Dear all,
Last week Tessa Dunlop and I recorded the first two episodes of our brand new WHERE POLITICS MEETS HISTORY podcast. We were pleased with the first but knew we hadn’t got it quite right. We sat down with Corey, our producer, and analysed what we got right and what could be improved and in the second episode there was a big improvement. We were more natural and concise and structured. I think I wanted it to be too much like FOR THE MANY and tried a little too hard.
In The Observer today, top radio and podcast reviewer Miranda Sawyer have her views on the first episode…
"I try, honest, but all these history podcasts just don’t do it for me. Also, while I’m in the confessional podcast booth, nor do many political ones either. The audio charts are full of both, but – sorry, clever bro-chatters! – they leave me cold.
So, as you might imagine, I approached Where Politics Meets History, the new show from LBC’s Iain Dale and historian Tessa Dunlop, with some trepidation. Though only a bit: I have a soft spot for Dale, though I disagree with him about many things. He’s a warm broadcaster, whose political stance is researched, rather than kneejerk. He’s happy to go against the grain and to say when he’s wrong (though, like many, he tends to crow when he’s right). Dunlop is less established as an audio host, though you might recognise her from Coast on the telly.
Anyway, Tuesday’s first show was a bit of a mess. Dunlop was initially quite hesitant (there was an awkward moment of silence when Dale asked her to explain who he was), and later, a little too dominant. A stronger structure might have helped – though as I listened to Dale describing his recent holiday in Germany, referring to his hotel and Kaiser Frederick, husband of Queen Victoria’s eldest daughter, I thought: perhaps sticking to the point isn’t the aim of the show? The pace and topics weather-vaned between Dunlop’s intense info-dumping and silly whimsy from Dale (another story: when a young woman in a lift was rude about Americans, he spoke in an American accent, just to embarrass her).
To her credit, Dunlop had an interesting overarching point: there were, she said, several parallels between the current standoff/negotiation between Zelenskyy, Trump and Putin and the one between Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin in 1943. But she needed to make her point more quickly, and perhaps without all the lengthy historical quotes, which she got Dale to read out in a silly voice. As an experienced podcaster, Dale was more relaxed, and as phenomenally well-informed as ever. If the dynamic between the two can be smoothed out (they clearly like each other, so I’m sure it can), and the structure of the show made clearer, then this will develop into a fascinating listen for those of you who can cope with a concept we might call Active News Terror Plus The Important Past.”
I think she makes some valid points and I think if she listens to Episode 2 she will see that we addressed them, even before reading her review.
I hope you’ll give the podcast a try too. Listen HERE.