logo
episode-header-image
Mar 2023
59m 30s

39. Lawrence of Arabia and the Arab Revo...

Goalhanger
About this episode
Often understood through Peter O’Toole’s iconic display, who really was Lawrence of Arabia? His role in the First World War and the Arab Revolt had a defining effect on the Middle-East. Listen as William and Anita are joined by Anthony Sattin to discuss his life. LRB Empire offer: lrb.me/empire This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a ... Show More
Up next
Sep 13
395. Stalin: The Rise of A Tyrant (Part 1)
How did Stalin become one of the most ruthless dictators in World History? What was his childhood like in Georgia? How did he rise from a poet training to be a priest, to the ruler of the Soviet Union? In Episode 1 of this new series, Anita Anand and William Dalrymple explore the ... Show More
33m 48s
Sep 9
394. Road To 9/11: Hijackers, CIA Failures, and America’s Darkest Day (Part 6)
How did the CIA fail to tell the FBI that known Al-Qaeda terrorists were already training inside the United States? Who was the calculated mastermind behind the scheme to hijack twenty commercial jets? What does new evidence tell us about how a Saudi official assisted the hijacke ... Show More
46m 16s
Sep 6
393. Road To 9/11: Interviewing Bin Laden In The Caves of Tora Bora (Part 5)
What was it like to interview Osama bin Laden in the Tora Bora caves? Who were the other terrorists behind the infamous 1998 fatwa? How did Monica Lewinsky derail the response to the East Africa embassy bombings? In Episode 5 of this series, Williams and Anita are joined by CNN’s ... Show More
47m 2s
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2019
Lawrence of Arabia
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss T.E. Lawrence (1888 – 1935), better known as Lawrence of Arabia, a topic drawn from over 1200 suggestions for our Listener Week 2019. Although Lawrence started as an archaeologist in the Middle East, when World War I broke out he joined the British ... Show More
51m 46s
Dec 2019
Lawrence of Arabia
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss T.E. Lawrence (1888 – 1935), better known as Lawrence of Arabia, a topic drawn from over 1200 suggestions for our Listener Week 2019. Although Lawrence started as an archaeologist in the Middle East, when World War I broke out he joined the British ... Show More
51m 46s
Oct 2020
Lawrence of Arabia: A liberator, spy or traitor?
TE Lawrence became one of the most famous figures to emerge from World War I. Not so much for his role as a British intelligence officer. Nor his role in the Arab Revolt. Instead, it was because of an international photo exhibit of a young British man in traditional Arab white ro ... Show More
34m 51s
Aug 2024
Lawrence of Arabia
<p>The famed British officer who fought alongside Arab guerrilla forces in WW1. Best known for his legendary exploits as an intelligence officer in the Middle East, Thomas Edward Lawrence was also an archaeologist, scholar and photographer. His life was one of adventure and espio ... Show More
59m 29s
May 2025
#545 | The Life of Lawrence of Arabia
In part one of this three-part mini-series, we'll explore the captivating life of T.E. Lawrence, the British archaeologist and army officer known as "Lawrence of Arabia." Discover how he fought alongside Arabian tribesmen during World War I in their quest for independence, all wh ... Show More
24m 46s
Jun 2025
Faisal I of Iraq: The Making of a King
King Faisal I of Iraq was born in the age of the Ottoman Empire. A key figure in the Arab revolt, his patience, curiosity and diplomacy endeared him to many, including the man who would come to be known as Lawrence of Arabia. But in hindsight, did Faisal drive Arab nationalism or ... Show More
36m 32s
Apr 2014
The Making Of The Modern Middle East: Lawrence of Arabia and King Faisal I
How much blame for the current troubles in the Middle East lies with the decisions made by the West in 1919 – when the Ottoman Empire was carved up arbitrarily into the modern states we know today? Is it true that Arab society has tended to define itself less by what it aspires t ... Show More
1h 30m
Jun 2015
Jordan: Redrawing the Middle East
How did World War One change the face of the Middle East? And, how did this seismic and controversial period shape the century to follow? 
49m 53s
Oct 2022
Lawrence of Arabia
It’s the greatest film of all time… Or is it? Lawrence of Arabia is a 1962 EPIC historical drama based on the life of T. E. Lawrence. It’s a tale full of familiar faces like Omar Sharif, David Lean and Peter O’Toole, and it impacted generations of film making. But how accurate is ... Show More
54m 7s
Oct 2021
The Anglo-Arab Wars
The half century between 1870 and 1920 was one of conflict between British colonialism and the people of the Middle East and North Africa. In this episode, James is joined by archeologist and author Neil Faulkner to examine the clashes of armies, ideologies and forms of oppressio ... Show More
41m 5s