At the end of the show a question from Andy McNeil Our apologies for the sound issues we encountered on this episode. Recommendations Paddy Jon Stone There’s been a reassessment of the Blair/Brown government on the Left in recent years: you hear more about its achievements than you used you. that’s good, but it’s also important not to forget that it regularly did things a Tory government would be criticised for https://twitter.com/joncstone/status/1231543272943898626?lang=en Putin Vs The West- Norma Percy A new three-part series from award-winning film-maker Norma Percy tells the inside story of how, through a decade of clashes, the West has struggled to deal with Vladimir Putin as he tries to exert his power on the world stage. https://www.bbc.com/mediacentre/proginfo/2023/05/putin-vs-the-west The Fifty Years War- Norma Percy The main decision-makers from Israel, the Arab states, Russia and the US tell the inside story of the Arab-Israel conflict. Made in 1998. https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/p0glc7yp/the-fifty-years-war-israel-and-the-arabs Elusive Peace- Norma Percy As today’s headlines continue to be dominated by the latest news from Israel and Gaza, award-winning film-maker Norma Percy looks back on her 2005 series Elusive Peace, sharing memories of her encounters with key players like Bill Clinton, Ariel Sharon and Yasser Arafat as she explored the story behind the efforts to end the conflict made around the start of the new millennium. Norma also talks about her experiences securing rare interviews with those behind some of the suicide bombings that destroyed lives and also the chances of peace. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001swsb David The Jazz Loft Project- W Eugene Smith Smith’s Jazz Loft Project has been legendary in the worlds of art, photography, and music for more than forty years, but until the publication of this book, no one had seen his extraordinary photographs or read any of the firsthand accounts of those who were there and lived to tell the tales. https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-jazz-loft-project/w-eugene-smith/sam-stephenson/9780226824840 W. Eugene Smith’s Warning to the World The Magnum photographer made his last photo essay about industrial mercury poisoning in the Japanese city of Minamata, helping to bring justice and visibility to the victims https://www.magnumphotos.com/arts-culture/society-arts-culture/w-eugene-smith-minamata-warning-to-the-world/ Minimata- Film Revered photojournalist W. Eugene Smith (Johnny Depp) is coaxed out of retirement by a commission from Life magazine editor Robert Hayes (Bill Nighy). He is sent to Minamata, a Japanese city ravaged by mercury poisoning, the result of decades of gross corporate negligence. There, Smith documents the people living with Minamata Disease, the assignment quickly turning into a life-changing experience https://www.amazon.co.uk/Minamata-Johnny-Depp/dp/B099NBF5H3 Eamonn Slow Horses- Season 3 Spy drama following a dysfunctional team of M15 agent - and their obnoxious boss Jack Lamb - as they navigate the espionage world’s smoke and mirrors to defend England from sinister forces. https://tv.apple.com/gb/show/slow-horses/umc.cmc.2szz3fdt71tl1ulnbp8utgq5o?ctx_brand=tvs.sbd.4000&mttn3pid=Google%20AdWords&mttnagencyid=a5e&mttncc=UK&mttnsiteid=143238&mttnsubad=OUK2019944_1-684757160536-c&mttnsubkw=136907710791__RTZ7DK1w_&mttnsubplmnt=_adext_