The Bunker – Your daily news Deep Dive

What is daily life like inside Putin’s Russia? Censorship is rife, elections are rigged, the media serves the regime, protests are banned, and young men are dragged to the front lines in Ukraine – but how do ordinary Russians cope with everyday life? Is civil society dead or just “sleeping”? And can Russians ever really be free?Veteran journalist Åsne Seierstad – bestselling author of The Bookseller Of Kabul – has seen Russia before and under Putin. She talks to Seth Thévoz about her new book Never Say War: Life Inside Russia and the day-to-day reality of Putin’s Russia. • Buy Åsne Seierstad’s book Never Say War: Life Inside Russia from our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.Back The Bunker on Patreon to help keep the podcast going – and get early, ad-free episodes, merch and more. Written and presented by Seth Thévoz. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Tom Taylor. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk

After near-miss second places in the Presidential run-off elections of 2017 and 2022, could France’s extreme right National Rally be about to take power? And what happens if they do? Over five decades the party has detoxified its image if not its vociferous racist nationalism, moving from a fringe far-right concern to a power in French politics. Now the centre is imploding and polls indicate that voters in 2027 will face a Hobson’s Choice of the National Rally’s Marine Le Pen or the extreme left Jean-Luc Mélenchon. How could it happen? And what would the National Rally’s France look like? Georgina Wright, senior fellow specialising in France at the German Marshall Fund, gives Rafael Behr a picture of Le Pen’s France. • Want more? Listen to Raf explain why far-right populism is sweeping Europe • Back The Bunker on Patreon to help keep the podcast going – and get early, ad-free episodes, merch and more. Written and presented by Rafael Behr. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk

The wanton destruction of the Sycamore Gap tree in 2023 provoked a wave of anger against two men accused and eventually convicted of the crime. There was a search for answers: was it a thrill-seeking stunt, a bid for notoriety or maybe just driven by a grudge against the National Trust? But as award-winning writer Andrew Hankinson found in his new book Felled: The Killing at the Sycamore Gap, the reality was stranger, sadder… and perhaps more about the disconnected, meaningless world of modern men. He tells Andrew Harrison how Sycamore Gap spiralled off into Captain Tom-Land.• Buy Andrew’s book Felled: The Killing at the Sycamore Gap from our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.• Back us on Patreon – www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Andrew Harrison. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk

Setting out the stories of the week to come… A crunch week in the global battle against far-right populists gets off to a surprisingly encouraging start as Lula beats far-right nepo baby Flávio Bolsonaro to Brazil’s presidency, and Serbia’s corrupt authoritarian Aleksandar Vučić is ousted by student-led protestors. Will the Israeli elections and US mid-terms provide similar cheer? Plus: Budget week in Britain, Blue Planet III starts on the BBC… and have YOU done your emergency food stockpile? Ros Taylor and Andrew Harrison look at the week ahead. • Back The Bunker on Patreon to keep the podcast in rude health – and get early, ad-free episodes, merch and more. Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Produced by James Lidell. Audio production by Simon Williams. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Artwork by James Parrett. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk

Looking back on the past seven days… Andy Burnham has finally given the Jackdaw gas field the green light – four years and six energy secretaries after it was first approved. Is the left right to call him a “climate vandal”? Or should he have sided with the right and gone further? Plus: Trump’s Ukraine envoy Steve Witkoff calls Putin a “humanitarian” despite Russia’s alleged war crimes, France’s protests spiral out of control and the King and Queen join emotional commemorations at Aberfan. Zoë Grünewald and Seth Thévoz recap the biggest, strangest and most under-reported stories of the week. • Listen to our Deep Dive about Trump’s midterm meddling.• Back us on Patreon – www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Zoë Grünewald. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Tom Taylor. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk

The stakes in the US midterm elections could not be higher – and Donald Trump has had six years to learn from his failure to overturn the 2020 presidential vote. Democrats are likely to take control of Congress but Trump has intensified his rhetoric, warning this week that the US will “burn” like France if the House and Senate flip on November 3.Can Trump do anything to stop the expected “blue wave”? Will the US collapse into chaos and accusations of voter fraud if the Republicans lose? Could Trump deploy the military? Will some Americans be prevented from voting at all? Atlantic Staff Writer David Graham joins Zing Tsjeng to explore all these terrifying scenarios – and what’s at stake. • Read David’s prescient midterm prediction piece from last October • Buy David’s book The Project: How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America from our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.• Listen to American Friction for the latest commentary on US politics• Back us on Patreon – www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Zing Tsjeng. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk

We’re obsessed with health and wellness, from fixating on last night’s sleep score to swallowing a cocktail of supplements to stave off every ailment. But is there any real evidence behind the health hacks we’re sold? Are we being very professionally ripped off by Big Wellness – now four times larger than Big Pharma? British doctor and BBC broadcastert Dr Xand van Tulleken spent three years investigating the industry. He joins Emma Kennedy to separate the real science from the snake oil. • Buy Dr Xand van Tulleken’s book Make Me Well: A Quest to Understand the Confusing World of Wellness from our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.• Back us on Patreon – www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Emma Kennedy. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk

Was Rishi Sunak not actually as bad as we remember? No, we haven’t hit our heads… Yes, he led the Conservatives to their worst ever defeat and pandered to the far right with the hopeless Rwanda detention scheme. But he also inherited the wreckage of Liz Truss’s 49 days in power. Was Sunak really doomed from the start? Could a better politician have steadied the ship? And might he be the last ever Tory prime minister? Sir Anthony Seldon, the leading political biographer, joins Seth Thévoz in an attempt to make the case for Sunak. • Buy Anthony’s book Sunak at 10: The Last Conservative Prime Minister? from our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.• Back us on Patreon – www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Seth Thévoz. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk

Setting out the stories of the next seven days… France wakes to scenes of urban destruction straight out of wartime. Are the “cost of living protests” even protests any more, and can lame duck president Emmanuel Macron prevent them from running out of control? Also: Trump’s betrayal of Ukraine deepens, but he’s also supposed to be in court for his case against the BBC. Will he turn up? Plus: A decision on the Jackdaw gas field, Brazil on the verge of electing another Bolsonaro, and the iPhone Duo arrives. Rafael Behr looks at the week ahead with Andrew Harrison. www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Group Editor Andrew Harrison. Produced by James Lidell. Audio production by Tom Taylor. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Artwork by James Parrett. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk