The Government’s migration and asylum plans have had that unique Keir Starmer way of annoying everyone. Including many of their own MPs, such as Walthamstow’s Stella Creasy. She says her party is now asking people to live in “limbo” and that the new policy change is not “socially just”. She joins the panel to explain why. And in the second half, monsters are everywhere (including politics). But what is a monster? Why do humans keep inventing them — and what does that say about us? Dr Surekha Davies’ new book Humans: A Monstrous History, explores all of that, and she joins the panel to give her take. 

ESCAPE ROUTES: 

• Jonn has been reading the work of Iain M. Banks: https://iainbanks.co.uk/ 

• Zoë went to the Tate Modern to see the Nigerian Modernism exhibition 

• Surekha recommends a visit to the Samurai exhibition at the British Museum 

• Stella was DJing at the weekend to raise money for two charities WHICH YOU CAN STILL DONATE TO! They are Eat or Heat and Furnishing Futures

Buy Humans: A Monstrous History through our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund Oh God, What Now? by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too. 

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Presented by Zoë Grunewald with Jonn Elledge. Audio Production by: Chris Jones. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Cornershop. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. 

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On the upside, a tyrannical theocrat and much of his entourage are dead. On the downside, so are thousands of innocent children and adults. As Trump’s open-ended and ill-defined Iran adventure unfolds, is it game over for the tattered remnants of the so-called Special Relationship between Britain and the US? Are there any good choices left for Starmer? And is Britain’s rah-rah right-wing press fantasising that British people support this war?

Plus: after the Greens’ win in Manchester is Gorton & Denton Derangement Syndrome driving the legacy parties over the edge? And in a special extended Extra Bit: Dubai Schadenfreude, or: Won’t anyone think of the influencers? 

ESCAPE ROUTES

• Jonn recommends The Lady on ITV. 

• Marie recommends Stefan Zweig’s Burning Secret

• Raf recommends Departure(s) by Julian Barnes. 

• Matt recommends Murder Most Foul by Guy Jenkins 

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Presented by Matt Green with Jonn Elledge, Marie le Conte and Rafael Behr. Audio Production by Robin Leeburn. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Cornershop. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.

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This edition recorded before the US attacks on Iran. The dust is still settling from Gorton and Denton. Are the Greens playing with fire with their voter targeting? If Keir Starmer’s leadership is back in question, how long has he got? Are Reform going full Trump with their whining about “cheating”? And can anyone think of anything at all to say about the Tories? Plus: Is there any appetite for an ICE-style immigration Gestapo like Zia Yusuf wants for his “Deportation Command”? After our EmergencyPod, Ros Taylor, Andrew Harrison and Steve Richards of the Rock & Roll Politics podcast reconvene to take a longer view. 

ESCAPE ROUTES

• Ros recommends Nonesuch by Francis Spufford. 

• Steve has been watching Brazilian movie The Secret Agent, reading one chapter of War And Peace a day with the help of this Substack, and masochistically enjoying the torment of Tottenham Hotspur FC. 

• Andrew recommends superior sci-fi action movie Predator: Badlands on Disney+. 

• Hear more of Steve Richards on Gorton and Denton on the Rock & Roll Politics podcast 

www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow

Presented by Andrew Harrison with Ros Taylor and Steve Richards. Audio Production by: Robin Leeburn. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Cornershop. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.

www.podmasters.co.uk 

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A special crossover edition from our geopolitics podcast This Is Not A Drill – Trump’s stunning surprise attack on Iran could be the most consequential world event since 9/11. Will the President’s goal of smooth regime change work when it failed every other time, or trigger a regional conflagration? Iran’s hated Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is dead but the Islamic Republic is showing no sign of collapsing. And now Hezbollah has attacked other Arab states as well as British and US military targets.

How will the war play out? How resilient is the Islamic Republic? Does Israel want regime change or regime destruction? Does Iran have any potential leaders that the US could tolerate? And has anyone planned for running a country of 90 million people which is now in chaos? Live from Beirut our guest Paul Salem, senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, speaks to Gavin Esler. 

• Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people? Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact [email protected] to find out more.

Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production.

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The Greens take Gorton and Denton and Labour take a pounding. What does it all mean? Is there more going on than all the hot takes suggest? Is the Starmer Doomsday Clock ticking again? And will we ever get enough of Matt Goodwin’s sour defeat face? Ros Taylor and Steve Richards of the Rock & Roll Politics podcast join Andrew Harrison for a fast reaction by-election minicast. 

Join us next Tuesday (Monday for Patreons!) for a broader look at how the major parties will handle the result, and more too.

• Hear more of Steve Richards on Gorton and Denton on the Rock & Roll Politics podcast

www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow

Presented by Andrew Harrison with Ros Taylor and Steve Richards. Audio Production by: Robin Leeburn. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Cornershop. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.

www.podmasters.co.uk 

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Who gave the tip-off that resulted in Peter Mandelson’s sensational arrest? And will this mess ever stop unraveling? Plus, an Australian-style social media ban for under-16s is gathering pace. Can it work and is it such a good idea to protect teens from the online world only to throw them in the deep end once they turn 18? Also: Meeting Alastair Campbell at the Lido. Marie’s extraordinary experience of interviewing Gisèle Pelicot. And in the Extra Bit, the joy (or not) of making kids do terrible Saturday jobs. You won’t believe what Seth had to do. 

ESCAPE ROUTES

• Marie recommends I’m No Angel with Mae West. 

• Zöe recommends Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind [[ ]] 

• Matt has been reading Life Is Rosi by Jess Robinson

• Seth has been enjoying the John Major edition of Gyles Brandreth’s podcast Rosebud Major 

Keep independent podcasting alive and kicking by backing OGWN at www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow

Presented by Seth Thévoz with Zöe Grünewald, Marie le Conte and Matt Green. Audio Production by Robin Leeburn. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Cornershop. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.

www.podmasters.co.uk 

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The arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor on Epstein-related allegations of misconduct in public office stuns the world. He has not been charged with any offence – but is the former Prince’s past damaging the Monarchy irreparably? And when will the victims of Epstein and his circle get justice? Plus, as the vindictive Gorton & Denton by-election enters its last few days we talk to Jack Walton of local news site Manchester Mill about the vibe on the ground… and whether it’s worse for Labour if the Greens or Matt Goodwin of Reform win. 

• Manchester Mill is part of the Mill Media group creating good old-fashioned local journalism for British cities including Liverpool, Sheffield, Glasgow and Bristol. 

ESCAPE ROUTES

• Rachel has been watching the Winter Olympics as a chaser to Heated Rivalry on Sky. 

• Jack has been reading Laughter in the Dark by Vladimir Nabokov

• Andrew recommends escaping modern politics by diving into ’90s politics and C4’s The Tony Blair Story.

Keep Oh God, What Now? in fine health by backing us on Patreon.

Presented by Andrew Harrison with Rachel Cunliffe. Audio and Video Production by Chris Jones. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Cornershop. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.

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Could Reform really carry out a Trump-style, Project 2025-inspired shock-and-awe assault on Britain’s institutions and politics if they get into government? America’s much-vaunted system of checks and balances turned out to be made of tissue paper. Is Britain’s hand-me-down constitution any more robust? We look at the firewalls in our politics with special guest James Ball of The New World paper. Plus, what did we make of Channel 4’s epic Tony Blair documentary? Did it let Tonty off too lightly? And in the Extra Bit for Patreon people: Barack Obama thinks aliens are real. Why do UFOs hold such a weird grip on the political imagination? 

ESCAPE ROUTES

• Jonn recommends Hijack with Idris Elba on Apple TV+ 

• Jason recommends Ghost Signs: Poverty and the Pandemic by Stu Hennigan. You can hear our vintage 2023 Bunker with Stu Hennigan on Apple, Spotify and everywhere else. 

