Interview with Yvonne Ridley

Abstract

The story of British freelance journalist and author Yvonne Ridley is fascinating. Ridley, an experienced and well-respected journalist, was the chief reporter for The Sunday Express and had worked for several newspapers, including The Sunday Times, The Independent, and The Observer . But in September 2001 she became a household name when captured by the Taliban in Afghanistan. On her release, she famously told the awaiting press that her captors had treated her with “courtesy and respect.” This was not the expected response, and Fleet Street subsequently vilified her. Her decision to honor a promise made to an imam while in Afghanistan led her to study and, to her own surprise, embrace Islam in June 2003. This did little to improve her popularity with the press. Calling upon the resilience and determination that had made her such a good journalist, she moved from London to Qatar to take up a position as senior editor at al-Jazeera’s soonto- be-launched English website. After just 5 months, and under rather mysterious circumstances, she was sacked. This prompted Ridley to write her first novel Ticket to Paradise. Ridley has since returned to England and is now a prominent Muslim activist and anti-war campaigner.