The Bunker – Your daily news Deep Dive

You might have seen a flurry of alarming headlines and articles about bird flu in recent weeks. Some reports are comparing it to COVID-19, and positioning it as the next potential worldwide pandemic. How concerned should we be? Alex Andreou asks Devi Sridhar, Professor and Personal Chair in Global Public Health at the University of Edinburgh. 

• “Previously, you’d have to be in very close proximity with an infected bird. That is changing. For the first time, we have now confirmed cow to human transmission – that is a signal that something is different here.” – Devi Sridhar 

• “It’s like a lottery. There are millions of viruses circulating among animals.” – Devi Sridhar

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Written and presented by Alex Andreou. Producer: Eliza Davis Beard. Audio editor: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson and artwork by James Parrett. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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Brits have a bad reputation abroad – but what about Britain as a whole? To discuss how other countries look at Britain, Rafael Behr speaks to FT journalist Michael Peel, author of What Everyone Knows About Britain (*Except the British). 

• “Looking at Britain from overseas made Brexit easier to see coming.” – Michael Peel 

Buy What Everyone Knows About Britain (*Except the British) 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.

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Written and presented by Rafael Behr. Producer: Eliza Davis Beard. Audio editor: Simon Williams. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson and artwork by James Parrett. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Instagram | Twitter  

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In your round-up of the week ahead… Rishi Sunak warns that the UK is about to face its most dangerous years ever. The Israeli assault on the Gazan city of Rafah is imminent. And, what does Russia’s new incursion into Ukraine north of Kharkiv mean? Plus, the Trump trial continues with testimonies scheduled from his former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen. And why were EU flags banned from the Eurovision finale?   

• “Rishi Sunak says the challenges of the next few years are so enormous and so scary that only Conservative innovation and Sunak’s own bold ideas can help us face it.”  – Ros Taylor   

• “Sunak is undoubtedly trying to distract attention from the state that the country is in. If you look at what’s going on in Russia, the NHS will look less depressing.” – Ros Taylor  

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Written and presented by Andrew Harrison with Ros Taylor. Producer: Eliza Davis Beard. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. 

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Britain and America’s link is often called the “special relationship”. But is it that special anymore – or is it actually pretty one-sided? Angus Hanton is a businessman and entrepreneur and the author of Vassal State: How America Runs Britain. He argues that the relationship has changed for the worse – and that Britain has become the 51st state of the United States at great cost to its economy. He joins Gavin Esler in The Bunker to discuss. 

Buy Vassal State: How America Runs Britain 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’re being taken over at scale and the government doesn’t care.” – Angus Hanton 

• “I think this has contributed to our impoverishment and higher tax rates.” – Angus Hanton 

If you want more US politics – listen to our new podcast American Friction, out every Friday in the run up to November’s election. Available here, or wherever you get your podcasts. 

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Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. 

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Swearing is a part of life. But is there a place for it in politics? Would Parliament function better if politicians were allowed to use a bit more profanity? Alex Andreou discusses this with Philip Seargeant, senior lecturer in applied linguistics at The Open University and author of The Art of Political Storytelling.

• “Swearing always has a purpose.” – Philip Seargeant

• “The idea that language can be particularly harmful has come more from the younger generation.” – Philip Seargeant 

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Written and presented by Alex Andreou. Producer: Eliza Davis Beard. Audio editor: Simon Williams. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson and artwork by James Parrett. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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Starmer’s referencing of Thatcher has enraged the left – but is it anything beyond symbolic politicking? And is he really Thatcherite at all? Andrew Harrison speaks to Robert Saunders, a reader in modern British history at Queen Mary University of London, about the legacy of Thatcher and how it ties in with modern Labour policy. 

• “It’s worth remembering that Margaret Thatcher herself borrowed ideas from the left.” – Robert Saunders

• “I think Thatcher would be quite alarmed by what she would see in a Reeves-Starmer manifesto.” – Robert Saunders 

• “Truss and Sunak were giving two different memories of Margaret Thatcher in the last Tory leadership contest… it was like two branches of the same religion.” – Robert Saunders 

• “Margaret Thatcher has become a myth. And the nature of myths means every generation can give different tales about them.” – Robert Saunders

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Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Audio editor: Jade Bailey. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson and artwork by James Parrett. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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Rishi Sunak is trying to spin his local election trouncing as best as he can – what bluster should we ignore this week? Plus, the latest from Gaza as Israel strikes Rafah. And, the Trump trial rolls on – while Xi visits Europe for the first time in five years. Alex Andreou talks Jacob Jarvis through the week ahead.  

• “There’s a sort of electoral ruthlessness to the Labour Party at the moment.” – Alex Andreou 

• “Sunak should call an election, he won’t, but he should.” – Alex Andreou  

• “If Sunak should do something then that usually suggests he won’t do it.” – Jacob Jarvis 

• “This is a critical moment for Netenyahu.” – Alex Andreou  

• “There is a weird mix of entitlement and scattergun strategy going on from Trump in his court case.” – Jacob Jarvis 

Want to hear more about the American election? Then listen to our new podcast, hosted by Jacob Jarvis, ‘American Friction’ – out every Friday in the run up to November’s vote.  

We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to Indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit. 

Support us on Patreon.

Written and Presented by Jacob Jarvis with Alex Andreou. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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Is “fandom” one of the drives behind our dysfunctional politics? That’s the thesis of Dr Phoenix Andrews new book I Heart Politics – who writes about how people power is behind a series of quake moments in recent political history. He joins Andrew Harrison to discuss whether the phenomenon and power of fandom is overlooked in contemporary politics, and how the fandoms of politicians like Trump, Farage and Thatcher affect the cultural zeitgeist.

• “The world feels mad, but finding people with a common passion is uplifting.” – Dr Phoenix Andrews

• “Political fandom is basically Eurovision with consequences.” – Dr Phoenix Andrews

We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to Indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit.

Buy Phoenix Andrew’s book I Heart Politics: How People Power Took Over the World 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.

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Written and Presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: Adam Wright and Liam Tait. Audio Production: Robin Leeburn. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music: Kenny Dickinson. Artwork: James Parrett. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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The brand new podcast from the makers of The Bunker. Bewildered by the US Presidential Election? Don’t worry, American Friction has got you. Every Friday Chris Jones, Jacob Jarvis and Nikki McCann Ramírez of Rolling Stone join expert special guests to count down to America’s most rancorous election in generations. 

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Written and presented by Chris Jones, Jacob Jarvis and Nikki McCann Ramírez. Audio editor: Simon Williams. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Executive producer: Martin Bojtos. Artwork by James Parrett. Music: Orange Factory Music. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production

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Fox News is regularly criticised for being sensationalist, full of conspiracies and obsessed with Trump. But, what’s it like if you really watch it for hours on end? Jacob Jarvis did just that and he talked to Dan Cassino, a political scientist at Fairleigh Dickinson University and author of: Fox News and American Politics: How One Channel Shapes American Politics and Society, about what he saw. What is the channel, which has been America’s most watched cable news station for twenty years, really all about? 

• “What’s happened over the years to Fox News is it’s turned into something akin to a celebrity gossip magazine.” – Dan Cassino 

• “If you come to the US Fox News is on wherever you are and that’s how it’s meant to be consumed… with about 30% of your brain.” – Dan Cassino 

• “We’re still living in the world that Fox News Created.” – Dan Cassino 

We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to Indeed.com/bunker for £100 sponsored credit.  

Support us on Patreon.

Written and presented by Jacob Jarvis. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Artwork by Jim Parrett. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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