Alas Vine & Hitchens

Gisele Pelicot and Performative Policing

Feb 25, 2026
They probe whether the Gisele Pelicot case signals a wider social problem and debate causes like internet culture and moral decline. They critique performative policing, spectacle arrests and how media publicity can prejudice justice. There is a sideways dive into changes in children’s fiction, a nostalgic run of wartime memories, and a joking plan for an octogenarian motorbike and leather jacket.
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ANECDOTE

Sarah Wore Her Contact Lenses In The Wrong Eyes

  • Sarah Vine shares a personal mishap of wearing contact lenses in the wrong eyes for about a year, suddenly improving her vision.
  • The story lightens the episode and explains her earlier poor ability to notice things like table colour.
INSIGHT

Internet Created Spaces For Group Sexual Deviance

  • The internet and pornography have amplified and socialised deviant sexual behaviour by creating chatrooms where perversions are shared and normalized.
  • Sarah Vine and Peter Hitchens point to Giselle Pelicot's case and online recruitment as examples of how groups coordinate acts they might never do alone.
INSIGHT

Sexual Crimes Stem From Power Not Just Sex

  • The drives behind sexual crimes often include assertions of power rather than mere sexual desire, making them a moral and social problem as much as a criminal one.
  • Both hosts connect the Epstein ring and drugging cases to power dynamics where perpetrators seek control and impunity.
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