The podcast that speaks your language. News and views from beyond the bubble with Telegraph columnists, Allison Pearson and Liam Halligan, every Thursday.
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You can watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/qNYLdKrCI_o On your rocket of right thinking this week co-pilots Pearson and Halligan discuss the recent riots in Belfast and the two-tier policing worries continuing from the murder of Henry Nowak. Liam thinks Kemi Badenoch’s call to ‘treat people equally’ under the law is correct and the DEI training given to police has disproportionately affected victims of crime more than the perpetrators and is detrimental to the social cohesion of the...
The episode deeply examines the tragic murder of Henry Novak, focusing on the national outrage surrounding the police's controversial handling of the case and the alleged systemic issues of "two-tier policing" and "woke indoctrination" through diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Additionally, it marks the 10th anniversary of the Brexit referendum with former Vote Leave CEO Lord Matthew Elliott, dissecting the economic realities, debunking "Project Fear" myths, and lamenting successive governments' failure to fully capitalize on regulatory freedoms while immigration soared. The discussion also touches upon the future of the British centre-right, reflecting on the unfulfilled promise of Brexit and sharing internal police testimonies on DEI's impact.
You can watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/uXkk5GHpPE4 This week on Planet Normal, your co-pilots of sanity, Liam Halligan and Allison Pearson, dive into a political landscape dominated by explosive leadership interventions and growing institutional scandal. Following a dramatic local election period, the duo analyzes a scathing 5,000-word essay by former Prime Minister Tony Blair, who has openly lacerated his own party for what he calls an “infinite capacity for self-delusion”. Lia...
You can watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/wQSgb9En2k0 This week on Planet Normal, your co-pilots of sanity, Liam Halligan and Alison Pearson, take us back to the 1970s as they look at the retro economic policies dragging the country in reverse. With financial markets reacting to the Labour infighting with horror, sending the UK government's borrowing costs to a staggering 30-year high, the duo warns that the British economy is on a knife edge. Liam focuses on the unfolding fiscal e...
You can watch this episode on YoutTube: https://youtu.be/5Zb71ekLVBE This week on Planet Normal, your co-pilots of sanity, Liam Halligan and Allison Pearson, sift through the debris of a historic set of local elections that have left Sir Keir Starmer clinging to power. The duo analyse the turquoise tsunami that saw Reform UK gain over 1,400 council seats, whilst the Prime Minister faces a precarious future after Labour’s vote share collapsed in traditional hubs like Birmingham and Cambridge. Who...
You can watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/81-0uu_POWE On the rocket of sweet reason this week we are avoiding talking about the May elections, so hold tight for a bumper episode next week! Meanwhile, Allison reflects on one hundred years of Sir David Attenborough as he celebrates his birthday this coming Friday and shares her memories of interviewing him in the Venezuelan rainforest nearly 30 years ago. Liam breaks down the economic fallout of the continuing to impact consumer pric...
Planet Normal explores the impending UK local elections, where Reform UK and the Green Party are poised to challenge the traditional dominance of Labour and the Conservatives, predicting significant shifts in the political landscape. The hosts critically examine Labour's leadership and economic policies, expressing alarm over potential fiscal crises. A significant segment features Colonel Richard Williams, who warns how the "lawfare" prosecution of veterans under human rights legislation is undermining the British military's capability, recruitment, and crucial alliances, posing a grave threat to national security amid rising domestic and international threats. The episode concludes with listener feedback on the impact of government policies on community businesses.
This week on the rocket, co-pilots Halligan and Pearson dive into the political firestorm engulfing Westminster as Sir Keir Starmer faces intense scrutiny over the botched appointment of Peter Mandelson as Ambassador to the US. Following explosive evidence from former civil servant Sir Olly Robbins, the duo explores the ‘process-driven’ culture of the current government and whether it is shielding a lack of transparency. Liam explains why even a potential ceasefire or the reopening of the Strait...
You can watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/-e1x0gsvjfY This week on the rocket, co-pilots Halligan and Pearson eye a horizon of storm clouds gathering over Britain’s economy and national security. Liam breaks down the "serious downgrade" from the IMF, which predicts the UK will suffer more economic fallout from the war in Iran than any other major economy. He asks if the government is blaming external conflicts for vulnerabilities that were already "starkly exposed" months ago?. Mea...
