Episodes

  • S8 Ep51: How the KGB and the FSB attempt to subvert Western democracies with Mark Hollingsworth

    S8 Ep51: How the KGB and the FSB attempt to subvert Western democracies with Mark Hollingsworth
    Jul 5 2024
    On today’s episode, Chris speaks with author and journalist Mark Hollingsworth about his book Agents of Influence, which looks at how the KGB attempted to subvert Western democracies during the Cold War and how its replacement agency, the FSB, attempts to do the same now.

    Check out Mark’s website for information about him, his book and his other work: https://markhollingsworth.co.uk/

    And get a copy of “Agents of Influence” here: https://markhollingsworth.co.uk/agents_of_influence/

    Support Secrets and Spies:

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    Secrets & Spies is produced by Films & Podcasts LTD.
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    1 hr and 17 mins
  • S8 Ep50: Conspiracies, Disinformation, and Mission Implausible with John Sipher and Jerry O’Shea

    S8 Ep50: Conspiracies, Disinformation, and Mission Implausible with John Sipher and Jerry O’Shea
    Jun 28 2024
    On today’s episode, Matt speaks to former senior CIA officers and now co-founders of Spycraft Entertainment, John Sipher and Jerry O’Shea, to discuss their podcast, Mission Implausible.

    In their careers with the clandestine service, John and Jerry, in a sense, created conspiracies, convincing terrorists and hostile foreign governments to believe things that were not true. Now, they’re looking into past and present conspiracy theories to assess what’s real and what isn’t and explore why so many are eager to believe the most outlandish ideas.

    Listen and subscribe to Mission Implausible: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-mission-implausible-146774875/

    Spycraft Entertainment: https://spycraftentertainment.com/

    Follow John on Twitter: https://x.com/john_sipher

    Support Secrets and Spies:

    Become a “Friend of the podcast” on Patreon for £3 www.patreon.com/SecretsAndSpies

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    For more information about the podcast, check out our website: https://secretsandspiespodcast.com/

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    47 mins
  • S8 Ep49: God, Guns, and Sedition with Bruce Hoffman and Jacob Ware

    S8 Ep49: God, Guns, and Sedition with Bruce Hoffman and Jacob Ware
    Jun 21 2024
    On today’s episode, Matt is joined by terrorism experts Bruce Hoffman and Jacob Ware to discuss their book, "God, Guns, and Sedition: Far-Right Terrorism in America.” Both are fellows at the Council on Foreign Relations and teach at Georgetown University. Their book examines the far-right’s long embrace of political violence as a tactic, its proliferation through social media, and provides a range of policy advice to counter this movement and extremism in democratic societies.

    Purchase God, Guns, and Sedition: https://www.amazon.com/God-Guns-Sedition-Far-Right-Terrorism/dp/0231211228

    Bruce and Jacob’s work for the Council on Foreign Relations:

    https://www.cfr.org/expert/bruce-hoffman

    https://www.cfr.org/expert/jacob-ware

    Follow Bruce and Jacob on Twitter:

    https://x.com/hoffman_bruce

    https://x.com/Jacob_A_Ware


    Support Secrets and Spies:

    Become a “Friend of the podcast” on Patreon for £3 www.patreon.com/SecretsAndSpies

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    Subscribe to our Youtube page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDVB23lrHr3KFeXq4VU36dg

    For more information about the podcast, check out our website: https://secretsandspiespodcast.com/

    Connect with us on social media.

    BLUE SKY https://bsky.app/profile/secretsandspies.bsky.social
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    55 mins
  • S8 Ep48: Espresso Martini: Hamas leaders messages, Europe & China, Chinese spies and potential ISIS-K plot foiled in USA

    S8 Ep48: Espresso Martini: Hamas leaders messages, Europe & China, Chinese spies and potential ISIS-K plot foiled in USA
    Jun 15 2024
    On today’s show, we are going to look at reports about private messages from the leader of Hamas, criticisms of Europe’s outdated approach to China, a former CIA officer and FBI linguist pleading guilty to spying for China, and a potential plot from ISIS-K foiled in the US.

    Then we will move to our Patreon only show “Extra Shot” we will look at Europe on high alert to Russian sabotage, Russian backed online efforts to disrupt the Olympics, a Fugitive sheriff from Florida who has a new career as an online propagandist in Russia and we will wrap up looking at a piece about Chinese espionage efforts in the west.

    You will need to be a Patreon subscriber to get access to Extra Shot. Click here to subscribe and listen to Extra Shot:
    https://www.patreon.com/posts/extra-shot-15th-106240850?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link


    Articles discussed

    https://edition.cnn.com/2024/06/11/middleeast/sinwar-hamas-israel-ceasefire-hostage-talks-intl/index.html

    https://thediplomat.com/2024/06/in-the-new-cold-war-europes-approach-to-china-is-already-outdated/

    https://apnews.com/article/cia-fbi-officer-spying-china-56865d1f194b94c014afcef9c53b0b30

    https://apnews.com/article/islamic-state-border-fbi-homeland-security-7088e6f665f095ad38186cafe69bbddd

    https://www.foreignaffairs.com/tajikistan/new-recruiting-ground-isis

    On Extra Shot we look at

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/may/30/europe-on-high-alert-after-suspected-moscow-linked-arson-and-sabotage

    https://blogs.microsoft.com/on-the-issues/2024/06/02/russia-cyber-bots-disinformation-2024-paris-olympics/

    https://www.newsguardtech.com/special-reports/john-mark-dougan-russian-disinformation-network/

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cmm33rm32veo


    Support Secrets and Spies:

    Become a “Friend of the podcast” on Patreon for £3 www.patreon.com/SecretsAndSpies

    Buy merchandise from our shop: https://www.redbubble.com/shop/ap/60934996?asc=u

    Subscribe to our Youtube page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDVB23lrHr3KFeXq4VU36dg

    For more information about the podcast, check out our website: https://secretsandspiespodcast.com/

    Connect with us on social media.

    BLUE SKY https://bsky.app/profile/secretsandspies.bsky.social
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    1 hr and 15 mins
  • No show this weekend, we will return next weekend.

    No show this weekend, we will return next weekend.
    Jun 8 2024
    Hi all, we hope you are well. Sadly, due to work commitments on Chris's side, there will be no show this weekend. We will return next weekend.

    Support Secrets and Spies:

    Become a “Friend of the podcast” on Patreon from £3 www.patreon.com/SecretsAndSpies

    Buy merchandise from our shop: https://www.redbubble.com/shop/ap/60934996?asc=u

    Subscribe to our Youtube page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDVB23lrHr3KFeXq4VU36dg

    For more information about the podcast, check out our website: https://secretsandspiespodcast.com/

    Connect with us on social media.

    BLUE SKY https://bsky.app/profile/secretsandspies.bsky.social
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    Less than 1 minute
  • S8 Ep47: London Met Murder Investigation Team with Steven Keogh

    S8 Ep47: London Met Murder Investigation Team with Steven Keogh
    Jun 1 2024
    On todays podcast I am joined be retired detective and author Steven Keogh. Steven investigated murders at Scotland Yard for 12 years, and he joins us to discuss his excellent book “Murder Investigation Team” which gives readers an insight into how British murder investigations are run and what it is like to be a part of a murder investigation.

    Check out Steven’s website to find out more about Steven, his book and his online course for crime writers: https://stevekeogh.com/

    Support Secrets and Spies:

    Become a “Friend of the podcast” on Patreon for £3
    www.patreon.com/SecretsAndSpies

    Buy merchandise from our Red Bubble shop:
    https://www.redbubble.com/shop/ap/60934996?asc=u

    Subscribe to our Youtube page:
    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDVB23lrHr3KFeXq4VU36dg

    For more information about the podcast, check out our website: https://secretsandspiespodcast.com/

    Connect with us on social media.

    BLUE SKY https://bsky.app/profile/secretsandspies.bsky.social
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    58 mins
  • S8 Ep46: Espresso Martini: Iran’s President is killed, Israel & Iranian espionage comparisons and secret Hamas surveillance files.

    S8 Ep46: Espresso Martini: Iran’s President is killed, Israel & Iranian espionage comparisons and secret Hamas surveillance files.
    May 25 2024
    On today’s show, we are going to look at the death of the Iranian President, Israel &
    Iran espionage comparisons, and we finish by looking at secret Hamas files that expose a mass surveillance campaign in Gaza.

    Then we will move to our Patreon only show “Extra Shot” we will look at reports of
    Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau not taking the work of its intelligence agency
    CSIS seriously. We also look at Chinese research advances in brain-computer interfaces, then we look at the FBI cutting ties with Russian informants and we wrap up with a new look at CIA funding of art works during the Cold War.

    You will need to be a Patreon subscriber to get access to Extra Shot.

    Click here to subscribe and listen to Extra Shot:
    https://www.patreon.com/posts/extra-shot-25th-104921299?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link

    Articles discussed in the show:

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/05/20/iran-president-raisi-deathspeculation/

    https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2024/05/israel-iran-espionage-comparison/678389/

    https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/13/world/europe/secret-hamas-files-palestinians.html


    Support Secrets and Spies:

    Become a “Friend of the podcast” on Patreon for £3 www.patreon.com/SecretsAndSpies

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    Subscribe to our Youtube page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDVB23lrHr3KFeXq4VU36dg

    For more information about the podcast, check out our website: https://secretsandspiespodcast.com/

    Connect with us on social media.

    BLUE SKY https://bsky.app/profile/secretsandspies.bsky.social
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    58 mins
  • S8 Ep45: What President Raisi’s death means for Iran

    S8 Ep45: What President Raisi’s death means for Iran
    May 23 2024
    On today’s episode, Matt is once again joined by Phillip Smyth, one of the leading researchers of Iranian-backed militia groups, to discuss the death of President Ebrahim Raisi and several other senior officials in a helicopter crash last weekend. They unpack what this unexpected development means for Iran domestically, the regime’s web of proxy forces, and the wider Middle East.

    Phillip’s work for The Washington Institute for Near East Policy: https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/experts/phillip-smyth

    Phillip’s work for West Point’s Combatting Terrorism Center: https://ctc.westpoint.edu/authors/phillip-smyth/

    Follow Phillip on Twitter: https://twitter.com/PhillipSmyth

    Support Secrets and Spies:

    Become a “Friend of the podcast” on Patreon for £3 www.patreon.com/SecretsAndSpies

    Buy merchandise from our shop: https://www.redbubble.com/shop/ap/60934996?asc=u

    Subscribe to our Youtube page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDVB23lrHr3KFeXq4VU36dg

    For more information about the podcast, check out our website: https://secretsandspiespodcast.com/

    Connect with us on social media.

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    1 hr and 18 mins