Speaker icon LISTEN
Show more Show less
ON NOW : Outlook
Muhammad Yunus: Banker to the poor

Outlook The place where the world tells its story.

ON NEXT : 13:01 BBC News

Hardtalk

Image for Simon Mann - Mercenary

Sorry, this episode is not currently available on BBC iPlayer Radio

Simon Mann - Mercenary

Duration:
25 minutes
First broadcast:
Wednesday 21 December 2011

It remains one of the most lucrative businesses in Africa - mercenaries, fighting and killing for profit.

UN efforts to eliminate the soldiers of fortune have consistently failed.

Stephen Sackur speaks to Simon Mann, a man who made millions of dollars fighting other people's wars in Africa until he led an attempted coup in oil rich Equatorial Guinea and his luck ran out.

Seven years and plenty of prison time later he's a free man with a gripping story, but how clear is his conscience?

(Image: Simon Mann. Credit: AFP/Getty Images)

  • Profile: Simon Mann

    Profile: Simon Mann

    Former British commando, businessman, and one-time actor, who was jailed for 34 years for leading a coup attempt in Equatorial Guinea, has been pardoned by the country's president

    Read more on the BBC News website

  • Q&A: Equatorial Guinea coup plot

    Q&A: Equatorial Guinea coup plot

    What was the aim of the plot? How was the plot uncovered? Who was behind the plot? What happened to the alleged plotters? What is South Africa's role?

    Read more on the BBC News website

  • Timeline: E Guinea coup plot

    Timeline: E Guinea coup plot

    Take a look at the significant events in the development of the case

    Read more on the BBC News website

Free download

  1. Image for Hardtalk

    Hardtalk

    Hardtalk interviews the world's leading politicians, thinkers and cultural figures. In an in-depth,...

BBC © 2013 The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read more.

This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets (CSS) if you are able to do so.