The Rest is Politics launched in March 2022, hosted by Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart. Campbell and Stewart are former political figures, of the Labour and Conservative parties respectively. Their podcast is aimed at revealing how governments work, and "disagreeing agreeably". Campbell is a journalist, political strategist, and mental health activist, known for his work as communications chief for
Tony Blair. A former member of the Labour Party, Campbell was expelled after having publicly stated that he had voted for the
Liberal Democrats in the
2019 European Parliament elections in the United Kingdom. Stewart is an academic, author, former diplomat and politician. A former member of the Conservative Party, Stewart served as
international development secretary and
prisons minister under
Theresa May. He represented
Penrith and The Border in the
House of Commons of the United Kingdom for around nine years. In 2019, after
Boris Johnson was elected leader of the Conservatives, Stewart resigned from the cabinet. He was part of the
2019 suspension of rebel Conservative MPs for having rebelled against Johnson's approach to
Brexit. He later also resigned his party membership.
The Rest is Politics has become one of the leading political podcasts in the United Kingdom. It is produced by
Goalhanger Podcasts, which is owned by former
England footballer
Gary Lineker. Goalhanger also produces the podcasts: •
The Rest Is History, hosted by
Dominic Sandbrook and
Tom Holland •
Battleground, hosted by
Saul David and Patrick Bishop •
We Have Ways Of Making You Talk hosted by
Al Murray and
James Holland •
The Rest Is Money, hosted by
Robert Peston and
Steph McGovern •
The Rest is Football, hosted by Lineker,
Alan Shearer, and
Micah Richards •
The Rest Is Entertainment, hosted by
Richard Osman and
Marina Hyde •
The Rest Is Science, hosted by
Michael Stevens and
Hannah Fry. ==Format==