Across the UK, online, on DAB and on your smart speaker, the Independent Republic of Mike Graham on Talk Radio.

Good morning and welcome to the Independent Republic of Mike Graham right here on Talk Radio.

Welcome to Midweek Wednesday, ladies and gentlemen. A day when there is much to celebrate.

Who knew we would be so excited about getting a haircut? Who knew the sight and sound of a public

house would be so utterly seductive? Who would have thought that the prospect of sitting around

a table and ordering a plate of pasta with prawns would be quite so charming. It didn't have to have that, of course, could be anything.

Well, that is exactly where we are, though.

And it is entirely fitting that we should be very happy indeed that Prime Minister Boris Johnson yesterday

lifted the lockdown universally, because make no mistake, that is exactly what he did.

I said it yesterday, and I'm saying it again today. Yesterday afternoon we managed to spend a few pleasant hours in the company of some South London geysers outside a local pub which

if you came upon by accident you would assume was basically open as normal. People were playing

music people were standing about drinking in the sunshine people were canoodling, people

were exchanging phone numbers information all manner of different things.

It was as if we were back, ladies and gentlemen.

And as ever, we want to know what you're thinking, what you're doing,

and what you're hearing about the economy coming bouncing back, because has Boris literally saved Britain?

That's what I think he's done.

Honestly, I think Boris, by doing what he did yesterday, has literally saved the economy, saved the populace, and saved all of our hopes and all of our fears, and put them all into a box and gone, there you go, we're back.

And here we are.

034449-1000.

We kick off this morning with the former political editor of the Sun, George Pascoe Watson, but we are also joined by archaeologist and historian Neil Oliver with his take on the week's events and

travel guru Simon Calder who will be on to explain exactly what's happening with the staycation

...