Stories of our times launches new podcast series - The Feud

First episode of the five-part series available Thursday 13th October and available weekly

Stories of our times podcast - from The Times & The Sunday Times - today announces the launch of a new five-part investigative series The Feud with The Times journalist Andrew Billen about a civil war at one of the most prestigious universities in the world.

Marking his debut as a podcast presenter, Andrew Billen returns to his old college at Oxford University to explore why in February this year the very reverend professor Martyn Percy left Christ Church, Oxford, as its Dean with a £1.25 million settlement.

During his investigation, Billen reveals how Percy and his employer got into a four-year long battle, which left the priest close to suicide and cost the Oxford College millions in charitable funds.

He also exposes some uncomfortable truths about how Christ Church, an educational institution - regulated by the Charity Commission - has spent its money. Through extensive interviews with Martyn Percy and others, Billen explores why the Dean stayed at the college and refused to leave, and why despite an eventual settlement, the story has continued to rumble on.

The Times journalist Andrew Billen said: “This is one of the most bizarre stories I have ever covered in my forty plus years as a journalist. It has been a fantastic opportunity to tell the story through the podcast as it allowed me to explain the twists and turns of what happened in a way which is suited to audio storytelling. The bitter feud between Marty Percy and the educational institution he oversaw until recently is a cautionary tale about how some institutions in Britain are still run.”

The series will be released weekly and available on all well-known podcast platforms from Thursday 13th October.

This investigation is produced by the Stories of our times podcast production team (Gold, Best True Crime Podcast, British Podcast Awards, 2021) and News UK Broadcasting.