A coup at Claridge’s: Qatar’s quiet move on London
A tiny Gulf state has bought up some of Britain’s prized assets. But at what cost? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jun 30, 2022•39 min•Season 1Ep. 150
The Slow Newscast
The Slow Newscast from The Observer takes the news slowly. We investigate, and every week we focus on stories that really matter in the UK and around the world. From wars in Ukraine and Gaza through to true crime and injustice and real life mysteries, The Slow Newscast team is devoted to narrative investigations covering some of the biggest topics of the day.
Who are the people biohacking themselves in a quest for immortality? Or the man taking on an entire nation in the high seas to protect whales? And what happened when humanity's most distant messenger fell silent? From a newsroom with a different approach to journalism these are the stories we tell.
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Episodes
Hollywood’s cultural revolution
When China opened up to the West, Hollywood saw a massive opportunity. But China had its own dreams. Now the movie studios are beginning to realise what they gave away Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jun 23, 2022•40 min•Season 1Ep. 149
Visit Rwanda: Britain’s harsh welcome for refugees
Britain’s harsh welcome for refugees – and what happened when the plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda was tried before Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jun 16, 2022•55 min•Season 1Ep. 148
The Rules: democracy in Britain
Every day more cracks emerge in the political system that guarantees the freedoms Britons hold dear. How do we stop it shattering? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jun 09, 2022•35 min•Season 1Ep. 147
Introducing: Londongrad
How the Lebedevs partied their way to power is a 6 part series investigating two men - who are at the heart of the story of Britain opening its doors to Russian oligarchs. Alexander Lebedev is a former KGB officer. He’s the man with the money and - as we’ll see - with the plan. Alexander’s son, Evgeny, rose from a fixture on the social scene to a seat in the House of Lords. He did it with Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s help and against the advice of the security services. There’s never been a st...
Jun 03, 2022•4 min•Season 1Ep. 146
Stripped. Searched. Traumatised. Children and the police
How many more Child Qs are there? How many children are strip-searched by the police and who are they? Patricia Clarke and Claudia Williams investigate Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jun 02, 2022•42 min•Season 1Ep. 145
Odesa
The Ukrainian port normally feeds the world, but the Russian invasion means nothing is getting out. Can we reopen the port – or will millions starve? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
May 26, 2022•36 min•Season 1Ep. 144
Revealed: Stormy Daniels and her battle for truth
Who is the real Stormy Daniels? Hattie Garlick meets arguably one of America’s most misunderstood and misrepresented women Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
May 19, 2022•46 min•Season 1Ep. 143
Downfall: twenty days that did for Rishi Sunak
How did Rishi Sunak go from one of the most popular members of the government to one of the least in a matter of days? Matthew d’Ancona pieces together what happened. Tortoise is a news start-up devoted to slow journalism. We take news slowly. We tell stories that really matter, and take time to see the full picture. If you want more slow and considered journalism, you can become a member of Tortoise and get access to more of our stories, contribute to our journalism and join us at events in our...
May 12, 2022•50 min•Season 1Ep. 142
The Backstory
Today we are sharing an episode of Tortoise's new podcast series: The Backstory with Andrew Neil. This week Andrew talks to Fiona Hill, former director for Europe and Russia at the US National Security Council, about Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, and her journey from the North East of England to the White House. Click here https://podfollow.com/the-backstory-with-andrew-neil to follow The Backstory wherever you get your podcasts for a new episode every Tuesday. For access every Friday to a bonus...
May 05, 2022•49 min•Season 1Ep. 141
Mariupol
Two atrocities in the port city of Mariupol epitomise Russia’s violence in Ukraine. This is the story of those atrocities and of Mariupol’s truth With special thanks to Konstantin Korobov and Nina Kuryata for their help in reporting this story. Tortoise is a news start-up devoted to slow journalism. We take news slowly. We tell stories that really matter, and take time to see the full picture. If you want more slow and considered journalism, you can become a member of Tortoise and get access to ...
Apr 28, 2022•43 min•Season 1Ep. 140
The Lost Ark
What happens when a museum possesses a group of objects so sacred that they can never be seen in public or studied in private – and the original owners want them back? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Apr 21, 2022•37 min•Season 1Ep. 139
Greg Barker: the lord's work
The days of the Russian oligarch in London are numbered. What fate awaits the enablers – those well-connected people who worked for and provided services to wealthy Russians? This is the story of one of them Tortoise is a news start-up devoted to slow journalism. We take news slowly. We tell stories that really matter, and take time to see the full picture. If you want more slow and considered journalism, you can become a member of Tortoise and get access to more of our stories, contribute to ou...
Apr 14, 2022•42 min•Season 1Ep. 138
Fallen women
Twenty-seven women fell in suspicious circumstances. Seventeen died. Often, in the shadow of their fall, was a man. What if they didn’t fall. What if they were pushed? Warning : This episode contains some upsetting content around the issues of domestic violence, sexual violence and homicide. Tortoise is a news start-up devoted to slow journalism. We take news slowly. We tell stories that really matter, and take time to see the full picture. If you want more slow and considered journalism, you ca...
Apr 07, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Season 1Ep. 137
The trials of Alexei Navalny
What does the story of Alexei Navalny and wife Yulia Navalnaya tell us about Vladimir Putin’s Russia and the state of opposition? Tortoise is a news start-up devoted to slow journalism. We take news slowly. We tell stories that really matter, and take time to see the full picture. If you want more slow and considered journalism, you can become a member of Tortoise and get access to more of our stories, contribute to our journalism and join us at events in our newsroom, in person and online. Just...
Mar 31, 2022•34 min•Season 1Ep. 136
Into the dark: The broken promise of a bionic eye
Imagine being blind but thanks to the wonders of technology being able to see again. How would you then feel if that sight was taken away? Tortoise is a news start-up devoted to slow journalism. We take news slowly. We tell stories that really matter, and take time to see the full picture. If you want more slow and considered journalism, you can become a member of Tortoise and get access to more of our stories, contribute to our journalism and join us at events in our newsroom, in person and onl...
Mar 24, 2022•39 min•Season 1Ep. 135
Shadow whipping: The men who saved Boris
Political wisdom says the Russian invasion of Ukraine saved Boris Johnson’s skin. But the really successful operation to rescue the prime minister started long before and involved three men who you've probably never heard of. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Mar 17, 2022•38 min•Season 1Ep. 134
Russian warship, go f**k yourself
We thought the Russians were masters of the information war; that they’d sweep Ukraine aside. It's not turning out that way. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Mar 10, 2022•39 min•Season 1Ep. 133
Lebedev: Lord of Siberia
Door after door in Britain has been opened for Evgeny Lebedev, all the way to a seat in the House of Lords. Who has opened the doors, and why? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Mar 03, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Season 1Ep. 132
An injection of fear
The ‘epidemic’ of spiking with needles in clubs and at parties in autumn 2021 revealed something important about women’s lives in Britain. But it wasn’t what we thought. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 24, 2022•43 min•Season 1Ep. 131
Modi's warrior pose
The brilliance of populist politicians often lies in creating subtle dividing lines on apparently innocuous issues. What could be more innocuous than yoga? But India’s prime minister Narendra Modi – arguably the world’s most successful populist – has seized hold of yoga and weaponised it. In this week’s Slow Newscast, Warrior Pose, Claudia Williams reports on how a harmless pursuit has been transformed into a political wedge. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Feb 17, 2022•42 min•Ep. 130
Inside Branch 251
In a courtroom in west Germany, a man called Anwar Raslan stands accused of torturing Syrian civilians. He faces life in prison. But why does Germany care? These were far-away crimes. The answer lies in a remarkable story about the idea of justice. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 10, 2022•46 min•Ep. 129
The Ministry of Untruths
In March 2020 the prime minister told the country to stay at home. He then did the opposite and travelled to Chequers. This the story of one crucial fortnight in March 2020, and how the prime minister’s instinct to lie and treat the rules with contempt has corroded the institutions around him. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 03, 2022•35 min•Ep. 128
China’s missing tennis player
In November, athlete Peng Shuai accused a senior Chinese politician of sexual assault. Then, she vanished. In this episode, we investigate her disappearance – and the silencing of China’s #MeToo movement Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jan 27, 2022•39 min•Ep. 127
Virginia
Who is Virginia Roberts Giuffre? She was only 17 years old when she appeared in a now-famous photo, taken in Ghislaine Maxwell’s London mews house. Maxwell is behind her, grinning. Jeffrey Epstein, the multi-millionaire paedophile, is taking the photo. And to Virginia’s right, smilingly sheepishly, is Prince Andrew. Twenty years later, Epstein is dead, Ghislaine is a convicted sex trafficker, and Andrew has been stripped of his royal titles. How is it that Virginia, someone who started with almo...
Jan 20, 2022•47 min•Ep. 126
A finding of rape
How a former government minister used the secrecy of the family courts in an attempt to hide the truth. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jan 13, 2022•55 min•Ep. 125
The promise of CoolSculpting
Linda Evangelista’s beauty made her a super-brand in the 1990s. But then, she disappeared. Until September 2021, when she revealed on Instagram details of a lawsuit. She claimed that a procedure called CoolSculpting, promising to freeze away unwanted fat, had instead multiplied it into “masses”. And she isn’t the only one… Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jan 06, 2022•44 min•Ep. 124
A year in stories
For our final episode of the year, we look back on our best stories of 2021. Basia is joined by Tortoise editor-in-chief James Harding, and colleague Ceri Thomas, to chat through what we've learned as journalists, and storytellers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Dec 23, 2021•25 min•Ep. 123
School 49
China’s transformation into an economic powerhouse has come at a cost to its children, under enormous pressure to succeed. Now the country is wondering if the price has been too high. Reporter Poppy Sebag-Montefiore, producer Claudia Williams, sound design by Karla Patella. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Dec 16, 2021•45 min•Ep. 122
The super divorce
London's courts play host to some of the world's most high-profile divorces. In the sorry case of Akhmedov vs Akhmedova, a family feud turned into a costly game of hide and seek... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Dec 09, 2021•41 min•Ep. 121
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