The Bunker – News without the nonsense

Nigel Farage’s by-election stunt has blown up in his face – but could he really lose to Count Binface? Donald Trump has gone back to bombing and declared the Iran ceasefire “over”. Will this Groundhog Day ever end? And Prince Harry lost his landmark privacy case against the Daily Mail’s publisher – will more cases follow or is this it? Alex von Tunzelmann joins Jacob Jarvis to discuss the biggest,...

Columnists need critics too… Hot Take Time Machine is back with Paper Cuts alumni Miranda Sawyer , Jonn Elledge and Jacob Jarvis picking apart the most bizarre takes in the op-edaverse.   On this episode: Andy Burnham’s wardrobe causes a stir, Kwasi Kwarteng – yes, the man who nearly exploded the economy – warns against “Red Ed” Miliband becoming chancellor, one Telegraph columnist has a...

Is Britain really as free of corruption as we think? This year the UK posted its lowest-ever score in a global corruption index. High-level scandals like Peter Mandelson’s Epstein ties and Peter Murrell embezzling from the SNP – and less conspicuous instances of fraud and backhanders – are eating into our self-image as rule-followers. And the man who might be Prime Minister keeps changin...

Tech shapes our world, and Stanford University is Silicon Valley’s training ground. But what really goes on in the place that gave us Larry Page, Sergey Brin and Peter Thiel – the richest university in human history? As a student reporter, Stanford undergraduate Theo Baker ’s work forced Stanford’s president to resign. Now his new book How To Rule The World exposes the intense and amoral culture o...

Setting up the stories of the next seven days… As England fans shake off their Mexico hangover, another cash scandal hits Farage, who denies “doing any wrongdoing” (?). How will Naughty Nigel handle new revelations about undeclared funding from convicted criminal “Posh George” Cottrell, while still dealing with the headache of his £5m gift from a crypto baron? Plus: NATO’s conference in Ankara; cr...

Setting out the stories that matter from the past seven days… Andy Burnham sets out his store before almost certainly taking the keys to Downing Street. But is Starmer leaving him a poison pill? Plus, more emerges on Farage and Trump ’s mammoth paydays. And goodbye human delivery, hello delivery robots, apparently already causing “pavement overload” on Britain's streets. Alex von Tunzelmann joins...

Fables Of The Reconstruction: A Bunker mini-series for the 250th anniversary of the USA…  When Trump is gone, should America take a long hard look at its system to prevent authoritarian government from coming back? We talk to experts about the pros and cons of a new Reconstruction.   Today: Can you make the pillars of American democracy President-proof without looking again at the C...

Fables Of The Reconstruction: A Bunker mini-series for the 250th anniversary of the USA…  Trump won’t be around forever. When he goes, does America need a root and branch rethink? We look at the pros and cons of new Reconstruction.  Today: Rip it up and start again? The US system was supposed to be a bulletproof arrangement of checks and balances. Trump has shown how easy it can be...

Fables Of The Reconstruction: A Bunker mini-series for the 250th anniversary of the USA…  After Trump’s reign and his war on the pillars of American democracy are over, will America need a reboot, like after the Civil War? A new Reconstruction?  Today: Nothing reduces the America system to gridlock and vindictiveness like the polarised two-party system . And when Trump remade the Re...

Setting out the stories of the next seven days… Andy Burnham is PM in waiting and the battle among Labour MPs for his attention is on. What’s going to bubble up from what the Guardian calls a “massive bunfight for influence”? Plus, Shabana Mahmood finds a way to make immigration even more contentious, Trump finds a way to make America’s 250th birthday horribly divisive… and Taylor Swift is getting...

Burnham looks set to become PM, so how are his plans shaping up? Jonn Elledge joins Jacob Jarvis to discuss as they pull together the biggest news stories from the last week.  • Special offer! Get 20% off any vehicle history check at carVertical.com/TheBunker Back us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/bunkercast   Follow us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/bunkerpod.bsky.social   • Adv...

The eye-watering “Liberation Day” trade tariffs that Trump unleashed on the world on April 2, 2025, are about to expire after the US Supreme Court ruled the President had overstepped his powers. But the damage they’ve caused continues to reverberate. For economists, Trump’s tariffs began World War Trade, a dangerous new era of predatory trade and protectionism. How did tariffs become Trump’s weapo...

