Freddy Gray

Freddy Gray

Freddy Gray is deputy editor of The Spectator and the editor of the US edition. He hosts Americano on YouTube.

Today

Freddy Gray

Labour’s ‘total failure’ on defence – and why Boris shouldn’t come back

From our UK edition

30 min listen

For this week’s Edition, Lara Prendergast is joined by the Spectator’s deputy editor Freddy Gray, assistant content editor John Power and former Leader of the House of Commons Penny Mordaunt. This week: Labour’s lame duck period drags on, with Keir Starmer searching for a legacy before he leaves office. This week he has announced more money for Defence, though with several caveats, the biggest of which is unfunded billions left for the (presumably) incoming Burnham administration to fix. Penny Mordaunt, a former Conservative Defence Secretary, explains why Starmer has been a ‘total failure’ on Defence, saying Labour have failed to take Defence seriously and need to explain to the country that tough choices lie ahead.

Labour's 'total failure' on defence – and why Boris shouldn’t come back

Wednesday

Freddy Gray

The secrets of the Spectator summer party

From our UK edition

17 min listen

As the nation holds its breath to see if England will be progressing in the World Cup, the bottles of Pol Roger are on ice for the post-match after party: the Spectator's summer party, taking place this evening. Opening the doors of the Spectator to listeners of Coffee House Shots, James Heale, Freddy Gray, Noa Hoffman and Tim Shipman talk about their favourite memories, how to survive events like this – and which politicians handle their drink best. Plus, with Starmer on the way out, will Labour politicians be partying – or plotting? Produced by Patrick Gibbons.

The secrets of the Spectator summer party

Tuesday

Freddy Gray

The truth about Gavin Newsom

Gavin Newsom has spent the last two years building a national profile for himself beyond his controversial leadership of California as its Governor. But is he equipped to take on the challenges that would be faced by a presidential run in 2028, that go beyond the left-wing political bubble of the Golden State? Freddy Gray speaks to Christopher Rufo, author of the Christopher Rufo Substack and a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, about the real Gavin Newsom and the decay of California under his watch. Learn how to earn yield on gold, paid in gold, at Monetary-Metals.

The truth about Gavin Newsom

Saturday

Freddy Gray

Why is America’s radical left winning?

After success in the New York democratic primaries for far-left candidates, President Trump says 'the game is on. Enjoy Watching.' Freddy Gray speaks to Spectator columnist, Roger Kimball, about how Trump plans to deal with the radical left, the lawlessness of New York under Mamdani, and how artificial intelligence is changing politics. Learn how to earn yield on gold, paid in gold, at Monetary-Metals.

Why is America’s radical left winning?

Friday

Freddy Gray

Is Trump’s quest for peace doomed?

J.D. Vance jokingly compared himself to Richard Nixon yesterday. "Young senator, vice president, writes some bestselling books, is hated by the media... kinda sounds like J.D. Vance," he said at the Richard Nixon Library and Museum in Yorba Linda, California. "I’ve always liked Richard Nixon." At the same time, 8,000 miles away, in the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian forces struck another ship, further undermining what critics have called "the Vance deal" – the "Memorandum of Understanding" between Tehran and Washington. And that suggests, at a foreign-policy level, the Nixon-Vance parallel is more apt than the 50th Vice President realizes. Of course, Nixon was Commander-in-Chief and Vance is not. And the Vietnam War is very different to America’s current fight with Iran.

donald trump

Monday

Freddy Gray

Has America really lost to Iran?

Vice President JD Vance is returning from the Swiss Alps having concluded the opening phase of the Iran talks with a view to achieving a peace deal. Are critics right to claim that the whole war has been a humiliation for America? Freddy Gray speaks to Stanford Professor Victor Davis Hanson about MAGA foreign policy, the midterms, why oil is so important to the American voter & the right wing realignment in Latin America. Learn how to earn yield on gold, paid in gold, at Monetary-Metals.

Has America really lost to Iran?
Who is really behind the plots to kill Trump?
Freddy Gray

Who is really behind the plots to kill Trump?

Freddy is joined by Ken Silva, Author of 'The Trump Assassination Plots' and Editor of Headline USA. They discuss the mysteries around Trump's assassins, how they came so close to killing him, and whether or not it was an inside job. Learn how to earn yield on gold, paid in gold, at Monetary-Metals.

Friday

Freddy Gray

Freddy Gray, Matt Ridley, Peter Parker & Lloyd Evans

From our UK edition

30 min listen

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Freddy Gray asks whether the Iran deal will destroy J.D. Vance; Matt Ridley argues that Britain must finally embrace gene editing; Peter Parker explains the problem with ‘queer art'; and finally, Lloyd Evans says the NHS treats everyone fairly – with contempt. Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.

Freddy Gray, Matt Ridley, Peter Parker & Lloyd Evans
Freddy Gray

Will Vance regret being the face of the Iran deal?

After a week of international agonizing, it looks as if the first round of the latest peace talks between America and Iran will not begin today – at least, not formally. The Memorandum of Understanding has been signed – electronically by Iran and by Donald Trump’s hand in Versailles on Wednesday. But J.D. Vance’s big Switzerland trip, originally planned to kick off the talks, has been put on hold as the Lebanon issue reared its troublesome head overnight. Late yesterday afternoon, Hezbollah fired several salvoes of rockets at IDF targets, killing four soldiers. Israel responded with a wave of airstrikes in Southern Lebanon, killing 18 and wounding 33, according to the Lebanese ministry of health.