• James loved White House murder comedy The Residence on Netflix. 

• Seth recommends the Panorama documentary Our Man in Moscow.

www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow

Presented by Seth Thévoz with Jonn Elledge and Jason Hazeley. Audio Production by Simon Williams and Robin Leeburn. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Cornershop. Produced by Chris Jones. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.

www.podmasters.co.uk 

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“There is no British security without Europe,” Keir Starmer told the Munich Security Conference this weekend. Nobody wants a wider war in Europe, but we might get one anyway – and Britain’s military isn’t ready for it yet. So how can we change our armed forces and our wider society to ensure that Putin won’t want to risk a conflict with Britain and our allies?

Ed Arnold of the Royal United Services Institute joins Ros Taylor and Raf Behr to talk about how Russia uses hybrid “grey zone” attacks on democracies which stop just short of open warfare… the sobering truth about NATO Article 5… and why we have to budget for the next threat but one, because “What comes after Putin may be worse.” 

ESCAPE ROUTES

• Raf rewatched Terry Gilliam’s Brazil.

• Ed has been enjoying England in the Six Nations rugby.

• Ros recommends the comedy drama about stand-up comedy, Is This Thing On? , out now in cinemas. 

www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow

Presented by Ros Taylor and Rafael Behr. Audio and video production by Chris Jones. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Cornershop. Produced by Chris Jones. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.

www.podmasters.co.uk 

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First thing on Monday it looked like Keir Starmer was organic sourdough toast. By teatime he’d riled up Labour MPs and looked – somehow – safe for now. Can the PM weather the brutal months ahead? Is it still a case of “when not if” he goes? Plus, we look at how far the toxic misogyny of the Epstein horrorshow spreads. Special guest Morgan Jones takes us back to the anti-Brexit campaign for a second referendum in 2016-19 and we look for lessons for a possible Rejoin campaign. And in the Extra Bit for Patreon people: Does Lord Of The Flies still resonate in its new psychedelic BBC incarnation?

• Buy Morgan’s book No Second Chances: The Inside Story of the Campaign for a Second EU Referendum through our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.

ESCAPE ROUTES

• Hannah has been enjoying eyeliner pop-rock reprobate Yungblud. 

• Rachel loved the musical Ballad Lines at the Southwark Theatre.

• Morgan has gone old WWII movies mad with Went The Day Well? and In Which We Serve.

• Comic book guy Andrew recommends mind-bending time-crash series Assorted Crisis Events 

www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow

Presented by Andrew Harrison with Rachel Cunliffe and Hannah Fearn. Produced by Chris Jones. Audio Production by Robin Leeburn. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Cornershop. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.

www.podmasters.co.uk 

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Remember Trump’s first term when we talked about “kakistocracy”: rule by the worst of the worst? They’re back and they’re worse than ever – not just Trump and his entourage but his corrupt Mini-Mes around the world. Why is our time so cursed with venal, cruel, nihilistic and apparently mentally damaged leaders? Where do these personalities come from? Are Trump and his entourage true psychopaths in the psychological sense? Ian Hughes, author of Disordered Minds : How Dangerous Personalities Are Destroying Democracy, joins Zoë Grünewald and Jonn Elledge to discuss our age of “malignant normality”, Hitler, Mao, and the psychopathology of cruel rule. As one African proverb says: “The child who does not feel love will burn down the village to feel its warmth.”

• Buy Disordered Minds through our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.

ESCAPE ROUTES

• Jonn recommends Star Trek: Starfleet Academy  streaming on Paramount+. 

• Ian Hughes has been rewatching Carl Sagan’s classic space documentary Cosmos on YouTube. 

• Zoë recommends Industry on the BBC iPlayer. 

www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow

Presented by Zöe Grünewald with Jonn Elledge. Audio and video production by Chris Jones. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Cornershop. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.

www.podmasters.co.uk 

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