An Evening with John Simpson at the Theatre Royal, Bury St Edmunds.
John Simpson's BBC career began over forty years ago. His first taste of political manoeuvring involved a punch to the gut delivered by the late Harold Wilson in dubious circumstances. The interview wasn't a great success, but Harold certainly left his mark.
This anecdote was one among many related during an evening with John at the Theatre Royal. His Suffolk connections may have surprised many – his family, according to his father, moved to Bury to climb up into the social gutter, and he remains a regular Suffolk visitor.
He recounted some of the many mishaps that had befallen him as foreign correspondent and later World Affairs Editor at the BBC. News teams had some limited access to Eastern Europe before the Wall fell, and he spoke at length about Prague. Heavies tailed them whilst they made contact with Charter 77 members working towards freedom – they did manage to get news out nightly, despite all the obstacles put in their way. He did note that six years after these clandestine meetings, most of his interviewees were governing a free country. Rather unsubtle overtures made by a pretty hotel receptionist were dealt with on his return by M15.
He thought that life for the poorest Afghans had shown no post-invasion improvement at all; more of his views on that conflict were left tantalisingly unsaid. We learnt much about the camaraderie and working practices at the BBC and how, inevitably, things there had changed, not always for the better.
The evening was a fascinating insight into the wanderings of an astute writer and political commentator. For more, read his memoirs, signed copies of which were doing a brisk trade.
Mary Dunk 2009
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Weather for Sudbury
Thursday 09 February 2012
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