You can watch this episode on Youtube: https://youtu.be/B0VweeU7QlA This week on Planet Normal, your co-pilots navigate their way from the high-stakes geopolitics of the Strait of Hormuz to the local battlegrounds of the South London Waitrose middle aisle, they examine whether common sense has gone to die - and whether the UK is becoming ‘Blighty no-mates’ on the world stage. Pondering the paradox of a superpower that can send the Orion spacecraft to the far side of the moon while struggling to ...
Alison Pearson and Liam Halligan discuss the UK's economic hit from global conflicts, the scandalous state of NHS waiting lists, and systemic failures in public services. They interview Professor Matt Goodwin about his new book, "Suicide of a Nation," which sparks debate on the impact of mass migration on British identity, language, and electoral integrity. The episode also covers the government's energy policy, tax increases, and listener experiences with public service decline.
You can watch this episode in full on YouTube: https://youtu.be/z53vu3azxZs In this week’s dispatch from the sanctuary of sweet reason, your co-pilots of sanity Liam Halligan and Allison Pearson, address the rise of antisemitic attacks in Britain, including the chilling firebombing of Jewish charity ambulances in North London. Alison shares her continuing case against Essex’s police and crime commissioner, as well as the county’s police force over a post on X, which has since been deleted, which...
You can watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/QVXFsa07Rpo In this week’s dispatch from the sanctuary of sweet reason, co-pilots Pearson and Halligan examine a growing sense of national insecurity as Britain faces a perfect storm of energy, military, and financial fragility, and the unfolding meningitis outbreak. With oil climbing back above $100 a barrel and the Strait of Hormuz remaining shut, Liam argues that it is time for the government to junk the ‘Net Zero virtue signalling’ and ...
You can watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/uRceQCyRYIU It’s markets this, oil prices that, and what will happen next, so your co-pilots are blasting in to make sense of the tsunami of news flooding across the globe from the Middle East and the war with Iran. Allison points to the shame of all governments for not protecting British interests and defence strategy has left us woefully unprepared for any disruption to energy supplies. And as the news is pointing away from the UK Allison...
You can watch this episode on youtube: https://youtu.be/KQ1dUe4FxZ0 As conflict with Iran hots up across the Middle East, your co-pilot blast in to make sense of the madness. Strapping into the rocket is Dr Alan Mendoza, Co-Founder and Executive Director of The Henry Jackson Society to give his expertise on the conflict and how the ‘special relationship’ is faring as the PM holds back on British intervention. Allison thinks delays to assisting US forces has left the UK as ‘billy no mates’ should...
You can watch this recording on YouTube: https://youtu.be/lFRwaTYK-mM Your co-pilots have braved the atmosphere of planet Earth as the rocket touches down at the Emmanuel Centre in London for a live recording of Planet Normal! To mark the occasion, your co-pilots are joined by two of the most fearless voices to navigate a country they fear is currently on an ‘economic cliff edge’. The first revered stowaway on the rocket today is Lionel Shriver: The celebrated satirical novelist discusses her pr...
Book your tickets for Planet Normal: LIVE on the 24th February: telegraph.co.uk/planetnormallive | You can watch this episode of Planet Normal on YouTube: https://youtu.be/_jt6Hy7NYvU On this week’s flight through the sanctuary of sweet reason, co-pilots Pearson and Halligan examine the rapid rise of Reform’s new "Shadow Cabinet," including Robert Jenrick’s debut as Shadow Chancellor and his mission to position the party as the new vanguard of fiscal prudence. Alison and Liam also debate the "gr...
Book your tickets for Planet Normal: LIVE on the 24th February: telegraph.co.uk/planetnormallive | You can watch this episode of Planet Normal on YouTube: https://youtu.be/LFlJivPsT9A Following a scorching column by their colleague Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, co-pilots Pearson and Halligan discuss whether Britain is becoming "ungovernable" as sovereign bond yields spiral and the Prime Minister appears increasingly held hostage by the hard-Left of his own party. Allison questions the mandate of a le...
This episode delves into the Peter Mandelson scandal, exposing his deep ties to Jeffrey Epstein and questioning Keir Starmer's decision to appoint him as US Ambassador. It features former MI6 head Sir Richard Dearlove, who provides expert geopolitical analysis on the Chagos Islands deal, Chinese influence, NATO, and the vindicated COVID-19 lab leak theory. Additionally, the podcast highlights the case of Lucy Connolly, revealing systemic flaws in the justice system, and shares a GP's account of the deepening NHS crisis.
