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Mohammad Mossadegh, PM of Iran ousted in a coup

Walter Murch picks Mohammad Mossadegh, prime minister of Iran. Murch became fascinated by his life while working on the film Jarhead.

Walter Murch picks Mohammad Mossadegh, prime minister following the nationalisation of the Anglo-Iranian oil company in 1951. Mossadegh was ousted in a coup in 1953.

Murch became fascinated in Mossadegh's life while working on a Sam Mendes film about the first Iraq War. Walter Murch is an editor best known for Apocalypse Now, The Godfather and The Constant Gardener. He also worked on a documentary called Coup 53. This is the first in a new series of Great Lives and includes archive of Kermit Roosevelt, a CIA operative. The British were also heavily involved in the coup. The expert is Professor Ali Ansari of St Andrews University, presenter on Radio 4 of Through Persian Eyes.

The producer in Bristol is Miles Warde

Future programme subjects include singer Eartha Kitt, author JG Ballard, and pioneering British aviator Diana Barnato-Walker who delivered Spitfires in World War Two.

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28 minutes

Last on

Thu 7 Dec 2023 11:30

Broadcasts

  • Tue 5 Dec 2023 16:30
  • Thu 7 Dec 2023 11:30

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