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 events of the Cold War. Can the history books really be trusted?
Listen to The Sp ... Show More
Aug 2024
The Spy Who Sold Peace to the IRA | Ballots Not Bullets | 2
<p>Stuck with a wayward handler, MI5 agent Willie Carlin hunts for a way out, only to get sucked deeper into the Irish republican movement.</p><p><br></p><p>Listen to The Spy Who ad-free on Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting ... Show More
39m 15s
Jun 2025
Frenemies: Russia & the USA, a History
<p>For nearly half a century, the United States and Russia stood as adversaries, entrenched in a tense geopolitical rivalry known as the Cold War. Yet this period represents only a brief chapter in the broader, more complex history of their relationship...</p><br><p>In this episo ... Show More
1h 3m
Mar 2024
Did the Cold War Ever End?
<p>Would the Cold War have happened if the nuclear bomb was never created? How did Gorbachev, Reagan and Thatcher reduce tensions between the East and West? And, according to one of the Russian authorities' most wanted journalists, how are echoes of the Cold War felt today?</p><b ... Show More
56m 27s
Nov 2023
Introducing: A History of the World in Spy Objects
The Enigma Machine. The B2 stealth bomber. The poisoned-tipped umbrella. Napoleon’s Briefcase of Secrets. As long as there has been conflict, there have been spies, and as long as there have been spies, there have been incredible gadgets and iconic objects. These are the stories ... Show More
1m 30s
Feb 2025
The Man Who Stopped WWIII
In 1983, the Cold War escalated to new heights after the Soviet Union mistakenly shot down a passenger jet, Korean Air Flight 007, killing all 269 people on board. Just weeks later, Russian Lieutenant Colonel Stanislav Petrov was on duty when the nuclear missile detection system ... Show More
39m 37s