SpyCast

Lethal Action - Understanding Poison with Neil Bradbury

Listen Later
Summary

Neil Bradbury (Website, LinkedIn) joins Andrew (X; LinkedIn) to discuss the deadly history of poison and espionage. Neil is an author and biochemist.  


What You’ll LearnIntelligence
  • How different poisons affect the human body 
  • The usage of poisons as a covert assassination method
  • The deaths of defectors Alexander Litvinenko and Georgi Markov
  • The Soviet Union’s Lab X and the production and research of poisons on the state level
    • Reflections
    • The double edge of creativity 
    • The necessity for research and experimentation
      • And much, much more …


      Quotes of the Week

      “In order to counteract lots of the poisons, you have to know how they work, and you have to be able to develop your own. So, yes, undoubtedly, Western governments are just as actively involved in creating these chemicals and also the antidotes to them.” – Dr. Neil Bradbury.


      Resources SURFACE SKIM*Spotlight Resource*
      A Taste for Poison: Eleven Deadly Molecules and the Killers Who Used Them, Neil Bradbury (St. Martin’s Press, 2022) *SpyCasts*
      • The Murder of an IRA Spy with Henry Hemming (2024)
      • I Helped Solve the Final Zodiac Killer Cipher with David Oranchak (2024) 
      • The North Korean Defector with Former DPRK Agent Kim, Hyun Woo (2023)
      • Spies: The Epic Intelligence War Between East vs. West with Calder Walton (2023)
        DEEPER DIVEBooks
        • Poison: The History of Potions, Powders and Murderous Practitioners, B. Hubbard (Welbeck Publishing, 2020)
        • Poison: A History: An Account of the Deadly Art and its Most Infamous Practitioners, J. Davis (Chartwell Books, 2018)
        • The KGB's Poison Factory: From Lenin to Litvinenko, B. Volodarsky (Zenith Press, 2010) 
          Primary Sources 
          • Press Release on the Poisoning of Alexei Navalny (2020)
          • Update on the Use of Nerve Agent in Salisbury, UK (2018)
          • The Litvinenko Inquiry (2016)
          • Situation Report on Piesteritz (1953)
          • Analysis of Madame Lefarge’s Arsenic Trial (1840)
            *Wildcard Resource*
            • This week’s companion song can only be Waterloo Sunset (1967) by The Kinks. 
            • Heralded as one of the most beautiful songs of the swingin’ sixties, “Waterloo Sunset” is appropriately incorporated into the title of Neil’s chapter on the assassination of Georgi Markov, which took place on London’s Waterloo Bridge. 

              • Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

              ...more
              View all episodesView all episodes
              Download on the App Store
              SpyCastBy SpyCast
              • 5
              • 5
              • 5
              • 5
              • 5

              5

              4 ratings

              More shows like SpyCast

              View all
              SpyCast by SpyCast

              SpyCast

              1,532 Listeners

              Dan Snow's History Hit by History Hit

              Dan Snow's History Hit

              4,807 Listeners

              Secrets and Spies Podcast: Espionage | Global Issues | Current Affairs by Secrets & Spies

              Secrets and Spies Podcast: Espionage | Global Issues | Current Affairs

              267 Listeners

              Darknet Diaries by Jack Rhysider

              Darknet Diaries

              8,047 Listeners

              TRIGGERnometry by TRIGGERnometry

              TRIGGERnometry

              2,120 Listeners

              WW2 Pod: We Have Ways of Making You Talk by Goalhanger

              WW2 Pod: We Have Ways of Making You Talk

              1,424 Listeners

              The Team House by dee takos

              The Team House

              1,645 Listeners

              True Spies: Espionage | Investigation | Crime | Murder | Detective | Politics by SPYSCAPE

              True Spies: Espionage | Investigation | Crime | Murder | Detective | Politics

              1,952 Listeners

              In Moscow's Shadows by Mark Galeotti

              In Moscow's Shadows

              372 Listeners

              SPYCRAFT 101 by Justin Black

              SPYCRAFT 101

              345 Listeners

              Short History Of... by NOISER

              Short History Of...

              2,836 Listeners

              NatSec Matters by Beacon Global Strategies LLC

              NatSec Matters

              268 Listeners

              The Spy Who by Wondery

              The Spy Who

              587 Listeners

              The Poppy Day Bomb | Times Investigates by The Times

              The Poppy Day Bomb | Times Investigates

              35 Listeners

              The Rest Is Classified by Goalhanger

              The Rest Is Classified

              1,004 Listeners