Intrigue
Intrigue is a BBC Radio 4 podcast that presents dramatic true stories and investigations, revealing how the world really works. The current series, 'To Catch a King,' follows Sue Mitchell and Rob Lawrie as they investigate a new people-smuggling boss operating routes into the UK. The podcast is known for being jaw-dropping, gripping, and thrilling.
Episodes
Murder in the Lucky Holiday Hotel: Trailer
The story of the mysterious murder that changed the course of Chinese politics.
Murder in the Lucky Holiday Hotel: Episode 1
The story of the mysterious murder which changed the course of Chinese politics. Carrie Gracie investigates the killing of a British man, Neil Heywood, in Chongqing in 2011, and explores his links to China's up-and-coming power couple. China is gripped by a lurid show trial. Producers: Maria Byrne and Neal Razzell
Sound mix by James Beard
Murder in the Lucky Holiday Hotel: Episode 2
We've met the mayor's wife. Now meet the mayor, the remarkable man who takes this story to the national stage. The continuing true story of death, sex and elite politics in China, presented by BBC's former China Editor Carrie Gracie. Producers: Maria Byrne and Neal Razzell
Sound mix by James Beard.
Murder in the Lucky Holiday Hotel: Episode 3
What really happened in the hotel suite in Chongqing? The British businessman and go-between Neil Heywood arrives in Chongqing, where an"iron-blooded" police chief holds sway. The continuing true story of sex, death and Chinese politics, told by the BBC's former China Editor Carrie Gracie. Producers: Maria Byrne and Neal Razzell
Sound mix by James Beard.
Murder in the Lucky Holiday Hotel: Episode 4
A spectacular show trial exposes the lavish lifestyle of China's new elite. The continuing true story of sex, death and top-level Chinese poltiics, told by the BBC's former China Editor, Carrie Gracie. Producers: Maria Byrne and Neal Razzell
Sound mix by James Beard.
Murder in the Lucky Holiday Hotel: Episode 5
How the murder of British businessman and fixer Neil Heywood changed China. Concluding the true-life tale of sex, death and politics, told by the BBC's former China Editor Carrie Gracie. As we hear, however, the story isn't over - as one thing you can't predict in China is the past. Producers: Maria Byrne and Neal Razzell
Sound mix by James Beard.
Word of God: Trailer
A billionaire family's mission to amass ancient biblical treasures leads to them getting caught up in an international web of looted artefacts, forgeries and criminal networks.Art sleuth Ben Lewis uncovers how the Green family - owners of America's Hobby Lobby craft stores - spent millions racing to gather biblical manuscripts and artefacts. Their unprecedented collecting spree - 40,000 items in j
Word of God: 1. In the Beginning Was the Word
In July 2017, Dr Jeff Kloha is preparing to start his dream job as Director of Collections at Washington DC's new Museum of the Bible when he discovers his new employer’s biggest donor has been caught up in a government investigation.The donor, Hobby Lobby, has been ordered to return 3,500 artefacts and pay a $3 million settlement.Through exclusive interviews with museum officials and evangelical
Word of God: 2. Roberta Investigates
A threatening message leads a papyrologist into the shadowy world of online antiquities trading.On a September morning in 2017, Dr Roberta Mazza opens her WhatsApp to find menacing messages and warnings to "watch her back". How did a respected academic specialising in ancient texts find herself at the crossroads of biblical scholarship and antiquities looting?Through exclusive interviews, investig
Word of God: 3. Holy Grail
A biblical scholar's dramatic last-minute announcement at a packed debate hints at a fragment that could rewrite history.On a winter's night in 2012, an extraordinary claim electrifies a university auditorium in North Carolina - the discovery of what could be the earliest known Christian text, written within decades of Jesus's life. Through exclusive interviews, investigative journalist Ben Lewis
Word of God: 4. You've Got Mail
Federal investigators uncover a shadowy scheme to smuggle ancient clay tablets into America.When customs officers in Memphis inspect a package labelled "tile samples" in January 2011, they discover something far more precious - delicate clay tablets covered in cuneiform, one of humanity's earliest forms of writing. Through exclusive interviews with former US prosecutor Karin Orenstein and special
Word of God: 5. Revelations
In April 2019, Dr Roberta Mazza receives an email from an academic in charge of Research at the Museum of the Bible which leads to the exposure of one of the most extraordinary breaches of trust in biblical scholarship. Through exclusive interviews, Ben Lewis reveals how the Museum of the Bible discovered that precious gospel fragments they had purchased for hundreds of thousands of dollars may ha
Word of God: 6. Higher Powers
A dark, cold morning in February 2025. Hundreds are filing into the Museum of the Bible - evangelical leaders, gospel singers, and over 30 members of Congress including Speaker of the House Mike Johnson. They've gathered just three blocks from the US Capitol for an annual event of fervent prayer about what they see as America's most pressing problems. Meanwhile, journalist Ben Lewis explores how a
Ransom Man: Trailer
What would you do if your deepest secrets were held to ransom? Jenny Kleeman investigates one of the world's most audacious hacks. When a shocking data breach takes place at a Finnish psychotherapy service, the nation's darkest secrets are held to ransom by a faceless hacker. He calls himself ransom_man.
Award-winning journalist Jenny Kleeman (BBC Radio 4's The Gift) traces the story from the firs
Ransom Man: 1. Naked
A shocking data breach at a Finnish psychotherapy service. Jenny Kleeman traces the story of a nation’s secrets held to ransom by a faceless hacker.
We all have some thoughts we’d never write down. Now, just imagine that someone had got hold of those thoughts, and was threatening to publish them for all the world to see - if you didn’t pay to stop them.This is what happened to Tiina, a Headteacher
Ransom Man: 2. Whoopsie :D
After a shocking data breach at the Finnish psychotherapy service Vastaamo, a nation’s secrets are being held to ransom by a faceless hacker. Jenny Kleeman traces the story.After negotiations with Vastaamo fail, ransom_man begins publishing 100 patient records a day on the dark web. He posts a link to the records on popular sites like Reddit and Ylilauta, Finland’s version of 4chan.He ends the pos
Ransom Man: 3. For the LOLz
ransom_man’s final post contained clues to his identity. In those clues, former cybercrime detective Antti Kurittu recognises similarities to of the biggest hacker he ever investigated, a Finnish teenager called Julius Kivimäki.So who is Julius Kivimäki, and could he be the person who held a nation’s darkest secrets to ransom?Jenny’s search for answers leads her away from Finland, to meet a man i
Ransom Man: 4. The Zen Garden
Authorities think Julius Kivimäki could be responsible for the Vastaamo data breach and the leaking of patient records.They want to bring him in for questioning, but he’s disappeared. Kivimäki is known to brag about his international lifestyle. He could be anywhere.Jenny meets Pasi Vainio, the prosecutor who places Kivimäki on Europol’s Most Wanted List. Pasi takes Jenny through the evidence that
Ransom Man: 5. 635 Years of Suffering
Within a month of the Vastaamo data breach, Tomi Haustola, a Finnish stand up comedian, is on stage making jokes about it.But Tomi himself is one of the thousands of victims. He tells Jenny how he went to Vastaamo because he was burnt-out and anxious and couldn’t tell anyone - except his therapist.When he discovers a hacker had stolen his therapy notes, Tomi decides to share his story with the aud
Ransom Man: 6. Nameless, Faceless People
Crossing the road between interviews, Jenny receives the opportunity she has been waiting for. A chance to meet Julius Kivimäki and finally seek answers from him.She heads to Turku prison in Western Finland, where Kivimäki is serving his sentence.Written and presented by Jenny Kleeman.
Producer: Sam Peach.
Executive Producer: Georgia Catt.
Sound Design: Sam Peach
Original music composed, perform
To Catch a King: Trailer
A new people smuggling boss is running routes into the UK. Who is he, and can his true identity be revealed? To Catch a Scorpion duo Sue Mitchell and Rob Lawrie investigate.
To Catch a King: 1. Kardo
A journalist and an ex-soldier search for the identity of a people smuggler believed to be responsible for thousands of illegal crossings to the UK by small boats and lorries. They start with a false name: Kardo Ranya. A man who has evaded arrest for several years by keeping his real identity a closely guarded secret. It makes it near impossible for law enforcement agencies to issue and internatio
To Catch a King: 2. The Bullet Train
Gangs exert power through fear, but where are they getting weapons from?A journalist and an ex-soldier search for the identity of a people smuggler believed to be responsible for thousands of illegal crossings to the UK by small boats and lorries. They start with a false name: Kardo Ranya. A man who has evaded arrest for several years by keeping his real identity a closely guarded secret. It makes
To Catch a King: 3. Stormy Weather
A pause in small boat crossings and a coincidence that reveals how boats are delivered.A journalist and an ex-soldier search for the identity of a people smuggler believed to be responsible for thousands of illegal crossings to the UK by small boats and lorries. They start with a false name: Kardo Ranya. A man who has evaded arrest for several years by keeping his real identity a closely guarded s
To Catch a King: 4. The French Escort
A hidden location. Migrants awaiting a boat crossing. Who helps them to reach the UK?A journalist and an ex-soldier search for the identity of a people smuggler believed to be responsible for thousands of illegal crossings to the UK by small boats and lorries. They start with a false name: Kardo Ranya. A man who has evaded arrest for several years by keeping his real identity a closely guarded sec
To Catch a King: 5. Travel Agents
A Turkish smuggler and his money man reveal more about alliances between criminal gangs.A journalist and an ex-soldier search for the identity of a people smuggler believed to be responsible for thousands of illegal crossings to the UK by small boats and lorries. They start with a false name: Kardo Ranya. A man who has evaded arrest for several years by keeping his real identity a closely guarded
The Ratline: Trailer
A story of love, denial and a curious death presented by Philippe Sands.
The Ratline: 1. The Secrets in the Castle
Philippe Sands investigates the mysterious disappearance of senior Nazi Otto Wachter, who was indicted for mass murder. The Ratline is a story of a curious death, political intrigue, spies, Nazi hunters, shadowy forces in the Vatican and a son grappling with the sins of his father. Philippe begins by travelling to a castle outside Vienna to meet an old man who believes his father was murdered, whi
The Ratline: 2. Meet the Wachters
Otto and Charlotte Wachter climb to power, after Hitler annexes Austria, with Otto at his side. Otto's job takes the family to a palace in Krakow and on to Galicia, where his story collides with those of the family of presenter Philippe Sands. This is the continuing investigation into how a leading Nazi evaded justice.
Producer: Gemma Newby
Sound design: Neil Churchill
Research: James Everest and
The Ratline: 3. A Lot Going On in Lemberg
The criminal charge sheet against senior Nazi Otto Wachter. Whilst Charlotte Wachter and her children were spending the summer in Zell am See, Otto was in Lemberg overseeing the 'Grosse Aktion' - the mass deportation of Jews to concentration camps. Philippe Sands interviews two Nazi hunters from the US Department of Justice to go through the evidence against Otto. Meanwhile Otto's son Horst contin
The Ratline: 4. Where's Otto?
The war is over and Otto Wachter has disappeared. Whilst his friends are committing suicide or being tried for mass murder Otto has escaped high into the mountains with the help of a young SS soldier. Meanwhile his wife Charlotte is working on getting him out of Austria. Barrister and author Philippe Sands continues his investigation into how a leading Nazi evaded justice.
Producer: Gemma Newby
So
The Ratline: 5. La Forza del Destino
Midnight. Rome. 1949. Otto Wachter, a Nazi on the run, arrives in the Eternal City, penniless, homeless, searching for a way out to Argentina. He's also unwittingly found himself in the middle of a battle between East and West. He is taken in by monks, makes a friend high up in the Vatican and takes on some unusual employment. The continuing investigation into how a senior Nazi evaded justice.
Pro
The Ratline: 6. The Men Who Murdered Nazis
Otto contracts a strange illness and Charlotte rushes to Rome to be by his side. Philippe talks to an old friend who was working for British intelligence in 1949 and explores who might have been hunting Otto in Rome and why.
Producer: Gemma Newby
Sound design: Neil Churchill
Research: James Everest and Lea Main-Klingst
Original music by Catrin Finch and Sekou Keita
Otto Wachter: Stephen Fry
Charlo
The Ratline: 7. The Nazi Bishop
Philippe Sands accesses the Vatican archives to find out about Otto's protector in Rome, the man who was by his side as he lay dying, Alois Hudal. Hudal's archivist reveals to the team something extraordinary.
Producer: Gemma Newby
Sound design: Neil Churchill
Research: James Everest and Lea Main-Klingst
Original music by Catrin Finch and Sekou Keita
Otto Wachter: Stephen Fry
Charlotte Wachter: L
The Ratline: 8. Nest of Spies
Philippe and the team work out the identity of the mysterious man Otto lunched with on Lake Albano, and discover he too is connected with the Nazi Bishop. They take a trip to the lake to meet the Priest who buried the man and he reveals some unbelievable family secrets.
Producer: Gemma Newby
Sound design: Neil Churchill
Research: James Everest and Lea Main-Klingst
Original music by Catrin Finch an
The Ratline: 9. The Lucids
Philippe travels to Albuquerque to meet Tom Lucid Jnr, the son of the CIA agent who recruited Karl Hass, chief source on Project Los Angeles and the man Otto had lunch with on Lake Albano. How much does he know about his father's role in recruiting Nazis and a close relative in Geneva?
Producer: Gemma Newby
Sound design: Neil Churchill
Research: James Everest and Lea Main-Klingst
Original music by
The Ratline: 10. Persilschein
In the final episode of The Ratline, the Persilschein and denial continue. Charlotte Wachter finally brings Otto home. Philippe takes a forensic look at how Otto died and returns to Hagenberg to confront Horst with some new evidence.
In this episode, Dame Sue Black is incorrectly described as a forensic pathologist. She is a forensic anthropologist.
Producer: Gemma Newby
Sound design: Neil Church
The Ratline: Bonus: Stephen Fry meets Philippe Sands
In a bonus episode of Intrigue: The Ratline, Stephen Fry interviews Philippe Sands in front of an audience at the BBC Radio Theatre in London. They discuss a range of issues brought up by the series including historical responsibility and the nature of evil. Plus as a special extra, there is a full version of The Ratline theme music by Catrin Finch and Sekou Keita.
Tunnel 29: Trailer
Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Helena Merriman tells the extraordinary true story of a man who dug a tunnel into the East, right under the feet of border guards, to help friends, family and strangers escape. The series is based on original interviews with the survivors as well as thousands of documents from the Stasi archives and recordings from the tunnel. Producer & Presente
Tunnel 29: 1. The Escape
“I didn’t want to be a part of this new world.” Joachim is on holiday in East Germany when he hears Berlin is to be divided. The wall is built and the escapes begin. Joachim has to decide whether he'll be among them. Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Helena Merriman tells the extraordinary true story of a man who dug a tunnel into the East, right under the feet of border guards, to h
Tunnel 29: 2. The Spy
“I choose the codename Fred.” A hairdresser becomes a Stasi spy.Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Helena Merriman tells the extraordinary true story of a man who dug a tunnel into the East, right under the feet of border guards, to help friends, family and strangers escape. The series is based on original interviews with the survivors as well as thousands of documents from the Stasi
Tunnel 29: 3. The Deal
“We have a tunnel.” The diggers are on the hunt for money and make an unlikely alliance.Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Helena Merriman tells the extraordinary true story of a man who dug a tunnel into the East, right under the feet of border guards, to help friends, family and strangers escape. The series is based on original interviews with the survivors as well as thousands of
Tunnel 29: 4. The Death Strip
“If we could hear them, they could hear us.” The diggers reach the terrifying death strip.Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Helena Merriman tells the extraordinary true story of a man who dug a tunnel into the East, right under the feet of border guards, to help friends, family and strangers escape. The series is based on original interviews with the survivors as well as thousands o
Tunnel 29: 5. The Trap
“We had no chance to be together.” The diggers hatch a new plan, unaware the Stasi are onto them. Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Helena Merriman tells the extraordinary true story of a man who dug a tunnel into the East, right under the feet of border guards, to help friends, family and strangers escape. The series is based on original interviews with the survivors as well as thou
Tunnel 29: 6. The Gun
“And then my interrogation began.” The escape operation unravels. Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Helena Merriman tells the extraordinary true story of a man who dug a tunnel into the East, right under the feet of border guards, to help friends, family and strangers escape. The series is based on original interviews with the survivors as well as thousands of documents from the Sta
Tunnel 29: 7. The Interrogation
“That’s the first time I saw her again.” Wolfdieter's show trial begins. Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Helena Merriman tells the extraordinary true story of a man who dug a tunnel into the East, right under the feet of border guards, to help friends, family and strangers escape. The series is based on original interviews with the survivors as well as thousands of documents from t
Tunnel 29: 8. The Messenger
I said "ok, I'll do it”. Ellen, Mimmo's girlfriend, agrees to play a dangerous role.Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Helena Merriman tells the extraordinary true story of a man who dug a tunnel into the East, right under the feet of border guards, to help friends, family and strangers escape. The series is based on original interviews with the survivors as well as thousands of docum
Tunnel 29: 9. The Signal
“If you don’t have a coffee, then bring me a cognac.” Ellen's plan is derailed. Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Helena Merriman tells the extraordinary true story of a man who dug a tunnel into the East, right under the feet of border guards, to help friends, family and strangers escape. The series is based on original interviews with the survivors as well as thousands of documents
Tunnel 29: 10. The Shoes
“I started dancing with Eveline.” A final twist in the final chapter. Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Helena Merriman tells the extraordinary true story of a man who dug a tunnel into the East, right under the feet of border guards, to help friends, family and strangers escape. The series is based on original interviews with the survivors as well as thousands of documents from the
Mayday: Trailer
When James Le Mesurier fell to his death in Turkey in 2019 he left behind a tangle of truths and lies. Mayday tells the extraordinary real story of the man who organised the White Helmets – rescuers who film themselves pulling survivors from bombed out buildings in rebel-held areas of Syria – and investigates claims that, far from being heroes, they are part of a very elaborate hoax. James Le Mesu
Mayday: 1. On the Ledge
“The story sounds like a purely English murder.” The rumour mill starts over who or what killed James Le Mesurier. When he fell to his death in Turkey in 2019 James Le Mesurier left behind a tangle of truths and lies. Mayday tells the extraordinary real story of the man who organised the White Helmets – rescuers who film themselves pulling survivors from bombed out buildings in rebel-held areas of
Mayday: 2. The Pizza in the Suitcase
“I was naked having a strip search and I just know James was somewhere laughing his head off.” Who was James Le Mesurier? When he fell to his death in Turkey in 2019 James Le Mesurier left behind a tangle of truths and lies. Mayday tells the extraordinary real story of the man who organised the White Helmets – rescuers who film themselves pulling survivors from bombed out buildings in rebel-held
Mayday: 3. The Miracle Baby
“This was just one baby out of thousands and thousands of other babies.” How James got involved in a war. When he fell to his death in Turkey in 2019 James Le Mesurier left behind a tangle of truths and lies. Mayday tells the extraordinary real story of the man who organised the White Helmets – rescuers who film themselves pulling survivors from bombed out buildings in rebel-held areas of Syria
Mayday: 4. Hoax Producers
“There’s something addictive about uncovering the world as it really is.” The allegations begin. When James Le Mesurier fell to his death in Turkey in 2019 he left behind a tangle of truths and lies. Mayday tells the extraordinary real story of the man who organised the White Helmets – rescuers who film themselves pulling survivors from bombed out buildings in rebel-held areas of Syria – and inves
Mayday: 5. God Bless Syria
“He hadn’t really understood that he would be singled out.” How to tell who the jihadists are. When James Le Mesurier fell to his death in Turkey in 2019 he left behind a tangle of truths and lies. Mayday tells the extraordinary real story of the man who organised the White Helmets – rescuers who film themselves pulling survivors from bombed out buildings in rebel-held areas of Syria – and investi
Mayday: 6. The One With Sean Penn
“I went to meet with Assad to see what kind of access we might get.” James is accused of a horrific crime. When James Le Mesurier fell to his death in Turkey in 2019 he left behind a tangle of truths and lies. Mayday tells the extraordinary real story of the man who organised the White Helmets – rescuers who film themselves pulling survivors from bombed out buildings in rebel-held areas of Syria
Mayday: 7. Managed Massacres
“ I have these epiphanies all the time, especially if I had anchovies on my pizza..” Could the White Helmets be involved in staging chemical attacks? When James Le Mesurier fell to his death in Turkey in 2019 he left behind a tangle of truths and lies. Mayday tells the extraordinary real story of the man who organised the White Helmets – rescuers who film themselves pulling survivors from bombed
Mayday: 8. Operation Magic Carpet
“I had to do it because my colleagues faced death.” Now the rescuers need saving. When James Le Mesurier fell to his death in Turkey in 2019 he left behind a tangle of truths and lies. Mayday tells the extraordinary real story of the man who organised the White Helmets – rescuers who film themselves pulling survivors from bombed out buildings in rebel-held areas of Syria – and investigates claims
Mayday: 9. The Boiling Frog
“My love it’s 10 times worse than we thought.” Things start to unravel. When James Le Mesurier fell to his death in Turkey in 2019 he left behind a tangle of truths and lies. Mayday tells the extraordinary real story of the man who organised the White Helmets – rescuers who film themselves pulling survivors from bombed out buildings in rebel-held areas of Syria – and investigates claims that, far
Mayday: 10. The Second Casualty
“They will be targeted for the rest of their lives.” Where does that leave everyone else? When James Le Mesurier fell to his death in Turkey in 2019 he left behind a tangle of truths and lies. Mayday tells the extraordinary real story of the man who organised the White Helmets – rescuers who film themselves pulling survivors from bombed out buildings in rebel-held areas of Syria – and investigates
Mayday: The Canister on the Bed
“The crime scene had been left unguarded for two weeks”. What really happened in the Douma massacre? This episode is a diversion from the story of the life and death of James Le Mesurier. It’s about one of the most contested events in the war - the chemical attack in the town of Douma in 2018. Unravelling what really happened there takes us to the heart of the global race to control the narrative
Mayday: The Evidence Gatherers
In a secret location in a European city is an archive that contains over a million documents. It’s run by a tough-talking Canadian, Bill Wiley, who set up an evidence-gathering organisation funded by Western governments. Using undercover criminal investigators operating inside a war zone, the Commission for International Justice and Accountability (CIJA) has spent the last eight years extracting o
Burning Sun: Trailer
The sex scandals that brought down some of the world’s biggest K-pop Stars. A tale of depravity, power and excess - hidden behind a facade of wholesome pop music.
In 2019 some of the world’s biggest music stars were found guilty of sharing secretly filmed sex videos, others of rape. Korean heart-throbs, used to being mobbed by adoring female fans, had been videoing themselves committing acts of
Burning Sun: 1. The Phone Call
“I had no idea how big it was going to be….”Journalist Park Hyo-sil gets a tip off that music and TV star, Jung Joon-young, is being investigated by police for secretly filming a woman during sex. We find out about Jung, his wholesome, attractive personality and wide popularity. And we meet one of his superfans whose whole life revolves around him. She, like many others, don’t want to believe the
Burning Sun: 2. Kakao Talk
Someone is holding popstar Jung’s phone in their hands. And what they see on it is shocking. Another journalist Kang Kyung-Yoon gets a tip-off and starts investigating the chat-rooms, and is overwhelmed by the crimes she sees. Sex videos being shared by well-known celebrities, and in some the women are unconscious and being sexually assaulted. She tracks down some of the victims, and the more she
Burning Sun: 3. The Nightclub
A rival broadcaster reveals a shocking scandal at the exclusive Burning Sun nightclub, co-owned by Seungri – one of the members of Big Bang, and a global K-pop star. There are disturbing accounts emerging of underground rooms where women are taken, and the police investigate. And Journalist Kang is about to drop a bombshell.For the first time, we give the definitive account of the sex scandals tha
Burning Sun: 4. Consent
The scandals are making headlines around the world ánd K-pop fans react. Jung’s superfan watches as one after another K-pop star is arrested. She has had enough and becomes part of a feminist movement for change against spy cam crimes and misogyny. The woman who made the original allegation against Jung says she regrets not pursuing it. She was viciously trolled after her accusation, and she camp
Burning Sun: 5. An Extreme Decision
Journalist Kang receives a surprising call from K-pop royalty Goo-Hara, who wants to help her with her investigation, as some of the people in the chatroom were her friends. Goo Hara, like many South Korean women is a victim of digital sex crime. Her very public battle in taking a stand against it, receives enormous coverage into her private life and she is mercilessly trolled. It’s too much for
Burning Sun: 6. The Reckoning
