He famously argued that liberal democracy marked the end of history. Now, with war, populism and authoritarianism reshaping the world, Francis Fukuyama asks whether liberal democracy can still win.

In this episode of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien speaks to the political scientist and author about the ideas, accidents and encounters that shaped his life. Fukuyama reflects on growing up in a highly intellectual family, his early immersion in philosophy, and why a formative period in Paris led him away from literary theory and towards the realities of international politics.

They discuss the collapse of the Soviet Union, the enduring misreading of The End of History, and why he believes the idea of equal human dignity remains powerful despite democratic backsliding around the world. Fukuyama also looks back on his time in US government, his break with neoconservatism over Iraq, and the danger of letting pessimism about democracy become self-fulfilling.

Thoughtful, wide-ranging and urgent, this conversation is about big ideas, political mistakes and the case for defending liberal societies without pretending they are perfect.

Find out more about In the Realm of the Last Man by Francis Fukuyama here

Full Disclosure is a Global Production

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Jay Rayner has eaten some of the best meals in the world - and written some of Britain’s most memorable restaurant reviews. But the story behind the critic is even richer.

In this candid conversation, Jay joins James O’Brien to talk about the unlikely path from a famously unconventional childhood to becoming one of Britain’s most recognisable writers and broadcasters. There are school expulsions, tabloid diary columns, high-stakes investigations, celebrity encounters and the restaurant review that became an international news story.

Jay reflects on growing up with his mother, agony aunt Claire Rayner; discovering oysters at ten; and learning that food is a doorway into memory, class, politics and pleasure. He also reveals why he walked away from a fast-moving newspaper career, how he accidentally became The Observer’s restaurant critic, and why he still believes every great restaurant has a story to tell.

Along the way, Jay talks about his move to the Financial Times, his love of broadcasting and jazz, and why - after decades in journalism - he still cannot retire from the inside of his own head.

Find out more about Nights Out in the Kitchen by Jay Rayner here

Full Disclosure is a Global Production

Listen or watch every Friday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.

From watching Tony Blair win a landslide from inside his living room to imagining a world where Hitler won the war, Robert Harris has made a career out of getting closer to power than most.

In this episode of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien meets the bestselling author behind Fatherland, Pompeii, The Ghost and Conclave. Robert recalls his working-class Nottinghamshire childhood, a mischievous school newspaper, nearly being sent down from Cambridge, and the leap from BBC journalist to one of Britain’s most successful novelists.

He reveals what it was really like inside New Labour’s 1997 campaign, why his friendship with Tony Blair eventually fractured, and how the machinery of modern politics keeps reappearing in the ancient world.

From writer’s block in a leaking country house to Hollywood adaptations, Roman emperors and the art of turning history into a thriller, this is a fascinating conversation about ambition, access, reinvention and the addictive pull of power.

Find out more about Agrippa by Robert Harris here

Full Disclosure is a Global Production

Listen or watch every Friday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.

Alexei Sayle has spent a lifetime finding humour in anger, absurdity and the systems that shape us. Raised in Liverpool by fiercely committed communist parents, his childhood was filled with politics, protest marches and unusual cultural influences - from Soviet cinema to family trips behind the Iron Curtain.

In this episode of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien sits down with the comedian, writer and actor to trace the path from a rebellious schoolboy and struggling art student to the incendiary force at the heart of alternative comedy. Alexei recalls discovering his voice at the Comedy Store, forging lifelong friendships with Rik Mayall, Adrian Edmondson, Nigel Planer and the Comic Strip generation, and becoming known for a furious on-stage persona that often bore little resemblance to the man offstage.

He reflects on success, creative reinvention and the strange experience of falling out of fashion before returning to stand-up with a more personal, contemplative voice. Alexei also discusses his lifelong political activism, the ideals he inherited from his parents, and the tension between wanting to change the world and recognising the limits of protest.

It’s a funny, candid and deeply thoughtful conversation about comedy, conviction, reinvention and the complicated business of staying true to yourself.

Find out more about How I've Tried to Change the World: By Walking Down the Middle of the Street Shouting by Alexei Sayle here

Full Disclosure is a Global Production

Listen or watch every Friday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.

Before she became the creator behind Chicken Shop Date, Amelia Dimoldenberg was a relentlessly ambitious child from Marylebone, dreaming of editing Vogue, joining S Club Juniors and taking to the stage in Cats.

In this episode of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien sits down with Amelia to trace the unlikely journey from a youth magazine in North West London to one of the most distinctive interview formats of a generation.

Amelia reflects on growing up with a voraciously reading, politically engaged family; the confidence she found through school performances and extracurricular activities; and the teenage reinvention that left her temporarily without friends. She explains how The Cut magazine club introduced her to a new creative world, and how a throwaway conversation about the worst possible date location became the starting point for Chicken Shop Date.

They discuss the painstaking preparation, performance and editing behind the show’s deliberately awkward charm; the instinct that stopped Amelia signing away her intellectual property; and the turning points that took her from student project to interviewing stars including Andrew Garfield, Jennifer Lawrence and Cher.

Amelia also talks about Dimz Inc Academy, the initiative she created with Spiral Skills to help young people from underrepresented backgrounds access careers in digital media and production. Drawing on the opportunities she received as a teenager, she explains why practical experience, creative confidence and professional networks can make such a difference - particularly for young people facing barriers to work.

