

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

Sep 5, 2012 • 23min
Raymond Tshibanda - Minister for Foreign Affairs, Democratic Republic of Congo
The grim threat of renewed conflict hangs over the Democratic Republic of Congo. An armed rebellion in the East - on the Rwandan border - has already forced hundreds of thousands to flee. The DRC army is in disarray and the Kinshasa government has been undermined by allegations of electoral fraud and corruption. Stephen Sackur talks to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Raymond Tshibanda. What hope is there for the Democratic Republic of Congo?(Image: Democratic Republic of Congo's Minster for Foreign Affairs Raymond Tshibanda. Credit: JUNIOR D.KANNAH/AFP/GettyImages)

Aug 30, 2012 • 23min
Tarek al-Hashimi - Vice President of Iraq
Tarek al-Hashimi is in a very strange position: he is Iraq's vice president but right now he is a de facto fugitive in Turkey. He is being tried in absentia on charges of sponsoring death squads inside Iraq. The conflict in Syria is fuelling sectarian tension across the Middle East. In neighbouring Iraq a political and security crisis has deepened in the last year. What hope is there for justice or peace in a region in the grip of sectarian strife?(Image: Iraq's Vice President Tarek al-Hashimi. Credit: AFP / Getty Images)

Aug 28, 2012 • 23min
Brian Sayers – Syrian Support Group
While some Arab states are actively funding the Syrian opposition, the West has publicly refused to provide arms. The US, in particular, has been criticised for its reluctance to get involved beyond talks and diplomacy. Brian Sayers is a lobbyist for a US-based non-profit organisation. The Syrian Support Group has been given the green light by the US Treasury to raise money for the Free Syrian Army despite the fears that the FSA might have links to extremist groups in the region. The Syrian Support Group insists that the money raised will not get into the wrong hands. How can they be sure?(Image: Brian Sayers)

Aug 27, 2012 • 23min
Maajid Nawaz - Chairman of Quilliam, counter extremisim organisation
Maajid Nawaz is a British born Muslim who became a radical Islamist. He was arrested and imprisoned in Hosni Mubarak's Egypt but when he emerged from prison he renounced his former views and launched a campaign to counter Islamist ideology. To some he's a truth teller, to others a traitor. Stephen Sackur asks him to explain his extraordinary transformation.

Aug 24, 2012 • 23min
Rob Davies - South Africa's Minister for Trade and Industry
Stephen Sackur talks to Rob Davies, South Africa’s Minister for Trade and Industry.The labour unrest in South Africa’s platinum mines has claimed the lives of dozens and produced the kind of violence not seen since apartheid. The strike has driven up the cost of platinum prices and shaken investor confidence. It has also drawn the world’s attention to the low wages and poor working conditions of South Africa’s miners. Is the call to invest in Africa’s biggest economy being stifled by the rage against social and economic disparity?(Image: Rob Davies addressing the media at the TIME / FORTUNE / CNN Global Forum in June 2010. Credit: Getty Images)

Aug 22, 2012 • 23min
Angélique Kidjo - Musician and Activist
Angélique Kidjo has been hailed as Africa's premier diva, known for her passionate voice and fierce determination to help African girls fulfil their potential. Three decades ago she left her home continent and became an international star. Stephen Sackur asks Kidjo how much Africa and its music scene has changed between then and now.(Image: Angelique Kidjo performing in 2010. Credit: AFP / Getty Images)

Aug 19, 2012 • 23min
Lord Hanningfield - Former Conservative Peer
The expenses scandal tarnished those at the very heart of British democracy. Some politicians in the so-called Mother of Parliaments were shown to be greedy and a few criminal. A handful went to jail and one of those is the former Conservative peer and former leader of Essex County Council Lord Hanningfield. So why did he do it? Is there something fundamentally wrong with Britain's political culture and with those who go into politics? And what lessons can a lawmaker learn from prison?(Image: Lord Hanningfield)

Aug 17, 2012 • 23min
Lord Moynihan - Chairman of the British Olympics Association
Katya Adler speaks to Lord Moynihan, Chairman of the British Olympics Association and Director of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games. London 2012 has been a resounding success, applauded at home and abroad, but what can be done to ensure an enduring sporting legacy? British sports are celebrating their best collective performance in over a century. So now that the Games are over, why has Lord Moynihan submitted his resignation?(Image: Lord Colin Moynihan at a press conference in July 2012. Credit: David Davies / PA Wire)

Aug 15, 2012 • 23min
Sharon Bowles - Chair, EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee
Katya Adler speaks to Sharon Bowles, Chair of the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee.The Eurozone crisis has been a test not only for Europe's politicians but also its institutions. The European Union's response to the economic turbulence in its midst has been criticised as too slow and ineffective. Sharon Bowles is at the heart of the EU’s decision-making process and has a big say in how new economic legislation is drafted - but will it work?(Image: Sharon Bowles. Credit: John Thys / AFP / Getty Images)

Aug 13, 2012 • 23min
Michael Barber - Chief Education Advisor, Pearson PLC
The United Nations had hoped that by 2015 every child would be able to go to primary school. But the last time they reported on progress to that goal, they said 69 million children were still not getting an education - most of those in sub-Saharan Africa. Michael Barber has advised governments around the world about education. He's now working for the international company Pearson. It recently announced it would invest millions in private schools for the world's poorest families. Is that the right way to tackle the problem or could it undermine what governments are trying to do?


