Author:Jeremy Bowen,Jeremy Bowen
BBC Middle East Editor Jeremy Bowen presents a personal history of the Middle East.
Over these 25 programmes, Jeremy reflects on the present and the past of the Middle East, after reporting from the region for more than a quarter of a century. He combines first-hand accounts from the front line with an in-depth look into the region's history. He has witnessed endless wars between individuals, religious groups and full-sized states, jostling for military, political and economic power. He has interviewed dictators, fanatics and fundamentalists as well as the ordinary people caught up in their dangerous games. In that time, the past has always been present, providing motivation and political ammunition. Bowen has made headlines himself and he has paid a personal price, coming under fire and losing a colleague in the course of reporting - on the worst day, he says, in his life.
1. The Giant Awakens: On America's dramatic intervention in the region during the massive military build-up to the first Gulf War
2. All Flesh is Glass: Bowen recalls the devastation of the first Gulf War, as he witnessed the aftermath of the bombing of a shelter in Baghdad
3. Retreat to the Mountains: The story of the Kurds of Iraq
4. Jerusalem: On the allure and challenge of the Holy City
5. Recipe for Disaster: How the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin changed the region's history
6. Crossing the Divide: How a gas container explains the divide between the Israelis and the Palestinians
7. Death on the Nile: On the trail of Osama Bin Laden
8. The Final Frontier: Looking back to December 1998, when the West sent bombers into Baghdad
9. A Blunt Instrument: Bowen recalls his tricky dealings with the Iraqi Ministry of Information
10. The Nearness of Death: Bowen describes the worse day of his working life - the day he and his colleagues came under fire from the Israeli Defence Force
11. A Strike to the Heart: The dark days following 9/11
12. The Drums of War: The fallout from the invasion of Iraq in 2003
13. The Unravelling: On what went wrong, as Iraq descended into chaos in the months after the US invasion in 2003
14. Guns and Olive Branches: The life of Yasser Arafat
15. Missiles and the Ballot Box: Exploring Gaza
16. A Taste of Fire and Smoke: The impact of religious divisions across the Middle East
17. A Flash of Nail Varnish: On Iran's strategic position in the Middle East and its attitudes to the West
18. The Revolving Revolution: The popular revolution in Egypt during the Arab Spring
19. Unfollow the Leader: The overthrow of Colonel Gaddafi in Libya
20. Crossing the Line: The dramatic eruption of opposition to the Assad regime in Syria
21. A Mini World War: On the many different layers of war in Syria
22. Oil and Water: The conflict in Yemen and the role of Saudi Arabia
23. The New Sultan: Turkey's dramatic changes under the leadership of President Erdogan
24. Cruelty Without Borders: On the rise and fall of the Islamic State group
25. Through a Glass Darkly: Bowen looks at some of the lessons of the past 25 years - what happens next in the Middle East?
Produced by Mark Savage and Cara Swift.
The audio for this title has been updated as of December 2019.
Thich Nhat Hanh is a holy man...a scholar of immense intellectual capacity
—— Martin Luther KingThe father of mindfulness
—— Irish TimesThich Nhat Hanh shows us the connection between personal inner peace and peace on earth
—— His Holiness the Dalai LamaEnjoyable… Perfectly solid, sensible and often astute.
—— Dominic Sandbrook , Sunday TimesHattersley narrates… with his characteristic energy… His talent for invective remains strong.
—— Gerard Degroot , TimesHattersley offers a scholarly chronicle of heroism and holiness in post-Reformation Britain, when the age of Catholic saints and miracles was seen to survive against the odds.
—— Ian Thomson , Financial TimesThoroughly entertaining… I heartily recommend this volume, which is written with great brio, intelligence and charm; and with a wistful distance from his subjects’ faith which I found very appealing.
—— A.N. Wilson , Catholic HeraldHattersley… excels in describing political machinations… One must admire his courage, not to say his chutzpah, in undertaking a book of such enormous scope.
—— Michael Walsh , TabletThoughtful and thought provoking, minutely researched and well-written
—— ChoiceThe author writes with authority... He engages with his material and shares his enthusiasm with the reader. But equally he is detached: he has no interest in covering up scandals or selling a party line. The engaged outsider becomes a compelling biographer, at once intrigued and underwhelmed by his subject-matter
—— Lavinia Byrne , Church TimesSympathetic and lucid.
—— Daily TelegraphEmily has a style that would make you enjoy her report on the end of the world. Absolutely irresistible
—— Jeremy VineThe irony of this riveting, enlightening and sometimes painfully honest book is that you couldn't meet less of an airhead than Emily Maitlis - a bold, fearless journalist, a splendidly probing and well-prepared interlocutor, and a warm, sharp and witty woman at the top of her game on and off camera. I'm just very disappointed there's only one chapter about me
—— Piers MorganA light and easy read but a thought-provoking one
—— The TimesAn irreverent and amusing account of her media career
—— The Times, 100 Best Books for SummerSmart and Broadcast News-funny, Airhead is peppered with insider anecdotes you could only pick up working on the kind of big news stories that the journalist has covered for decades
—— Daily TelegraphNot an autobiography but a serious book about journalism, disguised in anecdotal chapters about her encounters with the great and the good and the rather awful . . . leads the reader towards a deeper understanding of an essential part of our culture: current affairs . . . this is a book that engages at every level
—— Daily MailVividly demonstrates her drive to report
—— Tatler MagazineMaitlis writes brilliantly
—— TatlerA deliciously funny behind-the-scenes take on broadcasting and her encounters with politicians and celebrities
—— iFascinating . . . [an] excellent book
—— Mail on SundayA behind-the-scenes look at how news gets made
—— ObserverA fascinating and brilliantly evocative ringside seat at some of the most notable interviews she's done
—— Radio TimesBehind-the-scenes accounts of her famous encounters, including those with Donald Trump, Bill Clinton and the Dalai Lama, among many others
—— Daily Mail Books of the YearShe lifts the veil on the inner workings of the BBC, as she reflects on her long career as a journalist
—— Radio TimesShe offers insights into everyone from Donald Trump to Simon Cowell, showing them not just as what they represent, but as individuals with flaws and charm
—— The Press and JournalOne of the best we've read this year . . . This insightful, hilarious and engrossing memoir from one of our most well-liked TV broadcasters takes you behind the scenes of the biggest news stories in recent years
—— SheerLuxe, 15 Best Beach Reads of 2019Recounts, one guest per chapter, a number of her interviews with the boldest of boldface figures . . . Entertaining
—— Strong WordsA quick, absorbing read . . . my overriding impression is of rather breathless thoughtfulness . . . her formidable intelligence and self-deprecating awareness shine brightly
—— Times Higher EducationWe love the Maitlis
—— StylistWe're obsessed with Emily Maitlis in this house
—— Nick GrimshawEmily Maitlis is a particular hero of mine . . . I know I'm in for a treat with Airhead
—— Gaby Huddart, Editor-in-chief, Good HousekeepingEmily Maitlis is one of my favourite interviewers and I want to read her tales of interviewing people such as Donald Trump, Theresa May and Simon Cowell
—— Catriona Shearer, Sunday MailA fascinating behind-the-scenes insight into modern television news
—— Time & Leisure MagazineIt's a brilliant, often funny, behind-the-scenes account of her working life, written by one of Britain's best television broadcasters. It proves she's far from an airhead!
—— John CravenShe gives readers a behind-the-scenes look at some of the most engaging interviews she's conducted in recent years - with all the wrangling, arguing, pleading and last-minute script writing they involved. Insightful, funny and engrossing, we love it.
—— SheerLuxe