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What a difference a week makes… Andy Burnham is now number one in a field of one, and planning to move a chunk of No.10 to Manchester. How is Labour adjusting itself to the Age of Andy? Is there more to Burnhamism than just vibes? What about Burnhanomics? And do the people really want a General Election or can they just not face one? Plus: Forgetting all the inexplicable rabid anger about “worst PM ever!!”, was Keir Starmer actually a good Prime Minister or not? We run the rule over his record. And in the Extra Bit for Patreon people, we've got three comics on the pod. Was Starmer good or bad for the jokes biz? • Get tickets for Ahir Shah's next show Golden. ESCAPE ROUTES • Hannah has been listening to the gorgeous dreamscapes of Skying by The Horrors. • Jason went to see the Marilyn Monroe exhibition at the National Gallery. • Matt and his nephew are collecting the M&S Panini football sticker album . • Ahir has been appreciating The Thong Song by Sisqo on many, many levels. • Questions for But Your Emails? Thoughts? Comments? Email us at ogwn@podmasters.co.uk. • This show is sponsored by CarVertical.com - Get 20% off any vehicle history check at carVertical.com/OhGodWhatNow www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow Presented by Matt Green with Hannah Fearn, Jason Hazeley and Ahir Shah. Audio Production by: Jade Bailey. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Tom Taylor and Simon Williams. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Ukrainian drone swarms have hit targets in major Russian cities, while disrupting its military assets and vital oil supplies. Could this be a turning point in the war more than four years after Russia's full-scale invasion began? Gavin Esler is joined by John Lough, senior research fellow at the New Eurasia Strategies Centre and associate fellow in the Russia Eurasia programme at Chatham House. • Special offer! Get 20% off any vehicle history check at carvertical.com/drill • Support us on Patreon to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
“We voted Brexit and all we got was this lousy podcast…” Ten years since the vote that sent Britain round the bend, could we finally break out of the trap of 2016? We're joined by the Obi Wan Kenobi of Brexit bloggers Chris Grey to look into the enormity of Pandora's Referendum. In a world so violently changed from 2016, is there hope for Britain to get back into the EU? Despite populism, are the stars aligning for the UK and the EU? And should anyone serious about reuniting Britain and the EU be talking about joining, not rejoining? As Raf says: “With a bit of political courage we could be in a very different debate.” • Want more on Brexit? Hear friend of the pod Anand Menon on The Reality of Rejoin on the latest Bunker – Apple and Spotify. • Read Chris Grey's blog Brexit and Brexitism. • Pre-order Jonn's new book 31 Inventions That Made Our World. • Questions for But Your Emails? Thoughts? Comments? Email us at ogwn@podmasters.co.uk. ESCAPE ROUTES • Jonn has been watching the Russell T. Davies drama Tip Toe. • Raf has been reading Fred Vargas's The Chalk Circle Man (in French, of course). • Ros has been reading The Charterhouse of Parma by Stendahl and enjoying The Archers podcast. • Chris Grey has been watching vintage spy drama Mr Palfrey of Westminster on the Classic British Telly YouTube channel. When you buy books through our affiliate bookshop you help fund the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org's fees help support independent bookshops too. • Special offer! Get 20% off any vehicle history check at carVertical.com/OhGodWhatNow. www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow Presented by Ros Taylor with Jonn Elledge and Rafael Behr. Audio Production by Robin Leeburn. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Tom Taylor and Simon Williams. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
As we sadly file away that ‘Keep Keir And Carry On' headline in the bottom drawer… Keir Starmer steps down and our panel look at what the Starmer era really means. Are we now in a world where petty politics will always trump service to country? Why was this decent, vaguely boring man so loathed in the country? Does this public bloodletting help or hinder Labour's existential battle against Reform? And why can't Britain hang on to its Prime Ministers? We're joined by Chris Grey, the don of Brexit bloggers to discuss it all. This is a special two-part split edition, enabling us to get you the Farewell to Keir Starmer portion of the pod as fast as possible. Be here tomorrow as our panel “celebrate” ten years of the Brexit Referendum that pitched Britain into a psychodrama it still can't escape. • Read Chris Grey's blog Brexit and Brexitism • Pre-order Jonn's new book 31 Inventions That Made Our World through our affiliate bookshop and you'll help fund the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org's fees help support independent bookshops too. • Questions for But Your Emails? Thoughts? Comments? Email us at ogwn@podmasters.co.uk. • Special offer! Get 20% off any vehicle history check at carVertical.com/OhGodWhatNow. www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow Presented by Ros Taylor with Jonn Elledge and Rafael Behr. Audio Production by Robin Leeburn. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Tom Taylor and Simon Williams. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Keir Starmer is expected to announce his departure from Downing Street, paving the way for Andy Burnham to become PM. But is a coronation the best thing for Labour or the country? Alex von Tunzelmann joins Jacob Jarvis to discuss this and the other key news stories to look out for this week. Back us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/bunkercast • Special offer! Get 20% off any vehicle history check at carVertical.com/TheBunker [[https://www.carVertical.com/TheBunker]] Written and presented by Jacob Jarvis with Alex von Tunzelmann. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The UFC spectacle at the White House showed a new level of trashy corruption from Trump. Why did he do it and why does he love the man behind the UFC, Dana White, so much? Jack Crosbie, senior writer at Rolling Stone, joins Chris and Jarv to discuss. Back us on Patreon – we need your help to keep going. Get ad free episodes, extra bits and merch We're now on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AmericanFrictionPod Follow us on social media: BlueSky Instagram TikTok Written and presented by Chris Jones and Jacob Jarvis. Video and audio editor: Chris Jones. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis Executive producer: Martin Bojtos. Artwork by James Parrett. Music: Orange Factory Music. AMERICAN FRICTION is a Podmasters Production. www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Our fast reaction to Burnham's victory in Makefield with the don of political commentators Steve Richards of Rock & Roll Politics talking to Andrew Harrison… Andy Burnham is heading back to Westminster after his landslide victory and despite dire warnings of a Reform surge, it wasn't even close. After an early-morning celebratory pint, is he now on a fast track for the keys to No. 10? Should Keir Starmer fight or throw in the towel? Is Burnham's coronation now inevitable? How big a blow was it all for Farage, Reform and the even-further-right Restore? Above all, what happens next? • Hear Steve on Rock & Roll Politics. • Special offer! Get 20% off any vehicle history check at carVertical.com/OhGodWhatNow. • Questions for But Your Emails? Thoughts? Comments? Email us at ogwn@podmasters.co.uk. www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow Presented by Andrew Harrison with Steve Richards. Produced by James Liddell. Audio Production by Tom Taylor. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Tom Taylor and Simon Williams. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Donald Trump has finally put pen to paper and signed an agreement to end the war he started. He quickly lashed out at the “bad people” criticising it – but is it even a deal or just a deal to try and get a deal? Plus: Lib Dem leader Ed Davey calls for a Brexit U-turn, Farage wants foreign nationals banned from social housing and archaeologists find a Stonehenge “prototype”. Rafael Behr joins Jacob Jarvis to unpack the biggest, weirdest and most under-reported stories from the past week. • Special offer! Get 20% off any vehicle history check at carVertical.com/TheBunker• Back us on Patreon – www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Jacob Jarvis. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. www.podmasters.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Trump has signed a deal agreeing to get a deal to end the war in Iran. He's claiming a major victory, but it's clearly a capitulation. Nikki, Chris and Jarv discuss. Back us on Patreon – we need your help to keep going. Get ad free episodes, extra bits and merch: https://www.patreon.com/c/americanfriction We're now on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AmericanFrictionPod Follow us on social media: BlueSky Instagram TikTok Written and presented by Chris Jones, Nikki McCann Ramirez and Jacob Jarvis. Video and audio editor: Chris Jones. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis Executive producer: Martin Bojtos. Artwork by James Parrett. Music: Orange Factory Music. AMERICAN FRICTION is a Podmasters Production. www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
