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Strong Message Here
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About this listen

Armando Iannucci hosts the programme that gives you a cast-iron guarantee to be laser-focused on decoding the baffling world of political language.

Each week he'll be joined by a guest to crack open the political phrasebook and attempt to demystify the doublespeak. Why does everything now have to be 'turbo-charged'? What's the difference between a 'pledge' and a 'mission'? Why has my local MP been 'weaponised' and should I be worried?

You'll be treated to a crash course in the dark arts of political language from people on the inside who are both baffled and beguiled by it. They'll walk you through the various verbal fiascos of the modern political lexicon so that by the end you'll be oven-ready for an appearance on Newsnight.

Armando's erstwhile partner in de-baffling political lexicon, Helen Lewis, is away working in the United States in the autumn and so her seat will be kept warm by a rotating cast of co-hosts.

Listen to Strong Message Here on Thursdays on Radio 4 at 9.45am, and an extended version is available on BBC Sounds.

Produced by Gwyn Rhys Davies. A BBC Studios Production for BBC Radio 4.

(C) BBC 2025
Episodes
  • Spooking the Markets (with Natalie Haynes and Stewart Lee)

    Spooking the Markets (with Natalie Haynes and Stewart Lee)
    Nov 27 2025

    It's budget week, Armando is joined by two members of the Strong Message Here commune, Natalie Haynes and Stewart Lee.

    How do markets get 'spooked'? Who has the broadest shoulders? And what does 'a Labour Budget with Labour values' actually mean?

    We discuss how taxes get their nicknames, why we know so much about the budget ahead of time these days, and whether Rachel Reeves could've taken inspiration from Taylor Swift to make the budget more exciting.

    In the longer edition, we also look at 'the banter defence', and decide a new name for 'the markets' that feels more apt for the way they behave.

    Got a strong message for Armando? Email us on strongmessagehere@bbc.co.uk

    Sound editing: Rich Evans Production Coordinator: Jodie Charman Executive Producer: James Robinson Recorded at The Sound Company

    Produced by Gwyn Rhys Davies. A BBC Studios production for Radio 4.
    Show More Show Less
    33 mins
  • Moral Failure and Deadly Negligence (with Sara Pascoe and Matt Winning)

    Moral Failure and Deadly Negligence (with Sara Pascoe and Matt Winning)
    Nov 20 2025

    António Guterres has said that missing the 1.5 degree climate target is "a moral failure and deadly negligence". Is he right?

    Dr Matt Winning joins Sara Pascoe and Armando to discuss the language around climate change. Is it proportionately alarmist, or does it just scare us? Are we numb to the jaw-dropping headlines?

    Matt has some ideas of how to communicate these complex ideas more succinctly, and tell us of the days spend at COP agonising over whether 'urges' or 'suggests' makes it into an agreement. We also look at how language has been used to put the onus on us, rather than corporations, for waste and pollution, and a Swedish word that should make its way into Keir Starmer's vocabulary.

    Listen to Strong Message Here every Thursday at 9.45am on Radio 4 and then head straight to BBC Sounds for an extended episode.

    Have you stumbled upon any perplexing political phrases you need Armando to decode? Email them to us at strongmessagehere@bbc.co.uk

    Sound Editing by Chris Maclean Production Coordinator - Jodie Charman Executive Producer - Pete Strauss

    Produced by Gwyn Rhys Davies. A BBC Studios production for Radio 4. An EcoAudio Certified Production.
    Show More Show Less
    38 mins
  • The Buck Stops Here (with Ria Lina and Sophy Ridge)

    The Buck Stops Here (with Ria Lina and Sophy Ridge)
    Nov 13 2025

    This week, Armando is joined again by comedian Ria Lina, and Sky New's new breakfast host, Sophy Ridge.

    In the week with 2 big resignations at the BBC, news journalism and accuracy are under the spotlight. We discuss the pressures on live broadcasting, editing, and deciding what stories make it to air. When is something worthy of coverage? These decisions are made all the time, but how? We also discuss how comedians skills can be deployed by journalists with tricky interviewees, and why the Edinburgh Fringe is the nadir of 'selective editing'.

    Got a strong message for Armando? Email us on strongmessagehere@bbc.co.uk

    Sound editing: Chris Maclean Production Coordinator: Jodie Charman Executive Producer: Pete Strauss and James Robinson Recorded at The Sound Company

    Produced by Gwyn Rhys Davies. A BBC Studios production for Radio 4.
    Show More Show Less
    34 mins
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