London Review of Books

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Channel • 19 Shows

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Books

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Society & Culture

Society & Culture

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Books

Books

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Books

Books

Updated weekly
Books

Books

Updated weekly
Books

Books

Complete series
Books

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Monthly

29/06/2024

UK Election Special: Foreign Policy

‘The world is growing more dangerous’ warns the Conservative manifesto, which puts security at the heart of its pitch. The Labour manifesto, on the other hand, doesn’t mention the world beyond the UK at all in its five ‘missions’. Are the Tories simply being honest with voters, or trying to distract from their domestic record? In this episode, James Butler is joined by Tom Stevenson and Iona Craig to discuss the challenges facing the next foreign secretary, from Gaza to the pressures of a possible Trump presidency. Labour’s current approach seems to promise ‘Blair without the Iraq War’, but how far will this allow UK foreign policy to depart from its normal attitude of subservience to the United States? Read more in the LRB: Tom Stevenson on diplomacy: https://lrb.me/stevensonelectionpod James Butler's latest election post: https://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2024/june/new-order Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

29/06/2024

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59 min
05/07/2024

Labour's Big Win

John Lanchester, Tom Crewe and Florence Sutcliffe-Braithwaite join James Butler to dissect Keir Starmer's victory and the historic collapse of the Conservative Party. They discuss what the result tells us about the needs and frustrations of the country, the ways in which the new Labour government might achieve some of the things it’s promised and why comparisons with Harold Wilson have been so prevalent. Read Tom Crewe on fourteen years of the Tories: https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v46/n12/tom-crewe/carnival-of-self-harm Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

05/07/2024

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54 min
31/07/2024

On Wittgenstein’s ‘Tractatus’

When Wittgenstein published his Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus in 1921, he claimed to have solved all philosophical problems. One problem that hasn’t been solved though is how best to translate this notoriously difficult work. The expiry of the book’s copyright in 2021 has brought three new English translations in less than a year, each grappling with the difficulties posed by a philosopher who frequently undermined his own use of language to demonstrate the limitations of what can be represented. Adrian Moore joins Malin Hay to discuss what Wittgenstein hoped to achieve with the only work he published in his lifetime and to consider how much we should trust his assertion that everything it contains is nonsensical. Find further reading and listening on the episode page: https://lrb.me/tractatuspod LRB Audio Discover the LRB's subscription podcast, Close Readings, and audiobooks: https://lrb.me/audiopod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

31/07/2024

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55 min
15/05/2024

Rebecca Solnit: In the Shadow of Silicon Valley

Rebecca Solnit has lived in San Francisco since 1980, but the city she used to know is fast disappearing, ‘fully annexed’, as she puts it, by the tech firms from Silicon Valley. In this episode of the LRB podcast, Solnit reads her piece from the 8 February issue of the paper, both a eulogy for the city that’s been lost and a dissection of the dystopia that’s replacing it, ‘returning us’, as she puts it, ‘to a kind of feudalism’. Find further reading on the episode page: https://lrb.me/solnitpod Find out more about Coram Boy at Chichister Festival Theatre here: https://www.cft.org.uk/events/coram-boy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

15/05/2024

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44 min
19/06/2024

UK Election Special: The Broken State

For the second episode of our series on the UK election, James Butler is joined by Sam Freedman to talk about the enormous challenges facing the next government. From hospital waiting lists to criminal court backlogs and even potholes, the fabric of the British state seems to be beyond repair. It’s not simply a problem of funding: poor management, a lack of scrutiny and extreme centralisation combined with the almost total destruction of local government have all played a part. James and Sam consider whether there’s anything to be done about this chronic dysfunction, and whether the next official opposition could in fact be the Liberal Democrats. Sam Freedman is co-author of the substack Comment is Freed. His book Failed State: Why Britain’s Institutions are Broken and How We Fix Them will be released in July 2024. Read more from James Butler the LRB: James Butler on the crisis in care: https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v45/n05/james-butler/this-concerns-everyone Sponsored Link Get £100 off your Serious Readers order: https://www.seriousreaders.com/LRB Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

19/06/2024

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52 min
28 MAY

Close Readings: Nietzsche's 'Schopenhauer as Educator'

