Bestselling author and sustainability expert Mike Berners-Lee and journalist and campaigner Jennifer Nadel will bring a live, urgent public conversation on political truth and democratic honesty to Oxford this month, asking whether places like Oxford can still be anchors for truth in an age of misinformation.
The Truth in Politics Show comes to The North Wall, Oxford, on 27 January, 2026 at a time when trust in politics is collapsing and political deception is increasingly treated as a tactic rather than a scandal.
The live show blends conversation, evidence and audience participation. It is not party-political and not a traditional book talk. Instead, it asks a sharper question: what happens to a democracy when truth becomes optional, and how can citizens reclaim it?
Mike Berners-Lee said:
“If we lose our grip on what’s true, we lose our ability to solve anything, from climate breakdown to economic fairness. Oxford has always been about evidence, challenge and clarity. This is about bringing those values back into public life, where they urgently belong.”
Jennifer Nadel added:
“Political lying doesn’t stay abstract. It corrodes trust, fuels division and leaves people feeling powerless. Oxford should be exactly the kind of place where honesty can thrive, where difficult truths are faced rather than dodged, and where citizens are treated as adults in a democratic conversation.”
Oxford has long been associated with rigorous thinking, public debate and intellectual honesty. The show explicitly explores whether universities, cultural spaces and civic institutions can once again act as places where truth is tested, defended and shared beyond elite circles.
Following a sold-out pilot, The Truth in Politics Show is part of a growing programme taking honest political discussion out of Westminster and into theatres and community spaces across the UK.
The evening will be hosted by Mike Berners-Lee and Jennifer Nadel, alongside Jessica Townsend, founder of MP Watch, with audience questions at its heart. We expect that there will be notables who live in Oxford attending.
Event details
The Truth in Politics Show
Tuesday 27 January 2026
The North Wall, Oxford
Tickets: https://www.thenorthwall.com/whats-on/the-truth-in-politics-show/
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