Ding dong, your festive Trawl is here! We're almost at the undoing top button stage of the season, so Jemma and Marina open with some festive tweets and a clip that captures then mood of low work motivation at this time of year.

Then it's straight to the most heartwarming clip of all... Who needs Hallmark movies when you have: 'When Marina met Annunziata.' Yes, this is the encounter that went viral when Marina debated with Annunziata Rees-Mogg on the Jeremy Vine Show. It's a bit like when Harry met Sally, except they don't move past the part where they find each other completely obnoxious. 

Staying on obnoxious, the Trawl ladies discuss Robert Jenrick's sudden charge of heart and why the right seems to have forgotten its no-nonsense stance on protests since farmers took to the streets. 

Next up.... The Prince and the Spy. Which sadly for us is not the name of some work of fiction, but indeed the latest Royal update involving HRH, Air Miles Andy, plus some handy tips for how we might avoid spending £46m on a statue for Queen Elizabeth II. 

Lastly... Lunch is for wimps and sandwiches are for breakfast is the latest insight from the topsy-turvy world of Tory Leader, Kemi Badenoch who instead chooses to have steak delivered to her desk like the totally in-touch, woman of the people, nouveau working class person that she is. 

To end, a sprinkling of merry underrated tweets and clips before a Christmas pudding that is guaranteed to leave you feeling that finally...Christmas has arrived.

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Created and Produced by Jemma Forte & Marina Purkiss

Edited by Max Carrey

Jemma and Marina were thrilled to meet one third of the Newsagents, Lewis Goodall. They chatted to him about where his passion for politics began, his relationship with the BBC and why some listeners are confused by his relationship with John and Emily.

There's also a fantastic round of Snog, Marry, Avoid.

Enjoy!

You can tell everyone at Trawl HQ (Jemma, Marina and editor Max) are sliding towards Christmas because the atmosphere is tinged with faint hysteria. It's not just Gregg Wallace who is turning the air blue, Nigella's at it, even Prue Leith is at it! Who'd have thought baking could sound so filthy?

Then, reasons to be cheerful, ranging from Rees Mogg having his show cancelled, Johnson's Australian book tour having to be cancelled due to 'unforeseen circumstances' (AKA no one coming) and last, but definitely not least, and certainly more important, the fall of the brutal Assad regime in Syria. 

Marina and Jemma discuss what's happened, cover some of the reaction, and hear from joyful Syrians who feel like going home has just become a possibility. It's almost like they were fleeing violence and persecution and not just here for benefits as some would have us believe. Reform and Co ...ahem. 

Then, buckle up, because there has been some Twitter BEEF - and yes, we are still calling it Twitter. Sure Elon will cope. Marina and Jemma enjoy recalling Marina's interactions with one Isabel Oakeshott which went viral and revealed so much about what she thinks of anyone who doesn't have a degree from a certain type of university, which is most of the population. Elitist anyone?

It's all very amusing but not as downright hilarious as Lee Anderson's latest clanger. Ladies, prepare to find out why what you go through every month is nothing compared to what Lee's imagination has to suffer. 

Pudding is wonderful and served up by Will Sebag Montefiore @wsebag on Insta 

Enjoy!

Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast

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Created and Produced by Jemma Forte & Marina Purkiss

Edited by Max Carrey

The Trawl opens with some festive cheer as Marina shares the daily advent calendar struggles in her house and Jemma enlightens us with her pre-Christmas clog. 

Then it's onto Farage's 38th BBC Question Time appearance where the ladies discuss motives behind why the BBC politics panel show may as well be called: Farage and Friends.

Then onto the shocking events unfolding in the US, where United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson was murdered in broad daylight in what appears to be a protest killing against the ruthlessly for-profit industry.

What's most shocking of all, is that the vast public response and sentiment to this brazen and targeted murder seems to be far from sympathetic. Jemma and Marina discuss some of the alleged horror stories from the US healthcare system and the perceived martyrdom of murder suspect Luigi Maglione and what it means, as well as the now famous smile that gave him away to the NYPD. 

