Episode
Inside Downing Street when war breaks out
- Podcast
- In The Room
- Published
- Mar 6, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 2553
- Processing state
not_requested- Canonical source
- https://shows.acast.com/intheroom/episodes/inside-downing-street-when-war-breaks-out
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Summary
A week is a long time in politics. After a crushing by-election defeat last week, the Prime Minister was hoping for a quiet week to recalibrate. Instead, he got a new war. The US and Israel’s joint attack on Iran has set in motion a whole new set of pressures on his government; navigating the ‘Special Relationship’ with the US, confronting the long shadow of Iraq hanging over the Labour Party and keeping the domestic ship afloat. In this episode, former Deputy Cabinet Secretary Helen MacNamara and Cleo Watson, former Special Advisor to Boris Johnson, reveal the reality of Number 10 on a war footing. What’s it like inside COBR meetings? Does the ‘boys club’ mentality take over? And how the hell do you keep the country running? Timecodes: 00:00 Introduction 01:28 Iran War: recap of the week’s events 04:41 Domestic backdrop: Spring statement 07:01 The strange geography of 10 Downing Street this week 09:45 How to spot the signs of war in Number 10 12:45 History lesson: Gordon Brown’s COBR meetings 16:51 Why Boris Johnson didn’t like COBR meetings 19:40 The ‘Boys Club’ mindset at a time of war 24:03 Party politics during war 26:30 Why the Conservatives haven’t backed Labour 30:15 The importance of a US ambassador 31:50 Bizarre phone calls with POTUS 33:10 Theresa May holding hands with Trump 35:28 What should Starmer do next? Cover image: PA Find the best clips from the podcast and more from Helen and Cleo on the show's Instagram page here . This podcast is part of The Independent Podcast Network and is produced in association with Next Chapter Studios Executive Producers: Olivia Foster and Carrie Rose Producer: Sam Durham Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.