Copy of Decoding the Venice Biennale

Summary

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The Monocle Daily – "Decoding the Venice Biennale"

Date: May 8, 2026
Host: Andrew Muller
Guests: Robert Bound, Sophie Monaghan Combs, Jenny Mathers

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Overview

This Monocle Daily episode is a dynamic blend of sharp global news analysis, playful quiz banter, and a deep dive into the controversies surrounding the Venice Biennale. Host Andrew Muller, alongside Robert Bound and Monaco’s culture editor Sophie Monaghan Combs, navigates through major headlines in Russia, quirky news, and the tense, politically-charged atmosphere at this year’s Biennale art festival.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Russian Victory Day Parade – A Muted Affair

(00:35 – 08:18)
Guest: Jenny Mathers (Senior Lecturer in International Politics, Aberystwyth University)

• Muted Celebrations:

  • This year’s Moscow Victory Day parade is “significantly muted,” especially compared to the grand 80th-anniversary event in 2025 attended by key world leaders.
  • Parades are scaled down across Russia, not just Moscow. Only 12 of 85 regions will host traditional parades; others are reducing numbers, omitting military vehicles, and canceling the "Immortal Regiment" march—key elements for many Russian families.

• Possible Reasons for Scaling Back:

  • Ostensibly due to “terrorist threats from Ukraine,” but likely also due to lack of “men and material” as the Ukraine war drains Russian resources.
  • “The scaling down of the military parade on such an important day really shows that Russia is weak. It shows that things are not going according to plan, as Putin keeps insisting that they are...” — Jenny Mathers (04:57)

• Putin’s Isolation and Paranoia:

  • Reports of Putin being “increasingly cloistered and paranoid,” rarely leaving bunkers, limiting staff access, concerned for his security, and “quite how remote he is from the lives of most ordinary Russians.”
  • “Autocrats tend not to end well, and Putin knows that very well.” — Jenny Mathers (07:37)

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2. The Friday Quiz: News Oddities & Pop Culture

(09:01 – 28:21) Participants: Andrew Muller, Robert Bound

• Quiz Format & Humour:

  • A recurring segment filled with light-hearted, culturally attuned questions and self-deprecating humour from both presenters.
  • Gems include playful jabs at band names, bad passwords, and the surreal mix of politics and pop culture.

• Notable Questions & Answers:

  • White House Propaganda Video: President Trump’s comms team used scenes from "Tropic Thunder" in a military montage. Ben Stiller objected to the use of his comedic film.
    “War is not a movie.” — Ben Stiller (11:09)
  • The Spider Named after Pink Floyd: A newly discovered Colombian spider is dubbed “Piccolinia Floyd Muraria,” after the band.
    “Presumably because they are friendless nerds... and therefore Pink Floyd fans.” — Andrew Muller (13:45)
  • Passwords: The most common global password is “123456,” highlighting ongoing weak digital security habits.
  • Can You Beat Trump in a Fight?:
    • “39% of registered Republicans conceded that they would get duffed up by President Trump if it came to it, as opposed to 19% of U.S. adults generally.” — Andrew Muller (19:33)

• Memorable Moment:

  • The quiz ends with heated but humorous competition:
    “Andrew, it’s been a rare pleasure as ever to take part in the Daily Weekly quiz. I shall try to bring some intelligence to next week’s event.” — Rob Bound (28:26)

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3. Decoder: Decrypting the Venice Biennale’s PR and Politics

(29:08 – 39:25)
Participants: Andrew Muller, Robert Bound, Sophie Monaghan Combs (from Venice)

• Venice Biennale’s Turbulent Week:

  • Official Rhetoric:
    • President Pietrangelo Buttafuoco’s press release is dissected for its artful ambiguity:
      “We do not take up arms, we prepare for peace. This is a Biennale that does not seek to resolve issues, but to showcase them... The Biennale is not a court of law, but a garden of peace.” — Buttafuoco, as read by Rob Bound (29:50)
  • Controversy Over Russian and Israeli Participation:
    • Russia’s pavilion is the epicenter of tension, with protests, high security, and a visible, “non-peaceful” presence. Israel’s pavilion is also contentious given ongoing conflicts.
    • “The controversy has completely dominated all of the coverage about the Biennale. No one has heard anything about the art.” — Sophie Monaghan Combs (33:13)

• Atmosphere and Protests:

  • “It has really been sort of unprecedented… I just came from a protest by the Art, Not Genocide Alliance, against the fact that Israel are here... there was just a huge protest and lots of shouts against art washing.” — Sophie Monaghan Combs (35:29)
  • Protests are both artistic and activist, with highlights including the Palestinian “drone choir” and a protestor with a Birkin bag adorned with “No Putin, No War.”

• On the Art Itself:

  • Danish Pavilion stands out with its focus on Denmark’s sperm bank industry—“very surprising,” but “the queue for the Danish Pavilion has been the longest one I’ve seen.” — Sophie Monaghan Combs (39:13)

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4. Oddities and Weekly Learnings

(39:25 – 47:10)

• Absurd Feats:

  • The show wraps up with bizarre recent happenings, like a man in Halifax breaking the world record for towing a police car while set alight and tied by the genitals (39:40).
  • In international politics:
    “We learned that the United States war with Iran was over... unless it wasn't... since a ceasefire was announced, Iran has fired at commercial vessels nine times and seized two container ships...” — Andrew Muller (41:00)

• On Presidential Mental Acuity:

  • A satirical look at Donald Trump’s bragging about passing cognitive tests:
    “The man endowed by the wisdom of the American voter with the authority to extinguish civilization at whim, absolutely can tell... the difference between lions, bears, alligators and squirrels.” — Andrew Muller (39:43)

• Academic Fraud in France:

  • The episode ends with a peculiar story of a French professor inventing both a gold medal and the society bestowing it on himself, poking at the desire for dubious credentials (44:42–46:06).

