Three Old Hacks

The Three Old Hacks talk about the war in Iran, with the background knowledge to be able to compare and contrast it with previous wars and the justifications of previous presidents and prime ministers over the decades.

"Trump has always been a transactional president who wants to do a deal", says political analyst Nigel Dudley, "but in the Middle East there is no end. The best we can hope for is an absence o...

The Three Old Hacks is the Best Podcast, produced by the Best Team Ever!

Donald Trump’s enthusiasm for his own brilliance is infectious. Once they have finished praising each other, the Three Old Hacks settle to a discussion of Trump’s latest exploits and, in the week that Robert Jenrick swaps parties, they ponder the price of party loyalty in politics.

“Backstabbing is never a good look”, says David Smith, adding...

The Three Old Hacks wind up the year with the topics du jour - immigration, Trump and Fake News.

"We need to be saying much more that immigration is a good thing", argues political analyst Nigel Dudley.

"If Joe Biden had done some of the things Trump is doing now, they would have questioned his mental faculties", says Economics Editor of the Sunday Times David Smith.

"Does the rise of AI mean that journalists ...

The Three Old Hacks discuss the visit of Donald Trump and whether our Prime Minister's apparent fawning over him is the only way to treat someone so vain.

"Flattery pays off with Trump", says David Smith, Economics editor of the Sunday Times. "You don't want to make an enemy of him".

They note that Rupert Murdoch was on the guest list for dinner with the President of the United States...

The Three Old Hacks discuss the negotiations over Ukraine. Did Trump get rolled over by Putin? Would Mrs Thatcher have gone to America in the way the European leaders have? There have been lots of "vacuous generalisations" about what Europe's war aims are, but it is clear what the principal players want, says Nigel Dudley: Trump wants a deal and Putin wants Ukraine.

Political analyst Nigel Dudley, former sports editor...

The Three Old Hacks look at what might lie behind Keir Starmer's announcement that Britain will recognise a Palestinian state, if Israel does not stop the war in Gaza.

They celebrate the Lionesses' victory in the Euros and discuss Donald Trump's extraordinary behaviour during his recent visit to Scotland, where he behaved more like the country's monarch than a visiting dignitary.

And they say goodbye to the satiri...

The Three Old Hacks consider the ramifications of the Afghan super-injunction story which has consumed the British media this week and the way it has "seeped into the toxic subject of immigration".

The British have something of a "negligent attitude to those who have helped them", says Mihir Bose, former BBC Sport editor. It is wrong that this has become politicised into an immigration issue when "the Afghan...

The Three Old Hacks considers Israel's war with Iran, the expectation of what 'two-week Trump' will do and how likely it is that Britain will get dragged in.

Former BBC Sports editor Mihir Bose, Economics editor of The Sunday Times David Smith and political analyst Nigel Dudley's collective memories can recall the postwar history of the West's attempts at regime change in the Middle East over several decades...

The Three Old Hacks talk political memoirs this week. Were they always as salacious, and as quickly turned round post-administration as they are now?

Barely has the imprint of the politician's backside faded from the leather of the despatch box before somebody is telling all.

Former BBC Sports editor Mihir Bose, Economics editor of The Sunday Times and political analyst Nigel Dudley discuss Sarah Vine's book How Not to be a...

The Three Old Hacks discuss immigration this week. Mihir Bose, former Sports editor for the BBC, came here as an immigrant from India in the 1960s, not long after Enoch Powell made his famous 'Rivers of Blood' speech. 

Keir Starmer has been accused of evoking a fear of 'otherness' by echoing Powell's words, when he said Britain risked becoming an 'island of strangers'. 

David Smith, Economics editor...

 The Three Old Hacks discuss the challenges facing Christian leadership. As the Papal Conclave works its way through multiple rounds of voting to select a new Pope and the Church of England chooses a new Archbishop of Canterbury, they caution against trying to make a fast buck by betting on either. 

On the papal contest, political analyst Nigel Dudley offers: "It's invariably an outsider." On the Church of England sel...

 The Three Old Hacks look at the relationship between Nigel Farage and the Conservative Party. We are seeing a reshaping of the right in British politics, says Mihir. Nigel Farage is out to destroy the Conservative Party in his mission to become prime minister.

He is making a tactical shift towards the centre, says David Smith, to take over the Conservatives' ground. While Tory Party members may be drifting towards Reform, that...

Supporters of Donald Trump such as Piers Morgan and Nigel Farage tend to brush off his more outrageous statements, saying we shouldn't take his outpourings too literally. 

Shouldn't we? In a week in which he has declared that President Zelensky of Ukraine is a 'dictator' and tariffs on Mexico and Canada "will go forward", the Three Old Hacks, aka Sports editor of BBC News Mihir Bose, political analyst N...

 As The Three Old Hacks gather for their latest episode, they dive into the state of UK politics and economic growth. David Smith offers a measured analysis of Britain’s growth prospects, suggesting that while some improvement is expected, it may fall short of historical averages. Mihir Bose expresses concern about the rising cost of living and its impact on British dining culture, while Nigel Dudley defends his wine collection and...

As the Three Old Hacks get ready to tuck into the turkey and mince pies they consider how we will rate 2024. Mihir Bose thinks this has been the worst of times with Trump back in the White House, right-wing parties gaining power in Europe and the flood of non-European migrants creating an existentialist crisis. David Smith disagrees with his old friend arguing that proportional representation means the right may not win power and E...

As the Prime Minister Keir Starmer tries to recover from the worst start by a new government in recent times, the Three Old Hacks discuss why the government needs a re-launch a mere six months after coming to office with a huge majority. “Does it mean” asks Mihir Bose that “Labour no longer has leaders with political nous”.  What happened to the party of Clement Attlee and Tony Blair?

Nigel Dudley recalls how Tories under Thatcher i...

The Three Old Hacks consider what we might expect from a second Trump presidency.

"Will it mean a more isolationist America?" asks MIhir Bose. What will it mean for Ukraine?

Has he made political discourse coarser, or are the off-colour remarks he makes no worse than the kind of thing President Lyndon B Johnson used to say?

Should we ignore the rhetoric of Trump's speeches, as Piers Morgan suggests, and just look at wha...

The Three Old Hacks have known each other for 40 years, having met when they were all working for Financial Weekly magazine in 1984, which is also the year David Smith went on to join The Times. He recalls how Nigel Lawson set the standard as a tax reforming Chancellor with his autumn Budget that year, while Nigel Dudley remembers his lucky escape when he decided to go back to his hotel rather than having a nightcap at the bar of t...

With a certain cynicism born of decades of political reporting, the Three Old Hacks look at the way in which the press have descended on the newly elected Labour government like a pack of ravening wolves over its approach to the Prime Minister receiving gifts.

As gifts of everything from expensive clothing to seats to watch Arsenal have been revealed, they discuss whether it matters that politicians receive gifts, and how the Downin...