Sherlock & Co. - The Blanched Soldier - Part One

Episode Date: June 17, 2025

THE FACE AT THE WINDOW - Doctor John Watson has temporarily relinquished his podcasting duties and I have stepped in somewhat reluctantly. This particular episode provides you with not one adventure, but two. Or rather; one and a half. We met 'Doddy' rather late in my role as podcast host, but his story was so enchanting and his problem so tempting we had little choice but to chase it down to its resolution. It's Sherlock by the way, hello.  Part 1 of 2 This episode contains swearing, sexual references, drug references, references to violence. Listener discretion is advised.For merchandise and transcripts go to: www.sherlockandco.co.uk For ad-free, early access to adventures in full go to www.patreon.com/sherlockandco To get in touch via email: [e-mail] Follow me @DocJWatsonMD on twitter and BlueSky, or sherlockandcopod on TikTok, instagram and YouTube.  This podcast is property of Goalhanger Podcasts. Copyright 2025. SHERLOCK AND CO. Based on the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Paul Waggott as Dr. John Watson Harry Attwell as Sherlock Holmes Marta da Silva as Mariana Ametxazurra Michael Lyle as Doddy Joe Dockree as Dennis Written by Joel Emery Directed by Adam Jarrell Editing and Sound Design by Holy Smokes AudioProduced by Neil Fearn and Jon Gill Executive Producer Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The following is a fourth wall break from Sherlock and Co. Hello there, I'm Joel Emery, I write Sherlock and Co and I'm here to tell our American based listeners or perhaps even North American based, the continent that is, not like just northern US states like Montana or North Dakota. Anyway, there's a Sherlock and Co event in Los Angeles on Saturday August 2nd. I've even said the date the way around that you like it there. Saturday August 2nd 2025 in Los Angeles California. Myself and the show's director, producer and he plays Stanford as well of course, Adam Jarrell will be there for what I'm sure is going to be an afternoon of great fun.

This event is kindly put together by fans. There are a limited number of tickets so go to www.sherlockandco.co.uk forward slash events and you will see the link there with all the details. That's www.sherlockandco.co.uk forward slash events. Good luck and I hope to see latest case. He's good adventure here, but I'll be saying case. This I'm Sherlock Holmes, and this is the Blanched Soldier. And it will be two parts, two parts of adequate length and intrigue. If you are disturbed by... things, they will be noted in the episode description. Not here. Goodbye. Say enjoy. I say enjoy. You know, like, enjoy guys. Catch it a bit.

I don't want them to enjoy it. I want them to- Watson! Do it yourself, Holmes! I don't want to. Oh, and you think I want to, do you? Yes. You think I want to make a podcast and be at the centre of it all the time, that's what you think? That's precisely what I think, yes. You think I want to put out an episode every week, editing every waking hour just so we can document cases in an accurate but entertaining manner?

Who is using those terms to describe the podcast? Right done. Enough. What? You are in charge. I told you. Yes, and I told you. Your new host, ladies and gentlemen.

Hello there. I am a consulting detective specialising in complex cases of murder, burglary and all manner of things that intrigue me. I don't have much experience in podcasting, so this is mostly a record of, well, the activities I just mentioned. Join me as I take you into think they like me. The listeners? Yes. They love you.

Archie, Archie, this way please. Thank you. I never wish to downplay good manners, but I feel pleases and thank yous are a little wasted on a bulldog that licks wet paint. He doesn't. Oh wait, Archie, no, no, no, no, don't do that. Mariana and I walked through the sweeping green of Regent Park, mulling cases and clients and contacts, our conversation broken only by the passing of a near bicycle, the approach of a confident squirrel in search for any breaded goods. Sherlock?

Hm? Sorry again. Why, exactly, are you hosting the podcast? Number of reasons. Would you like them all? Maybe just... just the key ones. Principally, I suppose. Because notable figures in British society and law enforcement requested that John didn't release the scandal in Bohemia.

Mm-hmm, but he did. Correct. And I didn't want him to release it either. But that's an internal conflict within the company. Wait, didn't want him to release it? Why but that's an internal conflict within the company. Wait, didn't want him to release it? Why not? Because I felt it was rather dangerous. I felt that the contents of the podcast, although no one seems to believe them, are still problematic. Is it because you lost? Excuse me? You lost and she won. Is that why?

No. You know when it's suddenly forced upon you, you are not the best liar. Yes. And you're bad at answering questions. I asked, why are you hosting the show? Why do you have Mike the Mike? Mike the Mike. Yes, that's what John and I call him sometimes, but no more distractions.

