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Japan's Nijo Jinya Hotel is shrouded in mystery. Some say it was built in the 19th century. But most date it much earlier, to Japan’s Edo era, which started around 1600. Renown architect Kengo Kuma describes it as a paradise for Ninja spies.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEWho pays for all the King’s secrets? In between the lines of a tired old accounts ledger, a hidden history of espionage and scandal lies in wait. Antiquarian bookseller Tom Ayling and host Alice Loxton guide us through the secret affairs of King William III - with direct access to the payments that he kept away from prying eyes.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEHow dangerous is metadata? According to the artist and author Trevor Paglen, it can be deadly. Paglen joins host Alice Loxton to shine a light on Skynet - a network of all-seeing satellites - and the ominous AI algorithm that farms metadata and gets to decide who lives and who dies.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEWho keeps on moving the coffee pot? That innocent question plunges one East German woman into a dangerous world of deception and betrayal. Photographer and archivist Simon Menner joins Alice Loxton to unravel a Cold War domestic mystery centered around the most inconspicuous of objects.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEHow did Napoleon keep a sprawling empire under his thumb? Ask Sheehan Quirke. He runs the popular history feed, The Cultural Tutor, and he’ll tell you that the great historical leader depended on a vast network of spies to keep him clued up. The fruits of their toil were delivered to him each morning in a leather briefcase. Here, Quirke and host Alice Loxton open up that tired old folio and explore the secrets hidden within.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEHow do you solve a problem like a Russian radar? That question lies at the heart of one of the most innovative and intricate planes ever to be made: the SR-71 Blackbird. Acclaimed industrial designer and artist Marc Newson and host Alice Loxton tell the story of an aircraft born out of an impossible brief.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEWhat official secrets hide inside that battered red leather box? Popular historian Dan Snow and host Alice Loxton peer inside a Victorian Prime Minister’s despatch box, and speculate on the world-changing intelligence that such a storied case once contained.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEWhat did George Orwell and the CIA have in common? Perhaps more than the great socialist writer would have cared to admit. The groundbreaking visual artists Daniel Arsham and host Alice Loxton bring us inside the CIA-sponsored production of Animal Farm.
EPISODE HOMEPAGETo whom do retired spies turn after the collapse of their mission? Los Angeles’ Wende Museum holds one of the most impressive Cold War collections in the world and has become something of an amnesty box for old agents seeking to preserve a piece of their former lives. The Wende’s director Justin Jampol and host Alice Loxton explore highlights from the collection and peer into the history of tradecraft.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEWhat does it take to betray your country? Less than you might think. Dr. Elizabeth Bruton and host, Alice Loxton, break down the surprisingly humble tool kit of one of the most destructive espionage networks in British history - the Portland Spy Ring.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEHow many secrets weigh 1500 lbs, cost $100 million, and travel at 600 mph? Only one that we can think of. Acclaimed actor Jason Isaacs and host Alice Loxton take us inside the cockpit of Northrop Grumman’s legendary B-2 Spirit – the iconic stealth bomber that epitomized late Cold War ingenuity.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEHow many secrets weigh 1500 pounds, cost $100m, and travel at 600 mph? Only one that we can think of. Acclaimed actor Jason Isaacs and host Alice Loxton take us inside the cockpit of Northrop Grumman’s legendary B-2 Spirit - the iconic stealth bomber that epitomized late Cold War ingenuity.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEHow long could you keep a secret? In the case of Joan Bright Astley, the answer was ‘To the grave.’ Acclaimed novelist and screenwriter Anthony Horowitz and host Alice Loxton offer up a gift from the real-life Miss Moneypenny - a formidable woman who protected the secrets of the notorious Special Operations Executive for as long as she lived.
EXPISODE HOMEPAGEHow can a button save your life? It depends on who your tailor is. Military history expert Lynette Nusbacher and host Alice Loxton discuss an ingenious piece of covert pathfinding technology, designed for RAF pilots stranded behind enemy lines in World War II.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEWhat was the sharp pain that George Markov felt in his ankle as he crossed London’s Waterloo Bridge one day? Spoiler: it doesn’t end well for George. Designer Thomas Heatherwick and host Alice Loxton tell the sad tale of a Bulgarian dissident’s encounter with one of the most notorious tools of spycraft.
EPISODE HOMEPAGEThe Enigma Machine. The B-2 stealth bomber. The poisoned-tipped umbrella. Napoleon’s Briefcase of Secrets. As long as there has been conflict, there have been spies, and as long as there have been spies, there have been incredible gadgets and iconic objects. Alice Loxton presents the stories of the tools that power the world of espionage in a brand new show for the SPYSCAPE Podcast Network. Get episodes early and ad-free with SPYSCAPE+ on Apple Podcasts.
TRAILERWhat connects the radical 20th century painter Jackson Pollock and the CIA? More than you’d think. Artist Daniel Arsham and host Alice Loxton share the surprising secret history of Pollock’s 1949 masterpiece, Number 8.
EPISODE HOMEPAGE
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