Scientists warn that a “super” El Niño could be on its way which, combined with the effects of human-caused climate change, could result in 2027 being the warmest year on record. Yet El Niño is not just a climate story - throughout history, this recurring weather pattern has helped shape global events, triggering everything from famines and revolutions to impacting the Cold War. In this episode, we speak to historian Peter Frankopan, Professor of Global History at Oxford, to discuss what historical El Niños tell us about what cou be coming our way, and how we can collectively prepare.

Producers: Valerio Esposito and Aron Keller

Executive producer: James Shield and China Collins

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: A woman rides a bicycle in the rain in Yangon, Myanmar, 22 May 2026. Credit: Nyein Chan Naing/EPA/Shutterstock

Casting is finally underway for a new James Bond. But why has it taken five years to even begin the search?

Since Daniel Craig retired as Bond in 2021, there have been reports of a behind-the-scenes David and Goliath battle between the family business which has held creative control of the franchise since the 1960s and its new owners, Amazon. It is now up to Jeff Bezos’s tech giant to decide who will play 007 – and how to run the series.

In an era when Hollywood studios are desperate to eke out every last dollar from movie franchises, can James Bond retain its mystique and appeal to a new generation of cinema goers?

We speak to Wall Street Journal enterprise reporter Erich Schwartzel.

Producer: Lucy Pawle and Xandra Ellin

Sound engineer: Travis Evans

Executive producer: James Shield

Senior news editor: China Collins

(Photo: Daniel Craig at the world premiere of the Bond film, No Time to Die, London, 28 September, 2021 Credit: Neil Hall/European Pressphoto Agency)

On Sunday, two prominent left-wing political commentators in the US — Hasan Piker and his uncle, Cenk Uygur – said they had been barred from visiting the UK.

Both men were due to appear at the SXSW London festival, but say the British government blocked them from entering the country because of their criticism of Israel. The British government confirmed that it had denied them entry on the grounds that their presence in the UK “may not be conducive to the public good” but did not elaborate further. Their cases have sparked renewed debate about the limits of free speech in the UK.

We speak to American political activist Shabbos Kestenbaum – who was due to debate Cenk Uygur in London – and to the legal academic and host of the BBC’s The Law Show, Joelle Grogan.

Producers: Sam Chantarasak, Lucy Pawle and Aron Keller

Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: Hasan Piker speaks to members of the media at the venue for New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani's election night rally in Brooklyn, New York, November 4, 2025. Credit: Jeenah Moon/Reuters

***This episode includes details of alleged sexual offences and misconduct and includes descriptions which some listeners might find distressing*** Married at First Sight UK is one of the UK’s biggest reality TV shows. The dating format sees complete strangers marry in a mock-wedding, before moving in together and sharing a bed. Cameras follow what happens next.

The BBC has uncovered allegations that raise serious concerns that welfare procedures on the reality show have failed contributors, leaving them at risk. Three women have told the BBC they were victims of sexual assault, and misconduct, by their former on-screen husbands.

The men deny all the allegations against them, and both Channel 4 and CPL - the independent production company that makes the series - say the welfare protocols are robust and comprehensive.

Following this investigation, Channel 4 has announced an external review into contributor welfare and has removed all previous seasons of MAFS UK.

Noor Nanji, BBC culture correspondent, tells the story behind her investigation which has shaken the reality TV industry. And she discusses whether a scandal like this could provoke a new reckoning in the genre.

(Photo: Shona Manderson, a ‘bride’ on Married at First Sight UK)

On prediction markets such as Polymarket people are placing sometimes huge wagers on questions ranging from the sublime (‘will Jesus Christ return by the end of the year?’) to the very serious (‘will the US invade Iran?’).

Gambling is restricted across many US states but prediction markets are not classified as gambling. Their rapid rise over recent years speaks – some say – to an increasing nihilism among young men in particular, who feel they may as well try to profit from world events they cannot control.

Supporters say prediction markets are a smart way to make money. Critics say they are enabling insider trading. So what is the truth behind their rise? We speak to senior business journalist at the BBC, Mitch Labiak.

Producer: Hannah Moore

Mix: Travis Evans

Executive producers: Richard Fenton-Smith and James Shield

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: Polymarket logo appears in this illustration. Credit: Reuters/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

At the Vatican on Monday, Pope Leo XIV issued his first encyclical, a letter issued to the world’s bishops. In it, he criticised artificial intelligence and what he called the “culture of power” fuelling its rise, urging world leaders to regulate the technology more forcefully.

The Pope’s scepticism towards AI does not exist in a vacuum. It comes after several weeks in which numerous commencement speakers championing artificial intelligence on US college campuses were booed by Gen Z graduates.

Is a backlash to AI brewing? We speak to BBC religion editor Aleem Maqbool about the Pope’s AI-critical encyclical, and to Rachel Janfaza, founder of the Gen Z research firm The Up and Up, about why Gen Z’s relationship with AI is far more complicated than many think.

Producer: Xandra Ellin, Cat Farnsworth, and Valerio Esposito

Executive producer: James Shield

Sound engineer: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

(Photo: Pope Leo XIV during a meeting with Italian bishops in Vatican City, 28 May 2026. Credit: Vatican Media/EPA)

Politics, power and money have always been part of international sporting competitions, and football (or soccer) is no exception.

However, this year’s World Cup faces new challenges. The United States is co-hosting the tournament with Canada and Mexico, and its relationship with its neighbours has at times been rocky. Two countries at war with each other – the US and Iran – have never played in the same competition before. Some fans are anxious about travelling to games at a time of high tension. And the cost of attending the event has led some to ask whether this World Cup is really worth it.

Mehreen Khan, economics editor of The Times of London and a lifelong fan of the sport, joins us to discuss what this World Cup could mean for a divided world.

Producers: Cat Farnsworth and Aron Keller

Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: FIFA World Cup on display in Toronto. Credit: Kevin Sousa/ Imagn Images

This week President Trump and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio have said negotiations with Iran are going well and suggested a deal could be days away. Iran has disputed this.

Donald Trump says he wants “a great deal for all or no deal at all” but leaked details of a possible plan have some wondering if one side might be coming out on top.

We speak to the BBC’s International Editor, Jeremy Bowen, and ask if this might be the week Donald Trump loses the art of the deal – and the perhaps the whole war – with Iran.

CREDITS

Producers: Sam Chantarasak and Lucy Pawle

Digital Producer: Matt Pintus

Executive producer: James Shield

Studio Director: James Piper

Sound engineer: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: An Iranian woman walks next to an anti-US mural in Tehran, Iran. (Credit: Abedin Taherkenareh/EPA/Shutterstock)

In 2025, the Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD overtook Tesla as the world’s biggest seller of electric vehicles. As conflict in the Middle East pushes up fuel prices and boosts demand for EVs, Chinese carmakers are seizing the opportunity.

Driven by years of state-backed investment and industrial policy, China has quietly become the global powerhouse of EV production, leading the industry in technology, innovation and affordability, while the US struggles to keep up.

In today’s episode, we speak to Suranjana Tewari, Asia Business Correspondent for BBC News. She explains what BYD cars are really like, and how China won the EV race.

Producers: Valerio Esposito and Aron Keller

Executive Producer: Bridget Harney

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior News Editor: China Collins

Photo: A newly presented electric roadster Formula X of BYD's brand Fang Cheng Bao appears at the company’s booth at the Beijing International Automotive Exhibition (Auto China), in Beijing, China April 24, 2026. Credit: Reuters/Maxim Shemetov.

An Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda has been declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organization.

The latest outbreak involves a rare species of Ebola for which there is no vaccine, and the epicentre is in an area affected by conflict. The WHO says the outbreak may be spreading faster than originally thought.

James Gallagher, the BBC’s health and science correspondent, explains why this outbreak is in some ways more worrying than previous ones, and discusses what it might reveal about global preparedness for international health emergencies.

Producer: Viv Jones, Xandra Ellin, Sam Chantarasak Executive producer: Bridget Harney Sound engineer: Travis Evans Senior news editor: China Collins

(Photo: Red Cross workers in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Credit: Reuters/Gradel Muyisa Mumbere)

US Secretary of State Marco Rubia has said Cuba poses a "national security threat" to the US and the likelihood of a peaceful agreement is "not high". His comments come days after the US announced criminal charges against Cuba’s former president Raul Castro, the brother of Fidel Castro.

The charges relate to his alleged role in the shooting down of two planes in 1996, which killed four people, including three Americans. The Cuban government say the move is “a political manoeuvre, devoid of any legal foundation.”

The indictment has drawn comparisons to the capture of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, and whether the US has set the stage for military intervention.

Asma speaks to Cecilia Barria, a journalist based in Miami for BBC Mundo, and Will Grant, the BBC’s Mexico, Central America and Cuba correspondent, about the story behind the charges — and why three decades on, the indictment is only happening now.

Producers: Sam Chantarasak and Aron Keller Executive producer: James Shield Mix: Travis Evans Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: Raul Castro attend the International Labor Day commemoration in Havana, Cuba, 01 May 2026. Ernesto Mastrascusa/EPA/Shutterstock