The Interview

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Financier and Brexit backer Stuart Wheeler Oct 11, 2019

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Brexit represents a political gamble played for the highest of stakes. If Britain leaves the EU without a deal there will be significant economic disruption, even the most ardent Brexiteers acknowledge that. But they believe the potential rewards justify the risk. Stephen Sackur speaks to Stuart Wheeler, a successful businessman and lifelong gambler who backed his commitment to Brexit with plenty of his own cash. Has his money given him undue influence over Britain’s future?

Image: Stuart Wheeler (Credit: Yui Mok/PA Wire)

Suede singer-songwriter Brett Anderson Oct 09, 2019

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Rock music inhabits a world of permanent revolution. Today’s biggest bands will most likely be tomorrow’s tired old has-beens. But just occasionally artists and groups find a way of reinventing themselves and outlasting the constant fluctuations in fashion and taste. Stephen Sackur speaks to the singer-songwriter Brett Anderson. His band Suede was hailed as the future of Rock'n'Roll back in the early 1990s. Today they are still making music a generation after Britpop ceased to be a thing. So what keeps him going?

Brazil's Environment Minister - Ricardo Salles Oct 07, 2019

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The number of forest fires burning in the Amazon rainforest may have dropped since the global alarm was raised in August, but Brazil’s Government is still feeling intense political heat. Stephen Sackur interviews Brazilian Environment Minister Ricardo Salles, who is in Europe trying to convince sceptics that President Bolsonaro’s government is not prioritising economic exploitation at the expense of environmental protection. How credible are the Brazilian Government’s soothing words?

Image: Ricardo Salles (Credit: Bertrand Guay/AFP/Getty Images)

Actor and activist - Jameela Jamil Oct 04, 2019

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Zeinab Badawi interviews British actress, activist and model Jameela Jamil. After breaking into the US with the critically-acclaimed comedy series ‘The Good Place’, she’s been getting attention for her criticism of celebrities like the Kardashians for their promotion of diet products to millions of young women on social media. Is her campaign to make us feel better about our bodies working?

Daughter of former Chief Minister of Kashmir Mehbooba Mufti - Iltija Mufti Oct 02, 2019

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It has been two months since India revoked the special autonomous status of Jammu and Kashmir, and Delhi still has the territory in a form of lockdown. Political leaders are detained, troops are on the streets and communication links are disrupted. The Modi Government seems confident its dramatic cancellation of a 70-year-old dispensation has worked; but what of Kashmiri feeling? Stephen Sackur speaks to Iltija Mufti, the daughter of former Chief Minister of Kashmir Mehbooba Mufti, who is currently in detention. Do Kashmiris have any choice but to accept their new reality?

Lawyer - Kimberley Motley Sep 30, 2019

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What have almost two decades of American intervention in Afghanistan achieved? HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Kimberley Motley - an American lawyer who went to Kabul in a training capacity and stayed to become a respected litigator fighting for the rights of the abused and the powerless. The death toll in the Afghan conflict far outstrips the losses in Syria and Yemen. But the grim statistics tell only a part of Afghanistan’s story. Does her experience give grounds for hope or despair?

Former White House Communications Director - Anthony Scaramucci Sep 27, 2019

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Is impeachment a trap for President Trump's opponents? HARDtalk's Stephen Sackur speaks to Anthony Scaramucci, former Trump cheerleader, briefly his communications director and now an arch critic. The Trump presidency has seen US politics become ever more polarised and partisan. The Democrats decision to begin impeachment proceedings based on emerging details of President Trump’s dealings with the President of Ukraine has intensified the political warfare in Washington.

President of Microsoft - Brad Smith Sep 25, 2019

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How do we ensure our astonishing technological advances are harnessed for good, not harm? HARDtalk's Stephen Sackur speaks to the President of Microsoft, Brad Smith. Remember the time when the internet was trumpeted as the tech tool that would deliver us a golden age of knowledge, freedom and democracy? Now we’re in a darker, more cynical place – the digital revolution has generated fears about lost privacy, mass surveillance and systemic misinformation. Have the corporate titans of tech failed us?

Image: Brad Smith (Credit: Gary He/Reuters)

Lebanon's Foreign Minister - Gebran Bassil Sep 23, 2019

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Why is Lebanon dogged by chaos? HARDtalk's Stephen Sackur speaks to the country’s Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil. Lebanese politics is a world of complex alliances, delicate inter-communal arrangements, and almost permanent instability. Lebanon currently has a functioning government but it’s dealing with a host of deep problems: the economy is a mess, national debt is spiralling and regional conflict threatens to pull the country apart at the seams. Is the current Lebanese government making a bad situation worse?

Image: Gebran Bassil (Credit: Clemens Bilan/EPA)

South Africa's Minister of International Relations - Naledi Pandor Sep 20, 2019

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South Africa's Minister of International Relations Naledi Pandor talks about the recent spate of xenophobic attacks in South Africa. Twelve people were killed earlier this month when mobs attacked foreign-owned businesses, mainly in Johannesburg. It follows similar outbreaks in 2008 and 2015 which left dozens of people dead.

(Photo: Naledi Pandor (Credit: Mauro Pimentel/AFP/Getty Images)