• 26 minutes 35 seconds
    The 30-Year veteran photographer attacked by settlers

    Last week, a group of West Bank settlers attacked Palestinian farmers and veteran Washington Post photographer, Heidi Levine, who was there to cover the annual olive harvest. The assault left Levine in hospital with broken bones, but she is not the first foreigner to be caught in the middle of increasingly violent attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinians in the West Bank.


    Basia Cummings speaks to the Observer's Ruth Michaelson who is in Tel Aviv covering the upcoming elections, about what happened and whether it'll impact the outcome of the vote.


    Producer: Ada Barume

    Exec: Matt Russell

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    23 October 2026, 5:00 am
  • 35 minutes 38 seconds
    Christ is King: the far right and God

    In September 2025, religious leaders in the UK got a shock: protests at Tommy Robinson’s Unite the Kingdom rally were carrying crosses, and waving signs with Christian slogans. On stage, pastors led the crowd in song and prayer. One of those pastors is Rikki Doolan, who says he converted Tommy Robinson while he was in prison. This is the story of how the far-right found God.


    Reporter: Kart Mathieson


    Reporter/producer: Poppy Bullard


    Sound design: Dominic Delargy


    Artwork: Lucy Stevenson


    Editor: Jasper Corbett

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    20 October 2026, 4:30 am
  • 27 minutes 16 seconds
    How an innocent man was put on death row

    For decades, Paul Skalnik made a living telling police and prosecutors that other prisoners had confessed to crimes. The former police turned con artist and jailhouse informant helped send a man called Jim Dailey to death row for the murder of a teenage girl.


    Basia Cummings speaks to investigative journalist and author Pamela Colloff who spent years uncovering his deceptions, and his story exposes a criminal justice system prioritising winning convictions over the truth.


    Producer: Amalie Sortland

    Exec: Matt Russell

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    16 October 2026, 4:30 am
  • 31 minutes 37 seconds
    Bones and all: the trade in human remains

    Britain’s cultural institutions are wrestling with what to do with the human remains in their collections. But as they reckon with the ethical ramifications the sale of body parts remains largely unregulated. Who are the people selling? And why is it easier than ever to buy human remains?


    Reporter: Evan Moffitt

    Producer: Ada Barumé

    Sound design: Dominic Delargy

    Artwork: Blythe Walker Sibthorp

    Exec producer: Matt Russell

    Editor: Jasper Corbett

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    13 October 2026, 5:00 am
  • 27 minutes 28 seconds
    The Fixer: The life of Len McCluskey | Ep 2
    The former Unite boss says the police investigation into alleged corruption during his tenure will clear his name after years of accusations. But whether it can erase this dark episode in British trade unionism is another matter. So will the reputation of someone who was one of the UK's most influential power brokers stand the test of time?

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    9 October 2026, 4:30 am
  • 24 minutes
    The Fixer: The life of Len McCluskey | Ep 1
    The former Unite boss says the police investigation into alleged corruption during his tenure will clear his name after years of accusations. But whether it can erase this dark episode in British trade unionism is another matter. So will the reputation of someone who was one of the UK's most influential power brokers stand the test of time?

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    6 October 2026, 4:30 am
  • 33 minutes 13 seconds
    The rivalry that spawned the weight-loss jab race
    James Tapper, The Observer's Science editor and a weight-loss jab user, tells the story of his journey using the weight-loss drugs. A journey that along with lost kilograms, led him to the godfather of these drugs: a man who discovered the hormone that led to the development of GLP-1s and who reveals his concerns about their widespread use.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    2 October 2026, 4:30 am
  • 43 minutes 26 seconds
    Duped and deployed: the Kenyans fighting for Russia
    Kenyan men are leaving their country for work – and ending up on the frontlines of Russia’s war in Ukraine. This is the story of the recruiters, the promises and the poverty that keeps the pipeline moving.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    29 September 2026, 4:30 am
  • 24 minutes 57 seconds
    How I fell in love with a Russian spy

    Stephanie Arcanjo spent three years building a life with her boyfriend, Eric. One day he vanished, and the police came knocking. Only then would she learn his true identity, and that their life together was a lie.


    Basia Cummings speaks to Sao Paolo based reporter Oliver Basciano about Stephanie and hears her side of the story.


    Oliver Basciano's reporting can be found at https://observer.co.uk/contributor/oliver-basciano

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    25 September 2026, 5:00 am
  • 43 minutes 49 seconds
    Careless

    Nkechi Simms is a successful actor who’s had parts in Top Boy and BBC comedy PRU. Outwardly life is good and at 26 she’s got everything going for her. But this hasn’t always been the case. When she was 12 Nkechi’s mother handed her over to Camden Council and she was placed in foster care. Now she wants to find out what happened to her and why. The only way she can do this is by getting hold of her care records. But that’s easier said than done. And will those records answer her questions? 


    Careless is a 4 part original series from Tortoise Investigates and The Observer.

    To binge listen to all episodes today, ad-free, subscribe to The Observer.

    Or subscribe to Observer+ on Apple Podcasts or Spotify to listen to all our podcasts, including this one, without any ads.


    Reported by Ashley John-Baptiste and Madeleine Parr

    Produced and written by Madeleine Parr

    Sound design by Simon Panayi 

    Artwork by Jon Hill 

    The editor is Jasper Corbett



    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    22 September 2026, 4:00 am
  • 22 minutes 21 seconds
    How Ivanka Trump enraged all of Albania

    What links a rare breed of flamingo and government corruption? In Albania, plans to redevelop Sazan, the country's biggest island, and disrupt the wildlife that lives there, caused protests. When it emerged that it was Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka who was behind the development, the protests became about not just than just wildlife, but about the way the country is run. Andrew Anthony visited the country to find out more.


    Host: Basia Cummings

    Reporter: Andrew Anthony

    Producer: Poppy Bullard

    Executive Producer: Matt Russell

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    18 September 2026, 4:30 am
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