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Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• “Victory Day... is almost certainly the most significant national holiday in Russia. It is the date around which most Russians can agree... most families lost someone or were touched in some important way by the war.” — Jenny Mathers (03:23)

• “Clearly very concerned about his own personal security. He is very clearly very paranoid. And so taking these sorts of odd and extreme measures just demonstrates... how remote he is actually from the lives of most ordinary Russians.” — Jenny Mathers (06:24)

• “The Biennale is not a court of law, but a garden of peace. We ask institutions for dialogue, not paperwork.” — Pietrangelo Buttafuoco (read by Rob Bound) (29:50)

• “It is inseparable from the art. But this year it has really been sort of unprecedented.” — Sophie Monaghan Combs, on politics dominating the Biennale (35:29)

• “The world's most popular password is in fact 123456. Good, isn’t it?” — Rob Bound (16:12)

• “39% of registered Republicans conceded that they would get duffed up by President Trump if it came to it, as opposed to 19% of U.S. adults generally.” — Andrew Muller (19:33)

• “No one has heard anything about the art. And he's just, you know, this flamboyant freedom also boldness is just fantastic. It's incredibly bold and everyone's very, very angry about it.” — Sophie Monaghan Combs (33:13)

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Segment Timestamps

• [00:35 – 08:18] Russian Victory Day Parade analysis w/ Jenny Mathers
• [09:01 – 28:21] The Friday Quiz: Pop culture and politics
• [29:08 – 39:25] Decoder: Venice Biennale controversy
• [39:25 – 47:10] Weekly round-up of the bizarre and weird news

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Tone and Style

The episode skillfully blends Monocle’s signature witty, dry humor with earnest reporting and sharp analysis. The hosts maintain a conversational, irreverent tone—punctuated with satire, self-deprecation, and zany pop-culture references—making even weightier topics approachable and engaging.

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In Summary

This “Monocle Daily” episode illustrates the messiness of culture, politics, and global affairs—from the symbolism of a subdued Russian parade to an art festival consumed by protests. Listeners are treated to hilarious, fast-paced quiz segments, a rare field report from the volatile Biennale, and a closing roundup of global oddities—all delivered in true Monocle style: smart, sardonic, and never dull.

Transcript

[A]

You're listening to the Monocle Daily, first broadcast on 8th May, 2026 on Monocle

[B]

Radio Moscow's Victory Day parade scheduled to be less triumphant than usual. The return of the daily weekly quiz and what people say when they're hoping not to say anything. I'm Andrew Muller. The Monocle Daily starts now. Hello and welcome to the Monocle Daily, coming to you from our studios here at Midori House in London. I'm Andrew Muller. My guests Robert Bound and Sophie Monaghan Combs will join me for a review of the week's stuff. And we'll have our regular assessment of what we've learned since last Friday. Stay tuned. All that and more coming up right here on the Monocle Daily. This is the Monocle Daily. I'm Andrew Muller. We will start in Russia, where any listeners who camped out overnight for tickets to tomorrow's Victory Day parade may presently be feeling somewhat shortchanged. The build up has been an exercise in expectation management. The Kremlin foreshadowing that the display of Russian military might that usually shakes the cobblestones of Red Square will perhaps be less or striking than usual. Possibly not coincidentally, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has declined to rule out the prosp of his country's drone operators amusing themselves at Russian President Vladimir Putin's expense. I'm joined with more on this by Jenny Mathers, senior lecturer in international politics at Aberystwyth University. Jenny, so far as it is possible to divine the thinking of President Putin, how infuriated, disappointed will he be by this?

[A]

Well, in comparison to previous Victory Day celebrations and parades since the beginning of the mass invasion of Ukraine in 2022, this will be significantly muted occasion, shall we say, especially in comparison to last year, which of course was the 80th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany and was a huge celebration, had enormous numbers of foreign visiting dignitaries present. President Xi from China sat next to Putin. All of this. So it was always going to be a letdown this year in comparison to last year, but really it sounds like it's going to be so pared down that it's almost not even worth having.

[B]

I mean, is it even possible that Vladimir Putin might find an excuse not to be there? Or would that be something so dramatic that even a plurality of the Russian public might notice?

[A]

I think that would probably be a step too far. I think if the parade is going to happen at all, then Putin has to be there and he has to make some kind of a speech. Last year the speech was Very short. It was only about 10 minutes long, so it could be even shorter this year, who knows? But he definitely has to make some kind of an appearance to make it sort of worthwhile even having the parade.

[B]

But even though there is going to be a parade, and even though we do assume that the President will turn up at it, will the reduced nature of it cut through to the Russian public? It has become increasingly difficult to tell what sense the Russian public has of what's going on. But surely when they tune in to watch this, they will notice that something is askew.