Why? Because I criticise John's actions, his over-dramatisation of the events and the recklessness in which the presentation of the case was handled. Okay. So then what happened? We argued. Of course. I... may have claimed that the show was mine as it had my name on it. Yeah, he hates it when you say that. Yes, he does. And then he suggested that I...

Well, yes. Host the show. Mm-hmm. Well then, we better find your client. Please stand clear of the door. Where we headed? You know where we headed. Yes, but the listener doesn't.

They will find out upon our arrival. What if something happens on the way? What if something deviates? They don't know how that got from the last point to this point or whether that deviation to the story is even a deviation. Fine, fine. Hello listeners... No, no.

Let me do that again. Hello listeners. No, two formal homes Holmes, come on. It's okay, just slow down. See, it's not that easy, is it? My dear listeners, hither you sit alongside us. Hither. Thundering through the tunnels of London.

London, Londinium to its Roman keepers. Before that, perhaps Londinos, the Celtic root Lond, meaning wild, fierce, bold, and boy has she been so in the two millennia that have since passed. Under here, in the comfort of her womb, we hear the rumbling warmth of her voice, that rasp of her trains and buses, that cackle of her delivery trucks and burbling of pubs, gyms, cafes and restaurants. We rock into slumber as the faint lullaby of her trains and buses, that cackle of her delivery trucks and burbling of pubs, gyms, cafes and restaurants, we rock into slumber as the faint lullaby of her river and her reigns trickle, wash and cleanse her surface. All the while our cord to her, that tangled sinew of vitality fills us with worth, heritage, joy, life and love. You may dwell in the Americas, the European mainland.

You may reside in the vastness of Asia or Africa or Australasia. But hither you ride with us and thither we beckon ourselves toward the case, toward adventure and toward that great waypoint in the landscape of humanity. Don't want to pick holes. Just say Islington. You know, just say we're going to Islington and describe the area for non-Britz. That's what I do.

Sherlock is doing this his own way, John. You wanted him to... Right, alright, fine. Do you think if you adopted a style that was more dramatic, you might get some of those ad reads, those sponsors you've wanted for some time. Oi, careful, Sherlock. How dare you? Crowds bump and slide past one another

like thriving cultures under a microscope. It is a ticket hall, just tap your card. You told me that I needed to enlighten them every step of the way. Yeah, I know. And it's not like you always do that, John. Come on. I said to Dennis we would be there at two. It's nearly two o' five.

Mariana, it is two o' one. Yes, that's nearly two o' five. God's sake. Well, let's get thither, shall we? Oh, where you off to today, mate? Oh, just pick me up hither and drop me off thither, please. Cheers, pal. John, move it.

Hi, Dennis. Mariana. And you're Sherlock. I am indeed. This is John. Hi. Hi, hi, I love the pod. John is actually taking a week off,

so feel free to direct your praise to me. Yep, just thought we'd mix things up. Oh, right, okay. Yeah, come in. This is my flat. Oh, it, okay. Um, yeah, come in. This, this is, uh, this is my flat. Oh, it's beautiful. Oh, thank you. And you, if you don't mind me asking right away,

you were robbed last night, Dennis. Is that right? I was, yeah. Can I grab you a tea or coffee first? Dennis, the only beverage that will quench my thirst, is a cool glass of details with a zesty twist of data. Please, begin. Ha!

Yeah, um... right. God's sake. Dennis sits. The armchair almost swallows his tiny frame whole, the thinning hair clinging to his brow flutters upwards before settling, those delicate wisps falling. Sherlock. Hm? There's no need for that kind of narration.

My companion fails to hide his envy as the narrative of this adventure bristles in the capable hands of this new host. Just- Dennis stares at me, confused. Sorry, sorry, do you- Anxious. His red and flaky skin twinges as his face contorts into bewilderment. Now frustration. Okay, stop. No. We don't think we could turn this project into more of an audiobook.

No. Oh. Why don't you tell us what happened, Dennis? Okay, well, this I should probably just say for the record. You're gay. Yeah. And you had relations with the thief. I did, yes.

You invited him back here. Correct. How long had you known him? Erm... I see. So you meet a gentleman in Zodiac. How did you know that? The smudged stamp, confirming your admittance right there in your hand.

Oh. Don't worry, they take a few goes to come off. Fortunately for you, you're out of the closet. Describe the gentleman to me. Oh, well, er, he was a bit out of my league. You will need to narrow that down. Tall. Erm, very tall. Taller than me?

