It Could Be Said

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to not talk about Sir Keir Starmer or Peter Mandelson because nothing could be worse. Instead we talk about people we admire as we discuss our love of Charles De Gaulle, George Orwell, Ernie Bevin, Ron D Moore, Jimmy Wales and Satoru Iwata. Yes I've just noticed that they're all men...apologies for that, we will do another episode about women we admire in the future.  

Simon Alvey and Will Cooling discuss the latest developments in the American-Israeli attack on Iran before getting Simon's thoughts on the Gorton and Denton By-Election and discussing the role of religion in public life, animals on money, and historical figures as place names.

Dr Luke Middup and Will Cooling return to talk the latest resignation of Peter Mandelson, the latest scandal involving the former Duke of York, the latest shock defeat of an unpopular Labour Government by a left-wing rival, and the latest idiotic American-led war in the Middle East. Stranger Things is finished so I guess we're doing noughties nostalgia, now. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup enter 2026 with a round up of the latest craziness from The White House including events in Venezuela, Minneosota and Greenland. They then give their cultural recommendations. 

Simon Alvey and Will Cooling are joined by The Wool Shift Dust's Dr Luke Middup to discuss the year that was 2025. We talk biggest British and Overseas stories of the year plus our recommendations and disappointments of the year.

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to try and make sense of the breaking news about the BBC crisis, with the corporation's Director-General and Head of News quitting due to...erm...saying Donald Trump urged people to storm the Capitol. They then look at the American election results, which were a good day for Democrats but may not as good a one as people. Then they finish by looking ahead to Rachel Reeves's budget. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Liuke Middup join you from a pit of despair called last Sunday as they consider the potential death of American democracy in the aftermath of Charlie Kirk's mourder, and the growing popularity of Nigel Farage in Britain

A youthful Simon Alvey, a middle-aged Will Cooling and an old Dr Luke Middup return to talk all drama of a traumatic week in Labour politics. Yes it's our reshuffle emergency podcast...delayed by two days because Luke wanted to watch the Scotland game. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to talk sport! Yes the world of politics is still too depressing to talk about so we discuss the start of the football season, England falling at the final hurdle in the cricket but vaulting over it in the women's football, and esports!

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return with a monster podcast as they catch up on the news. They discuss the football, Jeffery Epstein and Donald Trump, the cancellations of the Late Show, the formation of a new political party involving Jeremy Corbyn, and the continued war in the Middle East. 

Dr Luke Middup and Will Cooling return to talk about the problems facing Rachel Reeves and the wider Labour Government. We do this by looking at what we do in her position and how she compares to her predecessors. 

Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return in a surprisingly good mood considering much of the episode is given over to war in the middle east & Starmer's planned disability cuts. They also talk the race to be NYC Mayor, England vs India in the cricket, and much more!

Will Cooling & Dr Luke Middup return to discuss Elon Musk and Donald Trump falling out, Labour surprising everyone in Hamilton & what's up with Kemi Badenoch. They also start with some football talk and slip in a mini-review of Clarkson's Farm Season 4

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return after two months off from podcasting for a freewheeling discussion even by our standards. We begin with Will and Luke bemoaning the mess that Sir Keir Starmer is making off being Prime Minister before we veer off into talking about the SEVENTIES! Then Simon joins us and we quickly pivot to talking about Canadian and Australian politics. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling & Dr Luke Middup return to talk Donald Trump's tariffs! They talk the sheer scale and recklessness of the announcement, the impact on both America and the wider world, and what on earth happens next. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to talk about Rachel Reeves's Spring Statement. In particular they discuss in detail the impact of the government's cuts to disability benefits. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling, and Dr Luke Middup talk the latest developments in the deepening crisis over the American Government's attitude to Ukraine. 

Simon Alvey is happy because of trains. Will Cooling is happy due to morbid drama full of dull rooms and badly fitted suits. Dr Luke Middup is happy because of football. We are all so happy. No sadness or worry over here. No siree. The Bad Orange Man cannot reach us in our happy place. Maybe if we keep talking about other things he'll go away. 

If a week is a long time in politics then a weekend is a long time in whatever Donald Trump thinks he's doing. Join Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup for a group therapy session about an America that keeps threatening to break bad. Recorded Sunday 2nd February 2025, so a day before Trump backed or a month before he doubled down. Who knows, who cares, its just the global economy he's playing with.

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling, and Dr Luke Middup return to look back at 2024 through the prism of the weekend's biggest news stories including the Labour Government trying to avoid openly arguing with an aggressively racist and conspiratorial Elon Musk, the Tory Party struggling to find a role having lost over two hundred MPs, and whether Labour can improve public services and regain the initiative. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to talk through the biggest news in global politics including Joe Biden's pardon of his son Hunter, the unusually sleepy Irish elections, the growing crisis in France and the ballad of Louise Haigh's work phone. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return for the podcast they hoped they'd never have to record; breaking down the re-election of Donald Trump as American President. They took their experiences on the night, thoughts about why it happened, and what comes next. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to discuss Kemi Badenoch's victory in the Tory Leadership election, the budget, and the soon to be over neverending story that is the American Presidential Elections. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling, and Dr Luke Middup return to discuss the shock departure of Sue Gray from her role as Chief of Staff, the latest twist and turns in the Tory Party Leadership race, and much more besides!

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup meet to celebrate the 79th anniversary of Britain winning the Battle of Britain, the sixteenth anniversary of the implosion of Lehman Brothers, and much more besides! Given the party atmosphere, this super long episode looks at such exciting topics as football regulation, tory leadership elections, struggling new labour ministers, and whatever Donald Trump is. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to discuss the far right rioting across England and Northern Ireland, and what it means for the affected communities, particularly British Muslims. They then discuss the issue of Twitter becoming a playpen for the far-right, the latest developments in the American elections, and whether Labour has been playing fast and lose with the nation's finances. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Middup talk what may be the craziest week in American political history. Joe Biden becomes the first president of the modern era to not seek the renomination, and drops out in a uniquely public and late moment. Before that we've had his predecessor and would be successor narrowly dodge an assassin's bullet, name his vice-presidential nominee and deliver his acceptance speech. This is a week that will on for decades. We also talk Euro 2024.

A very tired Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup gathered on Saturday 6th July to unpick the general election results. They weren't quite the epic bloodletting some of the MRPs promised, but they delivered a brutal defeat to the Tory Party and the most left-wing parliament in British history. They review the election night coverage before unpicking what the results mean for each party, and why Luke hates the new Prime Minister so much. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling, and Dr Luke Middup return with a super soaraway elections preview! They talk about the mechanics of watching elections night, including when to nap and what to eat, before looking at the latest polls, and making their predictions. Oh and Luke gives us the five safest Tory seats in Britain!

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling, and Dr Luke Middup return to cover the latest goings on in the election including the Tory betting scandal, latest polling, lacklusture manifestos, Nigel Farage on Ukraine, environmentalism run amok, and whether Simon is a Urban Progressive

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup  return to talk yet another bad week in the general election for Rishi Sunak as Nigel Farage reenters frontline politics, he loses the debate to Sir Keir Starmer, gets shouted at for misusing government statistics, and then offend people by leaving the D-Day commemorations early. We look at how the Tory Party's campaign imploded over a week and what the future may hold. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling, and Dr Luke Middup return to discuss the first full week of the election  campaign. Recorded before Nigel Farage's return to frontline politics on Monday, we look at the arguments over Diane Abbott, the Tory's new pensions policy, Will's article on Tory polling, and what is going on in America. 

Simon Alvey returns from Northern Ireland to catch up with Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup about the election. Together they discuss RIshi Sunak's shock announcement and the even more shocking state of the Tory Party's campaign, with Michael Gove's resignations, Sunak's gaffes and the National Service policy all getting a good kicking. We also discuss some of our expectations for the campaign. 

Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to talk the surprise announcement of an election on Thursday 4th July. We discuss why Rishi Sunak decided upon a snap election, the amateurish announcement and Labour's response. We then look at the implications across the nation and what our early thoughts on the shape of the campaign and result. 

Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to talk a disappointing end of the season for Harry Kane and the slow start to the longest election campaigns in British and American history. They also discuss whether devolution has been a success.

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling, and Dr Luke Middup return to talk about Ipswich's promotion to the premier league, Clarkson's Farm and a new First Minister in Scotland. They turn their minds to the local elections, looking at the big mayoral races, council elections, and even the odd references to Police and Crime Commissioners. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to do a deep dive into Humza Yousaf's no-good, awful Thursday as his gambit to preempt the end of his coalition with the Greens may very well bring his premiership to a premature end. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup manage to fill a cute little podcast to capacity as they discuss the latest developments in the Middle East and American Congress, the return of Liz Truss ahead of the local elections, the growing problems afflicting the SNP, and the latest developments in the Football League. 