[A]

Absolutely. I mean, Victory Day, the 9th of May, is almost certainly the most significant national holiday in Russia. It is the, the date around which most Russians can agree that, you know, most families lost someone or were touched in some important way by the war. You know, they have their memories, their, their family memories. It's a really important date, not just for the nation, but for individual families. And it's not only in Moscow that the parade is going to be diminished, but really across Russia. Only 12 of Russia's 85 regions are supposed to have a full sort of parade in the usual sense. All the rest are cutting it back in some way or other. So it will definitely be noticeable because they're not only taking away the military vehicles, but they're also reducing the numbers of people who are going to be marching. They've taken away some aspects that sort of surround the main parade, such as the so called Immortal Regiment, where people march with photographs of their ancestors who were in the war. That's not going to happen either. So these are things that ordinary people will have participated in or will be expecting. And those are things aren't going to

[B]

happen, whether this scaling back is because of what they are calling the terrorist threat from Ukraine, or because they simply do not have the men and material to spare for such shenanigans. Is it reasonable to infer from outside that this is all an indication that things are actually going quite noticeably badly for Russia in Ukraine?

[A]

Yes, I think we have to draw that conclusion because the scaling down of the military parade on such an important day really shows that Russia is weak. It shows that things are not going according to plan, as Putin keeps insisting that they are, that the war is taking its toll on Russian capabilities. And so, yes, I think it's hard to draw any other conclusion. And it's impossible to think that the Russian state would want to portray a sense of weakness and an image of weakness to the world and to its own citizens, and certainly not to Ukraine. So I think this is certainly the basis being done because Russia actually believes that strikes by Ukrainian drones are possible, that there's a real security threat, that there are real issues and real constraints that prevent them from doing the normal display.

[B]

I mean, Russia in recent years in particular, has become so opaque that we are almost back in the realm of Cold War Kremlinology, when people who did equivalent jobs to the one you're doing now would, after every big parade in Red Square, sort of obsessively pour over photographs trying to figure out who was standing three feet closer to the General Secretary than they were this time last year. But what have you made of recent reports that Putin himself is becoming increasingly cloistered and paranoid, that he rarely leaves various bunkers, that even his own personal staff are no longer allowed smartphones or to use public transport and so forth?

[A]

Well, it's certainly plausible, and it fits with the behavior that we were reported to or he was reported to have exhibited during COVID for example, you know, famously not allowing anyone to come into his presence who hadn't been quarantined, you know, having these enormously long tables between him and any visitors, all these kinds of things. So he is clearly very concerned about his own personal security. He is very clearly very paranoid. And so taking these sorts of very odd and extreme measures just demonstrates quite how remote he is actually from the lives of most ordinary Russians and how distant the state and its concerns are from ordinary people. And that's quite a dangerous thing to allow to continue, particularly in a situation like that, where Russia is in the middle of a war, which is increasingly unpopular.

[B]

But just finally, Jenny, is there a concern for Putin particularly, but anybody in his position, generally, any display at all, or any acknowledgment at all of relative weakness, it's potentially an opportunity, perhaps to his opponents, it is potentially an admission he would prefer not to make.

[A]

Oh, of course. And he's taken a lot of steps to ensure that there are no strong contenders for presidents beyond himself. So he's taken steps over the years to eliminate possible rivals, to downgrade them. He surrounds himself with sort of aging and increasingly improbable sort of aspirants to the presidency. You know, he is very well aware of the dangers to himself, and of course, he surrounds himself with a lot of security services protection to make sure that there aren't sort of threats to his person. So, yes, he's very aware of the fragility, in many respects of his position, because autocrats tend not to end well, and Putin knows that very well.

[B]

Jenny, Mathers, senior Lecturer in International Politics at Aberystwyth University. Thanks as always for joining us. This is the Daily. This is the Daily on Monocle Radio. I'm Andrew Muller. I am joined now by my fellow contributing editor, Rob Bound for this Friday's iteration of the Daily Weekly Quiz. Here is the theme music. That was the theme music, Rob. Is it growing on you?

[C]

It certainly is. I'm thinking of writing some lyrics to go with it, actually. Maybe we'll, maybe we'll trot them out next week.

[B]

Like with, with like, like the Daily Weekly quiz. That's what this is.

[C]

Yeah, there we go.

[B]

We're cooking already. Let's pace ourselves.

[C]

With gas.

[B]

With gas, Rob. We have three questions each to pose to each other in turn with multiple choice answers. Those are the very simple rules of this very quiz, conducted arguably by two very simple people. Who's going to go first? Did we decide on that?

[C]

We haven't decided.

[B]

I think we decided Rob's going first. That's being frantically screamed in my ears at the moment. Rob, they're saying, for the love of God, Rob's going first.

[C]

There's a lot of hand gestures coming from the control room, not all of

[B]

them, not for the first time with

[C]

a faint of heart.

[B]

So I think, Rob, that means you are asking the first question to me. Let's have it.

[C]

Question one, Andrew, go on. The White House released a notable video this week that attempted to stiffen the sinews and summon up the blood for its Iranian adventure with clips from gung ho films such as Top Gun, Gladiator, Braveheart, Tropic Thunder and Transformers edited together with real footage of US military, military strikes on Iran, who demanded their image be removed from this meat headed montage? Was it A, Russell Crowe who pointed out that his character Maximus in Gladiator was fighting for his wife, son and freedom, not to show off how tough he was? Was it B, Mel Gibson who put out a statement saying that Braveheart was fighting to rid Scotland from imperial English tyranny and that America was behaving like a similar imperial force? Was it C, Ben Stiller who said he had zero interest in being roped into the Paul's propaganda machine, adding that war is not a movie? Or was it D, the estate of the late Val Kilmer who put out a statement saying this war would have made Iceman's Blood Boyle?

[B]

Well, I'm going to rule out the obvious one there, which is, which is Mel Gibson, who, who's I suspect to the extent that he takes a view on Anything Trump does is probably likely.

