The Fourcast

King Charles heads to Washington at a moment of extraordinary tension. The visit comes just days after an assassination attempt on President Donald Trump - and against the backdrop of a deepening war in Iran, strained UK-US relations, and growing questions about America’s global role.
In this episode of The Fourcast, Krishnan Guru-Murthy asks whether Britain’s most powerful tool, soft power, can hold up in the face of Trump’s unpredictable politics. From attacks on the UK Prime Minister and British troops, to disputes over sovereignty and trade, how should the King navigate a meeting with a president who thrives on disruption?
Krishnan is joined by Julie Montagu, Countess of Sandwich, Liberal Democrat Europe spokesperson Al Pinkerton, and former UK ambassador to the US Sir David Manning to discuss what’s at stake, and whether this royal visit can steady the so-called “special relationship,” or risk making things worse.

Donald Trump’s ceasefire with Iran appears to be holding - or is it? Iran has reportedly seized two ships in the Strait of Hormuz as America attacks tankers and boats linked to Tehran - and then there doesn’t appear to be any hint of any imminent peace talks 
In this episode of The Fourcast Indicators, Krishnan Guru-Murthy and defence analyst Mark Urban discuss whether the Iran war has reached a stalemate and ask, with China watching, has this all fatally undermined US power on the world stage?
They were also joined by economist Ann Pettifor who says a “global slump” is now inevitable - so how bad will it be?

Peter Mandelson's appointment as ambassador by Sir Keir Starmer to the US was a rush-job, carried out under an 'atmosphere of pressure' from 10 Downing Street and a 'dismissive attitude' to security vetting. 
That's the claim of Sir Olly Robbins, the sacked head of the foreign office as he was grilled by parliament's foreign affairs committee. 
So, is it now clear what happened behind the scenes? 
No 10 denies Robbins’ characterisation of events, but could this still be damning for Starmer's premiership or has the PM's decision to sack his senior mandarin been vindicated?
On this episode of the Fourcast, Paul McNamara was joined by Labour MP Preet Kour Gill and also by one of Olly Robbins predecessors as head of the foreign office Lord Ricketts and former Labour advisor and political commentator Sonia Sodha.

In a world facing overlapping crises - from Sudan, to Lebanon to the wider issues in the Middle East - the demand for humanitarian aid has never been greater. But as needs grow, the global response is struggling to keep up.
In this episode of The Fourcast, Krishnan Guru-Murthy speaks to Tom Fletcher, the United Nations’ Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, about the immense challenges of delivering life-saving support in today’s fractured world. How does the UN prioritise when everything is urgent?
With funding shortfalls, political barriers, and growing risks to civilians and aid workers, can the humanitarian system cope - and what happens if it can’t?

Peter Mandelson, the problem that won’t go away. Keir Starmer is once again fighting to save his political career, after saying he was not told Mandelson had failed security vetting ahead of his appointment as US ambassador.
So what really happened? Is this a failure of leadership or does it point to a deeper rot inside Westminster? And either way, can Starmer survive it? 
On this episode of The Fourcast, Krishnan Guru-Murthy was joined by Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee and Conservative MP Alicia Kearns, former chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee. 
A Downing Street spokesman told Channel 4 News: “The Foreign Office have run this vetting process, and at no point, at any point in any part of this process was anyone in Number 10, PM or otherwise, informed by the Foreign Office that the recommendation of UK Security Vetting was for him not to pass his developed vetting.”