The Critic Show

This week on The Critic Show, Tom is joined by our online editor, Ben Sixsmith and classics scholar and Antigone editor, David Butterfield, to discuss why ancient Greece and Rome are enjoying a remarkable revival. They examine how classical education became wrongly associated with elitism, and why classical literature is having a renaissance within a culture which is, seemingly, addicted to phones.
The conversation explores the modern appeal of Stoicism, its popularity among young men and the danger of reducing ancient philosophy to simplistic lifestyle advice. David explains what figures such as Plato, Aristotle, Marcus Aurelius and Plutarch can teach us about human nature, politics and virtue, before considering whether today’s renewed interest in the classics will become a lasting cultural revival.
David ends his personal recommendation for your classical reading fix, which is the poet and philosopher Lucretius.
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This week on The Critic Show, Henry and Tom are joined by Seb Milbank to discuss the Home Office’s Research, Information and Communications Unit, otherwise known as RICU, and the growing suspicion that the British state has tried to shape public narratives after acts of violence involving immigrant communities.
Seb gives listeners an insider explanation on explains how the unit operates, and the intricacies of the counter-terrorism and national security, why Freedom of Information requests so often hit a wall.
The podcast explores how, increasingly, journalists, PR agencies and government departments can end up working together to manage political fall out by bending the truths we live by.
The conversation ranges from the 2014 Sun front page on Islamic State to family statements after recent killings, the response to Manchester Arena, Martin’s Law, social media regulation, and the wider collapse of trust in British institutions. They also discuss why big, archaic institutions in Britain are now failing so visibly that the old social contract is breaking down.
What happens when people no longer believe in a state that can protect them?
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This week on The Critic Show, Chris Bayliss and Henry Hill are joined by Emma Schubert of the Henry Jackson Society to ask whether Britain is becoming a sectarian country. Emma discusses her research into the rise of Muslim sectarian politics in English local elections, explaining how she has created a model to help identify some of the predictors of sectarian candidates’ success.

The panel explores Labour’s long miscalculation over communal voting, and whether Britain risks importing the kind of entrenched bloc politics seen in Northern Ireland. They also discuss what this fragmentation could mean for the next general election, and what is being done to prevent further corruption.

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This month Critic wine columnist Henry Jeffreys talks to Daniel Grigg from Museum Wines in Salisbury about The Critic Wine Club’s latest South African selection.
Henry and Daniel discuss why South African wine has changed so dramatically in recent years, from the dull pub reds and insipid whites of old to some of the most exciting bottles now being made anywhere in the world. They explore the country’s new generation of winemakers, the rise of serious Chenin Blanc and Cinsault, and why South Africa offers such remarkable value compared with Burgundy, Bordeaux and Champagne.
Together they taste three wines: a textured Sauvignon Blanc from Hazendal, a fuller, food-friendly Pinot Noir rosé, and a sensational old-vine Cinsault from Darling. Expect sharp opinions, good stories, and plenty of enthusiasm for a country whose wines are firmly on the up.

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In the first episode of Starling on Sport, Boris is joined by Jack Davey to look ahead to this year’s Tour de France and ask whether anyone can realistically stop Tadej Pogačar. They discuss Pogačar’s astonishing season, and the threat posed by Jonas Vingegaard, as well as turning an eye onto the emergence of French prodigy Paul Seixas.
Boris and Jack also explore the tactics, team dynamics and brutal mountain stages that could decide the race, as well as the Tour’s changing identity — from its French roots to its increasingly global, corporate future.
Their is also an inevitable question that still hangs over the sport as performance becomes more and more enhanced: can fans trust what they are watching?
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