[D]

Pro.

[B]

I am. I am attracted to Ben Stiller as an answer because Tropic Thunder, which, if memory serves, he was in fact in. I mean, it's a comedy anyway, which you would think somebody at the White House comms team might have known, or at least indeed noticed the Val Kilmer one. It's a very cute line, but it very much does sound to me like something Rob Bound would have said. Rather than the Estate of Val Kilmer, I'm going to say it's Ben Stiller.

[C]

You are absolutely right. First Blood to Andrew Miller. Ben Stiller directed the Vietnam War spoof Tropic Thunder. He was playing the actor Tug Speedman.

[B]

It is therefore my turn, Rob, to put to you my first question this week.

[C]

I'm ready.

[B]

And it is this. Boffins in Colombia this week identified a new spider species which lives largely in walls, builds webs near lights to lure flies and mosquitoes, and also hunts ants up to six times its size. For reasons surpassing understanding, the scientists chose to name the spider species after one of the four worst bands ever to have exist. So did they name the spider after A, Queen, B, the Doors, C, Pink Floyd, or D, Nickelback? Which one of those four worst bands in the history of rock and roll did they name the spider after?

[C]

That is an excellent question. Which gives you full reign to vent some righteous anger on the groups you maybe had to review in your days at Melody Maker. Andrew. And gave them a lot of crap for doing so.

[B]

Mercifully, they were. Well, the Doors and Pink Floyd were a bit before my time. Nickelback, I just could not have been less interested in. I have interviewed Brian May out of Queen for Monocle Radio. He was, in fact, delightful.

[C]

But we.

[B]

We were talking about astrophysics.

[C]

I. I think. I think Queen. I'm not entirely sure how well you'd get on with their music. I don't think that someone would. I think there's already a queen spider somewhere in the world. This is not a new species.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

I think Pink Floyd. I don't know how you'd get that. It's too abstract. It's too abst and confected, I think, to be able to get that. I think the Doors. It's not like it's a. I mean,

[B]

there's a trapdoor spider in Australia.

[C]

There is a trapdoor spider.

[B]

That's because it literally does build a

[C]

little trapdoor and that. The image is the trapdoor spider live in my head rent free with terror. I'm going with Nickelback, actually, for this one because I just think it's got a spidery quality to it. Somehow it does.

[B]

And that's why I put it in there. And Rob, it has caught you out. God, the crowd just furious with. Very furious to see for missing that one. The live studio audience, which definitely exists. Thanks. Thanks all for coming in. Sir, in the front row, I like what you've done with your hair. Yes, they went with Piccolinia Floyd Muraria, presumably because they are friendless nerds, the people who found the spider and therefore Pink Floyd fans. But there is already a genus of Australian orb weaving spiders called Pink Floidea, which also demonstrates that we have friendless nerds in Australia.

[C]

We're one sort of drum solo away from a regroup.

[B]

Yeah. So I think, Rob, just reflecting on the scores after one round of this. I'm winning.

[C]

You are winning. Andrew, do you want question two? Shall we try and redress the balance?

[B]

I'm tempted to quit while I'm ahead, but I understand that's not how it works. Go on.

[C]

Okay, question two. Andrew, for you. Yesterday May 7th was World Password Day. Promoted by tech firms in order to draw attention to the need for strong complex passwords that will keep users online information safe. What, according To NordPass are 2025-2026's most popular passwords? A 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, b qwerty, c admin or d password. What is the most popular password?

[B]

All of those are plausible and one of course does remember the story pertaining to the recent heist at the Louvre when it was discovered a review of their security that the password to get into the Louvre's in house video surveillance was in fact Louvre. See, I. I do sympathize. Obviously I'm not going to talk on the air about what my own passwords are.

[C]

Damn though that was.

[B]

They do. They do tend towards things that I think people who know me would probably guess without too much difficulty. But of those I. I was about to say about the Australian trapdoor spider that it's a great example of the literal nature of my people. That is we see a spider that makes a trapdoo so we call it the trapdoor spider. I'm going to say with Australians significantly adding to the numbers who do this, that the world's most popular password is in fact password.

[C]

Wow it back a little bit. I know. They really are. The answer is in fact a 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. That is the world's most popular password. Good, isn't it?

[B]

I wonder why. Just six.

[C]

The fourth, the four I think the fifth most popular password is 1-2-345678. So that gives you a.

[B]

And presumably people just like doing a

[C]

left to right sweep on their keyboard, presumably, don't they? It's QWERTY or it's numbers.

[B]

Right.

[C]

That's how it is.

[B]

It's like the Jerry Lee Lewis approach.

[C]

Exactly that.

[B]

Yeah. Actually I could. I can see the appeal.

[C]

It's pretty good. Do you want to hear a clip of it? Guru Grant McGregor bringing world passport, a password day thrillingly to life.

[B]

You barely need to ask. Some people choose less secure passwords, their favorite for boating and you know, they're waiting to be let down because the passwords are unsecure. So what helps that process is to have a another level of authentication, like a text message, an app on your phone that gives a code like, similar to the bank card that you have. And that's called two factor authentication.

[C]

And that wasn't on half speed. That was the speed at which Grant McGregor speaks.