Just about. Continue. Er, blonde, blue eyes, he was well spoken, um, rather thin but toned, you know, not like rake thin. Um, we met at the zodiac, like you said. Um, we had a good chat. We both collect the same... thing. You're missing item.

Yes. Uh-huh. And this is a Pokemon? It's a Pokemon card. Yeah, not an actual Pokemon, Marianne. Shut up. He sort of suggested he was a bit of a trust fund baby himself, so he brought up quite a collection actually, from an early age. Sounds like a chat up line to me.

A card, you say? One single card. Correct. First edition Shadowless Charizard. Oh nice. Nice. How much are they going for these days? Uh, they can go for as high as, uh, $420,000? Shut the fuck up. Sorry, that just came out. $420,000? Correct. That? I just swapped one of those with Kevin Babkin for a Mewtwo and a Dr Pepper in year 8. Smart trade.

You were drunk last night, Dennis. Yes. On a scale of 1 to 10. One being sober, three being a strong tipsy buzz, ten being blackout don't remember a thing. Probably a six. I'm observing the aftermath of something around a 7.5, but I'll forgive you the diffidence. So, sort of... low-level shit-faced?

Uh, yeah, something like that, yeah. And you don't recall much? I know we came back here. We were... No, we had a bottle of wine here on the couch. Mm-hmm. We didn't finish it. He left? No, we did something else.

Oh. After the fun and games, did he leave immediately? I fell asleep. And he was gone by the morning? Yes. How much of the house have you cleaned up? I made the bed, tidied the kitchen a bit. One moment.

Oh, yep. He's just gonna make a few observations. Tidy the kitchen a bit? One moment. Oh, yep. He's just gonna... make a few observations. Yeah, yeah, that's fine. He came from work. He... did? How do you know that? Your door frame to the kitchen here. Could do with the sanding. It's caught a fibre or two from his suit.

Dark grey wool, very fine weave. bespoke no doubt with this quality. Did you enter through here? The front door? Yes. Shoes? Shoes came off. House rules. And did he rest them here on the mat or on the floorboards? Probably the mat? I dunno. Let's see. Dennis, you work from home, don't you?

I do. How do you...? I can just tell. His shoes were here. Why are you on the floor? Sherlock, please don't sniff the doormat. Ah. Was he well-mannered? Yeah, better-mannered than sniffing people's doormats, you mean? Was he?

He stole something, Sherlock. He was. I'd say say so apart from the stealing. A shoe much larger than yours Dennis was wiped on this mat upon entry before removal they were placed here. One moment. Oh you licked it. No no that's disgusting. Yes it is. It's potassium oxalate. Awful. Right. Okay. Off to Canary Wharf then, I'd say. Sorry, why? To catch the perpetrator and retrieve the card. Whoa, how do you know he's there?

It wasn't a chat-up line. Sorry? The trust fund. The economic status of your late-night lover. The wool fibre from his suit is high-end. It's also saturated in what I thought could be an aftershave. A fragrance. But due to its location of where it's snagged, the fact the man is 6'5 and its bouquet, ISO-E, so more ambient than actually wearable. But also far too many citrusy

notes. Bergamot, neroli, bitter orange. Put that into a search and you get Aroma 360. Here's the site for this premium air freshener, boasting its usage in bathrooms of upmarket hotels, spas and, rather curiously, banks. Which makes sense, as it's £200 a bottle. Your thief, yes, stole a card worth nearly half a million dollars, but he casually ignored that little neon piece there, Tracy Emin, so that's 70 grand I'd say. Two small Damien Hirst pieces as you come in. You've got a framed Andy Warhol Polaroid of this young woman. Stevie Nicks.

Oh, apologies. Man. No, no, her name is just Stevie. I see. And this gentleman? Lindsay. What? That's her bandmate and ex-boyfriend Lindsay Buckingham. Stevie is the woman, Lindsay is the man. How enlightening.

In short, Dennis, your date, walks around a marble floor all day, hence the potassium oxalate marble polish and micro-rubber non-slip floor mat particles. He's well groomed, well dressed and has finely tuned tastes. He didn't use your hand soap as you'll see by the handle on the cabinet to your collection. He used his own and left traces of it. A hand sanitizer with Jojoba bead and walnut exfoliating granules. He then took the card, put on his shoes, scarfed his crocodile leather satchel on the hallway wall and made off for work at Mortham's banking services. You can see the sheer amount of marble flooring from the street view alone.

