92. Killing Rasputin

Who were the bin Ladens, and how did they build a construction empire in Saudi Arabia? What was Osama bin Laden’s childhood like, and how was he radicalised by a puritanical PE teacher? What did a young Osama see on his television in 1982 that inspired his plan to down America’s ...  Show more

Did the CIA actually fund Osama bin Laden during the Soviet-Afghan war? Who was Abdullah Azzam, the radical scholar who turned jihad into a global franchise? How did a bureaucratic office meeting create Al-Qaeda? In Episode 2 of this new series, William Dalrymple is joined by Jas ...  Show more

Rasputin’s story is a familiar one – an illiterate Siberian peasant who managed to secure the confidence of the last Tsar and Tsarina of Russia, while indulging his legendary sexual appetite and love of hard drinking. Rasputin was so revered by his acolytes that they would collec ...  Show more

The legend of Rasputin's death goes that he survived poisoning, being shot in the head before being thrown through a hole in the ice in the Neva River, where he finally died by drowning. But Rasputin biographer Douglas Smith, Dan's guest today, says that isn't what happened. H ...

Uncover the mystique surrounding Grigori Rasputin in this captivating podcast episode! From his humble Siberian beginnings to the Russian court, we delve into his life, death, and the enduring myths. Sponsor: everyplate.com/podcast and enter code 49decoding to get a meal starting ...  Show more

On a starry night in January 1869, a meteor flies over a small village in the Siberian countryside. According to legend, its passage would herald the birth of an exceptional being. Shortly after, Grigori Efimovitch Rasputin comes into the world. To say that this little man and hi ...  Show more