BBC Radio 4’s satirical audio show The Skewer is back for its 17th series, arriving as Parliament resumes after the summer break.
Created by Jon Holmes, The Skewer remixes the week’s biggest news stories with pop culture and archive clips, producing surreal sketches that blend satire, sound collage and music.
The show is known for its open-door writing policy, allowing anyone to submit ideas, with contributors ranging from NHS staff to delivery drivers and teachers.
Jon says the programme is a place for listeners to channel their reactions to the news, encouraging submissions of satirical ideas about current events.
Each episode is carefully crafted, with every mash-up built by hand rather than generated, resulting in a distinctive and sometimes strange listening experience.
The Skewer has received over 50 award nominations, including a BAFTA nomination for its television version and five ARIA Gold wins for Best Comedy.
It has also been recognised by the New York Festival Radio Awards, British Podcast Awards and the Audio Production Awards.
The Radio Academy described it as “satire at its cleverest – biting and beautiful, like listening to a Francis Bacon painting.”
The new series of The Skewer airs on BBC Radio 4 from tonight, Wednesday 2nd September at 11.15pm, with episodes available on BBC Sounds and podcast platforms.
