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The News Agents

The News Agents

By: Global
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About this listen

 Emily Maitlis, Jon Sopel and Lewis Goodall – three of the UK’s top journalists – host an award-winning daily news podcast: The News Agents. They’re not just here to tell you what's happening, but why. Expect astute analysis and explanation of the day's news – and a healthy dose of scepticism and the ability to laugh at it all when needed. Episodes are available every weekday afternoon. You can listen to The News Agents on Alexa, just say "Alexa ask Global Player to play The News Agents" The News Agents is a Global Player Original podcast. For advertising opportunities on this podcast email: dax@global.com And The News Agents now have merch! Click here to buy yours now: https://store.global.com/collections/the-news-agentsGlobal Political Science Politics & Government
Episodes
  • Does anyone know what the Starmer plan is?

    Does anyone know what the Starmer plan is?
    Jun 30 2025

    Tomorrow, Labour MPs will be asked to vote on the rejigged welfare reform bill. Senior Labour politicians Sadiq Khan and Andy Burnham still don’t think it’s worth the paper it’s written on. But the whole debacle has thrown up a bigger question about Starmer's leadership and authority. Does anyone really understand what’s in the PM's mind or what he is trying to achieve? We speak to the Starmer whisperer, Tom Baldwin.

    Later, Glastonbury, Bob Vylan and the BBC. And how has Wimbledon now become a symbol of Britain's decline?

    The News Agents is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/
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    46 mins
  • How to catch a terrorist

    How to catch a terrorist
    Jun 27 2025

    This Friday, Lewis is joined in the studio by the newest members of the 'agents' family. Neil Basu is former head of Counter Terrorism Policing and Andy Hughes is an investigative journalist who's been covering crime for two decades.

    They look back on 2017, a year which the UK experienced a series of devastating terrorist attacks, to talk about what it takes to catch a terrorist, and why some slip through the net.

    You can listen to The Crime Agents here: https://www.globalplayer.com/podcasts/42L4DG/

    The News Agents is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/
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    43 mins
  • Weekend Edition: Euros exclusive, Wimbledon's 66,000 tennis balls & is 5-day cricket too long? - The Sports Agents

    Weekend Edition: Euros exclusive, Wimbledon's 66,000 tennis balls & is 5-day cricket too long? - The Sports Agents
    Jun 27 2025

    This week on The Sports Agents...

    A big exclusive ahead of the Euros with two of England's defending champions, Lauren Hemp & Niamh Charles, Gabby goes behind the scenes at Wimbledon (10:30) and after England's historic comeback we ask ex-England bowler Steven Finn if 5-day cricket is too long? (19:30)

    You can watch our full episodes on YouTube here.

    Got a question for The Sports Agents? Email us at thesportsagents@global.com

    New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.

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    24 mins
All stars
Most relevant  
I really value that the journalists are stating their own views without needing to toe any particular line.

Great

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3 very thoughtful compassionate journalists with a lovely relaxed style. Unbiased take on current news and political events.

Love their humour !

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Excellent pod cast, listening to one about Donald Trump, amusing and educational, listen to Newsagents regularly

Well informed

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look forward to every podcast. BBC, you really missed a trick with this trio. in depth news with never the term "sorry, we have finish there. we have run out of time" onwards and upwards you three musketeers !

refreshingly excellent journalism

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Listening from Ireland and have a great interest in UK politics. This podcast is superb

Listening from Ireland

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Back in the late 80s and 90s, I'd get my news from Newsnight. Paxman's legendary interviews, Kirsty Wark trying to control Tom Paulin and Germaine Greer on the Newsnight Review. It was the fun side of the intellectual establishment. Since Maitlis and Goodall got edged out, it's been a poodle of the administration, and it's been necessary to look online for anything like independent news coverage (God forbid one look to ITV or Beeb 1; that's past praying for). But thank Heaven for the merry trio of Goodall, Maitlis & Sopel. Their coverage is a little left-leaning, within very controlled parameters - that alone makes them a breath of fresh air (and God knows the right never control the parameters within which their news partisans operate - GB Froth, anyone?) Their coverage is broad but never shallow, their access is exceptional for online news. And I'm guessing all their regular listeners find the badinage a cheesy pleasure. Since discovering the News Agents, I can go to bed a full hour earlier, because I don't need to wait up to be disappointed by Newsnight's tapioca pudding, but can think and chuckle on my commute every morning instead. God bless these merry folks.

What Newsnight used to feel like

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I got out of the habit of watching the news during Covid and never went back. Lots of daily news doesn’t interest me anymore. However, the in-depth analysis provided by ‘The News Agents’ is worthy of my attention. The presenters compliment each other well. Emily was my favourite presenter on Newsnight, back when I watched it.
The same goes for the US version.

Analysis worth listening to.

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i really enjoy this podcast, interesting and plain speaking daily news and political analysis.

very good

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Very enjoyable podcast, the interaction between the three presenters is both informative and entertaining. Emily's grilling of one of the "New Conservatives" is a personal fav ("You picked radishes for four months, why'd you leave?"), also interesting to discover the pea picking and hair sweeping/washing hidden skills.
Stones in the pea bag, for shame.........

Thoughtful and interesting analysis of the news

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This is an uneven podcast, which is frustrating as the hosts are individually talented and collectively capable of something greater than the sum of its parts. So what goes wrong? A default soft left worldview, banal choice of topic and guests, far too much ex BBC chat, and a dangerous lack of perspective on many issues - the coverage of Huw Edwards was a travesty. Fine, he’s Sopel’s mate. But couldn’t Emily or Lewis have been more forensic in their scrutiny of Edwards’ misdemeanours?

Flashes of greatness undermined by smugness and bias

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