Original Broadcast: The Business Of Film
James Cameron-Wilson says that despite not being a sequel or remake, #1 Weapons took £2.8m. A disturbing mystery thriller which changes genre near the end, it's too long but is definitely an original. That's hardly true of #2 Freakier Friday, with Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan returning one generation older. If you can suspend disbelief, you might enjoy the mayhem. To his surprise, James thorougly enjoyed the Netflix romcom My Oxford Year with an American woman studying in England. It's formulaic but smarter than it looks.
Guests: James Cameron-Wilson
Published:
Original Broadcast: The Bigger Picture
Political commentator Mike Indian worries about the outcome of the Ukraine summit in Alaska, given that Trump does not see Russia as the aggressor while Zelenksy has not been invited. With Vance's trip to the UK, we are seeing a very different relationship than other recent US presidencies, one where the American government appears genuinely interested in Britain. Rachel Reeves will be glad that UK growth is stronger than expected. But she must still raise revenue in the Autumn budget and it's looking increasingly likely that there will be massive changes to Inheritance Tax.
Guests: Mike Indian
Published:
Original Broadcast: Gadgets and Gizmos
Steve Caplin tells Simon Rose about the new iteration of ChatGPT which is less sycophantic or likely to make mistakes. Singapore scientists can transform cockroaches into cyborgs in 68 seconds. There's a multitool with a pivoting wrench head. Chinese scientists have made a robot antelope while, in Portugal, a robot crab was attacked by males jealous of its large claw. Steve loves a gadget that will let you power almost anything. And soon, he says, eyedrops could replace glasses for those who need help reading.
Guests: Steve Caplin
Published:
Original Broadcast: The Financial Outlook for Personal Investors
Russ Mould of A J Bell is intrigued by Rolls-Royce's CEO saying his company is capable of being the largest in the FTSE. It's currently sixth. He also said he saw no need to moving the listing to the US as others have done, despite half its revenue coming from Stateside. Russ explains why US stocks are on almost double the UK rating and explains why switching the listing is not a free ticket to a higher multiple. But in any case, the era of big cap growth won't last for ever and investors may find better value elsewhere.
Guests: Russ Mould
Published:
Original Broadcast: The Bigger Picture
Professor Tim Evans of Middlesex University says that with Rachel Reeves facing a £50 billion black hole, he can't understand why the government is enacting or considering policies that will worsen our economic position. We are now surely in a doom loop and both Labour and Tories are making huge mistakes in carrying on with an unsustainable big state. He considers the strategic errors of the EU, which subcontracted its energy supply to Russia, its supply chains to China and its defence to China. Europe's policies are not rooted in sound economics or governance and its recent trade deal massively benefits the USA. Others may complain about Trump's tariffs but the EU has over 4,000 in force. He discusses a forthcoming book from demographer Paul Morland which claims that the human race is in danger of dying out. Despite some vigorously reproducing countries, too many are ageing and shrinking, putting pressure on welfare states and losing innovation and inventiveness. Without a massive change in course, many parts of the world are in terminal decline.
Guests: Professor Tim Evans
Published:
Original Broadcast: The Business Of Film
With Fantastic Four still #1, the reboot of The Naked Gun with Liam Neeson and Pamela Anderson could only manage second place. Much as he enjoyed the original movies, James found the continual running gags in this version soon became tiresome while the film was so silly silly and surreal it undermined the comedy. He was more impressed with The Legend of Ochi which only limped in at #18. With Willem Dafoe and Emily Watson it's a visually spellbinding fable but, being both magical and barmy, it may struggle to find an audience, even if it eventually becomes a cult classic. Apple TV+ add to their many music documentaries with Bono: Stories of Surrender, in which the star tells stories of his life with a few songs. He's a charismatic storyteller with an unexpectedly poetic turn of phrase.
Guests: James Cameron-Wilson
Published:
Original Broadcast: Gadgets and Gizmos
Steve Caplin is puzzled by Jack Dorsey's new messaging app – with a range of just 300 metres. A clip on your ear can improve your fitness. Tiny, edible micro lasers can help with food safety. With bricklayers in short supply, robots could be pressed into service. A 3D-printed house made from soil, lime and fibres could be returned to the earth when no longer needed. Cigarette butts can be used to strength road surfaces. And AI can help interpret incomplete Roman inscriptions.
Guests: Steve Caplin
Published:
Original Broadcast: The Business Of Film
James Cameron Wilson says box office is up 17%, though most films have dropped as #1 The Fantastic Four: First Steps took in £8m. The plot may not be unduly original but there are lots of incidental pleasures, with a humorous script and a realistic family dynamic: Vanessa Kirby gives the film a human dimension as her character is expecting. #3 The Bad Guys II is an animated sequel in the mould of Ocean's Eleven but the dialogue is lazy and the film noisy and frenetic. However, James celebrates a glorious 4K restoration of 1952's High Noon, "the Western for those who don't like Westerns" starring Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly. It looks wonderful and some of the extras are superb.
Guests: James Cameron-Wilson
Published:
Original Broadcast: Gadgets and Gizmos
Steve Caplin laments Google's new AI search which means far fewer people will ever click on links. ChatGPT apparently causes psychosis but could also be far more useful for admin tasks such as planning holidays. Meta is to build a data centre the size of Manhattan and has developed a wristband that can control a computer. The first UK air taxi flight has just taken place. The Sirius AI robotic dog can do tricks and is trainable, but cuddly it is not. An atomic clock is now accurate to 1 sec in 57.6bn years.
Guests: Steve Caplin
Published:
Original Broadcast: The Bigger Picture
Political commentator Mike Indian discusses the move by Macron, Starmer and Carney towards recognising a Palestinian state. While largely a symbolic gesture which presents a number of complicating factors, the Netanyahu goverment is clearly losing support in the West. Discussing the doctor's strike, with a call for a 29% rise after getting 22% last year and Wes Streeting's tough language, Mike feels they may be overplaying their hand. He finds Donald Trump holding court during his UK visit fascinating but thinks Starmer is better than most leaders at handling Trump. As the ONS confirm the second highest population increase since WW2, Mike points out that without migration the population of many Western countries would fall. He finds himself deeply suspicious of the rhetoric of many politicians on the right on this topic.
Guests: Mike Indian
Published:
