Show Notes
Less than three years ago they were flying high and now they've been subjected to major setbacks. And, no, we're not talking about our intrepid duo. In the last week former President Donald Trump has been put under federal indictment, former Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been run out of Parliament and former Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has been placed under arrest.
Rumors have circulated that this episode sees our hosts coming together in agreement over several major issues instead of the knock-down-drag-'em-out fight predicted over the weekend. You'll just have to listen in.
In Culture Corner, both James and Toby take in Patriots at the Noel Coward, the latest play from Peter Morgan (The Crown, Frost/Nixon) that features Tom Hollander as Boris Berezovsky and Will Keen as Vladimir Putin. And - SPOILER ALERT - we wrap up Succession.
Opening sound this week is Douglas Ross, Leader of the Opposition in the Scottish Parliament, commenting on Nicola Sturgeon's legal troubles.
More from London Calling
In 1935 Cole Porter penned a tune called "Just One of Those Things" about a love affair "too hot not to cool down." And so it goes.
Everyone is a little miserable this week, fueled by the rainy summer England has had this year. Or maybe because we're all getting a little bit older. James "celebrated" #58 this past weekend and Toby isn't looking forward to #60 due this October.
This week James and Toby open the discussion with James’ recent gig in Dorset and the division in towns like Bridport and Totnes between the woke and the awake, particularly over traffic calming measures like LTNs, Ulez schemes and 15-minute cities.
It's hot in the Mediterranean and James and Toby discuss the recent forest fires in Greece and whether climate change or arsonists are to blame. This triggers an argument (From these two? Really?) about whether there are enough honest journalists left to expose such wrongdoing and that, in turn, leads to a heated discussion about whether the journalist Ross Clark is a genuine climate contrarian because concedes that the world has got a little bit warmer in the past 150 years.
"The best laid plans of mice and men," said Rabbie Burns, "often go awry." And so it is as Toby tells James about how his travel plans have gone over the past fortnight, even though he’s in Majorca with his wife and four children.