What Just Happened? A Polpeo Podcast
The podcast that looks at the biggest brand crises of our time.
31 episodes
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monthly cadence
English language
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Episodes
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The podcast that looks at the biggest brand crises of our time.
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What happens when a company challenges damaging media coverage in court? Can legal action restore commercial confidence, or does it simply revive the allegations and expose them to a much wider audience? And in an age when AI systems continually resurface past controversies, can a brand ever truly move on from a reputational crisis? In this episode of What Just Happened?, Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton examine Evri’s reported £1.2 million legal action against the BBC following a Panorama documentary broadcast in December 2025. The programme raised concerns about delivery standards, customer
What happens when a brand makes a bold Pride statement and refuses to retreat when criticism follows? Can humour create genuine connection with LGBTQ+ audiences, or does it risk reducing a diverse community to a stereotype? And when opposition becomes loud and hostile, should organisations apologise, stand firm or reconsider how they demonstrate their values? In this episode of What Just Happened?, Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton examine the reaction to HelloFresh’s cheeky Pride Month social media post and explore what the controversy reveals about corporate inclusion, brand values and crisi
How does a global brand make a mistake so culturally insensitive that it triggers boycotts, political condemnation, police scrutiny and store closures? In this episode of What Just Happened?, Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton discuss Starbucks Korea’s ‘Tank Day’ promotion, launched on the anniversary of the 1980 Gwangju Uprising, when tanks were used to suppress pro-democracy demonstrations. They look at what happens when a local marketing campaign ignores historical trauma, and how far can accountability travel when a franchise relationship sits between the incident and global headquarters? T
What happens when employees turn a company’s own communication channels against it? How should organisations handle redundancies in an era where every meeting can be recorded, every internal message can be leaked and every disgruntled employee has a platform? In this episode of What Just Happened?, Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton revisit the 2013 HMV redundancy crisis, one of the most famous social media crises of the digital age, and examine why its lessons remain just as relevant today. When employees who were being laid off live-tweeted the process from the company’s official Twitter acco
Ahead of the recent Championship playoff final, with the winners promoted to the Premier League and also set to benefit to the tune of £200 million, Southampton admitted to spying on Middlesbrough’s training sessions in an attempt to gain a competitive edge. What began as a bizarre story involving an analyst intern hiding behind a tree with a camera quickly escalated into a full-scale reputational disaster, culminating in Southampton being expelled from the playoffs by the EFL. In this episode of What Just Happened?, Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton unpack the fallout that followed one of the
What makes an apology believable? And what turns an apology into a crisis of its own? In this episode of What Just Happened?, Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton revisit themes from their conversation with crisis communications expert Abby Mangold, exploring the messy, highly human territory of public apologies, CEO misconduct and organisational redemption. The discussion looks at the difference between a real apology and a non-apology, reflecting on the work of Dr Harriet Lerner and Brené Brown about why people apologise, what they are really trying to repair and why certain phrases often make
In July 2024, a faulty software update to cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike’s Falcon platform caused around 8.5 million Windows devices to crash. The incident disrupted airlines, hospitals, banks, broadcasters and public services, with the UK economy alone estimated to have lost around £2 billion. In this episode of ‘What Just Happened?’, hosts Tamara Littleton and Kate Hartley are joined by managing partner at Clarity Kristin Ingraham to look at the reputational and legal fallout, including Delta Airlines’ $500 million lawsuit, CrowdStrike’s controversial $10 Uber Eats voucher gesture to vendors
When a fake pop-up shop called Mumumelon appeared just five doors away from a Luluemon store in London, eyebrows were raised. It turned out to be a climate-focused activist campaign focused on exposing a perceived gap between Lululemon’s sustainability messaging and its actual environmental impact. And it left the company in somewhat of a dilemma: start legal action and invite scrutiny, or risk trying to engage constructively with a provocative campaign? In this episode of WJH Shorts, Tamara Littleton and Kate Hartley dissect an emerging crisis for Lululemon and how it should respond. The stun
