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Join us as we hear from some bad-ass female spies who share their favourite real world missions with Vanessa Kirby and Hayley Atwell.
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Sisters & Spies
ALLIED WITH AL-QAEDA
CIA operations officer Doug London has one shot to recruit one of al-Qaeda's key facilitators. Doug has to find common ground with a man with a vastly different background and belief system. Lives hang in the balance. He has to succeed. Vanessa Kirby tells the story of how Doug did it. How would YOU do it?
THE RELUCTANT NARCO
When banker Keith Bulfin went to prison, he entered a waking nightmare. When he got out, things only got worse. As a reluctant agent of the DEA, he was tasked with infiltrating the brutal world of the Cartels. If he was successful, he'd be given a chance to return to his old life. If not, living wouldn't be an issue. Could YOU take the strain?
THE DIGITAL SILK ROAD
Linguist and intelligence analyst Charity Wright has spent her career monitoring China but, as the country expands its influence around the globe, she's worried that the balance of global power could be shifting. Vanessa Kirby reveals the ways in which Chinese espionage could shape the future of the planet. What could you discover?
THE REAL SOPRANOS
FBI agent Giovanni Rocco grew up playing in the back yards of New Jersey's criminal class. As an adult, he went undercover to take them down. Vanessa Kirby follows Giovanni's descent into the violent world that inspired HBO's hit series, The Sopranos. Could YOU meet the Family - and live?
THE CODE CLERK
In Atlanta, a woman is found murdered. The suspect? An employee of a hostile embassy, responsible for monitoring secret communications. He's also a spy, recruited by the FBI. Now he's on the run, and the pressure is on for the Bureau to bring him in before his own side take him out. Vanessa Kirby joins former assistant director for counterintelligence Frank Figliuzzi on a manhunt with international implications. Could you beat the clock?
THE PHILADELPHIA WIRE
Northern Philadelphia, 1989. FBI agent Judy Tyler is on the hunt. Her target? A local entrepreneur with a lucrative side-line as a cocaine kingpin. From wiretaps to polygraphs to secret cameras, Judy has the Bureau's full arsenal of tradecraft tricks at her disposal - but can she get her man before someone gets hurt? Vanessa Kirby joins Judy on the mean streets of Philly.
THE GADGET MASTER
Missionary. Agent. Inventor. Charles Fraser-Smith fought his war from a workshop, creating the real-life equipment that would inspire one of Ian Flemings' most beloved characters: Q, the MI6 quartermaster. During WWII, Fraser-Smith was the mind behind some of the British spy's most essential kit in the fight against the Nazis. Vanessa Kirby meets the man behind the gadgets.
A SPY AMONGST SKINHEADS
It's the early '90s, and the USA is still reeling from the L.A. race riots. A paranoid far right are preparing for all-out war. With his blond hair and blue eyes, Mike German is the picture-perfect neo-Nazi. But in reality, he's working undercover, infiltrating a cell of violent white supremacists for the FBI. Vanessa Kirby joins Mike in the belly of the beast.
THE ARMAGEDDON PAPERS
What secrets do you give away with the twitch of an eyelid - the tap of a finger? Joe Navarro knows. As an FBI agent, he developed an innate gift for reading body language. But when Joe came up against hyper-intelligent US traitor Rod Ramsay, those skills were put to the test. The consequences of failure? Nuclear. Vanessa Kirby enters a world of lies and misdirection.
RISE AND KILL FIRST
Ronen Bergman is an investigative journalist specializing in the dark arts of espionage and Mossad. In the early ‘80s, he stumbled on the scoop of a lifetime involving PLO chairman Yasser Arafat.
OPERATION: BULLWINKLE
Robert Wittman was a special kind of Special Agent. During his long career with the FBI, he went undercover to retrieve millions of dollars worth of stolen art. When a priceless Rembrandt was stolen from Sweden's National Gallery, Robert descended into Europe's criminal underworld to get it back. Vanessa Kirby narrates a high-stakes hunt for a truly unique prize.
PSYCHIC SPIES
Dr. Edwin May is an unusual scientist, a physicist who researches psychic phenomena. For decades he worked with psychics who believed they could ‘foresee’ events like potential terrorist attacks, which raised an interesting question: If you can see the future, are you condemned to experience it?
