The Story

Warning, this episode contains discussions about suicide. In the second of this three-part series we learn of a man called Kenneth Law who’s based in Canada. Law appears to be selling a substance to young, vulnerable, adults in the UK, some of whom are using it to take their own lives. If you or someone you know has been affected by suicide or needs to talk to someone, please get in contact with the Samaritans online https://www.samaritans.org/ or call them for free on their 24-hour helpline 116 123.This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Host: James Beal, Social Affairs Editor, The Times. james.beal@thetimes.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Warning, this episode contains discussions about suicide. In October, 2021 David Parfett’s 22-year-old son, Tom, took his own life. In the first of a three-part podcast we hear from David about the events that led up to the university student’s death.If you or someone you know has been affected by suicide or needs to talk to someone, please get in contact with the Samaritans online https://www.samaritans.org/ or call them for free on their 24-hour helpline 116 123.This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Host: James Beal, Social Affairs Editor, The Times.james.beal@thetimes.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Warning, this series contains discussions about suicide. A new three-part investigation begins on Stories of our times this Wednesday, 26 April.James Beal, Social Affairs Editor at The Times looks into the suicide of a 22-year-old British student and soon links it to a man in Canada selling a lethal substance.How many more deaths could the man be connected to? What is being done to regulate this? And can he be stopped?  If you or someone you know has been affected by suicide or needs to talk to someone, please get in contact with the Samaritans online https://www.samaritans.org/ or call them for free on their 24-hour helpline 116 123.This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Next week millions of voters will go to the polls as more than 8,000 council seats in England are contested in the local elections – the most significant gauge of public opinion before Rishi Sunak faces Keir Starmer at a general election. And behind the scenes, politicians and pollsters are desperately trying to figure out exactly who they need to win over, and how they can do it without losing their core supporters.This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Guests:- Lara Spirit, Red Box reporter, The Times.- Peter Kellner, former president of YouGov.Links:- Find out whether there are elections in your area: https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/voter/your-election-information- New photo ID requirements to vote: https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/voter/voter-id/accepted-forms-photo-idClips: Sky News, GB News, The New Statesman, LBC, BBC News, Channel 4 News. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since Elon Musk bought Twitter, he has brought about sweeping changes – but how successful have they been? And what impact has his purchase of the social media platform had on his many other businesses?This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes.Guest: Danny Fortson, West Coast Correspondent, The Sunday Times.Host: Jenny Kleeman.Clips: BBC News, CBS News, Space X, NBC News, NBC, Fox News, Channel 4 News, Yahoo! Finance, Neuralink, MIT. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s the seventh day of violence in Sudan. Hundreds are reported dead and while civilians flee the capital, two generals - one a former warlord - are fighting for control of the country. So who are these men? And what does a hoard of gold and Putin’s private army have to do with the conflict?This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes.Guests: Dallia Abdelmoniem, baker and Sudanese political commentator; Dr Samuel Ramani, politics and international relations tutor, university of Oxford and author of Russia in Africa.Host: Manveen Rana.Producer: Olivia Case.Clips: BBC, France 24, Channel 4, Al Jazeera, Sky, Global news, African Biographies, CNN, Democracy Now, MiddleEastEye, CBC News, CNA, WION, NTVUganda, EWTN, Reuters, Africa News. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Twenty years since their country signed up to join the EU, people from Poland are returning home in the thousands. But why are so many leaving? What does it mean for the UK? And could Brits looking for a better life soon follow them too?This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes.Guest: Matthew Campbell, Foreign Features Editor, The Sunday Times.Host: Manveen Rana.Clips: 5 News, The Independent, DW News, Financial Times, Sky News, AP Archive. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US government is scrambling to assess the damage from a mass leak of defence documents seen as the most harmful intelligence disaster for a decade. We trace how the documents spread from a small chat room to global attention, and examine the key information from the leaks. This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes.Guests:- Alistair Dawber, Washington correspondent, The Times and The Sunday Times.- Michael Evans, specialist defence writer for The Times, and former defence editor and Pentagon correspondent.Clips: BBC News, CNN, NBC, CBS, Washington Post, Times Radio. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

China says its army should increase its preparedness for “real combat” after recent military drills around the island of Taiwan. What’s led to this latest round of posturing and how is Taiwan responding to the prospect of a potential invasion?This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes.Guest: Richard Lloyd Parry, Asia Editor, The Times.Host: Manveen Rana.Clips: AP, CBS, CNA, Channel 4 News, Reuters, CNN, DW News, CGTN, Shanghai Eye, ABC News. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In recent months pressure on TikTok has escalated over fears about how the app and its Chinese parent company ByteDance handle users’ data. The US has threatened to ban the app and two weeks ago the company was fined over £12m for misusing children’s data in the UK. So is the app a national security concern? And is time running out for TikTok?This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes.Guest: Chris Stokel-Walker, journalist, Times contributor and author of TikTok Boom: China's Dynamite App and the Superpower Race for Social Media.Host: Jenny Kleeman.Producer: Olivia Case.Clips: Channel 4 News, Sky News, Parliament TV, 7News Australia, BBC News, C-SPAN, AFP, TikTok, NBC News, TikTok/@bellapoarch, Old Town Road/Lil Nas X/Columbia Records, Blinding Lights/The Weeknd/XO/Republic Records, TikTok/@kazzledazzlesteponme. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.