Podcast Summary: The New Yorker Radio Hour – "U.K. Edges Closer to the Cliff of a No-Deal Brexit" (March 26, 2019)

Host: David Remnick
Produced by: WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

Episode Overview

This episode is anchored by a deep dive into the political and personal intrigue surrounding Aaron Banks—an enigmatic figure at the heart of the U.K.’s Brexit campaign. Host David Remnick speaks with reporter Ed Caesar about Banks’s outsized influence, shadowy finances, and the Russian connection, drawing parallels to concerns that animated the American 2016 election. The episode also includes a vibrant segment on the innovative vocal ensemble Room Full of Teeth and a neighborhood journey with poet Patricia Spears Jones.

Main Segment: Brexit on the Brink — The Shadowy Role of Aaron Banks

Guest: Ed Caesar, New Yorker contributor
Host: David Remnick

Key Topics & Discussion Points

1. Aaron Banks — The Quiet Lobbyist (00:09–01:29)

• Banks, described as "perhaps the single biggest political donor in UK history," funneled about $13 million to anti-EU efforts, raising questions about the true source and scale of his wealth.

• Commonly overshadowed by public figures like Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage, he is a pivotal but less-known influencer in Brexit's outcome.

  "Aaron Banks is perhaps the single biggest political donor in UK history and he helped to fund both Nigel Farage but also a rambunctious outlier organization called Leave EU." — Ed Caesar [01:29]

2. The Mystery of Banks’s Money (01:29–03:11)

• Substantial doubt exists about how wealthy Banks actually is; he claims £250 million, but financial journalists estimate just 10% of that.

• His business empire is tangled across offshore locations like the Isle of Man, Bermuda, and Gibraltar, sparking suspicion about money laundering or third-party influence.

• The UK National Crime Agency is investigating inconsistencies in Banks's financial disclosures.

  "The story of his donations had changed dramatically over time... so much of it is in offshore locations which are secrecy jurisdictions." — Ed Caesar [02:28]

3. Connections to Cambridge Analytica and Russia (03:11–05:11)

• Banks had some dealings with Cambridge Analytica, but more critical are his Russian connections (including his Russian wife with an "intriguing past").

• His wife’s history and connections, including with British MP Mike Hancock—previously suspected of links to Russian espionage—raise persistent questions about Russian involvement.

• Caesar details a pattern of engagement with figures associated with Russian intelligence or influence operations.

  "Still large questions remain over why these two young women had an affair with a member of Parliament who at one time chaired the all party group on Russia. That has raised a few eyebrows." — Ed Caesar [04:01]

4. Russia’s Geopolitical Interests in Brexit (05:11–06:24)

• Russia aims to weaken the EU and sow chaos among its geopolitical adversaries.

• The Kremlin’s interests align with disruptive outcomes like Brexit, and Russia has been energetically supporting populist and far-right factions in Europe.

  "There seems to be no doubt in the minds of people who watch Russia closely that they were certainly interested in the destabilizing nightmare of Brexit as we're now witnessing it." — Ed Caesar [06:24]

5. The Six-Hour “Boozy Lunch” & Business Offers (06:24–08:07)

• Banks’s unusual six-hour lunch with the Russian ambassador in London is discussed, including a subsequent meeting where he was offered lucrative investment opportunities in Russian gold and diamonds.

• Intelligence professionals consider these overtures highly irregular, potentially signaling ulterior motives.

  "They finish up drinking vodka supposedly made for Joseph Stalin... a few days later there's another meeting at which the ambassador is introducing Banks to a Russian businessman who's offering him a part in a multi billion gold deal in Russia." — Ed Caesar [06:41]
  "Almost impossible to believe that there was not some kind of ulterior motive in this courting of Banks." — Ed Caesar [07:42]

6. Banks’s Defense (08:07–08:53)

• Banks dismisses allegations of wrongdoing, stating, “You shouldn't be judged on business deals that you don't do.”

