The Bomb
BBC World Service
How the nuclear bomb shaped world history. The scientists who raced to build weapons, the spies who stole the technology and the superpowers who grappled with deployment. In Season 3, nuclear war is terrifyingly close. Can the superpowers of the Soviet Union and the USA prevent apocalypse? Nina Khrushcheva and Max Kennedy, relatives of Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev and US President John F Kennedy, tell the story of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Season 2 is about Klaus Fuchs, the brilliant young physicist from a pacifist German family whose spying for Russia changed history. Season 1 tells the story of Leo Szilard, and the scientist’s discovery of the lethal potential for nuclear weapons in the race to beat Nazi Germany.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Aug 12, 2022 • 39min
Klaus Fuchs: 6. Camp Y
Lives on the line. The Fuchs family is drawn into the espionage as the atomic bomb project takes a deadly turn. Klaus is at the covert Manhattan Project laboratory in Los Alamos, New Mexico. In this desert terrain, he has lost contact with the Soviets. As the countdown to detonation begins, there's only one person who can be trusted. #thebomb
Aug 5, 2022 • 29min
Klaus Fuchs: 5. An irreversible reaction
A double life gets more dangerous. Fuchs joins America's bomb project and the race with Russia is on. But as the nuclear mission ramps up, security tightens too. Now at the heart of the mission, his skills in science and espionage are tested to the limit. #thebomb
Jul 29, 2022 • 37min
Klaus Fuchs: 4. A stable bond
The spy meets his spymaster - presenter Rosa Ellis' great-aunt Ursula. She's a housewife and mother living in the English countryside. And she also works for the Soviets. Fuchs and Ursula have a secret list of information that Russia urgently needs to win the nuclear race. Together, they could be the most dangerous spies on the planet. #thebomb
Jul 22, 2022 • 31min
Klaus Fuchs: 3. Unstable elements
The fate of the world is decided: Klaus Fuchs joins a top-secret atomic mission. The race to build the bomb is on. In Birmingham, England, Klaus Fuchs is working on “TUBE ALLOYS” – the codename for the British atomic bomb project. But at the same time, he’s slipping secrets to the Soviets. Host Rosa Ellis finds out how he did it. #thebomb
Jul 15, 2022 • 40min
Klaus Fuchs: 2. A split life
The world’s most dangerous spy? A young scientist’s journey into espionage. From a German pacifist family to a Soviet spy ring. Physicist Klaus Fuchs flees Nazi rule for England and joins the race to develop an atomic bomb – whoever gets there first wins the war. Presenter Rosa Ellis discovers how Fuchs’ double life begins. #thebombThis podcast has been edited for accuracy. Audio was updated on 20th July 2022.
Jul 8, 2022 • 21min
Klaus Fuchs: 1. A grave matter
The man who stole the atomic bomb. And why he did it. Klaus Fuchs was a talented scientist - but he was also a Soviet spy. He worked on the British American atomic bomb project, whilst handing nuclear secrets to the Russians. Host Rosa Ellis uncovers the double lives of Klaus Fuchs and her great-aunt Ursula. #thebomb
Jun 26, 2022 • 4min
Klaus Fuchs: Bonus: The sound design
What does the inside of an atom sound like? Meet our sound designer for Season 2. How Tim Nielsen is using cinematic design. He says he draws inspiration from the human heartbeat. Season 2 begins on 9 July 2022.
Jun 19, 2022 • 4min
Klaus Fuchs: Bonus: Introducing Rosa Ellis
"She was not just a spy - she was a spymaster". The family secret of Rosa Ellis, host of season 2 of The Bomb. Emily Strasser takes us behind the scenes of this espionage thriller, as Rosa talks about her great-aunt's double life. Season 2 begins on 9 July 2022.
Jun 12, 2022 • 4min
Klaus Fuchs: Introducing The Bomb season 2
The spy who changed history. And a great-aunt's double life. The Bomb is returning with season 2. Klaus Fuchs was a brilliant scientist, but he was also a dangerous spy, stealing atomic secrets and handing them over to the Soviet Union. In this special episode, Emily Strasser takes us behind the scenes. Producer Zak Brophy tells her all about the man who stole the bomb. Season 2 begins on 9 July 2022.
Sep 11, 2020 • 29min
Leo Szilard: 7. The doomsday clock
The world’s first nuclear bomb drops on the unsuspecting city of Hiroshima. On 7 August 1945, the world is changed forever.
In this final episode, featuring first-hand accounts of the attack that day, Emily Strasser asks how the bomb changed humanity. Have we really come to terms with it?
#thebomb
