An extra special episode in our Bylines Reports series, bringing you a passionate and insightful debate recorded live at the Byline Festival 2025, in front of an excited audience of 200 people. Join host Ben Dickenson (Bylines Network’s managing director), and an expert panel including: • Outspoken former UK diplomat Alexandra Hall Hall. • High-profile campaigner Stephen Kinsella, founder of Hacked Off and the Press Justice Project. • Bylines Network co-founder, and co-editor in chief of ...
Jul 18, 2025•42 min•Season 1Ep. 9
For Pride month, we ask what life is like for transgender people in the UK right now. On this special episode, Julian sits down with Zoe Perry from the Forrest of Dean and Natacha Kennedy, two trans writers from the Bylines Network, to discuss the impact of the recent hotly contested Supreme Court decision. The court ruled that protections from sex based discrimination in the Equality Act referred to biological sex only. Our guests reveal how this felt like a gut punch to the trans community and...
Jul 16, 2025•1 hr•Season 4Ep. 23
Danny Dorling's new book, The Next Crisis: What We Think About the Future, is out and the Editor's-In-Chief of Bylines Cymru and West England Bylines interview him about it. It's facinating and vital stuff to know. The book is about the growing wealth gap between rich and poor, the effects of the Cost of Living Crisis, and how unknowns dictate the way we think about the future. If you wish to contribute to our cause, we have a crowdfunding page to help the Network expand. Donate only if you can ...
Jul 07, 2025•52 min•Season 1Ep. 8
We're starting a new occasional mini series, celebrating the 5th birthday of every Publication when they come up. This time, Chris and Julian are talking to Yvonne Wancke, Editor in Chief of North East Bylines. We talk about how it started, how it's going and how she hope siit'll shape up in the future. If you wish to contribute to our cause, we have a crowdfunding page to help the Network expand. Donate only if you can and whatever you can, every little really helps. https://chuffed.org/projec...
Jul 03, 2025•26 min•Season 1Ep. 2
The month of May was certainly full of news. Our hosts pick two things to talk about in this episode, with the main topic being the Local Elections and the atronomic rise of Reform UK who won 10 councils and 2 Mayoralities, even doing very well in areas they didn't win, such as the WECA Mayor elections. The other topic of discussion is the start of the leadership campiagn for the Green Party, with Zack Polanski and Co-Leader Adrian Ramesey starting their campaigns and Carla Denyer stepping down....
Jun 04, 2025•40 min•Season 4Ep. 22
One of Labour's big promises during the election was the creation of a new publicly owned body to tackle the massive bills the British Public was facing and aid the transition to renewable energy. On the 15th May 2025, the creation of GB Energy was given Royal Assent. And former chief executive of Siemens UK, Juergen Maier was named as its chairman. Anna Damski, from East Anglia Bylines, and Charlie McCarthy, from Bylines Scotland, have a sit down with Jurgen and ask him about his career, what G...
May 21, 2025•20 min•Season 1Ep. 7
Jemma Forte & Marina Purkiss from the Trawl Podcast?!? What is this, a crossover episode? Lydia Pearson and Gemma Gould of North West Bylines and Central Bylines, respectively, interview the hosts of one of the most popular political podcasts, asking them about the current political climate, the state of social media, and how do they cope with both and their own mental health juggling it all. If you wish to contribute to our cause, we have a crowdfunding page to help the Network expand. Dona...
May 15, 2025•38 min
Ginny Smith returns in our 5th episode of Bylines Reports, this time talking to Tan Dhesi. Tan Dhesi is the Labour MP for Slough and has been since 2017. When elected, he was one of the first Turbened MPs in Europe and Britain's first. He currently chairs the Defence Committee, which is a multi-party committee, which loosks at the expenditure, administration, and policy of the Ministry of Defence and its associated public bodies. In this interview, Ginny asks him about his Party, its strategy, t...
May 02, 2025•44 min•Season 1Ep. 5
This month, Julian and Chris celebrate pride month by bringing you some Pride themed articles or articles written by Queer authors. The articles this month include a discussion about gender from North West by Isabelle Goodhand, the function of Pride in the 2020s, especially with encroaching of LGBT+ rights from Central Bylines by Bryan Manley-Green, and a queer filmmaker’s examination of dealing with disability from Bylines Cymru by Abigail Luxford-Noyes. Please give all of these a read. However...
Apr 30, 2025•35 min•Season 4Ep. 2
Grace Blakeley is a leading left-wing political commentator, author, and journalist who describes herself as a democratic socialist. She writes for the Tribune and is regularly seen working at the coal face battling Piers Morgan on Talk TV. She studied Politics, Philosophy and Economics and then African Studies at Oxford. She’s a former fellow at the Institute for Public Policy Research, former New Statesman commentator and former member of Labour’s National Policy Forum. She left the Labour par...
