About this episode
Hugo Rifkind joins Armando to discuss the language of reality in politics and its implications.
Journalist and Times Radio presenter Hugo Rifkind joins Armando this week. In another breakneck week, we look at the language of reality in politics. Are plumbers more 'real' than economists? Can Trump really 'manipulate reality'? And has he been watching Shrek? We also look at the parallels between Marco Rubio and the general in Dr Strangelove, Tony Blair powering down when talking to Alan Partridge, and whether 'Epic Fury' really means what Pete Hegseth thinks it does. Got a strong message for Armando? Email us at strongmessagehere@bbc.co.uk Sound editing: Chris Maclean Production Coordinator: Asha Osborne-Grinter Executive Producer: Richard Morris Recorded at The Sound Company Produced by Gwyn Rhys Davies. A BBC Studios production for Radio 4.
People in this episode
Host: Armando
Guest: Hugo Rifkind
Topics covered
- politics
- reality
- media
- language
- comedy
- Trump
- economics
Keywords
- Hugo Rifkind
- politics
- reality
- Trump
- Shrek
- Dr Strangelove
- comedy
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: Shrek, Dr Strangelove
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- A Febrile Atmosphere (with Tom Peck) · May 21, 2026 · 40 min
- We Can't Go On Like This (with Kiri Pritchard-McLean and Ayesha Hazarika) · May 14, 2026 · 35 min
- Technological Republic (with Stewart Lee and Carole Cadwalladr) · May 7, 2026 · 34 min
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