麻豆约拍

Libby Purves meets film-maker Claire Belhassine, photojournalist Paul Conroy, entrepreneur Douglas Villiers and composer Errollyn Wallen.

Claire Belhassine is a British/Tunisian filmmaker whose documentary film, Papa Hedi tells the story of her grandfather Hedi Jouini, whom she discovered was the Frank Sinatra of the Arab world. When he died in 1990 he was considered to be one of the significant Arabic composers of the 20th century. Papa Hedi is being shown as part of the 2013 London Shubbak Festival.

Paul Conroy is a former soldier turned photojournalist who was with war correspondent Marie Colvin when she was killed in Syria in 2012. He survived five terrifying days with serious wounds sustained during the shelling, and his eventual escape was via a tunnel under the city. His book Under the Wire - Marie Colvin's Final Assignment is published by Quercus.

Douglas Villiers is an entrepreneur, property developer, artist, adventurer and film producer. One of his first ventures was to open the first disco in London back in 1959 - La Discotheque - and one of the first legal casinos. His book, It's Only Rock 'n' Roll - My Unconventional Life is published by Book Guild Publishing.

Errollyn Wallen MBE is a composer and musician who recently won the Ivor Novello Award for Classical Music. She has written eleven operas including The Silent Twins about the love-hate relationship of black twin girls and last year composed two pieces for the Paralympic opening ceremony. She is performing at the Wapping Hydraulic Power Station and her work is also currently featured in an installation there entitled Memory, Reflection and the Passing of Time.

Producer: Annette Wells.