[B]

Big massive sympathies to the agent who books his after dinner. Speaking. So we are now at one all. But you have a question in hand, which is my second question, Bob, and it is this. This week, US President Donald Trump was joined in the Oval Office by a bunch of children. For some reason, in between whittering to them about Iran, immigrants from the Congo, the stock market, transgender weightlifters and how the 20 was stolen, he asked one kid if he reckoned he could take him in a fight. Yes, sir. But you think you can take me in a fight. That would be embarrassing, wouldn't it? Just by way of demonstrating that we're making none of this up this moment, Rob prompted brilliantly, YouGov, to poll Americans on whether they believed they could take Donald Trump in a fight. What we got from this, Rob, was something of a demonstration of the cult like grip the President exerts on a plurality of American voters. Because what percentage of Republicans believed they would actually lose a ruck with an obese 79 year old who has never eaten a vegetable or waddled further than 10 metres? Was it A, 39%, B, 55%, A C 8% or D75? What percentage of registered Republicans think they would lose a fight with Donald Trump?

[C]

These people are, I mean, a registered Republican these days. It's a membership card not really worth the the paper it's printed on. But I think these people, clearly they are capable of devoting for a deranged big baby. But I don't think they are. They're also Americans And I think Americans are quite proud of their ability to fight. So I don't think it's one of the very lower numbers. I don't think it's as high as 75% because I think that's, that's, that's impacting their pride. I'd say it's just over half. It's 55%.

[B]

You are wrong. The answer is A. It's. 39% of registered Republicans conceded that they would get duffed up by President Trump if it came to it, as opposed to 19% of U.S. adults generally. While only 33 of Republicans actually fancied their chances, 75% of Democrats and 58% of independents think they'd beat him. Interestingly, Americans were also polled on this. In a fight between Trump and a notional eight year old boy, 31% of Americans backed the kid. Uh, but that's 54% of Democrats and only. I mean I would be fascinated if anybody listening to this is somehow among the 6% of Republicans who think an 8 year old child would beat Donald Trump in a fight. Please get in touch. Touch. I genuinely wish to talk more, but that is question two and I think you are. Oh for two, I'm still in front here.

[C]

Yeah, well that's a brilliant question. Brilliant, brilliant explanation.

[B]

I mean a hat really off to you gov for I know that's upon that one. That is genuinely brilliant thinking.

[C]

Yeah, exactly. I think, yeah. I Wonder who in YouGov this would be a good story. Who decides what they pull? I mean because that is, that is some fresh thinking, right?

[B]

It's some very fresh thinking.

[C]

That's decent. Are you ready for question three, Andrew, your final one.

[B]

Go on.

[C]

This week. This week Burning Ambition, a feature length documentary about the heavy metal band Iron Maiden, was released in cinemas. Which of the following Iron Maiden facts is in fact false? A the band's skeletal mascot is named Teddy, a leering, maniacal presence that the band joked was just like the former British Prime Minister Edward Ted Heath, who had recently lost in a general election around the time the band was formed in 1975. B lead singer Bruce Dickinson is a gifted fencer and was one once ranked number seven in the UK at the sport C Dickinson also has a commercial pilot's license and flies the band around the world in his own Boeing 747 decked out in Iron Maiden imagery. Or d drummer Nico McBrain once took part in a drum duel with Teddy Bear glove puppet kids TV character Sooty on the Sooty show in 1988.

[B]

Well I know for a reasonably cast iron fact, that both B and C are in fact true, that Bruce Dickinson is a reasonably handy fencer and is certainly a licensed commercial pilot and does fly their own 747. I've also. And because he does need to keep up his hours to retain his pilot's license, there are stories of bemused passengers on budget airlines being told, this is Captain Bruce Dickinson from the flight deck. So B and C are definitely true. Which leaves the other two now in question. A. What did you say the name of the mascot was?

[C]

The band's skeletal mascot is named Teddy.

[B]

The band's skeletal mascot's name is Eddie. So it's A. A is the answer.

[C]

I've been trounced this week. You have.

[B]

That's an unassailable lead. 2 nil. With 1 question to go.

[C]

So, yeah, the band mascot is named Eddie, a name that derives from his original. He was originally a papier mache head. Or in the accent of Leighton, East London, with which you'll be familiar.

[B]

Well, I live in Leighton Stone. Oh, you live in Leyton, which is obviously just vastly. Vastly.

[C]

So how do they. How do they pronounce the thing on top of your neck? Do they call it an Ed? So that's where it comes from, apparently. Ed. He went from Ed because he was just an Ed that was on stage to Eddie. So that's the derivation of Eddie. Do you want, by the way, way to hear Nico McBrain on the Sooty show in 1988?

[B]

Well, again, Rob, like what? What else am I going to say? But yes, yes, of course. That was amazing. Sweet. What do you ring to Sooty solo? It was dreadful. It was not dreadful.

[A]

What earth is all this banging and crashing about, Matthew?

[B]

Well, it's so sweet. They've got their drum kits, they're going to enter them for the talent show. Anyway, that wasn't really banging and crashing. If you want to know the meaning of banging and crashing, then let me ring a friend of mine.

[C]

Hang on a minute.

[B]

It's the drummer. And he will show you exactly what

[C]

the meaning of the word drummer really is. He was a bit better than City in the Drum.

[B]

Yeah. Is that where you imagine ending up when you sort of set out to be a drummer in a heavy metal band? Yeah.

[C]

Anyway, where does Iron Maiden sit in the Mueller record collection? Not.

[B]

Not to be honest, a massive fan. Metal is not my preferred genre. Huge fan of AC dc. But they, I think, are an exception to most. Most rules. Maiden. I mean, I don't have Anything against them or indeed their fans. I wish them well, and indeed their fans all the best with their future endeavors, but not. You're not my thing.

[C]

Not your thing. Okay.

