The Interview

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Julie Hambleton, founder of Justice for the 21. In November 1974 the IRA bombed two pubs in Birmingham and murdered twenty one people. More than forty four years later the inquest into those deaths was reopened, attended by the families of the victims, including Julie Hambleton, who lost her sister Maxine. During the hearings one witness, a convicted former IRA man, named four alleged perpetrators; but justice in this terrible case has never been done. Is it now too late to get to the truth?Image: Julie Hambleton (Credit: Anthony Devlin/Getty Images)

24 Touko 201923min

The movement’s rhetoric is unbending, but do the Palestinian people long for new ideas? Stephen Sackur interviews Ghazi Hamad, a spokesman for Hamas. The surge in Israeli-Palestinian violence in Gaza earlier this month was relatively short-lived, and the status-quo remains intact. But Hamas’s internal grip on Gaza is threatened by rising economic discontent and the Trump Administration will soon unveil a peace plan built on economic incentives for the Palestinian people. Could change be afoot?

22 Touko 201923min

How does the sporting notion of fairness cope with the complexities of gender identity? HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to former champion British swimmer turned sports commentator Sharron Davies. Elite level sport is ruthlessly competitive. The best male and female athletes push hard against their physical limits in the quest for marginal gains. But what happens when athletes change gender - in particular when individuals born biologically male transition to female after puberty. Should they be allowed to compete as women?

20 Touko 201923min

By the time Vladimir Putin’s current presidential term ends he will have dominated Russian politics for a quarter century and already there’s talk of manoeuvres to ensure his grip on power is maintained beyond 2024. He is surely the world’s greatest exponent of strong-man rule. Grigory Yavlinsky, the leader of Russia's opposition Yabloko Party has spent the Putin years in thankless, fruitless opposition. Why has his brand of liberal economics and political reform failed to take root and provide a convincing alternative to Putin's cocktail of authoritarianism and nationalism?(Photo: Grigory Yavlinsky, the leader of Russia's opposition Yabloko Party in the Hardtalk studio)

17 Touko 201923min

When we were kids many of us dreamed of being a professional footballer, a star of the world’s most popular game with adulation and riches on tap. For a tiny few the dream comes true, but then reality bites. Professional sport is a brutal business that can chew up young lives. HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Tony Adams, former Arsenal and England footballer, who fought his own battles with addiction and mental illness and went on to help other top players do the same. Is elite sport honest about the vulnerability of its stars?Image: Tony Adams at the 2018 Edinburgh International Book Festival (Credit: Simone Padovani/Awakening/Getty Images)

15 Touko 201924min

Does the debate on trans rights pose a problem for the gay liberation movement? HARDtalk's Sarah Montague speaks to the CEO of Stonewall, Ruth Hunt. Stonewall was founded 30 years ago to campaign for gay and lesbian rights. When Ruth Hunt became its chief executive, she extended its work to include the transgender community. But many Stonewall members have been upset at the line the leadership has taken on gender recognition – that anyone can declare themselves to be male or female – and at their refusal to share a platform with anyone who disagrees.

13 Touko 201924min

Confident that the socialist regime in Venezuela was in its death throes, the opposition led by Juan Guaido won the backing of elements within the armed forces and appeared to be spearheading a de facto coup d’etat. They seem to have miscalculated. Nicolas Maduro faced down the putsch and continues to occupy the presidential palace. Vanessa Neumann is a member of the diplomatic team backing Juan Guaido’s claim to power. How damaging are the mistakes of the opposition?

8 Touko 201923min

Britain’s top diplomat, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, is at the end of a five-nation tour of Africa aimed at persuading the continent and the wider world that post-Brexit Britain can and will play a pivotal global role. So HARDtalk has come to Nairobi to talk to Mr Hunt at the end of his latest road trip. If and when the current Brexit chaos comes to an end, how will Britain stack up as a source of global power and influence?Image: Jeremy Hunt (Credit: Adrian Dennis/AFP/Getty Images)

6 Touko 201924min