About Delayed Gratification, the Slow News podcast
The podcast of Delayed Gratification, the Slow News magazine, which returns to big stories after the dust has settled to ask the question of what happened next, and which is proud to be 'Last to Breaking News.'
Prediction markets, killer swallows and England's broken water system: looking back on March 2026
In this episode, Delayed Gratification (https://www.slow-journalism.com/) co-editor Rob Orchard and associate editors James Montague and Matthew Lee look back on March 2026.
They discuss Matthew's piece in Delayed Gratification issue 62 (https://www.slow-journalism.com/back-issue/62-jan-mar-2026) about the amazing rise of prediction markets, seen by some as truth machines and others as a licence for insider trading. They discuss's Rob's feature about England's broken water system and how it can be fixed, and take a detour into the Shakespeare-inspired introduction of starlings to North America. They also discuss the uplifting story of Nathan Newby, a George Medal winner who bears a striking resemblance to James.
To read the stories being discussed in this episode, pick up a copy of Delayed Gratification issue 62 (https://www.slow-journalism.com/back-issue/62-jan-mar-2026) or subscribe (https://www.slow-journalism.com/subscribe) with a 15 percent discount using code Pod15.
11 Sept 2026
AI medicine, the Iran War and MAGA thirst traps: looking back on February 2026
In this episode, Delayed Gratification (https://www.slow-journalism.com/) co-editor Rob Orchard, associate editor James Montague and editor-at-large Harriet Salem look back on February 2026.
They discuss Harriet’s fascinating story in Delayed Gratification issue 62 (https://www.slow-journalism.com/back-issue/62-jan-mar-2026) about the potential use of AI to discover pre-existing drugs that could help tackle rare diseases in children. It’s an uplifting piece about parents, researchers and tech experts on both sides of the Atlantic racing to unlock treatments as quickly as possible. They dive into James’s infographic explainer on the Iran War, as well as musing on Philippe Gaulier, plate-smashing king of clowns, and on the achievements of Lucas Pinheiro Braathen, first south-American winner of a winter Olympics medal.
To read the stories being discussed in this episode, pick up a copy of Delayed Gratification issue 62 (https://www.slow-journalism.com/back-issue/62-jan-mar-2026) or subscribe (https://www.slow-journalism.com/subscribe) with a 15 percent discount using code Pod15.
17 Jul 2026
Moltbook, Maduro and a thimbleful of space dust: looking back on January 2026
In this episode, Delayed Gratification (https://www.slow-journalism.com/) co-editor Rob Orchard, journalist Emily Hart and associate editor James Montague look back on January 2026.
The trio dive into Emily's in-depth report in Delayed Gratification issue 62 (https://www.slow-journalism.com/back-issue/62-jan-mar-2026) about the fallout from the US exfiltration of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, which dominated headlines in early January and then slipped from the news agenda. How much has changed in the country since, and why were so many Venezuelans so pleased to see their leader kidnapped by a foreign power? They then discuss James's interview with a Nasa scientist who has got his hands on billion-year-old space dust delivered from the far reaches of the solar system, and who believes it may help us understand how life began on Earth. They also take an entertaining detour into Crustafarianism, the new AI-generated religion.
To read the stories being discussed in this episode, pick up a copy of Delayed Gratification issue 62 (https://www.slow-journalism.com/back-issue/62-jan-mar-2026) or subscribe (https://www.slow-journalism.com/subscribe) with a 15 percent discount using code Pod15.
2 Jun 2026
Drones, hybrid warfare and false moustaches: looking back on December 2025
In this episode, Delayed Gratification (https://www.slow-journalism.com/) co-editor Rob Orchard, associate editor James Montague and editor-at-large Harriet Salem look back on December 2025.
The trio return to Harriet's story about hybrid warfare in Europe, in which she reported from the Lithuania-Belarus border about the drone incursions that have been throwing the continent into disarray. They delve into a story that James reported for the magazine from Nagorno Karabakh, about the 'first drone war' between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and discuss what the changing face of drone warfare might mean for the future. They also talk about the extreme lengths some Australian kids have been going to in order to circumvent the social media ban.
To read the stories being discussed in this episode, pick up copies of Delayed Gratification issue 61 (https://www.slow-journalism.com/back-issue/61-oct-dec-2025) and Delayed Gratification issue 60 (https://www.slow-journalism.com/shop/issue-60) or subscribe (https://www.slow-journalism.com/subscribe) with a 15 percent discount using code Pod15.
1 May 2026
Melissa, megacities and nasal matchsticks: looking back on November 2025
In this episode, Delayed Gratification (https://www.slow-journalism.com/) co-editors Rob Orchard and Marcus Webb are joined by editor-at-large Harriet Salem to look back on November 2025, an era before Donald Trump was awarded a peace prize by Fifa and before the birth of Crustafarianism, the first AI-generated religion.
The trio return to Marcus’s story about the rapid growth of megacities, which saw Jakarta crowned the biggest metropolis in the world in November. They delve into his report on the UN groups attempting to provide early warnings about climate hazards to every person on the planet and deploying everything ‘from satellites to sandbags’ to prevent disasters. They also look at the stratospheric ascent of Zohran Mamdani from little-known local politician to mayor of New York – and what he has faced since his election.
To read the stories being discussed in this episode, pick up a copy of Delayed Gratification issue 61 (https://www.slow-journalism.com/back-issue/61-oct-dec-2025) or subscribe (https://www.slow-journalism.com/subscribe) with a 15 percent discount using code Pod15.
2 Apr 2026
Kyiv Circus, Jane Goodall and Japanese bears: looking back on October 2025
In this episode, Delayed Gratification (https://www.slow-journalism.com/) co-editor Rob Orchard is joined by James Montague and Susan Schulman to look back on October 2025 with six months of perspective. It was an era when Venezuela's Maria Corina Machado had not yet felt obliged to hand her Nobel Peace Prize over to Donald Trump, the children of Australia had not had all of their Tiktoks turned off and the residents of Prince Andrew's Road in Hellesdon had not yet requested a name change for their street. The trio return to Susan's extraordinary report on the circus in Kyiv, which has kept going throughout the invasion, and dive into the DG archive to discuss another story of hers (https://www.slow-journalism.com/from-the-archive/in-search-of-a-signal) from issue 19 of the magazine, about the fight to bring mobile phone reception to DRC. James gives us the inside track on the late, great primatologist Jane Goodall, including her surprising interest in Bigfoot. To read the stories being discussed in this episode in beautiful print, pick up a copy of Delayed Gratification issue 61 (https://www.slow-journalism.com/back-issue/61-oct-dec-2025) or subscribe (https://www.slow-journalism.com/subscribe) with a 15 percent discount using code Pod15.
2 Mar 2026
Qatar, Colombia, Ant and Dec: looking back on September 2025
In this episode, Delayed Gratification (https://slow-journalism.com) co-editor Rob Orchard is joined by James Montague and Emily Hart to look back on September 2025 with six months of perspective. It was an era when Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was still a prince. Elon Musk had not yet been offered a trillion dollar pay packet, and Grok had not yet been pulled up for its auto-nudification function – or put Keir Starmer in a bikini. The trio dive into some fascinating stories, including James's return to the scene of a missile strike on Doha and Emily's deeply-researched report on Colombians fighting in Ukraine. To read the stories being discussed in this episode in beautiful print, pick up a copy of Delayed Gratification issue 60 (https://www.slow-journalism.com/shop/issue-60) or subscribe (https://www.slow-journalism.com/subscribe) with a 15 percent discount using code Pod15.
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