SpyMasters
Writer and journalist Antonia Senior interviews all the best writers on espionage. Each episode will bring you fascinating stories on spies, covert action and more - delving in to fact and fiction, past and present.
Episodes
SOE in Europe: extraordinary women with Kate Vigurs
In this compelling episode of the Spymasters Podcast, we delve into the extraordinary tales of women who defied the odds during World War II. From Hannah Szenes's daring mission to disrupt the Holocaust to the courageous acts of Polish wome…
From Cold War to Cyber Age: Frederick Forsyth, Modern Spy Thrillers & the Spymasters Book Prize
In this episode of the Spymasters Podcast, host Antonia Senior and special guest Oliver Webb Carter explore the enduring influence of Frederick Forsyth, the legendary author behind classics like The Day of the Jackal and The Odessa File. Di…
Torture, Terror and Trump: The CIA in the 21st Century with Tim Weiner
Description: In this explosive episode of The Spymasters Podcast, journalist and host Antonia Senior sits down with legendary investigative reporter and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Tim Weiner to discuss his gripping new book, The Mission:…
The Spy Who Knew Too Much: Vasili Mitrokhin and the KGB's Secret History, with Gordon Corera
🎧 Spymasters — The Spy Who Knew Too Much: Vasily Mitrokin and the KGB's Secret History What happens when the keeper of secrets decides to tell the truth? This episode uncovers the extraordinary story of Vasili Mitrokhin — the KGB archivist…
The Poet's Game: writing a bestselling spy thriller, with Paul Vidich
In this episode, Antonia Senior dives deep into Paul Vidich’s gripping spy novel The Poet’s Game. We unpack the central theme of trust in espionage, the moral ambiguity faced by CIA agents, and how contemporary political tensions shape the …
Clara Vine: an actress and a spy. An interview with novelist Jane Thynne.
🎙️ Spymasters Podcast – Unveiling Clara Vine: A Journey Through Nazi Germany Guest: Jane ThynneHost: Antonia SeniorGenre: Historical Fiction, EspionageKeywords: Clara Vine, Jane Thynne, espionage, Nazi Germany, historical fiction, Hedy Lam…
Spying on Hitler: The Spy and the Devil with Tim Willasey-Wilsey
Tim Willasey-Wilsey comes on Spymasters to talk about the life and espionage career of Baron Bill de Ropp, a spy who infiltrated the Nazi Party during the rise of Adolf Hitler. The discussion covers his early life, his motivations for espio…
Crooks and Spies in WW2 London, with Mark Ellis
In this episode of the SpyMasters podcast, host Antonia Senior interviews thriller writer Mark Ellis, who discusses his journey into writing, the historical context of his novels set in wartime London, and the intricate plots involving crim…
The Son Who Wasn't - an incredible true story of espionage and betrayal.
Antonia Senior talks to David Gardner, journalist and author about A Spy in the Family, the book he co-authored with fellow journalist Paul Henderson. BUY THE BOOK: https://amzn.eu/d/5yzY71Ekeywordsespionage, spy stories, Czech spy, betraya…
The CIA Book Club, with Charlie English
Summary:In this episode of The Spymasters Podcast, host Antonia Senior is joined by journalist and author Charlie English to discuss his latest book, The CIA Book Club. They dive into the incredible Cold War operation where the CIA secretly…
Simon Scarrow on A Death in Berlin
Simon Scarrow, the bestselling novelist, talks to Antonia Senior about his new novel A Death in Berlin. Set in Nazi Germany, this is the third in his series about detective Horst Schenke, an investigator with the Kripo unit. A man has been …
Trump and our Intelligence Alliance, with Michael Smith
Antonia Senior talks to Michael Smith, author of the Real Special Relationship, about the new world order and its impact on the US-UK intelligence alliance. Michael is a journalist and author of a number of books on spies and intelligence. …
The Oligarch's Daughter, with Joseph Finder
In this episode of the Spymasters podcast, Antonia Senior interviews bestselling novelist Joseph Finder about his latest thriller, 'The Oligarch's Daughter.' The conversation delves into the book's premise, character dynamics, and the intri…
The Seventh Floor, with David McCloskey
Writer and journalist Antonia Senior interviews bestselling author David McCloskey about his latest novel, 'The Seventh Floor.' The conversation delves into the intricacies of espionage, the brutal realities of interrogation, and the comple…
Notes on a Drowning, with Anna Sharpe
In this episode of the Spymasters podcast, Antonia Senior interviews Anna Sharpe. about her new book, 'Notes on a Drowning.' Sharpe is a pseudonym for the award winning novelist Anna Mazzola. The conversation explores the book's themes of p…
William Boyd on writing Gabriel's Moon
Join Oliver Webb-Carter as he talks to William Boyd, the best-selling novelist, about his new book Gabriel's Moon. Gabriel Dax is a young man in sixties London who becomes drawn into the murky world of espionage. William and Oliver talk abo…
Spymasters Books of the Year 2024
The inaugural Books of the Year from the Spymasters Podcast. Join your host Antonia Senior as she talks to three special guests about their books of the year. Oliver Webb-Carter is the Editor of Aspects of History, and the host of our siste…
Trump, Foreign Policy and Intelligence, with Michael Smith
Michael Smith, intelligence expert, talks to Oliver Webb-Carter, editor of Aspects of History, about Trump, Foreign Policy and Intelligence. Michael talks about how the re-election of Trump will effect the special relationship between Briti…
Putin's Spooks. Inside the FSB, with Dr Kevin Riehle
Kevin Riehle is the author of The Russian FSB, A Concise History of the Federal Security Service. Dr Riehle spent 30 years working for the US Government in various intelligence roles before switching to academia. The Russian FSB is the firs…
