Mary Kenny has extensive experience as a traditional storyteller with people of all ages and abilities, and is an established member of the Scottish Storytelling Directory. A visual artist and sculptor for 30 years, Mary’s studio ‘little art house’ is in the grounds of Traquair House. Originally from the Midlands, the Borders have been her Home for many years.

Geoffrey Baskerville studied Modern History at Merton College, Oxford, before starting a career in arts administration, working largely with émigré Russians pursuing careers in the west. He subsequently turned to freelance writing and journalism and then joined the BBC, where he worked first as a diarist and subsequently as a producer of arts programmes for BBC Scotland, and as a presenter for Radio 3, Radio 4 and the World Service. He has now turned back to writing and editing, and is currently working on a biographical project about Peter Darrell, one of Britain’s most significant post-war choreographers and the founder of The Scottish Ballet.

Events participated in:

The British Country House and Its Secrets: Listen as Catherine Maxwell-Stuart introduces Ben Cowell OBE, Director-General of the Historic Houses association and author of the British Country House Revival, as he talks to Geoffrey Baskerville on The Rise and Fall of the Stately Home, and as Wessley Edmonds reveals how she found a letter from the Traquair House archives uncovering the story of an enslaved boys life. (2024)

Understanding Mary Queen of Scots: Join authors Rosemary Goring and Clare Hunter as they discuss the life, times, and embroidery ofMary Queen of Scots with Geofrey Baskerville. (2022)

Appointment in Arezzo: A Friendship with Muriel Spark: Alan Taylor talks to Geoffrey Baskerville about his latest book Appointment in Arezzo, documenting his friendship with the late Muriel Spark, and shedding light on the author’s remarkable life. (2018)

After Flodden: Listen as writer and journalist Rosemary Goring recounts tales of what came After Flodden, discussing her novel and the consequences of the disastrous battle of 1513 and the events that led to it. Geoffrey Baskerville asks the questions. (2017)

Jacobite Uprisings: 1715-2015: Catherine Muller Stuart introduces historians Professor Murray Pittock and Geoffrey Baskerville as they consider the Jacobite uprising and its impact on Scotland today. (2015)

Shingle Street: Geoffrey Baskerville talks to author and poet Blake Morrison about Shingle Street-his first full-length poetry collection for almost thirty years– detailing life on the Suffolk coast and haunting portraits of the past. (2015)

Reclaiming Traquair’s History: Geoffrey Baskerville talks to Flora and Catherine Maxwell Stuartas they discuss the history of Traquair during the 20th and 21st centuries and how the family brought the House back to public life. (2014)

A Sense of Place: Spend 45 minutes with US Pulitzer Prize winner poet Jorie Graham as she talks about her poetry, life and a sense of place. Geoffrey Baskerville poses the questions. (2013)

The Power of Music: Meet one of the world’s leading conductors, Maestro Valery Gergiev, as he talks to James Naughtie about his life, the power of music to uplift and heal, and how Russia convinced FIFA to let it host the world cup. Geoffrey Baskerville introduces. (2012)

The Stuart Dynasty in the Scottish Borders: Geoffrey Baskervillein conversation with Allan Massie and Catherine Muller Stuart on the legacy of the Stuart Dynasty. (2011)

Why Latin America Should Run the World: Join witty Columbian philosopher Oscar Guardiola-Rivera, with Geoffrey Baskerville to see why Latin America should rule the world! (2010)

Murray Pittock MAE FRSE is Pro Vice-Principal and Bradley Professor at the University of Glasgow and Scotland’s leading cultural historian. A prize lecturer for both the Royal Society of Edinburgh and the British Academy, in 2020, he was elected to the European Academy for his work on Scotland in a global context. His work has changed our understanding of the nature of Scottish history, culture and the cultural economy. His works include Enlightenment in a Smart City (2019, book of the year award), Culloden (2016, 2017, 2021, 2022, History Today Book of the Year choice), Material Culture and Sedition (2013, Saltire History Book of the Year shortlist), The Myth of the Jacobite Clans (1995, 1999, 2009), The Reception of Sir Walter Scott in Europe (2007, 2014), The Reception of Robert Burns in Europe (2014), Robert Burns in Global Culture (2011) and Robert Burns and the Scottish Economy (2020). He has held visiting appointments in Dublin, New York, Notre Dame, Prague, Yale and elsewhere and contributes to the media internationally, acting also as consultant and royal commentator. He is general editor of the £1M Collected Works of Allan Ramsay, funded by UK Research and Innovation and the Royal Society of Edinburgh, and is co-Chair of the Scottish Arts and Humanities Alliance (www.saha.scot), a Trustee of the National Trust for Scotland and sits on the advisory board of http://www.nise.eu/, which brings together research on nationalism in Europe.

Events participated in:

Scotland: A Global History: Watch Murray Pittockas he unpicks Scotland’s global history and infuence with William Dalrymple. (2022)

Jacobite Uprisings: 1715-2015: Catherine Muller Stuart introduces historians Professor Murray Pittock and Geoffrey Baskerville as they consider the Jacobite uprising and its impact on Scotland today. (2015)

Catherine Maxwell Stuart is the Director of Heritage at Beyond Borders Scotland. She is currently the 21st Lady of Traquair. She lives at Traquair House where she was born and brought up. Over the past 20 years she has been actively involved in tourism, the arts, heritage and business both locally and nationally. She has been a board member of the Scottish Enterprise Borders, the Broadcasting Council for Scotland and non-Exec director of Border TV. She also sat on the Lord Chancellor’s Advisory Council on Records and Archives and currently is Chair of the Scottish Borders Area Tourism Partnership.

Events participated in:

The British Country House and Its Secrets: Listen as Catherine Maxwell-Stuart introduces Ben Cowell OBE, Director-General of the Historic Houses association and author of the British Country House Revival, as he talks to Geoffrey Baskerville on The Rise and Fall of the Stately Home, and as Wessley Edmonds reveals how she found a letter from the Traquair House archives uncovering the story of an enslaved boys life. (2024)

Literary Walk: Join Catherine Maxwell Stuart and Alasdair Allan on a walk from Toll Wood as he reads from his new book exploring the Scottish Borders. (2022)

Book Launch: Decameron: Join Roddy Martine, Catherine and Mark Muller Stuart, Andrew Brown, and others, as they talk about their scrapbook Decameron in which 10 friends explored 10 artistic themes for 10 weeks during lockdown 2020. (2021)

Traquair’s Jacobite Connection: Catherine Maxwell-Stuart and Margaret Fox tell thestory of how Traquair became the Jacobites’ most southerly Scottish Stronghold. (2017)

Mary, Queen of Scots, and the Murder of Lord Darnley: After the murder of her secretary, Mary, Queen of Scots and Lord Darnley stayed at Traquair House. Six months later Lord Darnley was assassinated in one of Britain’s most notorious unsolved murders. 450 years later, Catherine Maxwell Stuart introduces Alison Weir as she sheds new light on the conspiracy. (2016)

Globes of Traquair: Catherine Muller Stuart and Jerry Brotton explore Traquair’s historic globes. (2016)

Reclaiming Traquair’s History: Geoffrey Baskerville talks to Flora and Catherine Maxwell Stuartas they discuss the history of Traquair during the 20th and 21st centuries and how the family brought the House back to public life. (2014)

Walk – If the Trees Could Talk, What Would They Say: A Talking Science Project in partnership with Beyond Borders Scotland and the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Join this session to explore Traquair’s historic landscape and discover the stories of its amazing trees. (2013)

A Family Life Revealed: Catherine Muller Stuart and Traquair archivist, Margaret Fox give an insight into the lives of the Stuarts at Traquair from 1491 – 1875, from their recently published book based on letters and documents from the archives. (2013)

The Stuart Dynasty in the Scottish Borders: Geoffrey Baskerville in conversation with Allan Massie and Catherine Muller Stuart on the legacy of the Stuart Dynasty. (2011) 

Barbara Dickson is a multi million selling recording artist. She was born in Scotland, and was scouted by RSO Records when performing in a Beatle’s musical in London’s West End. She sang on the original cast recording of ‘Evita’ the musical by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Weber, and was awarded the ‘Best Actress in a Musical’ award from the Society of West End Theatres for her role in ‘Blood Brothers’. Her ‘All For a Song’ album in 1982 was certified platinum and spent almost a year on the album chart. She was awarded an OBE from Her Majesty the Queen in 2002 for Services to Music and Drama, She has also presented several radio series for BBC Radio Scotland and had major roles on TV. She remains one of Scotland’s biggest-selling female singers of all time.