The episode ends with some joyous underrated tweets about 'scientits' and a Christmas flavoured pud from new Trawl fave, Cody Dahler. 

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Jemma has been eager to get behind the mic for this one. Being a middle class woman of a 'certain' age has nothing to do with it, honest guv. On that note, the Trawl ladies aren't entirely sure what 'that' certain age is but there's so much to mull over they might never get an answer to that

But there's more to ponder besides Gregg, so they kick off discussing the resignation of Labour's Transport Secretary, Louise Haigh. Haigh was mugged many years ago and said her work phone was one of the items stolen, only said phone then turned up. As far as the Trawlers are concerned this spent conviction pales into comparison with assaulting a woman (Reform MP) or hacking a colleague's computer (Badenoch) but hey....

Marina and Jemma also discuss the Assisted Dying Bill and give their very personal views on that. 

And then, finally, they turn their attention to the Gregg Wallace brouhaha. Is there a woman who hasn't taken to socials to say how him blaming his accusers of his alleged misconduct probably wasn't the best plan?

One man however thinks he's a male icon and the ladies have a lot to say about that. Marina surprises Jemma with an underrated tweet she wasn't expecting which ends the ep on a very funny note. 

Pudding is brilliant - short but sweet and starring comics Mark Thomas and Shappi Khorsandi.

The pod opens with a nod to the festive season and how Marina handles questioning from her husband as more Christmas decorations enter the house, before kicking off with the non-scoop of the century from Charlotte Gill.

Charlotte, bless her, is a journalist (feels like a bit of a reach) who believes she has unearthed a shady underground network of left-leaning people and organisations. Just wait until you hear about her latest link revelations...

Then it's onto the meat of the episode and it's Musk who has been flirting with Reform leading to an article in The times questioning whether a $100m donation could be making its way from Space Karen to Pound Shop Enoch. The ladies discuss the rank hypocrisy at play and the desperate need for political financing reform - not tomorrow, not in a year, but now. 

There's a good giggle at the state of Trump's Mar-a-Lago thanksgiving dinner before some serious talk and choice words from Jemma as Farage wades into the abortion debate. 

The pod ends with a pardon, that of Biden for his son hunter, and a deliciously matched pudding from new Trawl fave, Cody Dahler. 

Well, this episode dives straight in with a bit of sex scandal. Nadine Dorries has lifted the lid on what she witnessed during her time in government and much of it was rather ‘cheeky’ to say the least. What other workplace has a group WhatsApp for planning naked sessions in offices? Dorries is horrified. She was then too, apparently, but also wasn’t selling a book, which she is now. 

Then the Trawl ladies discuss the arrest warrant which has been put out by the ICC for Netanyahu and Gallant. They feature some very powerful clips and hear why holocaust survivors are in favour of it and why calling it anti semitic is a hollow untruth. How have other countries reacted? Where does the reaction from the US leave us? And does Biden’s negotiation with Lebanon mean Gaza has been pushed further down the agenda or not?

And then, the complicated Musk family tree. It reads like an excerpt from Woman’s Weekly! 

Enjoy!

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Created and Produced by Jemma Forte & Marina Purkiss

Edited by Max Carrey

Have we all lost our minds? It appears so as the news this week was dominated by a petition, seemingly signed by bells and bots, demanding Keir Starmer call a general election - a mere 4 months since the last one. 

Jemma is inevitably quite grumpy about the whole silly affair and so opens the pod with a good moan from an equally grumpy Hugh Grant. 

Jemma and Marina discuss the laughable double standards of those demanding the election and ponder the loss of Will. Remember him? Will of the people who is now gone and forgotten. They discuss the dodgy nature of the Elon Musk-endorsed petition which has received signatories from the world over - including some uninhabitable corners of the planet. How very tenacious of them. 

And while there are some relieving laughs in the pod concerning Keir Starmer's appearance on This Morning, the ladies don't shy away from their concerns over the impact of unregulated online activity and Governments' inability to keep pace with the wild west and its broligarchs. 

The pod ends with some outrageously naughty underrated posts including some corkers from MasterChef's Gregg Wallace and a perfectly themed pudding from Instagram's Cody Dahler.

