The Interview

From his Oscar winning score for The Lion King, through 12 Years A Slave to a series of superhero blockbusters, including the latest - Batman v Superman - Hans Zimmer is, as one director put it, "quite simply the contemporary composer to work with". German born, British educated, he never received formal musical training and he's a champion of technology. Hardtalk’s Shaun Ley asks Hans Zimmer whether the technology he so loves is killing the music makers?

The United States is beefing up its military presence in Europe. Hardtalk asks Russia's Ambassador to the EU if the Kremlin can sustain a long-term confrontation with the West?

The suicide bomb attacks in Brussels are unlikely to be the final operation mounted by the so-called Islamic State on European soil. France's President Hollande says Europe is now at war, so what are the most effective weapons at Europe's disposal? Dominic Grieve was the Attorney General in David Cameron's first term as British prime minister. He is now Chairman of the UK parliament’s Intelligence and security committee. Can Europe be both secure and free?

(Photo: Dominic Grieve, MP)

Can architecture inspire people to think and behave differently? Hardtalk speaks to David Adjaye, one of the most sought after architects in the world today. Among his many buildings are the Nobel Peace Centre in Oslo, a business school in Moscow, shopping centres in Beirut and Lagos, a children's hospital in Rwanda, a housing project in New York's Harlem, and about to open - his biggest project yet - the National Museum of African American History and Culture sitting right on the National Mall in Washington. Has he got it right? What is the test of a good building?

(Photo: David Adjaye attends Design Dialogues No. 25 in Miami Beach, Florida. Credit: Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images)

Nationalist, anti-immigrant parties have made inroads in a host of countries in Europe, for example Hungary, Denmark and Finland. In Finland a right wing populist party, The Finns, is a significant player in a centre right coalition government. Stephen Sackur talks to Timo Soini, their leader and the nation's Foreign Minister. What happens to populists when they are faced with the compromises that come with sharing power?

(Photo: Finland's Foreign Minister Timo Soini. Credit: Mark Graham/AFP)

The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe has its roots in the cold war - it was a unique platform for dialogue between the West and the Soviet Bloc on matters of security and human rights. But that was then, what about now? Hardtalk speaks to Lamberto Zannier, Secretary General of the OSCE. In a new era of tension between Moscow and the West, how much use is his organisation?

(Photo: OSCE Secretary General, Lamberto Zannier delivers a speech during the OSCE-meeting, 2016, Vienna, Austria. Credit: Herbert Neubauer/AFP/Getty Images)

Journalism in Turkey is a precarious business. Earlier this month the country's biggest selling newspaper was forcibly taken over by the government, a host of journalists have been locked up for insulting the nation and its institutions, or for aiding terrorists. All this in a nation beset with diplomatic, security and humanitarian challenges. HARDtalk speaks to Sevgi Akarçeşme, who was editor of the English language “Today's Zaman” newspaper until the state booted her out. How close is Turkey to authoritarian rule?

The fallout from the conflict in Syria is threatening to destabilise one of the Middle East's most delicate nations - Lebanon. It hosts around 1.3 million Syrian refugees, more per capita than any other country. This places huge pressure on its people and government, as well as adding more strain on its fragile sectarian mix. Hardtalk speaks to Elias Bou Saab, Lebanon's Education Minister. What is the collateral damage for Lebanon from the Syrian conflict and can the government cope?

(Photo: Lebanese Education Minister Elias Bou Saab addresses delegates at the Supporting Syria Conference, London 2016. Credit: Ben Stansall/WPA Pool /Getty Images)

For more than five years the words Greece and crisis have been inseparable. The question is not what crisis, but which crisis. Greeks are simultaneously wrestling with the enormous burden posed by mass migration from Turkey, and the effort to secure a long term fix for their stricken, debt-laden economy. Hardtalk speaks to Greece’s Minister for Labour and Social Security George Katrougalos - is there light at the end of the two dark tunnels his country is in?

(Photo: Greece’s Minister for Labour and Social Security George Katrougalos on Hardtalk)

The European Union and Turkey have drawn up the outline of a deal which might stem the flow of migrants from Turkey to the West. But it will require EU states to take large numbers of Syrian refugees directly from Turkey, in a show of collective European burden sharing which may be hard to deliver. Stephen Sackur speaks to Meglena Kuneva, Bulgaria's deputy prime minister. Her country shares a border with Turkey, but has shown an iron fist toward refugees and migrants. Is Sofia out of step with European values?

(Photo: Meglena Kuneva, Bulgaria's Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs. Credit: Nikolay Doychinov/AFP/Getty Images)