Events participated in:

Music: Barbara Dickson: Enjoy an enchanting performance from Scottish singer Barbara Dickson. (2017)

Lunchtime Music from Barbara Dickson (2018)

Lunchtime Music: Enjoy your lunch in the Walled Garden as Barbara Dickson and Anthony Toner explore the idea of Place through a specially-curated set of songs for the Festival. (2022)

 Lunchtime Music: Enjoy your lunch in the Walled Garden with music from Barbara Dickson. (2023)

Martin Griffiths OBE was the former Deputy Head of the UN Supervisory Mission in Syria (UNSMIS) where he was the lead civilian and responsible for political affairs, human rights and civil affairs, working with Kofi Annan.

He was the Founding Director of Geneva based Humanitarian Dialogue Centre where he specialised in developing dialogue between governments and insurgents, and helped lay the foundations for peace in a range of countries across Asia, Africa and Europe.

Mr. Griffiths has worked with UNICEF in Asia, in the British Diplomatic Service, Save the Children, and as Chief Executive of ActionAid. He rejoined the United Nations (UN) in 1994 as Director of the Department of Humanitarian Affairs (which became OCHA) in Geneva and became the Deputy to the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator in New York in 1998. He has also served as UN Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Great Lakes and UN Regional Coordinator in the Balkans with the rank of UN Assistant Secretary-General.

Events participated in:

Innovating War and Peace: Join Eldridge Adolfo, senior mediation advisor to FBA, as he talks to Martin-Griffiths, former Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs about the need for enhanced humanitarian diplomacy, Andrew Gilmour former Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, about his book The Burning Questionon climate and conflict, and Dr. Houda Abadi, co-author of a new guide on Islamic peacemaking principles, as they explore how to innovate peace in an increasingly fractured world. (2024)

What is Europe?: Join Sarah Smith in conversation with Alyn Smith MEP, EIP Director Martin Griffiths, Erik Berglöf and Dr Oscar Guardiola-Rivera as they try to answer the question “What is Europe?” (2015)

Lord Jack McConnell, Baron McConnell of Glenscorrodale, is a Scottish politician and Labour life peer in the House of Lords. He was the First Minister of Scotland from 2001 to 2007 and MSP for Motherwell and Wishaw from 1999 to 2011. After leaving the Scottish Parliament, he was appointed as an adviser to the Clinton Hunter Development Initiative in Malawi and Rwanda and as the Prime Minister’s Special Representative on Conflict Resolution Mechanisms by Gordon Brown. He is also a UK Ambassador for Action for Children, which promotes relationships between the UK and China.     

Events participated in:

Turning Points in Modern Britain: Join Steve Richards and Jack McConnell for a discussion on his latest book Turning Points in Modern Britan, from 1945 to Truss leading to two big questions – Is Scotland at a turning point with the SNP crisis? Is the UK at a turning point with Labour set to win the general election? (2023)

What Jack Did Next: Life Beyond Politics: What happens when a top-ranking politician loses office? Join former First Minister, Lord Jack McConnell, as he discusses his life and workafter politics. (2015)

Phoebe Greenwood is a writer and journalist living in London. Between 2010 and 2013, she was a freelance correspondent in Jerusalem covering the Middle East for the Guardian, Daily Telegraph and Sunday Times. From 2013 to 2021, she was an editor and correspondent at the Guardian specialising in foreign affairs.

Listed by the Observer as one of “Our top 50 players in the world of books”, Clare Conville founded C&W in 2000 and is now Chair of the company. In 2020, alongside author and curator Harriet Vyner, Clare co-founded the eclectic independent publishing imprint and production company CHEERIO in association with the Estate of Francis Bacon. Clare co-curated the Curious Arts Festival and sits on the board of the Cob Gallery.

Clare has a well-established and high profile list of authors whose work has been translated into more than sixty languages, and many developed into theatre, film and television adaptations. Between them, Clare’s authors have won or been nominated for nearly every major literary prize in the UK.

William Dalrynple is a Scottish-born bestselling author and historian. While studying at the University of Cambridge, he mirrored – on foot – the route of Marco Polo from Jerusalem to Mongolia and wrote his first book, In Xanadu about the journey. This became a bestseller and in 1990 he won the Yorkshire Post Best First Work Award and a Scottish Arts Council Spring Book Award. He has written several books about his travels, particularly around India, and his historical works have earned him several notable awards. Among them are the Wolfson Prize, the Scottish Book of the Year prize and three honorary doctorates of letters from the Universities of St Andrews, Lucknow and Aberdeen. His most recent written work The Anarchy: The Relentless Rise of the East India Company (2019) was shortlisted for numerous prizes. He is one of the co-founders and co-directors of the world’s largest writers festival, the annual Jaipur Literature Festival.

Events participated in:

The Golden Road: Watch eminent historian William Dalrymple CBE as he delivers a riveting lecture about his new book The Golden Road exploring how ancient India transformed the world. (2024)

The Uncommon Wealth: Join William Dalrymple and Dr Kojo Koram as they deep dive into the history of colonialism and the future of the Commonwealth with Oscar Guardiola-Rivera. (2023)

The Rise of the Festival: Listen to Hay, Edinburgh, and Jaipur Festival Chairs Caroline Michel, Allan Little, and William Dalrymple, as they discuss the rise of the festival and power of the spoken word with Oscar Guardiola-Rivera and Colin Grant. (2022)

Scotland: A Global History: Watch Murray Pittockas he unpicks Scotland’s global history and infuence with William Dalrymple. (2022)

Dispatches from Kabul: Join Allan Little with Eldridge Adolfo, Advisor to the EU Envoy to Afghanistan, Afghan rights campaigner Samina Ansari, Beyond Borders Fellow Mariam Safi, and William Dalrymple, as they discuss the crisis in Afghanistan. (2021)

Scots in the Empire: Participate in the inquisition, as Professor Geoff Palmer quizzes historian, William Dalrymple, and author of Blood Legacy, Alex Renton, about the Scots’ role in the British Empire and the institution of slavery. (2021)

The Prince Who Beat the Empire: Listen as William Dalrymple talks to Moin Mir about his book The Prince Who Beat the Empire– the moving story of the rebel prince who beat the world’s most powerful corporation: The East India Company. (2019)

Forgotten Masters: Indian Painting for the East India Company: William Dalrymple returns to Traquair House for an intimate chapel event discussing hisupcoming book and curated exhibition of a collection of extraordinary Indian artists between 1770 and 1857. (2019)

The East India Company: The Original Corporate Raiders: William Dalrymple returns to Traquair House to deliver another rousing talk about the East India Company, its legacy, and why the lessons of its brutal reign have never been more relevant. (2018)

The Dawn Watch: Joseph Conrad in a Global World: Accompany Maya Jasanoff as she explores the 21st Century disruptive world through the fiction of one of the 20th Century’s most prophetic writers: Joseph Conrad. William Dalrymple asks the questions. (2018)

Midnight’s Children: Legacy of Partition: Join William Dalrymple as he explores theconsequences of the Partition of India and Pakistan in 1947 with Harvard Professor Sugata Bose, Tufts University Professor Ayesha Jalal, former Editor of Pakistan Daily Times Rashed Rahman, and best-selling author Ahmed Rashid. (2017)

William Dalrymple: The Writer’s Eye: William Dalrymple’s striking photographs mark an accomplished leap of form for the the much travelled writer. Shot over two years, they pay homage to the beauty and disquiet of landscape, form and time. Courtesy of Sunaparanta-Goa Centre for the Arts – Curator: Siddharth Dhanvant Shanghvi – Patrons: Dattaraj & Dipti Salgaoca. (2016)

Encountering the East: In 1984 William Dalrymple set off on a journey through Asia, returning one year later having written In Xanadu. Almost 30 years later, lawyer Isabel Buchanan was drawn to Pakistan, where she wrote Trials: On Death Row in Pakistan. Discover how the beguiling East inspired them to write their first books. (2016)

The Silk Road: Where East Meets the West: Explore how the Silk Roads, the crossroads of the world, shaped global history over the past 2000 years as writer and historian Peter Frankopan talks to William Dalrymple about his latest book. (2016)

Koh-i-Noor: The Real Jewel in the Crown: Author and historian William Dalrymple returns to Traquair House to give one of his dazzling lectures, this time on the secrets and history behind the Koh-i-Nor: the real jewel in the crown. Oscar Guardiola-Rivera introduces. (2016)

India in the 21st Century: Join William Dalyrmple as he talks to Indian writer and Member of Parliament, Dr Shashi Tharoor, about India in the 21st Century. (2015)

Mughals in Kilts: William Dalrymple gives one of his dazzling lectures on ‘Mughals in Kilts.’ (2015)

Princes and Painters in Mughal Delhi: William Dalrymple returns to give a dazzling lecture on the art of the Mughals (1707-1857), as one great Empire gave way to another. (2014)

Return of the King: Meet Beyond Borders favourite, William Dalrymple, as he returns to Traquair to read from his new book, which examines the haunting parallels between Britain’s imperial adventures in Afghanistanin the 19th and 21st Centuries, as well as talk about his new project concerning the Indo-Pak rivalry. Magnus Linklater asks the questions. (2013)

Understanding the Islamic World: Join William Dalrymple as he talks to Sadakat Kadri about his journey through Sharia Law and the Sunni/Shia divide. Also Manny Ansar and former U.S. Diplomat Cynthia P. Schneider on why the West needs to reengage with the Islamic world. (2013)

The Last Mughal: Listen to the haunting songs of celebrated India singer, Vidya Shah, while William Dalrymple takes you on a journey through the poetry and intrigues of India’s last Mughal rule. (2012)

Pakistan – A Failing State?: William Dalrymple talks to Rashed Rahman, Editor of the Daily Times of Pakistan. (2011)

Tales from Afghanistan: Magnus Linklater talks to William Dalrymple and Des Browne about 19th and 20th-century British rule in Afghanistan. (2011)

Moin Mir is an accomplished author who has undertaken extensive research on Sufist history and cultural revivalism in India. His latest book – The Prince Who Beat The Empire is the riveting story of Meer Jafar Ali Khan the Indian Prince who voyaged to England in 1844 and 1853 and went on defeat the representatives of Empire- The East India Company in the House of Commons. Moin Mir was born and brought up in India and lives in London. He began his literary career by co- authoring Mirza Ghalib and the Mirs of Gujarat, a book that translated the Urdu prose and poetry of India’s foremost Urdu poet. Mir is a member of the Nawab family of Surat and Kamadhia, two erstwhile principalities in India. He is currently working on his next book which is set in 18th century India, Turkey and Spain.

Events participated in:

The Prince Who Beat the Empire: Listen as William Dalrymple talks to Moin Mir about his book The Prince Who Beat the Empire– the moving story of the rebel prince who beat the world’s most powerful corporation: The East India Company. (2019)

Humza Yousaf MSP is a Scottish politician who served as the former First Minister of Scotland and the leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) in March 2023. Yousaf studied Politics at the University of Glasgow and began his political career as an aide to several SNP politicians. In 2011, he was elected the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Glasgow region. Yousaf has held  several positions at his time in the Scottish Government including Minister for External Affairs and International Development (2012-2014), Minister for Transport and the Islands (2016-2018), Cabinet Secretary for Justice (2018-2021) and Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care (2021-2023). His role as former First Minister of Scotland held historical significance as the first Muslim and person of Asian descent to hold office in Scotland.

Events participated in:

Year in the Life of Humza Yousaf: Humza Yousaf MSP talks to Allan Little about his fourteen months as Scotland’s First Minister and the impact of the ongoing conflict in Gaza has had on his family, him and his thinking, as well as his thoughts on the rise of the far-right in Europe. (2024)

Ambassador Dr. Husam S. Zomlot is the Head of the Palestinian Mission to the United Kingdom and Strategic Affairs Advisor to the Palestinian President. Prior to this appointment to the UK, Dr. Zomlot served as Ambassador to the United States (Head of the PLO General Delegation to the United States). Dr. Zomlot’s previous official roles include serving as Ambassador-at-large for the Palestinian Presidency and Director of the Fatah Foreign Relations Commission.

Mohammed Salem is a Palestinian photojournalist based in the Gaza Strip. Salem holds a media degree from Gaza University and has been working with Reuters since 2003. While his primary focus lies in documenting the conflict between Palestinians and Israelis, he has also covered various international news events.

In 2024, his photo of Palestinian woman Inas Abu Maamar holding the wrapped body of her niece Saly won the World Press Photo of the Year award. His work was also part of a joint entry that won the 2024 Pulitzer Prize for News Photography. Salem won Pictures of the Year International twice, in 2023 and 2018. He received second prize in Spot News at the 2010 World Press Photo competition and was a winner of the 2004 Chinese International Press Photo Competition. He also received a Dubai Press Club Media Award, an award given to a young Arab photographer. He holds a degree in media from the University of Gaza.

Jeremy Corbyn, independent MP for Islington North, founder and director of the Peace and Justice Project (PJP), was twice elected leader of the British Labour Party (2015-2020). He has served as Member of the British Parliament for Islington North for 42 years and he was a member of the Council of Europe (2020-2024).

His extensive and lifelong campaigning for peace, justice and human rights has taken him across the world, advocating in senior roles for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, the Palestinian Solidarity Committee, Stop the War, the UN Human Rights Council in New York (review of the Geneva Convention), nuclear non-proliferation, trade unions, Labour rights, Indigenous rights and many social movements. Corbyn has twice been awarded prizes for promoting peace, including the Seán MacBride Peace Prize for his sustained and powerful political work for disarmament and peace. He founded the People’s Forum after winning the 2024 elections.

Oscar Guardiola-Rivera is a writer and professor of human rights and political philosophy at Birkbeck College, University of London. After leading the student movement that initiated a wave of constitutional reform throughout Latin America in the late 1990’s, he continued his studies in the United Kingdom where he obtained an LLM with Distinction at University College London, and a PhD in Philosophy at the University of Aberdeen. He is the writer of the award-winning What If Latin America Ruled the World? which was listed as one the best non-fiction books of 2010 by The Financial Times. Dr Guardiola-Rivera is also the co-editor of the contemporary art and theory journal Naked Punch: An Engaged Review of Arts & Theory, and has engaged with an extensive range of publications and broadcasters, including Granta, El Espectador, the BBC World Service Nightwaves, and Al-Jazeera to name but a few. He is currently the Deputy Postgraduate Director of the Department of Law at Birkbeck, University of London and is recognized as one of the most representative voices of contemporary Latin American philosophy and literature.

Events participated in: 

The Arrival in Tradition: Recovery, Rhythm and the Popul Vuh: Join Oscar Guardiola-Rivera and Azad Ashim Sharma for an hour of poetry and discussion with sonic accompaniment from Mun Sing. Celebrating the launch of Sharma’s Boiled Owls and Guardiola-Rivera’s Under The World, themes of addiction, recovery, arrival in tradition, indigenous thinking, and writing in a time of crisis emerge against a backdrop of Mun Sing’s soundscapes that embrace dark anguish in search of groove, rhythm, and hope. (2024)

‘A Citizen From Nowhere’: Join BBC correspondent Kirsty Lang as she talks to Aminatta Forna OBE on being cosmopolitan as they explore the question of whether we choose or are made to become global souls in an era of mass migration, nationalism and as a response to growing populism across the world. (2024)

Finding Justice: Oscar Guardiola-Rivera talks to the head of the Colombian Special Jurisdiction for Peace, Judge Roberto Carlos Vidal López, and with Nedžad Avdić on how he escaped from a death pit during the Srebrenica genocide to give crucial evidence before the International Criminal Court. In partnership with Beyond ​​Srebrenica. (2024)

The Uncommon Wealth: Join William Dalrymple and Dr Kojo Koram as they deep dive into the history of colonialism and the future of the Commonwealth with Oscar Guardiola-Rivera. (2023)

Who Gets Believed?: Explore identity and belonging with Dina Nayeri in an enlightening discussion with Oscar Guardiola-Rivera about the complexities of migration and identity. (2023)

Is There Such a Thing as American Exceptionalism?: Join Jim Naughtie as he explores America’s historical legacy in the making of the modern world. With Tim Phillips, Aminatta Forna, and Oscar Guardiola-Rivera, as Razia Iqbal and Sir Kieran Prendergast join from abroad. (2021)

The Long Knives: Enjoy Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh as he talks to Oscar Guardiola-Rivera about his life and new novel The Long Knives. (2022)

The Rise of the Festival: Listen to Hay, Edinburgh, and Jaipur Festival Chairs Caroline Michel,Allan Little, and William Dalrymple, as they discuss the rise of the festival and power of the spoken word with Oscar Guardiola-Rivera and Colin Grant. (2022)

10 Years That Shook the World: Join us as we look back at the events that have helped shape the last decade and the next, with Oscar Guardiola-Rivera and guests including Razia Iqbal, Staffan de Mistura, and Erik Berglof. Followed bya drinks reception celebrating the 10th anniversaryof the Beyond Borders International Festival. (2019)

