Shows / The West Wing Weekly
The West Wing Weekly
From The West Wing to The Diplomat to All the President's Men, we discuss works of political television and film. Co-hosted by Joshua Malina (The West Wing, Scandal) and Hrishikesh Hirway (Song Exploder).
Episodes
The West Wing Weekly4.09: Swiss Diplomacy (with Kevin Falls and Eli Attie)
Eli Attie (@EliAttie) and Kevin Falls (@KevinFalls) are our guests to talk about the “break glass in case of emergency” writing that went into “Swiss…
The West Wing Weekly4.08: Process Stories (with Joanna Gleason)
Stock up on Cheetos, because Joanna Gleason (@TheRealJGleason) is our guest and she’s got a drinking game - sorry, an eating game - for anyone who loves to…
The West Wing Weekly4.07: Election Night (with Clark Gregg)
As the characters anxiously await election results and Donna tries to swap votes with Christian Slater, Josh and Hrishi interview Clark Gregg (@ClarkGregg)…
The West Wing Weekly4.06: Game On (with Rob Lowe, Bradley Whitford, and Joshua Malina)
Hrishi and Josh welcome special guest Joshua Malina to talk about Joshua Malina’s first episode as Will Bailey. [fanfare] With special appearances by Bradley…
The West Wing Weekly4.05: Debate Camp (with Ronald Klain)
To discuss the Bartlet Administration's debate camp, we're joined once again by Ronald Klain, who has been in charge of debate prep for every Democratic…
The West Wing Weekly4.04: The Red Mass
Pretty much one long “ai yi yi.” For more, visit thewestwingweekly.com/404 Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
The West Wing Weekly4.03: College Kids (with Aimee Mann and Fmr. Secretary of Education John King, Jr.)
This week, we’re joined by former Secretary of Education John King, Jr. (@JohnBKing) and Aimee Mann (@aimeemann) to discuss “College Kids”. For more, visit…
The West Wing Weekly4.02: 20 Hours in America, Part Two (with Christopher Misiano)
Josh and Hrishi discuss second part of Season 4 premiere with episode director, Christopher Misiano. West Wing Weekly love episode! For more, visit…
The West Wing Weekly4.01: 20 Hours in America, Part One (with John Gallagher, Jr.)
Our discussion of Season 4 begins! We’re joined by John Gallagher, Jr., who made his Sorkin debut in the premiere, years before he would go on to star in The…
The West Wing Weekly4.00: President Bartlet Special (with Martin Sheen)
Martin Sheen joined Josh and Hrishi for a conversation about The West Wing, The American President, Aaron Sorkin, and more. For more, visit…
The West Wing Weekly0.04: Big Block of Cheese III (with 99% Invisible)
Before we dive into Season 4, we're answering some pressing listener questions like: why hasn't Martin Sheen been on the podcast yet? Plus questions about…
The West Wing Weekly3.22: Posse Comitatus (Live with Aaron Sorkin, Allison Janney, and Melissa Fitzgerald)
To discuss the Season 3 finale, we traveled to San Francisco to record a live episode at the Castro Theatre. We'd announced the show would be with a special…
The West Wing Weekly3.21: We Killed Yamamoto
Josh and Hrishi discuss a few conflicts central to this episode and its making: Amy vs Josh, President Bartlet vs moral absolutes, and script deadlines vs…
The West Wing Weekly3.20: The Black Vera Wang (with Mark Harmon)
We’re joined by Mark Harmon to discuss all things Simon Donovan. Our interview with him spans the rest of Season 3, so if you're watching The West Wing for the…
The West Wing Weekly3.19: Enemies Foreign and Domestic
A correction: Eli Attie's teacher, Mrs Morello, is alive. A reminder: Paxton Whitehead, who played Bernard, is also alive. Josh and Hrishi discuss Russians…
The West Wing Weekly3.18: Documentary Special (with William Couturié)
This week, Josh and Hrishi speak with the director of The West Wing Documentary Special episode. For more, visit thewestwingweekly.com/318. Learn about your ad…
The West Wing Weekly3.17: Stirred (with Eli Attie and Fmr Deputy Labor Secretary Chris Lu)
This week we're joined by Chris Lu (@ChrisLu44), who served as the White House Cabinet Secretary during the first term of the Obama administration and the…
The West Wing Weekly3.16: The U.S. Poet Laureate (with Television Without Pity and David Wade)
We’re joined by two of the co-founders of the website Television Without Pity, Tara Ariano (@TaraAriano) and Sarah D. Bunting (@TomatoNation), to discuss the…
The West Wing Weekly3.15: Dead Irish Writers (with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau)
In light of Donna's brief time as a Canadian in “Dead Irish Writers,” we’re honored to be joined this week by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau…
The West Wing Weekly3.14: Hartsfield's Landing
This week, our discussion ranges from chess and poker games, to code switching, to West Wing Weekly themed fart machines. All this, plus Josh, the master…
The West Wing Weekly3.13: Night Five