They're operated by Payout Inc, a stockist of Aroma 360. We don't have his name, but we can see his picture on the page of Morthams that describes their investor and multi-demand client spec agility. Whatever that means. Well, there you go. Yep. Oh, welcome to Morgan's Ba- I'm looking for a man in finance. Trust fund. Six-five. Blue eyes. Oh, it- I- Yeah, I see him.

Get him, Watson. Go, go, go. I'm coming for you, giant thieving bastard. Tell you what, mate. Get off! Get off! You should have popped home for a change of clothes or at least to drop off the goods Charizard I choose you. Oh my god, you've got it got it Excellent Watson

Yeah, likely story dude security, please hold this man until the police arrive. Oh, shit! God! Case closed. And may I say what an excellent catch. I agree. These types usually get away too. Yeah, but hey, as our friend Ash would say,

gotta catch them all. That's the Pokemon motto. That's what they say in Pokemon. Whether it's a family member, friend or furry companion joining your summer road trip, enjoy the peace of mind that comes with Volvo's legendary safety. During Volvo Discover Days, enjoy limited time savings as you make plans to cruise through Muscogee or down Toronto's bustling streets. From now until June 30th, lease a 2025 Volvo XC60 from 1.74% and save up to $4,000. Conditions apply. Visit your GTA Volvo retailer or go to volvocars.ca for full details.

Visit your GTA Volvo retailer or go to VolvoCars.ca for full details. No Frills Delivers Get groceries delivered to your door from No Frills with PC Express. Shop online and get $15 in PC Optimum Points on your first five orders. Shop now at NoFrills.ca Hello, I'm Gordon Carrera, National Security Journalist. And I'm David McCloskey, CIA analyst turned spy novelist. Together we're the co-hosts of another Goldhanger show called The Rest is Classified, where we bring you the best stories from the world of secrets and spas. We have just released a series on the decades-long battle between the CIA and Osama bin Laden,

and this week we are stepping into the devastation of the 9-11 terror attacks to understand how Osama bin Laden was able to carry out such a plot right under the nose of the CIA. It was a moment that changed global politics forever, shifting the focus of spy agencies away from nation states towards hunting for terrorists and understanding the extremist ideology that drove them. We will then go into the decade-long manhunt for Asal bin Laden which culminated in a dramatic

raid at his compound in Pakistan in 2011 which killed the world's most wanted terrorist. So if all of this sounds good, we've got a clip waiting for you at the end of the episode. Friend Ash would say, gotta catch em all. That's the Pokemon motto, that's what they say in Poke... I'll cut that bit there. No! What? I'll remove that part, it's confusing. It's gotta catch em all, that's what they say on Pokemon, we just caught a bad guy.

People won't know what you're talking about. Perhaps this is why you are not yet to be sponsored by Better Health or NordVPN. First of all, it's Better Help, not Better Health. And, secondly, maybe I don't want to sponsor. Mmm, but you do. Desperately. God's sake. Finished. A Sherlock and Co adventure by Sherlock himself. Sherlock?

What? It's 17 minutes long. Yes. Our adventures are minimum 40 minutes. Says who exactly? Me. Well, I was the narrator for this adventure, so new rules are applied. Okay, cool, cool. Yeah, no, go let the members know that the show they pay for has an adventure that's

half the length of the usual ones. Oh. And go tell Goalhanger there'll be no ad revenue either because it falls under the 20 minute threshold for ads. Oh. Is this why you drag adventures out? What? Is it? Who... who says I drag adventures out? Some reviews.

Oh please, do me a favour. Just providing feedback. People that complain online are the same people that beep in traffic. They're just annoyed and disappointed in themselves and so they're lashing out. I think it's rather speculative to pathologise about strangers lashing out due to their own insecurity. I don't drag things out! Crime is crime. It has elements to it. It's multi-faceted. I try and drive it towards conclusions that reflect, you know, our experience in the moment,

but also give listeners some sense of resolve. I don't, you know, ramble about some banker's hand sanitizer for five minutes, then dust my hands off and go, oh, there's that done, case closed. Do you not think it more efficient? Oh, you know what? Whatever. Whatever. Like you said, you're in charge. I said you should do an adventure, so yeah, you do what you think is best, mate. what? Whatever. Whatever. Like you said, you're in charge. I said you should do an adventure, so yeah. You do what you think is best, mate. You seem nervous. Is this due to the case of the Zodiac Thief?

