Martin Bell OBE is perhaps best known for his impressive 30 year career in journalism. Wearing his trademark, typical British looking white suit, he reported from over ten war zones in eighty countries, winning various awards for his distinctive style of reporting, as well as being awarded the Order of the British Empire. Quoting the man himself, this was at a time when “film-star good looks were not then in the job description”.
After leaving the BBC Bell made the bold step of entering British politics, swiftly winning a conservative seat in the 1997 general election. He would also became an ambassador for UNICEF. Aside from his professional life he is an accomplished author, his books covering observations and experiences in both journalism and politics, but coming up to his seventy-seventh birthday this month, perhaps his most revealing publication is his latest, entitled The End of Empire - The Cyprus Emergency: A Soldier's Story.
Published by Pen and Sword Military in June, the book share's Bell's experiences as a young soldier serving out his National Service with the Suffolk Regiment, during a volatile period of British postwar military history. Based upon letters he wrote home and recent declassified documents from the period, the book explores the daily happenings of the Cyprus Emergency from a soldier's perspective and the length taken by those in command to squash the insurgency.
You can read a more in-depth description of the book at the publisher's website and to learn more about Martin Bell's career I can suggest you visit the BBC website.
If you found this article interesting, why not follow us on Facebook or Twitter?