From Spy to Writer, with IS Berry
Antonia Senior talks to IS Berry about her debut novel The Peacock and the Sparrow. It has garnered rave reviews, and has won the Edgar Award for best first novel. It's set in Bahrain during the Arab Spring, and follows the misadventures of…
Spies, Istanbul and the 1930s, with Alec Marsh
In this episode of the Spymasters podcast, Antonia Senior talks to Alec Marsh, author of the Drabble and Harris series of historical thrillers. The talk ranges from Istanbul, to the peculiar atmosphere of the 1930s, espionage and beyond.Buy…
To Catch a Spy. The Spycatcher Affair, with Tim Tate
The SpyMasters podcasts interviews all the best writers about spying: fact and fiction, historical and contemporary.In this episode, Antonia Senior talks to the brilliant journalist, writer and documentary maker Tim Tate about the Spycatche…
Midnight in Vienna, with Jane Thynne
Antonia Senior talks to acclaimed novelist Jane Thynne about her new book Midnight in Vienna. Set in London and Vienna in 1938 it follows a young unemployed English tutor called Stella Fry and a disgraced MI5 watcher called Harry Fox, as th…
Spycraft. Tricks and tools of the dangerous trade from Elizabeth 1 to the Restoration. With Nadine Akkerman and Pete Langman
Antonia Senior interviews Nadine Akkerman and Pete Langman about their fascinating new book Spycraft. What did it mean to be a spy in Early Modern England? What tips and tricks of the trade were employed against England's enemies?And who wa…
Honour Among Spies, with Merle Nygate
Spymasters meets Merle Nygate, the author of Honour Among Spies. The second in Merle's books about Eli Amiram, Mossad's top spy runner, it was a Times thriller of the month. Eli is now chief of Mossad's London operation. He needs an audacio…
The CIA. An Imperial History. With Hugh Wilford
Hugh Wilford joins SpyMasters to talk about his brilliant new book: The CIA, An Imperial History. Hugh is Professor of United States History at California State University, and a leading expert on the history of the CIA.His new book is a gr…
Read spies; Watch spies. With Oliver Webb-Carter, Editor, Aspects of History.
Oliver Webb-Carter, the editor of Aspects of History, picks his top 5 books and his top 3 films about espionage. Some left-field options here from Oliver! Let us know what you think on X @spymasters We talk about the new SpyMasters antholog…
Intelligence and the Holocaust, with Roger Moorhouse
In this episode, we talk to Roger Moorhouse, the acclaimed historian of Central and Eastern Europe. Roger's new book, The Forgers, is the fascinating story of how a group of Polish diplomats sought to save Jewish victims of the Holocaust by…
Every Spy a Traitor, with Alex Gerlis
Top Spy novelist Alex gerlis joins Antonia Senior to talk about his new book, Every Spy a Traitor. The first in a new series, it follows the adventures of two British men who end up working for the NVKD in the run up to WW2.We talk about th…
Writing Spy Fiction, with Thomas Waugh
Top spy novelist Thomas Waugh talks to Antonia Senior about his trilogy featuring the reluctant spy Daniel Ambler. We talk Putin, oligarchs, publishing and more..... Buy End Game here: Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices…
SPIES: The Brave New World, with Calder Walton
In the second of an epic two-part series about the espionage wars between East and West, top intelligence historian Calder Walton talks Putin, disinformation and the decline of the Soviet Union. We talk about how Putin, the former KGB offic…
SPIES: The epic intelligence war between East and West, with Calder Walton
The first of two episodes with Dr Calder Walton. This one looks at the development of the intelligence war between the West and the Soviet Union from 1917, follows the story through the fulcrum period of the Second World War and pushes on i…
The Cuban Missile Crisis, with Michael Smith
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Classified! With Nigel West
What was it like to meet Anthony Blunt? How did the British Security Service try to stop Nigel West uncovering its secrets? And what qualities do you need to spend your career delving into the murky, shifting waters of intelligence? Join An…
Roman Spies with Peter Tonkin
How did August revolutionise Roman intelligence? How connected was Caesar? What intelligence failures dogged the Roman republic?All these questions answered and more by top novelist, Peter Tonkin. Buy the the Caesar's Spies' omnibus here. …
Alchemy: Spies, magic and the Elizabethan world. With SJ Parris
Was SJ Parris's protagonist, Giordano Bruno, really a spy? What was his relationship with top Elizabethan spymaster Francis Walsingham? To buy Alchemy, click here. For more on SJ Parris, the pseudonym of writer and journalist Stephanie Merr…
Conflict and Military Intelligence with General David Petraeus
Former Director of the CIA, General David Petraeus, joins to talk about his book, Conflict, and the evolution of military intelligence. We talk about Iraq, Putin, Weapons of Mass destruction and AI. General Petraeus Links:Conflict: A Milita…
Edith Cavell: Nurse, Spy, Heroine. With Dr Helen Fry
Dr Helen Fry, bestselling intelligence historian, joins us to talk about Edith Cavell, the famous World War One nurse and spy. Was she an intelligence agent for the British? What happened to Edith? We discuss the remarkable courage of a tru…
Moscow X with David McCloskey
Former CIA analyst turned bestselling writer David McCloskey joins to talk about his new novel. We talk about storytelling, the nature of modern espionage and how David made the leap from the CIA to novelist.David McCloskey LinksMoscow XDam…
Introducing....The SpyMasters Podcast
The podcast on espionage that brings you in from the cold. Episode One released Feb 1st with ex CIA office and bestselling novelist David McCloskey, author of Damascus Station and Moscow X.SpyMasters is a new podcast from the team at Aspect…