About the Author

Malcolm Billings spent most of his career broadcasting and producing Radio 4 and BBC World Service program. He presented the Today program during the 1970s. He has also contributed from many parts of the world to Radio 4’s From Our Correspondent and was producer and presenter of the BBC World Service Heritage program for fifteen years. His other publications include: The Crusades, the War Against Islam, 1096-1798 (2006); Queen’s College: 150 Years and a New Century (2000); and The English, the Making of a Nation from 430-1700 (1991).