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•Ep 146•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 145•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 144•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 143•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 142•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 141•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 140•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 139•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 138•Transcript available on Metacast 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, y...
Apr 07, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep 137•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 136•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 135•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 134•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 133•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 132•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 131•Transcript available on Metacast 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 informatio...
Feb 17, 2022•42 min•Ep 130•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Transcript available on Metacast This is a story about a boy called Elliott – trapped in time. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Dec 02, 2021•46 min•Ep 120•Transcript available on Metacast Over a handful of chaotic days this summer, Western forces withdrew from Afghanistan. The legacy of the decision to leave after 20 years has been wretched for many Afghan people, and a brutal lesson for the UK. In this two-part Slow Newscast, Matthew d'Ancona charts events as they unfolded. Part 1: As the Taliban closed in on Kabul, Britain found itself frozen out of decision making and incapable of influencing events. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Nov 25, 2021•51 min•Ep 119•Transcript available on Metacast In Kabul, the Taliban’s takeover was assured. In London, an ignominious retreat, and the betrayal of former comrades in the Afghan army, was more than a group of ex-soldiers, now MPs, could stomach... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Nov 25, 2021•49 min•Ep 118•Transcript available on Metacast Who are the people behind a spate of multi-million dollar ransomware attacks on financial institutions, schools and hospitals? When Nicky Woolf began to investigate the highest-profile ransomware outfit, REvil, it was almost completely hidden from view. But then... the cyber-police started to uncover its secrets. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Nov 18, 2021•46 min•Ep 117•Transcript available on Metacast 
