Past Events and Screenings

With election night fast approaching where better to watch the results come in than in the comfort of our clubroom. With screens generously provided by Sky News, we will be showing the coverage on a selection of channels. Snacks will be served throughout the evening to keep you going, and drinks will kindly be supplied by Chivas Brothers.

Granta 131 explores the gaps between representation and reality, and what happens when those distinctions blur. Looking at the human realities behind the topographies of war, Janine di Giovanni and Charles Glass will be in conversation with Granta magazine’s editor Sigrid Rausing about their contributions to the issue.

A monthly social evening for journalists and others in the London media world. The London Press Club, which has been bringing the industry together since 1882, is resurrecting the tradition of regular drinks, on the back of popular demand.

The Frontline Club hosts the evening on the first Tuesday of each month. No entrance fee is required and there is a pay bar.

For over two decades, Christina Lamb has reported from Afghanistan, with unparalleled access to all key decision makers. She has developed an extensive understanding of the country, the people and the conflict. She will be joining us in conversation with BBC Radio 4 Today programme presenter, Sarah Montague, to give her personal account of the longest war fought by the United States in its history, and by Britain since the Hundred Years War.

The new leader of Saudi Arabia, King Salman, pledged continuity after his accession to the throne following the death of his half-brother, King Abdullah. But with a growing youth population, faint calls for reforms, an unstable oil market and the Islamic State (IS) on its doorstep, will he be able to deliver his pledge? With a panel of experts we will be looking at the situation within Saudi Arabia and the changes we might see under the new king, as well as discussing its influence and actions in the region and relations with the West.

As the long trudge towards the general election begins and the news media speculate on a myriad of hypothetical scenarios as to what the brave new world might bring, we are taking a look back at one of the most prominent British leaders and what remains of the values and ideals that he championed.

For April’s members’ BookNight, we are pleased to welcome Patrick Bishop, who will present his book Churchill’s Funeral over an intimate dinner with Frontline Club members.

There are 12 billion bullets produced every year – almost two bullets for every person on the planet. Guns kill as many as 500,000 people every year. Tearing lives apart, they impact not only the dead, the wounded, the suicidal and the mourning, but have far-reaching effects on society and communities. In a hard-hitting exploration, award-winning investigative journalist Iain Overton journeyed to over 25 countries, from South Africa to Iceland, Honduras to Cambodia, to try and understand the true impact of gun crime. He will be joining us in conversation with writer and author of The Shadow World: Inside the Global Arms Trade, Andrew Feinstein, to discuss what he has learnt about the impact of gun crime, the relationships we have with guns and the place they occupy in every day life.

Sao Paulo, one of the largest cities in the world, may run out of water in the next few months leaving 20 million people high and dry. Who is to blame? Incompetent politicians, unpredictable weather patterns or the wholesale destruction of Amazonia’s rainforests? Join us for the second in a series of events held in partnership with The Scientific Exploration Society, as we bring together explorers, scientists and journalists to examine the water shortage in Brazil and debate the wider questions about global water security.

The Tim Hetherington Trust invites you to celebrate the lives of Tim Hetherington and Chris Hondros with a review of new work by friends, colleagues and others who are continuing the mission to share important stories powerfully told.

This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Joey Boink.
Burden of Peace tells the impressive story of Claudia Paz y Paz, the first woman to lead the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Guatemala. Ravaged for years by a devastating civil war, in which nearly 200,000 Mayan Indians were systematically massacred, the country today is one of the most crime-ridden in the world. Paz y Paz starts a frontal attack against corruption, drug gangs and impunity and does what everyone had hitherto held to be impossible: she arrests former dictator Efraín Rios Montt on charges of genocide against the Mayan Indians.

The Club Quiz returns in April with special guest quizmaster, BBC Panorama reporter, John Sweeney.

Days after the September 11 attacks, a CIA Predator in Afghanistan executed the world’s first lethal drone strike. The CIA claims that its armed drones are ‘the most precise weapon ever invented’, but what is the true cost? In a new book, Sudden Justice, investigative journalist Chris Woods explores the secretive history of the United States’ use of armed drones. He will be joining us with a panel of experts to explore that history and the key role they play on today’s battlefields and in covert targeted killings.

Born to a poor immigrant family in Philadelphia in 1912, Eve Arnold became a photographer by chance. In the first volume of a major new series of illustrated biographies of Magnum photographers, journalist Janine di Giovanni traces the life and achievements of Eve Arnold. She will be joining us in conversation with documentary photographer, Susan Meiselas, to share the story and show the work of one of the most accomplished photojournalists of the twentieth century.

We welcome our members, both recently joined and ongoing, for an evening of conversation and drinks kindly sponsored by Chivas Regal.

This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Tonje Hessen Schei.
Directed by Tonje Hessen Schei and produced by Flimmer Film, Drone takes an in depth look at the United States’ use of drone technology, questioning how drones are altering the psychology of war. In the midst of fast advancement of technology and international legislation struggling to keep up with it, Schei‘s film displays how drones are rapidly defining a new perception of war.

This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Florian Schewe.
We Were Rebels tells the story of Agel, a former child soldier who returns to South Sudan to help build his country. The film accompanies him over a period of two years – from South Sudan gaining its independence in 2011 to the renewed outbreak of civil war in December 2013.

In 2000, Srdja Popovic was one of the leaders of the Serbian nonviolent resistance group Otpor! that helped topple Slobodan Milošević. Then in 2003 he decided to use his experience to help pro-democracy activists around the world, teaching them how to bring down a dictator. He will be joining us in conversation with Steve Crawshaw, director of the office of the secretary general at Amnesty International and co-author of Small Acts of Resistance, to share his story and the ingenious ways in which non-violent resistance has achieved its means around the world, from Occupy Wall Street to Tahrir Square, and from Nelson Mandela to Harvey Milk.

A monthly social evening for journalists and others in the London media world. The London Press Club, which has been bringing the industry together since 1882, is resurrecting the tradition of regular drinks, on the back of popular demand.

With the leaders’ debates finally announced we would like to invite you to join us to watch the seven-way ITV debate on the big screen. Anchored by ITV News’ Julie Etchingham the evening will see David Cameron, Ed Miliband, Nick Clegg, Nigel Farage, Nicola Sturgeon, Natalie Bennett and Leanne Wood go head to head.

The clubroom will be open for drinks from 7:00 PM and the debate will run from 8:00 – 10:00 PM. There is no charge to attend but please register if you would like to join us.

In 2012, the brutal gang rape on a Delhi bus of a 23-year-old medical student, who later died from her injuries, made international headlines and ignited protests. India’s Daughter is an impassioned plea for change, paying tribute to a remarkable and inspiring young woman. The film explores the compelling human stories behind the incident and the political ramifications in India.

Following the screening we will be joined by director Leslee Udwin and others to discuss the international reactions to the film, the aftermath of the Indian broadcast ban, and the greater issue of gender based violence.