A Life of Dissent: Between Tel Aviv and Moscow
Speakers: Nir Arielli, Anastasia Belina-Johnson The story of Leah Trachtman-Palchan’s migration from Eastern Europe to Palestine in 1921 proved anything but predictable. Her great-nephew, historian Nir Arielli, has edited her memoir and discusses this extraordinary life with musicologist Anastasia Belina-Johnson.
Operation Thunderbolt
Speakers: Saul David Operation Thunderbolt: flight 139 and the Raid on Entebbe, historian and broadcaster Saul David’s fast-paced account of the hijacking of Flight 139 details the daring and ultra-secret mission orchestrated by the Israeli government to save the hostages and end the terror.
Captivating Fictions
Speakers: Polly Samson, Virginia Baily, Linda Kelsey Two of our fastest-rising literary stars, author and editor Virginia Baily and Polly Samson, journalist, author and lyricist for some of Pink Floyd’s most celebrated songs, share a platform to discuss their compelling new novels with former magazine editor and author Linda Kelsey.
The Vital Question and the Future of Life
Speakers: Nick Lane, Adam Rutherford What were the origins of life and what are the biological changes we can expect in the future as our synthetic control over our genes advances exponentially? Was there a vital spark that set off life on our planet and why do we age and die? Evolutionary biochemist Nick Lane and geneticist […]
The 3rd Woman
Speakers: Jonathan Freedland, Mark Lawson The 3rd Woman is a high-concept thriller set in a world in which the USA bows to the People’s Republic of China, corruption is rife and the government dictates what the ‘truth’ is. Jonathan Freedland explores the genesis of his fiction about an individual’s quest for justice with broadcaster and […]
History’s People
Speakers: Margaret MacMillan, Antony Beevor Professor Margaret MacMillan interrogates the past with fellow-historian Antony Beevor to consider the role of individuals and their behaviour. In her thought-provoking new book, History’s People: Personalities and the Past, Margaret MacMillan considers the impact of character and personality on historical events, analysing the interplay between individuals and their worlds, […]
Jews and Photography in Britain
Speakers: Michael Berkowitz, Francis Hodgson Until now, little attention has been paid to the pioneering role of Jews in all facets of British photography, from the mid-19th century to the Queen’s controversial 2007 photo-shoot with Annie Leibovitz. Professor Michael Berkowitzhas conducted the first-ever historical investigation of the vital contribution Jews have made to photography’s history. […]
David Aaronovitch: Party Animals
Speakers: David Aaronovitch, Stephen Grosz In conversation with psychoanalyst Stephen Grosz, award-winning journalist David Aaronovitch describes how writing Party Animals: Growing Up Communist, his memoir of early life amongst communists in Britain, led him to re-examine his own memories and then to study old secret service files, uncovering the unspoken shame and fears that provided the unconscious background to […]
The Health Gap
There are obvious factors that influence how long a person or society can be expected to live – income, diet, and education, for example – and others that are more surprising. Did you know that the higher your rank in social and office hierarchy, the longer your life expectancy? Epidemiologist Sir Michael Marmot talks to […]
Stolen Legacy
Speakers: Dina Gold, Melanie Phillips Dina Gold’s book is a gripping story of her battle to reclaim the majestic six-storey building that the Nazis seized from her once-prominent Berlin family. Dina outlines the unfolding of this unusual narrative in conversation with Melanie Phillips.
Bewilderments: Reflections on the Book of Numbers
Speakers: Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg,Stephen Frosh. Bewilderments: Reflections on the Book of Numbers describes the profound existential scepticism of the Children of Israel’s forty-year wandering through the wilderness, a generation who are the receivers of the Torah, are fed on miracles and nurtured directly by God. Drawing on a variety of sources, including the mystical and […]
Putin’s Russia
Speakers: Arkady Ostrovsky, James Harding, Peter Pomerantsev As a foreign correspondent in his own country, Arkady Ostrovsky has experienced Russia’s modern history first-hand. From the suddenly wealthy, to the media, to the Kremlin spin doctors, in The Invention of Russia he explores those who have shaped the new Russia. Peter Pomerantsev describes his unique journey […]