The Rest Is Classified
byGoalhanger
History
Enter the secretive world of spies, espionage, and covert operations. Hosted by former CIA analyst turned spy novelist, David McCloskey, and veteran security correspondent, Gordon Corera, this podcast unravels real-life spy stories, intelligence secrets, and the hidden power struggles shaping global events. From Cold War espionage to modern-day intelligence agencies like the CIA, MI6, and Mossad, explore the world of double agents, classified missions, and the shadowy figures who operate in them. Whether you're a true crime addict, a thriller fan, or fascinated by spy stories, this is the show for you.
Episodes(40 episodes)
Season 1 - Episode 178
The Plot to Destroy Russia’s Gas Empire (Ep 2)
How did a group of civilian divers carry out what’s been described as one of the greatest acts of sabotage of the 21st century? And have they finally been exposed?
Listen as David and Gordon unpack the investigation into who blew up the Nord Stream Pipeline in 2022 with Bojan Pancevski, Chief European Political Correspondent of the Wall Street Journal and author of the newly released book, The Nord Stream Conspiracy.
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Published: Jul 22, 2026Duration: 56m 1s
Season 1 - Episode 177
Who Blew Up the Nord Stream Pipeline? (Ep 1)
Why did an undersea pipeline that sent Russian gas to Germany explode in 2022? And could a group of Ukrainian operatives really have been behind it?
David and Gordon are joined by Bojan Pancevski, Chief European Political Correspondent of the Wall Street Journal and author of the newly released book, The Nord Stream Conspiracy, to discuss who was really responsible for the explosion of the Nord Stream pipeline in 2022.
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Published: Jul 19, 2026Duration: 47m 0s
Season 1 - Episode 176
The True Story of the Spies Held Hostage by China (Ep 2)
A Chinese fighter jet and American spy plane collide over the South China Seas. And now a US aircrew are held hostage by their Chinese captors.
David and Gordon reach the dramatic crescendo of their story exploring the downing of a US spy plane over the South China Seas.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 September: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/the-rest-is-classified-live/...
Published: Jul 15, 2026Duration: 47m 29s
Season 1 - Episode 175
How China Downed a US Spy Plane (Ep 1)
What happens when a Chinese Fighter jet crashes into a US spy plane? The result is death, hostages and a major crisis with lessons for what could spark a war today.
Listen as David and Gordon tell the infamous story of the Hainan Island Incident.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 September: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/the-rest-is-classified-live/
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Published: Jul 12, 2026Duration: 36m 38s
Season 1 - Episode 174
The Murder of Litvinenko: Did the British State Hide the Truth? (Ep 6)
Did the British state try to bury the truth of what happened to Alexander Litvinenko? And how did his wife, Marina, continue battling for justice?
Listen as David and Gordon conclude their series on the murder of Alexander Litvinenko.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 September: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/the-rest-is-classified-live/
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Published: Jul 8, 2026Duration: 47m 36s
Season 1 - Episode 173
The Murder of Litvinenko: The Killers Escape (Ep 5)
Radioactive poison has been used to kill Alexander Litvinenko on the streets of London. But where will the trail lead and can the police follow it to find his killers?
Listen as David and Gordon reach the penultimate episode in their exploration of the murder of Litvinenko.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 September: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/the-rest-is-classified-live/
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Published: Jul 5, 2026Duration: 37m 38s
Season 1 - Episode 172
The Murder of Litvinenko: Russia’s Nuclear Weapon (Ep 4)
Alexander Litvinenko has been poisoned in London… Now the race is on to work out what is slowly killing him.
In this episode David and Gordon tell the story of the race to discover what the Russian security services used to murder Litvinenko.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 September: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/the-rest-is-classified-live/
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Published: Jul 1, 2026Duration: 42m 57s
Season 1 - Episode 171
The Murder of Litvinenko: Killed in Plain Sight (Ep 3)
Russian assassins are closing in on Alexander Litvinenko… But who will deal the fatal blow?
Listen as David and Gordon explore the dramatic moments leading up to the murder of Alexander Litvinenko in London.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 September: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/the-rest-is-classified-live/
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Published: Jun 28, 2026Duration: 40m 35s
Season 1 - Episode 170
The Murder of Litvinenko: Putin’s Plan To Kill (Ep 2)
Former Russian Security Service officer Alexander Litvinenko is in exile in London. But his clash with Vladimir Putin will only increase in its intensity - placing the two men on a collision course towards certain doom.
David and Gordon explore the potential motivations for the murder of Litvinenko by the Russian security services in 2006.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 September: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/t...
Published: Jun 24, 2026Duration: 52m 12s
Season 1 - Episode 169
The Murder of Litvinenko: Poisoned in London (Ep 1)
A Russian security service officer murdered in London, with radioactive poison. But who gave the orders and why?
Listen as David and Gordon begin their six-part investigation into the 2006 murder of former FSB officer Alexander Litvinenko on the streets of London.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 September: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/the-rest-is-classified-live/
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Published: Jun 21, 2026Duration: 52m 12s
Season 1 - Episode 168
Trump's New Director of National Intelligence and the CIA's Missing Gold Bars
Who is Trump's new Director of National Intelligence? Is the US Intelligence Community becoming increasingly politicised? And what's the story behind the CIA officer who has allegedly stolen millions of dollars in gold bars?
Listen as David and Gordon head inside some of the latest news stories coming out of the world of intelligence in the US.
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Published: Jun 18, 2026Duration: 1h 3m 12s
Season 1 - Episode 167
The Covid Origin Story: What the CIA Really Found (Ep 2)
What do the CIA think caused the Covid pandemic? And did Trump and Biden sway the CIA’s intelligence assessments?
Listen as David and Gordon assess whether Trump and Biden played politics with the investigation into the origins of the Covid virus.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 September: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/the-rest-is-classified-live/
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Published: Jun 17, 2026Duration: 1h 2m 12s
Season 1 - Episode 166
The Covid Origin Story: Lab Leak or Animal Outbreak? (Ep 1)
Where does the CIA think the Covid-19 virus came from? And could it have been intentionally leaked as an act of biological warfare?
Listen as David and Gordon step inside the investigation as to where Covid came from.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 September: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/the-rest-is-classified-live/
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Published: Jun 14, 2026Duration: 39m 4s
Season 1 - Episode 165
Why England Didn't Win the 1970 World Cup (Ep 2)
Could England have won the 1970 World Cup if their star goalkeeper, Gordon Banks, hadn't contracted food poisoning the day before the quarter-final? And could the CIA have had anything to do with England's 60 years of hurt?
David and Gordon are joined by journalist Gabriel Gatehouse to get to the bottom of whether the CIA poisoned England's World Cup ambitions.
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Listen to Gabriel's full investigation, Foul Play: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/foul-play/id1896803199
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Published: Jun 10, 2026Duration: 55m 35s
Season 1 - Episode 164
Did the CIA Poison England's World Cup Goalkeeper? (Ep 1)
Why did Gordon Banks pull out of the 1970 World Cup quarter-final against West Germany? And was the CIA to blame?
Listen as David and Gordon are joined by journalist Gabriel Gatehouse who has spent the past three years investigating whether the CIA poisoned England's star goalkeeper.
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Listen to Gabriel's full investigation, Foul Play: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/foul-play/id1896803199
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Published: Jun 7, 2026Duration: 45m 46s
Season 1 - Episode 163
Argo: Smuggled Out of Khomeini's Iran (Ep 4)
Six American diplomats are about to walk through the Tehran airport with alias Canadian passports. But will they make it through? And how does the real Argo end?
As the story reaches its dramatic conclusion, David and Gordon look at what can be learnt from the 1979 plot to smuggle six American diplomats out of Iran.
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Published: Jun 3, 2026Duration: 48m 12s
Season 1 - Episode 162
Argo: How the CIA Made a Movie That Never Existed (Ep 3)
Tony Mendez has just landed in revolutionary Tehran. Now he must teach six terrified diplomats to be a Hollywood film crew… in 72 hours.
Listen as David and Gordon reach the climax of their adventure into the true story behind Argo.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 September: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/the-rest-is-classified-live/
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Published: May 31, 2026Duration: 47m 9s
Is Iran Recruiting Spies to Conduct Anti-Semitic Attacks?
Are groups linked to the Islamic Republic recruiting spies on Telegram to coordinate anti-semitic attacks in Europe? How are Jordanian people feeling about the war in Iran? And why is anti-western sentiment reaching new heights in the Middle East?
Listen as David McCloskey is joined by award-winning CNN International Correspondent Jomana Karadsheh, to discuss her latest reporting on how what appear to be Iran-linked groups are using social media to recruit individuals to carry out surveillance and attacks on Jewish communities.
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Published: May 28, 2026Duration: 41m 38s
Season 1 - Episode 161
Argo: Six Fugitives in Revolutionary Tehran (Ep 2)
Six Americans are hiding out as Canadian houseguests in Tehran. To get them out, the CIA will invent a Hollywood film studio that does not exist.
In this episode, David and Gordon examine how the CIA worked with Hollywood to plan a daring escape from revolutionary Iran during the hostage crisis.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 September: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/the-rest-is-classified-l...
Published: May 27, 2026Duration: 1h 5m 38s
Season 1 - Episode 160
Argo: The Secret Iranian Hostage Crisis (Ep 1)
One of the most audacious rescue operations the CIA has ever run. It begins with a mob at the gates of the US Embassy in Tehran, six diplomats slipping out a side door, and a man painting a wolf in a studio above his garage in rural Maryland.
Listen as David and Gordon tell the true story of Argo.
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THE REST IS CLASSIFIED LIVE 2026 at The Rest Is Fest: Buy your tickets to see David and Gordon live on stage at London’s Southbank Centre on 4 Septem...
Published: May 24, 2026Duration: 1h 5m 37s