Alastair Campbell: Princess Diana, celebrity politicians and how to ACTUALLY make a difference

<p>Hi huns, we’ve got someone a little different from the usual celeb on the pod this week: Tony Blair’s former spin doctor Alastair Campbell, who is currently having a second wind of fame thanks to his top-charting podcast The Rest is Politics, of which both of us are HUGE fans. </p> <p>This month he also released a brilliant new book called <a href="https://www.wob.com/en-gb/books/alastair-campbell/but-what-can-i-do/9781529153330?cq_src=google_ads&cq_cmp=19658855518&cq_con=&cq_med=pla&cq_plac=&cq_net=x&gclid=CjwKCAjwyqWkBhBMEiwAp2yUFkp-dEJByORVdpRY0KtImCzblu-rbc8lVXBlS7N4l7V_4mH7rj4nJBoCsWcQAvD_BwE#NGR9781529153330" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferer">But What Can I Do? </a>which is all about motivating young, capable people to get into politics and shake things up, with lots of practical tips on how to improve the essential skills you need in politics, from communication to body language. </p> <p>Of course, true to the Straight Up USP, we had to ask Alastair all about his most surreal – and nightmarish – celebrity encounters, from Princess Diana to Jimmy Savile. Plus, he revealed his biggest celebrity crush, how he feels about his daughter&#39;s risque comedy, and his surreal interlude writing erotic fiction.</p> <p>We had so much fun (despite Alastair ripping us for our shameful lack of general knowledge) that he even let us accompany him to his home after the recording to sign some books for us. Though he may have got cross that we didn&#39;t immediately recognise his portrait of John Lennon - oops.</p> <p>We hope you have as much fun listening as we did recording this one! Please let us know what you think by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or rating us on Spotify and come say hello on Insta <a href="https://www.instagram.com/straightuppod/">⁠@straightuppod⁠</a></p> <p>Thanks so much to our amazing partners for this episode:</p> <p><strong>Art Fund</strong>, which has an amazing art pass that allows you to see paid exhibitions at major galleries from the Tate to the V&amp;A and National Gallery a