The K-pop stars are jailed for their crimes and some women hope this and other sex abuse scandals might finally spark a real social change. Instead, all it does is fan the growing divisions between men and women. Then the gender war goes mainstream and plays out during the recent presidential election.For the first time, we give the definitive account of the sex scandals that brought down some of
The Immortals: Trailer
Over the last 100 years, we’ve seen global life expectancy double. Could it happen again? In The Immortals, technology reporter and psychologist Aleks Krotoski explores the frontiers of the extreme longevity pioneers. They've made their money in Silicon Valley. And with their technology solutions they've ushered in the world that we live in today. Some of them now want to solve the problem of agin
The Immortals: 1. Dracula
Over the last 100 years, we’ve seen global life expectancy double. Could it happen again? Technology reporter and psychologist Aleks Krotoski explores the frontiers of the extreme longevity pioneers. They've made their money in Silicon Valley. And with their technology solutions - PayPal, Facebook, cryptocurrencies - they've ushered in the world that we live in today, with all its unintended conse
The Immortals: 2. The Experiment
Mike and Irina Conboy are a couple of tie-dye clad scientists in the bio-engineering department at the University of Berkeley. When they started researching ageing more than 20 years ago at Stanford, the field was nothing more than a spin-off from geroscience - most of their time at the lab bench was spent documenting signs and signals that our bodies are reaching their ends. But in 2005, they pub
The Immortals: 3. The Plasma Clinic
The Conboys’ experiment gave a young Harvard medical school graduate a big idea. But, there is a big gap between the experiments they did with mice in the lab, and pumping young blood into human beings.Still, he registered his company, Ambrosia Plasma, on the Food and Drug Administration clinical trials website and began an ambitious human research experiment. For $8,000 in cash, cheque or digital
The Immortals: 4. The Hype Cycle
Jesse Karmazin’s Ambrosia Plasma clinic promised the fountain of youth, two litres of young plasma at a time. For a fee, anyone could go to his treatment centre in the redwood forest outside Silicon Valley and receive an infusion. The results - according to Karmazin - were remarkable. Silicon Valley billionaires were rumoured to be queuing up for their young blood. The problem was, the scientists
The Immortals: 5. The Trial
Loyal for Dogs is one of the companies in the longevity industry doing serious science. They are well-founded, have a killer team, and a very clear mission: to be the first to get a drug that treats ageing - not just the diseases of ageing, but ageing itself - to pass the rigorous Food and Drug Administration approval process.Their CEO, Celine Halioua, is a maverick founder whose life has been gui
The Immortals: 6. Longevity Escape Velocity
Many of the longevity innovators in the Valley want to extend human life. But there are others who are trying to eliminate death. A lot of them. The tech billionaires who have never been told ‘no’ are driven to tackle the most insurmountable problems. They believe they can solve death by re-engineering the human in code. Problem is, it’s unlikely to happen in their natural lifetime.But technology
The Immortals: 7. Vitalik
Vitalek Buterin is the billionaire founder of Ethereum, one of the most successful blockchains and cryptocurrencies in the world. With his fortune, he is attempting to solve the problem of death by creating a longevity state - which will fast track life everlasting, without the need for regulation. They will crowdsource their longevity solutions and organise them through the blockchain. His north
The Immortals: 8. The Prophet
A new philosphical movement is gathering steam in Silicon Valley, one that promises immortality by using technology to solve the problem of death. This movement is led by Oxford philosopher Nick Bostrom. Professor Bostrom is the author of Fable of the Dragon Tyrant, the original manuscript of the modern immortality movement. It was published in 2005 in the Journal of Medical Ethics as a response t
The Immortals: 9. Nerd Rapture
The immortalist movement in Silicon Valley shares a lot with evangelical religions, says Dr Emile P Torres, a philosopher and former Nick Bostrom acolyte. In both, he explains, there’s a heaven in which the faithful will experience unsurpassed bliss and delight, and an apocalypse, which will separate out the people who can go there. After a decade at the epicentre of the transhumanist research com
The Immortals: 10. After the Dragon
The idea of living forever has captivated us for millennia, but rarely do people imagine what would happen the day after the fountain of youth is discovered. Today’s technology entrepreneurs pushing an immortality agenda - through their investments and their influence - seem only focussed on the pursuit.Whether or not immortality is a distant possibility, how do we cope with living longer en route
