Political Thinking with Nick Robinson
Mar 20, 2026 · 54 min · 23 segments
Few people have done more to shape politics in recent months than the Green Party Leader in England and Wales, Zack Polanski. In his Political Thinking debut, he tells Nick Robinson about his…
Zack PolanskiGuest
Nick RobinsonHost
You've gone from being almost entirely unknown, even here in Westminster, to being really rather famous.
I mean, it's been an absolute whirlwind, and it's been a tale of two parts really.
One part has been nothing but beautiful and inspiring for the amount of people who stop me on the street or on the tube, or even the other day I stopped at a red light on my bike and someone ran over to tell me they'd seen me on social media and they were from Canada.
And so there's lots of people who are saying that they're feeling hopeful for the very first time or for the first time in a long time, and that resonates with me because I feel hopeful too.
That's balanced, though, with how difficult things are in our country right now, the global turmoil that's happening around the world.
So yes, I'm having a great time, but also it's a responsibility I take really seriously.
Are there downsides, though, as people rush up to you on your bike or wherever you are? I mean, does it make it a struggle with your partner to go to the bar, even go shopping? Are there downsides to this sort of fame?
In the first or second week, I said to my boyfriend, uh, "Do you think I need to get a disguise like a cap and some sunglasses?" And I wore some and went walking around Walthamstow Wetlands, and I still got recognized.
He said it wasn't a very good disguise, but I was convinced that it was, you know, MI5, James Bond levels.
But it clearly wasn't, because almost within 30 seconds someone went, "Zac," and came over and chatted.
But after the conversation, I had a chat with my boyfriend where I said, "Why actually am I trying to disguise myself? I love [chuckles] speaking to people.
People hopefully enjoy speaking to me." And yes, if you're in a rush, it can be a little bit flustering if someone says, "Can I have a selfie?" And you wanna give everyone the best version of yourself, and also you're trying to get to an interview or get somewhere.
But 99.9% of the time I can say hand on heart I love it when someone comes and chats to me, so please keep doing it.
You've gone from being almost entirely unknown, even here in Westminster, to being really rather famous.
I mean, it's been an absolute whirlwind, and it's been a tale of two parts really.
One part has been nothing but beautiful and inspiring for the amount of people who stop me on the street or on the tube, or even the other day I stopped at a red light on my bike and someone ran over to tell me they'd seen me on social media and they were from Canada.
And so there's lots of people who are saying that they're feeling hopeful for the very first time or for the first time in a long time, and that resonates with me because I feel hopeful too.
That's balanced, though, with how difficult things are in our country right now, the global turmoil that's happening around the world.
So yes, I'm having a great time, but also it's a responsibility I take really seriously.
Are there downsides, though, as people rush up to you on your bike or wherever you are? I mean, does it make it a struggle with your partner to go to the bar, even go shopping? Are there downsides to this sort of fame?
In the first or second week, I said to my boyfriend, uh, "Do you think I need to get a disguise like a cap and some sunglasses?" And I wore some and went walking around Walthamstow Wetlands, and I still got recognized.
He said it wasn't a very good disguise, but I was convinced that it was, you know, MI5, James Bond levels.
But it clearly wasn't, because almost within 30 seconds someone went, "Zac," and came over and chatted.
But after the conversation, I had a chat with my boyfriend where I said, "Why actually am I trying to disguise myself? I love [chuckles] speaking to people.
People hopefully enjoy speaking to me." And yes, if you're in a rush, it can be a little bit flustering if someone says, "Can I have a selfie?" And you wanna give everyone the best version of yourself, and also you're trying to get to an interview or get somewhere.
But 99.9% of the time I can say hand on heart I love it when someone comes and chats to me, so please keep doing it.
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