Funny, candid and full of creative insight, this is a conversation about ambition, originality and the hard work behind appearing effortlessly cool.

Find out more about Dimz Inc Academy here

Full Disclosure is a Global Production

Listen or watch every Friday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.

Beloved TV doctor, children’s author and NHS paediatrician Dr Ranj Singh tells James O’Brien the extraordinary story behind the smile - from the collapse of the life he thought he was supposed to want, to the painful process of working out who he really was.

He speaks candidly about growing up in a traditional Indian family, the pressure to follow a respectable path, and the emotional cost of spending years trying to fit expectations. He recalls his sexuality being “outed” to his parents before he was ready, the heartbreak and confusion that followed, and the therapy that helped him understand his identity and start living more truthfully.

They also explore his career in medicine, his decision to step back after decades in the NHS, and the creative life he has built beyond the hospital ward. From children’s television to musical theatre, Dr Ranj reflects on chasing joy, embracing vulnerability, and why his real job - in whatever form it takes - is simply to make people feel better.

Find out more about Dr Ranj’s Human Body Encyclopedia here

Full Disclosure is a Global Production

Listen or watch every Friday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.

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As the magnetic frontman of James, Tim Booth has spent more than four decades turning raw emotion into some of Britain’s most loved music - from Sit Down and Laid to a run of acclaimed new records.

Tim joins James O’Brien to trace the unlikely journey that led him to the band: a difficult childhood, the brutality of boarding school, a life-changing Patti Smith album and a chance encounter with three teenage musicians in a Manchester bar. Within days, he was on stage; before long, James were building a devoted following through their fiercely independent, improvisational live shows.

He reflects on the extraordinary communal power of Sit Down, the band’s relationship with The Smiths and Factory Records, and the pressures that eventually drove him to leave. Tim also discusses James’s reunion, their distinctive songwriting process and the creative restlessness that continues to push the band into new territory.

Along the way, he speaks candidly about illness, dance, meditation and altered states - and the belief that a great gig can become a shared act of transcendence. With a new album in progress and documentary ‘James: Getting Away With It’ charting James’s four-decade story, this is an intimate, funny and deeply moving conversation about survival, creativity and staying open to the unknown.

Find out more about James’ tour dates and ‘James: Getting Away With It’ documentary here

Full Disclosure is a Global Production

Listen or watch every Friday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.

From growing up on a Gloucester council estate to becoming one of Britain’s best-known culinary success stories, Tom Kerridge has built a career defined by resilience, risk and an enduring belief in people.

Tom joins James O’Brien to discuss his unlikely path into hospitality, from washing up in country house hotels to the intensity of London’s leading kitchens and the creation of The Hand and Flowers - the UK’s first pub to hold two Michelin stars. He reflects on the energy of professional kitchens, the mentors who shaped him, and why he believes being a chef is “nothing to do with food”.

They also explore his growing role as an advocate for hospitality, the pressure of running businesses and supporting hundreds of staff, and his engagement with politics and VAT reform. Tom discusses his television career, his latest series Tom Kerridge Cooks Italy, and why success means seeing the people around him thrive.

Tom first appeared on Full Disclosure remotely in 2020, during the Covid period. Returning to the studio, he and James pick up the conversation for a candid, funny and deeply personal look at family, ambition, food and finding purpose through connection.

Watch Tom Kerridge Cooks Italy here

Full Disclosure is a Global Production

Listen or watch every Friday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.

What makes someone run towards places most people are desperate to escape?

Long before Ravi Singh became one of Britain’s most remarkable humanitarian figures, he was a child caught between worlds: born in Singapore, raised in a Punjabi village, and brought to Britain at 11, where he encountered racism, loss and dislocation almost as soon as he arrived. Years later, he would go on to found Khalsa Aid, the international relief organisation known for delivering aid in some of the most dangerous and devastated places on earth.

In this episode of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien sits down with Ravi to trace the experiences that shaped his lifelong commitment to service - from a childhood marked by community, faith and hardship, to the moment he realised that compassion could become a form of action in the face of injustice.

Ravi reflects on growing up in a village shared by Sikh, Muslim and Hindu families, losing his father at a young age, and arriving in Britain unable to speak English, where he was confronted almost immediately by racism and exclusion. He describes the values instilled by his mother, the discipline and belonging he found in the Air Cadets, and the personal and political awakening that followed news of atrocities in Punjab.

They discuss faith, identity and activism; the Sikh principles of seva and Sarbat Da Bhala; the founding of Khalsa Aid during the Kosovo crisis; and what it means to deliver practical help in places devastated by war, displacement and disaster - from Iraq and Syria to Somerset and Slough.

Passionate, reflective and deeply moving, this is a conversation about loss, service, solidarity and the moral courage required to see other people’s suffering as your own.

Find out more about Khalsa Aid here

Full Disclosure is a Global Production

Listen or watch every Friday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.

Full Disclosure is taking a short break, but we’ll be back very soon with brand new episodes.

Until then, why not dip back into the archive! There are some brilliant episodes to catch up on, including conversations with Jonathan Pryce, Billy Idol, Grace Dent, Sadiq Khan, Dawn French, Irvine Welsh, Hugh Laurie, Jon Ronson, David Harewood and Brian Cox. And that’s only scratching the surface!

Full Disclosure is a Global Production

Listen or watch every Friday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.