Alas Vine & Hitchens Podcast By Daily Mail cover art

Alas Vine & Hitchens

Alas Vine & Hitchens

By: Daily Mail
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What's the Big Idea? Finally, Sarah Vine (once memorably described as being ‘like and loathed in equal measure, divisive, but never indecisive’) and Peter Hitchens (a man whose writing a critic was called to compare to a Guardsman’s boot: ‘as highly polished and potentially lethal’) meet once a week to look at the world and mutter, alas… Acclaimed columnist and journalist Sarah Vine and best-selling author and broadcaster Peter Hitchens discuss and dissect social, economic, and pop cultural flotsam and jetsam that have risen out of the dark waters of that week’s news.


Taking one big idea each episode and pulling it apart with élan, imagine Vine and Hitchens respective columns brought to life and then skewered, scoffed at, debated, and given the full weight of Vine and Hitchens impenetrable gaze. Though an accord might not always be reached, it’s the journey that matters.


Whether it’s the tech bros gone rogue – Meta tearing up its own rule book on fact checking, Musk attempting to influence governmental policy, or the knotty subject on society’s ever-increasing reliance on anti-depressants to treat what might just be the modern malaise and not depression at all. Or, evil, nature or nurture? Does evil actually exist or is it an idea that hangs over us, or do we just sometime embody it and the actions themselves are evil, not the individual? All this and more are to be pored over, one towering topic each week discussed with humour, insight, and real understanding.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Daily Mail Politics & Government
Episodes
  • The Madness of King Donald

    The Madness of King Donald
    Apr 15 2026

    On this week’s episode, Sarah would like to know why the social agencies and government infrastructure let down the victims of the Southport attack so badly and Peter would simply like to ask: has Donald Trump finally gone mad?


    And the pair pore over our latest mailbag to talk about Peter’s time as a member of the International Socialists, not least the donkey jacket he wore. Why cabs are comparable with Concorde when it comes to cost. How cocaine might hold up the Colombian economy. And, finally, the pair mull over their favourite historical monarchs.


    On our reading and watch list this week:


    · The Caine Mutiny – Herman Wouk

    · Henry’s Demons: Living with Schizophrenia, A Father and Son’s Story – Patrick Cockburn

    · The Daughter of Time – Josephine Tey


    Please do get in touch, email: Alas@dailymail.co.uk you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

    Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

    Producer: Philip Wilding

    Editor: Chelsey Moore

    Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

    Executive Producer: Jamie East

    A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

    To get in touch email alas@mailonline.co.uk, you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'


    Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

    Producer: Phillip Wilding

    Editor: Chelsey Moore

    Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

    Executive Producer: Jamie East


    A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Show more Show less
    49 mins
  • Driverless Cars and Unused Trains

    Driverless Cars and Unused Trains
    Apr 8 2026

    On this week’s episode, Sarah’s wondering if it really is a good idea to introduce driverless cars to London’s streets, and sticking with transport, Peter would like to know why a new 40-mile train line, and brand spanking new station, are yet to see one single passenger train.


    And the pair pore over our latest mailbag to talk about Crispin Blunt’s assertion

    that he should have been acquitted over his use of controlled substances as charges for drugs should not exist at all. The best Adam Curtis' documentaries to watch and which four people from history that Peter would like to sit in total silence with.


    On our reading and watch list this week:


    · Trauma Zone - Dir: Adam Curtis

    · Station: A journey through 20th and 21st century railway architecture and design – Christopher Beanland

    · Autonomy: The Quest to Build the Driverless Car—And How it Will Reshape Our World - Lawrence D. Burns & Christopher Shulgan

    Please do get in touch, email: Alas@dailymail.co.uk you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

    Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

    Producer: Philip Wilding

    Editor: Chelsey Moore

    Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

    Executive Producer: Jamie East

    A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

    To get in touch email alas@mailonline.co.uk, you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'


    Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

    Producer: Phillip Wilding

    Editor: Chelsey Moore

    Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

    Executive Producer: Jamie East


    A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Show more Show less
    32 mins
  • The King’s State Visit and Visibility Day

    The King’s State Visit and Visibility Day
    Apr 1 2026

    On this week’s episode, Peter will be asking why the King and Queen have decided to go visit Donald Trump at the White House after his series of insults aimed at our country. And Sarah is asking do we really need a visibility day? And why are there so many of them?


    And the pair pore over our latest mailbag to talk about the role of Christianity and why this modern version might be waning. The allure of ghost stories, the less appealing driverless cars, and the state of modern Italian TV. Bellissimo!


    On our reading and watch list this week:


    · Ghost Stories of an Antiquary – M.R. James

    · The Great God Pan – Arthur Machen

    · Gomorrah - Dir: Matteo Garrone

    · The Wizard of The Kremlin - Giuliano da Empoli


    Please do get in touch, email: Alas@dailymail.co.uk you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on Whatsapp – on 07796 657512, start your message with the word ‘alas’.

    Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

    Producer: Philip Wilding

    Editor: Chelsey Moore

    Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

    Executive Producer: Jamie East

    A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

    To get in touch email alas@mailonline.co.uk, you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'alas'


    Presenters: Sarah Vine & Peter Hitchens

    Producer: Phillip Wilding

    Editor: Chelsey Moore

    Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

    Executive Producer: Jamie East


    A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Show more Show less
    39 mins
All stars
Most relevant
Funny, intelligent and insightful. A wonderful podcast which I hope continues for a long time.

Excellent discussion among friends

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Only small complaint is that Peter's deep bass voice is slightly distorted and indistinct at times. I suggest that the sound is cleaned up during post production. otherwise the podcast is excellent.

as expected from Hitchens and Vine, the discussion is slightly edgy and challenging.

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