The Bunker – News without the nonsense

Your pop-culture update: Is the MCU’s first Muslim superhero saga Ms Marvel really a cape-fest or a family comedy in disguise? Will Baltimore crime drama We Own This City match up to its creator’s classic creation The Wire? DJ Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy serves up a Balearic breakfast and on the 40th birthday of ABC’s Lexicon Of Love, guest Clark Collis helps us choose THE greatest albums of all time.Hear all the music on our rolling playlists.Spotify: https://bit.ly/CultBunkTidal: https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/1aea7525-7891-4a88-8474-a08c45ea064b “I had to have three vodkas before seeing The Joker. And four afterwards.” – Clark Collis “Defining Balearic is like trying to define jazz…” – Cosmo “I can very much empathise with not wanting to go to Comic Con with your parents…” – Clark Collis https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastPresented and produced by Andrew Harrison and Siân Pattenden. Audio production by Robin Leeburn. Theme music: ‘Bunker Theme (Juntos Mix)’ by Kenny Dickinson. Co-produced by Jelena Sofronijevic. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. The Culture Bunker is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You can’t discuss Turkey’s politics without mentioning its strongman president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. What does he want? Gonul Tol, founding director of the Middle East Institute's Turkey program and author of the upcoming book Erdoğan’s War, talks to Alex Andreou about Erdoğan’s journey from reformer to autocrat, how his 19 years in power have changed Turkey, and what the future holds for the country and his leadership.  “When Erdogan came to power in 2002 he was a different man, or so he said.” “Erdogan appealed to segments of the country that would traditionally be reluctant to support an Islamist leader.” “Institutions do not matter in today’s Turkey.” “Turkey is a problematic partner for the West, but important in the Ukraine crisis.” “If Turkey held free and fair elections today, Erdogan would lose.“ https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Alex Andreou. Producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Assistant producer: Elina Ganatra. Lead producer: Jacob Jarvis. Audio production by Jade Bailey. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Who decides the value of a piece of art? And how do they come to their conclusions? In May, Andy Warhol’s 'Shot Sage Blue Marilyn' sold at Christie’s for a record £158 million, making it the most expensive painting of the 20th century – but it is merely the biggest wave in an international tsunami of art sales. Jelena Sofronijevic speaks to Mary-Alice Stack, Chief Executive at Creative United, and Erling Kagge, polar explorer, former politician, and author of A Poor Collector's Guide to Buying Great Art, to discuss placing a value on creativity.  “The price is reflective of the market, not the value of the artwork.” – Mary-Alice Stack “Now, we don't talk about art, we talk about the art market,” – Erling Kagge “Art fairs are the least best place to buy an artwork.” – Mary-Alice Stack “There was a time when galleries felt like the preserve of the moneyed classes.” – Mary-Alice Stack “There's a sense that if you need to ask the price, you can't afford it.” - Mary-Alice Stack  “Fantastic art is being made every day.” – Erling Kagge “The auction houses are competing against themselves.” – Mary-Alice Stack  “What matters to artists is the creation of the work in the first place.” – Mary-Alice Stack  https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Jelena Sofronijevic. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Lead Producer: Jacob Jarvis Producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Audio production by Jade Bailey. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Productionhttps://uk.gestalten.com/products/erling-kagge-buying-great-art  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The disappearance of British reporter Dom Phillips and indigenous people’s campaigner Bruno Pereira has shown how serious the threats to journalists in Brazil are. It appears that the worst fears of Dom’s family may be true and he and Bruno will not be found alive.In tribute to a former colleague of ours and a brave and formidable reporter, here is the podcast that Dom made with Dorian Lynskey in May 2020, at the height of the COVID pandemic. It has not been edited.To donate to Dom and Bruno’s families please visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-dombruno-missing-in-the-amazon-rainforestWritten and presented by Dorian Lynskey. Producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Lead producer: Jacob Jarvis. Audio production by Alex Rees. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We assess our Groundhog Day Government’s self-imposed Brexit drudgery and unconvincing housing plans. Will the NI protocol wrangling ever end? Are Johnson and his Cabinet of calamity trying to divert from other problems? Plus, we unpack the various aspects of America’s gun violence problems. And, we unpack new cigarette and vape regulations – is the end of smoking nigh?  “If you believe this is going to solve the housing crisis, come walk with me over the Garden Bridge.” – Gavin Esler  “Some of this is just a desperate Boris Johnson trying to come up with clever wheezes.” – Arthur Snell  “This is an English nationalist government." – Gavin Esler "I could give up avocados and frothy coffees and I still wouldn't be able to afford a house." – Yasmeen Serhan “When you kill journalists, you kill the truth.” – Andrew Harrison https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastPresented by Andrew Harrison with Arthur Snell, Gavin Esler and Yasmeen Serhan. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Lead Producer: Jacob Jarvis. Producers: Jacob Archbold, Jelena Sofronijevic and Alex Rees. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Audio production by Alex Rees. The Bunker is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Government is courting controversy again with deportations to Rwanda to take place and more NI protocol drama. As legal wranglings continue, deportation flights are due to depart on Tuesday. What will happen next? Plus, as the cost of living crisis worsens, will there be any tangible moves to deal with it? Justin Quirk is joined by Alex Andreou to chart the week ahead.  "I think the Home Office will manage to get that flight to take off, even if it just has two people on it.” – Alex Andreou  "These are emergency moves to ground the flight, not stop the process." – Alex Andreou  "Johnson is so weak that any lever he pulls will damage his position in the party." – Alex Andreou  “There is a really hard year coming ahead.” – Alex Andreou  “The chaos we are experiencing right now is in part deliberately confected.” – Alex Andreou  "How can you claim that the legal mechanism never works if you've never tested it?" – Alex Andreou  "Some will claim that Ukraine is trying to use the emergency to bypass the traditional accession process." – Alex Andreou www.patreon.com/bunkercast Presented by Justin Quirk with Alex Andreou. Producers: Jacob Archbold, Jelena Sofronijevic and Alex Rees. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Lead Producer: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We refer to measurements almost constantly – but are we truly aware of the power they hold? And why do we accept these rigid measurements of time and space? Ahir Shah speaks to James Vincent about his book Beyond Measure: The Hidden History of Measurement, which looks at how we came to define dimensions.  “We still have a flexible approach to measuring time.”  “You get a lot of measurements that are taken from the human body for example.”  “Over time central authorities take the control to define units of measurement.” “If we couldn’t measure, we couldn’t trade, we couldn’t build cities and we couldn’t do scientific research.”  https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Ahir Shah. Lead Producer: Jacob Jarvis. Producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Assistant Producer: Elina Ganatra. Audio production by Jade Bailey. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We Super Troop down to East London to witness the ABBA VOYAGE live experience. Have any of us been the same since we saw it? Legendary founder of folk rock titans The Waterboys, Mike Scott joins us to talk about about new album All Souls Hill, plus the importance and history of working men’s clubs with Beer Boffin Pete Brown. And FINAL CUT - we watch Swan Song, an indie pic about a retired hairdresser who must undertake the most important hairdo of his life.Hear all the music on our rolling playlists.Spotify: https://bit.ly/CultBunkTidal: https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/1aea7525-7891-4a88-8474-a08c45ea064bPresented and produced by Siân Pattenden and Jelena Sofronijevic. Audio production by Alex Rees. Theme music: ‘Bunker Theme (Juntos Mix)’ by Kenny Dickinson. Co-produced by Jelena Sofronijevic. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. The Culture Bunker is a Podmasters production. https://harpercollins.co.uk/products/clubland-how-the-working-mens-club-shaped-britain-pete-brown?variant=39584522010702  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has shone a spotlight onto Russia’s oligarchs. How does the Kremlin exert influence over them? And with sanctions beginning to bite, what does the future hold? Catherine Belton, Russia reporter for the Washington Post, talks to Nick Cohen about the Kremlin’s iron grip on Russia’s elite, and her own run in with oligarchs over her book Putin’s People. “The state propaganda machine can’t cover up the level of casualties forever.” “Putin has an inferiority complex. He needs the external trappings of wealth to believe he is Number One.” “UK newspapers shy away from reporting on these individuals because they know the legal costs are high.” “These oligarchs are hostages to Putin because he has a monopoly over court decisions.” “The Yeltsin tycoons have seen 30 years of empire-building undone in one fell swoop.” https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Nick Cohen. Producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Assistant producer: Elina Ganatra. Lead producer: Jacob Jarvis. Audio production by Alex Rees. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Netflix’s share price plunged after it announced the loss of 200,000 subscribers in Q1 of 2022. What has gone wrong? And how can the platform get people subscribing again? Alex Hern, Technology Editor for The Guardian, talks to Justin Quirk about why Netflix’s growth turned static, and what the streaming service should be doing to get viewers back onboard.  “This is a company and an industry that expects subscriber numbers to go up.” “The reason Netflix lost those subscribers is because they pulled out of Russia.” “Other streaming services are now able to compete in areas where Netflix was once miles ahead.” “A service with adverts could help Netflix recover some market share.” “Many households don’t even know they have access to Amazon Prime” “I don’t see a painless way out of the hole Netflix has put itself into.” https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Justin Quirk. Producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Assistant producer: Elina Ganatra. Lead producer: Jacob Jarvis. Audio production by Jade Bailey. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices