Atomic Hobo - Nuclear War Podcast

Atomic Hobo - Nuclear War Podcast

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A weekly podcast on how we prepared for nuclear war. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode List

The Sculthorpe Nuclear Weapons Incident

Feb 24th, 2026 6:00 AM

What happened on a Norfolk air base in 1958 when an American threatened to k1ll himself by firing a gun into an atomic bomb? My thanks to the Conelrad6401240 YouTube/Twitter account for alerting me to this story, and for uploading the associated documentary, 'Something Foolish With A Pistol'. Get ad-free episodes, plus bonus episodes, for £3 a month here www.patreon.com/atomichoboThank you,Julie Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Soviet Civil Defence: The Komsomol

Feb 17th, 2026 6:00 AM

The Soviet youth organisation, the Komsomol, and how it prepared the young for nuclear war with "predators from the imperialist jungle", as Khrushchev nicely put it.I quote from THE WHISPERERS: PRIVATE LIFE IN STALIN'S RUSSIA by Orlando Figes.Get ad-free access to all episodes, plus bonus episodes, here www.patreon.com/atomichoboJulie Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Soviet Civil Defence: The Trouble With Vegetables

Feb 10th, 2026 6:00 AM

Americans in the early 50s were told there was a "civil defence gap", and that the Soviets were superior in protecting their population? Was this true? As mentioned in the pod, I quote from two academic articles. They are:'Soviet Civil Defence: The Mineshaft Gap Revisited' by Josh M Weinstein, Arms Control Today, Vol 12, No 7, August 1982'Was There A Real Mineshaft Gap?' by Edward Geist, Journal of Cold War Studies, Vol 14, No 2, Spring 2012And you can get ad-free access to the whole archive, plus all bonus episodes, if you join my Patreon here: www.patreon.com/atomichoboJulie Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Greenland: The Thule Air Base

Feb 2nd, 2026 6:00 AM

Why is America so interested in Greenland? What was its role in nuclear attack and early warning? And what happened when a huge B52 bomber carrying a bunch of hydrogen bombs crashed into the ice up there?There's a bonus pod which accompanies this episode. You can grab it here, and get ad-free listening for the whole pod archive, at www.patreon.com/atomichobo The reading list for these Thule episodes is below:Fifteen Minutes: General Curtis LeMay and the Countdown to Nuclear Annihilation, by L. Douglas KeeneyCommand and Control by Eric SchlosserProject Crested Ice: The Thule Nuclear Accident (SAC Historical Study)'Greenland and its Relevance to North American Security', Naval War College Review, Vol 32, No. 6 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Harold Macmillan, Part 4: Pressing the Button

Jan 26th, 2026 9:49 AM

How would Harold Macmillan have ordered nuclear retaliation?Join us at www.patreon.com/atomichobo for ad-free listening and bonus episodes.The books and articles I used in this episode are listed below:The Secret State by Peter HennessyWinds of Change by Peter HennessyThe Prime Minister: The Office and its Holders Since 1945 by Peter HennessyCabinet by Peter HennessySupermac: The Life of Harold Macmillan by D.R. ThorpePlanning Armageddon: Britain, the United States and the Command of Western Nuclear Forces, 1945-1964, by Len Scott, Robert Twigge et al.'A Matter of Joint Decision': The Origins of British Nuclear Retaliation Procedures and the Murphy-Dean Agreement of 1958, by Matthew Jones in the English Historical Review Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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