The Exchange | Long-form interviews from the New Statesman

Episodes

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  What the hell is going on on the British right? 29.07.2026 47m

  For decades, hell, even centuries, there’s only been one show in town for the British right - the Conservative Party. But now, as the British electoral system complains and convulses and shudders and shrieks, a right-wing party has been at the top of the polls; it’s just not the Tories.Broadcaster, author and political commentator Iain Dale joins Oli Dugmore to discuss Reform, Restore, and the potential revitalisation of the Conservative Party. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  How will history remember Keir Starmer? 22.07.2026 49m

  Keir Starmer is no longer prime minister, Andy Burnham is. What just happened? Why did it happen? And what now? Oli Dugmore is joined by the New Statesman's editor-in-chief Tom McTague for a Starmer retrospective. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Gary Stevenson is lobbying Andy Burnham 15.07.2026 40m

  Gary Stevenson, economic campaigner and YouTuber, is using this change in government to lobby for a wealth tax. Without one, he predicts, "society will collapse". He joins Oli Dugmore on this episode of The Exchange. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Jeffrey Epstein was not the only monster 08.07.2026 47m

  Over 1000 of Epstein's victims of sexual abuse and trafficking have now been identified; some have chosen to come forward publicly, and among them there was one voice which was the loudest. Virginia Roberts Giuffre. In 2021, she decided she wanted to tell her own story, in its entirety. Joining forces with the ghostwriter Amy Wallace, she began working on Nobody’s Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for JusticeBut in 2025, before publication, Giuffre was found dead in her home in Australia. She’d let it be known that should anything happen to her, she wanted her story to be told. Amy Wallace joins Oli Dugmore to continue telling that story.--Statement from Sky Roberts as printed in Nobody's Girl: “Just to straighten this out, I never abused my daughter and didn’t know that Forrest —- did that either. If I had known about that, I would have been very angry and taken care of the situation. I gave my daughter every single thing she ever wanted and never ever touched her sexually, I never even knew what was going on with Epstein until I read about it online and getting calls from news agencies. There is so much they are getting wrong, even her middle name, it is Virginia Lee Roberts and not Virginia Louise. I am a moral person and believe that men who take advantage of young children should be prosecuted and then castrated. It really pisses me off that someone would write that I would ever abuse my children. As a father, I only tried to give my children a good life.” Statement from Giuffre vs Prince Andrew court case, 2022:"Prince Andrew has never intended to malign Ms. Giuffre's character, and he accepts that she has suffered both as an established victim of abuse and as a result of unfair public attacks. It is known that Jeffrey Epstein trafficked countless young girls over the years. Prince Andrew regrets his association with Epstein, and commends the bravery of Ms. Giuffre and other survivors in standing up for themselves and others. He pledges to demonstrate his regret for his association with Epstein by supporting the fight against the evils of sex trafficking, and by supporting its victims." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  "Trump wouldn't know Burnham if he slapped him" 03.07.2026 31m

  Some had dubbed Starmer as "the Trump whisperer", so how has this change in leader come across in the US? Do they even care?Mehdi Hasan, founder of Zeteo, joins us on The Exchange to discuss the view from across the pond and how Britain became a punching bag for the American right. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Jonathan Haidt supports a social media ban for teenagers. I don't. 01.07.2026 1h 3m

  Then social media came along. This is one of the reasons social psychologist Jonathan Haidt believes whole heartedly in the social media ban for under 16s, which has been rolled out in Australia, and will be brought into effect in the UK early next year.But is the ban really working in Australia? Is banning a solution? And is there a way to let young people benefit from the opportunities of the internet safely? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  7 prime ministers in 10 years 23.06.2026 57m

  Yesterday morning Keir Starmer resigned as prime minister. Today is the 10th anniversary of the Brexit referendum. Britain will soon welcome its seventh prime minister in a decade.Are the two events connected? Or is country's instability rooted further back in history?Editor-in-chief Tom McTague joins Oli Dugmore. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Frank Cottrell-Boyce fears Britain has lost its childhood 17.06.2026 52m

  Children's laureate, screenwriter, author of Millions, architect of the 2012 Olympic opening ceremony, and father of seven, Frank Cottrell-Boyce joins Oli Dugmore to discuss what childhood means in Britain today.Over two years visiting schools, prisons and asylum hotels, he found a country that has quietly stopped looking after its youngest citizens. He talks about the NEETs crisis, furniture poverty, what summer holidays now mean to children who dread them, and why the most radical thing you can do for a child is sit on a sofa and read to them. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Mariana Mazzucato wants economists to rethink everything 10.06.2026 58m

  Mariana Mazzucato is one of the most influential economists of modern times. An avowed progressive, her ideas impact the lives of millions of people, from the United States to sub-Saharan Africa. She was directly consulted in the creation of Biden’s CHIPS Act, which is worth $280 billion. The World Bank’s Mission 300, is straight out of her book Mission Economy.Oli Dugmore sits down with her to discuss the hope for progressive change in our political and economic systems.The Common Good Economy: A New Compass by Mariana Mazzucato is out now (Allen Lane). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  No Mr Blair, AI will not save us | Karen Hao 03.06.2026 51m

  Are AI companies the new empires?Journalist Karen Hao says the parallels are striking. This disruptive sector  requires vast amounts of land, minerals and water – not to mention data and content from individuals. Hao interviews subjects ranging from those close to Open AI CEO Sam Altman to workers in the Global South who’ve been traumatised by their jobs in AI content moderation.She joins Oli Dugmore on The Exchange.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Guy Standing on big finance infiltrating education 27.05.2026 59m

  Guy Standing is a British labour economist best known for coining the term "precariat" to describe the growing global class of people living with unstable employment, mounting debt, and chronic insecurity.Standing’s latest book, Human Capital, explores how the education system has been corrupted and privatised.He joins Oli Dugmore to discuss this, as well as how his concept of the “precariat” differs from Marx’s “proletariat”, and how a bold, progressive politics must flourish to combat the rise of authoritarianism. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  In defence of Europe - from Charleston Festival 20.05.2026 1h

  Charleston Festival is running until May 25. Find out more here.Ten years on from the referendum that redirected the course of British politics, the New Statesman's editor Tom McTague is joined by Caroline Lucas, Anand Menon and Marina Wheeler to consider how we should think about our relationship with Europe. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Eric Schlosser's 25 year fight against the fast food industry 13.05.2026 43m

  Eric Schlosser is one of America’s foremost investigative journalists, writing about everything from the prison system to nuclear weapons, exploring the hidden systems underpinning modern life. 25 years ago, he set out to investigate the economic model behind one of America’s most recognisable industries: a system built on low-paid workers, dangerous conditions and the exploitation of migrant labour.He joins Oli Dugmore to discuss America’s complicated relationship with McDonald's, the rise of fast food as both a cultural symbol and an economic system, and how Britain seeks to replicate this. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Mary Beard on the weaponisation of classics 06.05.2026 40m

  Rather than a relic of the past, Mary Beard sees the classical world as a powerful tool for understanding the present.It's an idea she has explored in over twenty books on ancient history and numerous documentaries on the BBC and elsewhere, all of which have made her Britain’s best known classicist.She joins culture editor Tanjil Rashid in the studio.-Mary Beard's new book Talking Classics: The Shock of the Old is available now. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Ben Lerner on the breakdown of American speech 29.04.2026 40m

  In 2011, Ben Lerner stormed onto the scene with his debut novel, Leaving the Atocha Station, a winning blend of low comedy and high art. He has since firmly established himself as one of America’s most acclaimed novelists and is a leading voice in so-called autofiction. Now he returns with his fourth novel, and it may be his most profound yet.  In Transcription, Lerner turns his mind to the nature of art, and of ageing. It’s a novel about generations, of growing children, and dying forebears, and the way the secrets and gifts of life and art move from one era to the next.  It’s also a novel about technology, and our increasing reliance on it, the way it shapes our speech, our thoughts, our memories and even our conceptions of ourselves. In this episode, Tanjil Rashid sits down with Ben Lerner to talk about how we record our conversations, why novels may matter even more in the age of AI, and - in his words - the bankruptcy of political speech. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Anthony Seldon found hope in Auschwitz 22.04.2026 47m

  Anthony Seldon, historian, educator and one of Britain's leading political biographers, has been for a long walk.His new book, The Path of Light, recounts his extraordinary 1300 kilometre passage to Auschwitz.Tracing stories of courage, resistance and moral clarity across a continent once consumed by darkness - it's a journey that speaks not only to the past, but powerfully to the world we're living in today. Anthony joins Tom McTague to discuss his journey, as well as his biographer's perspective on Britain's recent Prime Ministers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Fatima Bhutto feels lucky, even after watching her father's assassination 15.04.2026 1h 1m

  Fatima Bhutto was born into exile - and into one of the most powerful political dynasties in South Asia. Her life has been shaped by both privilege and profound personal tragedy. Born in Afghanistan, she spent her early years displaced, after her grandfather, former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was executed under General Zia-ul-Haq’s military regime. Her childhood was marked by instability and violence. Her father, Murtaza Bhutto, became involved in militant activism linked to acts including a political assassination and a plane hijacking. When the family returned to Pakistan, tensions deepened. Though it was his own sister Benazir Bhutto in power, Murtaza was killed in a police encounter - a death that Fatima has long held her aunt responsible for. In 2007, Benazir Bhutto herself was assassinated. Today, the Bhutto name still carries political weight in Pakistan. Her uncle is currently the president. But Fatima Bhutto has chosen a different path, as a writer - exploring her family’s turbulent history as well as the emerging popular culture of the global south, and moving between memoir, fiction, and reportage. Now, she returns with her most personal story yet... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  George Saunders has no faith in Christian nationalism 08.04.2026 39m

  For decades, George Saunders was known for his short stories. In 2013, in a Time Magazine 100 most influential people listing, he was described as “the best short-story writer in English".In 2017, he released his first novel, Lincoln in the Bardo, a reimagining of President Abraham Lincoln’s grief in the aftermath of his son Willie’s death. It’s a genre-defying piece of literature, narrated by no less than 166 ghosts. The bardo is a concept borrowed from Saunders ’ adopted faith, Buddhism—an "intermediate state" between death and reincarnation.In his latest novel, Vigil, Saunders returns to the in-between - this time through a dying oil barron, grappling with his morality at the 11th hour in a burning world.Tanjil Rashid sat down with George Saunders to discuss faith: in his writing, as a means of optimism, and as a political weapon in today’s world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Yanis Varoufakis's authoritarian dark side 01.04.2026 1h 3m

  Last week Yanis Varoufakis, the former Greek finance minister and darling of the European left, turned 65.He celebrated his birthday on stage in London, gathering figures from across the left together. Zack Polanski was there, so was Jeremy Corbyn.Varoufakis' mission? To explore what resistance means today across the left.In this episode of The Exchange Oli Dugmore sits down with Varoufakis to speak about resistance, his childhood in a fascist dictatorship, how this shaped him, whether he uses that word to describe the climate today, and the strategic importance of Cyprus for the war in the Middle East - for Britian, the US, Israel, Iran, Greece and Turkey. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Rory Stewart sees fundamental evil in Trump 25.03.2026 1h 9m

  Since leaving politics, Rory Stewart has become one of the most influential voices on the matter in Britain.In this episode, the former diplomat and cabinet minister reflects on his upbringing and his unconventional path into politics. He also discusses the Middle East, arguing that Western countries continue to misunderstand the region’s history and dynamics.The conversation then turns to Britain, including the growing intolerance towards Muslims and how that shapes political debate. Finally, Stewart shares his view on why Westminster often feels disconnected from the public and what needs to change. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.