John Le Carré
Illustration by Triunfo Arciniegas

AUTHOR INTERVIEWS

Novelist John Le Carré reflects on his own 'Legacy' of spying

The late spy novelist is the subject of a new documentary by Errol Morris, The Pigeon Tunnel. Le Carré worked for MI5 and MI6 early in his career. Originally broadcast in 1989 and 2017.

Terry Gross

OCTOBER 27, 2023

TERRY GROSS, HOST:

This is FRESH AIR. I'm Terry Gross. The late John le Carre wrote spy novels that were praised for transcending genre fiction and simply being great literature. Many of his books have been adapted into films or TV series, including "The Spy Who Came In From The Cold," "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy," "The Little Drummer Girl," "The Constant Gardener" and "The Night Manager." Le Carre died in 2020 at the age of 89, but documentary filmmaker Errol Morris has a new film that features interviews with the writer. It's called "The Pigeon Tunnel," which is also the title of le Carre's 2016 memoir. The film is currently in theaters and can be streamed on Apple TV+.

'On Juneteenth' Historian Examines The 'Hope' And 'Hostility' Toward Emancipation

 

'On Juneteenth' Historian Examines The 'Hope' And 'Hostility' Toward EmancipationMay 25, 20211:35 PM ET

Terry Gross

MAY 25, 2021

Juneteenth celebrates the day slavery ended in Texas, June 19, 1865. Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Annette Gordon-Reed studies the early American republic and the legacy of slavery.

This is FRESH AIR. I'm Terry Gross. June 19 will mark the 156th anniversary of Juneteenth, commemorating the day slavery was ended in Texas in 1865. Juneteenth is now a state holiday in Texas and seems to be on the way to becoming a national holiday. It's a holiday in conversation with July Fourth, which celebrates America gaining its independence, but enslaved people remained in bondage.

My guest, Annette Gordon-Reed, is a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and Harvard professor who has written a new book called "On Juneteenth." It's part history, part memoir. She's from East Texas. She's a historian of slavery and the early American republic. Her other books include "Thomas Jefferson And Sally Hemings: An American Controversy" and "The Hemingses Of Monticello: An American Family." She edited the book "Race On Trial: Law And Justice In American History."