All the topics discussed by the author are extremely interesting and relevant to the society in which we live, but the most interesting part is the way James O'Brien explains the mechanism by which people form certain beliefs, beliefs which are hard to change, most of these beliefs being based on emotional problems or even traumas rooted in childhood.

It all starts with brutal austerity to save the Banks. I always remember a respected colleague telling me that you should never only cut costs, as you can’t shrink your way to greatness. I’ve read his other books and this part of the trilogy is very much a copy of those. He would of done a lot better to write about ‘How they broke Europe’. I did not find it intelligent. Infact the first 3 chapters and other places were instinctually-eye-rollingly bad and his writing style is what some would call 'verbal diarrhoea'. The sort of style you get when having a night in with the Lambrini. This improved in the final chapter however I will add – I'm not saying that about the content. With his wife, Lucy O'Brien (née McDonald), he fronted Channel 5's 2001 general election talk show 5 Talk, securing a review from Clive James, who wrote: "James, in particular, is a pink-shirted walking encyclopedia of political savvy". [15] [16] [17] LBC [ edit ]

Spanner, Huw (18 January 2019). "Interview with James O'Brien: 'When I'm wrong, I admit it. And that makes me right' ". Church Times . Retrieved 9 September 2019. I am giving this book 2 stars rather than 1 because I feel it would comfort a ‘remain’ voter and dinner party guests in leafy areas of London. It certainly would be a conversation for those who agree with his views. O'Brien began occasionally guest presenting on the BBC Two programme Newsnight in August 2014. [31] [32] [28] Following the widespread interest in O'Brien's interview with Farage, it was speculated he would be a permanent replacement for longtime host Jeremy Paxman, who intended to step down. [33] The job was ultimately taken by Evan Davis. [34] O'Brien left Newsnight in January 2018 after being criticised for his anti-Brexit and anti-Trump views, which were felt to be out of step with the corporation's policy on neutrality. He departed on good terms, saying the BBC still had the finest selection of journalists in the world. [35] Iain Duncan Smith: Remembering the time former Work and Pensions Secretary clashed with James O'Brien". The Independent. 19 March 2016 . Retrieved 9 February 2018. Towards the end, he assesses how Johnson was priming himself for a return to Number 10 in the wake of Liz Truss’s disastrous stint as PM, entirely confident he’d have his party’s full support despite – well, despite everything. “The detachment from reality was complete.”

I still sort of believe the last, but over the years, I've been fortunate to be challenged by a number of people close to me, and my thinking on these matters and many others has shifted. Weird how, for a guy who quotes Emerson's "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds" so freely in the classroom has spent so much time yelling "No it's not!" when clearly it was over the years. This book provides a useful commentary on the process of examining one's preconceptions and prejudices, without the crushing burden of ego interfering with a more clear-eyed analysis. When have we ever needed this more? The same with trans issues, which I think he makes honest and important points, that from the perspective of someone outside the direct issue, there is honest confusion which needs to be allowed to be expressed and questions asked before any possibility of understanding and acceptance can happen. O'Brien review, ITV: 'disappointing' ". Daily Telegraph. 30 March 2015 . Retrieved 8 February 2018. But then I saw the book in Foyles in London and read the blurb and the Foyles recommendation too, and I realised this book was not what I had expected at all. Instead this is a deeply personal look by the author at the art of self examination of our own views. He candidly and apologetically tells of some of his biggest errors and worst actions. He speaks of his own need for counselling, and most of all he tells us of times he has been forced to change his mind. Again and again.It wasn’t like I went into that voting booth going, ‘Yay, Boris!’” he says. “I went into that voting booth, probably 52/48, and went the wrong way.” He flashes a smile at this – an unbelievably impish one. “So, again, it’s an odd thing to drag up 15 years later.”

You can’t have your face on the cover of your book and not be a brand, and his requires him to be firmly on one side – the other side – when he must know that aspects of the current politics of the left are just as muddled, fractious and potentially dangerous as those of the right. A man can’t fall out with everyone! Personally, I’m as suspicious as he is of the Mail’s newfound support for freedom of speech on university campuses. But this doesn’t mean that free speech isn’t a real problem, or that some liberal-left men haven’t abdicated all responsibility for asking questions about it, particularly as it pertains to women’s rights, the better to have an easier, more saintly seeming life. James Edward O'Brien (born 1972) [1] is a British radio presenter, podcaster, author, and former tabloid journalist and television presenter. Since 2004, he has been a presenter for talk station LBC, [2] on weekdays between 10 am and 1 pm, hosting a phone-in discussion of current affairs, views and real-life experiences. Between October 2017 and November 2018, he hosted a weekly interview series with JOE titled Unfiltered with James O'Brien. He has occasionally presented BBC's Newsnight. Our economy has tanked, our freedoms are shrinking, and social divisions are growing. Our politicians seem most interested in their own careers, and much of the media only make things worse. We are living in a country almost unrecognisable from the one that existed a decade ago. But whose fault is it really? Who broke Britain and how did they do it?

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Perhaps surprisingly for someone who enjoys a bit of a row, O’Brien appears a little irked by my questions, even if therapy has taught him to be calmer in response. “If you’d asked me unfair questions 10 years ago, I would have responded to you in a much more aggressive fashion,” he says. I thought How Not To Be Wrong was excellent. I don’t listen to James O’Brien but I enjoyed his previous book, How To Be Right very much and tried this on the strength of it. It’s a very different book, but just as good and just as important. a b "Frank Lampard's call to LBC: The full transcript". The Independent. 24 April 2009 . Retrieved 25 April 2009. Bland, Archie (24 March 2015). "LBC's James O'Brien: 'You have to be a bit more sledgehammer than scalpel on TV' ". theguardian.com . Retrieved 26 March 2015.

In 2023, O'Brien's fourth book How They Broke Britain was published by Penguin Books. In the book, he "reveals the shady network of influence that has created a broken Britain of strikes, shortages and scandals". Each chapter focuses on each "particular person complicit in the downfall", such as former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, News Corporation founder Rupert Murdoch, former UKIP leader Nigel Farage and former UK prime ministers, David Cameron, Boris Johnson and Liz Truss. [13] Broadcasting [ edit ]O'Brien is married to Lucy McDonald and has two daughters. [17] Politically, O'Brien prefers to be described as ' liberal' rather than 'left-wing'. [43] O'Brien was raised in the Roman Catholic faith and refers to himself as a Christian. He is a Kidderminster Harriers F.C. fan. [44] Books [ edit ] Given the endless crises and scandals that have occurred over the past half-decade or so, it’s easy to forget some of the squalid behaviour that went on. How They Broke Britain, then, feels like a useful document to have – O’Brien’s scathing voice provides a thorough record of the self-serving actions and pronouncements of those who have held power in Britain. James O'Brien pledează pentru importanța schimbării opiniilor, insistând că degeaba ai o minte dacă nu ești dispus să o folosești pentru a-ți reconsidera propriile convingeri.