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Simon opens with a simple question for Lee: what, exactly, is the attraction of right-wing extremism? Lee comes at it sideways, through Britpop. He admits the off-stage rudeness of Blur and Oasis in the late 90s put him off their music entirely (Tori Amos, at least, seemed nice), and wonders whether the far right runs on a capacity for forgiveness he simply lacks. From there it's Question Time, another Reform MP on the panel, and a view from Sassari on nostalgia as the engine of it all.

Mentioned

• Igor x Moreno – choreographic duo whose show was seen the night before recording; described as almost the only choreographers Simon goes to see
• Andrew Tate – cited as where a "gateway" figure can eventually lead
• Britpop – 1990s UK music scene, framed as two factions with a bridge between them
• Blur – the art-school side of Britpop; rude off-stage behaviour made their music impossible to enjoy at the time
• Oasis – the working-class side of Britpop; same objection, same result
• Pulp – the band that bridged the two camps, "the one ring that binds them both"
• The Lord of the Rings – source of the "one ring" riff on Pulp
• VHS vs Betamax – format-war analogy for the Blur/Oasis rivalry
• Tori Amos – the alternative listening of the time: angry and spiky, but critiquing misogyny; a clip of "Winter" is played
• Israel – example of a topic on which a podcaster's view gets set aside while the rest is still valued
• "Be curious, not judgmental" – maxim recalled from the show's early days, and from Ted Lasso
• Question Time (BBC) – televised political debate show touring the UK; the new season again features a Reform MP on the panel
• Any Questions? (BBC Radio 4) – the radio show Question Time's format derives from
• Reform UK – far-right party; discussed in terms of platforming, normalisation and nostalgia
• Andy Burnham – referred to as the new Prime Minister; the "Burnham bounce" is credited with Reform's drop in support
• Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland – devolution, and what it might mean to be left living in England
• Sassari – city in Sardinia; a vantage point on immigration, visible change and resistance to it in Italy

Get in touch with Lee and Simon at info@midlifing.net.

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