News of the framework for a peace deal between Iran and the United States - if it holds - might be the beginning of the end of a conflict that has unsettled not just the Middle East and the world economy but also Washington's relationships with its allies. Even if President Trump claims some kind of victory in Iran - with stories about arguments and possible rifts between Trump and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, how far will the United States and Israel agree on the way forward? Gavin Esler is joined from Washington by Steven Cook, senior fellow for Middle East and African studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. • Support us on Patreon to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Surprise, surprise! The arson attacks on properties linked to Keir Starmer turn out to have been instigated by a Russian “diplomat” with a background in information warfare. Who'd have thought it? Has Vladimir Putin's shadow war finally crossed the line? Plus: Wes Streeting wants to scrap the ban on new fossil fuel production. The Greens are looking less green. The Lib Dems appear indifferent. And don't get us started on Reform's Richard Tice… So, is Ed Miliband the last true defender of net zero left standing? Special guest Sam Bright of Desmog talks us through the battle over clean energy. And in the Extra Bit, our panellists reveal their moments of meaningless happiness as an antidote to the doom and gloom. • Special offer! Get 20% off any vehicle history check at carVertical.com/OhGodWhatNow. • Questions for But Your Emails? Thoughts? Comments? Email us at ogwn@podmasters.co.uk. • Read Sam's Substack and latest DeSmog articles ESCAPE ROUTES • Rachel has been listening to Steven Mangan and his sister Anita on the BBC's Siblings Unpicked podcast • James has been playing a remake of the retro video game Final Fantasy VII • Sam has been dipping into England vs. New Zealand in the second test (between investigations) • Matt has been binging Shrinking, the Apple TV's hit from the makers of Ted Lasso on Apple TV+. www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow Presented by Matt Green with Rachel Cunliffe, James Ball and Sam Bright. Produced by James Liddell. Audio Production by Tom Taylor. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Tom Taylor and Simon Williams. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
What really triggered the horrific race riots in Northern Ireland earlier this month? Who were the agitators of the “modern-day pogrom” in which balaclava-clad rioters chased people from their homes and torched cars and buildings in overwhelmingly loyalist areas? Belfast-based journalist Amanda Ferguson was on the ground as the violence unfolded. She gives Gavin Esler her eyewitness account of the attacks, the aftermath and the mix of far-right agitation and experienced Loyalist paramilitaries behind these appalling scenes. • Back us on Patreon – www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Gavin Esler. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
What connects violent anti-immigration protests with a defence secretary resigning over a funding row with Number 10? The answer is social cohesion – and Britain isn't doing enough to protect it. A transnational campaign bringing together MAGA, Russian influence operations and the far right is actively targeting the very bonds that hold us together, says Dr Kate Ferguson, co-founder of Protection Approaches – a charity that campaigns against identity-based violence. Is this just a community relations problem or is something far more serious at play? Do we need to treat social cohesion as a full-blown national security emergency? Kate joins Rafael Behr to discuss how malign actors are attacking British society – and what we can do about it. • Back us on Patreon – www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Rafael Behr. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. www.podmasters.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Labour surprises everyone with a ban on Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X for the under-16. Critics say the “Australia Plus” regime is riddled with contradictions. Will it work, is it fair or is it just Starmer trying to look tough ahead of the Makerfield by-election? Andrew Harrison puts Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson on the spot and then our panel dig into the detail. Plus, the defence row and the resignations of John Healey and ex-Armed Forces Minister Al Carns continue to rock Labour. Could they derail Andy Burnham's plans to get back into Westminster? • Questions for But Your Emails? Thoughts? Comments? Email us at ogwn@podmasters.co.uk. ESCAPE ROUTES • Hannah went to the Inside Aardman: Wallace & Gromit and Friends exhibition at the Young V&A • Marie just finished Joseph Roth's classic The Radetzky March • Jonn has been reading the first in Patt Barker's acclaimed Regeneration trilogy • Seth took a pit stop at the iconic Literary and Philosophical Society during a trip to Newcastle www.patreon.com/ohgodwhatnow Presented by Seth Thévoz with Marie le Conte, Hannah Fearn and Jonn Elledge. Produced by James Liddell. Audio Production by Tom Taylor. Art direction: James Parrett. Theme tune by Tom Taylor and Simon Williams. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production. www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The West's naivete towards Putin in the 2000s cost us dearly. Now Russia's tyrant – a creature of the KGB/FSB who has returned his country to its roots as a repressive intelligence state – is attacking us with unprecedented ferocity and deviousness. Sean Wiswesser, ex-CIA station chief in the former Soviet Union, says the “reckless” activity of FSB and GRU agents has reached new heights. But can they be stopped – and can we win the intelligence war? He tells Andrew Harrison how intelligence and dirty tricks are inextricable from Putin's power; how the old skills of “tradecraft” persist alongside new digital tactics; and what really makes Russian intelligence tick. • Buy Sean's book Tradecraft, Tactics, and Dirty Tricks: Russian Intelligence and Putin's Secret War from our affiliate bookshop and you'll help fund the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org's fees help support independent bookshops too. • Back us on Patreon – www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Group Editor Andrew Harrison. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. www.podmasters.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Donald Trump says he alone can fix Washington — but is one unelected official actually running the show? Chris and Jarv are joined by journalist Andy Kroll to discuss the rise of Russell Vought, the budget chief using the Office of Management and Budget to quietly expand Trump's power from inside the White House. Back us on Patreon – we need your help to keep going. Get ad free episodes, extra bits and merch: https://www.patreon.com/c/americanfriction We're now on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AmericanFrictionPod Follow us on social media: BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/americanfric.bsky.social Instagram TikTok Written and presented by Chris Jones, Nikki McCann Ramirez and Jacob Jarvis. Producer: Jake Preston. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis Executive producer: Martin Bojtos. Artwork by James Parrett. Music: Orange Factory Music. AMERICAN FRICTION is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Wrapping up the stories of the week… Alex von Tunzelmann is joined by Jonn Elledge to examine the global response to the antisemitic Bondi Beach shooting and ask whether it signals a wider rise in the threat of terror attacks. Plus, how will resident doctor strikes affect the NHS as the flu wave intensifies? Jonn tries to work out if the unexpected drop in inflation is good or bad news for Rachel Reeves and crowns his winner and loser of the week.
Not long ago, China's pandemic response was met with deep scepticism in the West. But fast-forward just a few years, and the picture looks very different. China's bio-pharma industry is now booming, racing from low-cost manufacturing hub to serious contender in the global battle to create the next blockbuster drugs. China is rolling out vast new pharma facilities capable of producing next-generation medicines at a scale the West is struggling to match.Today on The Bunker, Gavin Esler speaks to the FT's China Technology Correspondent, Eleanor Olcott, to find out what this means for global drug development, competition, and who controls the future of medicine.
For more than a decade, Tommy Robinson has been written off again and again. Yet he keeps re-emerging, reshaped for the moment. From street agitator to convicted criminal to most recently, self-styled Christian crusader. Robinson has followed a familiar far-right playbook: collapse, reinvention, repeat. On The Bunker, Alex von Tunzelmann is joined by journalist Daniel Trilling to examine the staying power of Tommy Robinson and the strategy that keeps bringing him back. We look at the warning signs we missed and what Robinson's latest reinvention reveals about the durability, adaptability and danger of Britain's far-right ecosystem.
From 9/11 and the wars that followed to the expenses scandal, the Financial Crash, austerity, Brexit and a carousel of leadership crises, Westminster has spent the last 25 years governing through upheaval. Since 2000, crisis has shifted from disruption to default setting, with governments reacting rather than governing and institutions stretched well beyond their limits. Prof. Andrew Hindmoor, author of Haywire, talks to Zoë Grünewald about how British politics got stuck in crisis mode and what we can do about it.
The stories that will shape the week ahead: How will the atrocity at Bondi Beach reverberate in a world where antisemitic violence is rising? Plus: the shocking murder of Hollywood director Rob Reiner and his wife. Junior doctors decide whether to strike as Britain hits peak winter flu. Will Phase Two of the Gaza peace talks stay on the rails? And happy 250th birthday to Jane Austen. Alex von Tunzelmann and Andrew Harrison set out the week ahead.
Wrapping up the stories of the week… Alex von Tunzelmann is joined by LBC host Natasha Devon to break down Keir Starmer's latest approach to tackling the migration crisis. Across the pond, we take a look at Trump's ongoing campaign against the EU and ask”why now”? Plus, Natasha shares her view on the proposed ban on social media for under-18s, we read your comments from the week, and finally we take a look at the stories that have gone under the radar.