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Created and Produced by Jemma Forte & Marina Purkiss

Edited by Max Carrey

Melvin Odoom has pledged his love to Carol Vorderman from the Australian rainforest so Jemma and Marina leap at the chance to kick off the episode with something sweet. 

The sweet quickly turns sour though when the Trawl ladies check in to see who Trump has appointed Education Secretary. Hold onto your hats, he might just have excelled himself. 

Then, it's time for Marina and Jemma to pay tribute to the late, great, John Prescott and the clip they've chosen for you provokes a lot of thought from Jemma. In fact she woke up thinking about why the clip resonated so much. 

Then, have you ever embellished the truth on your CV? This is what Rachel Reeves has been accused of doing by the opposition, only it's hard to find evidence she wasn't an economist at The Bank of England which is what they're suggesting. In fact, at The Trawl. Marina and Jemma have found a statement from someone who worked with her there, was in meetings with her and can confirm she definitely was. Could it be a brouhaha about very little? Is it Angela Rayner's council tax all over again? One thing's for sure, Rayner certainly isn't at all flustered in the clips from PMQ's 

Meanwhile, people are leaving X in their thousands as it increasingly becomes a boring cesspit. It's Bluesky who are benefiting and Marina and Jemma are certainly enjoying the cleaner air and better spelling. 

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Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast

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Created and Produced by Jemma Forte & Marina Purkiss

Edited by Max Carrey

It's the two hundredth Trawl! Jemma and Marina can hardly believe it and both recommend a couple of vintage eps to celebrate, as does editor Max. 

Then, it's over to the States to see what health recommendations RFK Jr. is making. Hopefully they'll be less effective than the ones he made in Samoa where there was a huge outbreak of measles and subsequent deaths as a result of his vaccine scaremongering. 

Then, along with hundreds of tractors, irate farmers and a smattering of Brexity types, to Westminster we go where the farming community have descended to protest against having to pay inheritance again, at a discounted rate. There is some sympathy for some farmers but, as far as Marina and Jemma are concerned, Jeremy Clarkson, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Farage can do one. They all either own acres and acres of tax dodging or caused the farming community endless pain and hassle due to Brexit. The irony is strong. 

The Trawl ladies are very grateful to Vic Derbyshire for her incredible interview with farm poster boy, Clarkson. It really revealed so much.....none of it flattering. They're also left wondering how excited ex Tory MP, Neil Parish, must be. All those tractors! Fwarrrr. 

As ever there are under rated tweets and a pudding

Marina's vintage Ep choice:

Ep 134: Order of the Thistle and Other Mad Plots

Jemma's vintage Ep choice:

Ep 031: Drinking Hunt's Coffee Beside The Brexit Bonfire of EU Laws

Max's vintage Ep choice 

Ep 104: Pincher pinching, now Peter Bone...

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Created and Produced by Jemma Forte & Marina Purkiss

Edited by Max Carrey

It's not even been two weeks since the US election and already some in the US will be feeling that buyers' remorse, with even Trump himself receiving a little shock from Russia (not with love) to remind him exactly who's in charge.

Jemma and Marina digest some of Trump's latest Government appointments, which are as wild as they are dangerous, with one tweeter saying "it's like Donald Trump appointing the Grinch as Director of the Department of Christmas". 

Then it's back to Blighty and an absolute howler from GB News in their coverage of the two minute silence for Remembrance Sunday before discussing Jeremy Clarkson's new role as the farmers' hero. Funny how when a celeb like Clarkson gets involved in politics, it's all good - and yet when it's someone like Gary Lineker, he should stick to football. Which takes us to the news of Gary's departure from Match of the Day and a clip that thankfully never got aired, otherwise he might have left sooner...

Finally, Jemma and Marina discuss the media and political gaslighting over the events in Amsterdam and clashes with Israel's Maccabi Tel Aviv fans, before some Royal-related underrated tweets and a pudding from Billy Eilish that sent Marina's spine tingling.

Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast

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Created and Produced by Jemma Forte & Marina Purkiss

Edited by Max Carrey