The Story

What next for a post-Roe America?

04 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It's been just over a week since the US Supreme Court overruled Roe v Wade, overturning Americans' constitutional right to an abortion. And America ha...

Hong Kong's 25 year slide from democracy

30 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This week marks 25 years since the UK handover of Hong Kong to China, with the promise of ‘one country, two systems’. Then, the former British col...

Remembering Dame Deborah James

29 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Dame Deborah James, campaigner and podcast host, whose chronicling of her incurable bowel cancer inspired the nation and raised millions for charity, ...

Can an AI bot convince you that it's sentient?

28 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Google engineer Blake Lemoine brought an unusual concern to his company earlier this month: he feared the AI language program he was working with had ...

Winning at all costs: The toxic culture of British gymnastics

27 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

From starving athletes hiding cereal bars in socks to fat-shaming and gaslighting – the findings of the watershed Whyte Review make for grim reading...

The fight for the Amazon: The long, bloody history to save the forest

23 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

When journalist Dom Phillips and indigenous expert Bruno Perreira were murdered while on a fact finding trip in the Amazon, it highlighted the threats...

The beginning of the end for Ireland's billionaire crime family?

22 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

For almost two decades the Kinahans have operated one of the most powerful criminal organisations in the world. Now, they’ve been named as some of A...

Is the Pope planning to quit?

21 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The ailing pontiff has prompted speculation that he will resign with a planned visit to the tomb of a 13th-century pope who quit after five months.Mea...

One-way ticket to Rwanda: How the government’s asylum plan was put on ice

20 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The government’s flagship immigration policy has been put on pause, following an intervention from the European Court of Human Rights. How was the f...

The biggest rail strike in 30 years

17 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Next week, much of the country's rail system will grind to a halt, as more than 40,000 rail workers join a national walkout. It's the biggest rail str...

Monkeypox: What you need to know

16 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Monkeypox cases in the UK are now in the hundreds, and 1,600 cases have been reported around the world in recent weeks. What do we know about it and h...

What's wrong with our schools and how to reinvent them

15 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Parents, teachers, students and experts alike say that the UK’s education system desperately needs reform. The Times Education Commission has spent ...

The Grenfell fire, five years on (Pt 2): The cladding scandal

14 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

When a fire broke out at Grenfell Tower in west London in 2017, it led to the deaths of 72 people – and a search for answers. Five years on, what ha...

The Grenfell fire, five years on (Pt 1): Stories from the tower

13 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

When a fire broke out at Grenfell Tower in west London in 2017, it led to the deaths of 72 people – and a search for answers. Five years on, we revi...

Ukraine: The fight for the Donbas

10 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The fight for Ukraine has become a Battle for the Donbas, as Putin's army concentrates its forces in the southeast. The fiercest fighting is being wag...

The aftermath of the Texas school shooting

09 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Two weeks on from the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and two teachers died, America is still reeling. We look at how the day unfo...

The wounded victor: What next for Boris Johnson?

08 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The prime minister's narrow win in a confidence vote on Monday night has left his political authority dented and his party even more deeply divided. C...

Putin’s purge: Why Russian spies are being jailed in Moscow

07 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Russia has been making territorial gains in the east and south of Ukraine in the last few weeks, but this isn’t where Vladimir Putin expected to be ...

Everything Dolly Alderton knows about love

06 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Dolly Alderton - award-winning author, podcaster, screenwriter and Sunday Times Style's resident agony aunt - on love, friendship, sex, and being comf...

Past Imperfect: Justin Webb on a life saved by radio

03 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today's episode comes courtesy of our sister podcast: Past Imperfect.Justin Webb is a broadcaster who has spent almost four decades at the BBC, from N...

Wine Times: Comedian Tom Allen raises a glass for the Jubilee

02 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today's episode comes courtesy of our sister podcast: Wine Times. Sloshing along with Suzi Ruffell and Will Lyons is the comedian, writer and broadcas...

The Queen's Platinum Jubilee: From our royal correspondents

01 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As the country prepares for a bank holiday weekend which will see many celebrate the Queen's record-breaking platinum jubilee, The Times and The Sunda...

The Hunt for the Silver Killer (Pt 2): New blood

31 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence and references to suicide.The second of our two-part special, The Hunt for the Silver Killer. I...

The Hunt for the Silver Killer (Pt 1): Murder-suicides

30 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence and references to suicide.In 1996 in the small town of Wilmslow in Cheshire, an elderly couple ...

Weekend listen: Is the Red Wall a red herring?

28 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today's weekend listen comes courtesy of our sister podcast, Red Box.While everyone else was waiting for Sue Gray, on Tuesday two of Britain's country...

Investigation: How children's homes became a goldmine for unlikely owners

27 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In the week that the government announced a major review into England's council-run children's services, a Times investigation has found scores of ine...

What the Sue Gray report means for Boris Johnson

26 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As the long-awaited report into lockdown-breaking parties at Downing Street is published, we dissect the key points.This podcast was brought to you th...

Everything you (don’t) need to know about the Wagatha Christie trial

25 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What happened when, after two years of mudslinging, Rebekah Vardy and Coleen Rooney, the wives of two top footballers, met in court over allegations o...

From cow to cup: The price of a pint of milk

24 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A forty year high level of inflation and soaring household bills over the last few months have quickly led to a cost of living crisis. UK businesses a...

NATO: Why is Turkey blocking Sweden and Finland?

23 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Sweden and Finland are putting decades of military non-alignment and neutrality behind them to join NATO but one member of the alliance isn’t prepar...

The Northern Ireland protocol explained

20 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

More than two years after Britain and the EU signed the Brexit withdrawal agreement, one of its stickiest points is suddenly back in the headlines aga...

Have we been living on the cheap?

19 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

On Wednesday inflation in the UK hit 9% - the highest since the early 1980s.A few weeks before in Brussels, Diederik Samsom, the Head of Cabinet ...

Is Scottish independence back on the agenda?

18 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Nicola Sturgeon, leader of the SNP, has been pushing for Scottish independence since she was elected First Minister seven and a half years ago. The UK...

Keir Starmer's big gamble

17 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

For 12 days, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer tried to play down claims he’d broken lockdown rules when he’d had a curry and beer with staff. But wh...

Depp vs Heard: Celebrities, their fans, and a toxic trial

16 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Johnny Depp’s personal life has been splashed across the headlines thanks to high-profile defamation cases against his ex-wife Amber Heard. Now, the...

Weekend listen: Elon Musk's (paused) Twitter takeover

14 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today's weekend listen comes courtesy of our sister podcast, Danny In The Valley.Yesterday, Elon Musk put his $44 billion takeover of Twitter on pause...

What are cryptocurrency millionaires doing in Puerto Rico?

13 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As markets across the globe react to the latest cryptocurrency meltdown, which some warn may go beyond the usual boom-and-bust cycle - today we look a...

The British broadcasting revolution

12 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In the year the BBC celebrates its centenary, and Channel 4 its 40th birthday, the government has announced plans for funding models that fundamentall...

Is this the end of Roe v Wade?

11 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A draft Supreme Court opinion on the law defining a woman’s right to have an abortion in America was leaked last week, causing uproar - and celebrat...

Investigation: What happened to all the Covid loan money?

10 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

From people nabbed fleeing the country with suitcases full of bank notes to a former pub landlord accused of cashing his loan and sending it to the te...

‘Victory Day’: Taking stock of Russia’s war

09 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It's Victory Day in Russia, the annual celebration of victory in the Second World War. But as Putin's tanks parade the Moscow streets, how is his war ...

Porn in Parliament

06 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The Palace of Westminster has, once again, been rocked by a series of sexual misconduct scandals -- culminating in the revelation that an MP was caugh...

How three British PMs failed to contain Putin

05 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Former ministers have broken ranks to describe how successive prime ministers, including Boris Johnson, withheld arms from Ukraine until just weeks be...

The MP who tried to gag the press

04 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In 2018, the Sunday Times broke the story that then-serving Conservative MP Charlie Elphicke had been accused of rape by a former aide. Elphicke denie...

How the new Sinn Fein could reshape Irish politics

03 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As Northern Ireland goes to the polls on Thursday, we could be about to witness a political earthquake. Today: what it might mean on both sides of the...

IVF, fraud, and 'unwanted' children

29 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What happens when one half of a couple becomes a parent against their will?This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support o...

Bellingcat: The internet sleuths exposing Putin's war crimes

28 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

With potential war crimes in Ukraine unfolding over social media, internet whizzes around the world are using Bellingcat's open source toolkit to find...

Why Shanghai is back in lockdown

27 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As Shanghai enters the fourth week of the world’s strictest Covid lockdown, residents are running out of food, medicine and patience – and there’...

Gendarme: How a notorious French serial killer was unmasked

26 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Nicknamed Le Grêlé, or ‘the pockmarked man’, a French serial killer evaded police for decades, until he claimed one last life – his own.This p...

One Ukrainian family's journey to London

25 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It's been six weeks since the British government opened a new immigration route to help Ukrainian refugees come to the UK - 'Homes for Ukraine'. Among...

Macron versus Le Pen: The fight to be the French president

22 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

On Sunday voters will go to the polls in France in a repeat of 2017’s run off between Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen. So what issues are coming u...

Boris, Rishi and the party line

21 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today, MPs will vote on whether to hold an investigation to look into the Prime Minister's alleged misleading of the Commons during the Partygate saga...

Investigation: A scandal worse than thalidomide

20 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Doctors knew in 1973 that the epilepsy drug sodium valproate posed a risk to unborn children – and ordered that warnings be removed from packets. Al...

Why does Elon Musk want to buy Twitter?

19 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In an audacious hostile takeover bid, Elon Musk is holding Twitter to ransom. Either they let him run the whole company, or he'll pull the plug, selli...

Cancel culture: Did Dostoyevsky predict the culture wars?

14 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Whether you like it or not, these days everyone seems to be enlisted in the culture wars. But why does the debate seem so angry and intolerant? Can we...

The weapon of war we don't want to talk about

13 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Since the first case in Ukraine was reported to The Times, many more have emerged. But why is this particular weapon so hard to talk about?This podcas...

Dementia: Could lessons from Covid help find a cure?

12 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Just before the pandemic, the government promised a 'dementia moonshot' to blast us towards a dementia cure. What happened to it?Today: former prime m...

From Stalin to Putin: A brief history of Russian autocrats

11 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The Russian military has suffered an unexpected battering, but Putin shows no sign of backing down. What can history teach us about what might happen ...

A lost brother (Pt 2) - Seeking answers

08 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In the second of this two-part podcast, we find out what effect Mouayed Bashir's death has had on his family in Newport, South Wales - as the inq...

A lost brother (Pt 1) - A death in South Wales

07 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

On the 17th February last year, in Newport, the family of Mouayed Bashir called 999. According to his parents he'd been suffering a mental health epis...

How the war looks from space

06 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Rule No 1 in space is 'don't rock the boat' - and certainly don't talk about politics. But Putin’s bombs are visible from the International Space St...

Inside GCHQ: Meet the spies keeping Britain safe

05 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Over two episodes, Matthew Syed takes listeners inside GCHQ’s headquarters in Cheltenham. Today, he hears from some of the staff who share how their...

Inside GCHQ: A conversation with the director

04 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Over two episodes, Matthew Syed takes listeners inside GCHQ’s headquarters in Cheltenham. Today, he speaks to the Director, Sir Jeremy Fleming, on a...

The conversion therapy row

02 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This week the government said it would ban so-called conversion therapy for gay or bisexual people in England and Wales, but not for transgender peopl...

The Falklands: 40 years on, a father and son’s story

01 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In April 1982, Captain Christopher Craig set sail with his crew on the frigate HMS Alacrity to the Falkland Islands after Argentina had invaded the Br...

P&O Ferries: Lost at sea

31 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Since firing 800 of its employees with no warning, P&O Ferries has faced mounting pressure from the government and calls for CEO Peter Hebblethwai...

The Metaverse: New frontiers or same old issues?

30 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It's been billed as the future of the internet. But what exactly is 'The Metaverse'? One Sunday Times journalist takes a journey into the the virtual-...

The Ukrainian exodus

29 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Nearly four million refugees have fled the war in Ukraine since it began a month ago. It's the biggest movement of people since records began. We hear...

Could Putin be prosecuted for war crimes?

28 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Hospitals bombed. Thousands of civilians killed. If war crimes have been committed in Ukraine, as many suspect, have the events of the past month expo...

Cocaine and kids: The new face of football hooliganism

25 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Every week thousands of fans criss-cross the country to support their football team, but among them are those who others wish would stay at home. A Ti...

Ukraine's Foreign Legion

24 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

When President Zelensky put a call out for fighters to join the defence of Ukraine against the Russian assault, an estimated 20,000 answered - includi...

Why is everything so expensive?

23 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

We're feeling the pinch as the cost of everyday items increases. Why is this happening? And what might the Chancellor say in his Spring Statement to a...

Covid is back. Why?

22 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Covid cases are surging in the UK, and more people over 70 are testing positive than at any time in the pandemic. What’s going on? We speak to one o...

Freezing Putin’s war chest: Are the sanctions working?

21 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A number of Western nations have imposed sanctions on Russia, its leadership and some of Putin's alleged allies. But are they working?This podcast was...