Apr 18, 2025•48 min
On the 15th April 2020, Yorkshire Bylines was launched to widespread popularity, leading to the creation of the Bylines Network. 5 years, 9 more publications (and another thatleft to do its own thing), 17 million reads, and 4 seasons of a podcast later, our hosts sit down with current co-editor in chief of Yorkshire and former managing director of the Network, Louise Houghton to talk about the journey of the last 5 years, current ambitions and aims, and what could be in store for the future. Vox...
Apr 14, 2025•30 min•Season 4Ep. 21
An advantage to recording late is we can always touch upon the latest news. So, instead of touching upon the Tories dropping Net Zero, marking a departure of bipartisan unity, we spoke about Marie Le Pen, leader of Rassemblement National and president in waiting, has been barred for standing for election for 5 years. What does this mean for the Far Right in Europe? Who supported her? How will our Hosts react? The answers won't surprise you! In closer news, our hosts also touch upon the cutting t...
Apr 10, 2025•31 min•Season 4Ep. 20
Author, column writer for the Observer, former editor-in-chief of the same paper. In this episode, Yvonne Wancke of North East Bylines and Ben Dickenson interviews Will Hutton. In this episode, he talks about his life, his books, Big Tech, Capitalism, the rise (and possible fall) of the Far Right in Europe, what Labour can do to speed this fall up, and, of course, Trump's Tariffs and their affects on the world. Sit down for a truly fascinating in our latest Report. Voxel Revolution Kevin MacLeod...
Apr 07, 2025•36 min•Season 1Ep. 3
April is Autism Awareness Month!! To commemorate, Ronnie of Bylines Scotland Podcast fame, speaks to three mothers who are all parents to autistic children. They speak about the struggles their children have coping with their conditions, what EMPOWER seeks to do and how the group has helped them. Thanks once again to Ronnie for another excellent episode. Voxel Revolution Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/license...
Apr 02, 2025•21 min•Season 1Ep. 1
This time on Bylines Reports, our host across the border in Scotland, Ronnie Barbour, comes to us from Embankment, interviewing a group called Patriotic Millionaires. Patroitic Millionaires are a group of British Millionaires who are advocating for higher taxes on the wealthy, to help out struggling services and economy. Voxel Revolution Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/...
Mar 23, 2025•15 min•Season 1Ep. 2
In the month of February, Germany has a new Chancellor in the shape of Friedrich Merz. Immediately after the election results were confirmed, he set about making his feelings known about the direction Europe needs to head. Could he be Europe's new leader, following the vacuum left behind by his CDU predecessor? Where our hosts clash is over the dicussion of polls. There has been a trend of Reform UK leapfrogging both the Tories and Labour to take a lead. Is it time to start worrying? Is there an...
Feb 28, 2025•29 min•Season 4Ep. 19
We welcome you to a brand new mini series, Bylines Reports, where one of our journalists from across the Network, brings you a special episode, whether it's an interview with a political figure, or an audio version of their articles. We'll deliver it right to your ears to enjoy. Today, Ginny Smith from Sussex Bylines interviews Alastair Campbell, who worked with Tony Blair between 1997-2003. In this interview, they discuss Starmer's visit to America, the Rise of Nigel Farage, the fall of Local J...
Feb 24, 2025•39 min•Season 1Ep. 1
Happy New Year Listeners. With a new year, brings new change, new leaders and new relationships. And we, at the Bylines Network, are no different. This month's episode, we're speaking to the Network's brand new Managing Director, Ben Dickenson. We ask about what drew him to the Network, what his plans are and what he sees as the Network's role in an ever increasingly dishonest world. Join Julian and Chris on the first of may episodes of the Bylines Network, bringing you news in your local area, ...
Jan 29, 2025•33 min•Season 4Ep. 18
Another year has been and gone, at last. And while there were plenty of news stories from the last 12 months, it's very hard to remember the good news stories as those aren't thhe ones people click on. So, in our end of year round up, our hosts look at good news stories from 2024, highlight some of the ones that made us feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Happy New Year everyone, here's to 2025 and all it shall bring. Voxel Revolution Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: ...
Dec 31, 2024•21 min•Season 4Ep. 17
Our two stories of the month are election related First we look at the Tory Leadership Election, which was won by Right Wing Kemi Badenoch. Our hosts look at her record and what it could mean for the next 4 years or even if she will last that long. But it is the election of the United States of America that draws our attention for most of this episode. Julian and Chris discuss the result, what went wrong and what the next 4 years could mean for both Europe and the American People. Voxel Revoluti...
Nov 24, 2024•50 min•Season 4Ep. 16
Last year, there was uproar as Bannau Brycheiniog National Park decided to use its Welsh name on all its advertising. A few weeks ago, one of our hosts noticed similar headlines as there was discussion about whether to change the official name of Wales to Cymru. So, to counteract those headlines, Chris and Julian invited Gwern Gwynfil of Bylines Cymru to talk about the history of what Tolkien called "the senior language of the men of Britain", the efforts made to save it and why changing its nam...
Oct 31, 2024•31 min•Season 4Ep. 15
Back from recess, much like our MPs, and we are thankful nothing controverisal that warrented discussion happened since then. All the major parties have had their conferences and all gave off different vibes as they all look to the future and what the next steps are. The first bills will be passing through parliment as well, by the reports, the Renter's Bill and Better Bus Bill will be amongst the first. Here's all our thoughts on all of that and more in this month's episode. Voxel Revolution Ke...
Oct 04, 2024•31 min•Season 4Ep. 14
Back to our regularly scheduled episodes now, we take a look at the new King's Speech, the first made by a new party in power since 2010. In it, 40 bills were announced, 35 new laws and 5 new draft laws, showing Labour's proirities in getting the ball rolling when it comes to the task his party now has. Julian and Chris go over the highlights of these new laws, what they liked, what they didn't like and what was missing. Voxel Revolution Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Co...
Aug 02, 2024•31 min•Season 4Ep. 13
Recorded 1 week after the General Election. The much anticipated General Election came and went with a result that many saw coming. Now what? We reunite Ronnie Barbour and Ethan Jones from our previous episodes to discuss the results in England, Scotland, Wales, with a special guest Megan to talk about the results in Northern Ireland. We talk about results that interested us, what they mean for their respective parties and what the future has in store for the UK. Voxel Revolution Kevin MacLeod (...
Jul 20, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Season 1Ep. 8
In our last episode of our miniseries, Election Fever, we look at the bookies' favourites to ask the King's permission to form a Government on 5th July, The Labour Party. In this episode we voice our frustrations, our hopes, Labour's policies and our feelings on Sir Keir Starmer. Thank you all so much for giving so much support to our little miniseries, there will be no Big episode this month as our editor is tired but join us again in July for our bukper disscussions about the results. Voxel Re...
Jun 28, 2024•28 min•Season 1Ep. 7
We're in the Endgame now. This week, we take a look at the incumbant Party, their chances and their polls numbers and we ask the question if this will all lead to another 5 years of Tory Rule. No prizes for guessing the answer I'm afraid but we take a look to after the election too, to see if a loss could actually lead to a fight for the heart of British Conversivatism itself. Voxel Revolution Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://crea...
Jun 21, 2024•26 min•Season 1Ep. 6
It's time for the Diva of Props' turn for analysis. The Liberal Democrats arelooking to regain the number of MPs they won in 2010, if the polls are to be believed, it looks like they're on their way, with some even saying they could become leaders of the opposition! Can the Lib Dems bank on the Tories 14 years of mis governance? Can they win back voters? Or will previously broken pledges stall them? Voxel Revolution Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution ...
Jun 14, 2024•23 min•Season 1Ep. 5
At every election, there's always a few parties that seems to reurn the same amount of MPs, Plaid Cymru is one of them. As Englishmen, our hosts know very little about the Welsh Party so we call upon our friends in Bylines Cymru to tell us about them. What are their policies? Are they the Welsh version of the SNP? And can they have an impact in this general election? listen to our latest episode to find out. Voxel Revolution Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Att...
Jun 09, 2024•29 min•Season 1Ep. 4
This week on election Fever, we look at the SNP with the host of our Podcast across the border, Ronnie Barbour. A few weeks before an election was called, the previous First Minister Humza Yousaf stepped down following an impolsion of the deal made with the Scottish Greens. Now they have a new leader facing the same problems, will they come back to bite him or will he navigate his way through this election relatively well? Voxel Revolution Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative ...
Jun 07, 2024•30 min•Season 1Ep. 3
In this episode, we look back on and preview two elections. Julian and Chris look back on some major results from the Local elections that took place at the beginning of May and react to the news that broke at the end of May. What could this mean for the Tories? Is there any battlegrounds that Labour could lose? Will we get Election Fever done before July 4th? Check out our latest episode to find out Voxel Revolution Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution...
Jun 01, 2024•33 min•Season 4Ep. 12
