Best of the Spectator

In 2009 Pope Benedict XVI upset liberals by creating the Ordinariates, new self-governing structures for ex-Anglicans who wanted to preserve their ‘patrimony’ in their worship and evangelisation. Until now, many bishops in the English-speaking world have done their best to marginalise the Ordinariates, despite – or perhaps because of – the dynamism of their clergy. But Pope Leo has now affirmed the Ordinariates as a permanent feature of the church. Could Pope Benedict’s bold initiative soon be working as he intended? In this episode of Holy Smoke, Damian Thompson talks to two leading Ordinariate priests, Fathers Ed Tomlinson and Benedict Kiely. Don’t miss this unusually frank discussion.

Is Labour about to lose Wales? That’s what the polling suggests. After 27 years, Wales is seeking change. The beneficiaries look to be the outsiders, Plaid Cymru and Reform UK. Why is it this moment in particular that people are seeking new answers? In this special episode of Coffee House Shots, James Heale goes on the road across the Welsh valleys with Luke Tryl, UK Director of More in Common. Attending a series of focus groups, speaking to people on the doorsteps and across towns in the UK, they try to find out where Wales is heading in the local elections on May 7. Produced by Megan McElroy.

In this week’s podcast, the panel unpacks Tim Shipman’s explosive cover story, including a leaked message suggesting just how closely Starmer backed Mandelson’s appointment from the start – and why the Prime Minister is now struggling to shift responsibility as the fallout grows.Host Lara Prendergast is joined by William Moore, historian Peter Frankopan and Prue Leith to assess whether this is a moment of real political danger for Starmer – or simply another Westminster storm. As comparisons with Boris Johnson mount, they ask whether Labour’s internal critics will act, what alternatives (if any) exist, and why the deeper problem may be a striking lack of talent across British politics.Also on the episode: could Reform capitalise on voter frustration – and are Britain’s insurgent parties ready for power? What should we expect from Donald Trump’s looming state visit – and why the monarchy may matter more than Downing Street in managing him? Plus, is the American Dream fading, or simply evolving under economic strain?And finally: from overlooked women at Nuremberg to the cultural stigma around ageing, the panel explores how history is written – and who gets written out of it.Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.

My guest on this week’s Book Club podcast is Caroline Bicks, who tells me how she put her academic work on Shakespeare to one side to produce her new book Monsters in the Archives: My Year of Fear with Stephen King. She tells me why she thinks King’s work is worthy of critical attention, what we can learn from the radical way he revised his early work, what it is like dealing with the man himself – and how there are some parts of his early novels that he even scared himself with.

For more from Michael and Maddie, search 'Quite right!' wherever you are listening to this podcast and hit the follow button to never miss an episode. This week: the Mandelson row deepens – and a bigger question about Keir Starmer’s judgment and authority.After a bruising appearance from Olly Robbins at the Foreign Affairs Committee, Michael and Madeline ask whether the Prime Minister’s defence still holds and assess the weaknesses this whole debacle has exposed in Keir Starmer. For example, why did he want Mandelson to be US Ambassador in the first place, given the numerous red flags and the fact that – as Michael suggests – he doesn’t particularly like Mandelson or his style of operating?They also discuss whether this will end up being a resigning issue – and, if Starmer does go, what comes next? With potential successors circling and the local elections looming, would removing him would solve the problem or make it worse?Produced by Oscar Edmondson.

A ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon has just come into effect. Iran’s Foreign Minister says 'in line with the ceasefire in Lebanon, the passage for all commercial vessels through Strait of Hormuz is declared completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire'. Freddy Gray is joined by Spectator contributor Charlie Gammell, an expert on Iran, to discuss the negotiations and why they originally broke down plus what a post-conflict Iran could look like.

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: as the King prepares to head to America, Robert Hardman looks ahead to what would have been Elizabeth II’s centenary celebration; Melissa Kite reports from the fuel protests in Ireland (featuring one of the disgruntled truckers); Julian Glover mourns the demise of the railway restaurant car; and finally, do you love it or hate it – Sarah Carlson provides her notes on marmite. Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.

Donald Trump’s latest clash with the Pope has stunned even the more hardened of America-watchers. According to the President of the United States Chicago-born Pope Leo XIV, the spiritual leader of 1.3 billion people, is 'WEAK on crime and terrible on foreign policy.' He also claimed that, 'If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican.' Is the war in Iran the only reason the Pope and the President have clashed? And what does it tell us about religious relations in the US today?In a special podcast collaboration, the host of Holy Smoke Damian Thompson and the host of Americano Freddy Gray discuss the dispute.Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Natasha Feroze.

Buying a flat in Britain has increasingly become a fool's errand, driven in part by the leasehold system trapping homeowners into flats. When Labour wrote their manifesto they promised reform to the leasehold system, but it remains a sticking point in Westminster due to heavy lobbying. Michael Simmons is joined by Harry Scoffin, founder from Free Leaseholders who makes the case for the common hold system.