Coffee House Shots
The Spectator
300 episodes
Daily political analysis from The Spectator's top team of writers, including Michael Gove, Tim Shipman, Isabel Hardman, James Heale and many others.
More about the show
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Episodes page 3 of 6
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Iain Dale: Standing for Parliament was a 'humiliating experience'
In a busy week for British politics, LBC’s Iain Dale joins Tim Shipman and James Heale to discuss his new book, Have I Said Too Much? Iain speaks frankly about standing as a Conservative candidate at two general…
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Burnham's northern queens
Appointment into Andy Burnham's new cabinet went late into the evening: Wes Streeting to defence, plus the comeback queens – Louise Haigh, Lucy Powell and Angela Rayner all into senior posts in government. Noa Hoffman,…
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Burnham, Healey, Miliband & Mahmood become the big four
Andy Burnham has continued to announce his new cabinet: John Healey as Chancellor, Ed Miliband as Foreign Secretary and Shabana Mahmood remains in the Home Office. Now ten of Starmer's most trusted ministers have…
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Labour's new cabinet – who's in & who's out?
As Andy Burnham unveils his first Cabinet, join Tim Shipman and James Heale for a special live edition of Coffee House. Who’s in, who’s out? What do the appointments reveal about Burnham’s priorities, and might they…
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Why MPs must be whipped | Simon Hart
Andy Burnham has promised to turn the whips’ office into an ‘HR department’ – but the former chief whip Simon Hart warns that the approach is ‘naive’ and could leave the new prime minister unable to control his party.…
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Happy Coronation Day!
Andy Burnham will today be crowned Labour leader, before entering Downing Street on Monday. His first speech is expected to argue that Labour has lost touch with the working-class communities it was founded to…
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Reeves out, Shabana in?
Rachel Reeves has delivered what is likely to be her valedictory Mansion House speech, defending her record on growth, borrowing and the public finances. But with businesses counting the cost of higher employers’…
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Farewell, Sir Keir Starmer
Keir Starmer has delivered his final PMQs. It was a more cordial occasion compared to most weeks, with Kemi Badenoch exchanging jokes with the outgoing Prime Minister over their previous clashes amid a more sombre tone…
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Kemi wages war on the 'Tory wets'
Kemi Badenoch has declared war on the Tory wets, removing the whip from Gavin Barwell after Theresa May’s former chief of staff criticised her leadership and opposed the party’s positions on net zero and the ECHR. Her…
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Is Ann Widdecombe’s murder being politicised?
The murder of Ann Widdecombe has sent shockwaves through Westminster and reignited the debate over politicians’ security. But with questions still unanswered about the motive for the attack, Reform’s response has…
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How we plan to beat Reform | Kevin Hollinrake, Conservative chairman
The Tories will not stand a candidate against Nigel Farage in the Clacton by-election – and on today’s podcast Conservative party chairman Kevin Hollinrake explains why. Hollinrake also reveals what is behind the…
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The definitive guide to 'Manchesterism'
Everyone in Westminster is trying desperately to peer inside Andy Burnham’s head and work out what ‘Manchesterism’ really is – and in the magazine this week, Tali Fraser offers the definitive take. Rather than being a…
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Labour is one big happy family | with Chris Curtis MP
Nominations openned today for the next Labour leader and – spoiler alert – it looks as though Andy Burnham might clinch it. We strongly suspect he will be the only person to put his name forward, after Al Carns pulled…
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Inside Reform's by-election masterplan
Nigel Farage’s Clacton by-election gamble has not gone quite to plan: the major parties have called his bluff and refused to stand. Is this now a Potemkin by-election – or has Farage still succeeded in changing the…
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Nigel Farage rage quits
Nigel Farage has resigned as an MP to force a by-election in Clacton, where he intends to stand again. It comes as scrutiny mounts over Reform UK’s funding, the £5 million gift Farage received from the businessman…
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Has Farage blown it?
Nigel Farage is facing fresh questions over his finances, after reports about George Cottrell – ‘Posh George’ – and his role in funding staff and security for Reform before the 2024 election. The party says this was…
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Isabel Hardman's Sunday Roundup - 05/07/2026
Isabel Hardman presents highlights from Sunday morning’s political shows. Nigel Farage is in the spotlight again over his finances. And Labour back Andy Burnham to deliver change. Become a Spectator subscriber today…
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Anthony Scaramucci on Trump, Corruption & America at 250
As Americans mark the 250th anniversary of the 1776 Declaration of Independence, Anthony Scaramucci joins the Spectator to provide his assessment of the health of the nation. As we approach the halfway point of the…
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REVEALED: Treasury abandons numeracy to boost diversity
A scoop by The Spectator’s news editor has taken Westminster by storm this week, after it emerged that the Treasury had ditched the numerical reasoning test for its high-flying graduate scheme. Oscar Edmondson speaks…
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Reform is right to fear the return of Boris
Boris is (sort of) on manoeuvres, as Tim Shipman reports in this week’s magazine. There are signs that the former Conservative prime minister and one-time editor of this magazine could emerge from his frontline…
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The secrets of the Spectator summer party
As the nation holds its breath to see if England will be progressing in the World Cup, the bottles of Pol Roger are on ice for the post-match after party: the Spectator's summer party, taking place this evening.…
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Defence Investment Plan – a looming problem for Burnham
The Defence Investment Plan is published today in Parliament. All eyes are on how much Dan Jarvis managed to secure (£15 billion), given the dramatic resignations of Al Cairns and John Healey over funding. Noa Hoffman…
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The Burnham agenda: who will pay for it?
Andy Burnham has set out his big pitch to the country: a ten-year plan for devolution, reindustrialisation and a new ‘Number 10 of the North’. But, as he prepares to enter Downing Street, does he have anything like the…
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Isabel Hardman's Sunday Roundup - 28/06/2026
Isabel Hardman presents highlights from Sunday morning's political shows. One week on from the end of Keir Starmer's premiership, Labour all but confirm an Andy Burnham coronation. Produced by Joe Bedell-Brill.…
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Is Britain ungovernable?
We are on course for yet another prime minister – our seventh in just ten years. With statistics like that, and after watching the now-familiar pattern of leaders arriving with promises of hopeful change only to…
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Would Burnham be 'Labour's first female PM'?
Another agenda-setting cover piece from Tim Shipman has ruffled feathers in Westminster. The controversy centres on a line from a senior Labour source who told Shippers that Andy Burnham could be ‘Labour’s first woman…
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How to solve Britain’s maternity crisis
Donna Ockenden's report on Nottingham NHS maternity scandal is out today, revealing 'horrendous' failings. It involves cases of negligence, cover ups, racial disparities and avoidable deaths. To discuss Britain's…
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Kemi Badenoch’s victory lap
Supercharged by a by-election victory in Aberdeen South and Starmer’s resignation, Kemi Badenoch delivered a drive-by at PMQs today. She took aim at members of Starmer’s cabinet in succession: Rachel Reeves, Ed…
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Does Burnham have a plan? (No)
Andy Burnham is back in Westminster, Sir Keir Starmer has resigned and Wes Streeting has said he will not contest the leadership election. Labour rebels will be celebrating that their plan has gone off without a hitch.…
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It's over – Keir Starmer resigns
It’s over. Sir Keir Starmer has finally done the deed and quit. After years spent berating the Tories for constantly changing leader, fighting among themselves and looking inwards, Labour has succumbed to the same fate…
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Isabel Hardman's Sunday Roundup - 21/06/2026
Isabel Hardman presents highlights from Sunday morning's political shows. Keir Starmer is on the brink. Is he announcing his departure on Monday? Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without…
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Why Makerfield changes everything | Tim Shipman, James Lyons, Luke Tryl & Michael Simmons
Andy Burnham has won what may come to be seen as the most consequential by-election in recent memory. Political journalism has a tendency towards hyperbole, but the situation is clear: Burnham is on his way to…
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Andy Burnham wins by a landslide – what happens next?
