Jo Phillips

It was a great pleasure to meet award-winning journalist Jo Phillips for my latest Nostalgia Interview. Jo is a political commentator and has worked as a political editor and broadcaster and was press secretary and policy adviser to Paddy Ashdown and has stood for Parliament. She also worked for Bob Geldof for 10 years. Jo is a sailor and gardener and she explains why she sees herself primarily as a journalist.

Jo talks about the importance of being curious, and we learn that radio has been her first love. She explains why it sparks the imagination. We also learn about her political interests and leanings, and why politics is not just about Westminster. She has written a book called Why Vote? A guide for those who can’t be bothered – which details the work she has done to get people who wouldn’t normally vote to do so – and talks about why local engagement matters.

Jo then reveals how she got to work with Paddy Ashdown and she talks about the importance of his diaries. This was a time when Labour and the Lib Dems discussed working together, and Jo discusses why he was so good to work for and with during his time as Lib Dem leader and when he was High Representative for Bosnia. We talk about the Lib Dems punching above their weight in the 1990s. She talks about the preparation that Paddy Ashdown made for PMQs and the anguish they went through (she was his spinner) before going into the bear pit.

Jo recalls Paddy’s reaction when Tony Blair gave his first speech as Labour leader – ‘he’s bloody good, isn’t he?’ She talks about the price the Lib Dems paid in later years for the coalition with the Conservatives and she discusses why one can’t talk about right and left any more and why Britain’s influence in the world has diminished due to Brexit.

Jo is a farmer’s daughter and we find out where she got her interest in politics from. We move on to talk about the televising of Parliament and why she thinks the select committee system is so important.

Jo talks about how Boris Johnson’s motive for going into Parliament is different from that of most MPs, and we learn that Paddy Ashdown and Sir John Major became friends in later years. I ask her what happened behind the scenes between the party leaders, and she talks about how politicians were more human in those days. We talk about those unlikely friendships.

Jo studied English and Philosophy at the University of Kent and designed the artwork for the Freshers Handbook in 1973/4. She talks about the bands that came to campus in those days, including Captain Beefheart (there’s an hilarious story involving a bottle of Drambuie), Led Zeppelin and 10CC.

We find out how she ended up in journalism, and we discover that she was Michael Parkinson’s editor on LBC – or ‘Narky Parky’ as she called him. She talks about the guests who would come on the programme, including Anthony Burgess and Gore Vidal, and we learn why she calls Michael Parkinson the supreme interviewer.

Towards the end of the interview Jo talks about the challenge of being a commentator and we find out about the 11.31 Club. She discusses the importance of using one’s brain and why she always says yes when an opportunity arises.

Please note: Opinions expressed are solely those of Chris Deacy and Jo Phillips and do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the University of Kent.