Has any war in history gone according to plan? Monarchs, dictators and elected leaders alike have a dismal record on military decision-making, from over-ambitious goals to disregarding intelligence, terrain, or enemy capabilities.

‘How to Fight a War’ by former army officer and author Mike Martin is a crisp indispensable guide to understanding modern warfare.

In this episode, listen to Mike in conversation with The Times’ Diplomatic Editor and foreign affairs columnist Roger Boyes about the fundamentals of warfare, from infantry to information, and from strategy to tactics, in order to better understand today’s wars, and be more prepared for the coming decades of conflict.

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Maharajah Ranjit Singh’s Sikh Empire stretched throughout north-western India into Afghanistan and Tibet. But how did one royal family come to achieve such pre-eminence over this entire region?

Historian Priya Atwal’s dazzling book ‘Royals and Rebels: The Rise and Fall of the Sikh Empire’ blasts through centuries of Orientalist and misogynist history to shed new light on the forgotten royals who aided the spectacular rise and eventual demise of this long-lost kingdom.

In this episode listen to Priya in conversation with historian, screenwriter and author Alex von Tunzelmann as they explore how this kingdom came into being, how it operated, but also how and why it fell after just fifty years of existence.

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Over Britain’s first century of mass democracy, politics has lurched from crisis to crisis. A Times Book of the Year, ‘The Death of Consensus’ by writer and documentary-maker Phil Tinline brings to life those times, past and present, when the consensus—or the great compromise holding democracy together—has come apart, and the political class has been forced to make a choice of nightmares.

In this episode, listen to Phil in conversation with historian Dominic Sandbrook about whether consensus has ever existed in British politics, how politics is transformed through fear, and the way in which apparent catastrophes can clear the path to a new era.

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AfterWords returns on 20th October 2023. In this series, listen to lively discussions between Hurst authors, journalists and leading experts as they interrogate the stories behind thought-provoking books. You’ll hear about how Pentecostal Christianity is taking over the world; the rise and fall of the Sikh empire; a hundred years of British political nightmares; whether any war in history has gone to plan; a vivid, powerful account of the Rohingya in exile; and how ordinary Ukrainians saved their nation.

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From Notre-Dame cathedral to the Houses of Parliament, the buildings Europeans have come to love may not be so European after all.

A Spectator ‘Book of the Year’, Stealing from the Saracens by Diana Darke is the fascinating tale of cultural exchange, shedding new light on some of Europe’s greatest landmarks.

In today’s episode Diana and Quilt.Ai’s Angad Singh Chowdhry will be discussing the ‘borrowing’ of Islamic architecture, Europe’s reluctance to associate with the Muslim world, and the importance of acknowledging cultural debt.

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We live in an era of big brands. Companies that wield incredible power and influence around the world. But as we all know, with great power comes great responsibility…

Can companies do more than generate profits in the poorest and most fragile parts of the world? Should they move beyond simply ‘doing no harm’? In her book 'Corporate Peace', Mary Martin shows how big business is increasingly important in building a safer world.

In this episode, Mary will be in conversation with Quilt.Ai’s Angad Singh Chowdhry about how businesses can use their influence for the common good, the potential dangers of their involvement in peacebuilding, and whether corporate peace is possible.

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China’s millennials feel stuck. They are caught between the country’s authoritarian politics, hypermodern technology, and economic boom. In her raw and revealing memoir, Under Red Skies, Karoline Kan turns to the three generations of women in her family to understand the ever-changing China she grew up in.

In this episode, listen to Karoline in conversation with Quilt.Ai’s Angad Singh Chowdhry about life in China beyond the headlines: the remarkable story of Karoline’s family, her own experiences as a Chinese millennial and whether understanding the country’s youth holds the key to understanding China as it is today.

Artificial Intelligence is going to war … but what happens to the ‘art of war’ as machines enter the battlefield?

‘I, Warbot’ by Kenneth Payne is an engrossing look at the new frontier in AI, and how it will change conflict forever. In this episode, listen to Kenneth in conversation with Angad Singh Chowdhry, co-founder of Quilt.AI, about how Artificial Intelligence and war have been shaped by one another, and explore what the battlefields of the near future might look like when they are dominated by emotionless machines programmed to kill.

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When it comes to climate change, we’re not all in it together.

From New Orleans to Bangladesh, women—especially poor women of colour— are suffering most from a crisis they have done nothing to cause. ‘How Women Can Save The Planet’ by Anne Karpf is a smart, bold and inclusive call to arms: we can fix the climate emergency by fighting for gender equality. In this episode, listen to Anne Karpf in conversation with Angad Singh Chowdhry, co-founder of Quilt.AI, about how our gendered perceptions of nature influence our understanding of the climate crisis and our actions to mitigate it.

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‘The People on the Beach’ by Rosie Whitehouse is a vivid history tracing the Holocaust survivors who risked everything for a new life in Palestine. Listen to Rosie in conversation with Angad Singh Chowdhry, co-founder of Quilt.AI, about who the people on the beach were, how they fled Europe—and why—and the way in which the Holocaust is remembered today.

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