5 and possibly 10 years of Conservative government ahead, how might Boris Johnson seek to alter the nation over the next decade? What will be the threats Britain will face? Following the House of Lords' attempt to thwart Brexit, will Lords reform become inevitable? Will recent events involving the Royal Family (i.e. the departure of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan) have any implications for the future of the Monarchy? What impact will immigration have on Britain in 2030? Will we still be free to think and speak as much as we do today? Joining Peter Whittle on this week's panel are: Richard Bingley (Security Expert & Founder of NSA think tank) Benjamin Loughnane (Communications Consultant specialising in Migration) Rafe Heydel-Mankoo (New Culture Forum, Historian & Broadcaster specialising in British identity) Emma Webb (Civitas, specialising in Integration, Democracy & Extremism) #NCFCounterCulture

As the 2020s get underway, the BBC might seem as powerful as ever; but, PM Boris Johnson's government is boycotting key current affairs programmes and threatens to decriminalise the licence fee for non-payment. This week's panel debates BBC ethos, ideology and funding models and discusses whether the BBC is a national treasure that must be preserved or a wholly biased institution ripe for reform or even abolition. HOST: Marc Sidwell, Journalist and Author THE PANEL: * DAVID COX: TV producer & former head of current affairs for LWT (London Weekend Television) * JAMES DELINGPOLE: Writer, Journalist and Columnist * RAFE HEYDEL-MANKOO: Historian, Writer and Broadcaster * SOPHIE SANDOR: Writer and Documentary Maker #NCFCounterCulture

This week on CounterCulture, the panel debate whether the political shenanigans post Brexit referendum have damaged Britain and its institutions and how they are perceived by the British public. Joining Rafe Heydel-Mankoo are journalists & political and cultural commentators: Tim Stanley Madeline Grant Tom Harwood David Oldroyd-Bolt Among the questions explored are: * Is Britain broken? If so, was it broken by Brexit or did Brexit merely reveal long-existing damage? * Peter Oborne's book "Triumph of the Political Class": Has the post-1997 political class ushered in by Blair & Mandelson and continued by Brown & Cameron brought us here? Will they triumph or collapse?. * What, if anything, has Brexit exposed/revealed about us, our elites, institutions and nation/union? * What dangers, if any, are posed by a great swathe of the British public having this "revelation". Once seen by the British public, can it be "unseen"? * What happens now? Can/Should Britain be fixed? Is it worth fixing? * Is Brexit/the General Election about to prematurely force the political realignment in British politics that some have seen coming for some time? (Dr. Stephen Davies, Prof. Matthew Goodwin thesis: politics is aligning on cultural/values lines rather than class: Thus we would have Brexit party + Blue Labour + Tory "right" on one side and Labour right + Tory left + Lib Dems on the other) #NCFCounterCulture

The New Culture Forum is proud to present the first episode of our brand new roundtable discussion programme: CounterCulture. The sister show to our interview programme, "So What You're Saying Is...", CounterCulture will bring together 4 different guest panellists each week to discuss all the new things happening in our culture (books, films, music etc.) as well as the big philosophical and cultural issues that are defining our society and public discourse at the moment. In this episode we shall be looking at the biggest film of the moment: JOKER directed by Todd Philips and starring Joaquin Phoenix as the lead character. It's quite controversial depending on which part of the political spectrum you come from, but its arguably the best film of the year and has been a huge hit at the box office. Panellists today are: Agnieszka Kolek, co-founder of the Passion for Freedom festival Marc Sidwell, Deputy Editor of Smith magazine Rafe Heydel-Mankoo, Historian and Commentator Richard Bingley, Security Analyst and Author