Hardtalk

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Sir William Patey who has just retired from his post as British ambassador in Kabul. Did the West get the balance between war and diplomacy fundamentally wrong in Afghanistan?

Jordan has survived the Arab Spring relatively unscathed, perhaps because its ruler has promised reform. But critics say King Abdullah is buying time and is not serious. Jordan is seen as critical to peace in the region not least because of its neighbours: Syria, Iraq and Israel. HARDtalk asks - how much time does Jordan have?

Sarah Montague talks to political scientist Norman Finkelstein who says that American Jews have fallen out of love with Israel. But then he is nothing if not controversial. Norman Finkelstein is famous for accusing Jews of exploiting the Holocaust. Could he be right about American Jews and Israel, and if so, what does that mean for Middle East policy?

On Hardtalk, Stephen Sackur talks to Sir Ronald Cohen who is chair of Big Society Capital. He's one of Britain's most innovative business leaders, a pioneer of venture capitalism, who is now committed to the idea of social investment, or capitalism with a conscience. Can the private sector combine a commitment to profit and the public good?

Stephen Sackur talks to Nhial Deng Nhial, the South Sudanese Foreign Minister. South Sudan is currently in talks over the border demarcation with Sudan but will the two countries fall into a bloody conflict?

Stephen Sackur talks to Sir John Sulston. The British Nobel Prize winning scientist talks about his ground breaking work into genetics using nematode worms and his current interest in climate change and population control.

The Russian businessman and billionaire Oleg Deripaska talks to Stephen Sackur about doing business in his home country and the challenges it faces in the current economic and political climate.

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur is at the Globe Theatre in London - a recreation of the theatre where William Shakespeare honed his theatrical genius in the late sixteenth century. He speaks to actor Zoë Wanamaker, honorary president of the Globe, which was built thanks to the tireless efforts of her father, the American actor and director, Sam Wanamaker.

HARDtalk's Stephen Sackur speaks to Peter Keen, Performance Director for UK Sport. In Beijing four years ago, his strategies helped deliver a record medal haul for team GB, in London the aim is to do even better. But has the cult of winning gone too far?

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to South Africa's last white president, F.W. de Klerk, a co-recipient of the Nobel peace prize with Nelson Mandela. Is the rainbow nation living up to its promise?

Paul Conroy is a freelance photojournalist. He was injured during the bombardment of Homs, Syria where two journalists caught in the same attack died. He tells Stephen Sackur why he risks life and limb to tell a story.

Stephen Sackur speaks to perhaps the UK's most controversial police officer - a commander in London's Metropolitan police and a convicted criminal. Ali Dizaei portrays himself as a victim; the courts decided he was a rogue cop - what does his rise and fall say about British policing?

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur talks to Michael Frayn, a renowned playwright whose work has ranged from high farce to cerebral intensity. But he's also an acclaimed novelist and an accomplished translator from the Russian of Chekhov and Tolstoy. Throughout his writing career he's mixed high seriousness with a wicked sense of the absurd. Is laughter an essential tool for the serious writer?

Should Iraq be doing more to end the bloodshed on its doorstep or does it have its own vested interest in keeping Syria's president Assad in power? Tim Franks talks to Hamid Al-Bayati, Iraq's Ambassador to the United Nations.

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Juergen Stark who was - until his shock resignation last year - a key figure on the board of the European Central Bank. He quit because he disagreed with the ECB's crisis management. Much has changed in the last few months, but has the eurozone really been saved?