The Bunker – News without the nonsense

Alexis Conran, the broadcaster and consumer champion, gets asked one question more than any other: “Is my phone listening to me?” We’ve all had a conversation about a new duvet set or a kettle, only to be served an advert for exactly that moments later. Big Tech insists it isn’t listening in most of the time… So is this all a coincidence? Or is something more nefarious at play? Alexis joins Emma Kennedy to explain what’s really going on.  • Read Alexis’ full article on his blog, Scam Proof Your Life• 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

Andy Burnham is meeting Trump this week – how will he handle the increasingly erratic US president? Plus, more issues for the UN, Labour conference and more news to look out for, with author and historian Alex von Tunzelmann and Jacob Jarvis.   www.patreon.com/bunkercast     Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out moreWritten and presented by Jacob Jarvis with Alex von Tunzelmann. Audio production: Simon Williams. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

Farage is bracing for legal war over a potential challenge to Reform’s mega money donations. But is his brand terminally damaged already? Plus, A.I. is being debated again, a village has chosen to leave the UK, and a lot of people are mad at Ed Sheeran. Jonn Elledge joins Jacob Jarvis to pull together the biggest news stories from the last week. Back us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/bunkercast Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social • Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out moreWritten and presented by Jacob Jarvis with Jonn Elledge. Audio editor: Simon Williams. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Design by James Parrett. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

Vladimir Kuzichkin may have changed the course of the Cold War – and it was all down to a very personal problem. The KGB agent was stationed in Tehran in 1981, less than two years after the Iranian Revolution, when he made the decision to defect to the British. Known to MI6 as “Redwood”, Kuzichkin demanded that the secret service smuggle him out of Iran in exchange for his secrets. But what intel did he provide MI6 and the CIA that was so explosive? And why was he so desperate to escape? Pre-eminent chronicler of espionage Ben Macintyre joins Alex von Tunzelmann to reveal how the Soviet spy may have saved the world.  • Buy Ben’s book Redwood: The Untold Story of the Cold War's Most Extraordinary Spy 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 Alex von Tunzelmann. 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 future has arrived, and it’s starting to look suspiciously like something Elon Musk and his fellow tech billionaires dreamt about as nine-year-olds. Silicon Valley’s rulers promise a world run by artificial superintelligence where scientists and engineers replace politicians – or humans disappear from government altogether. So, are they really the superheroes of the modern age they claim to be? Will AI deliver the technological marvel they promise or is their vision of techno-utopia about as real as, er, Iron Man? Harvard historian and author Jill Lepore joins Emma Kennedy to discuss where we’re headed.   • Buy Jill’s book The Rise and Fall of the Artificial State 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/bunkercast Written and presented by Emma Kennedy. 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  

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is constantly tipped as a potential Democratic contender for 2028. She is beloved by the left and loathed by Republicans with equal vigour for her progressive ideals. So, does she even want the White House – and if she does, could she defeat Gavin Newsom and other Democratic front-runners at the primaries? Is AOC really the antidote to Trump? And is America finally ready to accept a woman as president? The Guardian’s Washington Bureau Chief David Smith joins Jacob Jarvis to unpick what might happen.  • Read David’s full article in The Guardian• Back us on Patreon – www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Simon Williams. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk

Reform and Farage have raked in mega donations the likes of which British politics has never seen before. What does this money mean for democracy? Gavin Esler joins Jacob Jarvis to discuss the fallout and other news to look out for this week. www.patreon.com/bunkercast     Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out moreWritten and presented by Jacob Jarvis with Gavin Esler. Audio production: Simon Williams. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.  

Looking back at the big stories of the past seven days… Nigel Farage faces yet another headache after the Met launched a criminal investigation into whether Reform broke party donation rules. Will he weather the storm? Plus: Ed Miliband denounces “settler terrorists” in Occupied Palestinian Territory. Trump pledges $5,000 to every adult American at his bizarre midterm convention. And an Anthropic staffer offers a cheery warning that AI will destroy humanity before the decade’s done. Zoë Grünewald and Rafael Behr recap the biggest, strangest and under-reported stories of the week. • Find out if you’re owed on car finance at refundclub.co.uk/bunker  • Refund Club is a trading style of Sandsford Law Limited, authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA no. 8008114). Checking is free. A fee is payable only if your claim is successful. Eligibility: car finance taken out in the UK between 2007 and 2021. The average claim is around £829 per agreement; this is an average and not a guarantee of the amount you will receive. You can also claim yourself for free by contacting your lender or the Financial Ombudsman Service. refundclub.co.uk/bunker• Listen to Terror Century, our three-part mini-series marking the 25th anniversary of 9/11 linktr.ee/bunker_pod• Back us on Patreon – www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Zoë Grünewald. Producer: James Liddell. Audio production: Simon Williams. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.www.podmasters.co.uk