The Story

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.

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, selling off his stake and sinking their share price. So, what next for Twitter? And why does the world’s richest man want to buy it? 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: - Danny Fortson, West Coast Correspondent, The Sunday Times. Host: Manveen Rana. Clips: Fox News, BBC Radio 5 Live, Sky News, Tesla, CNET, CBS, Yahoo Finance. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 find some answers in novels written 150 years ago?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: James Marriott, Columnist, The Times. Host: David Aaronovitch. Clips: Vice TV, ITV. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 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.This episode contains reference to sexual violence and rape.Guests:- Catherine Philp, Diplomatic Correspondent, The Times.- Christina Lamb, Chief Foreign Correspondent, The Sunday Times.Host: Manveen Rana.Clips: BBC, VOA News, The Guardian, The Telegraph. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Just before the pandemic, the government promised a 'dementia moonshot' to blast us towards a dementia cure. What happened to it?Today: former prime minister David Cameron and Sunday Times science editor Ben Spencer on Britain’s fastest growing disease, dementia.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:- Ben Spencer, science editor, The Sunday Times.- David Cameron, former UK prime minister and president of Alzheimer's Research UK.- Willy Gilder, former BBC radio reporter, living with Alzheimer’s disease.Clips: BBC, Channel 4 News, Sky News, ABC News, WRTV. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 next?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: Roger Boyes, Diplomatic Editor, The Times.Host: Manveen Rana.Clips: CBC, AP, ABC News, Al Jazeera, CBS. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 inquest into his death is delayed - and look at how the police interact with the black community in England and Wales.  This is the second of a two-part podcast examining the death of a black man following contact with police.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.  Host: Asya Fouks.Clips: Sky News, Channel 4, 5News. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 episode that morning. Nearly three hours later the 29-year-old had died after being restrained by police officers in his bedroom. So what happened?This is part one of a two part podcast examining the death of a black man following contact with police.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. Host: Asya Fouks.Clips: BBC, ITV. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 Station, and a war of words over Ukraine may have put joint efforts in space in real jeopardy.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:- Col. Terry Virts (ret), former commander of the International Space Station.- Jacqui Goddard, Miami Correspondent, The Times.Host: Manveen Rana. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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 different backgrounds help contribute to the organisation’s work. 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:- Charlotte, GCHQ analyst. - Unnamed member of the computer network operations team. - David Abrutat, GCHQ departmental historian. - Paul Maddinson, Director of National Resilience and Strategy. Host: Matthew Syed. Clips: BBC News. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.