Hettie O’Brien

Hettie O’Brien

@hettieobrien.bsky.social

Writer at the Guardian: First Edition and Guardian Long Reads | Author of THE ASSET CLASS

15.5K followers1K following181 posts

Hettie O’Brien
@hettieobrien.bsky.social

My latest Guardian long read is about the people trying to get their ideas into Britain’s new government and whether Burnham is really prepared to be that radical. Grateful to the many people who spoke to me for this - read it online or in Saturday’s paper: www.theguardian.com/news/ng-inte...

theguardian.comLabour’s last chance? The people shaping Andy Burnham’s grand plans for BritainThe long read: The new prime minister has declared he wants to end 40 years of neoliberalism. But is he really prepared to be that radical?

Hettie O’Brien reposted

Martin Heneghan
@martinheneghan.bsky.social

Truly excellent long read here from @hettieobrien.bsky.social on the people, their ideological camps, and their ideas shaping Burnham's govt. A lot of work must have gone into this, talking to a broad range of insiders & experts. Hats off to some great journalism! www.theguardian.com/news/ng-inte...

theguardian.comLabour’s last chance? The people shaping Andy Burnham’s grand plans for BritainThe long read: The new prime minister has declared he wants to end 40 years of neoliberalism. But is he really prepared to be that radical?

Hettie O’Brien reposted

Libby Brooks
@libbybrooks.bsky.social

Such a brilliant newsletter from my co-pilot @hettieobrien.bsky.social on why tech companies might be only too happy for the public to believe AI will kill us all www.theguardian.com/world/2026/s...

theguardian.comWednesday briefing: Why tech companies might be only too happy for us to believe AI will ‘kill us all’In today’s newsletter: It is hard to tell fact from fiction when it comes to AI. What is really going on – and what should the government do about it?

Hettie O’Brien reposted

George Monbiot
@georgemonbiot.bsky.social

It is always the same betrayal: the public interest is sacrificed for the sake of immensely wealthy people. And Andy Burnham has already gone and done it. My column on how Burnham needs to defy the ultra-rich if he's not to follow Starmer out of the door. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

theguardian.comAndy Burnham has already made a mistake that will cost him his premiership: he lost his nerve over political donations | George MonbiotBeing subservient to the interests of the wealthy now means that his hands are tied, and he will be unable to tackle Britain’s most pressing issues, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot
Hettie O’Brien
@hettieobrien.bsky.social

Today’s newsletter is about a subject I’ve been obsessing over for some time. It’s an environment story, a finance story, and a story about how people feel about politics in general www.theguardian.com/world/2026/s...

theguardian.comWednesday briefing: ​What’s behind the global backlash against datacentres?In today’s newsletter: Communities from Scotland to India are pushing back against datacentres, warning they threaten energy supplies and the climate

Hettie O’Brien reposted

Brett Christophers
@brettchristophers.bsky.social

Penguin has a page up for my new book, coming Feb 2027, HOUSE SOCIETY The epigraph is from Kenneth T. Jackson's famous "Crabgrass Frontier": "... no society can be fully understood apart from the residences of its members" The book is an exploration and affirmation of that thesis!

penguin.co.ukHouse SocietyThe world is in the midst of a deep and worsening housing crisis. It has caused rents to soar in Britain, millions to protest in Spain, and a government to collapse in Sweden. Under a global ideology ...
Hettie O’Brien
@hettieobrien.bsky.social

This morning’s First Edition is about the desperate attempts to make Ceuta look like an “invasion” - and how the EU’s border policies mean this is bound to keep happening. With @trillingual.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/world/2026/a...

theguardian.comWednesday briefing: ​How misinformation and ​a​ hardened immigration policy ​turned Ceuta ​into Europe’s ​latest ​flashpointIn today’s newsletter: The past week shows how quickly images, rumours and ​right-wing political opportunism can eclipse the facts on the ground
Hettie O’Brien
@hettieobrien.bsky.social

This morning's First Edition is about how a vocal minority of climate skeptics is responding to intense heat and trying to convince politicians that climate action isn't popular (it is) www.theguardian.com/world/2026/a...

theguardian.comTuesday briefing: Inside the right’s heated climate-denial debateIn today’s newsletter: A small chorus of right-leaning critics are trying to convince politicians that climate action is deeply unpopular, downplaying its seriousness in the process

