What was it like to interview Osama bin Laden in the Tora Bora caves? Who were the other terrorists behind the infamous 1998 fatwa? How did Monica Lewinsky derail the response to the East Africa embassy bombings? 

In Episode 5 of this series, Williams and Anita are joined by CNN’s national security analyst Peter Bergen, the producer of bin Laden’s first television interview, to discuss the terrorist leader’s declaration of war.  

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Assistant Producer: Imogen Marriott

Editor: Charlie Rodwell

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Producer: Anouska Lewis

Executive Producer: Dom Johnson

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How did the Gulf War drive a permanent wedge between Osama bin Laden and the Saudi royal family? Why did the bin Laden family finally decide to disown him? How did he manage a global terror network from a farm in Sudan? 

In Episode 4 of this series, William and Anita are joined by Pulitzer Prize winner Steve Coll, author of The Bin Ladens: An Arab Family in the American Century, to follow Osama bin Laden’s descent from the Saudi establishment into international exile. 

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Assistant Producer: Imogen Marriott

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Producer: Anouska Lewis

Executive Producer: Dom Johnson

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Who were the bin Ladens, and how did they build a construction empire in Saudi Arabia? 

What was Osama bin Laden’s childhood like, and how was he radicalised by a puritanical PE teacher? What did a young Osama see on his television in 1982 that inspired his plan to down America’s towers?

In Episode 3 of this series, William and Anita are joined by Pulitzer Prize winner Steve Coll, author of The Bin Ladens: An Arab in Family in the American Century, to trace the rags-to-riches rise of the House of bin Laden.

Summer sale is here: get an annual Empire Club membership for an extra 20% off with code SUMMER26. That's ad-free listening, early-access, every bonus episode, and full access to our exclusive members' series. Sale ends August 31st, so grab it before summer's over.

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Instagram: @empirepoduk

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Assistant Producer: Imogen Marriott

Editor: Charlie Rodwell

Social Producer: Charlie Johnson

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Executive Producer: Dom Johnson

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Did the CIA actually fund Osama bin Laden during the Soviet-Afghan war? 

Who was Abdullah Azzam, the radical scholar who turned jihad into a global franchise? How did a bureaucratic office meeting create Al-Qaeda? 

In Episode 2 of this new series, William Dalrymple is joined by Jason Burke, author of Al-Qaeda: The True Story of Radical Islam and The Revolutionists, to discuss the founding of al-Qaeda. 

Summer sale is here: get an annual Empire Club membership for an extra 20% off with code SUMMER26. That's ad-free listening, early-access, every bonus episode, and full access to our exclusive members' series. Sale ends August 31st, so grab it before summer's over.

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Assistant Producer: Imogen Marriott

Editor: Bruno Di Castri

Social Producer: Charlie Johnson

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Executive Producer: Dom Johnson

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What were the building blocks of the rise of Radical Islamism that paved the road to the 9/11 terror attacks? How did the torture of radical members of the Muslim Brotherhood fan the flames of Islamist thought in the 1960s? Who were Sayyid Qutb and Ayman al-Zawahiri, and how did their experience in Egyptian prisons lead to the rise of extremist ideologies? 

In Episode 1 of this new series, William Dalrymple is joined by Jason Burke, author of Al-Qaeda: The True Story of Radical Islam and The Revolutionists, to discuss the seeds of Islamic terrorism.

Summer sale is here: get an annual Empire Club membership for an extra 20% off with code SUMMER26. That's ad-free listening, early-access, every bonus episode, and full access to our exclusive members' series. Sale ends August 31st, so grab it before summer's over.

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Instagram: @empirepoduk

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Assistant Producer: Imogen Marriott

Editor: Bruno Di Castri

Social Producer: Charlie Johnson

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Executive Producer: Dom Johnson

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Who are Thor and Ragnarok in Norse Mythology? How did the Vikings fuse their own spiritual beliefs with Christianity? And how do Norse spiritual practices continue in some ways today through Scandinavian indigenous cultures?

In Episode 6 of this series, Anita Anand and William Dalrymple are joined by Dr Eleanor Barraclough, author of Embers of the Hand, to discuss the sunset of this era, and how Vikings infused Christianity into their own spiritual practices.

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Summer sale is here: get an annual Empire Club membership for an extra 20% off with code SUMMER26. That's ad-free listening, early-access, every bonus episode, and full access to our exclusive members' series. Sale ends August 31st, so grab it before summer's over.

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Email: [email protected]

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Assistant Producer: Imogen Marriott

Editor: Charlie Rodwell

Social Producer: Charlie Johnson

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Executive Producer: Dom Johnson

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Why did the Vikings invade Britain, and how did they mix into society? What did they do with the gold they stole from churches? Which Viking stereotypes are true - and which ones are total myths?

In Episode 5 of this series, Anita Anand and William Dalrymple are joined by Dr Eleanor Barraclough, author of Embers of the Hand, to discuss the dramatic arrival of the Vikings in Britain. They dismantle Viking stereotypes, and explore how the raiders reshaped British society.

Summer sale is here: get an annual Empire Club membership for an extra 20% off with code SUMMER26. That's ad-free listening, early-access, every bonus episode, and full access to our exclusive members' series. Sale ends August 31st, so grab it before summer's over.

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Instagram: @empirepoduk

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Assistant Producer: Imogen Marriott

Editor: Bruno Di Castri

Social Producer: Charlie Johnson

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Executive Producer: Dom Johnson

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Who were the mysterious peoples who ruled parts of Scotland for 500 years? What is the true origin of the Loch Ness Monster? Is there a secret code behind the Pictish carved stones? What do recent excavations at Rhynie tell us about the Picts?

William and Anita are joined by Professor Gordon Noble, Director of the Northern Picts Project and co-author of Picts: Scourge of Rome, Rulers of the North, to uncover the hidden world of the Picts.

Summer sale is here: get an annual Empire Club membership for an extra 20% off with code SUMMER26. That's ad-free listening, early-access, every bonus episode, and full access to our exclusive members' series. Sale ends August 31st, so grab it before summer's over.

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Assistant Producer: Imogen Marriott

Editor: Bruno Di Castri

Social Producer: Charlie Johnson

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Executive Producer: Dom Johnson

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Saint Patrick’s Day is celebrated all over the world every year by the Irish diaspora, but what is the real history behind the patron saint of Ireland? How is the traditional story of his life almost entirely incorrect? And why were Irish people in Rome considered to be the most scholarly Christians? 

In Episode 3 of this series, William Dalrymple and Anita Anand are joined by Irish historian Dáibhí Ó Cróinín to bust myths about Saint Patrick.

Summer sale is here: get an annual Empire Club membership for an extra 20% off with code SUMMER26. That's ad-free listening, early-access, every bonus episode, and full access to our exclusive members' series. Sale ends August 31st, so grab it before summer's over.

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Assistant Producer: Imogen Marriott

Editor: Lorcan Moullier

Social Producer: Charlie Johnson

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Executive Producer: Dom Johnson

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The Roman Conquest of Britain. The furthest western point of the empire. How did life change for ordinary people after the invasion? Why do Middle Eastern gods end up on Hadrian’s Wall in Northern England? And how does the famous gorgon face carved into stone in Bath blend Celtic and Roman spiritual beliefs?

In Episode 2 of this series, William Dalrymple and Anita Anand are joined by Dr Eleanor Barraclough, author of Beyond the Walls: In Search of the Celts, to discuss how the arrival of the Romans altered the gods of these isles.

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Summer sale is here: get an annual Empire Club membership for an extra 20% off with code SUMMER26. That's ad-free listening, early-access, every bonus episode, and full access to our exclusive members' series. Sale ends August 31st, so grab it before summer's over.

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Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @empirepoduk

Blue Sky: @empirepoduk

X: @empirepoduk

Assistant Producer: Imogen Marriott

Editor: Bruno Di Castri

Social Producer: Charlie Johnson

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Executive Producer: Dom Johnson

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What are the links between the Druids and Stonehenge? Why did Romans massacre Druids in Anglesey, Wales? What is the Pagan Calendar and how is modern Halloween derived from it? What can we learn from the mysterious ‘bog bodies’?

In Episode 1 of this new series, William Dalrymple and Anita Anand are joined by Professor Ronald Hutton, author of Pagan Britain, The Druids, and Blood and Mistletoe, to discuss the ancient spiritual practices of the British Isles. 

Sign up and get 10% off at BetterHelp.com/EMPIRE.

Summer sale is here: get an annual Empire Club membership for an extra 20% off with code SUMMER26. That's ad-free listening, early-access, every bonus episode, and full access to our exclusive members' series. Sale ends August 31st, so grab it before summer's over.

For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to www.goalhanger.com.

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @empirepoduk

Blue Sky: @empirepoduk

X: @empirepoduk

Assistant Producer: Imogen Marriott

Editor: Charlie Rodwell

Social Producer: Charlie Johnson

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Executive Producer: Dom Johnson

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices