Ben Macintyre

This book offers just one universal truth: no one knows how they will respond to lethal jeopardy, until they have to.  

So writes renowned non-fiction author Ben Macintyre in his new book, “The Siege: A Six-day Hostage Crisis and the Daring Special-forces Operation That Shocked the World”. It’s a riveting reconstruction of the Iranian Embassy siege in 1980, which was brought to a dramatic denouement by the SAS in a televised storming that interrupted coverage of the world snooker championship final. 

A story of ordinary men and women under immense pressure, “The Siege” takes readers minute-by-thrilling-minute through an event that would echo across the decades and provide a direct historical link to the tragedy on 9/11. Macintyre brilliantly reconstructs a week in which every day minted a new hero and every second spelled the potential for doom. 

We’re delighted to welcome Ben to Stroud Book Festival to discuss this thrilling book, and how the events he describes still reverberate today. 

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