History is littered with stories of espionage and its capacity to change the course of events. But does spying truly matter and has the human operative finally been replaced by the computer?
Ben MacIntyre, author of books including Agent Zigzag and The Spy and the Traitor, joins Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook to discuss the history of spying.
Learn more a ... Show More
Yesterday
702. Roman Civil War: The Barbarian Invasion (Part 2)
What was the ancient city of Rome actually like in the first century BC? Who was Lucius Cornelius Sulla, another great, but aristocratic, Roman general who would clash with Gaius Marius in a totemic struggle termed the Social War? And, who were the terrifying Germanic tribes amas ... Show More
1h 18m
Aug 30
701. Roman Civil War: Rise of the General (Part 1)
Who was Gaius Marius, one of the two men who would shape the fate of Rome in the first century BC? Why was his road to fame, fortune, and political greatness, from total obscurity, so dangerous? And, would Marius be the man to face down the existential threat facing the empire du ... Show More
1h 13m
Sep 2024
Philby, Fleming and Putin: A History of Spies
<p>Ed Vaizey interrogates the past, present and future of espionage, from moments that could have come from fiction to the reality of spying in the modern world. He speaks to former GCHQ director Sir David Omand and Lord Robin Renwick, former UK ambassador to the United States an ... Show More
43m 29s
Aug 2024
The Spy Who Defused the Missile Crisis | Unpacking the mind of a spy legend | 5
Few spies have motives as hard to decipher as those of Oleg Penkovsky. Was he a hero, an egotist or a madman? The Spy Who's Tristan Donovan sits down with Jack Basu-Mellish, host of the LSE Cold War Podcast, to discuss Penkovsky’s actions, plus the lessons to learn from the event ... Show More
38m 37s
Jun 2024
Invisible ink & toad poison: tools of Elizabethan spycraft
How did spies plot and plant information in Elizabethan England? How easy was it to break open a confidential sealed letter and, if necessary, forge its contents? And how high were the stakes? Speaking to Elinor Evans, Nadine Akkerman and Pete Langman discuss the tricks and tools ... Show More
34m 32s