Arabia's Past & Future [1st 14:00]

The city of Dubai, in the Arabian Peninsula, is in the process of reinventing itself as the playground of the western world. Sandi Toksvig is joined by writers and enthusiasts of the Middle East Sarah Monaghan and Anthony Sattin to discuss Arabia's past and future and the impact that this development is having on its residents, visitors and neighbours. Sarah Monaghan has a strong interest and experience of the Middle East, having lived and worked in the United Arab Emirates (Dubai) where she edited its leading glossy women's title, Emirates Woman, for four years. She was the Editor of Middle East Health, Living in the Gulf and Emirates Woman magazines and client publications for Emirates Airlines and Qatar Airways (1997-2003). She is currently a part-time freelance editor of Gabon magazine. Anthony Sattin is a writer, critic and broadcaster who has travelled extensively in the Middle East, an area that features prominently in his writing. Anthony is the author of several books including a novel Shooting the Breeze and most recently The Gates Of Africa: Death, Discovery & The Search For Timbuktu. His highly acclaimed book The Pharaoh's Shadow, which is a search for surviving ancient culture in modern Egypt, was the subject of a Radio 4 documentary.