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The Times

Drowning in news? Let The Story guide you. 

Each morning, hosts Manveen Rana and Luke Jones bring you today's most important story, told by the journalists who know what really happened. 

In depth, honest, and mixed in with exclusive reports and groundbreaking investigations.

Discover the story behind the story with the flagship podcast from The Times and The Sunday Times.

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

The Story

Almost 700,000 people are waiting to book their driving test in the UK, a record backlog which is being exploited by scammers. Our reporter Emma Kirwan found victims across the UK have already paid out more than £134,000 this year trying to book slots which don’t exist. So, she tracked down a scammer and got him on the phone.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Emma Kirwan, reporter, Times Radio. 

Host: Manveen Rana.

Producer: Olivia Case.

Clips: Times Radio.

Photo: Getty Images.

Get in touch: thestory@thetimes.com

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

The black market for fake driving tests thriving in the UK

Rachel Reeves has paved the way for potential tax rises. In a speech three weeks before the budget, the chancellor refused to commit to Labour’s manifesto promise to not raise National Insurance, income tax or VAT. With Nigel Farage also back-pedalling on tax cuts, is it time for the politicians to be more honest about the state of the economy?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Oliver Wright, policy editor, The Times

Host: Manveen Rana.

Producers: Shabnam Grewal, Alula Hart.

Read more: Reeves: We must all do our bit to secure Britain’s future

Further listening: Do bond markets rule the world?

Clips: Sky News, The Guardian, Parliament TV, ITV Politics.

Photo: Getty Images.

Get in touch: thestory@thetimes.com

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

The pre-budget back-pedal

On Saturday evening, passengers on a train from Doncaster to London King’s Cross suddenly found themselves in the path of a man wielding a large kitchen knife. In the terrifying minutes that followed, there were scenes of horror and acts of bravery. So what happened, could the attack have been prevented, and can passenger safety be improved? 

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guests:

 • Izzy Lyons, reporter, The Sunday Times, 
 • Theo Usherwood, political reporter, Times Radio 

Host: Manveen Rana

Producers: Micaela Arneson, Shabnam Grewal. 

Read more: What happened on the train in Huntingdon? How stabbing attack unfolded

Clips: BBC News, BBC Breakfast, Channel 4 News, Parliament TV, Sky News, RTE News, Times Radio. 

Photo: Getty Images.

Get in touch: thestory@thetimes.com

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

How the Huntingdon train attack unfolded - and what comes next

Tomorrow is election day for the mayor of New York and the frontrunner is 34-year-old Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani. But are his plans to remake America's biggest city achievable - or a pipe dream? And how might he face off against President Trump?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Will Pavia, New York correspondent, The Times.

Host: Luke Jones.

Producers: Olivia Case, Sophie McNulty, Alula Hart.

Clips: nnmaddox / YouTube, @amberyeet / TikTok, NBC, C-SPAN, zohran_k_mamdani / TikTok, Fox, Mr Cardamom / YouTube, Bernie Sanders / YouTube, @subwaytakes / TikTok, Forbes.

Photo: Getty Images.

Get in touch: thestory@thetimes.com 

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

The millennial Mayor who wants to remake New York

Gail Rice had given up on dating apps and was dreading old age. Then the psychologist had an idea — book a hotel room for a landmark birthday and pay a stranger to turn her on. Would it work?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Read by: Olivia Case. 

Host: Manveen Rana.

Producer: Dave Creasey. 

Read more: My 70th birthday treat? I hired a male escort

Clips: Good Luck to You, Leo Grande, Searchlight Pictures.

Photo: Isabella Moore for The Times Magazine. 

Get in touch: thestory@thetimes.com

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

I hired a male escort for my 70th birthday - The Sunday Story

This is Planet Hope, a podcast from The Times and The Sunday Times in paid partnership with Rolex and its Perpetual Planet Initiative. Each episode is hosted by The Story released as a bonus weekly series on Saturdays. 

In Lausanne, Switzerland, neuroscientist and Rolex Awards Laureate Grégoire Courtine and neurosurgeon Jocelyne Bloch have pioneered a “digital bridge” that translates brain signals into spinal stimulation, giving people with paralysis new ways to regain movement. They tell Tom Whipple about the science behind the technology, the patients leading the way and their hopes for the future of movement recovery after paralysis.

