When all about you are losing their marbles... Greece is trying to claim theirs back. And it's computer says no from Rishi Sunak who has decided to start a diplomatic war with Greece because he doesn't want to give them back their marbles - which is exactly the response you'd expect from our populist PM, and incidentally, also a spoilt toddler.  Then it's onto our new Home Secretary, James Cleverly, who, despite the House of Commons being laden with cameras and microphones, decided to direct profanities at the entire constituency of Stockton, and then despite recorded evidence of exactly this, tell us he didn't.  More records are smashed for Sunak - just in the wrong direction to what he promised with this week's revelation of unprecedented migration figures. And Richard Tice takes to X to chat about climate change in a clip that gives Cillit Bang's, Barry Scott a run for his money.  Underrated tweet is a naughty little jab at GB News from Aid Thompsin and for pudding, comedian James Acaster gives his take on the Elgin marbles debacle.  Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Heigh ho, heigh ho, it's off to the Covid Enquiry we go to hear what Vallance and Whitty had to endure during the pandemic. Spoiler alert - incompetence, idiocy and disrespect mainly. We also find out they were burdened with a PM who didn't understand the science and thought if people died it was 'OK' if they'd had a 'good innings.' Lovely. But first, Jemma and Marina are thrilled that The Exploding Heads' catchphrase 'Love to the family Colin' is catching on. Hear an extraordinary caller who was so aerated about immigrants he was positively yelling at Tom Swarbrick on LBC. Then Jemma also encountered yet another 'Colin' on Jeremy Vine. 'Love to the family....love to the family' was the only worthy response. Funny how it's always 'foreigners' these 'types' get so worked up about.  Which brings us to Rwanda- ie the most unworkable, costly, morally dubious idea ever to have been deemed unlawful multiple times. The latest ruling by the Supreme Court is in and when Sunak binned Braverman he had the perfect opportunity to bin the policy off with her. But no, Dr Death (as he's being referred to on X due to his ill advised Eat Out to Help Out policy) is standing by it, doubling down and trying to change the law in order to change fact.   On a lighter note, Cliff Richard, went on This Morning and told the world that he didn't get photographed with Elvis because he'd put on weight. At times like this Twitter can be fun.  Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The I'm a Celeb ratings have plunged since last year. Two million fewer people are watched the launch compared to last year, despite what the GBeebies gang are saying. Then again, they did get hold of the wrong data. In reality, it looks like, booking a 'fash for cash' isn't the ratings hit ITV hoped it would be. The Trawl ladies discuss whether or not there's a difference between someone's values and someone's opinions or, whether it's OK, necessary even, to conflate the two in order to get the measure of someone.   Meanwhile, over in Argentina, far-right, self-proclaimed madman, Javier Milei, has been voted into power. Chainsaw wielding, anti abortion, gun-loving Milei wants to legalise the sale of human organs, abolish the central bank and privatise everything. What could possibly go wrong? With inflation rampantly high and 40% of Argentinians living in poverty, Marina and Jemma discuss the links between desperate times and populism. It isn't the first time a leader with unkempt hair has struck a chord with a disillusioned electorate after all.  Then of course, there's the usual array of Tory bellendery (new word) to mull over. The run up to the budget has seen Hunt mooting slashing inheritance tax whilst making cuts to the benefits of the long term sick. Bit rich from the man who 'bulk bought' six flats and managed to evade paying stamp duty on them thanks to a terribly convenient loophole. Alright for some eh?  With underrated tweets and pudding as normal.  Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's reshuffle time... First, Steve Barclay goes from deeply sh*te Health Secretary, to deeply compromised Environment Secretary, and Victoria Atkins becomes Health Secretary in charge of managing the nation's obesity crisis while married to the CEO of British Sugar...let the lobbying begin! The ladies run through who stays and who goes, which includes deputy chairman, Lee Anderson who stays on despite suggesting that the party of law & order should simply ignore law & order. Common sense is in abundance, with our new Common Sense Tzar who thought the suffragette movement included Emmeline Pankhurst winning the vote for women while lying naked with her bum out. And then they reach the crescendo of the reshuffle - the appointment of a literal f*ckpig, back to the scene of his crimes with a peerage to boot. Who doesn't just LOVE British democracy? The ladies discuss the best reaction to our new Foreign Secretary, Lord Cameron of Greensil who seemingly saw fit to rejoin our cabinet because he was "bored sh*tless". Lucky us. Then it's underrated tweet time with a mic-drop moment to savor and a stroke of magic from Politics Joe to commiserate Dave's return. Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Get on your knees... It's Tory MP remembrance Sunday photo-op time! And boy, did they all get the memo - because nothing says heartfelt moment of solemnity like a staged pic for the socials. Jemma and Marina discuss the events of Saturday when a brainless crew of Suella's biggest fans descended onto the streets of London to defend...the realm.  Did The Mail take any responsibility for their whipping up of hate? Did they f*ck. Instead, their post-event coverage centered on a "jostled" Michael Gove who just happened to find himself amid a Palestine protest group.  The ladies discuss the fun day out had by the far-right 'patriots' - because nothing says respecting our war dead like a punch-up at the Cenotaph. Then...ding-dong the witch is dead. Braverman gets the boot and becomes the proud author of one of the bitchiest resignation letters of all time with more than a few self-owns.  The ladies then have some jungle chat - both incredulous that a figure as damaging as divisive as Farage was deemed a fantastic new protagonist for a family TV show. And we wonder why the country is in the state it's in... Then it's onto some underrated tweets, with a splash of sass, including a gem from Joe Lycett, before an impeccably on-brand pudding from Munya Chawawa. Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This month, The Trawl Meets Green Peer, all round Wonder Woman and good egg, Jenny Jones.  Regular Trawl listeners will have often heard Jemma and Marina singing Looooord of the Week before reading some suitably bonkers tweet from a Lord, so who better to chat all things House of Lords with someone who is a bona fide 'Good Lord' (Baroness). Jemma and Marina are fascinated to find out what really goes on in the hallowed corridors of Parliament. Which party are the friendliest? (The answer to this may surprise you...) What does Jenny make of Lord Frost's climate denial? And can Jenny persuade Daniel Hannan to unblock Marina. Find out what happened when Jenny was arrested and how she felt when she pretty much single- handedly prevented an horrific piece of water-polluting Tory legislation.  An inspiring chat which lifts the lid on the goings on in The House of Lords and is surprisingly affirming.  Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's back to school and detention for you! Jemma and Marina open on the latest batshittery from Britain's strictest headteacher who chose the most bizarre hill of all to die on: the latest Marks & Spencer Christmas advert. And thank goodness she did, because your reactions were a joy, which coincidentally is what headteacher Kathrin Birbilsingh appears to be in short supply of. Then it's onto the main event: the man who is currently f*cking up Twitter sat down with the man who is currently f*cking up the UK. Sunak interviewed Musk - or rather, Sunak belly-rubbed Musk, in an attempt to secure himself a new job at Musk Towers once the British people boot him out of office. It was a joy to behold. Things get very profound and thought-provoking with some words from philosopher, Noam Chomsky, before the ladies turn to the Brexit latest. Spoiler: it's grim. And if you thought Gordon Ramsey was lacking in self-awareness, then brace yourself for Osborne and Balls as they regale you with a heartwarming tale that saw the Queen's favorite bagpipe schools saved from brutal austerity cuts, but f*ck everyone else who didn't happen to have a queen advocating for them. Dorries and the disgraced daughter of Captain Tom Moore are the subject of the underrated tweets, before a superb pudding of Colin from Portsmouth - served up by the super talented Exploding Heads. Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hear ye! Hear ye! Brace yourselves because it's that time of year again...  When an unelected man puts a crown of jewels worth more than Kent on his head and reads out a list of Government bills that will do absolutely nothing to tackle the cost of living crisis. Makes one proud to be British. Jemma and Marina discuss one of the most verbose but substance-free monarch's speeches for decades, before discussing Marina's new al-fresco living lifestyle choice.  In post-truth Brexit Britain, it now appears living homeless in a tent is a lifestyle choice, but living with your folks rent-free while you cream £25k off the taxpayer is just impressively shrewd and totally within the parliamentary rules. Obvs.  