[B]

And as apparently Rob, quizzing isn't yours because you've already lost. And there's a. There's. There's still one.

[C]

Let's see if I can. I can bring back a little bit of honor.

[B]

Redeem yourself somewhat. The question is this. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio attempted to burnish his DJ credentials by quoting hip hop lyrics at a White House press conference. Not the first time he has done this. But which of the following lyrics has Rubio never quoted in reference to the leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran? A Check themselves before they wreck themselves. Quoting there from Ice Cube. B, if they want to rumble mix em and cook em in a pot like gumbo NWA C. Every day the Department of War lets the drummer get wicked over every portion of Iran that has military capabilities. A nod thereto. Public Enemy, welcome to the Terror Dome, if I recall rightly. And D, Insane in the Brain, Cypress Hill, obviously. Which of those three has Marco Rubio never in fact said in public about the leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran?

[C]

Well, if I wasn't born to quiz, Andrew, you were. I mean, I. You. I'm surprised you haven't got a. A sideline. I know you.

[B]

You.

[C]

Your band is called the Flaming Zoos. I think you could have a blazing.

[B]

We've never. We've never gone much in for rap and with very, very good reason.

[C]

So wasted, so wasted. I. What was the second one? The NWA one?

[B]

The second one was if they want a rumble, mix them and cook them in a pot like gumbo. I.

[C]

I think I'm gonna cut to the taste. I think it's that one. Because I cannot imagine the fairly the, you know, the rather short sort of swept across head Marco Rubio committing that to either paper, especially to a speech.

[B]

But you think it's perfectly reasonable that Marco Rubio quotes Ice Cube and Public Enemy?

[C]

I think the Cypress Hill one. I can see. I think that's obvious, but I'm going with NW.

[B]

That is the correct answer. Marco Rubio has never, although he's still a relatively young man, quoted NWA Straight Outta Compton, which is where that came from. He did, however, once name it among his three favorite hip hop tracks, so it might still get a run. The other two he cited were Killuminati by Tupac Shakur and Lose Yourself by Eminem. The thing is, Rubio. Rubio, despite appearances, is actually serious about this. Pitbull is apparently a friend of his in 2013 and I looked this up, he uploaded a Spotify playlist including songs by the Sugar Hill Gang, Flow Reader and Kanye West. But here is some of Rubio, I guess what we could call his Chuck D impression. The top people in that government are, to say the least, you know, they're insane in the brain by the actions that they're taking. They should check themselves before they wreck themselves in the direction that they're going. That is Rubio, who I am also informed clearly knows his hip hop better than I do. Steph in the production booth tells me it's Flo Rider, not Flo reader. Apologies to Mr. Ryder.

[C]

Eddie Reader. Flo Rider.

[B]

Yeah, that. That's how you remember it. Otherwise, two very similar artists, very similar artists in every other respect. But I think that brings us to the end of the quiz and I think, you know, really, Rob, the takeaway there is I won and you lost.

[C]

Did you win? 3 1.

[B]

No, 2, 1, 2, 1. But it wins a win.

[C]

Andrew, it's been a. It's been a rare pleasure as ever to take part in the Daily Weekly quiz. I shall try to take some, bring some, bring some kind of intelligence to next week's event.

[B]

Rob Bound, thank you for joining us. You're listening to the Daily. You're listening to the Daily on Monocle Radio. Still with me is Rob Bound, and we are joined shortly from Venice by Sophie Monaghan Combs, Monocle's associate editor for culture. This is a new Friday Daily bit we are calling. It says here, Rob the decoder. How is this going to work?

[C]

So, Andrew, this, the decoder is a new feature. We'll see if it go, if it goes well enough this week, maybe we'll do it again next week and maybe they'll get its theme tune. It's a new feature in which we decrypt some abstruse, sudish political or PR speak. You know, you know, the kind of word salad you might get from reviews of gallery shows, press releases, the news or product launches, especially from the beauty industry, for example, with which we obviously are both highly familiar.

[B]

Exactly. I can, I can imagine the wine business featuring in this at some point as well.

[C]

Exactly. That. That Chardonnay is like rotting apples in

[B]

an old school desk with, with notes of oiled rat. Yes.

[C]

So that's the thing. So Sophie is our, she's not our first victim, but she's been at the Venice Biennale all week, which is obviously a hotbed of wonderful art, less wonderful art but certainly some amazing press releases. So, Sophie, I. I know you can. You can hear us. I'm going to read out a press release from Pietrangelo butofocco, who's the president of the Biennale, and he made a press conference this week presenting the 61st edition. And he said in this, we do not take up arms, we prepare for peace. This is a Biennale that does not seek to resolve issues, but to showcase them, to open them up to questions. Here, the only video here, the only veto is preemptive exclusion. The Biennale is not a court of law, but a garden of peace. We ask institutions for dialogue, not paperwork. So if you've been at the Biennale all week, what was he talking about specifically? Is this to do with some of the stuff that's been in on the front of the newspaper rather than the arts pages? Perhaps the press, protests and things?

[D]

Yes. Re. Hearing it now, I think is, you know, it is. It is quite a funny statement. It's not a court of law, but a garden of peace. There's definitely not been a peaceful site this week. As lots of people know, the Biennale doesn't seek to resolve issues, but to showcase them. It is really showcased issues with geopolitics. It showcased issues between the Biennale administration and the jury, who all resign last week, as well as the Italian government themselves. So I think, you know, with this, it's kind of a wonderful statement, but sort of every. Every part of it can be read in a couple of ways.

