The Rest Is Classified

Legacy, hosted by historian Peter Frankopan and broadcaster Afua Hirsch, delves into the lives of some of history’s most influential figures - from Margaret Thatcher to Napoleon, JFK to Cleopatra unpacking what their pasts reveal about our present.  In their latest season, they’re exploring the legacy of Sigmund Freud, a man more involved in the world of espionage than you might expect... Listen h...

How did Cold War paranoia fuel the CIA's mind control experiments? What did popular films like The Manchurian Candidate have to do with the agency's secret programs? And did the CIA really help shape the counterculture of the 1960s? In the shadowy world of espionage, the line between science fiction and reality blurred, and as the Cold War deepened, fears of communist brainwashing led the CIA down...

From LSD-fuelled hallucinations to medically-induced comas, the CIA explored every avenue in their search for mind control. But how did they justify these gross violations of human rights? And what does it reveal about the hidden history of the Cold War? In the clandestine world of espionage, the pursuit of knowledge can have a dark side. As the US and the USSR battled to come out on top, the CIA...

Who was the eccentric chemist at the heart of the CIA's most controversial experiments? What happened when Langley was turned into a testing ground for mind-altering drugs? And how did the quest for a truth serum lead to a psychedelic free-for-all? Inside the CIA, the search for a mind control breakthrough took a bizarre turn. Driven by the relentless pursuit of Sidney Gottlieb, LSD was introduced...

What if the government knew how to control your mind? Could a secret program unlock the secrets of the human psyche? And how far would the CIA go to win the Cold War? In the shadowy world of espionage, the line between science and sinister experiments blurs. As the Cold War gripped the globe, the CIA embarked on a desperate quest to weaponise the mind. Unwitting Americans became guinea pigs in a s...

What did the West know about Russia’s invasion before it happened? How did Ukraine prepare for a war they weren’t sure would come? And why did Moscow underestimate its opponent so disastrously? Western intelligence agencies warned that Russia was preparing to invade Ukraine - but even they were surprised by how badly Moscow’s strategy would unravel. From supply chain breakdowns to failed attempts...

How did Russia’s invasion of Ukraine go so badly wrong? What crucial mistakes did the Kremlin make in the opening days? And why did Putin’s inner circle give him false intelligence about what would happen? When Russian forces rolled across the border with Ukraine in February 2022, they expected a swift victory. Instead, they encountered fierce resistance, logistical chaos, and intelligence failure...

How did Ukraine defy the odds against Russia? What role did Western intelligence play in preparing Kyiv for war? And what did Western intelligence know that Russia didn’t? For months, Western intelligence warned of an imminent Russian attack, but when the invasion finally came, it didn’t go according to Moscow’s script. Poor planning, logistical failures, and underestimating Ukrainian resistance t...

How did western intelligence services learn of Putin's plan to invade Ukraine? 2021 is drawing to a close and the CIA is becoming increasingly concerned that Putin is going to invade Ukraine. He's made it clear he sees it as part of Russia and so Bill Burns, CIA director, is going to be sent out to Moscow in a desperate attempt to dissuade him. Listen as Gordon and David break down the run up to t...

What happens when the world’s most valuable spy is finally caught? How did British and American intelligence hunt him down? And, was Klaus Fuchs a hero, a villain, or something in between? Klaus Fuchs' final days as a free man were marked by growing suspicions, clandestine exchanges, and a relentless pursuit by MI5. The secrets he passed had already set the stage for a nuclear-armed Cold War, irre...

How did a Russian spy end up at the heart of the Manhattan Project? What happened when Soviet intelligence lost track of their own spy? And how did one man hand Stalin the bomb on a silver platter? Klaus Fuchs was already one of the most valuable spies in history, feeding atomic secrets to the Soviet Union. But when he disappeared in 1944, his handlers feared the worst. In reality, he was about to...

What makes a man betray his closest friends? How did a German refugee help Stalin build the bomb? And why did British intelligence fail to spot the most dangerous spy in the Manhattan Project? Klaus Fuchs was brilliant, quiet, and unassuming. A physicist at the cutting edge of nuclear science, he worked at the heart of Britain’s secret atomic weapons program before being sent to the United States...