Reputational damage rarely stems from a single incident, but from patterns of failure that expose deeper cultural issues. In 2024 a door blew out on an Alaska Airlines flight and, while not fatal, this reignited concerns rooted in 2018 and 2019 crashes involving Boeing aircraft that killed 346 people and were linked to design flaws and failures in safety processes. What emerged was not just a technical problem but a systemic one, where safety concerns were known, raised, and in some cases ignored. In this episode of ‘What Just Happened?’, hosts Tamara Littleton and Kate Hartley are joined by a
After going into administration on 2nd March, the fallout for BrewDog’s investors, employees and reputation has been rapid and calamitous. The collapse led to the company being acquired by US beverage firm Tilray, saving some jobs but leading to 484 redundancies and the closure of 38 UK bars. Crucially, the “equity punks” – around 200,000 crowdfunding investors – have lost their investments, while co-founders James Watt and Martin Dickey had already exited with significant personal gains after selling shares in 2017. In this episode of WJH Shorts, Tamara Littleton and Kate Hartley explore the
On 27th February, President Donald Trump ordered the US Government to stop using technology from AI company Anthropic, developer of the Claude LLM. "We don't need it, we don't want it, and will not do business with them again!" he wrote in a post on Truth Social. The issue arose when Anthropic refused to accept new terms from the US Department of Defence that would have granted the military unrestricted access to its AI tools. According to Anthropic’s CEO, Dario Amodei, the company drew “red lines” around the potential use of AI for domestic mass surveillance and fully autonomous weapons, citi
The Coldplay kiss cam incident in July 2025 was a great example of what can happen when a CEO is inadvertently caught in the line of fire for behaviour that is misaligned with company values. Leadership scandals can attract huge and intense public attention, and organisations need to prepare for such time as one of their senior leaders behaves badly. In this episode of ‘What Just Happened?’, hosts Tamara Littleton and Kate Hartley are joined by crisis communications expert Abby Mangold to discuss how CEOs are often placed on pedestals as symbols of organisational values, making their fall from
In April 2025, Marks & Spencer suffered a significant ransomware cyber attack that severely disrupted its operations for several months and cost the company an estimated £300 million in lost profit. Among the impacts were the theft of customer data, the failure of online sales and empty store shelves. In this episode of ‘What Just Happened?’, hosts Tamara Littleton and Kate Hartley are joined by crisis management expert Jonathan Hemus to discuss how M&S handled communications, particularly the prominent role played by CEO Stuart Machin. While generally praised for being visible, personal and a
Del Monte is a globally recognised brand that has been in existence for nearly 140 years. But in 2023, The Guardian and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism uncovered allegations that security guards at Del Monte Kenya had assaulted and even killed people suspected of stealing pineapples. Reports also revealed a decade-long pattern of brutality, including sexual violence, and claims that innocent passers-by were targeted while using a public road through the farm. In this episode of ‘What Just Happened?’, hosts Tamara Littleton and Kate Hartley are joined by strategic communications expert M
In March 2022, Florida’s Senate passed a bill to ban discussions of sexual orientation or gender identity in primary schools. The so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill stirred up major controversy at Disney, which has a complex history with the LGBTQ+ community, when it stayed silent despite having a significant presence in the state and being a major employer at the Disney World theme park. In this episode of ‘What Just Happened?’, hosts Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton explore Disney’s LGBTQ+ history, from early bans on same-sex dancing to the evolution of “Gay Days” at its parks, and how its valu
Until 2014 Shell had enjoyed a 50-year-long brand partnership with LEGO. But it came to an abrupt and high profile end after Greenpeace’s “Everything is Not Awesome” campaign, which targeted the long-standing partnership due to Shell’s Arctic drilling activities. Initially reluctant to end the deal, LEGO faced mounting public pressure after Greenpeace released a viral, emotionally powerful video that used LEGO imagery to highlight environmental damage. The backlash ultimately led LEGO to announce it would not renew the arrangement. In this episode of ‘What Just Happened?’, hosts Kate Hartley a
During the medal presentation at the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup, Luis Rubiales, then-president of the Spanish Football Federation, forcibly kissed Spanish player Jenni Hermoso on the lips. The act, which Hermoso did not consent to, led to widespread condemnation and calls for his resignation. Rubiales initially defended his actions, but eventually faced suspension by FIFA and later was found guilty of sexual assault. In this episode of ‘What Just Happened?”, hosts Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton are joined by Emma Woollcott, a partner at Mishcon de Reya, to explore the fallout from the inci
