The Sceptic

The Truth About the Elgin Marbles

In this Special Episode of the Sceptic, Laurie speaks to Dr Mario Trabucco della Toretta, classical archaeologist and writer.
In this extended interview, Laurie and Mario discuss the British Museum and why it’s the best in the world, its magnificent collection and where it came from, why the ‘decolonise’ lobby is so wrong to claim it’s all ‘looted’, the truth about the Elgin Marbles, why the arguments for repatriating them don’t stack up, what’s behind the anti-Westernism of the ‘decolonisers’ and how we can fight back.
NOTE: Premium subscribers will notice that this is an extract from the premium section of Episode 34. We’re sorry that there is no new episode today. This is due to circumstances beyond our control. The Sceptic will return next week as usual.
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Produced by Richard Eldred.
Filmed at the Westminster Podcast Studio.

The System of Diversity – with Ben Cobley

In this Special Episode of the Sceptic, Laurie speaks to Ben Cobley, commentator and author of The Tribe: The Liberal-Left and the System of Diversity and The Progress Trap: The Modern Left and the False Authority of History, out next month.
They discuss Ben’s concept of the “system of diversity” we find ourselves living in our multicultural society, Laurie’s research on hate crime and why that’s a prime example of it, why it’s so unforgiving, the concept of ‘community leaders’ and whether they are authentic, and ‘Islamophobia’ and the unholy fusion of ultraconservative Islam with Left-wing sociology.
In the premium section, they discuss why Labour is so afraid of a national grooming gangs inquiry, why the wheels are coming off for Jess Phillips, how to recover from our two-tier society and Ben’s new book on the falsehoods of progressivism.
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Produced by Richard Eldred.
Filmed at the Westminster Podcast Studio.

Trump, the Tariffs and Britain

Welcome to Episode 34 of the Sceptic! On the show this week, host Laurie Wastell speaks to the following guests:
Fred de Fossard, Director of Strategy at the Prosperity Institute, on Trump’s tariffs on how Britain should respond to them.
Sam Bidwell, Director of Research at the Adam Smith Institute, on the UK MPs campaigning for an airport in Mirpur, Pakistan and what this says about the growing problem of Muslim sectarianism in Britain.
And for our premium subscribers, Laurie is joined by Dr Mario Trabucco della Toretta, classical archaeologist and writer, on the wonders of the British Museum – and what the ‘decolonise’ crowd gets so wrong about the Elgin Marbles.
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Produced by Richard Eldred.
Filmed at the Westminster Podcast Studio.

The Green Agenda is Collapsing

Is Net Zero dead? In this Sceptic short, host Laurie Wastell is joined by Dr Tilak Doshi, economist, former contributor to Forbes and now the Daily Sceptic’s Energy Editor, to discuss how Donald Trump’s “Drill, baby, drill!” energy revolution is upending the global green agenda, why the climate censorship regime is collapsing and whether the writing is on the wall for Ed Miliband.
NOTE: Premium subscribers will notice that this is an extract from the premium section of Episode 30. We’re sorry that there is no new episode today. This is due to circumstances beyond our control. The Sceptic will return next week as usual.
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Produced by Richard Eldred. Filmed at the Westminster Podcast Studio.

Guy Dampier: How to End Illegal Migration

Welcome to Episode 33 of the Sceptic! On the show this week, host Laurie Wastell speaks to the following guests:
Guy Dampier, Senior Researcher on Nationhood at the Prosperity Institute, on what Britain can learn from Donald Trump on how to solve the problem of illegal immigration.
William Yarwood, Media Campaign Manager at the Taxpayers’ Alliance, on the great Motability scandal.
And for our premium subscribers, Laurie speaks to David Shipley, writer on prisons and justice, on Adolescence, the skewed focus of Prevent and the twee tyranny of Paddington Bear.
 
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Produced by Richard Eldred.
Filmed at the Westminster Podcast Studio.

Douglas Carswell: How to Save Britain

Welcome to Episode 32 of the Sceptic! On the show this week, host Laurie Wastell speaks to the following guests:
Douglas Carswell, MP for Clacton from 2010-2017, first for the Conservative Party and then for UKIP, and President and CEO of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy.
Chris Morrison, the Daily Sceptic’s Environment Editor, on how the global green agenda is falling apart – and why blowhards like Gavin Barwell are so enraged at the Daily Sceptic for leading the way.
And for our premium subscribers, Laurie is joined by Steven Tucker, journalist and author of books including Hitler and Stalin’s Misuse of Science, on the ghoulish decision to make Rotherham the 2025 ‘Children’s Capital of Culture’ – and what it says about our deranged cultural elites.
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Read Chris’s articles on the Daily Sceptic here and here.
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Produced by Richard Eldred.
Filmed at the Westminster Podcast Studio.

The EU’s Propaganda Machine – With Thomas Fazi

Welcome to Episode 31 of the Sceptic! On the show this week, host Laurie Wastell speaks to the following guests:
I speak to Thomas Fazi, columnist at UnHerd and Compact magazine, on how the EU's propaganda network of leftist NGOs is manufacturing consent for its globalist agenda. 
David Shipley, writer on prisons and justice, on the outrageous two-tier sentencing guidelines being introduced by the Sentencing Council – and why it’s a democratic outrage.
And for our premium subscribers, Laurie is joined by former Metropolitan Police officer Paul Birch, on his experiences in the police, the trouble with “community policing” and how the thin blue line went woke.
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And read his report, ‘The EU’s Propaganda Machine: How the EU funds NGOs to promote itself’, here.
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Produced by Richard Eldred.
Filmed at the Westminster Podcast Studio.

The Descent of South Africa – with Rob Hersov

Welcome to this Special Episode of the Sceptic, with South African businessman Rob Hersov.
Speaking at the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship (ARC) Conference, host Laurie Wastell and Rob discuss the history and decline of post-apartheid South Africa, the corruption of the ruling ANC, its chilling “expropriation without compensation” laws, the impact of Trump and Musk’s attention to South Africa, why its policy of “Black Economic Empowerment” is like DEI on steroids, the far-Left parties who chant “Kill the Boer”, and why Western liberal media refuses to admit what a basket case South Africa has become.
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Produced by Richard Eldred.
Filmed at the Westminster Podcast Studio.

Trump, Zelensky and the Delusions of Europe

Welcome to Episode 30 of the Sceptic! On the show this week, host Laurie Wastell speaks to the following guests:
Tom Jones, Conservative councillor and writer for publications including the Critic and UnHerd, on Ukraine, the bust-up in the Oval Office and the parlous state of Europe's armed forces.
Michael Wolff, author of several books on team Trump, on what really makes the Donald tick.
And for our premium subscribers, Laurie is joined by Dr Tilak Doshi, economist, former contributor to Forbes and now the Daily Sceptic’s Energy Editor.
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Read Tilak’s latest on the Daily Sceptic here. 
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Produced by Richard Eldred.
Filmed at the Westminster Podcast Studio.

The Rebirth of the Right? – With Ben Sixsmith

Welcome to this Special Episode of the Sceptic, with Ben Sixsmith, Online Editor at the Critic.
Host Laurie Wastell catches up with Ben at the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship Conference. They discuss the conference and the state of the Right internationally; Kemi Badenoch and “muscular liberalism”; free speech, the grooming gangs and Britain’s international reputation; JD Vance’s Munich speech; how Trump’s domestic agenda is showing the world’s conservatives how to get things done and much more.
 
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Produced by Richard Eldred.
Filmed at the Westminster Podcast Studio.