Oh God, What Now?

Special crossover edition... Well, Elon Musk is putting Washington behind him – or so he says… Molly Jong-Fast joined American Friction to talk Chris and Jarv through what’s going on – and we thought you might want to listen too! Go get more American Friction and listen to the whole episode at: https://linktr.ee/americanfriction  Molly also has a new book out called How to Lose Your Mother: A Daughter's Memoir, and there’s a link to buy it below.)  Buy How to Lose Your Mother: A Daughter's Memoir through our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund American Friction by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.  www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow      Presented by Chris Jones and Jacob Jarvis. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio. Production by: Chris Jones. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Reform UK gets a lot of coverage but not enough scrutiny. Say Nigel Farage did become Prime Minister (God forbid), what would a Reform UK-led UK look like? Is their manifesto (… sorry, ‘contract’) full to the brim of wishful thinking? Plus, with changes inbound on the two-child benefit cap and winter fuel payments is Labour sorting its act out? Or does this make Starmer look weak? Paul Nowak is the General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress and joins the podcast to give his thoughts. And in the Extra Bit for subscribers following the death of BBC arts titan Alan Yentob, we ask: Is the dream of culture for the masses still alive?  • Read Sam Freedman’s Substack here: https://samf.substack.com/p/what-would-a-reform-government-be • Listen to The Bunker including Duncan Weldon on the economics of war. • Don’t miss the latest edition of Crime Scene on the Liverpool parade car collision and what it means for policing. ESCAPE ROUTES • Paul recommends Bruce Springsteen live and Race Across The World on BBC iPlayer.  • Matt saw Mary Poppins at the Bradford Alhambra. • Rachel recommends listening to Magic At The Musicals on RadioPlayer.  • Dorian recommends Gang Of Three (keep an eye out in case it gets a transfer) and Electric Dreams at Tate Modern. www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow Presented by Dorian Lynskey with Rachel Cunliffe and Matt Green. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio Production by: Robin Leeburn. Music by Cornershop. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Rebellious MPs, a nightmare spending review, the endless Two Child Benefit Cap row, dire polling… is Labour in for a summer of discontent? We ask whether the Government can bend with the wind to succeed, what policies will change, and whether Starmer/Reeves is a double act with two straight men? Plus: Have researchers found a new way to deal with digital disinformation? And in a special bonus, Jonn and Andrew discuss why the best political drama of the decade so far is the Star Wars spin-off Andor.  • Don’t miss Oh God, What Now? Live at 21Soho on Weds 11 June.  • Listen to the new Crime Scene – the truth about true crime.  ESCAPE ROUTES • Ros recommends The Midwich Cuckoos by John Wyndham.  • Jonn recommends Paradise on Disney+. • Marie recommends Six Of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. • Andrew recommends Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin and Murderbot on Apple TV+.  • Back us on Patreon for ad-free listening, bonus materials and more.  Written and presented by Andrew Harrison with Marie le Conte, John Elledge and Ros Taylor. Audio production by Robin Leeburn. Theme music by Cornershop. Produced by Chris Jones. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Tory press and pundits reacted as rationally as you’d expect to the new UK-EU deal, accusing Starmer of sneaking back into the EU, betraying the British taxpayer, and all their favourite themes. But exactly what are they saying and how much of it is legit? Plus, with the potential abolition of the Department for Culture, Media, and Sport, we ask why governments can’t see the positives of culture? And in the Extra Bit for subscribers, it’s 20 years since The Thick of It hit our screens. Politically, does it still hold up? Today’s special guest is Emma Kennedy, writer and host of our sibling science and psychology podcast Why? – new series out now! • Get tickets for Oh God, What Now? Live at 21 Soho, London, with special guest Marcus Brigstocke. • Don’t miss our fascinating new series Crime Scene. Latest episode: Who killed the Essex Boys? www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow Presented by Dorian Lynskey, Rafael Behr and Zoë Grünewald. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio. Production by Robin Leeburn. Music by Cornershop. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The fish and the fury… As dead-end Brexiters rage against the “betrayal” of the Great British Haddock, we look at what REALLY matters in Starmer’s EU reset. Plus, polling giant YouGov’s Patrick English joins us to bust some opinion poll myths and explain the Reform Surge. And is Generation X really the most hard done-by of the postwar era? We don our Blur t-shirts and crack a Smirnoff Ice to discuss the 90s generation taking financial responsibility for their kids and their parents. • Join us for Oh God, What Now? Live in London with special guest Marcus Brigstocke on Weds 11 June.  • Listen to Crime Scene’s interview with Tory Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp.  ESCAPE ROUTES • Ros recommends Delizia: The Epic History of Italians and Their Food by John Dickie.  • Seth recommends The Radical Print by Esther Chadwick.  • Andrew recommends Andor on Disney+.  www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow Presented by Andrew Harrison with Ros Taylor and Seth Thévoz. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio production by Robin Leeburn. Music by Cornershop. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Marie Le Conte, a sharp journalist and commentator, joins social affairs expert Hannah Fearn and New Statesman columnist Jonn Elledge to tackle the heated immigration debate post a fiery speech by the British Prime Minister. They discuss the critical role of immigration in supporting the care system and challenge pervasive myths about migrants. The trio also critiques politicians' reliance on AI as a fix-all solution while pondering the decline of the after-work pint, reflecting on evolving social norms in our work culture.

Keir Starmer’s statement on immigration may well have repelled many Labour voters towards the Lib Dems and the Greens. How wrong has the Prime Minister got this strategy to defeat Reform? And are his party’s plans even workable? Plus, the UK has signed trade deals with the US and India – what’s in them, how important are they, and are we getting too close to Trump? Trade expert Dmitry Grozoubinski spoke to Andrew Harrison for The Bunker and we’ve included a brief excerpt in this section. • Want more? Find the full Bunker episode with Dmitry here. • Come to Oh God, What Now? Live at 21Soho, London on Weds 11 June. Tickets on sale here. www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow Presented by Ros Taylor with Seth Thévoz, Rachel Cunliffe and Ahir Shah. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio. Production by Robin Leeburn. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Quinn Slobodian, a Professor of International History at Boston University and author of Hayek's Bastards, dives into the Labour Party's response to local election results. He questions whether Starmer's strategies are misguided, sparking a discussion on the shifting nature of right-wing politics and the challenges Labour faces in reconnecting with voters. The conversation also touches on the complexities of contemporary populism and the legacy of neoliberalism, revealing why the political landscape feels so volatile.

Nigel Farage is going to be Prime Minister! Reform are going to eat the Tory Party alive! A plague of bats will devour Kate Middleton! As the locals and Runcorn/Helsby fallout settles we look at Starmer’s panic over Reform, ask whether Badenoch can survive, and stare into the dark heart of Farage Derangement Syndrome. Plus: Was the 2015 General Election – ten years ago this week if you’re planning a party! – the true moment when Britain went inexorably down the pan? ESCAPE ROUTES • Seth says rent the VRBO property with Orson Welles’ ashes in the well. • Hannah recommends Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors and Birding by Rose Ruane • Zöe recommends Perambulations guides and Stath Lets Flats.  • Andrew recommends Doctor Who: Lucky Day.  • Come to The Angry Brigade – Anarchy In N16 at the Hackney History Festival on Sunday 11 May.  • Back us on Patreon for ad-free listening, bonus materials and more.  Written and presented by Andrew Harrison with Hannah Fearn, Zöe Grünewald and Seth Thévoz. Audio production by Robin Leeburn. Theme music by Cornershop. Produced by Chris Jones. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We’re on a highway to Helsby… As Reform take Runcorn, rack up council seats and take Staffordshire and Lincolnshire county councils, Rafael Behr joins Andrew Harrison to explain what it all means. Is it really Farage’s night? Who’s more damaged, Badenoch or Starmer? Is this definitive proof that Labour can’t beat the enemy by becoming the enemy? And… Andrea Jenkyns. Sheeeeesh.  • Back us on Patreon for ad-free listening, bonus materials and more.  Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Audio production by Robin Leeburn. Theme music by Cornershop. Produced by Chris Jones. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices