The Story

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 denied the allegation and sued for libel, and the paper spent the next four years in a legal battle, which has only just concluded.To read more:https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/charlie-elphicke-the-predator-mp-and-his-protection-racket-3kb30pl6w https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/charlie-elphicke-abandons-libel-challenge-over-rape-report-wc5mrzg5wThis podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today and get one month free at: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes.  Guest: Pia Sarma, Editorial Legal Director at The Times and The Sunday Times.Host: David Aaronovitch.Clips: CBS, UK Parliament, ITV, 5 News, Times Radio. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 Irish border if Sinn Fein sweeps to power.This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today and get one month free at: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes.  Guest: Justine McCarthy, Senior Writer, The Sunday Times.Host: Manveen Rana. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What happens when one half of a couple becomes a parent against their will?This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today and get one month free at: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes.  Guests: Jenny Kleeman, Times Radio presenter and investigative journalist.Host: David Aaronovitch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With potential war crimes in Ukraine unfolding over social media, internet whizzes around the world are using Bellingcat's open source toolkit to find, fact-check, and expose them in real time.This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today and get one month free at: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Guests:Elliot Higgins, creative director and founder, Bellingcat.Silke Muelherr, deputy CEO, Alfred Landecker Foundation.Host: Manveen Rana.Clips: ITV News, CBC, WION, BBC, CBS, CNN, Sky News. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Shanghai enters the fourth week of the world’s strictest Covid lockdown, residents are running out of food, medicine and patience – and there’s no end in sight. Meanwhile Beijing has begun mass testing and ordered its nearly 22 million residents to remain in the city. Should China rethink its Covid strategy?This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today and get one month free at: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Guests:- Didi Tang, Beijing correspondent, The Times.- Ian Mote, British banker living in Shanghai.Host: Manveen Rana.Clips: BBC, NBC, CBS, PBS, WION, ABC News.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nicknamed Le Grêlé, or ‘the pockmarked man’, a French serial killer evaded police for decades, until he claimed one last life – his own.This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today and get one month free at: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Guest: Peter Conradi, Europe Editor, The Sunday Times.Host: David Aaronovitch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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'. Amongst the reports of bureaucratic delays and safety issues, we hear about the scheme from the two sides at the heart of it: Ukrainian refugees and their host family.This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today and get one month free at: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Guests:Matt Dathan, Home Affairs Editor, The TimesJohn and Sue Rutherford, UK host family.Damian Whitworth, Feature Writer, The Times.Nataliia, Paulina and Tisha Shynhyrii, Ukrainian refugees. Host: Manveen Rana.Clips: Parliament TV, EU Commission, Sky News, BBC News, ITV. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 up on the campaign trail? What are the prospects for the incumbent? And could the far right populist triumph in a key election for the future of Europe?This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today and get one month free at: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Guest: Adam Sage, Times Paris Correspondent.Host: Manveen Rana.Clips: France 24, CNN, Times Radio, BBC News, Reuters. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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. Last week, Johnson and - unexpectedly - Chancellor Rishi Sunak were both fined for violating their own lockdown rules. Boris Johnson's critics say this makes him a 'lawmaker lawbreaker'. So how serious is this for the PM's future?This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today and get one month free at: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Guest: Henry Zeffman, Associate Political Editor, The Times.Host: Manveen Rana.Clips: Parliament TV, Sky News, Daily Mail, Office for Budget Responsibility, BBC News, 5 News, WION Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Doctors knew in 1973 that the epilepsy drug sodium valproate posed a risk to unborn children – and ordered that warnings be removed from packets. Almost 50 years and 20,000 disabled babies later, it is still being prescribed to pregnant women.This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today and get one month free at: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Guests:- Shaun Lintern, Health Editor, The Sunday Times.- Janet Williams, CEO at The Independent Fetal Anti-Convulsant Trust.- Catherine McNamara, parent. Host: David Aaronovitch.Clips: Channel 4 News, ITV. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.