Hardtalk

A year ago revolution was in the air in the Gulf Kingdom of Bahrain - what about now? After months of violence which killed dozens of protestors, the Bahraini king commissioned an independent inquiry - then he promised to implement sweeping reforms. Stephen Sackur speaks to Nabeel Rajab - one of Bahrain's most outspoken human rights activists. Has this strategically vital Gulf monarchy successfully reformed itself from within?

Britain has already seen the first skirmishes in what could be a protracted battle between the Cameron government and organised labour. In the short term, schools and fuel suuplies could be hit by strikes; looking further ahead, there's talk of union protests targeting the London Olympics. Stephen Sackur speaks to Len McCluskey, leader of Unite, Britain's biggest union. He talks of defending workers' rights within the law, and outside it, if necessary. How far is he prepared to go?

Frank Chikane served in the South African presidential office from the time of Nelson Mandela to Jacob Zuma - so he was privy to what went on behind the scenes. Now he has written a book in which he describes for the first time his account of Thabo Mbeki's removal as South Africa's president. He says it was a painful and humiliating episode for Mr Mbeki and it exposed the deep rivalry at the heart of the ruling African National Congress which continues to divide it today.Zeinab Badawi asks if the ANC become so riven with factionalism and corruption that it can no longer govern effectively.

In a special edition of Hardtalk, recorded in front of an audience in the village of Portmeirion in North Wales, Stephen Sackur talks to Sir Mark Walport the Director of the Wellcome Trust. One of the world's most important funding institutions for biomedical research, it distributes close to a billion dollars' worth of grants every year. Much of it goes to cutting edge genetic research which promises to transform human healthcare, but also raises profound ethical questions. Our scientific knowledge is expanding but what about the wisdom with which we use it?

Hardtalk is in New York City with a guest who is a woman who has spent her life challenging assumptions that go with the label 'physically disabled'. Aimee Mullins had both of her legs amputated below the knee when she was just a year old. She went on to become a champion athlete, an actor and highly paid model. She has been feted as an inspiration across America. Stephen Sackur asks, What is the real lesson of the remarkable story of Aimee Mullins?(Image: Aimee Mullins. Credit: Reuters)

Otis Williams is the sole constant in the life of one of the most successful groups in Motown history. He formed The Temptations in 1961, and the record sales tell a story of extraordinary success.If rock and roll was about sex and drugs, Motown was all that and more. So how has he sidestepped the cocaine addiction, the drink and the depression that killed other members of his group? Did he ever feel he got his just rewards for so much success? And when will he finally decide he has had enough?(Image: Otis Williams. Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

The Maldives was plunged into political crisis when the former president Mohamed Nasheed resigned, claiming to have been forced out of his position. He was succeeded by his former vice president - Mohamed Waheed - who denies allegations of taking part in a coup. President Waheed is now building a government of national unity, but with tensions still running high between him and supporters of his predecessor, how safe is the island nation's democracy?(Image: Maldivian President Mohamed Waheed Hassan. Credit: Associated Press)

A year has passed since the uprising that ended the 30-year rule of Egypt's former president, Hosni Mubarak. Since then the country has struggled to establish democracy and credible elections under the control of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. Human rights abuses are continuing and the animosity between pro-democracy activists and the Establishment is escalating. Abdel El-Menawy is the former head of Egyptian television. He helped draft Hosni Mubarak's final speech and has written a book detailing the final days of his rule. Presented by Stephen Sackur.(Image: An Egyptian boy wearing an Egyptian national flag in Tharir Square. Credit: Getty Images)

Tunisia is the first Arab nation to be transformed by people power but how successful has the transition to democracy been? Stephen Sackur talks to Said Ferjani who is a key figure in the Ennahda Movement - the moderate Islamist political party which dominates the democratically elected Tunisian government. Ennahda says it is committed to building a Muslim democracy. Is Tunisia a model which the rest of the Arab world can follow?