In January 2009, US Airways Flight 1549 suffered a dual engine failure shortly after take-off from LaGuardia Airport due to a bird strike. Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger and First Officer Jeff Skiles conducted an emergency landing on the Hudson River and, remarkably, all 155 passengers and crew survived. In this episode of “What Just Happened?”, hosts Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton are joined by aviation psychologist Gill Green to discuss the extraordinary calm and leadership demonstrated by ‘Sully’, who made the critical decision to land on the Hudson, executing it flawlessly with su
This episode of “What Just Happened?” explores the widespread abuse committed by former Harrods owner Mohammed Al Fayed and its lasting impact on the Harrods brand. Decades of sexual assault allegations came to light after Al Fayed’s death in 2023 and, despite previous media investigations and survivor reports, systemic failures – including legal threats, NDAs, and a culture of fear – prevented accountability. Harrods has since accepted vicarious liability and faces compensation claims from hundreds of women. Hosts Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton are joined by Anne Marie Blake to discuss how
This episode of “What Just Happened?” explores the growing threat of deepfake technology in corporate settings. In 2024, a major incident involving engineering company Arup saw a finance employee tricked into transferring £20 million after a video call with deepfaked colleagues. Hosts Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton are joined by legal expert Emma Woollcott to discuss the criminal side of the activity and the current gaps in legislation. The episode looks at the increasing sophistication and accessibility of deepfakes, particularly in video form, and how this poses significant risks to busin
In this episode of “What Just Happened?”, hosts Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton talk to the whistleblower at the heart of one of the biggest corporate bribery scandals in history, Jonathan Taylor. A former lawyer for SBM Offshore, Taylor uncovered and reported a $240 million bribery scheme involving governments and oil companies worldwide. Despite alerting the authorities, he faced years of retaliation, including legal battles, extradition attempts, and personal hardship. Taylor reflects on the role of corporate culture in enabling corruption, explaining how SBM’s long-standing bribery pract
The TalkTalk data breach of 2015 was one of the most high profile cybersecurity incidents in the UK. Initially attributed to sophisticated hackers and feared to have exposed the personal data of over 4 million customers, it was later revealed to be the work of teenagers using basic techniques to exploit vulnerabilities in the company’s database. But the damage was already done for TalkTalk. In this episode of "What Just Happened?," hosts Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton are joined by seasoned crisis specialist Catherine Colloms to talk about how the breach highlighted systemic failings in Tal
In 2011 Wells Fargo bank was thrown into the centre of a scandal that resulted in it being fined $185 million for creating over 2 million fraudulent accounts without customers' knowledge. Driven by aggressive sales targets, the bank saw a 43% drop in new account openings and a 55% drop in credit card applications. Over 5000 employees were fired. In today’s episode of ‘What Just Happened?’, hosts Kate Hartley and Tamara Littleton are joined by corporate culture expert Jane Fordham to discuss how Wells Fargo responded and the wider issues around a culture that drove fraud on such a large scale.
In March 2014, Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 completely disappeared and became one of the greatest mysteries in aviation history. The Boeing 777, carrying 239 people, lost contact with air traffic control shortly after takeoff from Kuala Lumpur and, despite extensive search efforts, the plane was never found. In today’s episode of ‘What Just Happened?’, hosts Kate Hartley and Tamara Liitleton are joined by Rod Cartwright, who was directly involved in the crisis response. They discuss the many challenges faced by the crisis team, including a total lack of information coupled with widespread sp
This week’s show discusses the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon disaster, the largest marine oil spill in history. Hosts Tamara Littleton and Kate Hartley, along with special guest Zaiba Malik, look at how the explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig killed 11 workers and caused a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, severely impacting the environment and local communities. BP faced financial collapse, paying $65 billion over eight years in compensation, fines, and cleanup costs. The disaster exposed significant flaws in BP's safety measures and leadership, particularly with regard to CEO Tony