To get some real-world insight into the Sam/Ainsley/Celia scene in Night Five, we invited three West Wing Weekly listeners – Amy Carlson, Jamie Lynn Crofts…
The West Wing Weekly3.12: The Two Bartlets (with Blanche Sindelar)
President Bartlet and his father; CJ and her father; Bob Engler and his father…this episode is the Dada of Dada issues. And Josh and Hrishi talk to Blanche…
The West Wing Weekly3.11: 100,000 Airplanes (with Dr. Leo Mascarenhas)
This week, we’re joined by Dr Leo Mascarenhas, the Deputy Director of the Children’s Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases and the Section Head of Oncology at…
The West Wing Weekly3.10: H. Con-172
Is Cliff Calley actually a good guy? Hrishi thinks it’s obvious. Josh thinks he’s not so great. Meet us in the Georgetown Law Library so we can discuss. For…
The West Wing Weekly3.09: Bartlet for America (with John Spencer)
To accompany our discussion of "Bartlet for America," we're thrilled to present an interview with John Spencer, who won an Emmy for his performance. We talk to…
The West Wing Weekly3.08: The Women of Qumar (with Allison Janney and Fmr UN Ambassador Sarah Mendelson)
This week's episode gets a bit dark, as does our discussion of it. We're honored to have two amazing guests. We learn more about the realities of trafficking…
The West Wing Weekly3.07: The Indians in the Lobby (with W.G. Snuffy Walden)
Thanksgiving! Native Americans! Turkey! Foodborne illness! Hrishi's dad! All this, plus we present the recording of our live interview with Emmy-winning West…
The West Wing Weekly3.06: Gone Quiet
Our discussion of this episode takes many a twist and turn: from the NEA to JFK, from Star Trek to Eddie Murphy. Plus, Toby's confession that he is no fan of…
The West Wing Weekly3.05: War Crimes (with Fmr. UN Ambassador David Pressman)
David Pressman is the former US Ambassador to the United Nations and was the first-ever Director for War Crimes and Atrocities on the National Security Council…
The West Wing Weekly3.04: On The Day Before (with Janel Moloney)
For this episode, we're joined once again by Janel Moloney (@NellyMoloney), who was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Emmy in part for her performance in…
The West Wing Weekly3.03: Ways and Means (with Eli Attie)
We’re joined again by our friend Eli Attie, the former speechwriter to Al Gore who went on to join The West Wing in Season 3. Eli has a ‘story by’ credit on…
The West Wing Weekly3.02: Manchester, Part II (with Connie Britton)
Josh and Hrishi are joined by Connie Britton (@conniebritton) to discuss the second half of the Season 3 premiere. I made a joke about Freudian slips in the…
The West Wing Weekly3.01: Manchester, Part I
The Season Three premiere has a dense script, and an enormous production to match. Josh and Hrishi try to sort their way through it all without making any…
The West Wing Weekly3.00: Isaac and Ishmael (with Ajay Naidu and Fmr Press Secretary Mike McCurry)
This is a controversial episode of The West Wing, and one that falls outside the regular storyline of the show. We hash out our conflicting opinions on it to…
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2.22: Two Cathedrals (Part II, with Aaron Sorkin and Kirsten Nelson)
Aaron Sorkin joins Josh and Hrishi for our final episode of Season Two, to talk about his experience writing "Two Cathedrals." Plus, Kirsten Nelson…
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2.22: Two Cathedrals (Part I, with Lawrence O'Donnell and Mary Graham)
We present the first of two episodes of our podcast discussing the Season Two finale. In this episode, we're joined by West Wing writer / producer Lawrence…
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2.21: 18th and Potomac (with Oliver Platt)
It's the penultimate episode of Season 2. Oliver Platt (@OliverPlatt) joins Josh and Hrishi to discuss his role as Oliver Babish…
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2.20: The Fall's Gonna Kill You (with Marlee Matlin)
Marlee Matlin (@MarleeMatlin) joins Josh and Hrishi to discuss her role as Joey Lucas. Along with her interpreter, Jack Jason (@655Jack), she pranked us pretty…
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2.19: Bad Moon Rising
Before we get into Oliver Babish and the Big Hammer, and Donna Moss and the Secret Pumpkin, we start with a much needed follow-up to our discussion of autism…
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2.18: 17 People (with Richard Schiff, Emily Procter, Rebecca Walker)
We've got 7 people for "17 People." Richard Schiff (@Richard_Schiff) talks to us about Toby's journey, and the origins of the Spalding ball. Emily Procter…
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2.17: The Stackhouse Filibuster (Live with Bradley Whitford)
Josh and Hrishi are joined by Bradley Whitford (@WhitfordBradley) for the first-ever live taping of a West Wing Weekly episode, recorded at the Marines'…
