Following on from the success of the BBC Sounds Free Fringe at last year’s Crossed Wires Festival, BBC Radio 4 have joined in the fun with a Free Fringe based in the (very warm!) Montgomery Theatre.
One of the live shows presented this year was Everything Is Fake (and Nobody Cares). In this BBC Radio 4 podcast, Jamie Bartlett (not to be confused with Steven Bartlett) explores fakery in its various forms and how the lines between what is truth and what is not is being more and more blurred.
In this live episode, journalist Gabriel Gatehouse interview Jamie Bartlett as he reflects on the series as a whole. Bartlett discussed some of his key findings, including how fakery started with WWE and how news media is not as regulated as it once was. He also introduces us to his AI co-host Jimmy Botlett, a custom-built model that Bartlett has built that sounds like him and answers questions as he would. This raises interesting concerns around AI and how difficult it can be to discern what is really human and what is AI.
Gatehouse comperes the hour long show well, always keeping the spotlight on Bartlett, whilst offering some of his own reflections when it adds something of value. Bartlett is an engaging speaker with lots of interesting insights to share. He also manages to explain complex information is a way that a generalist can understand and engage with.
The main downside of this live show, in comparison to other Crossed Wires Free Fringe shows, is that it was a retrospective on the podcast series rather than a new stand alone episode. This made it more challenging to fully engage for audience members, your reviewer included, who hadn’t listened to the podcast yet.
Reviewed on 5th July 2026
The Reviews Hub Star Rating
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6
