Making Political Theatre

Making Political Theatre

Spare a Thought, the podcast for curious minds exploring creativity, culture and stories from the margins. About this episode Tom interviews Chris Brian, Rhiannon White, Bianca Ali and Taylor Edmonds about the making of Demand the Impossible, part performance, part punk gig, part sensory experience exploring police injustice and the undercover infiltration of activist networks. The play ran at Newport's Corn Exchange in October 2025 and was produced by Common/Wealth Theatre. The conversation explores the spycops scandal, in which undercover police officers infiltrated left-wing activist groups over decades, from environmental and anti-racist campaigners to construction workers blacklisted for their union activity. The guests discuss how real testimonies from people directly affected shaped the play, the challenge of making political theatre, and what it means to turn painful personal experience into powerful art and performance. They also talk about Common/Wealth's book Do It Yourself - Making Political Theatre [https://manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526192974/], a practical DIY toolkit distilling fifteen years of making immersive, community-rooted work. You can find out more about Common/Wealth Theatre and their upcoming work at commonwealththeatre.co.uk [https://commonwealththeatre.co.uk/] More information about Demand the Impossible is available here [https://commonwealththeatre.co.uk/shows/demand-the-impossible/] For more on the ongoing public inquiry into undercover policing, visit the Spycops Research [https://www.spycopsresearch.info/] website or listen to the Spycops Podcast [https://soundcloud.com/spycops] Taylor Edmonds has featured on previous episodes of Spare a Thought The Waters That Raised Us [https://spareathought.podbean.com/e/the-waters-that-raised-us/] and Writing for Joy [https://spareathought.podbean.com/e/writing-for-joy/], and her website is tayloredmonds.co.uk [https://tayloredmonds.co.uk/] This episode was produced, written and edited by Tom Spare. Music from Demand the Impossible was produced by Common/Wealth Theatre, directed by Rhiannon White and written by Taylor Edmonds. Music and excerpts used with permission. About the guests Chris Brian is a campaigner and researcher who was among the thousands of activists spied on by undercover police. He has spent years working as a researcher for the Undercover Research Group, supporting the ongoing public inquiry into undercover policing. Rhiannon White is co-founder and co-artistic director of Common/Wealth Theatre, a company based in Cardiff and Bradford making large-scale immersive political theatre rooted in the communities it comes from. She directed Demand the Impossible. Bianca Ali is a freelance performer and creative from Cardiff who played a character based on her own experience as a founder of Black Lives Matter Cardiff. Taylor Edmonds is a writer, poet and creative facilitator from Barry, South Wales. Demand the Impossible was her first stage play. Keep up-to-date with Tom's work Keep up to date with Tom's work via his Substack: https://tomspare.substack.com/ [https://tomspare.substack.com/] Get the latest news on the podcast via the Spare a Thought Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spareathoughtmedia/ [https://www.instagram.com/spareathoughtmedia/] You can listen to all previous episodes wherever you get your podcasts or head to: https://spareathought.podbean.com/ [https://spareathought.podbean.com/] Spare a Thought is a Be the Change. Media Network [https://www.bethechangemedianetwork.com/] production. The views and opinions expressed by guests and hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Be the Change. Media Network or its partners.

Who Owns the Media?

Spare a Thought, the podcast for curious minds exploring creativity, culture and stories from the margins.  About this episode Tom interviews Steven Renderos, Executive Director of MediaJustice, a US based racial justice organisation that advances the media and technology rights of people of colour. They discuss MediaJustice's report Media Capture: Who Controls the Story Controls the Future, exploring how a small group of tech oligarchs including Jeff Bezos, Larry Ellison and Elon Musk are consolidating control over America's media system and beyond. Steven also contributes to the latest episode of The Political Dispatch, the sister show to Spare a Thought, All the President's Men at Fifty [https://thepoliticaldispatch.podbean.com/e/all-the-presidents-men-at-50/].  The MediaJustice report Media Capture: Who Controls the Story Controls the Future is available to read here [https://mediajustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/MediaJustice-Media-Capture-Report.pdf].  You can find out more about MediaJustice’s work by heading to their website https://mediajustice.org/ [https://mediajustice.org/]  This episode was edited by Sam Khanikar. The title track for this show is Young Shall Grow, with thanks to Afro Cluster, Magugu and Asha Jane. About the guest Steven Renderos is the Executive Director of MediaJustice. He grew up in Los Angeles in an immigrant household and has spent over a decade leading campaigns that have lowered the cost of prison phone calls, secured net neutrality rules and got Donald Trump removed from Twitter. He is a regular commentator in the Washington Post, the LA Times and The Guardian.  Keep up-to-date with Tom’s work Keep up to date with Tom's work via his Substack: https://tomspare.substack.com/ [https://tomspare.substack.com/]  Get the latest news on the podcast via the Spare a Thought Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spareathoughtmedia/ [https://www.instagram.com/spareathoughtmedia/]  You can listen to all previous episodes wherever you get your podcasts or head to: https://spareathought.podbean.com/ Spare a Thought is a Be the Change. Media Network [https://www.bethechangemedianetwork.com/] production. The views and opinions expressed by guests and hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Be the Change. Media Network or its partners.

Olivia Dean Live Review

In this episode, Tom reviews Olivia Dean's live show at the Royal Arena in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 14th May 2026. Featuring excerpts and clips recorded on the night, Tom reflects on Dean's extraordinary rise from the Brit School to record breaking artist, and on a concert that was, in his words, joyous and healing. The episode explores Dean's music, her message of love, heritage and community. All clips were recorded at the Royal Arena Copenhagen. All rights reserved to the authors and owners of the songs. You can watch highlights from the gig on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sesR3AsOe0 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sesR3AsOe0] Keep up to date with Tom's work via his Substack: https://tomspare.substack.com/ [https://tomspare.substack.com/] Get the latest news on the podcast via the Spare a Thought Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spareathoughtmedia/ [https://www.instagram.com/spareathoughtmedia/] You can listen to all previous episodes wherever you get your podcasts or head to: https://spareathought.podbean.com/ [https://spareathought.podbean.com/] Spare a Thought is a Be the Change. Media Network [https://www.bethechangemedianetwork.com/] production. The views and opinions expressed by guests and hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Be the Change. Media Network or its partners.

Writing for Joy

In this episode, Tom is joined by writer and creative facilitator Taylor Edmonds to explore the therapeutic power of words and the inspiration behind her creative company, Writing for Joy. Taylor shares her journey from anonymous Tumblr poet to academic creative writer, and how moving from her hometown of Barry, Wales, to England unexpectedly sharpened her sense of Welsh identity. She discusses working with individuals navigating illness at the Velindre Cancer Centre, her debut stage play, Demand the Impossible, and why the messy, mindful process of human creativity remains irreplaceable in the age of AI. Taylor featured on a previous episode The Waters That Raised Us, which you can listen to here: https://spareathought.podbean.com/e/the-waters-that-raised-us/ [https://spareathought.podbean.com/e/the-waters-that-raised-us/]  The title track for this show is "Young Shall Grow", with thanks to Afro Cluster, Magugu, and Asha Jane. Keep up to date with Tom's work via his Substack: https://tomspare.substack.com/ [https://tomspare.substack.com/] Get the latest news on the podcast via the Spare a Thought Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spareathoughtmedia/ [https://www.instagram.com/spareathoughtmedia/] You can listen to all previous episodes wherever you get your podcasts or head to: https://spareathought.podbean.com/ [https://spareathought.podbean.com/]

Catch up with Spare a Thought

There isn't a full episode this week as Tom is taking a break, however now is the change for you to catch-up on some previous episodes. In this edtion of Spare a Thought, you'll hear clips from the following episodes: * Tadao Ando: to Create is to Live - Tom is joined by his friend Bee, together they explore the extraordinary life of Japan's self taught architect who started his career as a boxer. Listen here [https://spareathought.podbean.com/e/tadao-ando-to-create-is-to-live/] * The Waters that Raised Us - Tom explores the recently published essay anthology The Waters that Raised Us, a powerful collection of unique stories, histories and imagined futures for the waters of Wales. Tom is joined by some of the books' authors. Taylor Edmonds, who is both contributor and editor, as well as Kathryn Tann and Sofia Brizio. Listen here [https://spareathought.podbean.com/e/the-waters-that-raised-us/] * Rethinking Student Loans - Tom turns his attention to the student loan system in the UK, asking whether it is fit for purpose. You'll hear from six Plan 2 graduates: Josh, Tom, Emily, Alex, Brie and Bee, who share their experiences of a debt that keeps growing. Tom also speaks with Ollie from Rethink Repayment, a campaign pushing the UK government to fundamentally reform the system. Listen here [https://spareathought.podbean.com/e/rethinking-student-loans/] * UK Election Special - on our sister show The Political Dispatch Sidd and Tom analyse Parliamentary elections in Wales and Scotland, and local elections in England. Listen here [https://thepoliticaldispatch.podbean.com/e/uk-election-special/] The title track for this show is "Young Shall Grow", with thanks to Afro Cluster, Magugu, and Asha Jane. Keep up to date with Tom's work via his Substack: https://tomspare.substack.com/ [https://tomspare.substack.com/] Get the latest news on the podcast via the Spare a Thought Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spareathoughtmedia/ [https://www.instagram.com/spareathoughtmedia/] You can listen to all previous episodes wherever you get your podcasts or head to: https://spareathought.podbean.com/ [https://spareathought.podbean.com/] Spare a Thought is a Be the change. Media Network [https://www.bethechangemedianetwork.com/] production. Opinions shared by the guests and hosts of this show are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Be the Change. Media Network.