The Interview

The removal of Robert Mugabe as President of Zimbabwe in November 2017 led to several Mugabe loyalists going underground. The most prominent of these is probably Jonathan Moyo - until recently a cabinet minister, key ally and close adviser to Robert Mugabe and his wife Grace. He has been described as one of the most hated men in Zimbabwe and is wanted in the country on corruption charges. Jonathan...

Zeinab Badawi speaks to comedian, actor and disability advocate Maysoon Zayid. She was born in the United States to Palestinian immigrant parents and since birth has been living with cerebral palsy - a condition which affects the brain and nervous system. She believes comedy has the power to transform lives by helping people overcome the disadvantages of being disabled. She also says her stand-up...

Stephen Sackur speaks to Mahmoud al-Zahar, co-founder of the Islamist movement Hamas. Donald Trump broke with long established diplomatic convention by recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital. His recent tweets on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have been music to the ears of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. So what do the Palestinians do now? Hamas controls Gaza and has been at logge...

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to former British Labour Foreign Secretary, Lord David Owen. The beginning of the year is a time for reflecting on the past and plotting a better future. In Britain the focus is on where Brexit is taking the nation. How will leaving the EU affect the UK's sense of itself and its international standing? Lord Owen, David Owen tried and failed to change the face of Br...

We are slowly and inevitably losing the generation of men who fought in and survived the last world war. HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to 96 year old George ‘Johnny’ Johnson – the last remaining British survivor of one of the most extraordinary and most famous aerial missions of World War 2 - the Dambusters raid. It was costly and not entirely successful. So why has it become such a part of Bri...

Israel's prime minister Benyamin Netanyahu took great satisfaction from President Trump’s decision to ignore longstanding international convention and recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital. But that diplomatic boost can't disguise Mr Netanyahu’s vulnerability at home. He's the target of a long running police anti-corruption investigation and may soon face charges. Stephen Sackur speaks to Cabine...

Is Sudan's government coming in from the cold? HARDtalk’s Zeinab Badawi speaks to Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ghandour. The US lifted economic sanctions on Sudan in October ending two decades of its financial isolation. Washington says Sudan has made progress on human rights, democratic reforms and ending ethnic tensions in the country. But critics argue it has not done enough: there’s still no peace...

Not so long ago British food was the laughing stock of the world – it was bland, stodgy and flavourless, but how things have changed. Today the nation seems obsessed with cooking and baking on TV and fine dining. My guest today is one of the new breed of top celebrity television chefs Marcus Wareing. Yes we are now obsessed with good food but is that altogether healthy? (Photo: Marcus Wareing)

Hardtalk is in Oslo to speak to the winners of the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize, ICAN (the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons.) It comes as North Korea continues its testing of missiles capable of reaching the United States with a nuclear warhead. President Trump has threatened ‘fire and fury’ against North Korea and talks of increasing America’s nuclear weapons stockpile. Earlier this ye...

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Swapan Dasgupta, Indian journalist, writer and now member of the country's upper parliamentary chamber. One of the world’s biggest countries has a leader who polarises opinion, stokes nationalist sentiment, has a controversial past, and a predilection for Twitter. I'm thinking of course of India's prime minister Narendra Modi, but are there any parallels to be d...

Stephen Sackur speaks to Winnie Byanyima, the Ugandan boss of Oxfam International who is overseeing the NGO's move from the UK to Kenya. A significant shift is afoot in the world of international development. More of the decision-making power is being located in the global south - closer to the frontline in the war on poverty. There's less talk of aid, more of empowerment, self-help and local solu...

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Jorge Toledo, Spain’s minister for EU affairs. When the Spanish Government threw out the regional Government in Catalonia, imposed direct rule from Madrid and called regional elections, it took a calculated risk. Next month we'll see whether it was well advised. If Catalans give a clear majority to pro-independence parties, Spain - and the European Union - will...

