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The John Batchelor Show

John Batchelor
ArtsBooks
The John Batchelor Show
Latest episode

10233 episodes

  • The John Batchelor Show

    S8 Ep1167: Alan Philps profiles Alice Moats, a wealthy American socialite who reinvented herself as a war correspondent during the siege of Moscow. Known for her book No Nice Girl Swears, "Mozy" was often viewed as light entertainment, yet she was a persistent and e

    07/26/2026 | 6 mins.
    Alan Philps profiles Alice Moats, a wealthy American socialite who reinvented herself as a war correspondent during the siege of Moscow. Known for her book No Nice Girl Swears, "Mozy" was often viewed as light entertainment, yet she was a persistent and effective reporter. She famously defied the British ambassador's attempts to evacuate her, hiding in embassy annexes to remain in the city. Philps likens her to the "fool in a Shakespeare tragedy" who exposes the follies of more serious figures. Despite her socialite background, Moats connected with General Anders and was part of the early conversations regarding the Katyn Forest massacre of Polish officers. Her reporting provided a unique window into how the Soviets attempted to manipulate the very people they had oppressed, and Philps credits her for highlighting one of the great tragedies of the 20th century. (6)
    1920
  • The John Batchelor Show

    S8 Ep1167: Alan Philps recounts how Charlotte Haldane, a prominent British Communist and wife of scientist JBS Haldane, traveled to Moscow in 1941 as a correspondent for the Daily Sketch. She arrived with high hopes for the "Soviet paradise," even clashing with Poli

    07/26/2026 | 11 mins.
    Alan Philps recounts how Charlotte Haldane, a prominent British Communist and wife of scientist JBS Haldane, traveled to Moscow in 1941 as a correspondent for the Daily Sketch. She arrived with high hopes for the "Soviet paradise," even clashing with Polish exiles on her journey who feared Stalin's betrayal. However, her arrival at the Metropol Hotel revealed a "down at heel" reality of faded grandeur and poor plumbing. As the German army neared Moscow in late 1941, Haldane witnessed the NKVD's temporary loss of control and the city's descent into looting and panic. She was disturbed by the "terrible silence" from the Kremlin and the lack of leadership during the crisis. Eventually, she and the other foreign correspondents were evacuated to the Volga as the capital faced imminent threat, a move that marked the beginning of her disillusionment with the Soviet system. (5)
    1918
  • The John Batchelor Show

    S8 Ep1167: Alan Philps tells the story of Tanya, a 28-year-old woman who used her English skills to escape a life of poverty and suspicion in Moscow. Denied education due to her "bourgeois" background, she became a translator at the Metropol for correspondent Ronnie

    07/26/2026 | 8 mins.
    Alan Philps tells the story of Tanya, a 28-year-old woman who used her English skills to escape a life of poverty and suspicion in Moscow. Denied education due to her "bourgeois" background, she became a translator at the Metropol for correspondent Ronnie Matthews. Matthews, a heavy-drinking but devoted reporter, eventually begged her to marry him. The Soviets attempted to prevent her departure, but Matthews refused to leave the country without her, forcing the authorities to grant her an exit permit. In Cairo, Tanya's glamorous lifestyle and tennis matches with a British general sparked unfounded rumors that she was a Soviet "honey trap." Despite being under surveillance by both British and Soviet intelligence, she successfully built a new life in the West. Her story was later chronicled in a 1993 BBCdocumentary titled Going Back. (4)
    1914
  • The John Batchelor Show

    S8 Ep1167: Alan Philps tells of Nadia, a translator at the Metropol Hotel who became a "secret dissident" after losing faith in Stalinism during the purges. She trusted Australian journalist Godfrey Blunden, believing him to be more reliable than "snobbish" British

    07/26/2026 | 11 mins.
    Alan Philps tells of Nadia, a translator at the Metropol Hotel who became a "secret dissident" after losing faith in Stalinism during the purges. She trusted Australian journalist Godfrey Blunden, believing him to be more reliable than "snobbish" British or career-driven American reporters. She shared her true, dangerous views with him and even took him to visit private Soviet homes, which was strictly forbidden. However, Blunden betrayed her by publishing a novel that thinly disguised her identity and the locations she had shown him. This led to Nadia's arrest in 1948 and an eight-year sentence in the Gulag, where she faced starvation. Her husband and daughter were also broken by the system. Nadia eventually survived, moving to Israel in the 1970s. Philps notes that her grandson is now a professor in Jerusalem, offering a rare "happy ending" amidst the broader tragedy of Soviet brutality. (3)
    1906
  • The John Batchelor Show

    S8 Ep1167: Alan Philps examines Ralph Parker, a mysterious correspondent for The Times and The New York Times, and his secretary-turned-wife, Valentina. A central event involves a chaotic press conference regarding the Katyn Forest massacre, where reporter Harold Ki

    07/26/2026 | 5 mins.
    Alan Philps examines Ralph Parker, a mysterious correspondent for The Times and The New York Times, and his secretary-turned-wife, Valentina. A central event involves a chaotic press conference regarding the Katyn Forestmassacre, where reporter Harold King tried to physically block Valentina, suspecting she was an NKVD colonel. In the ensuing scuffle, Valentina was thrown through a glass door but stoically recovered to attend the conference. Philps explores whether Parker was a spy for Britain, the Soviets, or both, noting his later career representing Soviet artists. Despite the suspicions that she was a high-ranking agent, Valentina died blind and in extreme poverty in a dilapidated apartment. In a poignant display of Russian generosity, she once gave away her wedding ring to a visitor's daughter because "good gold" was scarce, highlighting her dire circumstances at the end of her life. (2)
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About The John Batchelor Show
The John Batchelor Show is a hard news-analysis radio program on current events, world history, global politics and natural sciences. Based in New York City for two decades, the show has travelled widely to report, from the Middle East to the South Caucasus to the Arabian Peninsula and East Asia.
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