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Latest Episodes:

16.⁠ ⁠Crossing the Iron Curtain: Escape From the KGB (Ep 3) Feb 03, 2025

How would you disguise a cyanide pill for a CIA spy in Moscow during the Cold War? What risks could Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and The Beatles pose to Adolf Tolkachev’s mission against the Soviet state? And will the CIA’s mole in Moscow be discovered by the KGB?

It’s 1985, and for the past five years, Tolkachev has been providing the CIA with top secret documents detailing the intricacies of Soviet radar technology. He’s risked everything he knows and loves to help orchestrate the demise of the USSR, but is he teetering on the edge of discovery? Listen as David and Gordon share the third instalment of the story of Adolf Tolkachev as his health begins to decline and he realises a suicide pill might be his only way out.

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Pre-order a signed edition of David's latest book, The Seventh Floor, via this link.

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Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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The Seventh Floor (Extract) Feb 01, 2025

To coincide with the release of David's latest novel, The Seventh Floor, we have the book’s first chapter in audiobook form for you to enjoy.

Bouncing between the corridors of Langley and the Kremlin, the thrilling new novel by David McCloskey explores the nature of friendship in a faithless business, and what it means to love a place that does not love you back.

The Seventh Floor by David McCloskey, is OUT NOW in the UK.

Pre-order a signed edition via this link.

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A Russian arrives in Singapore with a secret to sell. When the Russian is killed and Sam Joseph, the CIA officer dispatched for the meet, goes missing, Artemis Procter is made a scapegoat and run out of the service. Traded back in a spy swap, Sam appears at Procter’s central Florida doorstep months later with an explosive secret: there is a Russian mole hidden deep within the upper reaches of CIA.

As Procter and Sam investigate, they arrive at a shortlist of suspects made up of both Procter’s closest friends and fiercest enemies. The hunt soon requires Procter to dredge up her own checkered past in service of CIA, placing her and Sam into the sights of a savvy Russian spymaster who will protect Moscow’s mole in Langley at all costs, even if it means wreaking bloody havoc across the United States.

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Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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15. Crossing the Iron Curtain: The Cold War’s Most Valuable Spy (Ep 2) Jan 29, 2025

Was it possible to avoid KGB surveillance in Moscow as a CIA agent at the height of the Cold War? What motivates someone to spy on their country for an opposing power? And how did Adolf Tolkachev manage to smuggle out the top secret documents the CIA needed to defeat the USSR?

Adolf Tolkachev has been recruited by the CIA as a mole inside a highly sensitive government department in Moscow. His job: to sneak top secret documents out to offer the US a glimpse of Russia's defence capabilities. Despite his initial success, Tolkachev knew the risks if he was caught by the KGB. But, could he justify those risks? Find out as Gordon and David share the latest instalment of the story of Adolf Tolkachev.

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Pre-order a signed edition of David's latest book, The Seventh Floor, via this link.

-------------------

Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➼ www.nordvpn.com/restisclassified

It’s risk-free with Nord’s 30-day money-back guarantee!

Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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14. Crossing the Iron Curtain: The CIA’s Mole In Moscow (Ep 1) Jan 27, 2025

How did the CIA recruit a Russian asset in Moscow during the height of the Cold War? Why would someone be so determined to defect from the Soviet Union and spy for the US? And what would happen if the KGB found out they had a traitor in their midst?

Adolf Tolkachev had a vendetta against the Soviet state and became determined to orchestrate its demise. An expert on Soviet radar, Tolkachev realised his top secret work could help the US fight his communist overlords and potentially topple the entire system. So, how did he do it? Listen as Gordon and David start to tell the story of the man who became the CIA’s most valuable Russian spy.

-------------------

Pre-order a signed edition of David's latest book, The Seventh Floor, via this link.

-------------------

Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➼ www.nordvpn.com/restisclassified

It’s risk-free with Nord’s 30-day money-back guarantee!

Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

13. How China Spies: Trump, TikTok, and Taiwan Jan 22, 2025

Is the Chinese state using TikTok to spy on you? Why did President Biden move to shut TikTok down in the US the day before Trump's inauguration? And where does TikTok fit into China's cognitive warfare strategy?

On Sunday 19 January, TikTok users in the United States opened their apps to receive an error message from the company, explaining that "a law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S.". Op eds were written, influencers took to other social media apps to express their dismay, and politicians scrambled to explain why they were taking drastic action against the Chinese tech company. But, what did the 24-hour ban really mean for national security and data privacy in the US?

Listen as David and Gordon take a deep dive into how China spies in the 21st century.

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Pre-order a signed edition of David's latest book, The Seventh Floor, via this link.

Get tickets to see David and Gordon in conversation at Waterstones Trafalgar Square on Tuesday 28 January at 19:00 GMT via this link.

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Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➼ www.nordvpn.com/restisclassified

It’s risk-free with Nord’s 30-day money-back guarantee!

Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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12. The Spy Who Loved Me: A Russian in New York (Ep 2) Jan 21, 2025

The net is closing in around Anna Chapman. She is being watched by the FBI as they suspect her of being a Russian spy. Her moves are being tracked, but it is not as simple as they think. With the US and Russia trying to reset relations and President Medvedev stateside, the FBI are not in a place to be arresting Russians in New York. Especially when they can’t prove what she is. So what will they do?

Listen as David McCloskey and Gordon Corera discuss Anna Chapman and the precarious nature of her life in the USA.

Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➼ www.nordvpn.com/restisclassified

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Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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11. The Spy Who Loved Me: Undercover in Londongrad (Ep 1) Jan 15, 2025

How did a Russian spy manage to infiltrate the upper echelons of London and New York society? Was Anna Chapman really an old fashioned Russian honeytrap or was she underestimated by the world's press? What was life like for wealthy Russians in "Londongrad" in the early 21st century?

The year is 2001 and the 18-year-old daughter of a Russian oligarch is partying in London. She meets a handsome young man at a warehouse rave and her passport to a new life in Western Europe glistens before her very eyes. What could possibly go wrong? Join David and Gordon as they take us back to the height of Londongrad and what happens when a Russian spy tries to infiltrate high society.

Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➼ www.nordvpn.com/restisclassified

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Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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10. North Korea’s CIA: The Billion Dollar Heist (Ep 2) Jan 08, 2025

What happens when an authoritarian state runs its security services like an organised crime syndicate? Why did a group of North Korean cyber criminals gamble away vast sums of stolen money in the casinos of Las Vegas? And did Kim Jong Un's spies get away with their billion dollar heist?

After over a year of work, the North Korean cyber criminals are inside the Central Bank of Bangladesh and about to escape with their bags of cash, but there's a glitch. The account they plan to send the stolen money to in the Philippines has triggered a security alert with the Federal Reserve in New York. Will they avoid getting caught in the act? Listen as David and Gordon share the dramatic details of how a North Korean spy ring orchestrated one of the biggest bank robberies in history.

Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➼ www.nordvpn.com/restisclassified

It’s risk-free with Nord’s 30-day money-back guarantee!

Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

9. North Korea’s CIA: Inside Kim’s Crime Family (Ep 1) Jan 01, 2025

How did a group of North Korean cyber criminals manage to pull off the biggest bank heist in history? Did Kim Jong Un really orchestrate the murder of his own brother? And what does it take to keep an authoritarian state afloat?

A seemingly innocuous spearfishing email lands in the inbox of an unsuspecting employee at the Central Bank of Bangladesh. Months of patient digital hacking follow, all masterminded by a team of cyber criminals within North Korea’s shadowy spy service. But how did they manage it? Listen as David and Gordon uncover how the North Korean state created one of the world’s most dangerous crime syndicates.

Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➼ www.nordvpn.com/restisclassified

It’s risk-free with Nord’s 30-day money-back guarantee!

Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

8. The Man Who Made MI6 Dec 25, 2024

The daring, gadget-loving, mischievous founder of MI6. Mansfield Cumming, the first C, was a former navy man brought out of retirement to keep tabs on German spies around the outbreak of the First World War. Over the following decade he established MI6 and set it on course to be a central part of the British security apparatus. Known to test the mettle of potential employees by taking a knife out and stabbing his own wooden leg; Mansfield was an eccentric man who's personality has come to shape the institution which he founded.

In this Christmas special, listen as David and Gordon discuss the founding of Britain's Secret Intelligence Service.

Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➼ www.nordvpn.com/restisclassified

It’s risk-free with Nord’s 30-day money-back guarantee!

Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

7. The Real Godfather: The Assassination that Shook Syria (Ep 2) Dec 19, 2024

Did the assassination of Rafic Hariri lay the foundations for the ultimate downfall of the Assad regime? And was the Syrian dictator always destined for evil, or was evil thrust upon him?

Rafic Hariri is looking over his shoulder, anxious for his future, with Bashar al-Assad hellbent on his removal from power. He steps up his security detail and coordinates convoluted exit strategies, but his efforts are ultimately in vain. So, what was the long-term impact of the assassination of the Lebanese president for the Syrian dictator? Listen as David and Gordon tell the story of the gruesome killing of President Hariri and the parallels between Assad and the ill-fated mafiosi, Michael Corleone.

Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➼ www.nordvpn.com/restisclassified

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Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

6. The Real Godfather: Assad’s Syrian Mafia (Ep 1) Dec 18, 2024

How did Bashar al-Assad become one of the Middle East’s most feared dictators? What role did Hezbollah play in the assassination of the Lebanese Prime Minister in 2005? And how did Assad’s rise to ultimate power mirror the ascent of Michael Corleone in the Godfather?

As the new millennium dawned, Bashar al-Assad prepared to step into his father’s shoes as the next authoritarian president of Syria. While he enjoyed a smooth ascension to the top job, trouble was brewing over the border in Lebanon as the Lebanese Prime Minister sought to escape the debilitating control of its Syrian master. What follows is a story straight out of the Godfather canon with a mafiosi state fighting for ultimate power and a network of spies working to neutralise opposing gangs.

Listen as Gordon Corera and David McCloskey discuss the Syrian plot to assassinate the Lebanese Prime Minister at the turn of the 21st century.

Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➼ www.nordvpn.com/restisclassified

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Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

5. CIA vs the Taliban: Bin Laden's Trojan Horse (Ep 2) Dec 11, 2024

Mazar i-Sharif has fallen without much of a fight. The Taliban's grip on Afghanistan is looking all the more shaky. It seems as if the American policy to work with the warlords is paying dividends. Enemy fighters are surrendering to them. But is it all too rosy? In the centre of Mazar i-Sharif, the Americans take 400 Al-Qaeda captives to Qala-i-Jangi, the Fort of War. They believe they have surrendered. But all is not as it seems...

Listen as David McCloskey and Gordon Corera discuss the first CIA teams in Afghanistan in the days after 9/11.

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