Secrets and Spies Podcast: Current Affairs | Geopolitics | Intelligence

“The Dry CleanerCast” is back! We kick off with a special episode of “Need to Know”. On this episode, we are joined by former State Department Counterterrorism Agent and Author Fred Burton. We discuss the latest information on the Salisbury poisoning case and we also look at the series of Sonic attacks against US embassies and embassy staff in Cuba and China. Fred was the deputy chief of the Counterterrorism division for the State Departments, Diplomatic Security Service (DSS). He is currently the vice president of Stratfor, a strategic intelligence and analysis firm tracking global security and international affairs. Fred is also the author of a number of fantastic books, we discuss "Chasing Shadows" and "Ghost: Confessions of a Counterterrorism Officer". Fred has a new book out on 25th October called “Beirut Rules: The Murder of a CIA Station Chief and Hezbollah's War Against America” You can pre-order the book at Amazon here: https://amzn.to/2QOGl5O FOR MORE INFORMATION ON FRED Visit Stratfor: www.stratfor.com SUPPORT THE SHOW PATREON https://www.patreon.com/DryCleanerCast CONNECT WITH US TWITTER https://twitter.com/DryCleanerCast FACEBOOK Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drycleanercast/ And visit our website: www.drycleanercast.co.uk

EPISODE TWENTY: IAN FLEMING, LIFE & LEGACY WITH JEREMY DUNS Welcome to Episode twenty! On this months episode we take a look at the life & legacy of James Bond creator Ian Fleming. We are joined by author and journalist Jeremy Duns who has written a new short ebook called “Agent of Influence: Anthony Terry and the shaping of Cold War fact and fiction”. “Agent of Influence” reveals that during the Cold War, while he was writing the James Bond novels, Ian Fleming was working for MI6. It's a detailed analysis of how an MI6 operative called Antony Terry, working as a correspondent at the Sunday Times, fed Fleming information for his novels - it also explores Terry's interactions with John le Carre and Frederick Forsyth, declassifying his major impact on spy fiction. The short also explores how MI6 used the British press during the Cold War, following on from Jeremy Duns, 2013 Radio 4 documentary MI6 and the Media. For more information on "AGENT OF INFLUENCE" Go to: http://www.jeremy-duns.com/agentofinfluence SUPPORT THE SHOW PATREON https://www.patreon.com/DryCleanerCast CONNECT WITH US TWITTER https://twitter.com/DryCleanerCast FACEBOOK Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drycleanercast/

On this month’s podcast we are looking at Prevent. Prevent is name given to the UK governments Countering Violent Extremism programme. “Prevent is about safeguarding people and communities from the threat of terrorism. Prevent is 1 of the 4 elements of CONTEST, the Government's counter-terrorism strategy. It aims to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism.” (https://www.ltai.info/what-is-prevent/) On the podcast we are joined by two Prevent practitioners Sean Arbuthnot and William Baldet to discuss how it works and the wider context of the programme. SUPPORT THE SHOW PATREON
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EPISODE EIGHTEEN On this months podcast we are joined by author and investigative journalist David Neiwert. David has spent the majority of his career researching and documenting the far right in America. He is currently a correspondent for the Southern Poverty Law Centre and author of the book "Alt America: The Rise of the Radical Right in the age of Trump". On this episode we discuss the rise of the radical right into the American political mainstream. We look at Conspiracy culture and we also discuss Chris's past as a conspiracy theorist and how he got himself out of that mindset. FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT DAVID NEIWERT You can visit David's website here: dneiwert.blogspot.co.uk/ WRITING COURSE Writing or producing a military drama like The Last Post or Our Girl? Making an espionage series to rival Spooks? Rossa McPhillips MBE, a former soldier in British military intelligence, is offering a one-day course to writers, directors and producers on the facts about the armed forces, its culture, traditions and how it operates overseas in conflict zones from a first-hand perspective. The course will also open a door on the closed world of the intelligence services. Course participants will get the opportunity to see what the role of an intelligence officer is really like, as they take part in a realistic conflict simulation exercise where they must make quick decisions based on disparate intelligence data to prevent a hypothetical terrorist attack. Email Rossa for more information: rossa.mcphillips@googlemail.com Venue: Royal Holloway, University of London, 11 Bedford Square, London WC1B 3R Date: 30th June 2018 (10am–6pm) Price: £85, £75 Concessions SUPPORT THE SHOW PATREON www.patreon.com/DryCleanerCast CONNECT WITH US TWITTER twitter.com/DryCleanerCast FACEBOOK Facebook: www.facebook.com/drycleanercast/ Visit our website: www.drycleanercast.co.uk

