My guest this week is John Robb, Punk Rock's renaissance man. John is a wordsmith, a musician, a thinker of big ideas, and an impresario. At sixty, he's also fit as a butchers dog and could be mistaken for forty on a good day. I spoke to John about music, culture, the North and generally putting the world to rights, and I think you'll enjoy his interesting and lively self deprecating humorous conversation. 

Connect with Tom Watson

Follow me on Instagram

Subscribe to my weekly musings

Visit the Tom Watson website

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

My guest is the acclaimed author, journalist and broadcaster, Tim Marshall. For nearly 25 years, Tim broadcast from over 30 countries and covered twelve wars for Sky News. 

In the world of journalism, there is something unique about foreign affairs correspondents. They stand out amongst journalists as a breed of their own. I think it's the events they have to cover that allow them to grasp the big picture. And when you're explaining war, conflict and diplomacy to your audience, you have to reduce complex issues to understandable stories. That's why I've always admired Tim. He's a fabulous explainer. 

Tim's book, 'Prisoners Of Geography, Our World Explained in Twelve Simple Maps', was a bestseller on multiple continents. The sequel, 'The Power Of Geography, Ten Maps That Reveal The World's Future', is out now. I spoke to him about it for this weeks episode of Persons of Interest.

As our conversation took us on a canter through the emerging parts of the world we all need to know about, I found myself in awe of his wisdom. He's one of those people who reminds us that journalism is still a noble profession.

Connect with Tom Watson

Follow me on Instagram

Subscribe to my weekly musings

Visit the Tom Watson website

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

In my time in Parliament, I met people whose cause was so great, their work was a vocation. 

Karen Pollock is one of those people. As the driving force and chief executive of The Holocaust Educational Trust, Karen has dedicated herself to ensuring that young generations understand the holocaust and the lessons it teaches us. 

I spoke to her about the Trust's work and how she copes with the sheer weight of the responsibility her job brings. You can tell I admire her. When you listen to our conversation, I think you'll understand why.

Connect with Tom Watson

Follow me on Instagram

Subscribe to my weekly musings

Visit the Tom Watson website

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