In the end, it was not even close. Andy Burnham has won the Makerfield by-election by a landslide, putting him on course to be Britain’s next prime minister. The Mayor of Greater Manchester managed to unite the left…
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LIVE: The Brexit Debate | Michael Gove & Claire Fox vs Dominic Grieve & Matthew Parris
Watch The Brexit Debate in full at https://www.spectator.com/brexit Ten years on from the Brexit referendum, Britain is far from taking flight. Was Brexit a mistake – or are its promised freedoms simply yet to be…
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How quickly could Starmer be deposed?
Voters head to the polls tomorrow in Makerfield for what could be the most consequential by-election in modern British history. If Andy Burnham wins by a significant margin, he will be heralded as the man Labour need…
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How to beat Burnham | with Reform UK's Gawain Towler
Westminster is braced for the Makerfield by-election at the end of this week but – as we get closer to polling day – opinion seems to have shifted. While at the start it looked as though Reform could challenge in the…
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Why Trump’s Iran deal won’t save Starmer
Donald Trump has announced a deal to end the war between Iran and the US, but in Westminster, the relief comes with serious questions. What does the deal actually contain? Will the Strait of Hormuz reopen quickly…
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Isabel Hardman's Sunday Roundup - 14/06/2026
Isabel Hardman presents highlights from Sunday morning's political shows. John Healey's resignation puts Keir Starmer in trouble again. And Reform say British institutions treat white people unfairly. Become a…
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Can Starmer survive the MoD exodus?
A second defence minister has resigned in protest at Keir Starmer’s failure to fund Britain’s armed forces. Al Carns, a former Royal Marines colonel, has followed John Healey out of the Ministry of Defence, warning…
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‘It’s beyond embarrassing, it’s dangerous’: why Britain must fund defence | Sir Richard Barrons
Britain’s defence review is now a year old – but the government is still arguing over how to pay for it. John Healey, the (now former) defence secretary, has resigned over the failure to set out an adequate plan to…
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Defence Sec resigns: 'Keir can't keep Britain safe'
John Healey has resigned as Defence Secretary. In a blistering letter to the Prime Minister, he said: ‘You have been unable, and the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend…
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Kemi Badenoch's remarkable turnaround
For the second week in a row, PMQs comes in light of a disturbing instance of violent crime. Last week, ministers were recoiling at the shocking bodycam footage from Henry Novak’s murder, and this week comes in the…
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What Kemi Badenoch told Tim Shipman
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch was interviewed last night by The Spectator‘s Political Editor, Tim Shipman, in front of a live audience at Church House in Westminster. They discuss her shadow cabinet, her plan to…
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What will Keir Starmer's legacy be?
With the Makerfield by-election next week, Keir Starmer is in the business of legacy-building. In a speech this morning to coincide with London Tech Week, the Prime Minister announced a clampdown on social media usage…
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Isabel Hardman's Sunday Roundup - 07/06/2026
Isabel Hardman presents highlights from Sunday morning's political shows. This week, politicians debate the appropriate response to the shocking murder of Henry Nowak, and whether 'two-tier policing' is a problem in…
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The battle for Makerfield
James Heale is in Makerfield ahead of one of the most consequential by-elections of all time, where Andy Burnham is hoping to return to Westminster and stop Reform’s Robert Kenyon – the local plumber backed by Nigel…
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Who won the Makerfield Question Time?
Last night, candidates from the five main parties in Makerfield came together for a special episode of Question Time. With four non-politicians taking on Andy Burnham, who came out on top? Tim Shipman, James Heale and…
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Darren Jones & the missing Mandelson messages
The second tranche of messages related to the vetting of Peter Mandelson to be UK ambassador to the US were released on Monday – the gift that keeps on giving. Tim Shipman joins Patrick Gibbons to discuss his political…
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Henry Nowak: which leader has struck the right tone
In PMQs today, Kemi Badenoch strategically chose not to talk about the Henry Nowak case given the sensitivity surrounding the subject. Instead she opted for welfare – asking the PM why spending has grown during…
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Exclusive: Nigel Farage's Desert Island Discs revealed
Canvassing in Makerfield continues at pace ahead of the by-election in two weeks time, so we dispatched Megan McElroy and James Heale to the north to report from the ground. They discuss each party’s ground game, why…
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