Listen Now: Foul Play

Summary

Podcast Summary: American Scandal – "Listen Now: Foul Play"

Date: June 22, 2026
Host: Audible
Featured Voices: Gabriel Gatehouse, Ed Jervis
Episode Focus: Introduction and teaser for the new series "Foul Play," investigating a Cold War-era conspiracy around the legendary English footballer Gordon Banks.

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Overview:

This episode serves as an engaging introduction to "Foul Play," a podcast series exploring the intersection of sports, espionage, and family history. Hosts Gabriel Gatehouse, an investigative journalist, and Ed Jervis, grandson of football legend Gordon Banks, embark on an international investigation into a decades-old rumor: was Gordon Banks, England's World Cup-winning goalkeeper, poisoned by spies during the 1970 World Cup in Mexico? The teaser blends family anecdote, sporting history, and a potential Cold War conspiracy, promising listeners an "unbelievable tale of sport, spies and family secrets."

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Hook: Football, Family, and Espionage

• Personal Connection:

  • Ed Jervis introduces himself as “an ordinary dad of two small kids from Stoke on Trent,” perplexed to find himself searching secret police archives in Mexico (00:48).
  • Quote, Ed Jervis [00:48]: “It feels pretty surreal right now to be in Mexico, in an old prison, digging through the archives of the Mexican secret police.”

• The Central Mystery:

  • The hosts discover that Gordon Banks’s name and photograph appear in Mexican secret police files.
  • Quote, Gabriel Gatehouse [01:23]: “We’re looking for evidence that more than 50 years ago, in the summer of 1970, spies were surveilling my granddad.”

The Sporting Legend: Who Was Gordon Banks?

• Legacy Recap:
  • Ed recounts Banks as the goalkeeper who helped England to its only World Cup win (1966), celebrated as a national hero and perhaps the greatest to ever play in goal (02:00–02:29).
  • Quote, Ed Jervis [01:58]: “My granddad was a football player...the man in goal in 1966, the one and only time England have ever won the World Cup.”

The Illness That Changed History

• World Cup 1970:

  • Banks fell mysteriously ill before a key match, leading to England’s elimination and sparking rumors and suspicions ever since (04:12–05:04).
  • Quote, Ed Jervis [05:04]: “We didn’t even qualify for another World cup for another 12 years, and even then it seemed like a curse had been laid on the national team.”

• Family Folklore and Dismissed Suspicions:

  • Ed shares how his grandfather suspected foul play, joking “I was nobbled” (05:12–05:44).

The Conspiracy Theory Emerges

• A Deathbed Mystery:
  • After Gordon Banks’s passing, Ed learns of a rumor that the CIA poisoned Banks to help support a Cold War dictator—a tale dismissed as absurd by Gabriel (05:44–06:44).
  • Quote, Gabriel Gatehouse [05:44]: “Why would the CIA want to poison an English footballer? Something about the Cold War and supporting a military dictator...I told him I’d look into it, thinking I’ll debunk this straight away.”

The Investigation Begins

• From Skepticism to Obsession:
  • Despite his initial reluctance, Gabriel becomes intrigued as the evidence mounts and the tale gets “stranger.”
  • Quote, Gabriel Gatehouse [06:44]: “Well, three years later, here I am, and the deeper I dig, the stranger it gets.”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Feeling Out of Place:

  • Ed Jervis [00:48]: “It feels pretty surreal right now to be in Mexico, in an old prison, digging through the archives of the Mexican secret police.”

• On Sporting Legacy:

  • Ed Jervis [01:58]: “My granddad was a football player...the man in goal in 1966, the one and only time England have ever won the World Cup.”

• On Conspiracy and Skepticism:

  • Gabriel Gatehouse [05:44]: “I may not know much about football, but I do know about conspiracy theories and this looks like a classic.”
  • Gabriel Gatehouse [06:44]: “The deeper I dig, the stranger it gets.”

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Key Timestamps

• 00:32–01:43: Ed and Gabriel in Mexico, discovering Gordon Banks in secret police archives.
• 01:58–02:29: Ed recounts Gordon Banks's entry into football history.
• 04:12–05:12: The mystery illness during the 1970 World Cup and its aftermath.
• 05:12–05:44: Family treatment of the rumor; Banks’s suspicions dismissed as jokes.
• 06:00–06:44: Emergence of the CIA conspiracy theory, initial disbelief, and investigative hook.

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Tone & Style

• Language: Personal, informal, and richly anecdotal, blending journalistic skepticism (Gabriel) with deeply felt family intrigue (Ed).
• Narrative Style: Suspenseful and engaging, with a promise to explore layers of truth and subterfuge.

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Conclusion

"Foul Play" sets up a tantalizing investigation into the mysterious circumstances surrounding Gordon Banks’s illness during the 1970 World Cup, blending football history, Cold War intrigue, and personal quest. Ed Jervis’s family story draws listeners in, while Gabriel Gatehouse’s journalistic instincts raise compelling questions about evidence, rumor, and the thin lines between scandal and conspiracy.

