Meet the WME agent driving the success of a wave of podcasts about British politics

EXCLUSIVE: The intelligence agents, the rest is political, The rest is history And Political currency are taking the UK podcast world by storm lately and one man connects them all: Alex Bewley.

Podcast Supremo founded WME’s digital division in London a decade ago and has focused almost exclusively on the audio format in recent years. Last year, his team’s methods began to pay off in earnest, with Bewley having a front-row seat to the overwhelming success of informal political talk shows. The intelligence agents And The rest is political, which continues to dominate the weekly UK charts. The former is hosted by ex-BBC heavyweights Emily Maitlis and Jon Sopel, who dig deep into the daily talking points in the current business world, while the latter sees the odd combination of former Labor Party spin doctor Alastair Campbell and former Conservative Party minister. Rory Stewart took it seriously. political currency, in which two former chancellors from both sides of the political divide discuss how the economy has only just begun to deliver strong ratings.

“You recognize trends to a certain extent, but we would never have imagined the extent to which these shows have grown,” Bewley tells Deadline. “No one could see his success The rest is political Come for example.”

Bewley’s WME team represents Gary Lineker’s Goalhanger as well as Persephonica, the indie behind those shows, and was instrumental in their success. The intelligence agents Creator Dino Sofos recently praised him for having his “finger on the pulse of challenges and gaps in the market”, while Goalhanger founder Tony Pastor said his team provided “excellent support”.

In extolling the disastrous ratings of this new breed of programming, Bewley contrasts the brilliant talent of the presenters with the growing consumer appetite for “edutainment” and points to the long-term success of Calm is political predecessor The rest is history on both sides of the pond.

“I hear this term more and more often,” he adds. “Data shows that people want to listen to pods that make them smarter and want to learn from them.”

There’s even more reason to cheer as producers examine the data showing that elusive younger demographics are tuning in to such shows The rest is political Bewley explains that topics that were “historically considered a bit dry” are becoming more popular among 18-24 year olds, rather than just the more traditional 25-34 age group.

Bewley likens their overwhelming success to how digital content creators – some of whom represent his team – can get off the ground. “The extent to which they explode is unimaginable,” he says. “And then it’s about maximizing the opportunities for our clients so they have the best opportunity to have creative control, own as much of our intellectual property as possible and explore opportunities with the best possible partners.”

When it comes to WME Digital, IP really is king. The team of ten people from LA, New York and London will turn twenty next year. “WME lifer” Bewley founded the UK office ten years ago after cutting his teeth in the agency’s music department.

At the time, WME was looking for the new generation of digital creators emerging outside of traditional television, particularly on YouTube, and Bewley was keeping a close eye on trends in the United States.

“Networks invested in YouTube and we saw an opportunity to offer our customers what we now offer in podcasts,” he adds. “The US was always a year or two ahead of the UK, so we were able to talk to colleagues, give the UK an insight into how the market has developed and try to achieve parity in deals where possible.”

A few years later he focused almost exclusively on podcasts and founded a major UK football podcast The football step his first. Other hits include those of Idris and Sabrina Elba pairing And Dua Lipa: at your service.

View of the United States

Bewley still keeps an eye on events across the dam like clockwork and recently helped out The intelligence agents Introducing an American spin-off.

“It had to make sense to break into the US for this particular podcast,” he explains. “In terms of news, it makes sense [to look to the U.S] with an upcoming election. And our limited series strategy is to really maximize the US portion of it to drive sales.”

Bewley is now increasingly working with agents in the US to provide local support to certain UK customers. “We’re not signing a podcast in Australia based on the business there, we want to use the flywheel of WME and Endeavor to grow that business in the US, UK and other territories.”

Bewley’s team is relatively unique in that it is completely open-minded, whether representing talent, shows or indies, and motivated by the pursuit of intellectual property in a market that is slowly maturing. Producers such as Sofos who have entered the market intelligence agents Last year, creator Persephonica decided to partially manage companies to own the rights to their shows, and WME represents Persephonica rather than the individual podcasts or talent.

“For us it was never a land grab. We are keen to work with those partners where we can add value,” adds Bewley. “The best thing about podcasting is that it’s a relatively new medium in which you can choose your own path. It’s one of the few mediums that allows someone to start a show from scratch and go straight to the top of the charts.”

The short to medium term is about cross-promotion, adaptation for other media and social media, adds Bewley. He sees huge opportunities in the live space as he encourages clients to incorporate social media much earlier in the production process and seek syndicated content deals to monetize shows on platforms like Facebook and Snap.

“Social strategy is now at the very beginning of the group,” he adds. “We are thinking about whether there is a way to release it on YouTube and whether we can edit segments for TikTok. It can play an important role in generating income.”

Currently, his team is heavily focused on “what we can do outside of podcasts to keep audience engagement high.”

“Getting back to digital creators, we didn’t know how long they lived 10 to 12 years ago, and we can say the same for a podcaster,” he concludes. “That’s why it’s our job to think outside the box for our clients, whether it’s TV adaptations, grand tours or international literary adaptations. The chance is always high.”