[B]

Sophie, does the statement as a whole basically translate to please don't ask me any questions about Russia?

[D]

Yes, but it's very hands off. And, you know, to a certain extent that I don't know if it's fair, but it's sort of how it works, because Russia own that building and they decided to stage something. They've decided not to, or their artists have decided not to stage something in recent years. The other thing that the Biennale president said, which I enjoyed as well, was that he thanked Giorgio Meloni for confirming the freedom and autonomy of the Biennale. But actually, you know, she has come out and said, I don't support the fact that Russia is here, but I understand the Biennale is autonomous. And then the Italian Culture Minister has boycotted opening events, as have lots of ministers from around the world, actually. And, yeah, so. So it's. It's definitely some statements that are. That are hiding just how explosive and controversial the inclusion of Russia as well as Israel has been this week.

[C]

Pietrangelo Butafoco, who's the president whose words we're talking about, Sophie, that you're. You said he talked about the autonomy and boldness of the Biennale, but he also said that full quote is, I thank Prime Minister Giorgio Meloni, who has confirmed the flamboyant freedom that is the autonomy and boldness of the Biennale. So he's kind of, Is he arching his eyebrow, do we suppose, at his own word salad there slightly?

[D]

Yeah, I mean, it's. It's completely, you know, the controversy has completely dominated all of the coverage about the Biennale. No one has heard anything about the art. And he's just, you know, this flamboyant freedom also boldness is just fantastic. It's incredibly bold and everyone's very, very angry about it. So, yeah, I think, you know, he's just sort of wiping his hands of the whole thing.

[B]

But, Sophie, does it feel like that on the ground? Like once you're there in the middle of it, does the Biennale still feel mostly like the Biennale usually does?

[D]

I don't think so. I really think it's dominated a lot of conversations. The Russian Pavilion has been open this week. It will close tomorrow for the. When the public are able to visit. But this week it's been open, People have been going in it, there's been performances, and the music is quite loud, I would say. And so you can kind of hear it from, you know, across the path that some of the other pavil. And today I watched this incredible woman protesting outside who just had a magnificent outfit, complete with a Birkin with an illustration of Putin's face with a big cross through it and a sign on the back of her exquisite striped cream suit that said, no Putin, no war. And she just stood outside the Russian Pavilion for a really long time. I also saw her spending a lot of time talking to the police, police and the security forces that have been sort of roaming around the Russian Pavilion all week. And so, yeah, you know, that is obviously, you know, lots and lots of people flocking there to take videos. Lots of broadcast journalists filming her. So I, I think it has, you know, it's not been business as usual at the Biennale at all. And then I've also just come from a protest that was organized by the Art, Not Genocide Allian, against the fact that Israel are here. They're not in their usual pavilion. They've, you know, it's apparently under construction in the Giardini, so they're in a slightly less sort of prime real estate spot in the Arsenal, but they are here. And there was just a huge protest and lots of shouts against art washing. So I don't think it's, it's the sort of, you know, politics always comes into the Biennale. It is inseparable from the art. But this year it has really been sort of unprecedented. And the final thing I'll say very quickly is that there's been this 24 hour strike and so the Austrian pavilion, which has a lot of nudity, bodily fluids, there's a topless woman hanging from a bell in part of it. It's the pavilion that's been most talked about and it was completely closed today as part of this strike. And then lots of other national pavilions shut, many of them just temporarily for an. But yeah, you know, people walking around really excited to go and see the Australian, the Austrian pavilion. And it's, it was completely closed. So it's, it's definitely been a different, a different week than usual.

[C]

Sounds kind of like an electrifying atmosphere in which to see art and the things that are surrounding it. Sophie, the pro. What's the measure of these protests? Are they, I mean, apart from the. That Birkin bag, which sounds like it'll be under the hammer at Christie's very soon, did you get a sense that there was artistry to the protest or were they. Were, were they Protest. Protest, if you know what I mean.

[D]

I think it's, it's definitely been a mix. You know, obviously Pussy Wire have been here this week as well and they are just, you know, so good at spectacle and creating something that, you know, just looks amazing. You know, obviously will get lots of coverage and is kind of very big and bold. This, the woman I mentioned at the Russian pavilion and you know, was incredible. It was so well crafted, it was so well thought about. And the. But then, you know, alongside that there's been kind of your more usual protests and the last one that I will also mention is there's this been this incredibly moving drone choir which is done by a Palestinian artist and it's a group of people holding up their phones with drone sounds on them and they're kind of moving around and they've all wearing the names and the artworks of Palestinian artists who are in Palestine. And some of them have passed away because of the conflict and it's been incredibly moving and they've been walking around all week as well. So I think it's been a mix of that, that sort of regular protest and protest that is so well thought about and really, really has, has stuck with lots of the visitors who been here.

[B]

And just finally, and just briefly, Sophie, have you had a particular favorite pavilion

[D]

that is a good question, I think. One. Okay. Probably my favorite is the Danish Pavilion, which is sort of extraordinary.

[C]

Such a lovely building, isn't it as well?

[D]

It's. Yeah, it's a wonderful. It's a wonderful building. We, me and Rob and I were there together in 2024 and we also loved that exhibition. This one is very different and. And it's all about how Denmark has sort of the world's most extensive network of sperm banks and they have kind of containers, they have this incredible film and it's all about the sort of sperm bank industry. So it's very surprising. I wasn't expecting to sort of love it as much as I did, but the artist is really fabulous and she's done something. Yeah, she's done something really interesting. And I have to say the queue for the Danish Pavilion has been the longest one I've seen over the past couple of days.

