The second episode of City Politicos' 2024 Election Podcast is hosted by Ian Pace, Professor of Music, Culture and Society at City, University of London, and coordinator of this podcast. He is joined by Dr Lise Butler, Senior Lecturer in Modern History, and Konstantin Vössing, Reader in International Politics. They discuss the situations of Jeremy Corbyn and Diane Abbott, the polls predicting a huge Labour victory, and especially the question of politics as a form of performance and theatre, in the run-up to the first TV leaders' debate. To what extent is wider political discourse and public opinion informed by rational discussion of issue, to what extent by the personalities of those involved? The panellists take quite distinct views on this subject, leading into wider discussions of populism, technocracy and more.

The starting pistols have been fired for the UK 2024 general election. In the first episode of City Politicos: Counting Down to the UK 2024 Election, academics from the School of Policy and Global Affairs at City, University of London, discuss the questions that face the country five weeks before the general election. Are the Tories making policy on the fly, and how seriously should we take their policy offer? How is the Labour Party positioning itself in terms of political strategy, and what will we see in their manifesto? How could the campaign develop over the next five weeks? Is the election a sure bet for Labour, and could anything get in the way of their chances at government? And what does the campaign so far tell us about the future of right-wing populism in the UK?

Bringing together insights from across the social sciences, the humanities and beyond, the City Politicos panel puts the election in wider social, historical, and geographical context and asks how the next five weeks could change UK politics as we know it.