Pod Save the UK

On 19 October 2022 at the IAB Podcast Upfronts, Crooked Media announced that it would be expanding internationally with a British podcast hosted by Nish Kumar, the former host of the political comedy show The Mash Report; the show was slated to premiere in early 2023. It was subsequently announced that Kumar would co-host the show with Coco Khan, a journalist for The Guardian. Kumar described Pod Save the UK as "a British political podcast but made by Americans... the tone is hopefully going to be justified optimism". Ahead of the show's premiere, on 26 April 2023 a bonus episode was published featuring an interview between Kumar and Khan and Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett, and Tommy Vietor, the hosts of Pod Save America. Pod Save the UK officially premiered on 4 May 2023 with the episode "Raving for a Republic", featuring a discussion on republicanism in the United Kingdom with guests including Amelia Hadfield, professor of politics at the University of Surrey, and Clive Lewis, a Labour MP and anti-monarchy activist. == Reception ==

Writing in the Guardian, Miranda Sawyer described Pod Save the UK as less political than its American counterparts, citing Kumar and Khan's lack of insider political experience; she stated it made the podcast "more of a straightforwardly funny-but-serious leftwing political show". She praised Khan as being "quick-witted and well-informed", while criticising Kumar as being "just loud", though she felt that the second episode had made improvements over the premiere. Fiona Sturges in the Financial Times writes that unlike Pod Save America which brings the views of former political insiders, the UK version brings the perspective of "baffled outsiders." Sturges thinks this is a welcome addition to the podcast landscape in the UK which already has podcasts from Westminster insiders. She praises the balance between serious to funny as well as enjoys their chemistry and 'unruly energy'. == See also ==