heretics.

Former Scientology enforcer Mike Rinder explains how you escape a cult that doesn’t let you leave.

Before his death, Mike Rinder sat down with me to tell the full story of how he spent more than 30 years at the very top of Scientology — enforcing its rules, silencing critics, and stopping others from leaving — before secretly planning his own escape at the age of 52.

In this conversation, Mike explains why Sea Org members must escape rather than resign, how “blow drills” are used to track and retrieve defectors, and what really happens to families left behind. He also reflects on the guilt he carries for the harm he caused, the price he paid with his own children, and the moment he finally stepped into freedom with nothing but the clothes he was wearing.

We also discuss: 

– Fair Game, smears, and harassment of ex-members. – Why Scientology fears psychiatry – The psychology of belief, thought-stopping, and cognitive dissonance – Tom Cruise, John Travolta, and celebrity Scientology – Why smart people stay — and how some finally leave.

This episode is both a personal reckoning and a rare inside account of how a modern cult actually works.
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In this episode, veteran broadcaster Colin Brazier joins Andrew Gold to reveal what he saw after 25 years in TV news — from standing behind police tape at Islamist terror attacks across Europe to watching the culture of journalism change from reporting to reassurance.

SPONSORS:

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Get up to 45% off Ekster with my code ANDREWGOLDHERETICS: https://partner.ekster.com/andrewgoldheretics 

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Amazon: https://amzn.to/4hQVyAm Get an automatic 20% discount at checkout until December 1st.

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Follow Colin Brazier: https://x.com/ColinBrazierTV

Substack: https://colinbrazier.substack.com/

Outpost: https://www.outpoststudios.net/about

Colin describes the moment he realised something had shifted: coverage of the 2015 migration crisis, the way stories were framed back in London, and how newsroom ideology can shape everything from guest selection to what counts as “truth.” He shares the behind-the-scenes pressure inside major broadcasters, why skepticism disappeared, and why he believes much of mainstream media now operates like activism.

We also cover:

- Colin’s time at Sky News, including reporting from terror scenes across Europe

- Why he believes coverage of the migration crisis fed into the Brexit backlash

- The “incremental” nature of media bias — running order, language, and who gets invited on air

- The moment he refused an on-air demand to join public NHS clapping during COVID

- Why he thinks British broadcasting trends leftwards — and how that shapes public trust

- BBC “truth by consensus” vs adversarial truth-finding

- How newsroom incentives and ideology collide with honest reporting

If you’re tired of being told what to think — and you want a frank, insider account of how broadcast news really works — this conversation is for you.

Join the 30k heretics on my mailing list: https://andrewgoldheretics.com 

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Andrew on X: https://twitter.com/andrewgold_ok  

Insta: https://www.instagram.com/andrewgold_ok

Heretics YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@andrewgoldheretics

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In this episode of Heretics, I’m joined by Andy Woodward — the whistleblower who helped expose one of the darkest scandals in British history.

Support Andy’s work: Inside The Boys Club: https://www.saneseven.com/inside-the-boys-club/

SPONSORS:

Earn up to 4 per cent on gold, paid in gold: https://www.monetary-metals.com/heretics/ 

Use my code Andrew25 on MyHeritage: https://bit.ly/AndrewGoldDNA 

Grab your free seat to the 2-Day AI Mastermind: https://link.outskill.com/GOLDNOV4 

Start fresh at tryfum.com/products/zero-crisp-mint . Over 500,000 people have already made the switch — no nicotine, no vapor, no batteries. Just flavor, fidget, and a fresh start.

Get up to 45% off Ekster with my code ANDREWGOLDHERETICS: https://partner.ekster.com/andrewgoldheretics 

Plaud links! Official Website: Uk: https://bit.ly/3K7jDGm US: https://bit.ly/4a0tUie 

Amazon: https://amzn.to/4hQVyAm Get an automatic 20% discount at checkout until December 1st.

Cut your wireless bill to 15 bucks a month at https://mintmobile.com/heretics 

Andy recounts the grooming, coercion, and control he experienced as a child, and the long road to speaking out. We also dig into the institutional failures that allowed this to continue for years — including what happened when Andy tried to tell the truth publicly, and the aftermath of going up against powerful organisations.

This is a difficult but vital conversation about child safeguarding, grming tactics, institutional cover-ups, and what happens to survivors when the system claims to care — but doesn’t.

In this conversation:

- How grming works (and how adults get manipulated too)

- Why some offenders operate “in plain sight

- The cost of speaking out — professionally and psychologically

- Media, institutions, and the pressure to stay silent

- What needs to change to protect children and support survivors

If you enjoyed this, follow Heretics and share the episode.

