BBC Radio 4 FM

BBC Radio 4 is a radio channel that started transmitting on the 30th September 1967. It replaced BBC Home Service.

BBC Radio 4

Radio 4

Radio 4 (FM)

Parting Shots

Factual: History

Factual: Politics

Matthew Parris marks the passing of the valedictory despatch from British ambassadors

Matthew Parris marks the passing of the valedictory despatch, the traditional final telegram home in which British ambassadors could let their hair down and settle a few scores

Parting Shots: Series 2

Parting Shots: Series 2: Episode 2: Cold Warriors and the perils of forecasting

Episode 2

Episode 2: Cold Warriors and the perils of forecasting

Series 2

Cold Warriors and the perils of forecasting

BBC Radio 4 - Parting Shots, Series 2, Cold Warriors and the perils of forecasting

Matthew Parris reveals the final despatches from British diplomats behind the Iron Curtain

Matthew Parris reveals the final despatches from British diplomats behind the Iron Curtain. Valedictory missives show the perils of trying to forecast international affairs.

Matthew Parris opens classified Foreign Office files to discover valedictory despatches from behind the Iron Curtain. British diplomats used the traditional last telegram home from a foreign post to recount the strains of life under Communism - and its occasional upsides.

The programme reveals landmark despatches from Britain's last ambassadors to the Soviet Union, released for the first time under Freedom of Information, as well as a wealth of earlier material from the depths of the Cold War.

This episode also looks at the perils of forecasting; the valedictory was a place where ambassadors would chance their arm with predictions about the direction of future events abroad.

Producer: Andrew Bryson.

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

Documentaries

Matthew Parris marks the passing of the valedictory despatch of the British ambassador

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Parting Shots

Series 2

Episode 2: Cold Warriors and the perils of forecasting

Genres

Brand

Series

BBC Radio 4 FM

About BBC Radio 4