• Nonetheless, his actions remain under scrutiny for their opacity and proximity to powerful Russian interests.

  "He says it's nonsense... he gave me a very long and detailed interview... on its face, a lot of this stuff does look suspicious and it seems worthy of further investigation." — Ed Caesar [08:24]

7. Calls for a 'Mueller-Style' Investigation (08:53–10:12)

• Despite public calls (notably from Labour Party’s Tom Watson) for an American-style special inquiry into possible Russian influence, the political appetite is lacking amid the larger Brexit crisis.

• Ed Caesar suggests such an inquiry is unlikely until after Brexit resolves—if at all.

  "The most senior figure... who called for it again after my piece was published on Monday, is Tom Watson, who's the deputy leader of the Labour Party. He says this piece makes a cast iron case for a Mueller style inquiry." — Ed Caesar [09:31]

8. Brexit’s Imminent Future (10:12–11:22)

• With just days to a no-deal Brexit, the consensus is grim; even Brexit supporters didn’t anticipate the severity of potential shortages and disruptions.

• Aaron Banks openly favors a no-deal exit as the “clearest rupture,” but Caesar condemns that as “vandalism.”

  "Aaron Banks says no deal was his preferred option because no deal means we leave... But to me it feels like vandalism." — Ed Caesar [11:22]

9. Britain’s Political Fallout (11:22–12:04)

• The Brexit crisis has fractured both the Labour and Conservative parties, potentially leading to a much more fragmented, coalition-based future.

  "Both sides, Conservative and Labour, the two biggest parties, have been ripped in two by this... I feel like history will judge this period of our politics extremely badly." — Ed Caesar [11:30]

Notable Quotes

• Ed Caesar on Banks’s influence:
  “Aaron Banks is perhaps the single biggest political donor in UK history...” [01:29]
• On Russian interests:
  “He is interested in chaos, in people that he perceives to be somewhat his geopolitical enemies.” [05:21]
• On political aftermath:
  “We could see a much more fragmented political landscape in which coalitions become much more normal.” [11:30]

Other Segments

Room Full of Teeth: Reinventing the Human Voice (12:57–24:10)

Reporter: Burkhard Bilger

Overview

• A profile of Room Full of Teeth, a vocal octet expanding the limits of classical vocal music by integrating diverse global techniques (like throat singing, yodeling, belting).
• Features an inside look at rehearsals at Mass MoCA, including composer Eve Beglarian experimenting with group sound based on Elvis Presley's "Blue Moon."

Highlights

• The group’s founder, Brad Wells, on broadening the notion of beauty in choral music:

  "It's really just a kind of pushing the bounds, pushing the walls of what's beautiful... and see what emerges." — Brad Wells [19:02]

• Discussion of the ensemble’s collaborative and experimental ethos, with composers and singers co-creating new vocal techniques and pieces.

A Neighborhood Stroll with Poet Patricia Spears Jones (24:10–29:01)

Guest: Patricia Spears Jones

Overview

• Jones visits a favorite local shop, Calabar Imports, in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, reflecting on community, creativity, and the sustenance provided by neighborhood spaces.
• Jones shares a poet’s perspective on finding beauty and meaning in everyday spaces.

Quote

"We need those kinds of places that sort of look like the ideas about how we like the world, that we like color and texture and... things that are pretty or odd or in some cases, utterly beautiful." — Patricia Spears Jones [27:23]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Aaron Banks and Brexit: 00:09–12:04
• Room Full of Teeth: 12:57–24:10
• Patricia Spears Jones: 24:10–29:01

Conclusion

This episode offers both a gripping exposé on the hidden hands shaping Brexit, and effervescent stories from the worlds of experimental music and urban poetry. Through conversations that oscillate between high-stakes politics and intimate artistry, The New Yorker Radio Hour delivers layered narratives for listeners eager to understand the forces—visible and invisible—shaping culture and politics on both sides of the Atlantic.