Aditya Chakrabortty

Where would be without zoom? In the last month I’ve heard a lecture by Pankaj Mishra, attended a seminar celebrating the anniversary of the pit strike, and had Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram educate me about the development of the North. And all without leaving the house. Just remarkable.

The most recent event was one of the best - Aditya Chakarbortty talking about the development of his journalistic career. He is, obviously, a nice, pleasant, intelligent person, which helps. He was fascinating about his family and childhood, and how his own attitudes have developed. It’s probably only in the last year that I’ve consciously sought out his pieces, been aware that he’s one of the stable of Guardian columnists I’m keenest to read. Because they’re familiar faces, sometimes enthusiasm can fade, and people whose views often coincide with mine become over time a bit too familiar, less of a priority to read.

But he’s arrived more recently, and what strikes me most powerfully is his insistence on how much lies beyond the vision of the two main parties. There are lots of people untouched by the mainstream political drama, and Chakrabortty rightly sees it as his role to illuminate these untold stories. In this he joins a growing army of commentators - John Harris, Neal Lawson, Owen Jones, Burnham and Rotheram, Rory Stewart - who suggest that our current political system is not fit for purpose and the urgent priority for all of us is to find something better - more locally responsive, less tied by party loyalty, and able to harness the energies of people who want to improve the lives of themselves and those around them.