In this extended extract from their series 'Conversations in Philosophy', part of the LRB's Close Readings podcast, Jonathan Rée and James Wood look at one of Friedrich Nietzsche's early essays, 'Schopenhauer as Educator'. For Nietzsche, Schopenhauer’s genius lay not in his ideas but in his heroic indifference, a thinker whose value to the world is as a liberator rather than a teacher, who shows us what philosophy is really for: to forget what we already know. ‘Schopenhauer as Educator’ was written in 1874, when Nietzsche was 30, and was published in a collection with three other essays – on Wagner, David Strauss and the use of history – that has come to be titled Untimely Meditations. Jonathan and James consider the essays together and their powerful attack on the ethos of the age, railing against the greed and power of the state, fake art, overweening science, the triviality of universities and the deification of success. James Wood is a contributor to the LRB and staff writer at The New Yorker, whose books include The Broken Estate, How Fiction Works and a novel, Upstate. Jonathan Rée is a writer, philosopher and regular contributor to the LRB whose books include Witcraft and A Schoolmaster's War. Sponsored links: Find out more about the National Gallery's Siena exhibition here: https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/exhibitions/siena-the-rise-of-painting To find out about financial support for professional writers visit the Royal Literary Fund here: https://www.rlf.org.uk/ Close Readings: To listen to the rest of this episode and all our other Close Readings series, sign up; In Apple Podcasts: https://lrb.me/nietzscheapplecr In other podcast apps: https://lrb.me/nietzschesccr Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

28 May

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32 min
02/02/2021

Abortion in 16th Century Italy

Erin Maglaque talks to Thomas Jones about abortion in 16th-century Italy, the stories of women who experienced it, how it was investigated, and why attitudes to pregnancy 400 years ago were in some ways preferable to those now. Find more LRB pieces by Erin Maglaque here: lrb.me/erinmaglaquepod Subscribe to the LRB from just £1 per issue: https://mylrb.co.uk/podcast20b Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

02/02/2021

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32 min
26/06/2024

Faked Editions

For forty years, Thomas James Wise made a fortune forging copies of books that had never existed, sometimes even convincing their authors they were the real deal. Despite a damning exposé by amateur detectives in the 1930s, Wise never confessed or faced legal repercussions, and his fakes have become collectors’ pieces in their own right. Gill Partington joins Tom to explain Wise’s success and final undoing, and to discuss the value of forgeries, hoaxes and reproductions as art. Find further reading on the episode page: https://lrb.me/wisepod Find out more about the Royal Literary Fund: https://rlf.org.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

26/06/2024

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42 min
11/09/2024

Iain Sinclair & Xiaolu Guo: Pariah Genius

During the Covid lockdown Iain Sinclair took delivery of two large yellow boxes containing fresh prints of photographs by the master-chronicler of Soho John Deakin who died, obscure and penniless, in a Brighton hotel room in 1972. Sinclair, another master-chronicler of London’s hidden past, uses those and other images and memories – (‘an invaluable catalogue of artists and divas, actors, film producers, criminals and derelicts’) – to bring back to life the unique artistic milieu of Bohemian London in the 50s and 60s. Iain Sinclair read from and talked about Pariah Genius (Cheerio), in conversation with memoirist, novelist and filmmaker Xiaolu Guo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

11/09/2024

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59 min
20/07/2024

At the Republican National Convention: Day Four

It’s the final day of the Republican National Convention. Andrew O'Hagan and Deborah Friedell dissect Trump’s marathon acceptance speech and ask what a second term could look like. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