Democracy in the Digital Age: New York Times journalist Amanda Taub, social impact entrepreneur Paul van Zyl, and Beyond Conflict CEO Tim Phillips talk to Oscar Guardiola-Rivera about democracy, the impact of technology, and the prevalence of social media as a polarizing force, as well as adiscussion about The New York Times’ Privacy Project. (2019)

The Most Unforgettable Women in History: Join actress and scholar Lisa Dwan and philosopher Dr Oscar Guardiola-Rivera for a fresh look at the most memorable women of Ancient Greek literature from Medea to Antigone. Can their story be re-told for the time of MeToo and the fourth wave of feminism. (2019)

Twenty Years On – A Good Friday Agreement: Oscar Guardiola-Rivera talks toMonica McWilliams and Tim Phillips as they reveal how peace was built in Northern Ireland and consider the impact of Brexit. (2018)

Black History Matters: Join Oscar Guardiola-Rivera as he explores race relations in America with author Aminatta Forna, Beyond Conflict’s Tim Phillips, and playwright Bonnie Greer. (2017)

Healing the Past: Michael Mansfield QC, Tim Phillips, Oscar Guardiola-Rivera and Lucy Ash discuss how communities come to terms with loss. (2016)

Paths to Peace: Beyond Conflict’s Tim Philips reveals how he convinced the Pope to support a crucial back channel between the US and Cuba, and Oscar Guardiola-Rivera gives a perspective on the Colombian peace process. With John Kampfner. (2016)

“Do Not Let Scotland Down”: Alyn Smith MEP talks to Oscar Guardiola-Rivera about that European Parliament speech. (2016)

This Will Make You Hopeful: Dr Oscar Guardiola-Rivera will give you five reasons to remain hopeful in hopeless times. (2015)

What is Europe?: Join Sarah Smith in conversation with Alyn Smith MEP, EIP Director Martin Griffiths, Erik Berglöf and Dr Oscar Guardiola-Rivera as they try to answer the question “What is Europe?” (2015)

The Rule of Law: What is Means and How to Spread It: Meet Sir Jeffrey Jowell QC of the Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law, the UN’s Andrew Gilmour, and David Marshall, editor of an explosive new book on the rule of law movement, as they discuss what the rule of law means for today’s international policymakers. (2014)

Oscar Guadiola-Rivera: Story of a Death Foretold: Meet Oscar Guardiola-Rivera as he recounts the circumstances that led to the fall of President Salvador Allende’s regime in Chile. (2014)

Are We Eating Ourselves into Oblivion?: Oscar Guardiola-Rivera talks to Feeding Frenzy author Paul McMahon, restaurant owner Iqbal Wahhab, and Delfina Foundation director, Aaron Cezar, about the politics of food in the 21st century. (2014)

Can We Ever Trust the State: As more disclosures emerge about the extent of official surveillance in Western society, John Kampfner asks whether we can ever trustthe State to protect our liberties. Author of forthcoming book,‘Story of a Death Foretold’ which charts the 1973 Chilean Coup,Ben Emmerson QC author of the UN report on drone strikesand US Ambassador Cynthia P. Schneider. (2013)

The Art of Protest: Meet William Sutcliffe as he talks about his new novel “The Wall” and later joins Palestinian Singer Reem Kelani, Turkish commentator,Mesut Onen, Turkish poet, Bejan Matur, Saudi Arabian artist Manal al-Dowayan and Egyptian film director Akmal Saleh as they go on to discuss the rise of public and cultural protest across the world. Colombian author Oscar Guardiola-Rivera asks the questions. (2013)

Balancing Security and Human Rights in Times of Transition: Join International Criminal Tribunal judge Ben Emmerson QC, former head of UNDPA, Sir Kieran Prendergast, Roelf Meyer and Lindsey Hilsum as they discuss with Dr. Oscar Guardiola Rivera how to achieve stability in Syria and whether military intervention, the use of targeted drone strikes and the use of other more controversial war on terror methods leads to a more stable world. (2012)

Small Acts of Resistance: Join Steve Crawshaw, Pamela Hogan, Richard Demarco and Paul Van Zyl, as they discuss with resident Colombian philosopher Dr. Oscar Guardiola Rivera how the arts are being used to highlight resistance and promote change around the world. (2012)

Dividing Small Nations: Comedian, writer and broadcaster Mark Thomas talks to Oscar Guardiola-Rivera about his recent walk along Israel’s Separation Barrier. (2011)

The Arab Spring & the Power of Democracy: Oscar Guardiola-Rivera talks about the power of democracy with Dr Izzeldin Abuelaish, Rashed Rahman, Sir Kieran Prendergast, Ramy Essam and Marie Colvin. (2011)

Why Latin America Should Run the World: Join witty Columbian philosopher Oscar Guardiola-Rivera, with Geoffrey Baskerville to see why Latin America should rule the world! (2010)

Fi Martynoga is an environmental activist, journalist, museum researcher and a renowned figure in Scottish nature, sustainability, history and food circles.

Events participated in:

A Nature Walk Through Traquair: Submerse yourself in the beautiful Scottish borders landscape and stroll around the scenic Traquair grounds led by Fi Martynoga for a foraging walk. (2024)

Walk and Talk with Fi Martynoga: Experience a taste of the Scottish Borders with Fi Martynoga as she leads a foraging walkaround the grounds of Traquair. (2023)

Foraging Walk: Experience a taste of the Scottish Borders as Fi Martynoga leads a foraging walk around Traquair. (2022)

Foraging Walk: Experience a taste of the Scottish Borders as Fi Martynoga leads a foraging walk around Traquair. (2021)

Woodland Hike with Fi Martynoga: Join Fi Martynoga on a hike from Traquair Houseon the Southern Upland Way, before exploring thenew footpath up to the Satyr Sykes and returningto Traquair House. Please note that this walk involves hills, but is on a sturdy path. (2019)

Foraging Walk with Fiona Martynoga: Take a walk on the wild side as local foraging expert Fi Martynoga leads a walk through the surroundings of Traquair House. (2018)

Foraging Walk with Fiona Martynoga: Take a walk on the wild side as local foraging expert Fi Martynoga leads a walk through the surroundings of Traquair House. (2017)

Taste the Wild with the Foraging Fionas: Join local writer and foraging expert FionaMartynoga and Fiona Bird on a foraging walkaround the grounds of Traquair House. (2016)

A Forager’s Tale: Discover a delicious new side to the Borders ona foraging walk with Fi Houston in the groundsof Traquair House and taste the foraged goodslater in the Festival Café. (2015)

Where the Wild Things Are – A Borders Foraging Walk: Delve into the wild in the surroundings of Traquair House with foraging experts to discover a delicious new side to the borders. (2014)

Walk – Walking Scott’s Border Ballads: At yon castle wa’ join Fiona Houston as she talks to acclaimed modern artist and Harvard Lit Professor Peter Sacks and leads him through true Elfyn-land and beyond to rediscover the Medieval Border Ballads saved, and tinkered with, by Sir Walter Scott. (2013)

Scotland’s Wild Harvests: Local writer and foraging expert Fiona J. Houston discusses a new guide for wild food enthusiasts. (2012)

The Literary Walk: Join local writer Fiona Houston for a literary walk around the hills of Traquair and meet Scottish artists Silvia Woodcock-Clarke, Caroline McNairn, Andrew Brown, and Joseph Maxwell Stuart in situ. (2010)

Alasdair Allan has been an SNP MSP since May 2007 representing the constituency of the Western Isles. Alasdair gained a PhD in Scots Language from Aberdeen University in 1998. Previous to becoming an MSP, Alasdair was senior media relations officer for the Church of Scotland. He regularly wrote Gaelic columns in various newspapers and was named Gaelic journalist of the year in 2006. In addition he was also the National Secretary of the SNP from 2003 to 2006 before he resigned to fight for the Western Isles seat.

Catherine Maxwell Stuart is the Director of Heritage at Beyond Borders Scotland. She is currently the 21st Lady of Traquair. She lives at Traquair House where she was born and brought up. Over the past 20 years she has been actively involved in tourism, the arts, heritage and business both locally and nationally. She has been a board member of the Scottish Enterprise Borders, the Broadcasting Council for Scotland and non-Exec director of Border TV. She also sat on the Lord Chancellor’s Advisory Council on Records and Archives and currently is Chair of the Scottish Borders Area Tourism Partnership.