Personality politics isn't just a modern problem – it started centuries earlier with an aristocrat called Charles James Fox. You can trace the roots of modern political celebrity back to this 18th-century provocateur, whose charm, scandals and theatrics helped redefine what leadership looked like. Fox built a movement around himself rather than his policies, offering an early blueprint for the dangerous style of politics reshaping democracies today. Alex von Tunzelmann speaks with Dr Callum Smith of Aberystwyth University about Fox's rise and how history helps us understand the dominance of modern figures like Trump and Farage.
Nigel Farage continues to react furiously to growing allegations that he engaged in racist and antisemitic bullying when he was a pupil at Dulwich College in the late '70s and early '80s. But are his angry response and his attempts at diversion doing the real damage? And can you really judge an adult on what they may have done at school? Long-time Reform-watcher Michael Crick joins us to explore a crisis unlike anything Farage has faced before. His verdict? “Farage is as rattled as a baby's pram.”
Far fewer people are getting into relationships than they were in the past, with a major rise in the amount of single people across the world. Why are we seeing this so-called “relationship recession”? And how can it impact us all? Jonathan Rosenthal, international editor at The Economist, wrote about this for a magazine cover story recently and joins Zoë Grünewald to discuss.• Head to https://www.nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get a £30 voucher and 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Zoë Grünewald. Audio production: Tom Taylor. Producer: Liam Tait. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Setting out the stories of the next seven days. An astonishing new US National Security Strategy says Trump plans to support far-right parties across Europe and makes the racist “great replacement” conspiracy theory into official US policy. Having ruined America, does the President want to Trumpify the planet? Plus, the colossal scale of COVID waste and fraud, Reform's record-breaking donor gift, Tommy Robinson's Christmas carols… and Keir Starmer's got a Substack. Ros Taylor and Andrew Harrison look the events that will shape the week. • Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get a £30 voucher and 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production: Simon Williams. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Artwork by James Parrett. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison.THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Wrapping up the stories of the week… Jacob Jarvis is joined by Rafael Behr to break down the stalled US–Russia peace talks, Putin's strong-arming, and what Trump's shaky negotiating team tells us about the state of American power. Back in Westminster, they dig into the fallout from the OBR's budget leak and what it all means for Labour's economic credibility. Plus: Trump's latest embarrassing moment caught on camera, Raf's heroes and villains, and the story that slipped under the radar this week. • Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social • Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out moreWritten and presented by Jacob Jarvis with Rafael Behr. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Simon Williams. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Design by James Parrett. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Office for Budget Responsibility is supposed to be the calm, quiet body that keeps watch over Britain's public finances. But after it accidentally released its Budget analysis before Chancellor Rachel Reeves delivered her statement, its chair Richard Hughes resigned and the watchdog suddenly became the lead story. Today on The Bunker, Seth Thévoz is joined by economist and former Treasury adviser Giles Wilkes to ask: what exactly is the OBR, and why does this low-profile institution hold so much power over the UK economy? • Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social • Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out more.Written and presented by Seth Thévoz. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio producer: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Design by James Parrett. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
He's a nightmare made flesh for progressives and liberals: an anti-woke, hyper-libertarian tech billionaire who bankrolled JD Vance, supports Curtis Yarvin's anti-democracy “Dark Enlightenment” movement, and seems to base his worldview on the worst parts of Lord Of The Rings. But lately Peter Thiel has been getting even weirder, warning of the rise of an actual Anti-Christ who wants to “end science”. What is going on? Thiel-watcher James Ball of The New World magazine joins Andrew Harrison to explain the odd philosophy of this superpowered misfit. • Now hear Thiel's biographer Max Chafkin interviewed by Andrew on Apple and Spotify – or search “Bunker Supervillain Billionaire” on your favourite app. • Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get a £30 voucher and 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production: Robin Warren. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Artwork by James Parrett. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
We usually think radicalisation is something that happens to young people. Teenagers doomscrolling in dark bedrooms, or twenty-somethings disappearing into algorithmic rabbit holes. But look around, and the picture feels very different. The loudest voices in the culture wars, the Facebook fire-starters, the men who seem permanently furious in comment sections and group chats. They're in their 40s, 50s, even older, and they're getting swept up in a digital storm they were never taught to navigate. Today on The Bunker, Zoë Grünewald is joined by Dr Sara Wilford, Associate Professor at De Montfort University, to explore why people in mid-life are becoming increasingly vulnerable to online radicalisation and what this shift means for the rest of us. • Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social Written and presented by Zoë Grünewald. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Design by James Parrett. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