Russian TV journalist Ksenia Sobchak announced last month that she will run to be president of Russia at elections due in March 2018. She is the daughter of the late Anatoly Sobchak who was Mayor of St Petersburg in the 1990s and was a mentor to Vladimir Putin when he was starting in politics. Ksenia Sobchak says the situation in Russia is unjust and although it would be unlikely she could beat Pr...

There aren't many people who are recognisable only from their make-up, but mention a zigzag of black flames around the eyes, painted on a white face, and millions of people around the world will know you are talking about the frontman of the rock band Kiss. Take away the makeup and you have Gene Simmons - a man so canny about business that he realised he could make more money from marketing the Ki...

It is dangerous to generalise about the human impulse to create art, but it does often seem to be linked to the experience of dark and painful places Stephen Sackur speaks to Lemn Sissay - a renowned poet and playwright whose writing and performances lay bare his own intimate wounds. He was abandoned as a baby, rejected by his foster family and abused in public institutions of care. He has since b...

Is it safe to do business in the United Arab Emirates? The former Managing Director of Leeds United, David Haigh thought so, until he endured a 22 month nightmare imprisonment, during which he says he was violently assaulted. His former employer says he's a convicted fraudster. Mr Haigh says he's the victim of legal, economic and political malfeasance. Is there something rotten in the UAE? (Photo:...

How did a boy from the Australian backwoods get to make his celluloid dreams come true? Hardtalk's Stephen Sackur speaks to director Baz Luhrmann who made his name with a wildly entertaining debut movie called Strictly Ballroom. It was theatrical, sentimental and sweet, and became a hit around the world. Since then he has continued to make larger than life films combining dazzling visuals and epic...

Across the world sixty five million people have been forced to flee their homes as a result of war, persecution and economic desperation. It's a migration crisis which is generating immense human misery and alarming levels of political discord. HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to David Miliband - head of the US-based International Rescue Committee and a former British foreign secretary. Can this p...

Should anything be off limits in comedy? It's meant to be subversive. It finds laughter in dark and difficult places, but when comedy goes wrong things can get ugly. Stephen Sackur speaks to Kathy Griffin, an American stand-up comedian probably best known for being pictured last May holding President Trump's severed head in her hand. The Trump head was fake, but the outrage was real - from the Pre...

There's neither blood nor tanks on the streets of Riyadh, but what has happened in Saudi Arabia in recent days represents a revolution of sorts. King Salman and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed have launched a purge of princes, ministers and potential rivals - part of a grand plan to entrench their power and transform the country. HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Saudi journalist, commentator and...

Authority is a priceless commodity in politics. It's not easily measured, but when a Prime Minister loses it then governing becomes a perilous task. So it may be in Britain today - Theresa May has lost two cabinet ministers in a week, with her own team divided over Brexit and seemingly unsure about its core message. HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to the increasingly influential Conservative MP a...

David McAllister is a political ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel and Chairman of the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee. Germany is Europe's pre-eminent power, but how will Berlin use that power over the next decade? The composition of the country's next governing coalition has yet to be decided, and there are strategic uncertainties too. How far does Berlin want to push EU integratio...

How significant will President Trump’s U-turns on Obama-era agreements prove to be? Stephen Sackur speaks to Ernest Moniz, Energy Secretary in the Obama Administration and a key figure in two landmark commitments - the Iran nuclear deal and the Paris climate change accord.

Have the secessionists scored a massive own goal? HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Alfred Bosch of the Republican Left of Catalonia party. Far from settling anything, the Catalan regional government’s recent declaration of independence has deepened the uncertainty and confusion in Catalonia. Madrid has placed the region under direct rule, with the leaders of the ousted administration in Barcelo...

Over the past 25 years Zambia has been a positive example of stable, relatively free and democratic governance in Africa. But that cherished status has been jeopardised recently with the country witnessing a disputed election, political violence, a state of emergency and the imprisonment of Zambian opposition leader, Hakainde Hichilema. He was freed last August, but still refuses to accept the leg...