The Critic Podcast

In this week's edition of Black's History Week, Professor Jeremy Black talks to The Critic's political editor, Graham Stewart, about how the role of prime minister has evolved from the tenure of William Ewart Gladstone to Boris Johnson.

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Image: William Ewart Gladstone (1809-1898), Engraving c1895. (Photo by Universal History Archive/Getty Images)

Music: Radetzky March by Human Symphony Orchestra (premiumbeat.com)

It is 300 years ago this month that Robert Walpole became prime minister of Great Britain. In this edition of Black's History Week, Walpole's biographer, Professor Jeremy Black, talks to The Critic's political editor, Graham Stewart, about how the role of prime minister evolved in its first one-and-a-half centuries.

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Image: Portrait of Sir Robert Walpole. The first Prime Minister of Great Britain.(Photo by Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images)

Music: Radetzky March by Human Symphony Orchestra (premiumbeat.com)

Is Beijing's growing assertiveness towards its neighbours and especially with Britain and the United States a reflection of Chinese self-confidence and an alternative world view that requires careful management? Or is it evidence of a determined hostility that requires a clear-headed strategy to address? And if the latter, what should that response involve?

In this podcast, the former leader of the Conservative party, Sir Iain Duncan Smith, against who Beijing has imposed sanctions in retaliation for his criticism, gives his assessment to The Critic's political editor, Graham Stewart.

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Music: “Modern Jazz Samba” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Alex Salmond is encouraging Scottish nationalists to 'game' Holyrood's electoral system by voting for their SNP constituency candidate but on the regional ballot list voting for Salmond's Alba Party. Would the same tactical voting work for Scottish unionists? In this podcast, All For Unity's leader, Jamie Blackett makes the case for voting for George Galloway's pro-union alliance to The Critic's political editor, Graham Stewart.

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Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on Spotify and iTunes to ensure you never you never miss an episode.

Right now we’re offering 5 issues for just £10. Go to thecritic.imbmsubscriptions.com/ for details.

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Music: “Modern Jazz Samba” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

In this edition of Black's History Week, Professor Jeremy Black, author of Clio's Battles: Historiography in Practice and Contesting History talks to The Critic's political editor, Graham Stewart, about archival research and whether the enthusiasm for reinterpreting the past as a means of influencing current controversies encourages historians to stray too far away from the available source material.

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Is Sinn Fein's current popularity on both sides of the Irish border the fruition of decades of its left-wing campaigning paying off, or a conscious break from the past terrorist activities of Sinn Fein's armed wing, the IRA? How has Ireland's media responded and what part does Brexit play in renewed Irish Anglophobia?

For over 40 years, Kevin Myers has been one of the most fearless and outspoken journalists in Ireland - but in 2017 he found himself effectively cancelled following a controversial article he wrote for the Sunday Times. In this podcast, Kevin talks about Sinn Fein's success and the narrowing spectrum of the Irish commentariat, in conversation with The Critic's political editor, Graham Stewart, and Simon Kingston, founder of the West Cork History Festival.

The Critic's David Scullion talks to Nick Buckley about the reasons why he is standing for Mayor of Manchester.

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(Photo by Rahman Hassani/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

In this episode of The Critic's podcast, the theme is the dangers of our addiction to digital information, social media, and the algorithms that direct us to what to view next.

The Critic's political editor, Graham Stewart, is joined by former olympic rower and broker Alex Story, who has recently written about "How Gen Z became Gen Me", and Robert Wigley, the chairman of UK Finance whose book Born Digital: The Story of a Distracted Generation has just been published.

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Right now we’re offering 3 months for just £5.

Go to thecritic.imbmsubscriptions.com/ for details.

In this episode of The Critic's podcast, the theme is the dangers of our addiction to digital information, social media, and the algorithms that direct us to what to view next.

The Critic's political editor, Graham Stewart, is joined by former olympic rower and broker Alex Story, who has recently written about "How Gen Z became Gen Me", and Robert Wigley, the chairman of UK Finance whose book Born Digital: The Story of a Distracted Generation has just been published.

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Right now we’re offering 3 months for just £5.

Go to thecritic.imbmsubscriptions.com/ for details.

In this podcast, writer, photographer, and face of the March edition of The Critic, Laura Dodsworth talks about her cover piece, Faith Masks, which focusses on the ideological significance of mask-wearing and the quasi-religious narrative surrounding lockdown.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on Spotify and iTunes to ensure you never you never miss an episode.

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Right now we’re offering 3 months for just £5.

Go to thecritic.imbmsubscriptions.com/ for details.

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