And while the state of events is dire, your responses to it are not - and the ladies delight in reading out some epic tweets in response to the latest installment of the Cruella horror show. Then it's onto protests - which are now called hate marches thanks to our Home Secretary's desperate need to whip up hate and sow division. Not to mention her shocking undermining of the met police - which comes at an interesting time considering last week our Govt wanted to label anyone undermining our institutions as an extremist. Projection much? The Covid inquiry takes a new turn and gets the ladies talking about times they've had to adapt to male-dominated environments - with Marina once working in a marketing team that the CEO affectionately labeled 'the crayon girls'. Then they wrap up with some choice underrated tweets before finishing with a Covid-themed pudding from Mathilda Thorpe.    Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apparently, Sunak is thinking of making Clare Coutinho Chancellor, so he can thwart Rachel Reeves' ambitions of becoming the first female Chancellor.   Meanwhile, Rachel Reeves has written a book about economics which claims that women aren't credited enough for their ideas. So it's a terrible shame she's been caught out with not crediting people's ideas. The FT have discovered twenty examples of pretty blatant plagiarism in her book. Ouch.  She's getting some flak but perhaps not as much flak as Steve Coogan is getting for a remark he made on a podcast. He accused Royal fans of being 'flag waving Idiots'. Over at GB News they're very angry.  Someone who was a big fan of Coogan's work as Alan Partridge was Matthew Perry who sadly died this week. Jemma and Marina pay tribute and recall what Friends meant to them. There's an Under Rated Clip of The Week and, as ever, The Trawl would not be The Trawl without pudding. This time it's from Larry and Paul.  Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jemma and Marina are only too aware of how bleak the news is currently. Marina didn't sleep prior to discussing the situation in the Middle East on LBC so they begin the episode with a very powerful clip on the topic. They are also aware, however, that The Trawl provides levity during such unsettling times and so it is that the rest of the episode is purposefully diverting. There is a look at Nadine Dorries' lack of digital/tech know-how, which may or may not surprise you coming from the woman who thought tennis was played on pitches. Still, Marina and Jemma think she might be pleased about GB News' new signing. They've signed her crush, the man who she'll defend to the hilt no matter what, Johnson. And X (Twitter) has delivered. Lots of people have suggested titles for shows he could present - Would I Lie To You is just one example. Talking of lying, this episode features an incredibly powerful call from a nurse to Sajid Javid on LBC. A moment of talking truth to power that you shouldn't miss which Javid counters with some 'questionable facts.' Then, to the Covid Enquiry we go and what is already a slightly sweary episode turns completely blue but it's not Jemma and Marina's fault. Unfortunately, you can't report the govt comms without landing some pretty fruity language. The ladies do warn anyone who might be listening with children around! Pudding is served by comedian Matt Green Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jemma and Marina pay tribute to the late, great, Sir Bobby Charlton, and the celebration of a life well-lived is in stark contrast to what is happening in the Middle East.  Then, it's been a year since Sunak came to power. At first the Trawl ladies are struggling to find the best words to describe how he ended up in the top job but they decide eventually that Johnson started a relay race of corruption, a tag team of terrible, if you like.  He promised integrity, professionalism and accountability but this episode demonstrates he's failed on all counts. Meanwhile, at the BBC, MP's are telling them how to cover migration and anything to do with small boats. Not worrying at all......Ditto the Department of Education keeping notes on teachers who post anything negative about policy on their social media accounts. Totally normal.  Thank goodness for some light hearted under rated tweets of the week and a fabulous pudding.  Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Spirits are high in The Trawl camp post the Tory trouncing's in the Tamworth and Mid Bed by-elections. Jemma and Marina are the first to admit that The Trawl podcast isn't exactly hot off the press, on this, or your go to for the news 'as it's happening', due to being a team of........them, plus Max, their editor. But the time lapse also does mean they have all the best reactions and fallout. But first they have to mention the extreme weather that parts of the UK has been experiencing. Imagine your home has been flooded, your possessions are ruined and then, to add insult to injury, Therese Coffey turns up. The clip of her being quizzed by MP's will leave you in no doubt, she's making it up as she goes along.  Then to Tamworth and Mid Beds we go, and indeed to television studios across the land to hear various Tories pretending their massive defeat was actually fine and not an indicator of anything really. As for Andrew Cooper's defeat, it couldn't have happened to a lovelier guy who handily posted a flow chart which spoke volumes. Lastly, Marina and Jemma are both amused and astounded by Gordon Ramsay's incredible lack of awareness on another pod. His story involves a Porsche and needing to ask his wealthy in laws for a massive loan. The heart bleeds! Lots of laughs in this one. Enjoy Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The ladies open with Sunak getting a panto-themed roasting, which seems apt, given that sat just behind him on the front bench were Tweedledum and Tweedledee having a right-good giggle at the most inappropriate of times. Then it's onto the least surprising news ever: Tory MP Peter Bone enters the Tories ever-expanding sexual deviant hall of fame. It appears sexual deviancy is one of the few areas where Tories really do deliver growth. Pincher, then Bone...the nominative determinism is strong, which is why Jemma and Marina descended into a fit of giggles as they trawl through some of the golden responses to this latest Tory scandal. Then it's time for a cuppa in a cafe... with man of the people, Rishi Sunak. Brace yourself for the highlights, or perhaps lowlights, of his encounter with 'ordinary working people' when he tries, and fails, to be normal.  And what would you expect from the party of law and order? Why of course, it's for prisons to be so full that convicted criminals go free. The ladies discuss this latest failure and the incapability of the Tories to ever apologise. We have a quick reminder that in our totally normal country, during Covid, it wasn't our PM running the country, enjoy one of the best underated tweets of all time, and dip into a beautifully on-theme pudding by the geniuses @LarryandPaul.  Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jemma has had a set two with a Tory MP but before they get into that, Marina and Jemma talk about what's been another harrowing week in the Middle East. It's such a sensitive topic and some broadcasters and politicians are acquitting themselves better than others. What's inarguable is that the world has never needed good leadership more.  On a far more optimistic note, in Poland the 'youthquake' have ensured the end of the far right populist government. Donald Tusk has won the election thanks to proportional representation. Marina and Jemma are struck by how many young voted and wonder what can be done over here to create the same sort of engagement.  Sadly, over in Australia, democracy has had a bleaker result as the recent referendum saw Australians voting against allowing the indigenous population a say.  There's an underrated TikTok of the week and pudding is served by Larry and Paul Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode is not a regular Trawl. Instead Jemma and Marina tackle some of the questions you’ve been asking the Trawl ladies over on Patreon. Find out how they’d rate the last five Prime Ministers from bad to worse and whether they’d prefer a night on the tiles with Suella Braverman or dinner with Rees Mogg. Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Events in Israel and Palestine made for a very difficult week of Trawling. Jemma and Marina open on the tragedy unfolding in the Middle East and discuss why sometimes it's best to defer to those who know better... It's a difficult topic to segue from, as demonstrated in this episode in a clip from Sky News. There's a time and a place to announce Holly Willoughby is leaving This Morning - against a backdrop of a mourning Jerusalem ain't it. Marina shares her experience from attending the Labour conference - prepare to be surprised with whom she ended up having dinner one evening.  The ladies discuss their best bits from conference and what stood out - for the Mirror's Kevin Maguire, it was when Keir Starmer "jacked off" during his speech. No wonder Sir Keir was so relaxed throughout... And while the Labour conference was receiving praise, even as far as the GB News corridors, the Tories were busy soiling themselves in desperation to detract from it, with Sunak once again getting fact-checked by X for not even being straight about his location. Prepare for some cringe-worth coverage of MPs tweeting in a desperate bid to discredit Labour...it's almost as if their jobs depend on it! And finally.... a profound pudding that will equip you with all you need to drown out the dog-whistlers. Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In their new series, The Trawl Meets, Jemma and Marina meet someone they find interesting and admire and 'trawl' topics they're passionate about.  