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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
  • Civilisational Erasure (with Stewart Lee)

    Civilisational Erasure (with Stewart Lee)
    Dec 11 2025

    Is 'Civilisational Erasure' upon us?

    This week, Armando is joined again by Stewart Lee to look at this phrase, and others from the US' new National Security Strategy. Would this kind of language have been unthinkable even a few years ago?

    We also look at other elements of the strategy, and whether it's time to forget the idea that Trump is playing '3-dimensional chess' with his language. Outside civilisational erasure, we look at whether leaders need to communicate on social media, given Starmer's new TikTok account and Liz Truss' YouTube show both launched this week.

    If you want to know what Liz Truss has got against Gails, and why 70s sitcoms are back in the spotlight both sides of the Atlantic, then this programme is for you.

    Got a strong message for Armando? Email us on strongmessagehere@bbc.co.uk to have your missive read out in our listener mailbag special.

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

    Produced by Gwyn Rhys Davies. A BBC Studios production for Radio 4.
    Show More Show Less
    29 mins
  • AI Hallucinations (with Stewart Lee and Sarah Wynn-Williams)

    AI Hallucinations (with Stewart Lee and Sarah Wynn-Williams)
    Dec 4 2025

    This week, Armando is joined again by Stewart Lee to discuss the language around AI.

    They are also joined by public policy expert and author of Careless People, A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism Sarah Wynn-Williams.

    For legal reasons, Sarah is not allowed to say anything negative about Meta, so we discuss lots of other areas around tech and AI.

    We look at hallucinations - what are they, and are they solvable? Do we respond to the sycophancy of AI? Should there be rules around AI in weapons, and why is that even up for debate?

    We also take a retrospective look at the budget, headlice, and the Your Party members' decision to call Your Party 'Your Party'.

    Got a strong message for Armando? Email us on strongmessagehere@bbc.co.uk and your email could be read out on our listener mailbag special episode over the festive period

    Sound editing: Rich Evans Production Coordinator: Jodie Charman Executive Producer: Pete Strauss Recorded at The Sound Company

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