There is a town in the English Cotswolds, sometimes referred to as the most Regency place in the world. But it's not all bonnets and townhouses: this is the story of Cheltenham, the home of British spying. From the madness of King George to the madness of Geoffrey Prime, and the construction of the Donut to the leaking of GCHQ files by Edward Snowden, Cheltenham has been at the centre of global espionage for a century. Does this town know too much?
“Hilton’s script is beautiful... knowingly florid, ironically meandering... one of those rare
moments when a podcast slips the surly bonds of being merely audio entertainment and
approaches the condition of art” – James Marriott, The Times
“Hilton is a terrific narrator and the writing is densely packed... florid descriptions are mixed
with reflective commentary, unexpected pop culture references and the odd brilliantly timed
gag” – Fiona Sturges, Financial Times
“Hilton’s investigative dedication and wry humour make these series utterly gripping” –
Miranda Sawyer, The Observer
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
There is a town in the English Cotswolds, sometimes referred to as the most Regency place in the world. But it's not all bonnets and townhouses: this is the story of Cheltenham, the home of British spying. From the madness of King George to the madness of Geoffrey Prime, and the construction of the Donut to the leaking of GCHQ files by Edward Snowden, Cheltenham has been at the centre of global espionage for a century. Does this town know too much?
“Hilton’s script is beautiful... knowingly florid, ironically meandering... one of those rare
moments when a podcast slips the surly bonds of being merely audio entertainment and
approaches the condition of art” – James Marriott, The Times
“Hilton is a terrific narrator and the writing is densely packed... florid descriptions are mixed
with reflective commentary, unexpected pop culture references and the odd brilliantly timed
gag” – Fiona Sturges, Financial Times
“Hilton’s investigative dedication and wry humour make these series utterly gripping” –
Miranda Sawyer, The Observer
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Where do the dead go when they die? Do we file them away in obituaries? Or celebrate them at a memorial service and slowly forget their day-to-day existence?
This is a story of death. It is a story of spirits lingering on. It is a story of how lives become stories and how stories define places. From the ghosts of Prestbury to the dead GCHQ mathematician Gareth Williams – via, of course, the singing mice of the Tailor of Gloucester – The Black Abbot is about the imprints we make on the world and how they outlive us.
Contributors to this episode: Ian Jelf, Philip Ingram, Catherine Curzon, Colin Towns, Iggy Ostanin.
This is the sixth episode of The Town That Knew Too Much, written, produced and presented by Nick Hilton.
The music is by George Jennings, based on The Planets by Gustav Holst. The entire score for the series is available to stream on Spotify.
This is the sixth part of a 7-part series available on all good podcast platforms. You can find out more about the show on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook – just go to @thetownpod – or visit www.thetownpod.com for episode notes and more information. If you’ve enjoyed the show, please go to your podcast provider and leave a rating and review.
The Town That Knew Too Much is a Podot podcast, for more information visit podotpods.com.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.