Brits in the desert
Having worked in Saudi Arabia and Oman, I’ve had something of an interest in ‘desert loving Englishmen…’
The video below gives a quick overview, but the podcast further below are where the real detail and nuance lies.
Ladies first…
She spoke better Arabic than Lawrence of Arabia, helped draw the borders of modern-day Iraq, and founded the National Museum arguing that historic relics should be kept in the country of origin. Yet Gertrude Bell is a relatively little-known British Imperialist. Perhaps as she was so ‘of her era’, as opposed to the more self-questioning heroes we might focus on now.
I talk about my journey over the last few weeks, trying to find out more and more about her. I start with the Encyclopedia Britannica, check the Guardian newspaper, and find most biographies really draw on a single source, ‘Queen of the Desert: The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell’ by Georgina Howell. I do check that, and a documentary that accompanied The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. There is also a 2015 movie starring Nicole Kidman, but honestly I found it hard to get into it, as many do.
If you are interested in her archeological work, rather than her private life and public politics, it would be hard to do better than the hour-long Youtube video, ‘Lisa Cooper | Encounters with Ancient Splendors: Gertrude Bell’. This is a public lecture, which does show some of her remarkable photography. Meanwhile, BBC North East has shared videos about the influence her family had on her regions, Yorkshire and Cumbria.
Throughout this episode, I do try and add in my own experience where I can, having worked in Saudi Arabia and then in Oman. I was able to visit some of the archeological sites out in the desert, and I can quite understand how this could draw someone in as a life-ling interest.
But of course, Lawrence has the (good) movie! But, if, like 28% of respondents to my poll on Instagram, you haven't seen the film, or if, like myself and many people who messaged me, you haven't seen it for a long time, have no fear. This is a NO SPOILERS episode. Although I do talk about his death, this is shown in the first five minutes of the (more than) 3 hour epic movie. Mostly, I focus on the true life story of Thomas Edward Lawrence.
