The Fourcast

This was a day we knew would come, but which somehow remained inconceivable. The Queen, the only monarch most of us have ever known, has died at 96. 

Today, we will hear from some of the many tributes from around the world, as we enter a period of historic mourning for our monarch. And speak with the Royal Historian Ed Owens about this moment in our history, what we can learn from the past as we enter a completely new present without a Queen whose reign was historic in so many ways.

Sources: AP Archive

A nation constantly under the threat of a much larger power.

A nation with an invasion always at the back of its mind.

A nation that does have allies, but is still not sure whether those friends will help if war comes.

Taiwan, on the face of it, appears just like Ukraine.

But with tensions rising in the region because US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi could make a controversial visit there this week, any future conflict would engulf the two great superpowers of this century - the US and China.

In today’s episode of the Fourcast, our International editor Lindsey Hilsum puts the current flare up into context as geopolitics comes to terms with a future where Beijing is King.

Sources: AFP News Agency, NewsNation, NowThis News

Producer: Freya Pickford

Thousands of people are jetting off on their first holiday abroad in three years, but will you actually make it to your destination? 

Cancelled flights, hour-long delays, never-ending queues -  this was not the postcard ending we were promised.

So is our travel industry in chaos?

Today, Minnie Stephenson speaks to travel journalist and international global trotter Andy Mossack  about why our airports are under the most pressure they’ve ever experienced.

Sources: ITV News, France 24, Al Jazeera

Producer: Rachel Evans

Inside the Houses of Parliament, they make the rules for the rest of us but, with claims of harassment and bullying, is it time Westminster got its own house in order?

After an exclusive Channel 4 News investigation reveals claims of bullying and sexual harassment in Parliament, right across the political spectrum, we spoke to our presenter and Investigations Editor Cathy Newman about the scale of misconduct in Westminster.

(The testimonies you will hear have been voiced by actors) 

Produced by: Nina Hodgson

We’re down to the final two. We know our next Prime Minister will be either Liz Truss or Rishi Sunak.

But what will the party and country look like with someone new at Number 10?

And is this simply a coronation for a leader who is set to lose the next election whenever that might be?

Today, our political editor Gary Gibbon details what to expect from the weeks ahead in the Tory leadership election - and whether the party is ready to properly start a new chapter after Brexit, Covid and Boris - or whether the Tories need time in the wilderness to find their bearings.

Sources: LBC

Producer: Rachel Evans

The hearings into the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6th 2021 are yet to finish and the revelations have been stunning.

But the hearings are just one issue among many right now in America: the end of Roe versus Wade, an increasingly conservative Supreme Court, and a Donald Trump who still looms large. 

On Today’s episode we’re in Washington DC with Christine Emba, a columnist and editor at the Washington Post to talk about what all this could mean for not just November's elections, but the future of American democracy.

Produced by: Freya Pickford

Sources: CBS News, Washington Post, US Pool/Congress Committee

Donald Trump’s slogan ‘America First’ wasn’t just about nationalism at home, it also meant isolation abroad. So, Joe Biden was always clear when he came into power that America was back on the world stage, no longer the unpredictable supower that it was under Trump.

In this episode we speak to the Atlantic Council’s Christopher Preble, who leads a team that analyses and questions American policies abroad. He tells us about Trump’s ability to rip up the rule book and to go against diplomatic norms and how he has left a lasting legacy which has placed China front and centre as America’s new enemy.

Produced by: Joe Lord-Jones

Sources: The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show, CBS, ‘Washington pos

On the 5th of June this year, a 10-day search for two men began in the deep of the Amazon. 

British journalist Dom Phillips and Indigenous expert Bruno Pereira had travelled into the rainforest as part of research into Phillips’ new book: “How to Save the Amazon”.

Both had championed the cause of Brazil’s indigenous communities against those forces threatening their very existence.

In today’s episode, we talk to Latin America Correspondent Guillermo Galdos, who was with the team when they discovered the men’s belongings.

Producer: Freya Pickford

Sources: PBS, Euro News, Guardian

It took seven months of Partygate, a disgraced MP, 50 resignations, one sacking, but it did eventually happen.

He never said the word resign, and he’s still sticking around inside Number 10, but the days of Boris Johnson’s premiership are certainly numbered, while his days as Tory leader are done and dusted. 

Today, our presenter and investigations editor, Cathy Newman, unpacks why Johnson finally decided to step down, what state he leaves the party and country and who might be the person to pick up the pieces.

This podcast was recorded on Saturday June 9.

Producer: Freya Pickford

Sources: The Independent

For more than 15 years, the extremist group Al Shabaab has been fighting a bloody insurgency in Somalia.

They are one of the world’s most dangerous terrorist organisations - responsible for killing hundreds of people including innocent civilians.

Our Africa correspondent, Jamal Osman, is the first journalist that has been allowed to film the group in years, speaking to one of the group’s leaders about why they continue to kill and hurt fellow Muslims in Somalia.

Today, Kiran talks to Jamal about whether Al Shabaab is changing its tactics to appeal to a wider base - and whether the West is paying enough attention to these types of groups as Africa becomes the frontline of Islamic terrorism in the world.

Sources: Al Jazeera

Producer: Rachel Evans