Nigel Lawson once noted that the party that wins the battle of ideas wins elections. He was right. Ideas matter and yet play little part in the contest between Sunak and Starmer. But the Right remain ideologically confident. Will a Labour government be able to counter the anti-state onslaught that is bound to happen? Plus exciting notices and brilliant questions from the Rock & Roll Politics co-operative.

Rock & Roll Politics is live at King’s Place, London, on Wed 10 July for a pre-election special. Get tickets here. 

Back Rock & Roll Politics on Patreon and get FREE access to Steve’s 2024 Local Elections Post-Mortem live on Zoom, 5pm on Friday 3 May. Analysis, projections and your questions – all free to Patreon people. 

Written and presented by Steve Richards

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In his last term as Prime Minister, Harold Wilson was seen as old, paranoid and ineffective… yet now we discover he was lively enough to be having an affair. This suggests the caricature might be wrong. What if Wilson was livelier politically too? And what if we choose to see other leaders as stereotypes which do not present anything like the full picture? 

Support Rock & Roll Politics on Patreon for early episodes, exclusive merchandise and more. 

PLUS get free admission to Steve’s Local Elections 2024 Post-Mortem, live on Zoom at 5pm on Friday 3 May.

https://www.patreon.com/RockNRollPolitics

See Rock & Roll Politics live at King's Place on the 10th of July.

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The journalist and author Will Hutton has written an important new book on the eve of what’s likely to be a Labour government. The title is stark: This Time No Mistakes. But what mistakes were made? What are the lessons of the past? What are his hopes and fears for a Keir Starmer government?

This Time No Mistakes is published on April 11th. Buy it through our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund Rock & Roll Politics by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.

Support Rock & Roll Politics on Patreon for early episodes, exclusive merchandise and free admission to Steve’s Local Elections 2024 Post-Mortem, live on Zoom at 5pm on Friday 3 May.

https://www.patreon.com/RockNRollPolitics

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A rare chance to hear a live show… this one recorded in the main concert hall at Kings Place, London. On the agenda: How do the dramas around the current government compare with other ‘fin de siecle’ administrations? How does Keir Starmer compare with Harold Wilson and Tony Blair when they were on the edge of power? Plus unreliable predictions… Question Time… and much more.

Support the podcast Patreon for bonus editions, special merchandise and exclusive live events for subscribers. Our next one will be the day after the May local elections so sign up to find out first. 

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Nigel Lawson once said a party that wins the battle of ideas wins the election... Rachel Reeves has started to engage in this battle of ideas during her Mais Lecture. Labour are way ahead in the polls, so is this a battle they can win?

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With polls suggesting a slaughter at the election will Tory MPs seek to replace Sunak … and should they?

Tickets for the next Rock n Roll Politics Live: Kings Place on  26th March 2024 

Support Rock & Roll Politics on Patreon and get exclusive benefits including bonus episodes and exclusive merchandise only available to subscribers.

Buy Steve’s book Turning Points: Crisis and Change in Modern Britain, from 1945 to Truss 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.

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We are obsessed by the character of leaders, even if context, ideas and external circumstances can determine the fate of a government as much as character. Keir Starmer has been unusually hard to pin down, which is why I was keen to speak to Tom Baldwin. Although he has done many interviews to promote his new book on the Labour leader, I sensed there was more to explore – and we do. Plus, reflections on the challenge for Labour after the budget and major assembly notices for the co-operative.

Rock & Roll Politics is live at the Ropetackle Arts Centre in Shoreham on Weds March 13.

Steve is speaking at the York Literature Festival on Sat Mar 16. Tickets £10.

Venue: Memorial Hall, St Peter's School, Clifton, York, YO30 6AB

Rock & Roll Politics is live at Kings Place London on Tue March 26.

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The nightmare in Gaza triggers chaos in the Commons, a victory for George Galloway and apocalyptic warnings from Rishi Sunak… and yet there’s broad agreement in the UK about the need for a ceasefire. Meanwhile on most domestic issues where there should be an intense political battle, there seems to be a passive consensus.

Rock & Roll Politics is live at the Ropetackle Arts Centre in Shoreham on Weds March 13.

Steve is speaking at the York Literature Festival on Sat Mar 16. Tickets £10.

Venue: Memorial Hall, St Peter's School, Clifton, York, YO30 6AB

Rock & Roll Politics is live at Kings Place London on Tue March 26.

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Amidst the delusional craziness of Liz Truss’s interventions, she raises one valid question: Does too much power lie in unelected institutions? Since 1979 a huge amount of power has been handed over by elected politicians, and only Truss explores the implications as she sees them. Time for the Rock & Roll Politics co-operative to step in and save an important question from the fleeting Prime Minister.

Rock & Roll Politics is live at Kings Place London on March 26. Tickets here.

Rock & Roll Politics is live at the Ropetackle, Shoreham on March 13th. Tickets here.

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In Tom Baldwin's new biography of Keir Starmer, Angela Rayner describes the Labour leader as “the least political person I know in politics”. What does she mean? Is she right about Starmer? And what are the implications?

Rock & Roll Politics is live in March:

The Ropetackle, Shoreham, Wed Mar 13th: https://ropetacklecentre.co.uk/events/steve-richards-rock-n-roll-politics-2/

Kings Place, London, March 26th: https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/words/steve-richards-presents-rock-n-roll-politics-march-2024/ 

Support the podcast on Patreon for bonus editions, live events and much more: https://www.patreon.com/RockNRollPolitics

Buy Keir Starmer: The Biography by Tom Baldwin through our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund Rock & Roll Politics by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.

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Labour is way ahead in the polls and has dropped its most radical policy, the £28 billion green recovery plan. But in opposition, in the build up to the 1979 and 2010 elections, the Conservatives put forward radical right wing programmes – and won from opposition. They did not retreat. Why is Labour more cautious and less confident?

Rock N Roll Politics is live at Kings Place on March 26th with a brand new show. Tickets here: https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/words/steve-richards-presents-rock-n-roll-politics-march-2024/ 

Support the show on Patreon for bonus podcasts, live events and much more: https://www.patreon.com/RockNRollPolitics

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