Barbara Taylor Bradford: A woman of substance

The framers of the American Constitution harboured few illusions about human nature, and that’s why they invested so much significance in the US Supreme Court, the ultimate check on executive and legislative power. Sandra Day O’Connor, who died days ago at the age of 93, was the first woman to be appointed as a justice in this court. For 25 years, she was one of its most influential voices. HARDtalk travelled to Washington DC in 2006 to speak to her.Image: Sandra Day O'Connor, pictured in 2003 (Credit: Tom Mihalek/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

11 Dec 202323min

Stephen Sackur speaks to Rwandan opposition leader Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza. The UK government, which has signed a controversial migrant transfer deal with Rwanda, paints President Paul Kagame in positive colours. How does that sit with his opponents?(Photo: Rwandan opposition leader Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza appears via videolink on BBC Hardtalk)

8 Dec 202323min

Stephen Sackur speaks to the head of the International Energy Agency, Fatih Birol. As oil and gas-rich UAE hosts the latest climate change summit, is it time to admit the much-vaunted global energy transition is veering off course?

4 Dec 202323min

Stephen Sackur speaks to the Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council Jasem Albudaiwi. The Israel-Hamas war has sent shockwaves through a region that’s been ‘normalising’ relations with Israel. Could the Gulf states be destabilised by the conflict in Gaza?

1 Dec 202325min

Stephen Sackur speaks to Philippe Lazzarini, head of UNRWA, the UN’s refugee agency for Palestinians. He is just back from Gaza where the temporary truce gave him a chance to assess the scale of the humanitarian crisis. With Israel vowing to resume its war on Hamas, could Gaza soon be unliveable?

30 Nov 202323min

Stephen Sackur speaks to far-right Israeli politician Simcha Rothman, whose Religious Zionism party is in Prime Minister Netanyahu’s ruling coalition. He and his party colleagues seem ready for a new era of long-term violent confrontation, not just in Gaza, but in the West Bank too. Is his mindset and strategic vision in the best interests of Israel’s future?

28 Nov 202323min

Stephen Sackur speaks to Cardinal Peter Turkson, a Vatican insider widely seen as a possible contender to be Africa’s first pope. The number of observant Catholics is down in the west, rising fast in Africa and Asia. Is the Catholic Church at a crossroads?

27 Nov 202323min

Stephen Sackur speaks to former US spy Jonna Mendez, who was the CIA’s chief of disguise running Cold War operations in Moscow, Havana and beyond.

24 Nov 202323min