Kim Jong Un has ruled North Korea with an iron fist since taking power in 2011. But if the dictator died tomorrow, what would happen? Would North Koreans finally taste freedom? Who’s in charge of the nuclear codes? And could his 13-year-old daughter Kim Ju Ae really be next in line to rule one of the world’s most dangerous regimes? Journalist, foreign affairs analyst, and author of The Great Succe...

It’s ten years to the day since Britain voted by an infamously thin margin to leave the EU – and after a decade of acrimony, most voters now recognise Brexit as a colossal mistake. Yet politicians refuse to reopen this radioactive topic. If so many people hate Brexit, why don’t we just reverse it? Could we even reverse it? And is now the right time?  Few people understand the reality of Rejoi...

Keir Starmer is expected to announce his departure from Downing Street, paving the way for Andy Burnham to become PM. But is a coronation the best thing for Labour or the country? Alex von Tunzelmann joins Jacob Jarvis to discuss this and the other key news stories to look out for this week.        Back us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/bunkercast     &nbs...

Donald Trump has finally put pen to paper and signed an agreement to end the war he started. He quickly lashed out at the “bad people” criticising it – but is it even a deal or just a deal to try and get a deal? Plus: Lib Dem leader Ed Davey calls for a Brexit U-turn, Farage wants foreign nationals banned from social housing and archaeologists find a Stonehenge “prototype”.   Rafael Behr...

What really triggered the horrific race riots in Northern Ireland earlier this month? Who were the agitators of the “modern-day pogrom” in which balaclava-clad rioters chased people from their homes and torched cars and buildings in overwhelmingly loyalist areas? Belfast-based journalist Amanda Ferguson was on the ground as the violence unfolded. She gives Gavin Esler her eyewitness account of the...

What connects violent anti-immigration protests with a defence secretary resigning over a funding row with Number 10? The answer is social cohesion – and Britain isn’t doing enough to protect it. A transnational campaign bringing together MAGA, Russian influence operations and the far right is actively targeting the very bonds that hold us together, says Dr Kate Ferguson, co-founder of Protec...

The West’s naivete towards Putin in the 2000s cost us dearly. Now Russia’s tyrant – a creature of the KGB/FSB who has returned his country to its roots as a repressive intelligence state – is attacking us with unprecedented ferocity and deviousness. Sean Wiswesser , ex-CIA station chief in the former Soviet Union, says the “reckless” activity of FSB and GRU agents has reached new heights. But can...

Setting out the stories of the next seven days… Labour announce far more draconian restrictions on social media for teens than anyone expected. Why are they being so hardcore now? And will the measures work? Plus: it’s Makerfield by-election week, at last. What will help Labour more: Restore splitting the far-right vote or an England victory against Croatia in the World Cup? And what does Trump’s...

Violence swept Belfast after a knife attack sparked days of unrest fuelled by right-wing agitators. With reports that many of those involved had travelled to the city from elsewhere, are we seeing the rise of riot tourism? Plus: John Healey resigns in breaking news, a leaked Makerfield poll puts Burnham ahead as the right-wing vote splits, and Swifties wager millions on Taylor’s wedding. Jacob Jar...

Or will it arrive pre-ruined by FIFA’s oligarch-coddling sycophant president Gianni Infantino, creator of Trump’s ludicrous “FIFA Peace Prize”? The 2026 World Cup has already been called a “bonanza of sportwashing” by human rights groups. Now visiting fans fear harassment by ICE as well as the eye-watering cost of attending games at all. Politics professor, author of Red Card: The 2026 World Cup,...

What happens if Vladimir Putin suddenly dies – or is killed? Has the Russian dictator lined up a successor, or would a new leader rise up? And what sort of chaos would that bring? At 73, Putin is one of the longest-serving leaders in modern Russian history. No one appears likely to challenge him directly right now, but his time will have to run out eventually.  Historian, author and major Russia e...

Can the damage Donald Trump has wrought on America be repaired? And if another Trump emerged, could anyone stop them? Ex-FBI general counsel Andrew Weissmann is a former member of Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s election interference. (Credentials: Trump labelled him “scum” and Stephen Miller called him “deranged” and a “moron”). In his new book Liar’s Kingdom: How To Stop Trump’s Dec...

American politicians won’t stop wading in on British politics – what do they want and can we stop them? Rafael Behr joins Jacob Jarvis to discuss, plus the latest from Ukraine, the Middle East and the looming World Cup.  www.patreon.com/bunkercast     Written and presented by Jacob Jarvis with Rafael Behr. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison....