Disagreeing agreeably: The Rest is Politics podcast announces Election Tour
The Rest is Politics podcast series is retuning to the live stage with an election tour.
Enter the former Tony Blair spin doctor Alastair Campbell, who fell out of love with his Labour party in 2019 when voted Lib Dem and was subsequently expelled. Standing as his opposition, Rory Stewart, the one-time Tory minister who resigned from the cabinet on Boris Johnson’s election and left the Conservative party.
At the helm of The Rest Is Politics are two men who have been at the heart of the political world.
Despite their symbolism as two opposing sides of the political spectrum, these two men get on surprisingly well. The only hiccup arrises when Stewart unabashedly calls out Campbell for backing Blair’s decision to enter the Iraq war – which makes for a good episode.
But Iraq seems to be one of the only truly prickly points in their relationship. Otherwise the two men counter each other’s ideas with polite, alternative theories and suggestions whilst displaying never ending expertise in the power structures playing out on the domestic and international stages of today and the past.
The duo’s Election Tour will kick off in Brighton on October 6, before they embark on a further 6 shows in Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow and Cardiff before closing at London’s iconic The O2 on October 15.
The London show is set to be extra special, with the show being hosted ‘in the round’ at the venue – bringing audience members even closer to the political action. This is a first for The O2, hosting a live podcast, as well as a first for Campbell and Stewart taking to The O2 stage.
The Rest Is Politics has toured the UK four times since the podcast started in 2022 – each show has been critically acclaimed and each venue has sold out.
Since its launch The Rest is Politics podcast has over 145 million downloads so far and attracts 2.5million listens each week.
Stewart said: “I’m incredibly excited for our first visits to Glasgow and Cardiff with the podcast. October is going to be a very important month in US – and most likely UK – politics, so this tour should give us the opportunity to discuss some of the most pivotal elections of our lifetime on stage with our listeners.”
The Rest Is Politics lifts the lid on the secrets of Westminster, offering an insider’s view on politics at home and abroad, while bringing back the lost art of disagreeing agreeably.
Presale tickets are available from www.aegp.uk/TheRestIsPolitics.
Picture: Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart (Picture: @restispolitics)