Events participated in:

The British Country House and Its Secrets: Listen as Catherine Maxwell-Stuart introduces Ben Cowell OBE, Director-General of the Historic Houses association and author of the British Country House Revival, as he talks to Geoffrey Baskerville on The Rise and Fall of the Stately Home, and as Wessley Edmonds reveals how she found a letter from the Traquair House archives uncovering the story of an enslaved boys life. (2024)

Literary Walk: Join Catherine Maxwell Stuart and Alasdair Allan on a walk from Toll Wood as he reads from his new book exploring the Scottish Borders. (2022)

Book Launch: Decameron: Join Roddy Martine, Catherine and Mark Muller Stuart, Andrew Brown, and others, as they talk about their scrapbook Decameron in which 10 friends explored 10 artistic themes for 10 weeks during lockdown 2020. (2021)

Traquair’s Jacobite Connection: Catherine Maxwell-Stuart and Margaret Fox tell thestory of how Traquair became the Jacobites’ most southerly Scottish Stronghold. (2017)

Mary, Queen of Scots, and the Murder of Lord Darnley: After the murder of her secretary, Mary, Queen of Scots and Lord Darnley stayed at Traquair House. Six months later Lord Darnley was assassinated in one of Britain’s most notorious unsolved murders. 450 years later, Catherine Maxwell Stuart introduces Alison Weir as she sheds new light on the conspiracy. (2016)

Globes of Traquair: Catherine Muller Stuart and Jerry Brotton explore Traquair’s historic globes. (2016)

Reclaiming Traquair’s History: Geoffrey Baskerville talks to Flora and Catherine Maxwell Stuartas they discuss the history of Traquair during the 20th and 21st centuries and how the family brought the House back to public life. (2014)

Walk – If the Trees Could Talk, What Would They Say: A Talking Science Project in partnership with Beyond Borders Scotland and the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Join this session to explore Traquair’s historic landscape and discover the stories of its amazing trees. (2013)

A Family Life Revealed: Catherine Muller Stuart and Traquair archivist, Margaret Fox give an insight into the lives of the Stuarts at Traquair from 1491 – 1875, from their recently published book based on letters and documents from the archives. (2013)

The Stuart Dynasty in the Scottish Borders: Geoffrey Baskerville in conversation with Allan Massie and Catherine Muller Stuart on the legacy of the Stuart Dynasty. (2011) 

Sam Dalrymple is a Delhi-raised Scottish historian and award-winning filmmaker. He graduated from Oxford University as a Persian and Sanskrit scholar, and also studied at the University of Isfahan and Ferdowsi University of Mashhad in Iran. He has worked across South and Central Asia, including stints with Turquoise Mountain in Kabul, and with the Aga Khan Trust for Culture in Hunza and Lahore. In 2018, he co-founded Project Dastaan, a peace-building initiative that reconnects refugees displaced by the 1947 Partition of India. His debut film, Child of Empire, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2022, and his animated series Lost Migrations sold out at the BFI the same year. He is a columnist for Architectural Digest, and in 2025, Travel & Leisure named him ‘ Champion of the Travel Narrative ’. He runs the history Substack @ travelsofsamwise. Shattered Lands is his first book.

William Dalrynple is a Scottish-born bestselling author and historian. While studying at the University of Cambridge, he mirrored – on foot – the route of Marco Polo from Jerusalem to Mongolia and wrote his first book, In Xanadu about the journey. This became a bestseller and in 1990 he won the Yorkshire Post Best First Work Award and a Scottish Arts Council Spring Book Award. He has written several books about his travels, particularly around India, and his historical works have earned him several notable awards. Among them are the Wolfson Prize, the Scottish Book of the Year prize and three honorary doctorates of letters from the Universities of St Andrews, Lucknow and Aberdeen. His most recent written work The Anarchy: The Relentless Rise of the East India Company (2019) was shortlisted for numerous prizes. He is one of the co-founders and co-directors of the world’s largest writers festival, the annual Jaipur Literature Festival.

Events participated in:

The Golden Road: Watch eminent historian William Dalrymple CBE as he delivers a riveting lecture about his new book The Golden Road exploring how ancient India transformed the world. (2024)

The Uncommon Wealth: Join William Dalrymple and Dr Kojo Koram as they deep dive into the history of colonialism and the future of the Commonwealth with Oscar Guardiola-Rivera. (2023)

The Rise of the Festival: Listen to Hay, Edinburgh, and Jaipur Festival Chairs Caroline Michel, Allan Little, and William Dalrymple, as they discuss the rise of the festival and power of the spoken word with Oscar Guardiola-Rivera and Colin Grant. (2022)

Scotland: A Global History: Watch Murray Pittockas he unpicks Scotland’s global history and infuence with William Dalrymple. (2022)

Dispatches from Kabul: Join Allan Little with Eldridge Adolfo, Advisor to the EU Envoy to Afghanistan, Afghan rights campaigner Samina Ansari, Beyond Borders Fellow Mariam Safi, and William Dalrymple, as they discuss the crisis in Afghanistan. (2021)

Scots in the Empire: Participate in the inquisition, as Professor Geoff Palmer quizzes historian, William Dalrymple, and author of Blood Legacy, Alex Renton, about the Scots’ role in the British Empire and the institution of slavery. (2021)

The Prince Who Beat the Empire: Listen as William Dalrymple talks to Moin Mir about his book The Prince Who Beat the Empire– the moving story of the rebel prince who beat the world’s most powerful corporation: The East India Company. (2019)

Forgotten Masters: Indian Painting for the East India Company: William Dalrymple returns to Traquair House for an intimate chapel event discussing hisupcoming book and curated exhibition of a collection of extraordinary Indian artists between 1770 and 1857. (2019)

The East India Company: The Original Corporate Raiders: William Dalrymple returns to Traquair House to deliver another rousing talk about the East India Company, its legacy, and why the lessons of its brutal reign have never been more relevant. (2018)

The Dawn Watch: Joseph Conrad in a Global World: Accompany Maya Jasanoff as she explores the 21st Century disruptive world through the fiction of one of the 20th Century’s most prophetic writers: Joseph Conrad. William Dalrymple asks the questions. (2018)

Midnight’s Children: Legacy of Partition: Join William Dalrymple as he explores theconsequences of the Partition of India and Pakistan in 1947 with Harvard Professor Sugata Bose, Tufts University Professor Ayesha Jalal, former Editor of Pakistan Daily Times Rashed Rahman, and best-selling author Ahmed Rashid. (2017)

William Dalrymple: The Writer’s Eye: William Dalrymple’s striking photographs mark an accomplished leap of form for the the much travelled writer. Shot over two years, they pay homage to the beauty and disquiet of landscape, form and time. Courtesy of Sunaparanta-Goa Centre for the Arts – Curator: Siddharth Dhanvant Shanghvi – Patrons: Dattaraj & Dipti Salgaoca. (2016)

Encountering the East: In 1984 William Dalrymple set off on a journey through Asia, returning one year later having written In Xanadu. Almost 30 years later, lawyer Isabel Buchanan was drawn to Pakistan, where she wrote Trials: On Death Row in Pakistan. Discover how the beguiling East inspired them to write their first books. (2016)

The Silk Road: Where East Meets the West: Explore how the Silk Roads, the crossroads of the world, shaped global history over the past 2000 years as writer and historian Peter Frankopan talks to William Dalrymple about his latest book. (2016)

Koh-i-Noor: The Real Jewel in the Crown: Author and historian William Dalrymple returns to Traquair House to give one of his dazzling lectures, this time on the secrets and history behind the Koh-i-Nor: the real jewel in the crown. Oscar Guardiola-Rivera introduces. (2016)

India in the 21st Century: Join William Dalyrmple as he talks to Indian writer and Member of Parliament, Dr Shashi Tharoor, about India in the 21st Century. (2015)

Mughals in Kilts: William Dalrymple gives one of his dazzling lectures on ‘Mughals in Kilts.’ (2015)

Princes and Painters in Mughal Delhi: William Dalrymple returns to give a dazzling lecture on the art of the Mughals (1707-1857), as one great Empire gave way to another. (2014)

Return of the King: Meet Beyond Borders favourite, William Dalrymple, as he returns to Traquair to read from his new book, which examines the haunting parallels between Britain’s imperial adventures in Afghanistanin the 19th and 21st Centuries, as well as talk about his new project concerning the Indo-Pak rivalry. Magnus Linklater asks the questions. (2013)

Understanding the Islamic World: Join William Dalrymple as he talks to Sadakat Kadri about his journey through Sharia Law and the Sunni/Shia divide. Also Manny Ansar and former U.S. Diplomat Cynthia P. Schneider on why the West needs to reengage with the Islamic world. (2013)

The Last Mughal: Listen to the haunting songs of celebrated India singer, Vidya Shah, while William Dalrymple takes you on a journey through the poetry and intrigues of India’s last Mughal rule. (2012)

Pakistan – A Failing State?: William Dalrymple talks to Rashed Rahman, Editor of the Daily Times of Pakistan. (2011)

Tales from Afghanistan: Magnus Linklater talks to William Dalrymple and Des Browne about 19th and 20th-century British rule in Afghanistan. (2011)

Moin Mir is an accomplished author who has undertaken extensive research on Sufist history and cultural revivalism in India. His latest book – The Prince Who Beat The Empire is the riveting story of Meer Jafar Ali Khan the Indian Prince who voyaged to England in 1844 and 1853 and went on defeat the representatives of Empire- The East India Company in the House of Commons. Moin Mir was born and brought up in India and lives in London. He began his literary career by co- authoring Mirza Ghalib and the Mirs of Gujarat, a book that translated the Urdu prose and poetry of India’s foremost Urdu poet. Mir is a member of the Nawab family of Surat and Kamadhia, two erstwhile principalities in India. He is currently working on his next book which is set in 18th century India, Turkey and Spain.