Wednesday

Freddy Gray

Will the Iran deal destroy J.D. Vance?

When it comes to foreign policy, Donald Trump is neither hawk nor dove. He’s a dealmaker who plays differing sides off each other. In so doing, he ends up disappointing warmongers and peaceniks in equal measure. In March, opponents of the war were accused of cowardice and disloyalty. This week, it’s the peace-sceptics being called ‘Panicans’ On 28 February, when he launched Operation Epic Fury, Trump’s more dovish supporters felt betrayed. The president who had campaigned against regime-change wars began a new conflict by channelling George W. Bush. ‘To the great, proud people of Iran I say tonight that the hour of your freedom is at hand,’ he said.

Monday

Freddy Gray

Can Trump forge a lasting peace?

22 min listen

Freddy is joined by Daniel McCarthy, US columnist for The Spectator and the editor of Modern Age: A Conservative Review. They discuss the US-Iran peace deal, whether a lasting peace is possible in the region, and what's at stake for Iran and leaders in the Persian Gulf.

Friday

Freddy Gray

Will peace be the perfect gift for the President?

Donald Trump’s 80th birthday is this weekend, and what better present for a struggling octogenarian Commander-in-Chief than a peace deal with Iran, signed if not quite yet sealed and delivered. There is, I’m told, some late scrambling over "semantics" in the so-called "memorandum of understanding" between America and Iran, and lingering issues over the language concerning the "nuclear dust" – i.e., Iran’s enriched uranium. But the rest is all but agreed. J.D. Vance could fly to Europe to sign a deal tomorrow – or if not it will be Trump as he attends the G7 in Evian near the Swiss Alps on Monday. Trump really wanted to stage a peace photo-op with Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei but had to be told that would not be possible.

donald trump peace

Wednesday

Freddy Gray

How to save American farming

Farm bankruptcies in the US have risen by 50 percent in the past year. Soybean farmers lost an average of $100 per acre in 2025, according to the Department of Agriculture, while corn growers are set to lose $150 per acre this year. Meanwhile, the national beef herd is at its lowest level since 1950 and retail prices have jumped by 40 percent in the past 18 months. Freddy Gray is joined by author and farmer Joel Salatin who wrote about this in the Spectator World magazine.

How to save American farming

Friday

Freddy Gray

Why is Cenk Uygur banned from Britain, really?

50 min listen

Freddy Gray is joined by Cenk Uygur after he and Hasan Piker were banned from entering Britain. They discuss free speech, debate Cenk's position on criticising Israel, Britain’s censorious turn, and what the Henry Nowak case reveals about policing and anti-racism.

Why is Cenk Uygur banned from Britain, really?
Platner
Freddy Gray

Will Graham Platner’s colorful past bring him down?

In recent months, America’s political rumor mills have been grinding out whispers about Graham Platner, the Democratic candidate for the Senate in Maine. Platner, the military veteran turned oyster catcher turned left-wing populist, has somehow survived the story about having a Nazi symbol tattooed on his chest – although he says he was unaware of its meaning and has since had it covered up. And he is still on course to beat Susan Collins, the long-serving Republican, in November. His is thought to be the most obvious – yet vital – win for the Democrats as they seek to win back the Senate.  But Platner has a colorful past – to put it mildly.

Wednesday

Friday

Freddy Gray

Who is Usha Vance?

Freddy Gray is joined by Sarah Beth Spraggins to discuss her piece on Usha Vance, the wife of JD Vance who could be in line to be the next First Lady.

Who is Usha Vance?
Freddy Gray

Get ready for the rudest midterms ever

When someone is cruel or acts like a bully, you don’t stoop to their level. No, our motto is: 'When they go low, we go high.' – Michelle Obama at the Democratic National Convention in 2016  Shut up you ugly fuck. – The Democratic party’s official Twitter handle, replying to Stephen Miller, deputy chief of staff for policy, on May 27, 2026.  The most disturbing thing about that Democratic response to Stephen Miller is how unshocking it is. We’ve become inured to foul language, even from our political leaders and their social media channels. In our post-literate society, as words lose their power, swearing has become an idle form of punctuation. Donald Trump used to do most of his swearing in private.

The Pope's AI warning – and how Restore split the right, again
Freddy Gray

The Pope’s AI warning – and how Restore split the right, again

From our UK edition

48 min listen

For this week’s Edition, Lara Prendergast is joined by the Spectator's deputy editor Freddy Gray, associate editor – and host of the Holy Smoke podcast – Damian Thompson and consultant psychiatrist and Daily Mail columnist Dr Max Pemberton. This week, the guests examine the Pope's encyclical about Artificial Intelligence (AI), Magnifica Humanitas, which warns of the cost to humanity that this technological revolution could bring. This marks Pope Leo's first major policy intervention, a warning which Spectator editor Michael Gove celebrates in the magazine this week. Michael says that AI will be ‘as transformative as the Industrial Revolution’ yet decisions ‘about where this technology is going and how it might be deployed are concentrated… in perilously few hands’.

Thursday

Freddy Gray

Superintelligence: will AI extinguish humanity? With Nate Soares

42 min listen

Freddy Gray is joined by Nate Soares, president of the Machine Intelligence Research Institute, to discuss the risks posed to humanity by AI. Warning that sufficiently intelligent AI may stop following human instructions entirely, Soares tells Freddy what, if anything, could keep AI from spiralling out of control.

Superintelligence: will AI extinguish humanity? With Nate Soares