Simon Alvey and Will Cooling return to talk about the utter destruction that is predicted for the Tories in the latest MRP modelling, and to what extent we should take the prospect of a Tory wipeout. We then get Will's updates on the latest developments in Northern Ireland before Simon gives his thoughts on Matthew Parris's advocacy for euthanasia as a means to place social pressure on disabled and elderly people to end their lives prematurely.  They then talk about their sides battling for promotion from the Football League and what their respective clubs mean for the local area, before Will asks Simon what would happen if the American Civil War had ended delivery. 

Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to discuss a range of topics including the shock resignation of Jeffrey Donaldson as DUP Leader following his arrest on Thursday, Matthew Parris's article advocating for the mass euthanasia of the old and disabled, the Guardian's expose of gentlemen's clubs not allowing women to join, and the state of the Tory Party following the budget. They then discuss what videos Luke watches on the internet and the comics and cartoons Will watched as a child in "culture" corner. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling, and Dr Luke Middup return to discuss the latest developments in British politics. Before that however they discuss Notts County's current fortunes in the football league, Zone of Interest, and The Wild Men. They then discuss the chaos in parliament over the SNP's motion about Gaza, Lee Anderson's Islamophobic remarks, and the broader situation in Israel/Palestine. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to look ahead to the election that we're all dreading; the rematch between Presidents Biden and Trump. We marvel at how Trump has managed to destroy his primary opposition and explain why the Democrats can't quit Joe! Luke then gives an update on Palestine/Israel and Ukraine.

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to discuss the year in British politics. They look at how Rishi Sunak has been brought crashing down to earth both by the Tory Party's crushing unpopularity and his own mistakes before considering how Sir Keir Starmer's Labour and the other political parties are seeking to capitalise. This podcast was recorded on the 11th December. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling, and Dr Luke Middup return to talk about a lot! We discuss Doctor Who's latest Davros retcon, the theological problem of moral evil, what bits of All Out War are still relevant in 2023, and the return of David Cameron to Government. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to not discuss the reshuffle because that happened after this podcast was recorded. We instead discuss whether Donald Trump could become President again, the chaos that has engulfed the House of Representatives, the impact of climate change on South and East Asia, and the conflict in the Middle East

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to talk about the Department of Work and Pensions latest attempts to promote disability inclusion and Suella Braverman's recent comments about immigration and multiculturalism. They  then close with thoughts on classical music, comic books, and controvesial referee decisions in football. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup return to recap a crazy week in British politics as they touch upon the beginning of the Lib Dem Conference, Liz Truss's latest comeback, Rishi Sunak trying to prove himself an Action Man by explaining why we can't do things, whether he actually is Scrooge McDuck and what the future holds for Sir Keir Starmer

We're back from our summer holidays as Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup do a tour of various news stories including the mini-reshuffle, the state of Britain's schools, whether the death penalty should be brought back, what the future holds for Nadine Dorries, and why Labour are destined to disappoint us. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup surpass themselves by not getting past the introductions in this 90minute podcast! After looking forward to Notts County, Ipswich Town and Leicester City's new season we discuss Tottenham Hotspur trying to sell a player to a Russian player and whether we're all being too quick to condemn players for going to Saudi Arabia. We then close with looking at the future of the Commonwealth Games after another host has dropped out. 

Simon Alvey, Will Cooling and Dr Luke Middup talk about the NHS, Ukraine, Ben Wallace, University Admissions, and By-Elections and at no point do they say Keir Starmer is a wrong-un for his pro-child poverty policy. Well he is you know, and the mainstream media, such as It Could Be Media, won't tell you. So make sure you don't listen to these corporate sellouts, and oppose *Sir* Keir Starmer's attempt to make a Labour Government increase child poverty. But don't let tory bastards like Simon, Will and Luke hear you fight for the ordinary man. They kept the story out of the discussion to distract you from what's really important. Or they had gone on to long and knew that story would still be live next week. Ah fuck it! Trust no-one! Other than those who tell you to trust nobody else of course!