The Story

When The Times foreign correspondent Marc Bennetts moved to Russia in 1997, there was hope for a new future for the country. But over the next 25 years, he witnessed the rise of Vladimir Putin and the erosion of civil liberties. In his new book, The Descent: Witnessing Russia’s Spiral into Madness Under Putin, Marc charts how one man remade Russia in his own paranoid image.

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: Marc Bennetts, foreign correspondent, The Times.
Host: Manveen Rana.
Producer: Micaela Arneson.
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Read more: Lies and fear: my life under the Kremlin’s propaganda machine
Further listening: ‘I took a grenade blast to escape’: Russian deserters speak to The Times
Clips: Channel One Russia, Educational Video Group, NBC News, ITN, Times Now World, Dot’s Eye.
Photo: Getty Images.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
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A Sunday Times investigation has found that, in Scotland, there are claims that the SNP has, in effect, shut down criticism from the charity and voluntary sectors because of a system that leaves them umbilically tied to its political objectives and fearing grave consequences if they step out of line.

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: Dan Sanderson, Scottish political editor, The Times and The Sunday Times.
Host: Manveen Rana.
Producer: Taryn Siegel.
We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Read more: How the SNP spends billions ‘to buy loyalty from charities’
Clips: 5 News, Parliament TV.
Illustration: Tony Bell.
This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The countdown has begun for the launch of NASA's Artemis II mission around the Moon, the first manned mission there in more than 50 years. Their voyage around our nearest neighbour will pave the way for a lunar landing and, eventually, a Moon base. But why is there suddenly rekindled interest in moon exploration, and could this bring humans toward the ultimate goal of reaching Mars?

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:
Scott Kelly, retired NASA astronaut.
Kaya Burgess, science and religious affairs correspondent for The Times.
Host: Manveen Rana
Producer: Julia Webster
We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Read more: Artemis II: mission to the Moon
Further listening: The Epstein Files, AI journalism and the future of truth - The Sunday Story
Clips: NASA, John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, PBS, Space Age Archive, Associated Press, CriticalPast, Cosmosphere.
Photo: Kathia Mestanza, Getty Images.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump has threatened that the US would “obliterate Kharg Island” if a deal with Tehran was not reached. The US president has suggested he’d put boots on the ground to seize control of Iran's key oil export terminal. So why does the island matter so much? How would a ground invasion work? And just how risky is it to the US troops involved?

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

Guests:
George Grylls, Washington correspondent, The Times.
Sir Simon Mayall, ex-Lieutenant General in the British army and author.
Host: Manveen Rana.
Producer: Harry Stott, Olivia Case.
We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Read more: Can the US take Kharg Island? How an invasion could play out
Further listening: Q&A: What we know (and don't know) about Trump's Iran talks
Clips: CBC, FOX, BBC, C-SPAN.
Photo: Getty Images.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pete Hegseth, the US secretary of war, was one of the most controversial picks in Trump’s cabinet. But as Trump’s foreign adventures have come to define his second term, Hegseth is not just more visible, he’s become the Iran war’s main cheerleader. So who is he?

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: Katy Balls, Washington editor and columnist, the Times and the Sunday Times.
Host: Manveen Rana
Producers: Harry Stott and Micaela Arneson
We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Read more: Pete Hegseth, the former soldier and TV host selling Trump’s war
Further listening: Q&A: What we know (and don't know) about Trump's Iran talks
Clips: FOX, BBC, Forbes, CBS, SKY.
Photo: Getty Images.
This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.