Category Archives: War

Ladybird books: Constructing the future past of modern Britain

Posted on October 25, 2016 by Samira Ahmed

I used to visit a beloved university English professor  and his wife. He had won the Military Cross for hand to hand combat in the liberation of the Netherlands in 1945 but never talked about the terrible things he’d seen. … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Children, Culture, Design, Environment, Germany, History, Media, Uncategorized, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 23 Comments

We’ll get the President we deserve: Suzan Lori Parks on Hillary Clinton & America’s woman problem

Posted on September 25, 2016 by Samira Ahmed

“You’ve consumed too much of the Kool-Aid that the man has been serving you.” Pulitzer prize-winning playwright Susan Lori Parks came into the Front Row studio last week to talk about When Father Came Home From The Wars opening at … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Culture, History, Media, Politics, Radio, Theatre, Uncategorized, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The trouble with superheroes taking on terrorism..

Posted on May 10, 2016 by Samira Ahmed

I love superhero comics and they’ve never been handled with more love than by writers and filmmakers who grew up on them too. And yet.. And yet.. In the latest Captain America Civil War film, when a terrorist bomb goes … Continue reading →

Posted in Comics/graphic novels, Film, Media, Politics, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Up the Wellington Arch with Beatrice the Angel of Peace

Posted on April 12, 2016 by Samira Ahmed

English Heritage are doing a cleanup on the largest bronze sculpture in Europe – the quadriga of the Angel of Peace by Adrian Jones. Note the war booty in that chariot and the mixed message of the olive branch in … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Design, History, Radio, War | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Why Obi Wan Kenobi is pure evil & why R2 D2 is Moses

Posted on March 29, 2016 by Samira Ahmed

An excellent panel of minds got together at Conway Hall’s latest #LondonThinks event last Thursday to discuss the theology and ethics of Star Wars films. You can watch it in full here on Youtube (below). Or open it in another … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Film, History, Media, Religion, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Uncategorized, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

On location for HG Wells and the H Bomb

Posted on July 1, 2015 by Samira Ahmed

As well as this documentary I’ve written this feature for BBC Culture about how the Atom Bomb changed our culture and imagination. And I discuss it with Robert Elms on BBC London here. Listen from 1 hr 39 minutes. In … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Film, History, Politics, Radio, Science, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Uncategorized, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 22 Comments

Beating time: The secret musical life of metronomes, prison camps & airport lounges

Posted on October 2, 2014 by Samira Ahmed

Something Understood preview: Beating Time from Samira Ahmed on Vimeo. For this week’s Something Understood producer Natalie Steed and I explored the idea of beating time. There’s the piano I still keep by the front door, just  where my mother … Continue reading →

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The curious idea of museums

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Samira Ahmed

This article originally appeared in The Big Issue magazine. Journalism worth paying for. What are museums for these days? Are collections passé? Northampton City Council’s decision to sell off an ancient Egyptian statue to fund a museum extension, after striking … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Design, Education, History, Politics, Uncategorized, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Why doesn’t Wonder Woman wear a mask?

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Samira Ahmed

Originally written for a recent Radio 4 programme pilot about “masked men”.  In bicentennial year 1976 on first trip to the USA, I first confronted the conundrum of Wonder Woman and masks in three comics I bought. While most of … Continue reading →

Posted in Children, Comics/graphic novels, Culture, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Uncategorized, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

First World War: Myth or Misbegotten Shambles?

Posted on January 8, 2014 by Samira Ahmed

“This official UK £2 coin remembers one of the most significant moments in British history with a design that recalls the spirit, and with hindsight, the poignancy, of the rush to enlist encouraged by Lord Kitchener. This £2 coin, a … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, History, Media, Politics, Radio, Theatre, Uncategorized, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments