Alas Vine & Hitchens

On this week’s episode, on what would have been Margaret Thatcher’s hundredth birthday, Peter and Sarah tussle over the former PM’s legacy, charisma and what she did or did not do for this country. Elsewhere, Sarah asks why should King Charles solve the problem that is Prince Andrew when the King’s brother should admit he’s a liability and retire from the public eye? 

Plus, where do our hosts like to holiday (Peter is not a beach bum for those who were curious)? What was Peter doing with the paparazzi staring at Princess Di? And why we should think long and hard about the repeal of the Corn Laws.

On our reading and watch list this week: 

·      Donna Leon – Death at La Fenice

·      Don’t Look Now – Director: Nicolas Roeg

·      Robert Browning – A Toccata of Galuppi’s  

·      Not for Turning, and Everything She Wants - Charles Moore

Please do get in touch, email: [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Philip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

To get in touch email [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Phillip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode, Peter and Sarah ask why parks shit down at the first sign of inclement weather? Why do under twenty-five-year-olds feel the need to rail against something, but not bother to read up on it first (we’ve all been there)? Elsewhere, Peter recalls chasing a bicycle thief while hitting him about the head with a bag of dirty laundry. Not to be outdone, Sarah admits to punching her brother in the face with her car keys, which should teach them both something about bringing up politics at a restaurant table. 

On our reading and watch list this week: 

·      Anshel Pfeffer - Bibi: The Turbulent Life and Times of Benjamin Netanyahu

·      E.H. Gombrich - A Little History of the World

·      Roy Strong – The Story Of Britain

·      Henrietta Elizabeth Marshall - Our Island Story: A History of Britain for Boys and Girls from the Romans to Queen Victoria

Please do get in touch, email: [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Philip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

To get in touch email [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Phillip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode, Peter and Sarah debate the idea of Digital ID cards, wonder at the minutiae we’re obsessed with as a nation, also, what did Sarah make of Michael Gove’s admission of his drug taking past? And sticking with history, where would our intrepid pair travel to if they could go anywhere in time and what one artifact or memento would they bring back with them? 

On our reading and watch list this week: 

·      The Lost World – Arthur Conan Doyle

·      Sneakers – Director: Phil Alden Robinson

·      Time Of Hope – C.P. Snow

·      The Cameron Delusion – Peter Hitchens

Please do get in touch, email: [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Philip Wilding

Editor: Alex Graham

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

To get in touch email [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Phillip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode, Peter and Sarah tussle with medical tourism and bloody murder. Peter wants to know what drives an assassin to kill and Sarah is asking why we’re allowing our already overrun NHS to become a destination for so called health tourists.

Elsewhere, modern Methodism, being heckled by Danny Kruger while he was still a staunch Tory and is it the Union Jack or Union Flag or can it be both? Tune in to find out.

On our reading, watch and listening list this week: 

·      Night Falls On The City – Sarah Gainham

·      The Rage Against God – Peter Hitchens

·      Critical: Why the NHS is being betrayed and how we can fight for it – Dr Julia Grace Patterson

Please do get in touch, email: [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Philip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

To get in touch email [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Phillip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode, Peter, and Sarah struggle to think of Camilla as Queen but for quite different reasons, though Sarah did very much enjoy her cosy supper at Clarence House, not least the excellent wallpaper and furnishings.

While both bemoan the sinking state of Britain’s submarine fleet, and Peter recalls the time it was leaked that we once leased our missiles from the US much to the fury of then PM Margaret Thatcher.

Elsewhere, yet another listener has been dreaming of Peter, Peter and traffic lights, and we finally find out what car he drives, please do stay tuned for that.

On our reading, watch and listening list this week: 

·      The Horse and His Boy – C.S. Lewis

·      Cracked: Why Psychiatry is Doing More Harm Than Good – James Davies

·      No Room for Mistakes: British and Allied Submarine Warfare, 1939-1940 – Geirr Haarr

Please do get in touch, email: [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Philip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

To get in touch email [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Phillip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode, Peter and Sarah discuss vexillology, or flags for the layman. Not least how Peter was once saved by flying a rather tattered Union Jack while attempting to flee Somalia.

While Sarah pores over our copious emails to mull over the suggestion from a listener that we take illegal migrants and put them in the army or at least to work.

Elsewhere, someone’s been dreaming lucid dreams about Peter and our hosts bemoan the state of our ever-failing education system. 

On our reading, watch and listening list this week: 

·      Worth Dying For: The Power and Politics of Flags – Tim Marshall

·      Jabberwocky – Lewis Carroll

·      Education in Britain: 1944 to the Present, 2nd Edition – Ken Jones

Please do get in touch, email: [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Philip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

To get in touch email [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Phillip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this exclusive episode, Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens managed to grab lady of the moment Nadine Dorries, fresh from her unveiling at Reform’s conference.They tackle the state of the right, where it all went wrong for the Conservatives, whether the union to end all unions if one the cards, and yes… whether singing on stage is an acceptable face of a serious party.

It’s a hum-dinger - you won’t want to miss it.

Please do get in touch, email: [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Guest: Nadine Dorries

Producer: Philip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

To get in touch email [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Phillip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode, should we be worried about Keir Starmer’s digital IDs when, according to Sarah, we’re a slave to the digital idiom as it is. Not that Peter quite sees it like that. 

Nor do the pair see eye to eye on the raising of children and what staying at home means for the parents or baby. Voices were raised, thoughts were shared, it would be untrue to say compromises were met.

Elsewhere, Peter doesn’t know what car he drives, its size he’s fairly sure of and that it can get him to the occasional funerals of his friends. Sarah told him to check the badge on the bonnet, which went well.

On our reading, watch and listening list this week: 

·      Boomers: The Men and Women Who Promised Freedom and Delivered Disaster – Helen Andrews

·      The Invisible Rainbow: A History of Electricity and Life – Arthur Firstenberg

·      Girl, 20 – Kingsley Amis

·      Flashman at the Charge - George MacDonald Fraser

·      Night Watch: A Discworld Novel – Terry Pratchett 

·      Down with Skool! A Guide to School Life for Tiny Pupils and their Parents – Geoffrey Willans

Please do get in touch, email: [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Philip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

To get in touch email [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Phillip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode, Sarah wonders if Kier Starmer’s perceived weakness in leadership might have kicked open the door for Nigel Farage to come through? And Peter would like to ask; the hijab, a sign of oppression, or something that as a society should make us think more?

Elsewhere, did any government in living memory impress Peter? Don’t count on it. Why did Christopher Hitchens once storm out of The Great Lives recording studio and who did our hosts choose to revere when it came to their turn in The Great Lives chair? Plus, is there really a better biscuit then the classic Custard Cream? 

On our reading, watch and listening list this week: 

·      The Roads To Freedom - Dir: James Cellan Jones

·      Crooked Cross – Sally Carson

·      Tales Of The City – Armistead Maupin (Radio 4)

·      The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy – Douglas Adams (Radio 4)

Please do get in touch, email: [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Philip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

To get in touch email [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Phillip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode, Sarah wonders if it’s worth putting into your pension pot anymore as new government policies promise to make your golden years anything but. While Peter would like to ask why does nobody likes appeasement until it suits them? Not that Sarah can help with that, she’s one of life’s great appeasers. 

Elsewhere, all things considered, Peter would rather be a rich Edwardian, Sarah misses Swansea and one of our presenters gives a spirited rendition of the rallying cry of fans of the Arkansas Razorbacks. It’s quite something.

On our reading and watch list this week: 

·      A Pocket Full Of Rye - Agatha Christie

·      The Lie - Agatha Christie (Drama on 4)

·      The Nine Tailors – Dorothy L Sayers

·      The Sign Of The Four – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

·      Tales Of The Unexpected - Now TV

Please do get in touch, email: [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Philip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

To get in touch email [email protected], you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'

Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

Producer: Phillip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Executive Producer: Jamie East

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.