It's a good title, but no, it's not. What could be concerning you? Well, it's... That smell. The iron is on. You've just showered and your clothing is hanging temporarily on your person. What does that mean? You have an engagement. A formal one. It's making you nervous. A fine glaze of sweat is forming. Breath is tight and quick, hands fidgeting. I'm speaking to a school. Excuse me. I was on my journey to that deduction. Do you feel it acceptable to lift me up and place me down

at my conclusion against my will? Sorry, I didn't want to drag things out, I suppose. I shall bring the microphone. Perhaps one of the children at this school has committed a heinous crime. Please don't bring the mic. John? Shalade is just going to wrap up and then you can go on. Alright? Yeah, cool. Cool, sweet, sweet. Yep.

You are so nervous. I don't know if it's nerves, man. It's that, it's just I am focused. You know, is the talismanic team captain nervous in the tunnel? Is the soaring eagle nervous in the sky? I don't know if they're itching their scalp like that, yes. Oh god, it's flaking, isn't it?

Alright, maybe I am a bit nervous. Bloody Gregson and the stupid community outreach. Oh, that's why you're here. Yes. He wanted to punish me for the stupid Milverton Adler mess that is actually his fault. Who? Gregson? No, him.

We sit amidst the jitters and clanging nerves of our dear companion John Watson. Stop that. As he embarks on a voyage, bobbling amongst that sea of young faces, so treacherous a venture that... Sorry, what on earth is this? Ha ha ha ha! That's my speech. Give it back. You cannot say these words. What? Why not?

You cannot. Let me see. No, you will not see. Hey! Oh, John. Mary, give it back. John Hamish Watson, please don't do this. I'm speaking to them in their lingo, right? Don't say lingo. Oh, please just don't.

Don't say any of the words in this speech. This is Gen Alpha dialect, yeah? I'm gonna bring the house down with this stuff. Listen to that Sinead woman out there, boring on about town planning. Slay! Uh, oomphs. You ever think the criminal justice system is mid? Mid? Err, spoilers?

This is making me embarrassed already. I get really bad second-hand embarrassment, so please, please don't say, slay, oomphs. Fine, fine, fine. I will open with something else. But the speech is good stuff, mate. Honestly. You must think long and hard about this, Watson.

I'm not dropping an atom bomb or I'm talking to a bunch of kids. His speech is low-key busted. Nope, no, no, no. Okay, John, good to go. Let's do this. And our next speaker joins us all the way from Scotland Yard. Okay, here is true crime podcaster extraordinaire Dr John Watson.

Hey chat, what's up my sleigh kings and queens and of course my they've emperors. You all ever think the criminal justice system is mid? I feel sick. But I am here to tell you, dead ass, solving crime slaps. I'm Dr Watson, pronouns he, him, crime solver. But, real talk, I'm not here to yap I'm here to spill the tea on crime now I work with Sherlock Holmes he's giving NPC aura but the IQ is built different gigabrain no cap I can't I can't do this you cannot leave me watching this I'm his

emotional support bestie and solving crime is just spotting the ick in real time now you guys are probably like what the sigma is it bleeding or just a bruise it's like kind of both like it's a bruise with a cut. Can you believe one of them threw a phone? Oh, that lot loved their phones. Not as much as they hated your speech, I guess. What's wrong with wanting to connect with younger people? They don't like it. Why not?

Did you like it when you were their age? Well, I mean, no, probably not, but... But what? You think you're cool enough to pull it off? The blood is running again. Sake, you got another tissue? Here. Ah... Well, I will obviously cut all that from any episode.

I will, you mean? Right, yeah. Ugh, shouldn't you be uploading the world's shortest adventure? Yes. But I can't help be a little... distracted. By what? That gentleman over there. Where?

By the reception window where we signed in. Er... yeah, I see him. His name tag. The end is... occluded by that good job sticker. What? Why didn't I get a good job sticker? But from what I can see, it reads... James M. Oh. And he has found it increasingly difficult to not stare in our direction. What?

What do you want to do? Can I just ask that we don't confront people at the local school? Can I just ask that of you guys? people at the local school? Can I just ask that of you guys? Let's um, let's relax. Yeah, let's calm down How about we call him over? Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And how exactly are you going to do that? By saying his name? Yeah, we call out his name. He comes over here. We have a little chat Sherlock figures out who he is, you know Jobs are good. Oh my god How hard did that phone hit your head? It's not a ridiculous suggestion. It's mature grown-up. Oh, so now we're acting our age, okay?

