The Rest Is Classified
Enter the secretive world of spies, espionage, and covert operations.
Hosted by former CIA analyst turned spy novelist, David McCloskey, and veteran security correspondent, Gordon Corera, this podcast unravels real-life spy stories, intelligence secrets, and the hidden power struggles shaping global events.
From Cold War espionage to modern-day intelligence agencies like the CIA, MI6, and Mossad, explore the world of double agents, classified missions, and the shadowy figures who operate in them. Whether you're a true crime addict, a thriller fan, or fascinated by spy stories, this is the show for you.
Hosted by former CIA analyst turned spy novelist, David McCloskey, and veteran security correspondent, Gordon Corera, this podcast unravels real-life spy stories, intelligence secrets, and the hidden power struggles shaping global events.
From Cold War espionage to modern-day intelligence agencies like the CIA, MI6, and Mossad, explore the world of double agents, classified missions, and the shadowy figures who operate in them. Whether you're a true crime addict, a thriller fan, or fascinated by spy stories, this is the show for you.
Episodes (53)
81. The Man Who Saved The World: Abandoning Communism (Ep 2)
How did Oleg Gordievsky get recruited to work for MI6? What effect did living in Copenhagen have on his political views? And how did Britain nearly blow the recruitment of one of the most...
80. The Man Who Saved The World: Making of a Traitor (Ep 1)
What makes a spy betray the very system that raised him? How does a loyal KGB officer, born into the service, become Britain’s most valuable Cold War agent? And how did one man’s intelligence reports...
79. The Hunt for Pablo Escobar: Killing the Cocaine King (Ep 6)
In the final months of 1993, the hunt for Pablo Escobar reached a fever pitch. On the run and isolated, Escobar is under immense pressure from both the Colombian search bloc and the shadowy death...
78. The Hunt for Pablo Escobar: Death Squads & Delta Force (Ep 5)
After walking out of his luxurious prison, Pablo Escobar is back on the run. With the Colombian government humiliated, they turn to the United States for a new kind of help: a specialized, elite...
77. The Hunt for Pablo Escobar: The Medellin Cartel vs Colombia (Ep 4)
By the autumn of 1989, the hunt for Pablo Escobar and the Medellín cartel was intensifying. With the US military and intelligence agencies now directly involved, a new, more aggressive phase of the...
76. The Hunt for Pablo Escobar: From Narco to Global Terrorist (Ep 3)
By the late 1980s, Pablo Escobar’s grip on the cocaine trade was unmatched. But a new threat loomed: extradition to the United States. To Escobar, it was a fate worse than death. His answer was brutal...
75. The Hunt for Pablo Escobar: The War on Drugs (Ep 2)
In the early 1980s, Pablo Escobar reinvented himself. He was no longer just the man who could smuggle tonnes of cocaine into Miami - he was the successful businessman, the philanthropist, the proud...
74. The Hunt for Pablo Escobar: Rise of a Drug Lord (Ep 1)
Colombia in the mid-20th century was a place of beauty and bloodshed - where jungle mountains sheltered rebels, the cities were ruled by oligarchs, and outlaw legends became folk heroes. Into this...
73. Destroying the Nazi Nuclear Program: Saving the World From War (Ep 2)
Who was the Nazi General who called the Allied Gunnerside mission “the most splendid coup I have seen?” How did the Norwegians stop the Nazis' nuclear program for good? And how did one commando use a...
72. Destroying the Nazi Nuclear Program: Bombing Norway (Ep 1)
What was the most dangerous mission of World War II? How did a small team of Norwegian skiers stop the Nazis from building a nuclear bomb? And, what exactly is heavy water, and why was it so important...
71. Israel Attacks Iran: The Dawn of Cyber Warfare (Ep 4)
How did the Stuxnet cyberweapon, designed to be covert, break out into the wild? What were the world-changing implications of this sophisticated attack on Iran's nuclear centrifuges, and what happened...
70. Israel Attacks Iran: The Virus Spreads (Ep 3)
What was the "horse blanket" and how did it guide Obama's decisions on cyber warfare? How did the Stuxnet virus evolve to target Iran's centrifuges more aggressively? And what were the risks and...
69. Israel Attacks Iran: Mossad’s First Assault (Ep 2)
How did Israel and the US develop this new type of weapon which they would unleash upon Iran? Who will they rely on to get it into the system? And how will they try to sabotage Iran in...
68. Israel Attacks Iran: The Origins of the Iranian Nuclear Programme (Ep 1)
When did Israel first attack Iran’s nuclear program? How did they do it? And how did Iran develop its nuclear program that has shaped so much of the politics of the Middle-East over the past 20...
67. The Great Betrayal: Defecting to Moscow (Ep 2)
How do you switch sides and become a spy for the KGB? When the FBI is tracking you, how do you escape the country? And what is life like for a traitor on the other side of the Iron Curtain? Join David...
66. The Great Betrayal: An American Traitor (Ep 1)
How did an alcoholic, drug-addicted hippie end up working for the CIA? How are CIA agents trained? And what is the real purpose of a lie detector test? Join David McCloskey and Gordon Corera as they...
Former Head of MI5: 7/7, Putin, and Al-Qaeda (Eliza Manningham-Buller)
What was it truly like inside MI5 and the heart of government as the 7/7 attacks unfolded? How did 7/7 expose a shocking blind spot for Britain's spy agency? And what lessons are still being applied...
65. Terror Strikes London: The Forgotten Attack (Ep 4)
Two weeks after 52 people were murdered on London’s transport network, terrorists tried to strike again. How did the UK's domestic security services leverage bulk phone record collection to track down...
64. Terror Strikes London: The Al-Qaeda Mastermind (Ep 3)
He left a video for his daughter before he vanished to Pakistan. A quiet farewell, wrapped in the language of faith and finality. What no one knew was that in the mountains near the Afghan border, he...
63. Terror Strikes London: What did MI5 know? (Ep 2)
Fifteen months before the London bombings, MI5 had seen them. They had names, photographs, and addresses. Two of the men who would carry out the 7/7 attacks had already appeared in surveillance. And...
62. Terror Strikes London: 7/7 (Ep 1)
London woke up to joy and celebration on 7 July 2005. The city had just won the 2012 Olympics. It was a glorious summer. There were parties in the streets. But, by 9am, everything had...
61. The Truth About UFOs: Whistleblowers, Warplanes, and Worlds Unknown (Ep 4)
For years, the term UFO conjured images of tin foil hats and elaborate cover-ups. But with recent official reports from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence detailing hundreds of UAP...
60. The Truth About UFOs: The CIA's Alien Obsession (Ep 3)
In 1955, a United States Senator claimed he saw a "greenish-yellow ball rising rapidly" over the Soviet Union. Was it a Soviet secret weapon, an extraterrestrial visitation, or something else...
59. The Truth About UFOs: Alien Sightings (Ep 2)
In the mid-1970s, new, more outlandish claims about the Roswell incident began to surface: not one, but multiple crash sites, military recovery of alien bodies, and secret autopsies. What do these...
58. The Truth About UFOs: The Roswell Incident (Ep 1)
The date was July 8th, 1947. The Roswell Daily Record boldly announced: "RAAF Recovers Flying Saucer." How did this headline ignite a global obsession with UFOs, and why has the official narrative...
57. Why Israel Attacked Iran
The ongoing conflict between Iran and Israel may have escalated last Friday when Israel launched predawn strikes on its regional enemy, but tensions have been brewing for years.
In 2020, the...
In 2020, the...
56. Bin Laden vs the CIA: Death in Pakistan (Ep 6)
His poetry celebrated a cosmic struggle of violence and glory, but his end was far from a medieval power play. Why did Osama bin Laden spend his final years in a secluded compound in Pakistan,...
55. Bin Laden vs the CIA: The Hunt for the World's Most Wanted (Ep 5)
A decade after 9/11, Osama bin Laden remained at large, a constant "running sore" for the US government. But how did a fleeting glimpse of a tall guy with a beard and the interrogation of a high-value...
54. Bin Laden vs the CIA: 9/11 (Ep 4)
On a clear September morning, the American homeland was shattered, revealing a vulnerability unforeseen for nearly two centuries. But, how did Osama bin Laden, soon to become the world's most wanted...
53. Bin Laden vs the CIA: The Great Escape (Ep 3)
"The walls of oppression and humiliation cannot be demolished except in a rain of bullets." These chilling words from Osama bin Laden's 1996 fatwa declared war on the United States. How did this Saudi...
52. Bin Laden vs the CIA: Declaring Jihad (Ep 2)
How did a Saudi millionaire, seemingly more interested in a simple life than luxury, become the architect of a global terrorist organization? What personal and geopolitical forces converged to...
51. Bin Laden vs the CIA: The Origins of Al-Qaeda (Ep 1)
What kind of man was Osama bin Laden before he became the world's most wanted terrorist? How did his early life and radical beliefs shape the figure who would one day challenge the West? And what role...
50. The Man Who Tried To Kill The KGB: On the Run from Russia (Ep 2)
He risked everything to expose the KGB's darkest secrets, but Vasily Mitrokhin had two non-negotiable demands: his family's safety and his archive's publication. How did MI6 navigate these...
49. The Man Who Tried To Kill The KGB: A Traitor in the Kremlin (Ep 1)
The Cold War may have ended, but the hunt for dangerous secrets never truly stops. What happens when a disillusioned KGB archivist decides to betray his masters? How did he manage to steal masses of...
48. The Leak That Changed The World: Death of Privacy (Ep 6)
Do we have any privacy in the modern era? Why did Snowden do the things he did? Was he successful? And what is the closest Gordon Corera ever came to being a spy?
Listen as David McCloskey and...
Listen as David McCloskey and...
47. The Leak That Changed The World: Spying on the World (Ep 5)
Stories continue to flood out of the Snowden leaks and it's not just American doing the spying. How were the British 'Mastering the Internet'? Should we be surprised that America are spying on their...
46. The Leak That Changed The World: Snowden On The Run (Ep 4)
The world has met Edward Snowden and now he fears repercussions. How will he escape Hong Kong? Where will he go? And will any nation be willing to risk the fury of the USA and help him?
Listen as...
Listen as...
45. The Leak That Changed The World: America Exposed (Ep 3)
With Snowden now in possession of 1,500,000 secret American files, how can he get them in the public eye? Which journalists will he choose to help him? And why does he choose to hole himself up in a...
44. The Leak That Changed The World: Stealing State Secrets (Ep 2)
Edward Snowden has decided he is going to leak some of America's biggest secrets, but first he needs to steal them. How do you steal from some of America's most secure facilities? Does he have the...
43. The Leak That Changed The World: Snowden Hacks the System (Ep 1)
Who was Edward Snowden? Was he an ideologue or a disgruntled employee? And what led him to orchestrating the biggest leak in modern American history?
Join David McCloskey and Gordon Corera as they...
Join David McCloskey and Gordon Corera as they...
42. Putin’s Minions: The Master in Moscow (Ep 2)
The game is afoot, and the stakes are higher than ever. Who was the real villain in the Minions spy saga? How did a fintech tycoon become a key player in Russian espionage? And what does this case...
41. Putin’s Minions: How Russia Spies (Ep 1)
What do a fading seaside hotel, a self-proclaimed Q, and an eyelash champion have in common? They're all part of a bizarre Russian spy ring operating in the UK. But beneath the absurdity lies a...
40. Iran vs Israel: Mossad Assassinates Iranian Mastermind (Ep 2)
The future of warfare is already here, and it's more terrifying than we imagined. How did Israel deploy a remote-controlled robotic gun to assassinate a high-profile target? What does this operation...
39. Iran vs Israel: Inside the Shadow War (Ep 1)
How do Israeli and Iranian intelligence fight each other? Who's the man behind the Iranian nuclear programme? And what is the Mossad operation aimed at slowing it down?
Listen as Gordon Corera and...
Listen as Gordon Corera and...
Introducing... Legacy
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...
38. CIA Mind Control: America’s Secret Cartel (Ep 4)
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...
37. CIA Mind Control: Sex, Drugs, and Mysterious Deaths (Ep 3)
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...
36. CIA Mind Control: Fighting Communism with LSD (Ep 2)
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...
35. CIA Mind Control: The Origin of MK Ultra (Ep 1)
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...
In the shadowy world of...
34. Putin's War: The Battle for Kyiv (Ep 4)
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...
33. Putin’s War: How Russian Intelligence Failed (Ep 3)
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...
32. Putin’s War: The CIA Warn Zelensky (Ep 2)
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...
For months, Western...
31. Putin’s War: The Secret Plot to Invade Ukraine (Ep 1)
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...
2021 is drawing to a close and the CIA is becoming increasingly concerned that Putin is going to invade Ukraine. He's...
About this Podcast
Language
en
Categories
History