The Edition: Boris’s bunker

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4.4 • 785 Ratings

🗓️ 10 February 2022

⏱️ 33 minutes

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Summary

In this week’s episode: What’s the mood like in Boris’s bunker?

For this week’s cover story, James Forsyth writes about the defensive bunker mentality inside No. 10 and the PM’s strategy of keeping MPs sweet to hold back a no confidence vote. James joins the podcast along with Spectator Editor Fraser Nelson to discuss. (00:50)

Also this week: Have we forgotten how to take a joke?

Jimmy Carr has caused an online outcry after an off-colour joke from his new show, His Dark Material was clipped and posted without context on social media. Ministers, such as Nadine Dorries and Sajid Javid, have now criticised a comedian for telling a joke. In the Spectator this week both in print and online, two of our writers came to Carr’s defence. The Spectator’s associate editor Douglas Murray joins the podcast, along with Sam Holmes, who is The Spectator’s Podcast Producer by day, and a stand up comedian by night. (11:38)

And finally: Has Covid permanently changed how people take Communion?

During the Covid pandemic, churches had to rethink the way they gave communion to their congregations. But will we ever go back to the old normal? Ysenda Maxtone Graham mourns the loss of the tradition of the communal cup in this week's Spectator. She joins the podcast along with Revd Dr Andrew Atherstone, a Tutor in Church History at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, who has written a study entitled, Drink This, All of You’: Individual Cups at Holy Communion. (21:42)

Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore

Produced by Sam Holmes

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This podcast is sponsored by Canacord Genuity Wealth Management, award-winning wealth managers who go above and beyond to support and guide you.
0:09.3	Visit can-dowealth.com to start building your wealth with confidence.
0:18.0	Hello and welcome to the edition podcast from The Spectator.
0:25.7	Every week we take a look at some of the most important and intriguing stories from the issue with the writers behind them.
0:32.1	I'm Laura Prendergars, the Spectator's executive editor.
0:35.3	And I'm William Moore, the Spectator's Features Editor. This week,
0:39.5	what's the mood like in Boris's bunker? Plus, have we forgotten how to take a joke?
0:44.3	And finally, has COVID permanently changed how people take communion? First up, for this week's
0:51.5	cover story, Jane Forsyth writes about the defensive bunker mentality
0:55.2	inside number 10, and he looks at the PM's strategy of keeping MP's suite in order to hold
1:00.6	back a no-confidence vote.
1:03.2	James joins us now along with the spectators editor, Fraser Nelson.
1:06.2	James, in your cover piece this week, you look at the Prime Minister's defensive strategy.
1:12.0	How does it compare to his previous style of leadership?
1:15.4	Previously Boris Johnson could have worked outside in. He used to use his popularity in the
1:18.8	country to put pressure on MPs. I mean, Tory MPs picked him to be leader because they saw
1:24.9	him as an election winner because they saw him as his popularity out in the country.
1:29.3	What we are seeing now is one of the principal aims of Boris Johnson's government now is to placate his own MPs,
1:35.3	to prevent more letters going in and a vote of no confidence in him.
1:39.3	And I think it's very telling that in this week's mini reshuffle, you know, the people
1:44.2	who've been moved at the cabinet level are those people who deal with parliamentarians.
1:49.4	So it's the chief whip, it's the leader of the House of Commons.
	...

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