It's December, so come open this week's Advent Calendar of misery with Ros Taylor and Gavin Esler. Is the Mail/Telegraph frenzy over Rachel Reeves allegedly misleading the Commons over Britain's finances just a mountain out of a molehill? How is the Budget fallout settling? Does David Lammy really want to bring trial by jury to an end for all but the most serious cases? Oh, and having failed to stop one war in Ukraine, will Trump manage to start one in Venezuela before Christmas? God bless us, every one!• Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get a £30 voucher and 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Ros Taylor with Gavin Esler. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Artwork by James Parrett. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Wrapping up the stories of the week… Jacob Jarvis and Seth Thévoz dig into the media's reaction to Rachel Reeves's budget and what it really tells us about the state of Labour. We break down the latest twist in the Trump/Russia saga after the collapse of the so-called “peace plan”, and look at The Guardian's continuing coverage of Nigel Farage's racism accusations from his school days. Plus, Seth names his winners and losers of the week, we take a closer look at the power players behind AI and online moderation and so much more. • Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social • Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out more.Written and presented by Jacob Jarvis with Seth Thévoz. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Design by James Parrett. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The US-Russia “peace plan” isn't happening. Days after the 28-point proposal leaked, it collapsed spectacularly amid accusations that it amounted to a surrender to Putin. Is there anything left in the “amended” version? And who really wrote the proposals? Luke Harding, foreign correspondent for The Guardian and author of Invasion explains why the plan was simply a Russian foreign policy offensive with Trump as its salesman, whether the whole episode has made Zelenskyy stronger, and if peace is will ever get closer. • Buy Luke's book Invasion: Russia's Bloody War and Ukraine's Fight for Survival through our affiliate bookshop and you'll be helping the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org's fees help support independent bookshops too.• Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social • Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out moreWritten and presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Tom Taylor. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Design by James Parrett. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Anticipation is building around the imminent release of the “Epstein files.” With Donald Trump finally signing off, the Justice Department is expected to publish long-sealed documents on the disgraced financier, and the public is bracing for answers. But what should we actually expect? Today in The Bunker, Seth Thévoz talks to journalist and author Vicky Ward, who has reported on Epstein for over two decades, to see whether the files finally confirm any of the rumours or just pour more fuel on the conspiracy bonfire.Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out moreWritten and presented by Seth Thévoz. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editors: Tom Taylor. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
A pocket-sized device that contains all knowledge in the universe? Which makes your life better, and not a hellscape of political rancour and surveillance capitalism? Come off it! Never happen. But that's exactly what Douglas Adams imagined as the titular device in The Hitch-Hiker's Guide To The Galaxy, the cosmic road novel that changed the minds of a generation.As a new immersive theatre version of “HHGTTG” opens in London, its creator Arvin Ethan David tells Andrew Harrison why Douglas Adams was the digital Wodehouse who would have held back enshittification… whether Elon Musk is Zaphod Beeblebrox … and why you still need to know where your towel is. • Get tickets for The Hitch-Hiker's Guide To The Galaxy at the Riverside Studios, Hammersmith, London until 15 Feb 2026 at hitchhikerslive.com.• Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get a £30 voucher and 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production: Robin Warren. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Artwork by James Parrett. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
It's a big week for Starmer and Reeves as the Budget looms. How's it going to go down? Plus, talks over a plan to end the war between Russia and Ukraine continues, Trump gets a new best friend and Cop30 ends on a disappointing note. Rafael Behr and Jacob Jarvis discuss the news to look out for this week. Support us on Patreon for episodes ad free and early: www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social www.patreon.com/bunkercast • Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get a £30 voucher and 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included. Written and presented by Jacob Jarvis with Rafael Behr. Audio production: Simon Williams. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
As the Epstein walls close in on Trump, the President pulls a desperate U-turn and says he wants the release of files he tried to suppress. How will they be redacted, and to save whom? Plus Labour's latest attempts to look tough on migration, the Cloudflare outage, Russia bombs railway lines in Poland and shines lasers at the RAF… and why Trump's “Quiet, piggy” outburst is hurting him more than his usual slob misogyny would. Jonn Elledge and Andrew Harrison wrap up the stories that mattered this week. • Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get a £30 voucher and 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.• We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Artwork by James Parrett. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