Investigation: Undercover at the DVLA

18 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A Times undercover investigation has revealed a catalogue of problems at the DVLA that have led to drivers waiting for months for their licence renewa...

Is Russia's war good or bad for China?

17 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This week, in a further sign that the Russian military could be in trouble, it was revealed that the Kremlin asked China for military aid. But will Be...

The truth behind Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's imprisonment in Iran

16 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

After nearly six years of detention in Iran, Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been released to join her family in the UK. Here, we return to an episode f...

Ukraine: Mothers and babies caught in conflict

16 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Last Wednesday, a maternity hospital in Mariupol was bombed. The World Health Organisation says there have been 24 attacks in Ukraine on healthcare fa...

The 'ghost children' of the pandemic

15 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It's been almost two years since the first national lockdown, when schools closed their doors and the nation's families got to grips with home schooli...

Reporting from Ukraine's front line

14 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As the war stretches into its third week, the city of Kharkiv has been among the worst hit. Today: what it's like to report from a city devastate...

Sporting boycotts and the hockey player who could ice Putin

11 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

On Thursday Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the government with his assets in the UK frozen, leaving the football club in limbo. T...

The view from Russia

10 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The ruble is in free fall and western companies have pulled out of Russia. Those who are brave enough to protest the war are being arrested, while oth...

Russian forces vs the Ukrainian spirit

09 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

While Ukrainian cities are being bombarded with Russian fire, it might be of little comfort but Ukraine is winning the information war. Whether it's i...

‘Putin has already lost’: A conversation with the former head of UK armed forces

08 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Did the British military see Putin’s war in Ukraine coming? What more should Britain be doing? And how might the war end? Manveen Rana speaks with t...

What Putin wants

07 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What is going through his mind? Where will this end? And would he press that button?There's a view of Putin which says these are impossible questions ...

The murder of Sarah Everard, a year on

04 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

One year ago this week, Sarah Everard was kidnapped by a serving police officer as she walked home in south London and then raped and killed. Her murd...

Volodymyr Zelensky: Comedian to commander

03 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

He describes himself as the enemy’s number one target. So, as a plot to assassinate the Ukrainian President was reportedly thwarted by the nation’...

How the Ukraine crisis has changed Germany's place in the world

02 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The war in Ukraine is forcing countries to reconsider their relations with Europe's easternmost neighbour. As Germany prepares to almost double its sp...

Ukraine: Living in a warzone

01 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As thousands flee the bombing to get to safety, we hear from two local journalists about what it's like to watch and report as your home country comes...

The Russian mercenaries stalking President Zelensky

28 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As Ukraine’s capital Kyiv continues to come under fire from Russian forces, a 36-hour curfew has been imposed and residents have taken shelter. One ...

The week that shook the monarchy

25 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Following the announcement of Prince Andrew’s settlement with Virginia Guiffre, the Queen was diagnosed with Covid and Prince Charles faced question...

How the truckers' protests divided Canada

24 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Last weekend police swept through Ottawa, clearing a settlement of protestors. For three weeks, truck drivers from all over the country gathered in th...

Pam & Tommy: The sex tape that launched the internet

23 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

When a home video was leaked back in 1995, the intimate lives of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee were available for all to see in a way that had never p...

Putin sends the tanks into Ukraine

22 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The drumbeat of war has been ringing loudly in the last few days. Last night it reached fever pitch, as President Putin addressed Russia and...

Trump: The 800-pound gorilla in the Republican Party

21 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Despite various legal battles closing in on him, Donald Trump remains a looming presence and the de facto leader of the Republican Party in the US. Bu...

The US-style conspiracy theorists now at work in Britain

17 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Last week a small mob filmed themselves shouting abuse at the Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer, including the offensive call of ‘paedo protector’.&...

Cressida Dick's resignation: What next for the Met?

16 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The resignation of Dame Cressida Dick leaves a vacuum at the top of Britain's biggest police force. What eroded London mayor Sadiq Khan's confidence i...

Being a woman under the new Taliban

15 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today marks six months since the fall of Kabul, Afghanistan's capital, to the Taliban. They now control the entire country and life there has transfor...

What causes long Covid?

14 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As Covid swept the world, it also swept The Times. For some colleagues it was mild; for others it meant months in intensive care. And for a third grou...

Can magic mushrooms treat mental illness?

10 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

They're illegal Class A drugs in the UK - right alongside cocaine and heroine. But new research is exploring whether magic mushroom micro-dosing can t...