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2.16: Somebody's Going to Emergency, Somebody's Going to Jail (with Rob Lowe)
Sitting here in the darkness I’ve gotta post the show Somebody’s joining us this episode Somebody named Rob Lowe We found somebody to explain free trade Cuz…
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2.15: Ellie (with Nina Siemaszko)
In this episode, we look at the uncomfortable contiguity of Bartlet the President and Bartlet the Dad. Along the way, we discuss zeugma, gloriosky!…
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2.14: The War At Home
Stockard Channing was nominated for an Emmy based on her performance in this episode. Though her performance in the first part of this two-part arc was also…
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What's Next? featuring Lin-Manuel Miranda [clean]
The West Wing Weekly presents an ode to The West Wing. Hrishi made a beat, an extended remix of our podcast’s intro theme, for the biggest West Wing fan we…
- The West Wing Weekly
What's Next? featuring Lin-Manuel Miranda [explicit]
The West Wing Weekly presents an ode to The West Wing. Hrishi made a beat, an extended remix of our podcast’s intro theme, for the biggest West Wing fan we…
- The West Wing Weekly
2.13: Bartlet's Third State of the Union (with Don Baer, Fmr. White House Communications Director)
In this episode, we're joined by Don Baer, who was the chief speechwriter for President Bill Clinton, to tell us what it's really like to write a State of the…
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0.03: Big Block of Cheese II
For the last episode of the year, we answer listener questions in our 2nd edition of The West Wing Weekly Big Block of Cheese Day. Thanks so much for listening…
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2.12: The Drop In (with Kim Webster)
Forget the popcorn, we got Ginger! Kim Webster joins us to talk about the fortuitous path that led her to the role. So affix your signature and seal, baby —…
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2.11: The Leadership Breakfast
When we spoke to Emily Procter (episode 2.04), she told us a story about a lunch meeting she had with Tommy Schlamme that had an unexpected twist. We've been…
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2.10: Noël (with Bradley Whitford and Ellen Totleben)
(sung to the melody of "Carol of the Bells") Hark! oh my gosh Hrishi and Josh Discuss Noël Puns and intel Ellen Totleben Tells us laymen All that you see Was…
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2.09: Galileo
At this extremely historic moment, we present a very unique episode. (Wow, that really is some terrible writing.) In this episode, we bone up on our Mars with…
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2.08: Shibboleth
The pressure is on as we discuss one of Hrishi's all-time favorite episodes. Will his feelings be spared by Josh, or will they be placed on the chopping block…
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2.07: The Portland Trip (with Secretary of the Army Eric Fanning, Congressman Brendan Boyle, and Fmr. Congressman Steve
For "The Portland Trip," we try to slip the surly bonds of Earth. We are, in turns, lifted and dragged down by our feelings. In honor of Josh Lyman's…
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2.06: The Lame Duck Congress (with Dave Chameides)
How ya doin, Dalai Lama? In this episode, we're joined by steadicam operator Dave Chameides to talk about the complex choreography of the shooting a walk and…
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2.05: And It's Surely to Their Credit
Loosen your tie. Loosen whatever you'd like. But don't get it twisted: leaf peeping is totally a thing. thewestwingweekly.com/episodes/205 Learn about your ad…
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2.04: In This White House (with Emily Procter and Ambassador Deborah Birx)
Ginger, get the popcorn, because we're joined by Emily Procter (@emilyprocter) to talk about her first appearance on the West Wing as Ainsley Hayes. Plus, for…
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2.03: The Midterms
While you may be mistaking this for your monthly meeting of the Ignorant Tight-Ass Club, it's in fact the weekly meeting of the West Wing TV Book Club. (The…
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2.02: In The Shadow of Two Gunmen, Part II (with Bradley Whitford and Michael O'Neill)
In Part II of our double header, Bradley Whitford (@WhitfordBradley) makes his West Wing Weekly debut to talk about getting the role of Josh Lyman, and…
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2.01: In The Shadow of Two Gunmen, Part I (with Thomas Schlamme)
"In the Shadow of Two Gunmen" was the Season 2 premiere of the West Wing. The two-part episode aired as a special 2-hour broadcast. In honor of that, here's…