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Alastair Campbell on combative politics, social media and who will lead the UK

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21.05.2026

Alastair Campbell on combative politics, social media and who will lead the UK

The co-host of The Rest Is Politics spoke at Campaign Media 360.

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Former Labour spin doctor and The Rest Is Politics co-host Alastair Campbell has described his internal battle to carry out political debate in a non-combative way.

Speaking at Campaign Media 360, Campbell said he could understand US president Donald Trump’s divisive style because he saw it in himself.

Campbell was known for his abrasive manner when in Number 10 and is widely considered the basis for the famously sweary character of Malcom Tucker in the political satire The Thick Of It. 

The basis of The Rest Is Politics, however, is “disagreeing agreeably” with his co-host and former Conservative MP and cabinet member Rory Stewart. The show gets 15 million downloads a month, and is second in popularity only to Goalhanger stablemate The Rest Is History. 

“I am a tribal person, I can be very aggressive in the way that I communicate and I’ve definitely tried to curb that in order to show… there’s a different way to do it,” Campbell said.

He described........

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