20/07/2024

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23 min

Seamus Perry and Mark Ford return for a second series of their acclaimed, 'revolutionary, *****' (The Times) podcast series looking at the lives and works of poets in the late 19th and 20th centuries. Seamus Perry is Professor of English at the University of Oxford and Mark Ford is Professor of English at University College London. Modern-ish Poets is part of the Close Readings podcast collection from the London Review of Books. To listen to the first series of Modern-ish Poets, and to Seamus and Mark's twelve-part series The Long and Short, sign up to the Close Readings subscription: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pJoFPq In other podcast apps: https://lrb.me/closereadings Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Close Readings is a new multi-series podcast subscription from the London Review of Books. Two contributors explore areas of literature through a selection of key works, providing an introductory grounding like no other. Listen to some episodes for free here, and extracts from our ongoing subscriber-only series. How To Subscribe In Apple Podcasts, click 'subscribe' at the top of this podcast feed to unlock the full episodes. Or for other podcast apps, sign up here: https://lrb.me/closereadings RUNNING IN 2025: 'Conversations in Philosophy' with Jonathan Rée and James Wood 'Fiction and the Fantastic' with Marina Warner, Anna Della Subin, Adam Thirlwell and Chloe Aridjis 'Love and Death' with Seamus Perry and Mark Ford 'Novel Approaches' with Clare Bucknell, Thomas Jones and other guests ALSO INCLUDED IN THE CLOSE READINGS SUBSCRIPTION: 'Among the Ancients' with Emily Wilson and Thomas Jones 'Medieval Beginnings' with Irina Dumitrescu and Mary Wellesley 'The Long and Short' with Mark Ford and Seamus Perry 'Modern-ish Poets: Series 1' with Mark Ford and Seamus Perry 'Among the Ancients II' with Emily Wilson and Thomas Jones 'On Satire' with Colin Burrow and Clare Bucknell 'Human Conditions' with Adam Shatz, Judith Butler, Pankaj Mishra and Brent Hayes Edwards 'Political Poems' with Mark Ford and Seamus Perry 'Medieval LOLs' with Irina Dumitrescu and Mary Wellesley Get in touch: podcasts@lrb.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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BOOKS
Close Readings is a new multi-series podcast subscription from the London Review of Books exploring different periods of literature through selections of key works. A new episode will appear every month from each of our Close Readings series running this year. This feed is identical to the 'free' version of Close Readings, which contains free extracts for non-subscribers. Subscribers can listen to all the full episodes in both feeds: https://podcasts.apple.com/ug/podcast/close-readings/id1669485143 RUNNING IN 2025: 'Conversations in Philosophy' with Jonathan Rée and James Wood 'Fiction and the Fantastic' with Marina Warner, Anna Della Subin, Adam Thirlwell and Chloe Aridjis 'Love and Death' with Seamus Perry and Mark Ford 'Novel Approaches' with Clare Bucknell, Thomas Jones and other guests ALSO INCLUDED IN YOUR CLOSE READINGS SUBSCRIPTION: 'Among the Ancients' with Emily Wilson and Thomas Jones 'Medieval Beginnings' with Irina Dumitrescu and Mary Wellesley 'The Long and Short' with Mark Ford and Seamus Perry 'Modern-ish Poets: Series 1' with Mark Ford and Seamus Perry 'Among the Ancients II' with Emily Wilson and Thomas Jones 'On Satire' with Colin Burrow and Clare Bucknell 'Human Conditions' with Adam Shatz, Judith Butler, Pankaj Mishra and Brent Hayes Edwards 'Political Poems' with Mark Ford and Seamus Perry 'Medieval LOLs' with Irina Dumitrescu and Mary Wellesley Get in touch: podcasts@lrb.co.uk

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From dragons and one-eyed giants to divine visions and friendly otters, Irina Dumitrescu and Mary Wellesley roam the strange and wonderful literary landscape of the Middle Ages, from Beowulf to Sir John Mandeville, by way of Chaucer, Sir Gawain and plenty of far-fetched romance. Irina Dumitrescu and Mary Wellesley are both writers and historians, and regular contributors to the London Review of Books. Medieval Beginnings is part of the Close Readings podcasts collection from the London Review of Books. To unlock all the episodes in this series, and all our other Close Readings series, subscribe: In Apple Directly at the top of this podcast or here: https://apple.co/3XTS9H8 In Spotify and other apps Here: lrb.me/closereadings Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Mark Ford and Seamus Perry explore the oscillating power of outrage and grief, bitterness and consolation, in poetry in English from the Renaissance to the present day. Their series will consider the elegies of Milton, Hardy, Bishop, Plath and others at their most intimate and expressive. Mark Ford is Professor of English at University College, London, and Seamus Perry is Professor of English Literature at Balliol College, Oxford. Poets discussed in this series include: Milton, Tennyson, Thomas Gray, Robert Lowell, Sylvia Plath, Denise Riley, Anne Bradstreet, John Berryman, William Wordsworth, Wilfred Owen, W.B. Yeats, Ben Jonson, Geoffrey Hill, Elizabeth Bishop, Anne Carson, Walt Whitman, Philip Larkin and more.

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Seamus Perry and Mark Ford consider poems that have been understood, admired and perhaps criticised for their politics, ranging across several hundred years of literary history. Mark Ford is Professor of English at University College, London, and Seamus Perry is Professor of English Literature at Balliol College, Oxford. Political Poems is part of the Close Readings podcast collection from the London Review of Books. Listen to this episode ad free, and get full access to all our Close Readings series, including more from Mark and Seamus: Sign up to the Close Readings subscription to listen ad free and to all our series in full: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://lrb.me/ppapplesignup In other podcast apps: https://lrb.me/ppsignup Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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The London Review of Books is Europe's leading magazine of culture and ideas. On our channel you'll find weekly discussions with our writers, literary events recorded at our central-London bookshop, and our pioneering Close Readings podcast, which explores different periods of literature through selections of key works. Sign up to access the full Close Readings subscription podcast.

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