The Story

Next week millions of voters will go to the polls as more than 8,000 council seats in England are contested in the local elections – the most significant gauge of public opinion before Rishi Sunak faces Keir Starmer at a general election. And behind the scenes, politicians and pollsters are desperately trying to figure out exactly who they need to win over, and how they can do it without losing th...

Since Elon Musk bought Twitter, he has brought about sweeping changes – but how successful have they been? And what impact has his purchase of the social media platform had on his many other businesses? 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. Guest: Danny Fortson, West Coast Correspo...

It’s the seventh day of violence in Sudan. Hundreds are reported dead and while civilians flee the capital, two generals - one a former warlord - are fighting for control of the country. So who are these men? And what does a hoard of gold and Putin’s private army have to do with the conflict? This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscr...

Twenty years since their country signed up to join the EU, people from Poland are returning home in the thousands. But why are so many leaving? What does it mean for the UK? And could Brits looking for a better life soon follow them too? 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. Guest: Matt...

The US government is scrambling to assess the damage from a mass leak of defence documents seen as the most harmful intelligence disaster for a decade. We trace how the documents spread from a small chat room to global attention, and examine the key information from the leaks. This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: theti...

China says its army should increase its preparedness for “real combat” after recent military drills around the island of Taiwan. What’s led to this latest round of posturing and how is Taiwan responding to the prospect of a potential invasion? 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. Guest...

In recent months pressure on TikTok has escalated over fears about how the app and its Chinese parent company ByteDance handle users’ data. The US has threatened to ban the app and two weeks ago the company was fined over £12m for misusing children’s data in the UK. So is the app a national security concern? And is time running out for TikTok? This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support...

Last week, Donald Trump became the first US president -- past or present -- to be charged with a crime. But is this historic indictment turning off voters, or drawing them in? 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. Guest: Hugh Tomlinson, Washington Correspondent, The Times and The Sunday...

The Wall Street Journal reporter has been charged by Russia with spying on behalf of the US government and Gershkovich’s detention has been described by the Society of Editors as “deeply concerning”. Meanwhile, the US Government has declared that he has been wrongfully detained. What will be the impact of his arrest? This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and...

Known in his lifetime as the ‘Picasso of the North’, Norval Morrisseau was one of Canada’s most revered indigenous artists. But now, police have charged eight people who they believe produced more than a thousand fake artworks under the artist's name, making millions of Canadian dollars and perhaps making history in the world's biggest case of suspected art fraud. This podcast was brought to you t...

Seven months ago, three men - two Russian cosmonauts and one American astronaut - arrived on the International Space Station. But shortly after, a meteoroid hit the ISS and their ride home was damaged. So with no way back to earth and tensions between Russian and America ramping up, will all three make it home? This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The S...

This bank holiday weekend, we're taking a step back from the news to bring you an update on a story we covered earlier in the year. One of Britain's most important paintings of a non-white subject has now been saved for the nation following a public campaign to raise £50 million to buy it from its private owner. This is the story of the Portrait of Omai. This podcast was brought to you thanks to t...

They were supposed to be the ‘ceasefire babies’ – a new generation that grew up in peace – but young people south of the border seem to be forgetting the conflict. We hear about new research from The Sunday Times, and speak to a friend of the young journalist Lyra McKee, whose shooting on the streets of Derry in 2019 was a reminder not to take peace for granted. This podca...

An exclusive undercover Times investigation has found that a Tory MP was prepared to lobby ministers and leak confidential policy documents on behalf of gambling industry investors in return for payment, despite rules banning MPs from doing so. 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. &nbs...

Last week Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer confirmed that Jeremy Corbyn would not be allowed to run as a Labour MP at the next general election. But Corbyn has resolved after months of deliberation to run against the Labour Party. Could Starmer's stance on the Labour left backfire? This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: th...

Hundreds of thousands of Israelis have taken to the streets over the past three months to demonstrate against a judicial overhaul planned by prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. We look at what the protests tell us about the current state of politics in Israel, and whether this could spell the end of Netanyahu’s political career. This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of...

Just after her 14th birthday, Hadley Freeman became achingly aware of her body – specifically, just how ‘normal’ it was compared to a thin classmate. Just four months later, she was hospitalised with anorexia. Her latest book, Good Girls: A Story and Study of Anorexia , tells the story of her many hospitalisations as a teenager, and her recovery. If you've been affected by issues in this podcast,...

The driving force behind protests against President Macron’s pension plans are young people defending their inheritance: retirement at 62. But for many, it’s also about something much bigger than pensions. 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.   Guest: Peter Conradi, Europe Editor,...

It’s Hollywood’s not-so-secret weapon for getting rid of wrinkles, but as the ‘pretty poison’ turns 21, Sarah Ditum asks: Should I or shouldn’t I? 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.   Guest: Sarah Ditum, writer for The Sunday Times. Host: Manveen Rana.  Clips: ITV, TMZ, ABC...

London’s Metropolitan Police has accepted findings from a landmark report that found racist, sexist and homophobic behaviour inside the UK’s largest police force. Baroness Louise Casey, who led the review, has been speaking with The Times about how she investigated New Scotland Yard. But does she think the Met Police can be fixed? This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of...

When a regional bank in California collapsed, it sent shock waves through the financial system. A few weeks later, and we're still feeling the ripples of Silicon Valley Bank's demise. It's triggered a sense of déjà vu – only 15 years on from the global financial crisis that was brought on by banking mismanagement. Have we learned any lessons from the 2008 crisis? And is it finally time for a banki...

Even though gender equality has come a long way at work, when it comes to parenting the mother is still viewed as the primary caregiver. But does it have to be this way? Paul Morgan-Bentley talks about his new book The Equal Parent in which he draws on his own experience as a father, and asks what can be done to share the load. This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of Th...

After swearing an oath on the King James Bible, Boris Johnson spent nearly three and a half hours being quizzed by fellow MPs on the privileges committee about gatherings in Downing Street during lockdown. The same afternoon, only 22 Tories followed him through the lobbies, defying a three-line whip to vote against the government’s Brexit deal. So is his appeal – and his argument – fading away? An...

It’s three years since the then prime minister Boris Johnson announced the first national lockdown in an attempt to halt the spread of covid. So, as we move on from the last pandemic, what might cause the next one? And have we learned enough this time round to stop it before it gets out of hand? This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Sub...

Twenty years on, the invasion of Iraq is widely seen as a fiasco. But still today the conflict has ongoing consequences for Iraq and Iraqis. Times correspondent Catherine Philp is back in Baghdad to meet people and hear how they were affected then - and now. This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesof...