The Bunker – News without the nonsense

Prof. Christina Pagel and Alex Andreou discuss key moments from the ongoing Covid-19 inquiry, including the lack of safety precautions in Number 10, the overwhelming pressure faced by frontline workers, and the need for serious leadership in politics. They also highlight the government's focus on public relations over public health, the impact of decisions influenced by media coverage, and upcoming testimonies in the inquiry. The podcast brings attention to the importance of learning from other countries and the necessity for transparency and adequate planning in handling a pandemic.

It’s Autumn Statement week and the Tory press are baying for tax cuts. Will they get their wish? Plus a possible hostage deal in Gaza, Argentina’s new president looks like a Vegas Wolverine and talks like Trump, Musk finds a new way to screw up TwitteX… and Doctor Who is back! Alex Andreou sets out the week ahead with Andrew Harrison. Tell us what you think of The Bunker in our Listener Survey – five respondents will get the Bunker mug or t-shirt of their choice. “Inflation is down which just means prices are going up less fast… when people come to do their Christmas food shop, they will notice.” “Twitter is going about as well as a SpaceX launch” “Our print media is out of control. They are partisan to the point of being fact-free and it cannot continue.” Support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Group Editor Andrew Harrison. Audio production by Jade Bailey. Assistant producer: Eliza Davis Beard. Music: Kenny Dickinson. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tell us what you think of The Bunker in our Listener Survey – five respondents will get the Bunker mug or t-shirt of their choice.On this week's Bunker Gold, let us take you back to September 2020…There’s an unseen epidemic of people dying while homeless, and journalist Maeve McClenaghan tells their stories in No Fixed Abode: Life and Death Among the UK's Forgotten Homeless. She tells Dorian Lynskey what she learned, how there was more to the 2010s explosion in rough sleeping than just austerity… and a radical solution to homelessness: give people places to live.• “From attending the funerals of homeless people I discovered how loved these people were”• “Dehumanisation drives the violence which homeless people experience”www.patreon.com/bunkercast Presented by Dorian Lynskey. Produced by Andrew Harrison. Assistant producer Jacob Archbold. 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

Tell us what you think of The Bunker in our Listener Survey – five respondents will get the Bunker mug or t-shirt of their choice.When we think of the mafia, we think of Tony Soprano and Don Corleone – men with gelled hair, tailored suits, cigars and machine guns. But today’s mobsters are increasingly young and social-media savvy. University of Essex criminology professor and author of Chasing the Mafia. 'Ndrangheta, Memories and Journeys Anna Sergi joins Rafael Behr in The Bunker to discuss the changing landscape of the Italian mafia. • “They are constantly jeopardising secrecy. They are showing the criminal network." – Anna Sergi • “Violence seems cool for the younger generations of the mafia. Showing the cult of violence on TikTok or Instagram gets attention. ” – Anna SergiSupport us on Patreon:www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Rafael Behr. Producer: Eliza Davis Beard. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tell us what you think of The Bunker in our Listener Survey – five respondents will get the Bunker mug or t-shirt of their choice.As religious fanatics surge to megachurches across the United States, how do those in charge garner such cult-like devotion? Inspiring total obedience from their followers, some have even made supporters abandon families to support their religious pursuits. How do these groups form, and what about the U.S culture makes them thrive?Adam Morris, author of American Messiahs: False Prophets Of A Damned Nation, joins Dr Seth Thévoz in the Bunker.American Messiahs Book Link• “Messiah’s offer members salvation from the here and now, they see the established religions as offering no comfort.” – Adam Morris• “These types of figures are uniquely amenable to the U.S, due to the societal structure, migrant population etc.” – Adam Morris• “Obedience to the leader is important, but also an obedience to the movement is necessary in these quasi-communist communes.” – Adam Morriswww.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Seth Thévoz. Produced by: Adam Wright. Audio Editor: Simon Williams. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tell us what you think of The Bunker in our Listener Survey – five respondents will get the Bunker mug or t-shirt of their choice.The Supreme Court has shot down the government’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda. But Rishi Sunak is determined to see his policy through, even if it means defying the European Court of Human Rights. So what next for the controversial plan? Ros Taylor is joined in The Bunker by legal academic and head of the research at UK in a Changing Europe, Joelle Grogan to look at the fallout of the court decision. • “The supreme court found that Rwanda was unsafe for the policy, not that it was unlawful.” – Joelle Grogan• "The law cannot claim something is safe when it is not factually safe.” – Joelle Grogan• “A majority of Rwanda alternatives are also facing their own migration crisis.” – Joelle Groganwww.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Ros Taylor. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Simon Williams. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.Instagram | Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tell us what you think of The Bunker in our Listener Survey – five respondents will get the Bunker mug or t-shirt of their choice.Things are bad for Elon Musk. From the slow motion car crash at Twitter to his mission to eradicate the woke mind virus. Where did it all go wrong for the Tesla CEO and how has his politics warped his view of the world? Marie Le Conte is joined in The Bunker by tech journalist for Bloomberg and co-host of Elon Inc. Max Chafkin to discuss the divisive politics of the world’s richest man.  “Elon Musk is a weird mix of Taylor Swift and Warren Buffet” – Max Chafkin “The Twitter acquisition has been disastrous, not just from a financial standpoint but a personal disaster too.” – Max Chafkin “If you had to come up with his formula for success, over-promising is a huge part of it.” – Max Chafkin Support us on Patreon:www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Marie Le Conte. Producer: Liam Tait and Eliza Davis Beard. Audio editor: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.Instagram | Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tell us what you think of The Bunker in our Listener Survey – five respondents will get the Bunker mug or t-shirt of their choice.Disasters shape the course of politics – and financial crises have heavily impacted Labour’s policies over time. A century ago, the Labour party had almost no economic experts within its ranks. Since then it has battled crises like the great depression of the 30s and more recently the economic crash of 2007. How has this changed the party? Dr. Christopher Kirkland is a lecturer in politics at York St. John University and the author of Labour’s Economic Ideology Since 1900 Developed Through Crises. He joins Alex Andreou in The Bunker.• “Back to 1929-31…the Labour party only had one recognisable expert in terms of finance.” – Dr. Christopher Kirkland• “What Attlee did and the Labour Party did is they offered something optimistic.” – Dr. Christopher Kirkland• “Blair wanted to present something different - hence the term ‘New Labour’.” – Dr. Christopher Kirklandwww.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Alex Andreou. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio production: Alex Rees. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tell us what you think of The Bunker in our Listener Survey – five respondents will get the Bunker mug or t-shirt of their choice.The Barclay brothers were one of the most influential pairings in political life in recent decades. Born into a normal family, the duo became powerful, broadsheet newspaper owning billionaires. Despite that, very little is actually known about them. Professor Jane Martinson is the Marjorie Deane Professor of Financial Journalism at City University of London and author of You May Never See Us Again: The Barclay Dynasty: A Story of Survival, Secrecy and Succession. She joins Andrew Harrison in The Bunker.Buy You May Never See Us Again here and help the podcast through our affiliate link. • “Although they owned loads of newspapers, no one really knew anything about them.” – Jane Martinson• “They should have been one of Britain's greatest success stories… but it has not ended that way.” – Jane Martinsonwww.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Group Editor Andrew Harrison. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio production: Alex Rees. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Suella Braverman's firing, Israel-Hamas conflict, Biden-Xi Jinping meeting, natural disasters, and podcast promotions discussed in an emergency edition of The Bunker.