James oh god James come over we'd love to chat okay here we go. Okay, okay? All right good speech. Yeah, thanks. Thank you. You probably missed mine all right good speech yeah thanks thank you you probably missed mine they were kind of hostile to me and all so don't worry and what is it that you do James all sorts really yeah running a company at a moment right I'm we we run a crime agency and a podcast I know you do. I'm actually interested in your previous life, Dr. Watson. What... er... what previous life? And what of yours, James? Mine?

Is that not why you're interested in my companion here? Those previous lives of yours and his, ever so slightly intertwining. Ha ha ha! Now that is good. Sorry. What exactly is going on? Come to the sports hall. It was empty earlier. Come on. Tiny, absolutely tiny. It used to be huge. Well, it felt like a coliseum back then, like an arena. But now, like some little village hall or something. Oh, you went to this school? I did, yeah. Yeah, well, for a bit.

How long? Couple of years. Then got expelled, didn't I? What for? Jabbed some little son, so you know. Jabbed like punch? Nah, you know. Jab like punch. Nah, something sharp. You know. Right, yeah.

Yet the school had you return to speak and inspire their pupils. Journey, innit? That's what they say. Look at Doddy's journey. Doddy? James in Dodd. See? Right. And that journey, James. Expulsion. Prison shortly after. A gang, judging by that tattoo there. Then military. Yep. And now, I'd say, scaffolding business. Took

it over from your father, I would imagine. I expect it began to soar somewhat before your time, though, following 2005 UK work at height legislation. Yeah, but I properly expanded it, took on the staff, knocked out the competition. Cool. Well done. Yeah. So you do do that then? Do do what, Doddy? Make all those funky little boss boss boss, you know, you do this, you do that sort of thing.

Observations and deductions. Yeah. Yeah. Why is it that you wish to speak to Sherlock, James? It's actually that one I was going to speak to. John Boy Watson. Oh, yeah? Yeah. This is yours, isn't it?

Ah. Ah. Ah. Ah. Hey, Watson. Yeah, that's a GoPro I had while I was out. Yeah. Crane.

You better blow my face out, man. I'm not looking at it anywhere, drama queen. There. Yeah, yeah that's a GoPro I had while I was at Crane. You know him? There? Errr, it's... Yeah, yeah, don't tell me... don't tell me... Erm... Emsworth, Freddie Emsworth. Yes, mate, yes! Yeah, no, he's... he was cool actually. A bit downbeat, but erm...

Just pull it up here a sec. You know, him and the three American guys we were with were just about the only ones that knew how to handle themselves. Marine, right? He's a Royal Marine? Is...was... Yeah, sure. Is he dead? Did he die out in Ukraine, Doddy?

Er, dunno. You OK? Yeah, you. Yeah, it's like, yeah, I'm good, mate. You. Roy, well, did you, have you spoken to him recently? Whoa, whoa, whoa. James! James! Let him go, James.

I fucking seen him, mate fucking seen him mate, right? His face at the window mate, he was fucking at the window and he... Ok, ok, James, James, just breathe... James, go, let him go! His face! James! His face! James! To binge this adventure in full and without ads, go to Patreon.com forward slash Sherlock and Cope. The I'm Gordon Carrera and I'm David McCloskey together with the co-host of another Goal Hanger show called The Rest is Classified.

Here's that clip we mentioned earlier on. When I look back on it now, you still see that, you know, there's plans, there's memoranda, there's notifications, there's all these things, but they're never actually executed. They never actually kind of pull the trigger on anything, do they? I'm a little bit of two minds on this because I agree with you that the theme of this episode really is a series of missed opportunities to get Osama bin Laden prior to 9-11. Yeah.

But we should also note that once Tenet and the CIA understand that Osama bin Laden is coming for us us in particular after the East Africa bombings, there is a push to improve our collection and our understanding about kind of pretty significantly. I mean, there's a bunch of human sources who get recruited in this period, there's a lot more technical collection, Alex station is beefed up to more than 40 people. There's a bunch of connections with foreign partners and al Qaeda that

hadn't existed before. I mean, interestingly, there's a bunch of connections with foreign partners on Al Qaeda that hadn't existed before. I mean, interestingly, there's a PDB, President's Daily Brief, in December, December the 4th of 1998, which is titled, quote, Bin Laden preparing to hijack US aircraft and other attacks. Yeah. And so there's a lot of strategic warning, I think you could say, about what Al Qaeda is up to. And yet there's an inability, I think, to translate that into practical efforts and operations to stop these attacks and stop Al Qaeda from ultimately carrying out 9-11.

If you want to hear the full episode, listen to The Rest is Classified wherever you get your podcasts.