From public transport to plastic and even the vinyl in your record collection, petrochemicals don’t just pervade our daily life. They’ve shaped our national culture. James Marriott, co-author of Crude Britannia: How Oil Shaped a Nation, tells Alex Andreou about the pipelines, people, and pop culture behind Britain’s petro-obsession – and how it impacted politics from Benn to Blair to Brexit.

• “The UK oil industry was a kind of offshore colony in the North Sea.”

• “If we hadn't had the IMF crisis in the 1970s, we would have kept strong state control over oil.” 

• “As soon as Thatcher came in, the game was over and the oil companies won.”

• “£26 million in oil is being pumped from Aberdeen as we speak, but the tax income for the state is minimal.”

• “You see Nicola Sturgeon being photographed more in front of windfarms than oil distilleries.” 

Presented by Alex Andreou. Produced by Andrew Harrison. Assistant producers Jelena Sofronijevic and Jacob Archbold. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Audio production by Alex Rees. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production

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