The Interview
BBC World Service
Conversations with people shaping our world, from all around the globe. Listen to The Interview for the best conversations from the BBC, the world's most trusted international news provider.
We hear from titans of business, politics, finance, sport and culture. Global leaders, decision-makers and cultural icons. Politicians, activists and CEOs.
Each interview is around 20-minutes, packed full of insight and analysis, covering some of the biggest issues of our time.
How does it work? Well, at the BBC, our journalists interview amazing people every single day. And on The Interview, we bring them to you.
It’s your one-stop-shop to the best conversations coming out of the BBC, with the people shaping our world, from all over the world.
Get in touch with us on emailTheInterview@bbc.co.uk and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.
We hear from titans of business, politics, finance, sport and culture. Global leaders, decision-makers and cultural icons. Politicians, activists and CEOs.
Each interview is around 20-minutes, packed full of insight and analysis, covering some of the biggest issues of our time.
How does it work? Well, at the BBC, our journalists interview amazing people every single day. And on The Interview, we bring them to you.
It’s your one-stop-shop to the best conversations coming out of the BBC, with the people shaping our world, from all over the world.
Get in touch with us on emailTheInterview@bbc.co.uk and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Mar 29, 2026 • 23min
Mohammed Idris, Nigeria’s Information Minister: Stopping militant attacks
Mohammed Idris, Nigeria’s Information Minister and senior government official, discusses national security, international intelligence cooperation and responses to recent attacks. He talks about energy policy, boosting domestic refining, and plans to curb brain drain through industrialisation. Short, direct conversations on stabilising security and reshaping Nigeria’s economy.
Mar 27, 2026 • 23min
Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, head of the WTO: What is going on in the Middle East will have a significant impact on trade
Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WTO Director-General and former finance minister, offers expertise on global trade and multilateral reform. She discusses how the Middle East conflict raises uncertainty and will affect trade. They cover services as a shock absorber, shipping and fertilizer disruptions, rising protectionism, and the need to reform rules for digital and green trade.
Mar 25, 2026 • 23min
Joy Phumaphi, African Leaders Malaria Alliance: Malaria is an all of society challenge
Joy Phumaphi, Executive Secretary of the African Leaders Malaria Alliance and former health minister, speaks with frank public health leadership experience. She discusses the “perfect storm” threatening malaria control: climate change, resistance to drugs and insecticides, funding shortfalls, and private sector projects creating mosquito breeding sites. She highlights multisector action and innovative financing as ways forward.
11 snips
Mar 23, 2026 • 23min
Nadia Calviño, EIB President: Can Europe compete?
Nadia Calviño, former Spanish finance minister and current EIB president, leads Europe’s lending strategy on climate, tech, security and development. She talks about scaling defence finance, energy and social resilience, boosting tech leadership and mobilising risk capital. She also outlines deeper integration, large-scale investment and global partnerships to strengthen Europe’s position.
7 snips
Mar 20, 2026 • 23min
Ali Bahreini, Iran’s UN Ambassador: No surrender
Ali Bahreini, Iran’s long-serving UN ambassador, outlines Tehran’s stance on the regional conflict and nuclear negotiations. He defends strikes as self-defense and stresses Iran’s resilience and leadership continuity. The conversation covers targeting claims, relations with Russia, protests and accountability over the Minab school tragedy.
8 snips
Mar 18, 2026 • 23min
Alexander Stubb, President of Finland: We live in a world of disorder
Alexander Stubb, President of Finland and former prime minister and EU commissioner, speaks on NATO, Russia and shifting global priorities. He frames a post-Ukraine world of disorder. He discusses NATO’s defensive limits, Finland’s focus on its Russian border and conscription, US-Europe rifts and his personal diplomacy with Trump. He warns about costs of prolonged conflict and calls for de-escalation and mediation.
Mar 16, 2026 • 23min
Tracey Emin, artist: I’ve been given a second chance
Tracey Emin, British contemporary artist known for confessional works like My Bed, reflects on a ‘second life’ after cancer and giving up alcohol. She talks about channeling pain and memory into her art. She discusses body, aging, feminism in the art world, reinstalling My Bed, and how galleries can transform visitors.
7 snips
Mar 13, 2026 • 23min
Vincent Clerc, CEO of Maersk: The two sides of war
Vincent Clerc, CEO of Maersk with over 20 years steering global shipping, discusses the fallout from Gulf and Red Sea disruptions. He outlines waves of operational disruption, threats from drone attacks and crew safety concerns. He talks about rerouting, staging cargo, rising freight and fuel costs, and why lasting freedom of navigation will likely need a diplomatic deal.
Mar 11, 2026 • 23min
Karim Beguir, co-founder of InstaDeep: People are too gloomy about AI
Karim Beguir, co-founder and CEO of InstaDeep who built Africa’s largest AI firm, speaks about building powerful AI from Tunisia. He recounts starting with two laptops and early research wins. He discusses teaming with BioNTech on variant screening, Project Tatooine for training African tech talent, and why AI can create local opportunity rather than just displace jobs.
8 snips
Mar 9, 2026 • 23min
Samantha Power, former US Ambassador to UN: Closing USAID was soft power suicide
Samantha Power, former U.S. Ambassador to the UN and ex-head of USAID, speaks from her humanitarian and foreign policy experience. She condemns the closure of USAID as strategic self-harm. She explains UN Security Council gridlock, the struggle to secure humanitarian access in Gaza, global famine risks, and the task of rebuilding U.S. foreign assistance and international trust.