Planet Hope is brought to you in paid partnership with Rolex and its Perpetual Planet Initiative. 

Guest: 

 • Grégoire Courtine, Neuroscientist and co-founder of NeuroRestore. 
 • Jocelyne Bloch, Neurosurgeon and co-founder of NeuroRestore. 
 • Suzanne Edwards, Patient at NeuroRestore. 

Host: Tom Whipple, Science Writer, The Times.

Series Producer: Priyanka Deladia

Sound Designer: David Crackles

This podcast is advertiser funded.

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

The Story presents: Planet Hope - Restoring movement after paralysis

This episode is from The Story's sister podcast The Royals.

He will now be known simply as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. The man formerly known as Prince Andrew is being stripped of his titles and removed from his mansion, Royal Lodge, on the Windsor estate. Last month The Times obtained a copy of the leasehold agreement for Royal Lodge which showed that while the prince paid £1 million for the lease plus at least £7.5 million for refurbishments completed in 2005, he has paid “one peppercorn (if demanded)” in rent per year, since 2003. Andrew's links with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, brought increasing public and political demands for action. It is a seismic moment in royal history – but is it enough? 

Presenter: Roya Nikkhah, royal editor, The Sunday Times.

Contributors: 

 • Aubrey Allegretti, chief political correspondent,The Times and,
 • George Greenwood, investigations reporter, The Times.

Producers: Sophie McNulty, Priyanka Deladia, Robert Wallace, Stephen Titherington.

Photo: Getty Images.

Subscribe to The Royals podcast.

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

Andrew & Epstein - The King acts

Since January, one clinic in the UK has started prescribing the weight-loss medication Wegovy to 12-17 year-olds. For some, the results have been life-changing. But without evidence about the long-term impacts, is it safe?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Roisin Kelly, commissioning editor, The Sunday Times.

Host: Manveen Rana.

Producer: Taryn Siegel.

Read more: The children taking Wegovy to turn their lives around

Further listening: Why weight loss drugs will change even more than you think

Photo: Times Media.

Get in touch: thestory@thetimes.com

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

The children taking Wegovy

Donald Trump has threatened 100% tariffs on Chinese goods, while Xi Jinping hit back with export limits on rare earth minerals. As the two leaders come face to face in South Korea to make a deal, the stakes are high.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Cindy Yu, columnist and contributing editor, The Times and The Sunday Times. 

Host: Manveen Rana. 

Producer: Edith Rousselot and Alula Hart. 

Clips: CBS News, CNBC, AP News, Bloomberg TV.

Photo: Getty Images.

Get in touch: thestory@thetimes.com

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

Has China won the trade war?

The government has announced plans to move migrants out of hotels and into accommodation on military barracks. The same plan Labour opposed when put forward by the Conservatives in 2023. What’s behind the move and could it work? 

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Matt Dathan, home affairs editor, The Times. 

Host: Manveen Rana. 

Producer: Micaela Arneson. 

Read more: Asylum seekers to be housed in military sites instead of hotels

Billions ‘squandered on migrant hotels due to incompetence’

Clips: Parliament, BBC, Times Radio, ITV, Getty Images. 

Photo: Getty Images.

Get in touch: thestory@thetimes.com

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

Doomed to fail? Labour’s asylum u-turn

Last week, Australia became the first country to block under 16s from social media. Age verification AI could be a crucial tool in the ban, so we spoke to our journalist who has been to the industry-leader’s HQ to find out if the technology actually works. And we ask, could the UK follow suit? 

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guests:

 • Mark Sellman, Technology Correspondent, The Times.
 • Helen Rumbelow, Feature Writer, The Times. 

Host: Manveen Rana.

Producer: Samantha Chantarasak.

Clips: ABC News, 10 News First Australia, BBC Radio 4. 

Photo: Getty Images

Read Helen’s report: Can AI tell if a teen lies about their age?

Further listening: The myth of the X exodus 

The Times and The Sunday Times starter pack on Bluesky

Get in touch: thestory@thetimes.com

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

The AI that could block kids from social media

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