Now its time for hardtalk. Welcome to hardtalk. Im stephen sackur. In our culture of 24 7 news and trending Social Media reactions, it sometimes takes a novelist s eye to chart the deeper currents swirling beneath societys surface. My Guest Today relishes entering choppy waters and swimming against the cultural tide. Lionel shriver is a british based american writer Whose Fiction has addressed school shootings, obesity, economic crisis and, in her latest book, voluntary euthanasia. She is a contrarian, but is she also a combatant in the western Worlds Culture wars. Lionel shriver in new york, welcome to hardtalk. Its a pleasure to talk to you. Its a pleasure to have you on the show. Would it be fair to Say, judging from your recent writing, that your creative mind is increasingly preoccupied with ageing and with thoughts of mortality . Um. Short answer, yes. Long answer, i think ive always had a morbid streak and also a strange consciousness of ageing. My first novel was written about
Now on bbc news, the media show. Hello. Have we got a scoop for you bbc bags top Newspaper Execs to discuss all things tabloid and Mass Market. The headline have our red tops got their mojo back . The suns Front Page last week that ended Matt Hancocks cabinet career, at least for now, was a classic splash not seen too often since the Phone Hacking Scandal. It had it all an illicit relationship, hypocrisy, and alleged cronyism. A Dynamite Combination that ultimately cost Mr Hancock his job. Maybe the ingredients werent quite right when it came to other recent scoops like the mirrors Dominic Cummings Trip to barnard castle, or the daily mails investigations into Covid And Care homes. No heads rolled after those exclusives. But is there now a sense, despite issues over circulation and revenues, that Fleet Street is back to its pugnacious best . Well, i told you we had a scoop. Three of the biggest beasts in fleet Street Nowjoin us for their media show debuts. Take a bow, victoria newton,
The end of social distancing in englands pubs and restaurants means a return to drinking at the bar without the requirement for Table Service. Nightclubs will also reopen. The Hospitality Industry has been hit hard by the pandemic and has welcomed the announcement, though some staff are worried about working in a crowded environment without face masks. 0ur North of England Correspondent Danny savage reports. Another busy lunchtime at the bull inn, in north yorkshire. Staff are wearing facemasks, customers have to register, it is Table Service only and all at a safe social distance. But in two weeks time, all those restrictions Go. A bit scared, really. Commercially, fantastic, lets just Go back to normal. Gill runs the pub but does she trust the public to act responsibly . There is a big section of the community, particularly when they get a few points down them, who dont take that much responsibility for themselves or others. And i dont want to damn people but its a fact, ive witnesse
Hello and thanks forjoining us. In afghanistan, a development many people feared and many predicted. Violence is on the rise since the us military withdrew from Bagram Air field last week, and the taliban have seized more districts. This map, from a us Defence Research think thank, shows the areas now in taliban control they are in dark grey. Contested areas are in red and areas controlled by the afghan government in light grey. Its not impossible to verify, but the taliban says it has captured 150 out of 369 districts in the past two months of fighting. Afghanistans Interior Ministry says it does not mean all of those areas have completely fallen. More than 1,000 afghan government soldiers have fled across the border into tajikistan, according to the government there. The bbc s security correspondent, Frank Gardner reports. Gunfire. On their own now, but still fighting the taliban. Afghan security forces are in action this week without the us military Support Theyve relied on, for the
In afghanistan, a development Many people feared, and Many predicted. Violence is on the rise since the us military withdrew from Bagram Airfield last week, the taliban have seized more districts. This map from a us Defence Research think thank shows the areas now in taliban control they are in dark grey, contested areas are in red and areas controlled by the afghan government in light grey. The claims about territory, are for the moment, impossible to verify. The taliban says it has captured 150 out of 369 districts in the past two months of fighting. Afg hanistan s Interior Ministry neither confirm or deny the claim saying, that though the taliban claim the districts, it does not mean all of them have completely fallen. And as the taliban gains territory, there is little if any apparent resistance from afghan troops. Tajikistan says more than 1,000 afghan government soldiers have fled across the border after clashes with the insurgents. The bbc s Security Correspondent Frank Gardner