THE RITCHIE BOYS
It's 1944 - 3 days after D-Day. 22-year old Guy Stern lands in Normandy. Unlike many of his comrades in the US Army, it's not his first time in Europe. Forced to leave Germany in 1937, he returns as part of an elite Military Intelligence unit charged with interrogating German POWs in their native tongue. Now 99 years old, Guy tells Vanessa Kirby a story of wit and courage in the face of unimaginable pressure.
YOU ME, SAME SAME
The CIA teaches its officers to turn people they’ve just met into close personal friends in order to recruit foreign assets. It’s a very fine line between persuasion and manipulation, however. Listening to Ryan Hillsberg’s story, you might come to wonder: Who are your friends? And how do you know who to trust?
MISSION IN THE DOG MEAT VALLEY
In South Korea, dog meat is a controversial delicacy. The farming of dogs for meat is largely unregulated, and animals are kept in horrendous conditions. Activists Nami Kim and Nina Jackel are on a personal mission to stop the slaughter. But to expose their enemies, they'll need to gather the right intelligence - and put their own safety on the line. Vanessa Kirby tells a story of courage in the face of cruelty.
THE ATHAR PROJECT
Across the ravaged towns and cities of Syria, looters are trafficking the country's rich reserves of priceless antiquities. Amr Al-Azm and Katie A. Paul, two US-based academics, became unlikely spymasters on a mission to hold the looters to account. Standing in their way are ISIS militants, a hostile regime and the world's largest social network. Vanessa Kirby tells a powerful story of preservation in the face of destruction.
CIA? MORE LIKE CON
Wayne Simmons was the toast of cable news. A former CIA officer with a storied operational history, he was called upon to comment on matters concerning the Agency. The only problem? He'd never served at all. Vanessa Kirby meets Kent Clizbe, the genuine ex-CIA operations officer who revealed Simmons' fraud to the world at large.
CATCH ME IF YOU CAN
In the divided Germany of the 1980s, spying was a way of life. Dave Butler knows - he was there. As part of Brixmis, a British military liaison unit with an unofficial sideline in espionage, he ran missions deep inside communist territory. But they didn't always go to plan. Vanessa Kirby tells a story of danger and disaster behind enemy lines.
THE MOUSE AT PEARL HARBOR
A single spy can change the course of history - for better, or for worse. Takeo Yoshikawa was one such spy. Stationed in Honolulu, Yoshikawa’s intelligence was used by the Japanese to launch a devastating attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The massacre brought the USA in to WW2, and ultimately led to Japan’s crushing defeat. He shares his unsettling story with Vanessa Kirby.
THE SOCIOPATHIC SPY
Working as a lawyer is one path to success, but Jim Lawler wanted adventure. He ditched his job in Texas and joined the CIA. On his first tour abroad, Jim had to recruit a spy working for a hostile government knowing she’d be killed if her cover was blown. That’s when Jim realized he was born with the type of sociopathic personality that would ensure success.
Ten Episodes Not To Miss
Ready to unlock the secrets of the spying game? Here's a quick intro to our True Spies series.
Howard Hunt Unleashed, Part 1: The CIA & Animal Farm
In this special two-part True Spies miniseries, Daisy Ridley presents a dramatized encounter with Everette Howard Hunt Jr, based on our own historical research and Hunt's own writings. In Part 1, Hunt explains his role in one of the CIA's most unusual PsyOps - the backing of 1954's animated version of George Orwell's Animal Farm.
HAVANA SYNDROME SPECIAL
Debilitating neurological symptoms have affected US officials worldwide. Former CIA officer Marc Polymeropoulos has been suffering since 2017 - he joins Russia expert and former CIA Station Chief John Sipher, and Dr. James Giordano to analyze Havana Syndrome.
GRAY SUIT & THE GHOST
Eric O’Neill describes the hunt for the infamous FBI mole Robert Hanssen, who he was tasked with catching. Eric needs to get Hanssen into a hire car so his own car can be searched for evidence of his betrayal... but the hire car isn’t there and Hanssen is getting suspicious. What would you do in O'Neill's position?