Who was the Russian spy working under Oppenheimer to build the atomic bomb? Why was it so dangerous to be a communist in Nazi Germany? And how did a young science prodigy become one of the most notorious spies in history? Klaus Fuchs was born into a left-wing family at the beginning of the 20th century. Vehemently opposed to the fascist politics of his German homeland during the 1930s, Fuchs flees...

Donald Trump has paused all intelligence sharing with Ukraine. What does this mean? What intelligence was being shared? How dependent are Ukraine on this? And what impact will this have on the war? Listen as Gordon Corera and David McCloskey discuss the latest developments in Ukraine. ------------------- Order a signed edition of David's latest book, The Seventh Floor, via this link. -------------...

When the CIA is forced to downsize, who gets cut? What happens to the intelligence left behind? And how does political control change the way spies operate? In the late 1970s, Jimmy Carter’s CIA director launched a brutal purge, firing hundreds of intelligence officers in what became known as the Halloween Massacre. Now, with Trump taking his own axe to Langley, David and Gordon ask: is history re...

How do politicians control the CIA? What happens when politics affects the way it is run? And how often does the White House clash with Langley? Trump is trying to bring the CIA more directly under his control. He wants to reduce the size of it and re-order it's priorities. But he's not the first President to try to interfere at Langley. This week on The Rest Is Classified, David and Gordon look a...

Can nuclear missiles really just disappear? Why is Greenland so important to the security of the United States? And will Donald Trump go all the way with his plan to buy this Arctic island? A plane carrying nuclear weapons crashes in the Arctic and the effects ricochet through history. From seals born with deformities to radioactive permafrost, the presence of nuclear weapons on Greenland is seism...

Donald Trump has made it clear that he wants Greenland, but why? What is it about this largely barren, ice-covered island that extends well into the Arctic circle that he so desires? And how far back does this interest go? Filled with rare minerals that are becoming increasingly valuable due to modern technology, critically placed for access to Arctic sea lanes, and home to key US military infrast...

Was an umbrella too obvious a murder weapon for an assassination in the heart of London? Why were the KGB hesitant to do the Bulgarian government's dirty work? And how do scientists work with spy agencies to identify lethal poisons? Georgi Markov, the Bulgarian dissident writer, is dead. But, who murdered him? Was it the Bulgarians or the KGB? What about the British? In the aftermath of Markov's p...

How do you get away with murder in the heart of London? And which weapon would you choose to avoid arousing suspicion? Georgi Markov was a Bulgarian dissident writer wanted by the Eastern Bloc for spreading anti-regime messaging across Western Europe. He'd fled to London and begun working for the BBC World Service, the US-funded Radio Free Europe and West Germany's Deutsche Welle. A satirist at he...

Did the French secret service commit an act of state terrorism by sinking a Greenpeace ship? Why did the tragedy of the Rainbow Warrior become known as BlunderWatergate? How many millions of dollars did France have to pay Greenpeace in compensation? The French have bombed the Rainbow Warrior, forcing its environmentalist crew to flee for their lives, but one member of the team is stuck on board. A...

Why were the French exploding nuclear bombs in the Pacific in the 70s and 80s? How did a spy manage to infiltrate Greenpeace? And what on earth are limpet mines? In the 1960s, the French started testing nuclear weapons in the South Pacific, causing untold ecological destruction and worrying the surrounding island nations. Greenpeace, hot off the back of their successful anti-whaling and anti-seali...

Will Tolkachev fall at the final hurdle and land in the hands of the KGB? How do the CIA go about protecting their assets in the field? And, does it really take a spy to catch a spy? As we reach the final instalment of the story of Adolf Tolkachev, the plot reaches its dramatic crescendo. Tolkachev has now been working for the CIA for over half a decade and the pressure is clearly taking its toll...

How would you disguise a cyanide pill for a CIA spy in Moscow during the Cold War? What risks could Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and The Beatles pose to Adolf Tolkachev’s mission against the Soviet state? And will the CIA’s mole in Moscow be discovered by the KGB? It’s 1985, and for the past five years, Tolkachev has been providing the CIA with top secret documents detailing the intricacies of Soviet...

To coincide with the release of David's latest novel, The Seventh Floor, we have the book’s first chapter in audiobook form for you to enjoy.   Bouncing between the corridors of Langley and the Kremlin, the thrilling new novel by David McCloskey explores the nature of friendship in a faithless business, and what it means to love a place that does not love you back.   The Seventh Floor by David McC...