NEED TO KNOW: STRIKES AGAINST SYRIA WITH IAIN BALLANTYNE On 7th April there was a chemical attack against civilians in Douma, Syria. 70 people were reportedly killed and 1,000 people suffered effects from the attack. The bombs in question were suspected to be filled with chemical munitions such as chlorine gas and Sarin. As with previous incidents of this nature, France, the UK and US governments accused the Syrian government as being responsible. French, UK and US forces launched joint strikes against targets on 14th April despite threats from the Russian government to retaliate against any strikes to their interests in Syria. On this episode of "Need to Know" we are joined by Author Iain Ballantyne and we discuss the strikes against Syria and the wider implications of those strikes from a naval perspective. ITUNES https://goo.gl/DVU4Y1 SUPPORT THE SHOW PATREON https://www.patreon.com/DryCleanerCast CONNECT WITH US TWITTER https://twitter.com/DryCleanerCast FACEBOOK Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drycleanercast/ WARSHIPS MAGAZINE https://www.warshipsifr.com/ Writing Course Writing or producing a military drama like The Last Post or Our Girl? Making an espionage series to rival Spooks? Rossa McPhillips MBE, a former soldier in British military intelligence, is offering a one-day course to writers, directors and producers on the facts about the armed forces, its culture, traditions and how it operates overseas in conflict zones from a first-hand perspective. The course will also open a door on the closed world of the intelligence services. Course participants will get the opportunity to see what the role of an intelligence officer is really like, as they take part in a realistic conflict simulation exercise where they must make quick decisions based on disparate intelligence data to prevent a hypothetical terrorist attack. Email Rossa for more information: rossa.mcphillips@googlemail.com Venue: Royal Holloway, University of London, 11 Bedford Square, London WC1B 3R 10am–6pm, Dates TBC Price: £85, £75 Concessions

NEED TO KNOW: SALISBURY POISONING WITH JEREMY DUNS The world is turning into a plot line from a Cold War novel, so we thought that it may be a good idea to chat with a Cold War novelist to try and make sense of it all. So on today’s episode of “Need to Know” we are joined by author Jeremy Duns, who has written a number of Cold War based novels as well as books on contemporary issues such as the coverage of the Edward Snowden revelations back in 2013. On this episode will have a look at a few stories that have caught our eye from the Salisbury poisoning and the reaction to it. For show notes and links to what we discuss please visit our website: www.drycleanercast.co.uk SUPPORT THE SHOW PATREON https://www.patreon.com/DryCleanerCast CONNECT WITH US TWITTER https://twitter.com/DryCleanerCast FACEBOOK Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drycleanercast/

NEED TO KNOW: SALISBURY POISONING WITH FRED BURTON On Sunday 4th March, 2018, a former Russian Intelligence officer Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found on a bench in a catatonic state in the town of Salisbury. It has subsequently been found that the pair were poisoned. On this episode of "Need to Know" we are joined by former State Department Counterterrorism Agent and Author Fred Burton. We discuss the Salisbury poisoning, how professional assassins operate, and we ask who else could have been a target? We also have a look at the recent Austin Parcel Bombing case in Austin Texas. Fred was the deputy chief of the Counterterrorism devision for the State Departments, Diplomatic Security Service (DSS). He is currently the vice president of Stratfor, a strategic intelligence and analysis firm tracking global security and international affairs. Fred is also the author of a number of fantastic books, we discuss "Chasing Shadows" and "Ghost: Confessions of a Counterterrorism Officer".

NEED TO KNOW: SALISBURY POISONING WITH IAIN BALLANTYNE On Sunday 4th March, 2018, a former Russian Intelligence officer Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found on a bench in a catatonic state in the town of Salisbury. It has subsequently been found that the pair were poisoned. On this episode of "Need to Know" we are joined by Author Iain Ballantyne. We discuss how our submarine forces used to be a deterrent to hostile Russian military activity and how defence cuts have made us weaker in the eyes of the Kremlin.

On Sunday 4th March, 2018, a former Russian Intelligence officer Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found on a bench in a catatonic state in the town of Salisbury. It has subsequently been found that the pair were poisoned. On this episode of "Need to Know" we are joined by Author and Journalist Edward Lucas. We discuss the poisoning, its context and why Russia is the main suspect in this assassination attempt that happened in broad daylight on the streets of Great Britain. You can find out more about Edward Lucas and connect with him via his website: http://www.edwardlucas.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/edwardlucas If you like the work we are doing on the podcast, please become a Patreon subscriber by going to: https://www.patreon.com/DryCleanerCast You can connect with us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DryCleanerCast Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drycleanercast/

On this months podcast we are joined by Fred Burton. Fred was the deputy chief of the Counterterrorism devision for the State Departments, Diplomatic Security Service (DSS). He is currently the vice president of Stratfor, a strategic intelligence and analysis firm tracking global security and international affairs. Fred is also the author of a number of fantastic books, we discuss "Chasing Shadows" and "Ghost: Confessions of a Counterterrorism Officer". On this episode we discuss Fred's career at the DSS, the terrorist scene pre 9/11 and a cold case that stayed with him after retiring from the DSS. If you like what we are doing please support the show by becoming a subscriber. Go to www.patreon.com/drycleanercast For more information visit our website: www.drycleanercast.co.uk Connect with us on Twitter @DryCleanerCast