Events participated in:

The Prince Who Beat the Empire: Listen as William Dalrymple talks to Moin Mir about his book The Prince Who Beat the Empire– the moving story of the rebel prince who beat the world’s most powerful corporation: The East India Company. (2019)

Sigrid van Aken is an accomplished business leader serving as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Postcode Lottery Group. Under her leadership, the Postcode Lottery Group has become a prominent force in fundraising for charitable causes across five European countries, with a total of 969 million euros raised in 2023 alone, benefiting thousands of charitable initiatives, locally and internationally. This philanthropic commitment positions the Postcode Lottery Group as the world’s third-largest private charity donor in 2021, actively contributing to the advancement of a fairer, healthier, greener global community.

Christopher Lockyear became Secretary General of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) International in October 2018. Starting with MSF in Darfur in 2005, he has subsequently held field coordination roles in Sudan, Somalia and Pakistan. He has overseen operations from headquarters with responsibility for programs in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Pakistan and South Sudan. In 2014, he joined Action Against Hunger USA as Operations Director and was a Member of the UN Emergency Director’s Group. Originally from the UK, Chris is a 2014 Yale World Fellow and holds an MA in Philosophy and Ethics from Exeter University, and degrees in Engineering from Cambridge University.

Lyse Doucet is a Canadian journalist who is the BBC’s Chief International Correspondent and an occasional Contributing Editor. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Queen’s University at Kingston and gained a Master’s degree in International Relations from the University of Toronto. She presents on BBC World Service radio and BBC World News television, also reports for BBC Radio 4 and BBC News in the United Kingdom, including reporting and occasionally presenting for Newsnight. She also makes and presents documentaries.

Events participated in:

3.5 Billion Cracks and Counting: Lyse Doucet talks to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and UN Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura about the increasing role women are playing in peacemaking and politics, including Europe’s future. (2016)

ZarifAtToul-AsSamer is a fundraising social enterprise project that aims to help people and communities.  It is an unincorporated charitable organisation that is committed to prevent and relieve poverty through art, heritage and cultural activities as this is its main social, charitable and community-based objective. It is a small ‘not-for-profit’ organisation and has several volunteers, trustees and donors.

This organisation attempts to convert the individual effort of its founder into a group effort via the help of volunteers, trustees, and donors. It has two main aims: the first is to raise awareness of the Palestinian folklore in Scotland; the second is to use this Palestinian folklore as a tool to help relieve poverty, particularly for orphans and needy children. One of the main tools used to help raise money and relieve poverty is the organisation’s dabke folklore dance troupe.

Nigel Osborne is an accomplished composer, teacher and aid worker. Mr Osborne’s works have been performed around the world by major orchestras and opera houses, including the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Moscow Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia of London, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the Scottish Opera. He has been awarded the Opera Prize of Radio Suisse Romande and Ville de Geneve, the Netherlands Gaudeamus Prize, the Radcliffe Award, the Koussevitzky Award of the Library of Congress, and the Washington and the British Composer Award for Inspiration. Mr Osborne was the Master of Music at Shakespeare’s Globe from 1999 to 2000 and has pioneered methods using music and the creative arts to support children who are victims of conflict. This innovative approach was developed during the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina (1992-95), and has since been widely implemented across the Balkan region.

Events participated in:

Music, War and Peace: Enjoy an hour of music with meaning, led by Nigel Osborne and musicians for a procession around Traquair’s tranquil grounds. Followed by a presentation entitled, Music and War, in the second half of the hour. (2024)

A Promenade of Discovery: Explore Traquair’s surroundings as Nigel Osborne leads a musical promenade exploring the linksbetween music and the climate crisis. (2021)

Lunchtime Music: Listen as Nigel Osborne curates a programme of music exploring the links between music and the climate crisis. (2021)

A Promenade of Discovery: Emeritus Professor Nigel Osborne MBE leads a promenade of discovery through the grounds of Traquair House, accompanied by Syrian oud, gongs, violin, and cello, as he explores the power of music and its impact on a sense of place, and home. (2019)

Music and Migration: World-renowned composer Emeritus Professor Nigel Osborne MBE gives a talk about music and migration, accompanied by Syrian Oud, cello, gongs, and violin. (2019)

Dr Brian Brivati was professor of contemporary history, human rights and life writing at Kingston University until 2009 and since then has combined writing and international capacity building work for the UK government, the UN and NGOs and INGOs. His most recent book was the edited collection Losing Afghanistan: The Fall of Kabul and the end of Western Intervention and he contributed the forward “Iraq’s Accidental Churchill” to Impossible Victory: How Iraq Defeated ISIS written by the former Iraqi PM Haider Al-Abadi. Since the war against Ukraine started in 2014, he has been engaged with a cross cutting network of civil society and political actors. Since the 2022 invasion, the network has been utilised to fill gaps, connect subject matter experts to the right people in Ukraine and other initiatives to support civil society, free media and civilian oversight of government.

Events participated in:

From Kabul to Kyiv: A Year in Global Politics: Join Steve Richardsas he talks to AndriyShevchenko, *Head of the Ukrainian Media Centre, about war in Ukraine, Brian Brivati, about his new book Losing Afghanistan, and University of St Andrews’ Professor Phillips O’Brien. (2022)

A Mile in Their Shoes: Spend your lunchtime visiting ourA Mile inTheir Shoesexhibition and speak to the teambehind it and its artist Siemon Scamell-Katz. (2015)

Ukraine – Dispatches from the Barricades: Join Dr Brian Brivati discussing the implications of the Maidan Revolution with a number of prominent Ukrainian politicians, intellectuals and activists from both East and West. (2014)

Sir Vincent Fean has 39 years of diplomatic experience including serving as Consul-General in Jerusalem (2010-14), Ambassador to Libya (2006-10), and High Commissioner to Malta.  An Arabist, he has engaged in senior policy-making, government affairs and negotiation in Whitehall, the Middle East and Western Europe. He is a Trustee of the Britain Palestine Project, a UK charity raising awareness of Britain’s historic responsibilities in Israel/Palestine, and advocating equal rights for Palestinians and Israelis.

Nicola Sturgeon MSP, is the former First Minister of Scotland and leader of the Scottish National Party (2014-2023). She is also the Member of Scottish Parliament for Glasgow Southside. Formerly a graduate of Law from the University of Glasgow, she originally worked as a solicitor. Having already become a member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, she was first elected to the Scottish Parliament in 1999 and served as the SNP’s shadow minister for education, health and justice. Since then, she has held multiple positions within the party serving as Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing, Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure, Investment and Cities, deputy leader of the party and Deputy First Minister of Scotland before becoming First Minister. She has won several awards including both the title of Scottish Politician of the Year and the Donald Dewar Debater of the Year Award.

Events participated in:

A Diplomatic Life: Former UN envoy Staffan de Mistura, and Stephanie Williams talk to Nicola Sturgeon MSP, about their diplomatic experiences as they consider the future of the United Nations and its security council. Joined by questions from a Peebles High School student, as part of the Beyond Borders Youth Programme. (2024)

Stand Up and Speak Out: Former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon talks to veteran peacemaker Monica McWilliams about her new book Stand Up, Speak Out: My Life Working for Women’s Rights, Peace and Equality in Northern Ireland and Beyond. (2023)

Stories from the Frontline: Nicola Sturgeon and Guests FM Nicola Sturgeon talks to members of the Fellowship Programme from around the world as they give their take on recent global events. (2022)

Beyond Brexit: Listen as First Minister Nicola Sturgeon gives her take on Brexit and the new emerging political landscape in Scotland, the United Kingdom, and beyond. Allan Little asks the questions. Mark Muller Stuart QC introduces. (2019)

Women in the World: Listen as First Minister Nicola Sturgeon interviews journalist, magazine editor, columnist, talk-show host, and author Tina Brown about her life in the media andbeyond to her work on Women in the World. (2017)

3.5 Billion Cracks and Counting: Lyse Doucet talks to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and UN Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura about the increasing role women are playing in peacemaking and politics, including Europe’s future. (2016)

An Audience with the Most Influential Woman in Britain: Spend an hour with Nicola Sturgeon, one of the most remarkable women in politics, as she talks about her life, and her hopes and fears for Scotland and the UK. (2015)

Women in Conflict Launch: Join First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura and Founder of Beyond Borders Mark Muller Stuart QC at the launch of the Women in Conflict Peace Initiative as they welcome this year’s Women in Conflict Fellows from around the world to Scotland. (2015)

Allan Little is an award-winning Scottish journalist and presenter who has reported from more than 80 countries including a variety of war zones, revolutions and natural disasters. After graduating from the University of Edinburgh, Mr Little joined BBC Scotland as a news and current affairs researcher before moving to London to train as a radio reporter. He specialised in foreign reporting for BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme, including accounts from the revolutions of 1989 across Eastern Europe. He then worked as a reporter for BBC News, reporting from hostile environments such as the 1991 Gulf War, Kuwait, former Yugoslavia, South Africa, Rwanda and Zaire. Mr Little also worked as the BBC Moscow correspondent and reported on the 1995 Afghanistan earthquakes before becoming the BBC’s Africa and later, Paris correspondent. He has won several awards, including three Gold Sony Radio Academy Awards for Reporter of the Year, the Bayeux War Correspondent of the Year, and in 2012 he won both the Thomas Reuters prize for Reporting Europe for his Radio 4 documentary, Europe’s Choice and the Charles Wheeler Award for Outstanding Contribution to Broadcast Journalism. Mr Little left the BBC in 2014 and today chairs the Edinburgh International Book Festival.

Events participated in:

Year in the Life of Humza Yousaf: Humza Yousaf MSP talks to Allan Little about his fourteen months as Scotland’s First Minister and the impact of the ongoing conflict in Gaza has had on his family, him and his thinking, as well as his thoughts on the rise of the far-right in Europe. (2024)

Britain and International Security: Allan Little quizzes the Former Head of the Special Boat Service, Col Graham Cundy, and Channel 4 Foreign Affairs Editor, Lindsey Hilsum, about Britain’s interventions in conflicts around the world. (2023)

The World and All That It Holds: Join Allan Little and celebrated author Aleksandar Hemon as they explore his new novel The World and All That it Holds, which takes the reader on a mesmerising journey from Sarajevo to Shanghai. They will also reflect onthe former Yugoslavia 25 years on. (2023)

Resistance!: Watch Allan Little as he talks to the jail mate of Nelson Mandela and former PM of the Western Cape, Ebrahim Rasool, Professor Christina Murray who helped draft the South African Constitution, and South African artist, Peter Sacks, as they talk about South Africa, and the concept of resistance and renewal, in the context of Sack’s extraordinary multi-dimensional exhibition, Resistance, at Summerhall Arts, featuring 54 resistance figures from across the globe over the last 120 years. In celebration of BBC correspondent George Alagiah and his most recent book Burning Land. (2023)

From the Basque to the Big Country: Where Now for Democratic Politics in Europe?: Join Allan Little as he talks to Urko Aiartza Azurtza, Merryn Somerset Webb, and Gerry Hassan about how to deal with populism and demands for constitutional change in Europe. Tim Phillips gives a US perspective. (2022)

The Rise of the Festival: Listen to Hay, Edinburgh, and Jaipur Festival Chairs Caroline Michel, Allan Little, and William Dalrymple, as they discuss the rise of the festival and power of the spoken word with Oscar Guardiola-Rivera and Colin Grant. (2022)

Dispatches from Kabul: Join Allan Little with Eldridge Adolfo, Advisor to the EU Envoy to Afghanistan, Afghan rights campaigner Samina Ansari, Beyond Borders Fellow Mariam Safi, and William Dalrymple, as they discuss the crisis in Afghanistan. (2021)

Scotland’s Foreign Policy Footprint: Join Stephen Gethins, author of Nation to Nation and former UK Permanent Representative to NATO Mariot Leslieas they explore Scotland’s foreign policy footprint. Allan Little asks the questions. (2021)

Divided Societies: Watch Allan Little as he talks to novelist Elif Shafak about her book How to Stay Sane in the Age of Division and writer Sarah Helm as theyreveal the truth about divided societies, including in Turkey and Gaza. (2021)

Beyond Brexit: Listen as First Minister Nicola Sturgeon gives her take on Brexit and the new emerging political landscape in Scotland, the United Kingdom, and beyond. Allan Little asks the questions. Mark Muller Stuart QC introduces. (2019)

Pathways to Peace: Bettany Hughes returns to Traquair House to take the long view of historical pathways to peace to ask what might healing and reconciliation look like in today’s world? Allan Little asks the questions. (2019)

The Scottish Clearances: A History of the Dispossessed: Join Allan Little as he talks to historian Professor Sir Tom Devine about his latest book The Scottish Clearances, and explores the history of Scotland’s immigrant communities from World War Two to the present day. (2019)

Fair Game: My Life as a Spy, My Betrayal by the White House: Join Allan Little as he interrogates Valerie Plame about her life as a CIA agent and the scandal that surrounded her exposure as a spy, in a story that shed astonishing light on a world that was supposed to remain hidden. (2018)

The New York Times: Hard Truths: Join Jodi Rudoren, Associate Managing Editor of The New York Times and Iranian photo journalist Newsha Tavakolianas they talk about the importance of photojournalism in bearing witness to global economic and political atrocities around the world with Allan Little. (2018)

Moscow and Washington Calling: Listen as Allan Little talks to Angus Roxburgh about Russia and his memoirs Moscow Calling, and to Salman Ahmed about the National Security approaches taken by Presidents Obama and Trump. (2017)

A Diplomatic Affair: Listen to veteran UN Diplomat and Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura as he talks to Allan Little about his life, and find out why he painted camels blue in Sudan. (2016)

This Orient Isle: Allan Little talks to Renaissance Professor Jerry Brotton about his latest book, taking a tour of the cultural and political relationships between Elizabethan England & the Islamic World. (2016)

Srebrenica Remembered: Scottish Conservatives leader and former journalist Ruth Davidson talks to foreign correspondents Allan Little and Kate Adie about the conflict in Bosnia and asks whether the international community has learnt anything over the last twenty years about reporting on and preventing genocide. (2015)

An Audience with the Most Influential Woman in Britain: Spend an hour with Nicola Sturgeon, one of the most remarkable women in politics, as she talks about her life, and her hopes and fears for Scotland and the UK. (2015)

Jim Naughtie: The Madness of July: Drop by for a chat with Jim Naughtie, when Allan Little asks him about his new spy thriller The Madness of July. (2014)

City of Peace, City of Blood: Join Allan Little as he quizzes author and adventurer Justin Marozzi about his new book on Baghdad and what it is like to travel on awing and a prayer across the world’s fault lines in Afghanistan, Darfur, Libya and Somalia in the 21st Century. (2014)

Spies, Whistle-blowers and the NSA: Listen in when BBC Correspondent Allan Little talks to journalist and award-winning Guardian correspondent Luke Harding about his new book The Snowden Files: The Inside Story of the World’s Most Wanted Man. (2014)

Dispatches from the Most Dangerous Places on Earth: Join Allan Little as war photographer Paul Conroy gives a haunting account of coming under fire with Marie Colvin in Syria in 2011 while author James Fergusson explains why Somalia became one of the most dangerous places on earth. (2013)

Iraq 10 Years On: What Lessons for Syria and the UN: Join General Sir Mike Jackson, Chatham House’s Jane Kinninmont and Sir Kieran Prendergast as they come together to discuss the Iraq War and its impact on the U.N. and Syria. Allan Little presides. (2013)

Making Peace in South Africa: Join Allan Little in conversation with Former Secretary of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa, Paul Van Zyl, Co-Founder of the Project on Justice in Times of Transition, Tim Phillips and President de Klerk’s defence minister, Roelf Meyer as he recounts how he came to release Nelson Mandela to create the Rainbow Nation. (2012)

Journalists Under Fire: Join Allan Little as he talks to Channel 4 News International Editor and author of Sandstorm Lindsey Hilsum and photographer Guy Martin, who was injured in Libya while documenting the unfolding Arab Spring. Followed by a short drinks reception in memory of Marie, with the Marie Colvin Memorial Fund. (2012)

Zimbabwe at the Crossroads: Allan Little talks with Sir Kieran Prendergast, Mordecai Mahlungu, Petina Gappah and William Burdett-Coutts about the future of Zimbabwe. (2011)

Dispatches from the Darkside: Gareth Peirce in conversation with Allan Little about Guantánamo and the UK’s alleged complicity in torture. (2011)

Hew Strachan, FBA, FRSE, Hon. D. Univ (Paisley) has been Wardlaw Professor of International Relations at the University of St Andrews since 2015.  He is a Life Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, where he taught from 1975 to 1992, before becoming Professor of Modern History at Glasgow University from 1992 to 2001.He was Chichele Professor of the History of War at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of All Souls College 2002-15 (where he is now an Emeritus Fellow), and Director of the Oxford Programme on the Changing Character of War 2003-2012.  He was a Commonwealth War Graves Commissioner 2006-18 and a Trustee of the Imperial War Museum 2010-18, and a member of the national committees for the centenary of the First World War of the United Kingdom, Scotland and France.  In 2010 he chaired a task force on the implementation of the Armed Forces Covenant for the Prime Minister and has been a member of the Covenant Reference Group since its inception.  In 2011 he was the inaugural Humanitas Visiting Professor in War Studies at the University of Cambridge and became a specialist adviser to the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the National Security Strategy.  He is an Ensign in the Queen’s Bodyguard for Scotland (Royal Company of Archers), in 2014 was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Tweeddale.  In 2016 he was awarded the Pritzker Prize for Lifetime Achievement for Military Writing.  His recent publications include The Politics of the British Army (1997); The First World War: To Arms (2001); The First World War: a New Illustrated History (2003); and The Direction of War (2013).

Events participated in:

Re-Thinking Remembrance: Listen as Professor Sir Hew Strachan talks to Stuart Kelly, reflecting on the commemorations of the centenary of World War One, on what we remember, how we commemorate, and why. (2019)

General David Richards led operations in East Timor, Sierra Leone, and Afghanistan. He is best known for his command in Sierra Leone in 2000, when he interpreted his orders creatively to achieve much more than was at first thought possible, ensuring the ultimate defeat of the RUF rebels and the avoidance of much bloodshed in the capital, Freetown. He went on to command NATO forces in Afghanistan during the Alliance’s expansion of responsibility across the whole country.

Having first commanded the British Army, in 2010 David became Chief of the Defence Staff, the professional head of Britain’s armed forces and their strategic commander as well as the Prime Minister’s military adviser and a member of the National Security Council. In this capacity, amongst many other tasks, he played a major role in the Libyan campaign in 2011 and in devising the UK’s final strategy for Afghanistan.

He retired in July 2013. His UK operational awards include a Mention in Despatches, Commander of the British Empire, Distinguished Service Order and Knight Commander of the Bath; the first officer to receive an operational knighthood since World War 2. In 2011 he received the annual Churchillian Award for leadership. He was created Baron Richards of Herstmonceux in February 2014 and now sits in the House of Lords.

Steve Crawshaw, Amnesty International Director of International Advocacy.

Events participated in:

Small Acts of Resistance: Join Steve Crawshaw, Pamela Hogan, Richard Demarco and Paul Van Zyl, as they discuss with resident Colombian philosopher Dr. Oscar Guardiola Rivera how the arts are being used to highlight resistance and promote change around the world. (2012)

Kirsty Law is a folksinger from the Scottish Borders. Throughout her career she has explored and performed ancient material from the Scots living tradition, whilst writing new work in the Scots language, all of which has at its centre creative social commentary and innate storytelling. ‘Spellbinding…’ BBC Radio 3 Late Junction.

Jim Naughtie FRSE  is a British radio and news presenter for the BBC. He began his career as a journalist at the Aberdeen Press and Journal before moving to the London offices of The Scotsman. He became its Chief Political Correspondent before working for The Washington Post and The Guardian. Mr Naughtie later moved into radio presenting and has anchored every BBC Radio UK election results programme since 1997, and worked on every US presidential election since 1988. He has been the main presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme and his radio presenting has earned him two Sony Radio Awards: Radio Personality of the Year in 1991 and Voice of the Listener and Viewer Award in 2001. That same year, Mr Naughtie received an honorary doctorate from the University of Sterling and was appointed as its chancellor in 2008. He retired from regular presenting duties in 2016 and is currently the BBC’s Special Correspondent responsible for charting UK constitutional reform, as well as the BBC news’ Book Editor.

Events participated in:

Bloody Scotland: Sit back and enjoy an afternoon with veteran crime writers Lin Anderson and Doug Johnstone as they discuss Anderson’s most recent novel The Wild Coast and explain to Jim Naughtie why Scotland is so bloody. (2024)

Uncut and Uncensored: Join veteran BBC correspondent Jim Naughtie as he takes on the irrepressible Miriam Margolyes OBE, as she recounts more details about her extraordinary life and her new one woman show, Dickens’ Women. (2024)

From the Sloane Ranger to Bake Off, How Britain’s Culture Has Change: Laugh with Jim Naughtie as he explores changes in British culture over the last 30 years with Chief Sloane Ranger and stylist Peter York and Bake Off star Dame Prue Leith. (2023)

Pretty Young Rebel: Join Jim Naughtie as he talks to Flora Fraser about the remarkable exploits of Flora MacDonald in both the Jacobite and American rebellions, as they discuss her new book Pretty Young Rebel: The Life of Flora MacDonald. (2023)

The Palace Papers: Watch Jim Naughtie as he grills Tina Brown about The Palace Papers, in which she shares searing insight into the Royal Family from the 1990s to today. (2022)

Is There Such a Thing as American Exceptionalism?: Join Jim Naughtie as he explores America’s historical legacy in the making of the modern world. With Tim Phillips, Aminatta Forna, and Oscar Guardiola-Rivera, as Razia Iqbal and Sir Kieran Prendergast join from abroad. (2021)

Lady in Waiting: My Extraordinary Life in the Shadow of the Crown: Watch as veteran journalist Jim Naughtie delves into the remarkable life of Lady Anne Glenconner, as Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret, wife to Lord Glenconner and her new role as a writer. (2021)

Where Next for the United Kingdom?: Listen as political commentators Steve Richards, Sarah Smith, and Jim Naughtie explore the current state of affairs in UK politics and what it takes to lead this country. Magnus Linklater asks the questions. (2019)

Sir Harold Evans: My Paper Chase: Jim Naughtie talks to award-winning journalistand author Sir Harold Evans about his life andwork – the story of a career spanning five decadesof political, social, and creative change. (2017)

Clinton vs Trump: The Battle for the Soul: Jim Naughtie, Tim Phillips, William Millerand Joan Abrahamson explore the dynamics underpinning the forthcoming US election. (2016)

The Dream That Never Dies: Spend an hour with the former First Minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond, as he spills the beans on last year’s Referendum and his life as Scotland’s most explosive politician. (2015)

Time to Decide – The Independence Debate: Join Jim Naughtie as he grills political luminaries Michael Moore MP and Stephen Gethins about the Scottish Referendum and takes the longview with Scottish historian Michael Fry. (2014)

Jim Naughtie: The Madness of July: Drop by for a chat with Jim Naughtie, when Allan Little asks him about his new spy thriller The Madness of July. (2014)

Who Do You Think You Are?: Join Jim Naughtie for a light hearted debate as he explores the concept of national identity with Alistair Moffat, author of Britain’s DNA, author William Sutcliffe, and Quilliam Foundation Chairman and Restaurateur, Iqbal Wahhab. (2013)

Was Sir Walter Scott a Lyrical Nationalist: Discover acclaimed modern artist and Harvard literary professor Peter Sacks, as he explores and brings to life the timeless tales of Walter Scott’s collection of Scottish Border Ballads with the help of Jim Naughtie. Peter has been commissioned to produce a major new work for Traquair incorporating the history and texture of the Scottish Borders. (2013)

The Power of Music: Meet one of the world’s leading conductors, Maestro Valery Gergiev, as he talks to James Naughtie about his life, the power of music to uplift and heal, and how Russia convinced FIFA to let it host the world cup. Geoffrey Baskerville introduces. (2012)

The State of the Union: James Naughtie, Sir Menzies Campbell MP, Tam Dalyell and Magnus Linklater discuss the likely effect of the referendum, the banking scandal and the Leveson enquiry on the state of the British Union. (2012)

Steve Crawshaw, Amnesty International Director of International Advocacy.

Events participated in:

Small Acts of Resistance: Join Steve Crawshaw, Pamela Hogan, Richard Demarco and Paul Van Zyl, as they discuss with resident Colombian philosopher Dr. Oscar Guardiola Rivera how the arts are being used to highlight resistance and promote change around the world. (2012)