This month, their guest is Gary Lineker and Jemma and Marina see it as the perfect opportunity to ask him about 'that' tweet and Gary more than delivers. Find out how it felt to be at the centre of that huge social media storm, the one that ended up being discussed in Parliament. The ladies also want to know if Gary ever heard the GB News version of MOTD that went out when he was off air? He hadn't, but he has now and Marina and Jemma very much enjoy his reaction to the clip. The ladies also quiz him on who his dream dinner guests would be, who he'd have for PM, what his tweeting 'rules' are and whether or not he'd kiss a Tory. In other words, this is the chance to ask Gary the questions he wouldn't normally be asked. And they do..... they really do. Enjoy! Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jemma and Marina open the doors on the Tory conference and dive straight in, wearing full PPE, to the conference that had it all: lies, conspiracy theories and even a Prime Minister reported to the police for potential contempt of court. 'Inadvertent' contempt of court, obvs... It was all happening in Manchester, except ironically, the HS2 to Manchester.  Then the ladies mull over the party's sharp shift to the right, pausing to discuss a few of the most car-crash moments from Sunak to Susan - yes, Susan Hall, the Tory candidate for London Mayor who suggested that the Jewish community is frightened of Sadiq Khan, despite her playful response to a rainbow swastika posted on Twitter by a certain ex-GB News presenter. Could it be time to make lying in politics illegal? Jemma and Marina discuss this and the willingness of the Conservatives to trade in fear (of non-existent threats) to win votes. Then it's onto the real threat - Suella Braverman, whose victims now include guide dogs and the eviction of the most softly-spoken heckler of all time - from the party of free speech, no less.  Before the dessert cart of puddings served up in this week's bumper episode, perhaps grab a drink - and join the ladies for a new drinking game inspired by Penny Mordaunt's speech - all you need to do is take a sip every time you hear the word 'fight'...and prepare to get sozzled. Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Marina's back from holiday and the Trawl ladies barely know where to begin. They start with a quick GB News debrief - a roll call of presenters who've been suspended or sacked, and then it's straight into political nitty gritty.  Apparently we're a nation of drivers and Labour (who haven't been in power for 13 years) have waged a war on motorists? Jemma and Marina hadn't noticed this war and are also partial to using public transport - when it's running - so it's a mystifying statement, as is Sunak's claim that inflation is tax.  At least the Tories have got 'spades in the ground' everywhere. It's their new planned soundbite and they're really getting their money's worth. They're all saying it only no one, including Marina and Jemma, knows what it means. Plus, if there are spades in the ground, it's a huge shame they're not digging to finish HS2. Instead, Sunak's scrapping it, despite his mandate to 'level up.' It's a slap in the face for so many Northern cities who had hoped to have better connectivity and the costly destruction of wildlife and land that's happened for no good reason is mind boggling.  Still, if you're going to shaft the good people of Manchester, where better to do it than.....Manchester?  Pudding is matchy matchy because it's train themed. Enjoy! Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's been a particularly ludicrous week in Tory Britain. And that's saying something. Jemma and Marina plough through what feels like some sort of political fever dream. Starmer has announced he wants to renegotiate the Brexit deal, only we're pretty sure no one's told the EU and, unless we re-join the single market, is there any point just tinkering round the edges? Watch out everyone, Truss is on manoeuvres again. It's been a year since she absolutely devasted the British economy so she's returned to tell us all that she was right and what other things she'd love to do to damage it further.  Meanwhile, Education Secretary, Gillian Keegan, has been extolling the virtues of children being educated in portacabins. Kids love it apparently, so that's alright then. Then, to round off a truly inept week, Sunak held a press conference to tell the British public that lots of things that were never going to happen are not going to happen. So in case you've been lying awake worrying about having seven bins, worry no more.  Finally, Marina and Jemma have been watching the Laura Kuenssburg show State of Chaos. They give their verdict and tell you the fantastic guest they've got for the next Trawl Meets...... Thank you for sharing and do tweet us @MarinaPurkiss @jemmaforte @TheTrawlPodcast Patreon https://patreon.com/TheTrawlPodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices