The Bunker – Your daily news Deep Dive

Open warfare between British citizens is “inevitable” according to Elon Musk. Farage says “I don’t think anybody in London even understands how close we are to civil disobedience on a vast scale.” New Reform convert Nadim Zahawi says we’re entering “a dark and dangerous chapter”. Where is all this talk coming from? Why are the Right so keen on these apocalyptic ideas? And beyond all the hysteria, what really triggers civil wars? Political commentator and author Phil Tinline tells Andrew Harrison about the reality behind the fever dreams of civil war… and when we really were close to fighting one another. 

• Buy Phil Tinline’s Ghosts Of Iron Mountain 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.

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Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production: Tom Taylor. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Artwork by James Parrett. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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If racism is supposed to be in retreat in Britain, why does it feel so much harder to ignore? We like to see ourselves as a tolerant, post-multicultural country, yet that story jars with a reality in which racial hostility feels more visible: spread across social media and validated by politicians. But is this really a rise in racism, or the effect of heightened scrutiny driven by the internet?

Today on The Bunker, Zoë Grünewald is joined by Rahul Sambaraju, Lecturer in Psychology at City St George's, University of London, and Simon Goodman, Associate Professor at De Montfort University to ask: is racism becoming more acceptable in the UK?

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Written and presented by Zoe Grunewald. 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.

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One year into Donald Trump’s second term, 2026 is already looking worse than 2025. In just its opening days, the White House has intervened militarily in Venezuela, seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker in the North Atlantic, and revived threats to take Greenland by force. All of this unfolds alongside a faltering economy, violent ICE raids, slipping poll numbers, and the unresolved Epstein files.

Alex von Tunzelmann is joined by Dr Casey Burgat, Legislative Affairs Program Director at George Washington University and author of We Hold These "Truths",  to look at where this presidency goes next, and what a year defined by invasion and escalation could mean for American democracy.

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Buy Casey’s book We Hold These "Truths" How to Spot the Myths that are Holding America Back 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.

Written and presented by Alex von Tunzelmann 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.

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Hundreds are killed by the Iranian government as the country erupts into its most serious rebellion since the Woman Life Freedom protests of 2022. Will Iran finally overthrow its theocratic oppressors? And will Trump intervene now he’s decided that not only Venezuela and Greenland but Cuba too are subject to his whim? Plus: financing Britain’s defence against Russia, is the pubs “bailout” really a bailout, and will Labour ban X? Ros Taylor and Andrew Harrison set out the stories of the week ahead. 

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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.

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Wrapping up the stories of the week, Jacob Jarvis is joined by Alex von Tunzelmann to dig into the fallout from Trump’s frenetic first week of 2026. From military intervention in Venezuela to the looming threat to seize control of Greenland, the President kicks off America’s 250th year with a bang. Plus, should Remainers be getting excited about Keir Starmer’s plan to reset the UK’s relationship with the EU? And finally, Alex’s under-the-radar story takes us to Texas, where a proposal to ban the teaching of Plato has become the latest front in the culture war. 

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Written and presented by Jacob Jarvis with Alex von Tunzelmann. 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.

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The human cost of Russia’s war on Ukraine is staggering, yet the war continues and Vladimir Putin’s position has barely shifted. Despite mounting attrition and international pressure, Moscow shows no sign of backing down. Today on The Bunker, Chris Jones is joined by Ian Garner, historian and author of Z Generation: Into the heart of Russia's fascist youth, to examine the scale of the losses and ask what “peace” would actually look like now.

• Buy Ian’ book Z Generation: Into the heart of Russia's fascist youth 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.

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Written and presented by Chris Jones. 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.

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Elon Musk destroyed Twitter, tarnished the reputation of Tesla, and his financial backing of far fight politics has tipped the scales towards authoritarianism across the globe. Now he has his sights set on his next target: higher education. 

This week on The Bunker, Alex von Tunzelmann is joined by Beth Singler, assistant professor in digital religions at the University of Zurich, to examine Musk’s push to use AI as a replacement for traditional universities. What gets lost when education is stripped of human judgement?

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Written and presented by Alex von Tunzelmann 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.

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Turning around Labour’s unpopularity would be a tall enough order for the Prime Minister. But the stakes are higher than ever with a far-right government waiting in the wings, Trump and Putin shredding the international rules-based order, and the economy refusing to recover. Can Starmer turn it around in 2026? Steve Richards, political commentator and presenter of the Rock’n’Roll Politics podcast , explains the Prime Minister’s make-or-break year to Andrew Harrison.

• Listen to Rock’n’Roll Politics for more from Steve Richards. 

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Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio production: Tom Taylor. 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 

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Well, the year has started with chaos and conflict. With Trump meddling with Venezuela and beyond, how will these events play out? Rafael Behr joins Jacob Jarvis to discuss the weeks and months ahead as 2026 shapes up to be another big year. 

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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.   

ENDS   

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It’s the last of our Best of 2025 and the final Bunker of the year! And how better to see off/kick out the year than with the thing that’s blighted the last twelve months, crappy artificial intelligence imagery? The far-right stuffs your feeds with blond white children at play, London as an open sewer patrolled by threatening migrants, and Trump as Superman – but why? Is A.I. slop the official art style of the new authoritarianism?

New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie talks to Andrew Harrison about why the radical right loves shiny, sentimental images; how they connect to Hitler’s fascist kitsch; and what it means when reality doesn’t live up to your fantasies.

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Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Audio production by Chris Jones and Robin Warren. Produced by Liam Tait. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Art by Jim Parrett. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.