For years China has been cast as a climate villain, responsible for roughly a third of global greenhouse gas emissions. But China's emissions have begun to level off and the country has quietly become a powerhouse in clean-energy. Today on The Bunker, Gavin Esler is joined by Barbara Finamore, Senior Visiting Fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies and author of Will China Save the Planet to find out if China's clean-energy model is the future everyone else will have to follow — or a path too politically uncomfortable for the rest of the world.Buy Barbara's book Will China Save the Planet through our affiliate bookshop and you'll be helping the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org's fees help support independent bookshops too.Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.• We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to https://indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out more.Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Writer-artist Joe Sacco created a new kind of journalism when he combined on-the-ground reportage with painstaking hand-drawn illustration. His award-winning books including Palestine and Safe Area Gorazde brought under-reported stories to new audiences. In his absorbing new book The Once And Future Riot he travels to Uttar Pradesh, India, to explore the causes and consequences of the bitter religious and political violence that consumed the area in the 2010s. He talks to Andrew Harrison about life as a conflict cartoonist, creativity vs A.I., and how “comics journalism” can do things the TV news never can. • Buy The Once And Future Riot through our affiliate bookshop and you'll help fund The Bunker by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org's fees help support independent bookshops too.• Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get a £30 voucher and 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.• We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production by Robin Leeburn. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Artwork by James Parrett. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Next year is shaping up to be a year of uncomfortable truths. Rich countries are spending way beyond their means, the A.I. bubble could be about to burst, and global conflicts are drifting further into dangerous territory. But it may also be a turning point for the planet as we confront these challenges head-on.Today on The Bunker, Seth Thévoz is joined by Tom Standage, deputy editor of The Economist, to take a look at The Economist's The World Ahead 2026 issue and find out what these trends mean for politics, the global economy and the human race. Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.• We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to https://indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out more.Written and presented by Seth Thévoz. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Starmer's position remains in question after a week of chaos and the announcement of controversial new asylum plans. Can the narrative shift? Rafael Behr joins Jacob Jarvis to discuss this and more as they outline the news to look out for this week. Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.• We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to https://indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out more.Written and presented by Jacob Jarvis. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Welcome back to the Weekly Wrap-Up, where we break down the biggest news, the weirdest stories, and the important bits that slipped under the radar. Today on The Bunker, Jacob Jarvis and Rafael Behr dig into Starmer's briefing war with Wes Streeting, unpack the latest revelations from the Epstein files, and ask the big question: could the BBC survive a billion dollar lawsuit from Donald Trump?Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.• We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to https://indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out moreWritten and presented by Jacob Jarvis. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editors: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
What if the incel problem is a symptom of something bigger in our society? We regularly pin misogyny on villains like Andrew Tate, the loud, memorable faces of a much darker problem. But what do we do if the real issue runs deeper than a few influencers? Today on The Bunker, Zoë Grünewald sits down with Katherine Denkinson, author of INCEL The Weaponization of Misogyny, to ask, how do we solve the incel problem?Buy Katherine's book Incel: The Weaponization of Misogyny through our affiliate bookshop and you'll be helping the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org's fees help support independent bookshops too.Head to nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included.• We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to https://indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out moreWritten and presented by Zoë Grünewald. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Trump and Xi Jinping's fractious relationship is one of the most important connections in the world. As each side fights for dominance, who appears to be on top at the moment – and why? And what is shaping how they behave? Seth Thévoz is joined by Elizabeth Economy, author of The World According to China and By All Means Necessary: How China's Resource Quest is Changing the World, a former Senior Advisor for China at the US Department of Commerce and a senior fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution.Buy By All Means Necessary: How China's Resource Quest is Changing the World through our affiliate bookshop and you'll be helping American Friction by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org's fees help support independent bookshops too.