Call to Action:
Listeners are invited to follow the full investigation on the Audible app or wherever they get their podcasts. All episodes are available early and ad-free for Audible subscribers.

Transcript

[A]

Hi, I'm Gabriel Gatehouse.

[B]

And I'm Ed Jervis.

[A]

And we're about to play you a clip from Foul Play, a new podcast

[B]

series in which we investigate whether the

[A]

CIA poisoned my grandad and possibly laid a curse on English football. It's an unbelievable tale of sport, spies and family secrets.

[B]

And here's a taster.

[C]

We'll hear the name of your grandfather, please.

[B]

My name's Ed and I feel like I'm having a sort of out of body experience right now.

[C]

Banks, Gordon.

[A]

Yes.

[C]

Let me check.

[B]

I'm an ordinary dad of two small kids from Stoke on Trent in the English Midlands. I don't travel much.

[C]

They have a little secret repository. Nobody knows

[B]

we missed this. So it feels pretty surreal right now to be in Mexico, in an old prison, digging through the archives of the Mexican secret police.

[C]

Maybe we can find something.

[A]

You're putting Gordon Banks name into a secret, secret database.

[B]

I'm here with Gabriel Gatehouse, an investigative journalist, and we're looking for evidence that more than 50 years ago, in the summer of 1970, spies were surveilling my granddad.

[C]

Yes. They have photos of your grandfather.

[A]

What?

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Can we see?

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

My granddad wasn't a secret agent. He had no links to Mexico. No, his name has got no business being in this archive. My granddad was a football player. Maybe you call it soccer. He was quite famous, actually. He almost made it.

[A]

And if it hadn't been Gordon Banks

[B]

in that goal, he would have done. Gordon Banks, the world's number one goalkeeper. Gordon Banks, my grandad, was the man in goal in 1966, the one and only time England have ever won the World Cup.

[A]

Well done, Gordon Banks, the hero of England. They think it's all over. It is now.

[B]

Some argue my granddad was the greatest goalkeeper to have ever played the game. So what the hell is his photo doing in the archives of the Mexican secret police?

[C]

They have more information.

[A]

Oh, my God.

[C]

I know.

[A]

Yeah. So that other voice you hear is me. And yes, I am a serious journalist. At least I think I am. I've covered wars and revolutions, stories about Russian spies for two days. In 2011, a contact of mine had the body of the Libyan dictator, Colonel Gaddafi hidden in his fridge. I've reported some crazy stories in my time, but this one I've been dragged into, against my better judgment, because at first sight it seems absurd. Couldn't have happened. Unless it did. In which case it might just be the craziest story I've ever heard. It all started three years ago when a Stranger comes up to me. You're Gabriel Gatehouse, aren't you? He says. I loved your podcast. This happens to me from time to time, ever since I did a series about conspiracy theories in America. Thanks, I say. Who are you?

[B]

It's me, Ed, I tell Gabriel. I've got a story for him about football.

[A]

Let me stop you right there, I say. I'm not into football. I don't know anything about it. But Ed won't let it go. Have you heard of Gordon Banks? He asks.

[B]

Gordon Banks. Another trophy for his sideboard.

[A]

John Mahoney, the substitute goalkeeper, right? National hero from a bygone age when the England men's football team still won things. Yeah, even I've heard of Gordon Banks. So Ed starts telling me this story about his famous granddad and the World cup. But not 1966, the one we won? No, the next one in Mexico. In 1970, England were the defending champions, Ed says, one of the favorites to win. But Grandad fell ill. Food poisoning, apparently. Gordon Banks was too sick to play. He recovered a few days later, but England crashed out and English football was never the same again.

[B]

We didn't even qualify for another World cup for another 12 years, and even then it seemed like a curse had been laid on the national team.

[A]

We're talking about the men's team here. The women are doing just fine. Anyway, Ed says his grandad was always suspected. His illness was no accident. I was nobbled, he'd say. He thought someone had got to him all those years ago, though who or how. To his dying day, he never knew. Ed never really took it seriously.

[B]

We would just sort of laugh it off and kind of, oh yeah, all right, Grandad won too many tacos for some dodgy street vendor or whatever it was.

[A]

But after Gordon Banks death, Ed says someone tells him your granddad was poisoned to sabotage England and the plot was masterminded by the CIA. The CIA. I may not know much about football, but I do know about conspiracy theories, and this looks like a classic. I mean, why would the CIA want to poison an English footballer? Something about the Cold War and supporting a military dictator. Ed said it sounded kind of ridiculous. I told him I'd look into it, thinking I'll debunk this straight away. Well, three years later, here I am, and the deeper I dig, the stranger it gets. Follow Foul Play on the Audible app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can binge all episodes of Foul Play early and ad free right now by joining Audible in the Audible app or on Apple Podcasts.