The Matts bring listeners up to speed with all the inside info coming their way on what Team Burnham may have in store for Britain. Who are the people behind the scenes preparing the ground for the new government - in what is surely make or break for Labour? And what are the policies that will define this new administration? How could Andy Burnham’s sense of a politics of place come to change a nation? Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head...
Jun 25, 2026•47 min
The Matts bring you a special edition after Keir Starmer quit as UK prime minister. These monumentally historic events only occur every 18 months or so on average these days, but all the same - Starmer’s going crystallises the profound danger liberal progressive democracy faces in the UK. What awaits Andy Burnham? And what should his big bet be? The Matts have a plan. Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head to https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/2...
Jun 22, 2026•42 min
The Matts answer listener questions in their regular Sunday morning Q&A, including… what will prove to be Andy Burnham’s biggest vulnerability? Has Donald Trump just suffered the biggest US military loss since Vietnam? Do UK nukes count for nothing? How do we improve the quality of our politicians? Is the BBC in acute danger? And is there life out there, beyond the stars? Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head to https://www.thenewworld...
Jun 20, 2026•34 min
The Matts are in optimistic mood today with news of Andy Burnham’s resounding win in Makerfield. Has the Labour Party got the gumption to seize the momentum and get full square behind the one man we can objectively say has the ability to smash Reform? And what does the defeat of the sexist plumber in Makerfield mean for Nigel Farage? The Matts believe his problems are mounting. So, all in all, an extra podcast for an extra special day. Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for...
Jun 19, 2026•40 min
The Matts celebrate the launch of A History of Brexit in 256 Disasters, a book by Jonty Bloom with a foreword by Alastair Campbell and amazing illustrations by Martin Rowson chronicling the disastrous consequences of the 2016 referendum 10 long years ago! You can get your copy at The New World 's website or on Amazon (if you must!). Also, in part two - is Canada a model for British reinvention, and what does Andy Burnham mean by The Makerfield Test? Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The...
Jun 18, 2026•36 min
The Matts answer questions from listener’s including; are we heading for a summer of discontent; do we understand what people mean when they say they want their country back; should pensioners lose the triple lock; is Andy Burnham cutting the mustard in Makerfield; do too many kids go to university; and can you both please have another massive argument about Artemis? Enjoy! Produced by Ruby Mitchell. OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head to https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/...
Jun 13, 2026•30 min
The Matts digest the events from yesterday and the underlying duplicity at the heart of government that resulted in the blistering resignations of John Healey and Al Cairns. How much longer can (or should) Starmer stay on? Also … the dreadful news that the great David Hockney has died. The Matts have a suggestion for how to mark his passing. Enjoy! Produced by Ruby Mitchell OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head to https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/2matts/ Hosted on Acast. Se...
Jun 12, 2026•25 min
The horrific attack by a Sudanese asylum seeker in Belfast has triggered a wave of disorder. What is underpinning the violence, and what can liberals not afford to dismiss it out of hand? It’s time again to face into very difficult questions … questions the far right have simplistic answers to but which have been left hanging by a Westminster elite out of touch, even contemptuous, of an angry electorate. Join the Matts as they navigate their way through this troubled territory. Produced by Ruby ...
Jun 11, 2026•58 min
The Matts answer listeners’ questions in their weekly Q&A session, including: Is Kemi Badenoch now the best chance of beating Nigel Farage; can Keir Starmer actually see off this slow-moving coup; should Palantir be kicked out of the NHS; what is Michael Grade thinking when he defends GB News; has Pope Leo’s encyclical made sense of AI… and humanity; and if England win the World Cup, will it really count? Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first mont...
Jun 06, 2026•40 min
The Matts discuss the dreadful murder of Henry Nowak and the ensuing political reaction. In particular, they examine Reform UK leader Nigel Farage’s apparent strategy to leverage the murder for maximum political advantage - seeking exactly the division and hatred Henry’s grieving father has warned against. This is a taste of what to expect for the next three years as Farage seeks power. And a dark warning for the kind of Britain he would preside over if ever elected. Produced by Matt Withers OFF...
Jun 03, 2026•39 min
The Matts answer listener questions including: how can we change the system so our young people thrive; has reality TV gone too far; is Elon Musk a legend after all; why does anyone give a damn about bond markets; how does Nigel Farage get away with it; and what did the Victorians know that we seem to have forgotten? Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head to https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/2matts/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for mo...
May 30, 2026•38 min
The Matts answer listeners' questions including: will the smear against Misan Harriman work; what will it take to get the UK back in the EU; should the Tories defer to Reform in the Makerfield by-election; and why does Eurovision hate the UK so much? Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head to https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/2matts/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
May 23, 2026•42 min
The Matts are joined by Peter Hyman and Shuab Gamote on the day they launch their incredibly impactful, important and moving report into the plight of one million NEETs in Britain - that’s young people Not in Education, Employment or Training. It’s a remarkable piece of work; a total eye-opener into a generational crisis which urgently needs a solution. The personal stories Peter and Shuab encounter are truly remarkable - and their conclusions are a clarion call for radical change to a trajector...
May 21, 2026•44 min
The Matts speak with Misan Harriman, the chair of Britain’s largest arts and culture institution, the Southbank Centre. Misan has been under persistent attack from much of the UK’s right wing media - all for something he didn’t say. It’s an extraordinary and ugly case study in how the press in Britain work. But, perhaps, in Misan Harriman they’ve bitten off more than they can chew. Enjoy the podcast - but prepare to have your blood boil. Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just...
May 19, 2026•34 min
The Matts answer listeners’ questions including: where is the outrage over Nigel Farage’s ethical void; why do people who think they were sold a pup on Brexit now vote for the puppy salesman; should the entire cabinet now resign; what is China doing right; why are the Palestine Action 24 being sentenced as terrorists; and can the Matts suggest a short list of cultural destinations for a very special birthday celebration? Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for th...
May 16, 2026•43 min
The Matts consider just how much is at stake in the Makerfield by-election, assuming Andy Burnham is allowed to stand. Who will Reform put up against him (we have one idea) and what will Zack Polanski’s move be? Take a chunk of Burnham’s vote or sit it out? And how will Keir Starmer play his cards? If you want to hear two pundits try to work out what the hell any of this will add up to… you’ve come to the right place. Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the f...
May 15, 2026•44 min
Join the Matts as they discuss the omnishambles in Downing Street. Exciting times as they receive the breaking news that Wes Streeting has resigned and the contest to be the next PM is afoot. Who now holds the upper hand? Matt K has surveyed his most influential contacts on who will be PM by Christmas - their answer may surprise you. Certainly, Matt D disagrees. Either way - enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head to https://www.thenewworld....
May 14, 2026•47 min
The Matts answer listeners' questions, including the optimal timetable for a Starmer handover; whether Andy Burnham is trustworthy enough to be PM; if Banksy modelled his statue on Nigel Farage; how you can criticise Israel and avoid accusations of anti-semitism and why the Telegraph is smearing the chair of the Southbank Centre; whether we should be terrified of hantavirus; and, apart from revolutionising telly, introducing billions of us to the natural world and raising awareness of the climat...
May 09, 2026•31 min
The Matts reflect on a terrible day for both Labour and the Tories and ask what it is going to take to keep Nigel Farage from Downing Street. Three years ago they were mocked for suggesting Nigel Farage could be PM. Now he’s even money favourite to win the most seats at the next general election. What does this surge tell us about Keir Starmer and how Labour need to act if it stands a chance of mounting a serious challenge to a pocket-lining populist like Farage? Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: ...
May 08, 2026•40 min
The Matts sit down with Phil Tinline to discuss his book The Ghosts of Iron Mountain - genuinely one of the most fascinating and consequential stories of our age. Phil tells how a 1967 hoax report into the desirability (or lack of it) of peace in America triggered a culture of conspiracy and paranoia which not only infects American politics today, but sometimes dictates it to a quite surreal degree. It’s a fascinating and wide-ranging conversation... enjoy! And once you’ve listened to the pod, d...
May 07, 2026•47 min
The Matts answer listeners' questions, including whether or not the UK should use the King more; whether we bash Starmer too much; if zoos really are the front line of conservation; and what is the most astonishing object the Matts have beheld? Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head to https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/2matts/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
May 02, 2026•30 min
A special episode of the podcast today with real depth of thinking on where Keir Starmer has gone wrong… and why right now is NOT the right time to replace him. Tom Baldwin is the journalist who knows Starmer best. He’s studied him at close range for years. He’s still very much got the inside track on how he’s thinking. In a totally candid conversation, Tom talks to Matt Kelly about the core of Starmer’s problems as PM, what has gone wrong in Downing Street and what the next two years of governm...
Apr 29, 2026•1 hr
Hot from the two-and-a-half hours of select committee evidence, the Matts digest the evidence of Keir Starmer’s former chief of staff Morgan McSweeney and his role in the Peter Mandelson affair. It was engrossing testimony - giving a rare insight into how this Labour government operates (and which probably explains why they are in a state of permacrisis). In part two the Matts play out a few scenarios on the assumption that Labour lose big in the local elections next week… and there are reasons ...
Apr 28, 2026•34 min
The Matts answer listeners' questions including when Starmer should go; why we don’t vet our politicians; how to fund the NHS; why the news is relentlessly grim; whether banning social media for children is a good thing; and are The Matts looking forward to having robots provide unmentionable services to them in their dotage? Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head to https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/2matts/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/priva...
Apr 25, 2026•44 min
Indecision’s bugging the Two Matts… should Keir Starmer stay or should he go? If he stays there will be trouble. But if he goes it will be double. What is the right timing for a deeply disappointing premiership to end? It’s a clash of considerations - what’s right for the country, what would a successor look like, how do we get out of the cycle of endlessly dumping PMs? No easy answers but a difficult and nuanced debate about the mess we’re in. Also: why are the King and Queen not meeting the Je...
Apr 23, 2026•1 hr 4 min
Journalist and author John Kampfner joins the Matts to discuss his stunning new book Braver New World - a global travelogue of bold solutions to some of the world’s thorniest problems. Over three years of globetrotting to see for himself what can be done has given John a sense of belief in the future… but with some important caveats. So if you’re feeling pessimistic about the future, tune in and get a dose of realistic optimism that things can get better… but only with the right spirit and cultu...
Apr 20, 2026•51 min
The Matts tackle listeners' questions, including how positive should we be about the fall of Orbán, why is Corbyn polling zero percent, is the collapse of the Wireless Festival a good thing, would they welcome Nicole Kidman at their deathbed… and what opinions do they hold which would alienate the most Two Matts listeners? Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head to https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/2matts/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for mor...
Apr 18, 2026•41 min
The Matts assess Péter Magyar’s spectacular ousting of Viktor Orbán in Hungary and what it means for the fight against right-wing populism worldwide. It’s an encouraging moment but no time for complacency. In part two, they catch up with events in Iran and the deepening humiliation being visited upon Donald Trump as his strategy-free war continues. Enjoy! Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head to https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/2matts/ Hosted on Aca...
Apr 16, 2026•44 min
The Matts answer listeners’ Easter Sunday questions, including on whether or not the King should be visiting the States, whether the debate around joining the EU will be as divisive as 2016, if we can enjoy The Who when Roger Daltrey is a Brexiteer, whether Scott Mills should have been fired from the BBC, what would happen if NATO collapsed and how Italian football fell from grace. Enjoy! And Happy Easter to all our listeners. NB: We’re taking a break next week and will return on April 16. Unles...
Apr 04, 2026•37 min
The Matts fall out spectacularly and unexpectedly over NASA’s moon shot, Artemis 2. How is this even possible, you ask? They’re not even sure… but the topic quickly descends into a brutal space war of words. In part two, common ground is regained as they analyse the latest Trump position on Iran and ask whether this war is going to push the UK back into the arms of the EU faster than anyone could have hoped. Produced by Matt Withers OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head ...
Apr 02, 2026•1 hr 2 min