[B]

Sophie Monaghan Coombes in Venice and Rob Bowne, thank you for joining us. Finally, on today's show, our weekly assessment of the degree to which the last seven days have bestowed any more of a clue than we had this time last Friday. I am the God of hellfire and

[C]

I bring you fire.

[B]

We learned this week of disappointing tidings for any listeners who harboured dreams of becoming the first person in the history of human endeavor to set themselves alight and then tow a police car down the street with a rope attached to their genitals. For we learned that it had been done, but. But we learn that, for example, the glass ceiling remains uncracked where, I dunno, carrying a harpsichord up a spiral staircase while wearing trousers full of live crabs is concerned. So you've got that to work towards. Just as the producers now find themselves trying to evoke in sound the proposition of someone carrying a harpsichord up a spiral staircase while wearing trousers full of live crabs. Can there also be a goose for some reason? Anyway, yes, we learned that the feat of setting oneself alight and towing a police car down the street with a rope attached to one's genitals. Verily, the 4 minute mile of the 21st century century had been accomplished by one John Stephenson of the West Yorkshire settlement of Halifax. We go now live to some underwhelming verite audio. Get him out. Oh my God, it's gonna go out again. Imagine what fun our skillful and dedicated producers could have had with the same premise. But we learned that Mr. Stevenson was not alone in performing bizarre, dangerous and undignified contortions to the bafflement of all sane onlookers, or indeed, in playing in one respect or another with fire, We learned that the United States war with Iran was over. The Operation Epic Fury is concluded. We achieved the objectives of that operation. Unless it wasn't. Then we have to get what we have to get. If we don't do that, we'll have to go a big step further or sort of is and or isn't. Since a ceasefire was announced, Iran has fired at commercial vessels nine times and seized two container ships, and they've attacked US forces more than 10 times, all below the threshold of. Of restoration, starting major combat operations at this point, and indeed that the conflict may or may not be being waged or the peace may or may not be being kept by kamikaze dolphins. I can't confirm or deny whether we have kamikaze dolphins, but I can confirm they don't, for all intents and porpoises boo. But one thing we did learn for sure, and a tremendous reassurance it was at a moment of global volatility, power and general brouhaha, was that Earth's most powerful individual, the man endowed by the wisdom of the American voter with the authority to extinguish civilization at whim, absolutely can tell, and with unwavering reliability, the difference between lions, bears, alligators and squirrels. You know, the first question is very easy and they always show. The first question is, you have a lion, a bear, an alligator and a. What's another good. A squirrel. Okay, which is the squirrel. And we learned that this was not the first time anybody running for president or vice president should take a cognitive test. And no president has ever taken one except me.

[C]

I've taken three of them.

[B]

We did learn, however, and without for a moment wishing to cast any doubt whatsoever upon. Upon the President of the United States, ability to distinguish between the illustrations in children's books that Donald Trump is yet to figure out entirely why no previous occupant of the White House has been subjected to a cognitive test, never mind three of them, by concerned doctors, like not even Millard Fillmore. And he was nuts. We've still got that chorus, right? What a fool.

[C]

Stupid 13th president only carried one state in 1856, and that was Maryland, which hardly counts. What a loser. What kind of a name is Millard?

[A]

What kind of idiot idea was the Compromise of 1850 anyway? Stupid. Couldn't get nominated for a second term

[C]

by his own party.

[B]

What a deadbeat.

[D]

You know what?

[C]

I really don't like him.

[B]

Waste of everybody's time, you said making that was and that's like three goes. We've had out of it now in barely five years.

[D]

I look forward to many more uses of the sound effect of the guy carrying a harpsichord up a spiral staircase with trousers full of live crabs and

[B]

a goose for some reason that I

[C]

spent half the afternoon on.

[B]

That's the spirit. We will now be needing some of that silly French accordion music, For we learn to pivot away from one of President Trump's few honestly acquired accolades, that is triple champion of passing an examination used by doctors to figure out if their clearly doddering patient has disappeared irrecoverably around the twist that President Trump's enthusiasm for helping himself to dubiously credentialed baubles is catching on in France. Yes, we learned that a French boffin, Professor Florent Monticlair, apparently not content with having the Frenchest name in France, had been occluding a couple of key details pertaining to his decoration back in 2016 with the gold Medal of Philology by the International Society of Philology, an honour previously bestowed, according to the International Society of Philology's own website, upon such revered linguists as Roman Jacobson, Yuri Lottmann, Hans Helmut Christvan and Meredith Gardner, with whose works the General Muttered Agreement crew are doubtless conversant. We further learned that in 2017, the International Society Society of Philology had awarded an honorary honour to Noam Chomsky. It's a very important moment for the

[C]

Society to give you today this gold medal. I show it to the audience and I show it to you.

[B]

And who could imagine Noam Chomsky falling for anything of questionable provenance? But we learned that a few of Professor Montaclair's bitter and pedantic colleagues were harung something. That neither the International Society of Philology nor its gold Medal exist except in the imagination of Professor Montaclair. However, rather than join any chorus of sanctimonious condemnation, we plan to content ourselves polishing the inaugural Monocle Radio trophy with for best weekly news review. And that is all for this edition of the Monocle Daily. Thanks to Rob Bound and Sophie Monaghan Combs and also Jenny Mathers. Today's show was produced by Chris Chermack and researched by Josefina Astrid Nagla Gomez. Our sound engineer was Steph Changu. I'm Andrew Muller here in London. The Daily returns at the same time on Monday. Thanks for listening, Sam.