Hettie O’Brien reposted

Libby Brooks
@libbybrooks.bsky.social

Here she is! The fabulous @hettieobrien.bsky.social is joining myself and Michael Segalov writing our daily newsletter First Edition - today she's written about MPs vs mega-donors www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...

theguardian.comWednesday briefing: ​Do MPs have the will to stop mega-donors interfering in UK politics?In today’s newsletter: The representation of the people bill has become a test of whether ​Britain can curb the surge in billionaire‑backed ​donations trying to influence how we run the country
Hettie O’Brien
@hettieobrien.bsky.social

First Edition has been one of my favourite Guardian sections since its creation: the newsletter provides vital context to big stories and helps readers understand the ideas shaping our world. I’m really excited to get cracking (I’ll still be writing Guardian Long Reads, too).

Hettie O’Brien reposted

Robin Wigglesworth
@robinwigglesworth.ft.com

Hettie was great, and her book is great. Buy her book!

Hettie O’Brien@hettieobrien.bsky.social

I spoke to @robinwigglesworth.ft.com and Gillian Tett for the FT's The Story of Money podcast about William Simon - fearsome bond trader, devout Republican… and arguably the godfather of private equity. Listen to the episode here: www.ft.com/content/33c2...

ft.comThe 1980s Garfield buyout that changed corporate financeIt was a conservative Catholic from the Nixon administration who launched the private equity industry

Hettie O’Brien reposted

Robin Wigglesworth
@robinwigglesworth.ft.com

Here's The Story of Money's episode on the OG leveraged buyout, the abrasive former Treasury Secretary who put it together, and how it launched the modern private equity industry, wonderfully told by @hettieobrien.bsky.social. NB also features Garfield the Cat.

ft.comThe 1980s Garfield buyout that changed corporate financeIt was a conservative Catholic from the Nixon administration who launched the private equity industry
Hettie O’Brien
@hettieobrien.bsky.social

£1 in every £11 spent on UK public contractors goes on private equity - a galling statistic in this excellent bit of reporting from my colleagues @michaelgoodier.bsky.social @c-aguilargarcia.bsky.social and others www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

theguardian.com‘Financial pandemic’: £1 in every £11 spent on UK public contractors goes to private equityAlmost £24.4bn of government money went to private equity-run firms in year to April 2025, Guardian analysis shows

Hettie O’Brien reposted

Kathryn Schoon
@kathrynschoon.bsky.social

I wrote my first ever book review !! And it’s of @hettieobrien.bsky.social’s fantastic debut book The Asset Class !! 📚

Hettie O’Brien@hettieobrien.bsky.social

Thank you to @prospectmagazine.co.uk for including THE ASSET CLASS in this roundup of books to read in June! www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/culture/book...

prospectmagazine.co.ukBooks in Brief: what to read this JuneFrom the first Great Depression to the price of success for women in Hollywood, here are this month’s short reviews
Hettie O’Brien
@hettieobrien.bsky.social

Some of the most exciting thinking about political economy in Britain has come out of PERC. Its closure is a huge loss and an indictment of the state of UK academia www.goldperc.uk/project_post...

goldperc.ukLooking back on PERC - Political Economy Research CentreThe Political Economy Research Centre is to close formally this summer. Here, founding Director, Will Davies, reflects on its twelve years of activity. It took two or three years before the causes, ef...
Hettie O’Brien
@hettieobrien.bsky.social

A vital piece from @georgemonbiot.bsky.social. Private equity has been quietly cashing in on children in care for some time - and the results, in many cases, have been catastrophic. Thanks for the shoutout to THE ASSET CLASS www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

theguardian.comHorrific, unregulated, and very profitable. The companies making cash from England’s children in care | George MonbiotCouncils are sending vulnerable kids to homes ran by money-grabbing cowboys and private-equity vultures, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot

Hettie O’Brien reposted

katharinapistor.bsky.social
@katharinapistor.bsky.social

Today in London! Looking forward to the conversation eith @hettieobrien.bsky.social and @mathewlawrence.bsky.social

Hettie O’Brien@hettieobrien.bsky.social

Tomorrow I'll be in conversation with @katharinapistor.bsky.social and @mathewlawrence.bsky.social at October Gallery in London. So excited for this - there are a couple of tickets left if you haven't got one luma.com/cqhnrkr2

luma.comThe New Laws of Capitalism: Katharina Pistor and Hettie O’Brien in conversation with Mathew Lawrence · LumaUnelected financiers quietly buy up public assets, from hospitals to housing, and turn them into wealth-generating capital. They get away with this because of…