Join the 30k heretics on my mailing list: https://andrewgoldheretics.com 

Check out my new documentary channel: https://youtube.com/@andrewgoldinvestigates 

Andrew on X: https://twitter.com/andrewgold_ok  

Insta: https://www.instagram.com/andrewgold_ok

Heretics YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@andrewgoldheretics

Chapters:

00:00 “Worse Than Savile?” Andy Woodward on grming, fear, and the moment everything changed

03:40 “Can he stay overnight?” The request that rewired a 10-year-old’s life

07:10 A “haunted house” trip… and the real horror in the minibus

10:05 “He was a psychopath.” The double life: generous “pipe piper”

12:45 Chinese stars, nunchucks, and terror as a weapon

14:55 “The Savile of football.” Why Andy says the pattern was the same

17:20 “Bigger cults… bigger picture.” Complicity, silence, and who benefits

19:55 “340 clubs.” The scale of what Andy says he blew open in 2016

22:20 “Did staff know?” The chants, the rumours, and what was said at the clubs

25:05 “If you say anything, I will k you.” The threat that sealed the silence

27:40 His sister, and the shocking aftermath

30:05 A family link… and the question Andy can’t shake

33:00 2003: Trying to hold the club accountable — and watching it get shut down

35:45 “Trust the institution.” Joining the police… then being put on the worst possible work

39:05 2016: Going public — “I was trending above Trump”

41:40 Wembley, the FA, and being told “no” when he asked to help safeguard kids

44:10 BBC film promises… then years of delay, trauma, and “duty of care” failures

47:15 “Football’s Darkest Secret” and the decision that left him re-traumatised

49:55 After the documentary: being sectioned — “seven police officers and three doctors”

52:40 The drama’s praise… then it vanishes: “removed after 12 months”

55:40 Inside The Boys Club: the new mission — men, trauma and prevention

58:30 Heretic he admires: Princess Diana — and why Andy chose her

#heretics #savile #truecrime
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Wikipedia co-founder Larry Sanger joins Andrew Gold to explain what he believes happened to Wikipedia — from neutrality and “NPOV” to activism, bias, editorial control, and the culture of Wikipedia editing.

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Cut your wireless bill to 15 bucks a month at https://mintmobile.com/heretics 

In this conversation, Larry Sanger (co-founder of Wikipedia and founder of Citizendium) breaks down how Wikipedia works behind the scenes, how articles get shaped, and why he argues Wikipedia is no longer reliably neutral. We also discuss media narratives, institutional trust, and whether Wikipedia can be “fixed” — or whether alternatives are needed.

If you’ve ever searched “Is Wikipedia biased?“, “Can you trust Wikipedia?“, “Who controls Wikipedia?“, or “How are Wikipedia pages edited?“, this episode is for you.

Follow Larry:

https://x.com/lsanger

https://larrysanger.org/

If you enjoyed this, follow Heretics and share the episode.

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Heretics YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@andrewgoldheretics
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Vanessa Frake spent decades inside Britain’s prison system - from Holloway to Wormwood Scrubs - and rose to become a prison governor. In this conversation, she describes what she says changed inside UK prisons as Islam grew, why prison authorities sometimes separate high-profile inmates like Tommy Robinson, and what it’s like trying to keep order when numbers, staff, and politics collide.

SPONSORS:

Earn up to 4 per cent on gold, paid in gold: https://www.monetary-metals.com/heretics/ 

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Start fresh at tryfum.com/products/zero-crisp-mint . Over 500,000 people have already made the switch — no nicotine, no vapor, no batteries. Just flavor, fidget, and a fresh start.

Get up to 45% off Ekster with my code ANDREWGOLDHERETICS: https://partner.ekster.com/andrewgoldheretics 

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Amazon: https://amzn.to/4hQVyAm Get an automatic 20% discount at checkout until December 1st.

Cut your wireless bill to 15 bucks a month at https://mintmobile.com/heretics 

We also talk about foreign national prisoners, deportation delays, staffing cuts, and why recruitment standards have fallen. Vanessa explains how prisoners manipulate officers, why female officer scandals keep hitting headlines, and how prisons handle complaints and “minefield” issues like religion, gender, and trans prisoners.

Vanessa’s book is The Governor.

Use code ANDREWGOLD20 for 20% off your first month at Heights: http://heights.com/andrewgold

Topics covered

Islam in British prisons and Wormwood Scrubs

Tommy Robinson and separation in prison

Terrorism cases, safety, and control

Foreign national prisoners and deportation backlog

Staffing crisis, recruitment, and prison standards

Corruption, coercion, and media narratives

Rehabilitation and what the public gets wrong about prison

If you enjoyed this, follow Heretics and share the episode.

Join the 30k heretics on my mailing list: https://andrewgoldheretics.com 

Check out my new documentary channel: https://youtube.com/@andrewgoldinvestigates 

Andrew on X: https://twitter.com/andrewgold_ok  

Insta: https://www.instagram.com/andrewgold_ok

Heretics YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@andrewgoldheretics
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