• Head to https://www.nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get a £30 voucher and 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included. • We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to Indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Seth Thévoz. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Amid the multi-trillion dollar stampede to build and control A.I., one question is being drowned out: Will artificial intelligence kill the entire human race, and all life on the planet? Nate Soares is president of the Machine Intelligence Research Institute and co-author of a chilling exploration of the race to create artificial super-intelligence, If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies. He tells Andrew Harrison why the concept of an omnicidal super-A.I.is not just an outside possibility from sci-fi but almost a certainty – why the A.I. boosters' safeguards won't work – and what we must do if we are to survive as a species. Buy If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies through our affiliate bookshop and you'll be helping The Bunker by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org's fees help support independent bookshops too.• Head to https://www.nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get a £30 voucher and 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included. • We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to Indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit.www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production by Robin Warren. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The BBC's Director General and head of news are forced to resign in a confected row about Donald Trump's incendiary Jan 6 speech. Overdue accountability for mediocre leaders, or a successful drive-by from lifelong enemies of the BBC – and dangerous interference in British democracy from Trump? Plus, Rachel Reeves' budget plans crystallise, COP30 shows the dire state of climate action, the junior doctors' strike… and Somerset Dracula rises from his grave. Ros Taylor sets out the week ahead with Andrew Harrison. • We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. • Head to https://www.nakedwines.co.uk/thebunker to get a £30 voucher and 6 top-rated wines from our sponsor Naked Wines for £39.99, delivery included. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production: Simon Williams. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
NEW: If you like Start Your Week's look ahead, how about a round-up of the biggest, strangest, most important stories of the week, every Friday? On today's debut edition: What Zohran Mamdani's win in New York really means. “Vibe coding”. The heroism of train attack defender Samir Zitouni. Rachel Reeves' pre-budget nerves. And what the hell has Donald Trump done to the White House this week? • Read Spencer Ackerman's excoriating obituary of Dick Cheney. • We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Andrew Harrison and Alex von Tunzelmann. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production by Robin Leeburn. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
John le Carré was still a working secret agent when he wrote The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, the book that shocked the Britain of 1963 with its portrait of espionage not as heroic but as sordid, morally compromised and utterly without glamour. In comparison James Bond's escapist world of girls and gadgets seemed naive and shallow. As a new stage adaptation of The Spy opens, its playwright David Eldridge talks to Andrew Harrison about adapting le Carré's deep, dark vision for 2025 – why he expanded the role of George Smiley – and what The Spy has to say about the West's new Cold War with Putin.• The Spy Who Came In From The Cold runs @sohoplace Theatre in London's West End from 17 Nov-21 Feb, ahead of a major UK tour in 2026. Tickets are available from https://spyonstage.com/• We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Andrew Harrison Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production by Robin Warren. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
It's been a year since Trump's election victory, how has US politics changed? What's the trajectory? And is there any hope for the future? Emma Kennedy is joined by Casey Burgat, author of We Hold These "Truths": How to Spot the Myths that are Holding America Back and director of the Legislative Affairs program at the Graduate School of Political Management at George Washington University, to discuss. Buy We Hold These Truths: How to Spot the Myths That Are Holding America Back through our affiliate bookshop and you'll help fund The Bunker by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org's fees help support independent bookshops too.• We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to https://indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social Written and presented by Emma Kennedy. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editors: Robin Warren. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The MAGA cult's idol worship is the fuel for Trump's war on American democracy. As British politics lurches to the right, could something similar ever happen here? Could violent racist nationalism and conspiracy thinking build a know-nothing cult of personality that would threaten our society?Prof Roger Griffin is one of the world's top experts on the dynamics of fascism and emeritus professor in Modern History at Oxford Brookes University. He explains the crucial differences between American populism and the British far-right… why a movement doesn't have to be strictly fascist to threaten a liberal democracy… and what ordinary citizens can do to hold back the authoritarian mob. • We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to Indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit.www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production: Robin Warren. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.