Hardtalk is in Tunisia a year after the revolution which gave birth to the Arab Spring. Stephen Sackur meets Moncef Marzouki - a man who has undergone an extraordinary transformation from political prisoner and dissident exile to president of the Republic. He now heads a coalition government of Islamists and secularists. The country has become the test bed for the new politics of the Arab world. Can Tunisia make a success of its revolution?(Image: Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki. Credit: AFP/Getty Images)

Over the past ten years Jacqueline Wilson has been the most borrowed author from British libraries. She's sold 30 million of her books just in the UK - and written nearly a hundred of them over the years - girls love them. They almost always focus on a young girl in a difficult family usually being brought up single-handedly by her mother, sometimes with an abusive stepfather. And often featuring drink or drugs. So why does she draw on such bleak territory?Jacqueline Wilson talks to Sarah Montague

Ghana has been hailed as a shining example to all of Africa - a model of democracy, decent governance and responsible economic management in a continent struggling to fulfil its potential. But if Ghana looks like a success story to outsiders, how does it look to Ghanaians themselves?Nana Akufo-Addo is the leader of the main opposition party and candidate for president. Stephen Sackur asks him if Ghana can use its resource wealth and inward investment to benefit the many, not just a few.

Turkey is a rising power in a strategically vital region, but does it have the ability to shape events beyond its borders? Officials in Ankara would like to see Turkey inside the EU and providing leadership in the Middle East, but both goals remain elusive.Stephen Sackur talks to Egemen Bagis, Turkey's minister for Europe. His country is flexing some diplomatic muscle, but is it having the desired effect.

Politics can be a cruel business. No one knows that better than Britain's former foreign secretary David Miliband. He was hot favourite to lead the UK's Labour party after its dismal 2010 election defeat, but he lost out to his younger brother Ed. His steady rise to the political summit was halted, but he remains a Labour MP, and he still makes carefully timed interventions in foreign policy and national politics. Without the trappings of power, how does David Miliband maximise his influence?

The 10th anniversary of the end of Angola's devastating post-independence civil war is being marked in 2012. What a difference a decade makes. Angola is now one of Africa's powerhouse economies, enjoying growth that puts the West to shame, and exploiting China's insatiable demand for commodities, especially oil.Stephen Sackur speaks to Angola's foreign minister, Georges Chikoti. For Angola and Africa, this is an era of opportunity; will it be seized or squandered?

Stephen Sackur speaks to the president of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, currently on a visit to London. He took power in Kampala at the head of a rebel army in 1986 and has delivered stability and economic progress in a country previously laid low by brutal dictatorship. But in recent years, he has faced questions about his commitment to democracy and human rights. When he took power, he said Uganda's - and Africa's - problem was leaders overstaying their time in power. Has he fallen into the same old trap?(Image: President of Uganda Yoweri K Museveni. Credit: Associated Press)

This summer Ukraine is co-hosting the European football championships, but don't be deceived by the sporting camaraderie - Ukraine's political relationship with the EU is in crisis. The most pressing dispute concerns Yulia Tymoshenko, the former Ukrainian prime minister imprisoned for seven years after a trial dismissed as a political charade by many in the West. Stephen Sackur speaks to Yulia Tymoshenko's daughter, Eugenia. What does the Tymoshenko story say about Ukraine?

Some politicians claim that they would be willing to die for their beliefs. Fawzia Koofi is an Afghan politician who says that she expects to be killed."I am resigned to this fate", she says.She is currently an MP in the Afghan parliament and has been a prominent national figure since she was first elected in 2005. She has already survived several assassination attempts. So what, in that case, does she believe she can achieve in running for the presidency of her country in 2014? She talks to Tim Franks.

What's the key to world class sporting performance?Top coaches will tell you the biggest prizes don't necessarily go to the best natural athletes, but to those best prepared. Science, technology and psychology - all are used to gain a competitive edge. Stephen Sackur speaks to Sir Clive Woodward, coach of England's World Cup winning rugby team in 2003, and now performance director for the British Olympic team preparing for London 2012. Are sporting champions born or made?(image: Sir Clive Woodward. Credit: Getty Images)

Hardtalk is in the financial heart of New York City to meet one of the country’s most respected and enduring policy makers. Paul Volcker was chairman of the Federal Reserve in the Reagan years and in all he served five presidents, most recently advising the Obama administration in regulating the banks and engineering an economic recovery. America has lost its economic swagger; Stephen Sackur asks - can it get it back?