https://simplecast.com A strange letter appears on a city councillor’s desk in Birmingham, England, laying out an elaborate plot by Islamic extremists to infiltrate the city’s schools. The plot has a code name: Operation Trojan Horse. The story soon explodes in the news and kicks off a national panic. By the time it all dies down, the government has launched multiple investigations, beefed up the country’s counterterrorism policy, revamped schools and banned people from education for the rest of their lives. To Hamza Syed, who is watching the scandal unfold in his city, the whole thing seemed … off. Because through all the official inquiries and heated speeches in Parliament, no one has ever bothered to answer a basic question: Who wrote the letter? And why? The night before Hamza is to start journalism school, he has a chance meeting in Birmingham with the reporter Brian Reed, the host of the hit podcast S-Town. Together they team up to investigate: Who wrote the Trojan Horse letter? They quickly discover that it’s a question people in power do not want them asking. From Serial Productions and The New York Times comes The Trojan Horse Affair: a mystery in eight parts. To get full access to this show, and to other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts.   To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter.    Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com en Mon, 16 Sep 2024 18:44:56 +0000 Mon, 8 Dec 2025 04:00:11 +0000 https://trojan-horse.simplecast.com https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/4105a47a-42e5-4ccc-887a-832af7989986/994e07c0-bda9-48e1-bc7f-729c161e685b/3000x3000/nyt-s-thorse-albumartwork-3000.jpg?aid=rss_feed https://trojan-horse.simplecast.com serial A strange letter appears on a city councillor’s desk in Birmingham, England, laying out an elaborate plot by Islamic extremists to infiltrate the city’s schools. The plot has a code name: Operation Trojan Horse. The story soon explodes in the news and kicks off a national panic. By the time it all dies down, the government has launched multiple investigations, beefed up the country’s counterterrorism policy, revamped schools and banned people from education for the rest of their lives. To Hamza Syed, who is watching the scandal unfold in his city, the whole thing seemed … off. Because through all the official inquiries and heated speeches in Parliament, no one has ever bothered to answer a basic question: Who wrote the letter? And why? The night before Hamza is to start journalism school, he has a chance meeting in Birmingham with the reporter Brian Reed, the host of the hit podcast S-Town. Together they team up to investigate: Who wrote the Trojan Horse letter? They quickly discover that it’s a question people in power do not want them asking. From Serial Productions and The New York Times comes The Trojan Horse Affair: a mystery in eight parts. To get full access to this show, and to other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts.   To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter.    Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com Serial Productions & The New York Times true https://feeds.simplecast.com/I49hamKd Serial Productions & The New York Times serialshows@nytimes.com bdb876b9-b571-4a2c-8e2b-38a90718ef60 Mon, 16 Sep 2024 18:44:56 +0000 serialshows@nytimes.com (Serial Productions & The New York Times) https://trojan-horse.simplecast.com/episodes/trailer-question-everything-hp0RbVdV Trailer - Question Everything Serial Productions & The New York Times 00:02:34 A new podcast from Brian Reed. Subscribe here: https://www.kcrw.com/culture/shows/question-everything A new podcast from Brian Reed. Subscribe here: https://www.kcrw.com/culture/shows/question-everything true bonus 1 b8797498-32a0-4081-82c6-94c30c05cd8f Thu, 3 Feb 2022 10:00:00 +0000 serialshows@nytimes.com (Serial Productions & The New York Times) https://trojan-horse.simplecast.com/episodes/the-letter-in-the-brown-paper-envelope-U7e3h_nU Part 1: The Letter in the Brown Paper Envelope Serial Productions & The New York Times 01:01:01 A strange letter appears outlining a plot by Islamic extremists to infiltrate Birmingham schools. Hamza and Brian visit the supposed mastermind of the plot, and he tells them he did take over a bunch of schools – just not for the reasons in the letter. A strange letter appears outlining a plot by Islamic extremists to infiltrate Birmingham schools. Hamza and Brian visit the supposed mastermind of the plot, and he tells them he did take over a bunch of schools – just not for the reasons in the letter. true full 1 1 32ec088f-8471-4d4d-a695-9c46d49138ea Thu, 27 Jan 2022 11:00:00 +0000 serialshows@nytimes.com (Serial Productions & The New York Times) https://trojan-horse.simplecast.com/episodes/trailer-8fy1rZ9j Trailer Serial Productions & The New York Times 00:03:07 A mysterious letter detailing a supposed Islamist plot to take over schools shocked Britain in 2014. But who wrote it? From Serial Productions and The New York Times, “The Trojan Horse Affair,” an investigation that became bigger than we ever imagined. All eight parts are coming next Thursday, February 3rd. A mysterious letter detailing a supposed Islamist plot to take over schools shocked Britain in 2014. But who wrote it? From Serial Productions and The New York Times, “The Trojan Horse Affair,” an investigation that became bigger than we ever imagined. All eight parts are coming next Thursday, February 3rd. true trailer 1