Alex Turner

Bristol Unpacked podcast cover featuring two people in circular frames on a dark background with yellow accents and 'The Bristol Cable' logo.

Listen: Bristol Unpacked with Neil Maggs

Listen: Bristol Unpacked, with former Lord Mayor Paul Goggin on homelessness, mental health and the struggle for south Bristol votes

'It's been eventful', says Paul Goggin, of a life that has featured both rough sleeping and local politics. He joins Neil Maggs to talk housing, faith, and whether Labour should fear Reform in wards like Hartcliffe and Withywood.

Listen: Bristol Unpacked with Amanda Sharman on leading the charge for boat-dwellers’ rights

Listen: Bristol Unpacked with Samira Musse on community power, how to consult with people, and giving kids confidence lessons

Urban street scene showing a cyclist in the foreground and a lineup of parked cars on either side, with commercial buildings.

Features

‘Liveable neighbourhoods’ have caused uproar in east Bristol. How will they fare south of the river?

The council has started consulting on making large areas of south Bristol friendlier to pedestrians and cyclists. What do residents want – and have lessons been learned about how to communicate with them?

Promotional graphic for 'Bristol Unpacked' with two circular photos of people featuring on a podcast.

Listen: Bristol Unpacked with Neil Maggs

Listen: Bristol Unpacked, with councillor Barry Parsons on Green power in City Hall, and improving relations with council tenants

The Barton House high-rise building in Bristol, seen on a sunny day, partially obscured by trees, with a large red banner reading "The Debrief" across the centre.

The Debrief

Listen: The Debrief – a year after the Barton House evacuation, residents still search for justice

They built a huge wind turbine, but can they bring Lawrence Weston’s last pub back from the dead?

The Giant Goram closed five years ago and is a sorry state after being repeatedly broken into. What would it take for a campaigning group of residents to return it to viability?

Listen: The Debrief – five years on, did Bristol City Council really boot out the bailiffs?

Matty Edwards chats to Alex Turner about whether the council has stuck to a commitment to work more ethically with people who owe it money, and explains why is it so important to stick with these kinds of stories.

Somewhere safe: how a modest cash boost could have a big impact on youth services in Kingswood

Services for young people are few and far between in South Gloucestershire's largest town. But its recently formed local council has set aside nearly half of its annual budget in a bid to change that.

Watch: How Section 60 contributes to rifts between police and the communities they serve

Youth workers, community leaders and the founder of a police monitoring group explain the damaging and traumatising impact of controversial 'suspicionless' search powers in Bristol.

After the crowdfunder: how can cultural spaces not just survive, but thrive?

In Bristol and elsewhere, campaigns to safeguard arts venues’ future are commonplace – and regularly smash fundraising targets. But the hard work doesn’t stop there.

Watchdog finds ‘serious failings’ after concluding council does not know what state its housing is in

Bristol City Council has been called out by a government regulator for not meeting new quality standards, with thousands of repairs and damp and mould cases long overdue for action and many safety check records missing.