Jonathan Freedland: “Taking a Stand Against Authoritarian Governments” – in conversation with Professor Ivor Gaber

The Shoreham Centre

A unique opportunity to hear from and engage with one of the UK’s most respected journalists and political commentators. Amid warning signs that even the world’s most powerful democracy is not immune to the risks of a slide into authoritarianism, Jonathan Freedland and Ivor Gaber discuss an enduring, yet newly urgent question: why do some people stand up to tyranny, when most do not? Why do some risk the peace and tranquility of their own lives to take a stand that can only bring ruin – and worse? Questions that Jonathan wrestles with in his latest book, The Traitors Circle , which tells the astonishing true story of a group of anti-Nazi rebels who defied Adolf Hitler, only to be betrayed from within – a story with alarming resonance for our own time. He will discuss the book and the wider implications of this theme in relation to today’s global politics with Professor Gaber, who will then open up for audience questions and reactions. Jonathan will be available for book signing after the talk and discussion. Jonathan Freedland is a weekly columnist for the Guardian and presents BBC Radio 4’s contemporary history series The Long View . He is the author of the Sunday Times bestsellers The Escape Artist: The Man Who Broke Out of Auschwitz to Save the World and The Traitors Circle: The Rebels Against the Nazis and the Spy Who Betrayed Them. He is also the author of several thrillers under the pseudonym Sam Bourne and is a past winner of an Orwell Prize for Journalism. IVOR GABER is Emeritus Professor of Political Journalism at the University of Sussex. He has authored numerous books, chapters and articles on the broad topic of the interaction between politics and journalism. He was a political correspondent at Westminster for ITN and Channel Four News and represents the UK at UNESCO’s Communications Section in Paris. In 2023 he was awarded an OBE for his work in promoting global media freedom. He is a Trustee of the Shoreham Wordfest.