With the media fanfare surrounding Russell Brand’s trial, how can jurors be kept away from prejudicial information? What does US control over Ukraine’s defence technology mean for the war, and wider security in Europe? And will the recent revelations about Reform’s councillors racist remarks actually affect support for the party?

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by The Observer’s Stephen Armstrong, Social Media Editor, Caitlin Macdonald and Whitehall Editor Cat Neilan as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk

Follow us on Social Media:

• @ObserverUK on X
• @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
• @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Jeevan Vasagar

Producer: Ada Barumé

Executive Producer: Jasper Corbett

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Can Gen Z protesters in France bring about political change? With the enormous financial pull of the tech industry, can Hollywood blockbusters like Artificial and The Social Reckoning meaningfully critique tech billionaires anymore? And how did Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor win his legal claim against the police?

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by The Observer reporters Hannah Schuller, Marine Saint and Jon Ungoed-Thomas as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk

Follow us on Social Media:

• @ObserverUK on X
• @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
• @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Jeevan Vasagar

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Jasper Corbett

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What next for Manchester City after the Premier League club was found guilty of serious financial-rule breaches? And if the Crown Prosecution Service brings charges over the fatal 2017 Grenfell Tower fire, what could that mean for future corporate manslaughter cases? Could the stabbing on the Israel-bound flight affect Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chances in the upcoming late October election?

Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer’s Stephen Armstrong, Chloe Hadjimatheou and Jonathan Lewis as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

Listen to The State of Netanyahu wherever you listen to podcasts: https://observer.co.uk/listen/the-state-of-netanyahu

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk

Follow us on Social Media:

• @ObserverUK on X
• @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
• @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Giles Whittell

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Poppy Bullard

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

China’s president, Xi, is in Washington. What’s at stake? Is the 40-year ban on people drinking in football stands about to end? And what might the new bereavement leave law mean for people who have lost a loved one?

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by The Observer’s Jasper Corbett, Seun Matiluko and Andrew Butler as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk

Follow us on Social Media:

• @ObserverUK on X
• @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
• @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Jeevan Vasagar

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Jasper Corbett and Gary Marshall

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How seriously should world leaders take warnings of rogue AI models? Should people be allowed to bet on the trials of new medicines? Why did Ed Sheeran drop his support act, Macklemore, from his tour?

Giles Whittell is joined by Cat Neilan, the Observer’s Whitehall editor, Caitlin Macdonald, social media editor and James Tapper, Observer reporter, as they battle it out to pitch the top story of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk

Follow us on Social Media:

• @ObserverUK on X
• @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
• @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Giles Whittell

Producer: Poppy Bullard

Executive Producer: Jasper Corbett

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why has President Trump promised Americans $5000 dollars each if Republicans win the midterms elections? How seriously should we take former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon's earnest warning that AI will kill humanity? What do job cuts at Jaguar Land Rover tell us about the British economy?

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by The Observer’s Hannah Schuller, Jessica Hayden and Ben Zaranko as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

Listen to The Endgame wherever you listen to podcasts: https://observer.co.uk/listen/endgame

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk

Follow us on Social Media:

• @ObserverUK on X
• @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
• @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Jeevan Vasagar

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Poppy Bullard

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why has Andy Burnham pledged to save the Jodrell Bank Observatory? Will the Holborn and St Pancras by-election be the ultimate test for Green Party leader Zack Polanski? And is Russia’s hybrid war with Europe really hybrid?

Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer’s Jon Ungoed-Thomas, Cat Neilan and Erica Wagner as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk

Follow us on Social Media:

• @ObserverUK on X
• @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
• @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Giles Whittell

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Katie Gunning

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What are the consequences of the devastating flash flood in Nepal, which has killed hundreds and left more than 1,000 people missing? Why does England’s cricket team keep finding itself in trouble, with yet another player caught up in a suspected drunken mishap? And should we all start stockpiling the cupboards with tinned food?

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by The Observer’s Poppy Bullard, Andrew Butler and Ben Zaranko as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

Listen to The Wargame wherever you listen to podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-wargame/id1547225334

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk

Follow us on Social Media:

• @ObserverUK on X
• @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
• @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Jeevan Vasagar

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Matt Russell

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.