Having an ex-fed like McCloskey on here is inexcusable and makes the whole thing a ghoulish farce.

The ex-CIA host is ridiculously biased. Not surprising since he was a life long employee, but come on. Provide some value.

Quite possibly my favorite podcast. The topics are fascinating and brilliantly researched and presented. I have laughed out loud on more than one occasion at the good-natured banter between the hosts.

Really in-depth , these guys are not just skimming the surface. Super interesting and just the right amount of back and forth. Nice work!

Informative, interesting, and skillfully apolitical. Thank you for the warning before mentioning animal cruelty.

Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA

I can’t remember how I found this podcast, but it is the one that I look to first. I esp love all the background explanations of the primary topic that begin each podcast, grounding you in the details that are integral to the story they are telling. Great job, guys.

According to DeclassifiedUK.org, “The UK has planned or executed 42 attempts to remove foreign governments in 27 countries since the end of the Second World War, involving the intelligence agencies, covert and overt military interventions and assassinations, Declassified has found.” It’s interesting how they will do tons of negative stories on the US and other allies like France but when it comes to the biggest colonizers/thieves/infiltrators in history, all they do are James Bond like stories that paint them in a good light? Typical hypocrites. I’ll change my review if I’m proven wrong with more than a couple stories.

Only criticism- please stop calling the FBI “feebs”. I get it, but it’s cringeworthy.

Crisp, engaging, and thoroughly researched — a perfect combination! The interplay between the hosts is improving with each episode. I’ll be interested to hear if McCloskey is able to turn a critical eye towards the CIA in future episodes.

I love “The Rest is History” but gave up on this related podcast for two reasons. 1) Many of the podcasts go on way to long on minor subjects, e.g. the killing of one Bulgarian dissident in London. 2) The latest series on Greenland was absurd, with its pro-Trump argument that Greenland is too important to allow it to fall under Russian or Chinese influence. The two podcasters are lost in the past, imagining that the US needs to secure Greenland to keep it from falling under Russian or Chinese control. One wonders: Do these two hosts not read the newspaper and not realize that the US is now an ally of Russia? If it desperately important to keep Greenland from falling under Russian control, then (the podcasters fail to recognize) avoiding any contact with the USA and reaffirming attachments to Europe is of paramount importance. I can’t waste my time on a podcast where the presenters are living in an imaginary pre-Trumpian past.

Excellent show. Only quibble is the perpetual mispronunciation by both hosts of the word “nuclear.” There is only 1 “u” in the word “nuclear.” Please pronounce it correctly!

Really enjoying the new show, better and better with each new episode.

Have enjoyed all the episodes thus far. Well-researched and presented with insight and perspective. Keep it up!

I would give this five stars if I can figure out how to subscribe and pay to listen without advertisements- I’m a RIHC club member as well as We Have Ways. Help? I don’t see an option here-

This is a great new show. I love the presentation. You guys are killing it!

Well done guys

I can’t get enough. I think I like this podcast better than The Rest is History. Both hosts are great storytellers and break down complicated details into manageable bites. I want more!!

The topics are interesting but do these hosts even like each other? They really seem to be lacking rapport. We all know that Tom is wanted Dom to cohost The Rest is History, but these guys feel like they’ve just been thrown together.

To me The Rest is History is and always will be king of the catalogue, but while the rest of the podcasts in the "Rest of" series are worth checking in on from time to time, this for me is the only other that is appointment listening. Always interesting, insightful, and perhaps most importantly, they have a great rapport! Hope this one is here for the long run.

The podcast that is my new “play next” obsession….

Just finished the China TikTok episode. Another great one thank you. A question about TikTok and India that you didn’t discuss and on a recent on the media podcast they had someone talking about TikTok and it’s original intention of being a massive shopping mall experience more like it is in China And that’s potentially a reason why China or byte dance would walk away from a market if they don’t think that’s gonna ever come to pass as a viable business

Really interesting. I wish we had more episodes per week!

I love the topics and stories and of course as a big fan of the Rest is History I like the format of two hosts who have credibility but are light hearted. That said, I find they are not capturing the magic that the host of the Rest is History have. Perhaps there could be more teasing about each other’s cultural differences (Brits vs Amis) similar to the way Dominic and Tom banter about their class differences. But I’m also craving some originality rather than copying all the elements of the Rest-is formula (for instance the use of “friend of the podcast” feels very much a Rest is History thing and feels appropriated by the Rest is Classified hosts). But great work. Keep it up. All good podcasts take a while to fully blossom

As someone who retired after a nearly 30 year career in what is now called Homeland Security, I tend to be skeptical about podcasts dealing with the complex world of intelligence and international affairs; this podcast far exceeds my typical expectations. It is a thoughtful, well sourced and informative series. The hosts do an excellent job conveying interesting, well paced and entertaining storytelling on some of history’s most important and impactful events. I’m hooked, I hope this podcasts never ends!

This stuff is right in my wheelhouse. Can’t get enough of it. It’s great when you’re hearing information from a credible source. Keep these coming!! Great job, guys!

Great storytelling, great presentation. Presenters very in synch and just enough banter to keep things from getting dull. Keep up the great work.

More on the Middle East please!

Both hosts of the podcast are extremely knowledgeable and they seem to be growing in chemistry in each episode. Tons of wisdom and humor. Specifically found the “Syria” episodes fascinating!!!

Absolutely fascinating, my new favorite podcast. The level of detail is perfect in my view and brings so much color to these events. Each one leads me to do a further deep dive online. I want as many episodes as possible!

Wonderful and super interesting. The Syrian background is fascinating and topical. Keep up the good work.

An in depth quality look into the history of CIA and MI6, a crucial part of history that is often overlooked.

Highly recommend after the first episodes & the emergency one on Syria.

Fredo is not the youngest brother— Michael is.

This is a fascinating podcast with tremendously knowledgeable hosts. I’ve learned a lot about the history of Syria and general Middle East geopolitics. That said, both hosts exhibit, one profoundly, distracting, and annoying, linguistic habit: inserting “kind of” or “sort of”into at least half of their sentences. It’s akin to the way people used to add “like”to their sentences. Linguistic filler. Please, please stop.

Love this new podcast. Initially heard David McCloskey talk about Syria on another podcast. I was intrigued about what was going on a stumbled upon this Podcast and I love it. Short and sweet. Can wait to hear what you guys come up with next!

This is new… but its really good!

Outstanding! I’m very selective with my Podcast selections & time, yet this has become one of my new top 3 favorites. I listened to all the episodes in one setting they were that good. Keep up the EXCELLENT WORK. Anxiously awaiting next episode , (part 2). AFor what it’s worth as one of your consumers, my background includes highly educated & global travel; actually spent time in the Middle East among others.

Good start, love to see where this goes. Not quite on par with the rest is history yet, but I’m sure they’ll develop more chemistry with time, and I bet the MI6 vs. CIA aspect will create some interesting moments down the line.

But the valley girl vocal fry of one presenter is just too irritating and annoying. Possibly over time one would become accustomed to it.

There is good comradely between the hosts and as the pod progresses its delves into deeper detail which is what I was hoping the pod would entail. There’s an appropriate balance of light humor and historic detail that passes the time by fluidly. Looking forward to seeing how this progresses.

Well told, great interplay between hosts. Love the British / American perspective from each of the hosts. Cannot wait for the next episode to drop!

I've been waiting for this one! So glad it's finally here!