Pedro Sánchez's biggest gamble yet

Europe is in chaos, but we’re here to talk about it all, as long as the wifi holds out! This week, we’re chatting about Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s call for a snap election in light of his country’s recent housing demonstrations and a host of other controversies roiling Madrid. Please note: this podcast was recorded before news broke on Wednesday night of the death of Maricarmen Abascal, the 87-year-old whose eviction sparked Spain’s massive housing protests.

We’re also discussing Russia’s decision to cancel Kanye West’s sold-out concerts in St Petersburg – and various scripts you can borrow if a racist antisemite wants to play a concert in YOUR country. And ahead of Friday’s announcement of this year’s Nobel Peace Prize winner, we’re joined by Haakon Gjerløw, acting director of the Peace Research Institute Oslo, to try to make sense of this controversial prize and who deserves to win it in 2026. Honestly, now feels like a really great time to give peace a chance.

Speaking of reasons to get the wifi sorted… we’re looking forward to our next online listener hangout! If you want to shoot the breeze/commiserate about the state of things with Katy and Wojciech, you’re most very welcome to join us at 6pm CET on Sunday, 18 October. We’ll post a link to join the call on all our social channels an hour before we kick off.

This week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are Carys Davies’ book Clear and Dix pour cent, le film (Call My Agent! The Movie).

Resources for this episode:

• “Conflict trends: A global overview, 1946–2025” – the Peace Research Institute Oslo
• Haakon’s 2026 Nobel Peace Prize list
• “Donald Trump? Please no. Here’s who actually deserves this year’s Nobel peace prize” – The Guardian, 28 September 2026
• “‘Like caring for a pet’: the app that lets you know if your neighbourhood tree is thirsty” – The Guardian, 2 October 2026

DID YOU KNOW… we have a newsletter with all the goofiness and good intentions of this podcast? It’s called GOOD WEEK BAD WEEK, it’s free, and thousands of people are lapping it up every Friday morning over on Substack. Come and join them!

Co-hosts: Dominic Kraemer and Katy Lee

Reporter: Inês Ruivo

Producer: Morgan Childs

Senior producer: Katy Lee

Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak

Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina

Intern: Inês Ruivo

The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.

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