Introducing: Walter's War
The Walkers: The real Salt Path | Tortoise Investigates
The Observer
4.6 • 5.8K Ratings
🗓️ 9 November 2023
⏱️ 3 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
It’s London, 2012. Oliver is a dashing diplomat. Charlie is a young graduate trying to find her feet in the world. They meet online and she falls in love. With his encouragement, Charlie applies for a job in British intelligence. Then, she receives a text message that turns her life - and her relationship - upside down, and 10 years later, a mystery is still hanging over her. Walter's War is an investigation into what happened next – a journey through big tech and national security, hype and hucksterism, where anyone who can tell a good story can go far. But how much is true?
Episode 1 goes live on Tuesday 21st November. The first three episodes will be available to Tortoise members on the free Tortoise audio app, and subscribers to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Last year, I met a woman for a coffee, and she told me that she had a story. |
| 0:07.7 | It starts in London over a decade ago. |
| 0:11.8 | Charlie was a young graduate trying to find her feet in the world. |
| 0:15.8 | A new city, new friends, new job. |
| 0:18.4 | It was just really exciting. |
| 0:20.0 | And soon she meets a dashing diplomat who's just back from Afghanistan. |
| 0:24.1 | People like me reading intelligence reports. |
| 0:28.0 | Pretty quickly, she falls in love. |
| 0:30.2 | She's enamoured with the world that he lives in. |
| 0:32.6 | And with his encouragement, she applies for a job in British intelligence. |
| 0:37.8 | She's optimistic. |
| 0:39.0 | The interview goes well. |
| 0:40.4 | I was just sat at my desk and I looked down at my mobile phone. |
| 0:44.2 | But then she receives a text message. |
| 0:46.4 | It didn't mention his name, but it was so obvious to me that that's who is about. |
| 0:49.8 | That turns her life and her relationship upside down. |
| 0:54.0 | Yeah, I just can't believe it. |
| 0:55.5 | It was like the bottom fell out of everything. |
| 0:58.0 | I was just so shocked. |
| 0:59.1 | She discovers that the story he's told her about his life, |
| 1:03.5 | well, it's not what it seems. |
| 1:05.7 | What could the motivation possibly be? |
... |
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