THE ILLEGAL
'Jack Barsky' was a New York computer programmer for a well-known insurance firm. In real life, he was Albrecht Dittrich, a highly-trained Soviet sleeper agent dropped behind enemy lines in 1970s America. When the KGB recalled him to Europe, Barsky had a difficult choice to make: Should he leave his wife and 18-month-old baby behind or betray his country?
INSIDE NAMBLA
Bob Hamer had a colorful career as an undercover FBI agent but nothing prepared him for infiltrating Nambla, the North American Man/Boy Love Association. If he was going to put the pedophiles behind bars, Bob would have to hide his hatred and disdain - even if it ripped at the very fabric of his being. (Warning: This episode contains graphic details.)
WHITE TRAITOR
Sue Dobson was a white woman who wanted to spy for the African National Congress - making her a minority within a minority in apartheid-era South Africa. Dobson spent seven months training in the USSR to learn her tradecraft. Now she wasn’t just a traitor, she was a turncoat with the training to kill.
PSYCHIC SPIES
Dr. Edwin May is an unusual scientist, a physicist who researches psychic phenomena. For decades he worked with psychics who believed they could ‘foresee’ events like potential terrorist attacks, which raised an interesting question: If you can see the future, are you condemned to experience it?
THE SOCIOPATHIC SPY
Working as a lawyer is one path to success, but Jim Lawler wanted adventure. He ditched his job in Texas and joined the CIA. On his first tour abroad, Jim had to recruit a spy working for a hostile government knowing she’d be killed if her cover was blown. That’s when Jim realized he was born with the type of sociopathic personality that would ensure success.
ME AND THE MULLAH
Shawnee Delaney was a key part of the US team hunting Osama bin Laden in the wake of 9/11. One of her contacts was a Mullah with close ties to al-Qaeda but how could she win his trust? There was a language barrier and the Mullah refused to accept money for intelligence. This was shaping up to be Shawnee’s most challenging assignment yet.
THE IRISHMAN
Sean Hartnett grew up in Ireland during the 'Troubles'. His family was Republican so they were shocked when Hartnett talked about joining the British Armed Forces. In fact, Hartnett went a step further. He joined the British Army’s most secretive covert counterterrorist unit in Northern Ireland, Joint Communications Unit Northern Ireland aka ‘The Det’.
And, if you're into covert operations and intelligence gathering, check out these episodes:
EPISODE 71
RISE AND KILL FIRST
Ronen Bergman is an investigative journalist specializing in the dark arts of espionage and Mossad. In the early ‘80s, he stumbled on the scoop of a lifetime involving PLO chairman Yasser Arafat.
TEAM ALPHA PART 1: THE TIP OF THE SPEAR
October 17, 2001. The dust of 9/11 has barely settled. America and the world are reeling. In Afghanistan, eight CIA officers - a crack team of linguists, tribal experts, and paramilitaries - are the first Americans to infiltrate Taliban territory after the attacks. Their mission is to ensure that al-Qaeda does not strike again.
EPISODE 87
STALIN'S ROMEO SPY
As a young Soviet journalist, Emil Draitser stumbled on a story that changed his life. He was summoned by Dmitri Bystrolyotov to hear the deep secret that he was a ‘Stasi Romeo’ spying on Germany for Moscow, taking advantage of vulnerable women to steal state secrets. It was a fascinating tale, but it could also land Draitser in prison.
ALDRICH AMES PART 1: THE ULTIMATE DOUBLE AGENT - SELLING SECRETS
The CIA is only as strong as the weakest link. And in the waning years of the Cold War, weak links were in ready supply. A number of trusted Agency officers were caught selling secrets to the Russian regime. And the most notorious traitor? Aldrich Hazen Ames.
EPISODE 43
PUTIN'S PALACE?
Former Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny released a film in 2021 that sent shockwaves through the country. Part exposé, part-psychological portrait, his investigation claimed to reveal a culture of corruption within the Kremlin - with President Putin at its heart. The Kremlin and Putin deny everything.
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Russian SecretsSpy Sisters: Teaser
Hayley Atwell and Vanessa Kirby narrate true stories from the incredible women behind the world’s greatest espionage operations. What do they know? What are their skills? And what would YOU do in their position? From SPYSCAPE, the headquarters of all things spy.
The Philadelphia Wire
Northern Philadelphia, 1989. FBI agent Judy Tyler is on the hunt. Her target? A local entrepreneur with a lucrative side-line as a cocaine kingpin. From wiretaps to polygraphs to secret cameras, Judy has the Bureau's full arsenal of tradecraft tricks at her disposal - but can she get her man before someone gets hurt? Vanessa Kirby joins Judy on the mean streets of Philly. Could YOU clean them up? From SPYSCAPE, the home of secrets. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producers: Gemma Newby, Joe Foley. Produced by Joe Foley. Music by Nick Ryan.
Mission in the Dog Meat Valley
CW: Animal cruelty. In South Korea, dog meat is a controversial delicacy. The farming of dogs for meat is largely unregulated, and animals are kept in horrendous conditions. Activists Nami Kim and Nina Jackel are on a personal mission to stop the slaughter. But to expose their enemies, they'll need to gather the right intelligence - and put their own safety on the line. Vanessa Kirby tells a story of courage in the face of cruelty. Could YOU defend the defenceless? From SPYSCAPE, the home of secrets. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producer: Gemma Newby, Joe Foley. Produced by Mariana Des Forges. Music by Nick Ryan.
Surviving NXIVM
In 2005, actress Sarah Edmondson joined NXIVM, a company offering 'personal development' coaching. 12 years later, she realized that she had been brainwashed into a dangerous sex-trafficking cult. She borrowed techniques from the world of spy tradecraft to bring down the man behind the curtain - Keith Raniere. Vanessa Kirby joins Sarah on a journey that forced her to question everything she thought she knew. Could YOU take back control? From SPYSCAPE, the home of secrets. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producer: Gemma Newby, Joe Foley. Produced by Joe Foley. Music by Nick Ryan.
Seven Female Spies
CW: This episode contains descriptions of Nazi war-crimes that some listeners may find upsetting. During the Second World War, Vera Atkins sent hundreds of British spies into Occupied France. Some of them never came back - and nobody knew why. Vanessa Kirby shares the story of one woman's mission to find answers in the rubble of post-war Europe. How far would YOU go for the truth? From SPYSCAPE, the home of secrets. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Vera Atkins was voiced by Clare Wille. Series producer: Gemma Newby. Produced by Joe Foley. Music by Nick Ryan.
Codename: Madeleine
Vanessa Kirby lands in Nazi-occupied France with Noor Inayat Khan, the Allied spy who risked her life to aid the Resistance. Armed with a wireless radio, Noor relayed vital intelligence to the British Special Operations Executive, right under the nose of Hitler's secret police. The average life expectancy of a radio operator was just 6 weeks. Could YOU beat the odds? From SPYSCAPE, the home of secrets and skills. Featuring Radhika Apte as Noor Inayat Khan. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producer: Gemma Newby. Produced by Joe Foley. Music by Nick Ryan.
Sister Spies
Vanessa Kirby meets Pat and Jean Owtram, two British sisters who played crucial roles as Allied codebreakers during World War 2. Bound by the Official Secrets Act, neither sister knew that the other was a spy until decades later. Now in their 90s, they reveal their hidden hands in planning D-Day, aiding the Resistance, and cracking the Enigma code. Tune in to True Spies to hear their story. Would YOU have the skills to make a difference? From SPYSCAPE, the home of secrets and skills. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producer: Gemma Newby. Produced by Mariana Des Forges. Music by Nick Ryan.
The Limping Lady
Vanessa Kirby goes behind enemy lines with Virginia Hall, one of the bravest Allied heroines of WWII. As part of ‘Churchill's Secret Army’, Virginia was sent into occupied France to organize resistance efforts and disrupt Nazi plans ‘by any means necessary’. As the Germans closed in, betrayal was a constant threat. Would YOU know who to trust? From SPYSCAPE, the home of secrets and skills. Featuring Sarah Megan Thomas as Virginia Hall. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producer: Gemma Newby. Produced by Joe Foley. Music by Nick Ryan.
Blinking Red
CIA analyst Gina Bennett shows Vanessa Kirby the origins of America's most infamous enemy. Throughout the 1990s, Osama bin Laden launched a series of attacks on American interests at home and abroad. Operating in the man's world of counter-terrorism, Gina had to fight to have the threat he posed taken seriously. Would YOU trust your gut? From SPYSCAPE, the home of secrets and skills. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producer: Gemma Newby. Produced by Tim Mansel. Music by Nick Ryan.
Exit Strategy
CIA analyst Sarah Carlson drops Vanessa Kirby into the pressure-cooker of post-revolutionary Libya. In 2011, the Arab Spring swept Colonel Gaddafi from office, leaving a deadly power vacuum. Three years later, civil war engulfed the nation. Under a hail of rocket fire, Sarah had to figure out a way to extract 150 American personnel from the carnage. Could YOU get them to safety? From SPYSCAPE, the home of secrets and skills. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producer: Gemma Newby. Produced by Claire Crofton. Music by Nick Ryan.
The Targeter
Former CIA targeting officer Nada Bakos takes Vanessa Kirby on the controversial hunt for one of the Iraq War's deadliest terrorists. Abu Musab Al-Zaqarwi was a two-bit criminal until the US government named him as one the world's most dangerous insurgents. His presence in Iraq was part of the justification for the invasion - but did the facts stack up? It was Nada's job to find out. Could YOU find out the truth? From SPYSCAPE, the home of secrets and skills. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producer: Gemma Newby. Produced by Joe Foley. Music by Nick Ryan.
The Spy Who Said No
Hayley Atwell meets ex-spy Katherine Gun and journalist Martin Bright, who tried to derail the course of history. On the brink of the Iraq War, Katherine leaked a top-secret memo which exposed a US plot to secure support for the invasion through blackmail. Would YOU have done the same? From SPYSCAPE, the headquarters of all things spy. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producer: Gemma Newby. Produced by Louise Clarke-Rowbotham. Music by Nick Ryan.
The Survivor
Hayley Atwell meets Marthe Cohn, the brave 100-year-old French spy who stole Nazi secrets during WWII. Disguised as a German nurse, Marthe fed top-secret information to the Resistance from behind enemy lines, right under the nose of the deadly SS. What would YOU do? From SPYSCAPE, the headquarters of all things spy. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producer: Gemma Newby. Produced by Mariana Des Forges. Music by Nick Ryan.
The Art Of Disguise
Hayley Atwell explains how an effective disguise can save your life, with former CIA Head Of Disguise Jonna Mendez. On a mission to bring in a notorious terrorist on foreign soil, Jonna found herself face to face with him, and he seemed to be onto her. What would YOU do? From SPYSCAPE, the headquarters of all things spy. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producer: Gemma Newby. Produced by David Waters. Music by Nick Ryan.
The Rookie And Bin Laden
Hayley Atwell shares what went on during 9/11 inside The Vault, the CIA's top secret bunker, with Tracy Walder, a rookie operative who was there. 9/11 was only the second day of Tracy's first real CIA assignment, and she was tasked with hunting the world's most wanted terrorist, Osama Bin Laden, with President George W Bush looking on. What would YOU do? From SPYSCAPE, the headquarters of all things spy. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Producer: David Waters. Series producer: Gemma Newby. Music by Nick Ryan.
Fair Game?
Hayley Atwell details a deadly conflict between espionage and politics with former CIA agent Valerie Plame. Valerie was outed in the press as an undercover agent when someone close to her challenged the government's line on Weapons Of Mass Destruction, placing her family and contacts in grave danger. What would YOU do? From SPYSCAPE, the headquarters of all things spy. A Cup And Nuzzle production. Series producer: Gemma Newby. Music by Nick Ryan.
Fair Game?
The Rookie And Bin Laden
The Art Of Disguise
The Survivor
The Spy Who Said No
The Targeter
Exit Strategy
Blinking Red
The Limping Lady
Sister Spies
Codename: Madeleine
Seven Female Spies
Surviving NXIVM
Mission in the Dog Meat Valley
The Philadelphia Wire
Spy Sisters: Teaser
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Gadgets & Gifts
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