Cover

BBC Radio 5 Live
  • 4.7 (261)
  • TRUE CRIME
  • SERIES
Cover

A message from Mark Horgan on a new investigative series launching next week from the production team behind ‘Where Is George Gibney?’. This new series will focus on another figure who lived a double life and was eventually forced to live under cover. And it’s a story, like the George Gibney one, that many would prefer was never told. So, from this point on, this feed will be renamed ‘Cover.’ Series 1 one of which was ‘Where Is George Gibney?’ and series 2 is coming next week, first thing on Tuesday the 12th of November. You can continue to contact our production team about either series via our new email cover@bbc.co.uk and rest assured, any significant future movements in the story of George Gibney will also be covered right here. Talk to you again next week.

See All
  1. Introducing... Stakeknife

    EPISODE 1

    Introducing... Stakeknife

    In Northern Ireland from 1978 to 1994, the IRA killed over 40 alleged informers; people accused of passing information to the police and the British Army. But the man who often found, tortured, and sometimes killed these men and women was himself an informer, a secret British Army Agent with the codename Stakeknife. Using secret recordings, reporter Mark Horgan traces the astonishing double life of Freddie Scappaticci. Why was he protected? How did he walk the tightrope between the IRA and British Army intelligence for so long and when murders, often of entirely innocent people, were sometimes allowed to take place despite state security force surveillance, who gets to play God? This series is about far more than just one man; it’s about the state structures that protected him. From the production team behind the international award-winning ‘Where Is George Gibney?’, Stakeknife tells the story of one of the most-contested and darkest episodes of the Troubles. When neither side wants the story of Stakeknife to come out, how does society try to reconcile the truth about what happened? Credits Reporter: Mark Horgan Produced and written by: Mark Horgan and Ciarán Cassidy Co-Producer: Paddy Fee Editing and Sound Design: Ciarán Cassidy Composer: Michael Fleming Sound mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme tune by Lankum Artwork by Conor Merriman Assistant Commissioners for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna and Sarah Green. Commissioning Editor for BBC: Dylan Haskins Stakeknife is a Second Captains & Little Wing production for BBC Sounds.

    3 min
  2. 1. The Man Who Never Was

    EPISODE 2

    1. The Man Who Never Was

    A man flees Northern Ireland when he’s named as Stakeknife. At a surprise press conference a few days later he denies the charges but a forgotten tape comes back to haunt him. Credits Reporter: Mark Horgan Produced and written by: Mark Horgan and Ciarán Cassidy Co-Producer: Paddy Fee Editing and Sound Design: Ciarán Cassidy Composer: Michael Fleming Sound mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme tune by Lankum Artwork by Conor Merriman Assistant Commissioners for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna and Sarah Green. Commissioning Editor for BBC: Dylan Haskins Stakeknife is a Second Captains & Little Wing production for BBC Sounds.

    37 min
  3. 2. Sin E

    EPISODE 3

    2. Sin E

    Mark speaks to the brother of one of the first people interrogated by Stakeknife. We follow Seamus’ journey as he retraces his brothers steps in the days before he was murdered. Credits Reporter: Mark Horgan Produced and written by: Mark Horgan and Ciarán Cassidy Co-Producer: Paddy Fee Editing and Sound Design: Ciarán Cassidy Composer: Michael Fleming Sound mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme tune by Lankum Artwork by Conor Merriman Assistant Commissioners for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna and Sarah Green. Commissioning Editor for BBC: Dylan Haskins Stakeknife is a Second Captains & Little Wing production for BBC Sounds.

    49 min
  4. 3. The FRU

    EPISODE 4

    3. The FRU

    Mark meets two former members of the FRU, the secret army intelligence unit that ran the agent Stakeknife. How did they recruit people? How was Scappaticci recruited? Credits Reporter: Mark Horgan Produced and written by: Mark Horgan and Ciarán Cassidy Co-Producer: Paddy Fee Editing and Sound Design: Ciarán Cassidy Composer: Michael Fleming Sound mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme tune by Lankum Artwork by Conor Merriman Assistant Commissioners for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna and Sarah Green. Commissioning Editor for BBC: Dylan Haskins Stakeknife is a Second Captains & Little Wing production for BBC Sounds.

    49 min
  5. 4. The (Estate) Agent

    EPISODE 5

    4. The (Estate) Agent

    Mark tells the story of a man called Joe Fenton and how he was connected to Stakeknife. We learn there was a hierarchy of agents, where some were saved and some were not. Credits Reporter: Mark Horgan Produced and written by: Mark Horgan and Ciarán Cassidy Co-Producer: Paddy Fee Editing and Sound Design: Ciarán Cassidy Composer: Michael Fleming Sound mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme tune by Lankum Artwork by Conor Merriman Assistant Commissioners for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna and Sarah Green. Commissioning Editor for BBC: Dylan Haskins Stakeknife is a Second Captains & Little Wing production for BBC Sounds.

    39 min
  6. 5. Someone Bigger

    EPISODE 6

    5. Someone Bigger

    Brendan Hughes wants to question Joe Fenton and find the “main mover.” Is Stakeknife suspected? We meet the former IRA man who interviewed Hughes and whose hero was Scappaticci. Credits Reporter: Mark Horgan Produced and written by: Mark Horgan and Ciarán Cassidy Co-Producer: Paddy Fee Editing and Sound Design: Ciarán Cassidy Composer: Michael Fleming Sound mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme tune by Lankum Artwork by Conor Merriman Assistant Commissioners for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna and Sarah Green. Commissioning Editor for BBC: Dylan Haskins Stakeknife is a Second Captains & Little Wing production for BBC Sounds.

    44 min
  7. 6. Playing God

    EPISODE 7

    6. Playing God

    Orla and Kevin Coyle tell the story of their father who was killed as an alleged informer by the IRA. The profound shadow cast by their father’s death has lasted almost 30 years. Credits Reporter: Mark Horgan Produced and written by: Mark Horgan and Ciarán Cassidy Co-Producer: Paddy Fee Editing and Sound Design: Ciarán Cassidy Composer: Michael Fleming Sound mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme tune by Lankum Artwork by Conor Merriman Assistant Commissioners for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna and Sarah Green. Commissioning Editor for BBC: Dylan Haskins Stakeknife is a Second Captains & Little Wing production for BBC Sounds.

    41 min
  8. A message to listeners - one week break

    EPISODE 8

    A message to listeners - one week break

    Episode 7 is available on Friday, January 3rd on BBC Sounds.

    2 min
  9. 7. The Beginning of the End

    EPISODE 9

    7. The Beginning of the End

    In 1990, a man called Sandy Lynch was tied up, blindfolded and interrogated by Scappaticci. He survived to document his experience. Marks speaks to an IRA man who “guarded” Lynch. Credits Reporter: Mark Horgan Produced and written by: Mark Horgan and Ciarán Cassidy Co-Producer: Paddy Fee Editing and Sound Design: Ciarán Cassidy Composer: Michael Fleming Sound mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme tune by Lankum Artwork by Conor Merriman Assistant Commissioners for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna and Sarah Green. Commissioning Editor for BBC: Dylan Haskins Stakeknife is a Second Captains & Little Wing production for BBC Sounds.

    37 min
  10. 8. The General and the Agent

    EPISODE 10

    8. The General and the Agent

    We return to the solicitor’s office in West Belfast as Mark meets three crucial people to discuss the end of Scappaticci’s time in the IRA and his eventual uncovering as the agent Stakeknife. Credits Reporter: Mark Horgan Produced and written by: Mark Horgan and Ciarán Cassidy Co-Producer: Paddy Fee Editing and Sound Design: Ciarán Cassidy Composer: Michael Fleming Sound mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme tune by Lankum Artwork by Conor Merriman Assistant Commissioners for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna and Sarah Green. Commissioning Editor for BBC: Dylan Haskins Stakeknife is a Second Captains & Little Wing production for BBC Sounds.

    58 min
  11. 9. No Harm Will Come to You

    EPISODE 11

    9. No Harm Will Come to You

    Shauna tells the story of her mother Caroline Moreland. We hear how her campaigning has helped others connected to the the Stakeknife case and how other families have come forward to Mark since the start of this series. Credits Reporter: Mark Horgan Produced and written by: Mark Horgan and Ciarán Cassidy Co-Producer: Paddy Fee Editing and Sound Design: Ciarán Cassidy Composer: Michael Fleming Sound mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme tune by Lankum Artwork by Conor Merriman Assistant Commissioners for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna and Sarah Green. Commissioning Editor for BBC: Dylan Haskins Stakeknife is a Second Captains & Little Wing production for BBC Sounds.

    49 min
  12. 10. Frank

    EPISODE 12

    10. Frank

    Mark travels to where Freddie Scappaticci lived after he disappeared from Belfast. A news report we featured from 1987 inspires a man to get in touch with the podcast. Credits Reporter: Mark Horgan Produced and written by: Mark Horgan and Ciarán Cassidy Co-Producer: Paddy Fee Editing and Sound Design: Ciarán Cassidy Composer: Michael Fleming Sound mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme tune by Lankum Artwork by Conor Merriman Assistant Commissioners for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna and Sarah Green. Commissioning Editor for BBC: Dylan Haskins Stakeknife is a Second Captains & Little Wing production for BBC Sounds.

    55 min
See All Season 2 (12)

Hosts & Guests

4.7
out of 5
261 Ratings

About

A message from Mark Horgan on a new investigative series launching next week from the production team behind ‘Where Is George Gibney?’. This new series will focus on another figure who lived a double life and was eventually forced to live under cover. And it’s a story, like the George Gibney one, that many would prefer was never told. So, from this point on, this feed will be renamed ‘Cover.’ Series 1 one of which was ‘Where Is George Gibney?’ and series 2 is coming next week, first thing on Tuesday the 12th of November. You can continue to contact our production team about either series via our new email cover@bbc.co.uk and rest assured, any significant future movements in the story of George Gibney will also be covered right here. Talk to you again next week.

Information

  • Creator
    BBC Radio 5 Live
  • Episodes
    26
  • Seasons
    2
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © (C) BBC 2025
  • Show Website
    Cover

More From BBC

You Might Also Like

To listen to explicit episodes, sign in.

Stay up to date with this show

Sign in or sign up to follow shows, save episodes, and get the latest updates.
Select a country or region

Africa, Middle East, and India

Asia Pacific

Europe

Latin America and the Caribbean

The United States and Canada