You can watch this episode of Planet Normal on YouTube: https://youtu.be/4f7eZbkA91Q It's been a week of defections, rejections and tantrums in the world of politics, and your co pilots are here to wade through the madness. After the Telegraph published an article outlining the role Starmer took in prosecuting soldiers your co-pilots speak to General Sir Peter Wall to delve deeper into the scandal. Allison thinks Starmer ‘isn’t for Britain’ and his human right activism undermines the important r...
You can watch this episode of Planet Normal on YouTube: https://youtu.be/mwWiWA21r1U The rocket of right thinking is back with a blast and a very special defector is aboard. Robert Jenrick is strapped in to tell our intrepid co-pilots why he has joined Reform UK and why he thinks the Conservatives didn’t deserve ‘a second chance’. Your co-pilots return to the cockpit to navigate a world that has grown increasingly volatile in just the first few weeks of 2026. They discuss whether this is a ‘surv...
The winter break continues on Planet Normal! In this, the third and final part of the three part best of the rocket series, our co-pilots take a look back at some of their most explosive voyages on the rocket of right thinking from 2025, before our intrepid co-pilots return next week! Back in November Liam spoke to Scottish born Rosie Kay who enjoyed a highly successful international career as a performer and choreographer, and in 2004 established the Rosie Kay dance company. Rosie tells the co-...
In our second episode of the Best of the Rocket 2025, co-pilots Pearson and Halligan dive deep into the past year’s archives and bring you some of their most intriguing and provocative voyages on the rocket of right thinking, from this past year. This week the Rocket has made a stop at Westminster with Conservative MP Helen Whately, coming on board to discuss her having one of the toughest briefs in politics - identifying welfare savings. Helen's former party colleague and high-profile defector ...
In this, the first of the Best of the Rocket 2025, co-pilots Pearson and Halligan dig into the data files for some of their most explosive voyages on the rocket of right thinking from this year. There’s been no shortage of madness on the rocket over the past few months, the peak of which was definitely when Chancellor Rachel Reeves cried in the Commons and the leader of the RMT said ‘stuff it’ to the markets. There’s also been an abundance of politicians and political agitators that have graced ...
It’s a Merry Christmas from the Rocket of right thinking at Planet Normal to everyone stuck on Planet Earth Your intrepid co-pilots reflect on a year of political thrills and economic spills, honouring the "citizens of Planet Normal" while handing out awards to the figures in public life who impressed - and those who most certainly did not. Amidst the Christmas cheer, your hosts offer a heartfelt thank you to their "intelligent and inspired" listeners for their tireless contributions throughout ...
Your Co-pilots reflect on a sombre week as the festive season is overshadowed by the beach massacre in Sydney earlier this week. Co-pilot Pearson delivers a blistering critique of Western leaders whom she accuses of failing to confront the root of Islamist extremism. Liam connects the tragedy to the rising sense of fear among the Jewish community in the UK, arguing that the ‘aggressive’ weekly protests should not be allowed to continue in the Capital. On the economic front, Liam warns of rising ...
Co-Pilots Pearson and Halligan tackle a week of political and economic madness. Starmer is dismissed as a "caretaker Prime Minister" with a weak mandate, having been supported by only 20% of the electorate. Your hosts dissect Chancellor Rachel Reeves' job tax hike and her "benefits street Budget" which funds the scrapping of the two-child benefit cap by ‘punishing 340,000 working people’ with frozen tax thresholds. They confront the escalating migration crisis, discussing the rise of illegal arr...
The hosts sharply criticize Rachel Reeves' latest budget, accusing her of misleading the public and causing economic instability, exacerbated by internal Labour turmoil and a move to restrict trial by jury. They also welcome Lord Nigel Bigger to discuss his book on reparations, challenging claims of overwhelming British guilt for slavery and addressing academic intolerance. The episode concludes with poignant listener emails detailing the personal impact of current policies on working families and young professionals.
The rocket of right thinking is back for a crucial Budget Special as Chancellor Rachel Reeves unveils her second major fiscal statement. Her new £30 billion tax rise means a staggering £70 billion increase in just two years, the most "punitive tax raising budget in more than three decades". Joining the co-pilots to dissect the numbers is the brilliant Telegraph columnist, Roger Bootle. Roger reveals why he thinks the budget will land "very badly with business" and discusses the "scandalous" leak...
This week the Rocket welcomes former Prime Minister Liz Truss to discuss next week’s Budget as well as the co-pilots diving into the latest political issues. From the dramatic U-turn on immigration by the Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, to the creeping tax rises hidden in Rachel Reeves's upcoming budget, there’s more than enough madness to unpack. They ask if the Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood's new rhetoric to crack down on immigration is real, and will her plans work? Alison dissects the prop...
