Security services have issued an unprecedented warning about a shadowy Russian military unit accused of carrying out assassinations and cyberattacks on the streets of Britain. So as the government ramps up its defence against the threat from the Kremlin, what exactly is Unit 29155? And why is it targeting the West?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Fiona Hamilton, Chief Correspondent, The Times.

Host: Manveen Rana.

Producer: Edward Drummond.

Clips: Reuters, OnDemand News, Sky News, BBC News, Channel 4 News, RT, CBS News, Independent.

Photo: Getty Images/Times Illustration

Get in touch: [email protected]

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

We’re listening back to some of our favourite episodes of 2024.

Millions of social media users are flocking to follow the Trad Wives: stay-at-home mothers who champion a life making meals from scratch and serving their husband’s and children’s every need. Our reporter goes to meet the woman behind the most popular account: Hannah Neeleman of Ballerina Farm. Is she selling a feminist dream or an unattainable lifestyle?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Megan Agnew, Senior Features Writer, The Sunday Times.

Host: Manveen Rana. 

Producer: Samantha Chantarasak.

Clips: TikTok/esteecwilliams, TikTok/naraazizasmith, TikTok/ballerinafarm, ABC News. 

Get in touch: [email protected]

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

After nearly a week on the run, Luigi Mangione was arrested in Pennsylvania for the murder of health insurance CEO, Brian Thompson. But in a macabre twist, Mangione has found widespread support on social media, which has dubbed him the ‘hot assassin’. Why?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Host: Luke Jones.

Producer: Taryn Siegel.

Guest: Sam Lovett, US reporter, The Times.

Clips: The Daily Show, ABC7 News, Fox11 News, TikTok/xyathanchekass, TikTok/dpshw, TikTok/imcodyjacob, other TikToks, Edith finding sources

Further reading: ‘The hot assassin’: how the internet became obsessed with Luigi Mangione

Get in touch: [email protected]

Photo: Benjamin B. Braun/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/AP.

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

Sir Kim Darroch is the former UK ambassador to the USA and worked with Trump for two years during the President’s first term. So how should the UK deal with Trump 2.0? And as our former National Security Advisor - before his Washington post - how will the UK government be reducing the terrorism threat from Syria, and balancing trade opportunities versus security issues when it comes to China.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.co.uk/thestory

Guest: Sir Kim Darroch, former UK Ambassador to the USA and former National Security Advisor.

Host: William Hague.

Producer: Olivia Case.

Image credit: The Times / Tom Jackson.

Further listening: Putin’s ‘nuclear blackmail’

Get in touch: [email protected]

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

Healthier, eco-friendly, altogether virtuous. This may be how we think of milk alternatives but new research is calling into question the ‘plant-based milk myth’. So what’s the truth? How good for you - and the environment - is your oat milk flat white?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Libby Galvin, writer, The Times.

Host: Manveen Rana.

Producer: Taryn Siegel.

Further reading: How good is your milk (for you and for the environment)?

Get in touch: [email protected]

Photo: Getty Images.

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

As a new leadership emerges in Syria, disparate groups remain in control of different parts of the country. In the midst of the fluctuating situation, what dangers might return?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Mark Urban, Writer and Columnist, The Sunday Times.

Host: Luke Jones.

Producers:

• Edith Rousselot.
• Edward Drummond.

Clips: BBC News, AP, Al Jazeera, Bloomberg, CNN.

Photo: Getty Images. 

Get in touch: [email protected]

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

Gisèle Pelicot waived her right to anonymity when her husband - and dozens of other men - were charged with raping and sexually assaulting her. Her decision allowed journalists to cover the trial in full and made her a feminist icon in France. But as we await the final verdicts and sentencing, what does the case tell us about French attitudes to rape? And with the French government promising change, will this be a watershed moment? 

The episode contains discussion of rape and sexual assault. 

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.co.uk/thestory

If you've been affected by anything you've heard in this episode or need help or support around issues involving sexual assault, you can contact womensaid.org.uk or malesurvivor.co.uk. You can also call Refuge's 24-hour freephone National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.

Host: Manveen Rana.

Producer: Olivia Case.

Guests:

• Constance Kampfner, Northern Correspondent, The Times.
• Katie Tarrant, News Reporter, The Sunday Times.

Clips: Euronews, The Times, France24, Paris Match, Channel 4, BBC, Forbes.

Image credit: Getty Images.

Further reading:

• A disturbing encounter with one of Gisèle Pelicot’s 50 alleged rapists.
• I sat in court at the Gisèle Pelicot rape trial. This is what I saw

Get in touch: [email protected]

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

This week, No 10 confirmed it wouldn’t stand in the way of a deal to return the Elgin Marbles to their original home in Athens. The comments came after a meeting between Keir Starmer and his Greek counterpart, Kyriakos Mitsotakis. Our former host David Aaronovitch spoke to classicist and British Museum trustee Dame Mary Beard about how the Parthenon sculptures ended up in the UK 200 years ago.

This episode was first broadcast on 5 December 2022.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. 

Guests:

- Dame Mary Beard, classicist.

- David Sanderson, Arts Correspondent, The Times.

With thanks to The British Museum.

Host: David Aaronovitch.

Producer: Samantha Chantarasak.

Clips: Channel 4 News, Times Radio, Reuters, CBC News, BBC World Service, Al Jazeera, ITV Good Morning Britain, LBC, UK Parliament, LSE.

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

As a bonus episode, we’re bringing listeners of The Story an episode of our fellow Times podcast How To Win An Election.

The prime minister wants to blame the last government for leaving the economy in a mess, just like David Cameron did in 2010 - but is the strategy working, and for how long?

The political masterminds - and Hugo - discuss the whether voters will reward Starmer for being sensible, whether he should be more like Harold Wilson, and whether any Western government can get to grips with migration.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

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

Nightclubs are closing their doors at an alarming rate. Research by The Night Time Industries Association shows that as many as three clubs a week have closed since 2020. Our journalist went to Manchester to find out why they’re struggling - but is the underground clubbing scene really as threatened as it might seem? 

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Katie Gatens, Deputy Editor of News Review, The Sunday Times.

Host: Luke Jones.

Clips: Saturday Night Live/NBC.

Photo: Joel Goodman for The Sunday Times

Get in touch: [email protected]

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