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CultureQuiet 5d · day 6

Pet Shop Boys release Putin satire song timed to Russia's Duma elections

"A Top Secret Washing Machine" revisits Alexei Navalny's 2020 Novichok poisoning as Russians vote in parliamentary elections.

newest coverage 4d agosummary written 4d ago3 pieces122 likes & upvotes6 comments NewswiresMastodonBluesky

What to know

  • The song's release was deliberately timed to Russia's State Duma parliamentary elections.
  • It revisits Navalny's 2020 Novichok poisoning, in which FSB officers applied the nerve agent to his underwear in a Tomsk hotel room.
  • The video quotes Navalny's own February 2021 courtroom remarks predicting Putin would be remembered as "the Underpants Poisoner."
  • It follows the band's earlier Russia-themed releases: "Living in the Past" (2023, comparing Putin to Stalin), "Dancing Star" (2024, on Rudolf Nureyev), and "Hymn" (2025, in memory of Navalny).

“He has never taken part in a debate or an election. His only method of fighting is trying to kill people.”

Alexei Navalny, Late Russian opposition leader · Meduza ↗ · Sep 17

Pet Shop Boys British pop duoAlexei NavalnyAlexei Navalny Late Russian opposition leaderVladimir PutinVladimir Putin President of Russia

Pet Shop Boys release Putin satire song timed to Russia's Duma elections
meduza.io

How it unfolded 1 development · click the chart to see its coverage articlesposts

Peak 1 piece in two hours at Sep 18, 2 PM; 3 pieces over 6 days (1 article · 2 posts) Sep 18, 2 PM — 1 piece · 1 article — Newswires 1Sep 18, 4 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 18, 6 PM — quietSep 18, 8 PM — quietSep 18, 10 PM — quietSep 19, 12 AM — quietSep 19, 2 AM — quietSep 19, 4 AM — quietSep 19, 6 AM — quietSep 19, 8 AM — quietSep 19, 10 AM — quietSep 19, 12 PM — quietSep 19, 2 PM — quietSep 19, 4 PM — quietSep 19, 6 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Bluesky 1Sep 19, 8 PM — quietSep 19, 10 PM — quietSep 20, 12 AM — quietSep 20, 2 AM — quietSep 20, 4 AM — quietSep 20, 6 AM — quietSep 20, 8 AM — quietSep 20, 10 AM — quietSep 20, 12 PM — quietSep 20, 2 PM — quietSep 20, 4 PM — quietSep 20, 6 PM — quietSep 20, 8 PM — quietSep 20, 10 PM — quietSep 21, 12 AM — quietSep 21, 2 AM — quietSep 21, 4 AM — quietSep 21, 6 AM — quietSep 21, 8 AM — quietSep 21, 10 AM — quietSep 21, 12 PM — quietSep 21, 2 PM — quietSep 21, 4 PM — quietSep 21, 6 PM — quietSep 21, 8 PM — quietSep 21, 10 PM — quietSep 22, 12 AM — quietSep 22, 2 AM — quietSep 22, 4 AM — quietSep 22, 6 AM — quietSep 22, 8 AM — quietSep 22, 10 AM — quietSep 22, 12 PM — quietSep 22, 2 PM — quietSep 22, 4 PM — quietSep 22, 6 PM — quietSep 22, 8 PM — quietSep 22, 10 PM — quietYesterday, 12 AM — quietYesterday, 2 AM — quietYesterday, 4 AM — quietYesterday, 6 AM — quietYesterday, 8 AM — quietYesterday, 10 AM — quietYesterday, 12 PM — quietYesterday, 2 PM — quietYesterday, 4 PM — quietYesterday, 6 PM — quietYesterday, 8 PM — quietYesterday, 10 PM — quietToday, 12 AM — quietToday, 2 AM — quietToday, 4 AM — quietToday, 6 AM — quietToday, 8 AM — quiet 1
Sep 19Sep 20Sep 21Sep 22yesterdaynow · 9:54 AM ET
  1. 1

    Social media picks up the song as Putin satire

    Posts on Bluesky describe the track as satirizing Vladimir Putin and the secrecy around him, spreading the release beyond Meduza's initial coverage.

    “The British band Pet Shop Boys has released a track called "A Top Secret Washing Machine," which satirizes Vladimir Putin and the secrecy surrounding him.”
    — @insideukraine.bsky.social
    • insideukraine.bsky.social

      The British band Pet Shop Boys has released a track called "A Top Secret Washing Machine," which satirizes Vladimir Putin and the secrecy surrounding him.

      insideukraine.bsky.socialBluesky4d ago122▲view on Bluesky ↗
    1 more of the top 2 · 2 posts in this stretch
    • meduza_en@masto.ai

      Pet Shop Boys are back with another song about Vladimir Putin. “A Top Secret Washing Machine,” released for Russia’s State Duma elections, invokes Alexey Navalny’s 2020 poisoning and asks who keeps Putin’s secrets — and his underpants clean. https:// meduza.io/en/feature/2026/09/1…

      meduza_en@masto.aiMastodon5d agoview on Mastodon ↗
    all of them →
  2. background

    Pet Shop Boys release "A Top Secret Washing Machine" — The band posted the song to its YouTube channel timed to Russia's State Duma elections; the video description quotes Alexei Navalny's February 2021 remarks at Moscow's Simonovsky District Court about being poisoned.

What people are saying 0 voices from 0 sites · best of 2 · verbatim