Reform Gains: Just Take the Bloody Bins Out
5/13/202652 min
The local election results are in and… bloody hell.
In this Trawl, Jemma and Marina dig into Reform UK’s huge gains, Labour’s mounting panic, and the increasingly chaotic state of British politics. Was this a genuine political realignment, a protest vote, or something much darker bubbling away underneath?
From viral clips and media narratives to Nigel Farage, culture wars, dodgy campaign tactics, and the terrifying power of algorithms, the pair try to answer the question everyone’s asking right now: how seriously should we take Reform?
Plus: why some voters still don’t seem to connect political choices with real-world consequences, why the press scrutiny appears wildly uneven depending on who’s in the firing line, and why some Reform-led councils may become the party’s biggest problem before the next general election.
There are also lighter moments involving Sir David Attenborough, pudding-based dystopias, and outrageous clips.
It’s a long one. But then, there’s an awful lot to talk about.
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Transcript preview
First 90 secondsMarina Purkiss· Host0:00
One of your new Sunderland councilors, so a man who was elected, suggested melting Nigerians- We w- ... to fill potholes. Appropriate?
Richard Tice· Soundbite0:08
The key point is voters have heard all of this smearing, and they voted for more Reform.
Gemma Forte· Host0:13
[upbeat music] Hello, and welcome to The Troll where every week we ask, "Are people okay?" And the answer increasingly is no. No, they're not. I'm Gemma Forte.
Marina Purkiss· Host0:35
No, they are not. And I'm Marina Purkiss. And here at Troll HQ, we've just about managed to wrench our heads out of our hands post all of that depressing as hell local election result stuff, right? It was just ugh. Anyway, someone else put it better than that. Here's Anya Magliano on Saturday Night Live.
Ania Magliano· Soundbite0:57
Of course, the rise of Reform might seem scary if you're an economic migrant or a refugee or under 80 years old, trans- [laughs] ... not privately educated, in any way disabled, someone who uses the NHS, a woman, not white, in a care home, someone who doesn't like being up-skirted. But for the remaining one guy who actually lives in Thailand, it's gonna be great.
Marina Purkiss· Host1:16
[laughs] [laughs] Oh, so good, but so bad.
Gemma Forte· Host1:22
Yeah.
Marina Purkiss· Host1:23
So bad that people can't see it. We'll get to that. Look, in today's episode, we're going to get into exactly what the results mean. We'll look at the analysis.