Havana Helmet Club

10. The 7th Floor

Arriving into Washington in 2023, Adam plans to officially put his testimony on the US government record – if they will let him – then walk off into the sunset. The past seven years have taken a toll on Adam, progressively broken down by the fight. He is confused as to why his government seems to have turned against him. In his mind, this is his last stand. But as with everything in the story of Havana Syndrome, nothing is straightforward – with the US government and the intelligence community keen to shut the door on the saga. In this final episode of Havana Helmet Club, Jennifer Forde and Sam Bungey try to pull all the pieces of the mystery together. Credits Havana Helmet Club is written and presented by Jennifer Forde and Sam Bungey Editor: Guy Crossman Story editing: Mike Ollove Producer: Larry Ryan Sound designer: Merijn Royaards Additional mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme music: Tom Pintens, with additional music composed by Merijn Royaards Fact checking: Stanley Masters. Additional reporting: Isobel Sutton, Pascale Hardey Stewart and Stanley Masters Archive producers: Miriam Walsh and Helen Carr Production executive: Kirstin Drybrugh Editorial advisor: Jesse Baker Commissioner: Dylan Haskins Assistant commissioners: Sarah Green and Natasha Johansson Havana Helmet Club is a Yarn production for Radio 4 and BBC Sounds. This episode was edited and updated on 5 September 2025.

9. Squeaky Fans

“A tense environment and a good villain” are the perfect ingredients for mass hysteria, according to psychologist and epidemiologist Professor Simon Wessley. It’s a phrase so toxic, it was removed from the diagnostic manual in the late 1960s. But as neurologist and mystery illness expert Suzanne O’Sullivan explains, “We are all vulnerable. We just need to meet the right circumstance.” In the penultimate episode of Havana Helmet Club, Jennifer Forde and Sam Bungey investigate high-profile cases of mass hysteria – now known as mass psychogenic illness or conversion disorder - for clues about Havana Syndrome. Could it be the solution to the puzzle, or a way for the CIA to dig themselves out of a hole? Credits Havana Helmet Club is written and presented by Jennifer Forde and Sam Bungey Editor: Guy Crossman Story editing: Mike Ollove Producer: Larry Ryan Sound designer: Merijn Royaards Additional mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme music: Tom Pintens, with additional music composed by Merijn Royaards Fact checking: Stanley Masters. Additional reporting: Isobel Sutton, Pascale Hardey Stewart and Stanley Masters Archive producers: Miriam Walsh and Helen Carr Production executive: Kirstin Drybrugh Editorial advisor: Jesse Baker Commissioner: Dylan Haskins Assistant commissioners: Sarah Green and Natasha Johansson Havana Helmet Club is a Yarn production for Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.

8. The Cart Before the Flying Donkey

When the Cubans announce an international science conference in Havana, American spies try to nip it in the bud, suspecting a sophisticated disinformation campaign. With politics and bad blood threatening to cloud out the science story, a group of scientists get together and a very different theory for Havana Syndrome is put forward. Credits Havana Helmet Club is written and presented by Jennifer Forde and Sam Bungey Editor: Guy Crossman Story editing: Mike Ollove Producer: Larry Ryan Sound designer: Merijn Royaards Additional mixing: Ger McDonnell Theme music: Tom Pintens, with additional music composed by Merijn Royaards Fact checking: Stanley Masters. Additional reporting: Isobel Sutton, Pascale Hardey Stewart and Stanley Masters Archive producers: Miriam Walsh and Helen Carr Production executive: Kirstin Drybrugh Editorial advisor: Jesse Baker Commissioner: Dylan Haskins Assistant commissioners: Sarah Green and Natasha Johansson Archive sourced from NBC and El Ministerio de Salud Pública de Cuba Havana Helmet Club is a Yarn production for Radio 4 and BBC Sounds This episode was edited and updated on 13th August 2025 to correct two factual errors in the original version, namely that we quote Dr Stephen Hampton not Dr Randal Swanson in relation to the first uPenn paper, and that 'Adam' did not attend Walter Reed hospital in relation to his symptoms.

7. America's Backyard

Adam gets a workplace medal for bringing Havana Syndrome to light – but a sceptical new CIA director throws everything back up in the air. Meanwhile, things get heated in Cuba, after US covert operations seemingly provoke rioting across the country. Appalled by what he is seeing, a Cuban scientist decides to take action. Credits Havana Helmet Club is written and presented by Jennifer Forde and Sam Bungey Editor: Guy Crossman Additional Editing : Simon Pearce Story editing: Mike Ollove Producer: Larry Ryan Sound designer: Merijn Royaards Additional mixing: Peregrine Andrews Theme music: Tom Pintens, with additional music composed by Merijn Royaards Fact checking: Stanley Masters. Additional reporting: Isobel Sutton, Pascale Hardey Stewart and Stanley Masters Archive producers: Miriam Walsh and Helen Carr Production executive: Kirstin Drybrugh Editorial advisor: Jesse Baker Commissioner: Dylan Haskins Assistant commissioners: Sarah Green and Natasha Johansson

6. The Thing

When the room begins spinning wildly, CIA agent Marc believes he has been hit on an assignment in Moscow. It turns out, an eerily similar phenomena in the Russian capital - affecting US embassy staff – happened before, in the 1970s… Meanwhile, Adam - back on US soil - begins to suspect he is being followed. And the search is on for an untraceable weapon. Credits Havana Helmet Club is written and presented by Jennifer Forde and Sam Bungey Editor: Guy Crossman Story editing: Mike Ollove Producer: Larry Ryan Sound designer: Merijn Royaards Additional mixing: Peregrine Andrews Theme music: Tom Pintens, with additional music composed by Merijn Royaards Fact checking: Stanley Masters. Additional reporting: Isobel Sutton, Pascale Hardey Stewart and Stanley Masters Archive producers: Miriam Walsh and Helen Carr Production executive: Kirstin Drybrugh Editorial advisor: Jesse Baker Commissioner: Dylan Haskins Assistant commissioners: Sarah Green and Natasha Johansson Havana Helmet Club is a Yarn production for Radio 4 and BBC Sounds