Coffee House Shots18 Sep 2025

Trump’s state visit was a ‘news bonanza’

Donald Trump has been in the UK this week on an unprecedented second state visit – an honour that he said last night at a state dinner he ‘hopes’ is reserved only for him, to much amusement in the room.

Humility doesn’t come naturally to the President, but he does seem genuinely humbled by the pomp and pageantry that comes with a state visit. Meanwhile, Trump-management and grandstanding on the world stage seem (bizarrely) to come naturally to the Prime Minister. Trump's visit – which threatened to be derailed by the sacking of the US ambassador Peter Mandelson over his association with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein – has been a welcome reprieve from the tumult of domestic politics for Keir Starmer’s Labour party.

A tech deal has been agreed which involves investment from US tech companies in the UK to the tune of several billion pounds; there was some soft diplomacy between the Princess of Wales and the First Lady today, and this afternoon’s press conference wasn’t totally sidetracked by questions about Mandelson... although there are clearly some tensions bubbling under the surface, mainly on energy policy, Palestinian statehood and Ukraine. Was the visit a success?

Oscar Edmondson speaks to Freddy Gray and Tim Shipman.

Produced by Oscar Edmondson.

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