Iain MacGregor: Publisher, Historian, Author & Public Speaker

The Lighthouse of Stalingrad: The Hidden Truth at the Centre of WWII’s Greatest Battle

UK Paperback out on 15 June

‘Closely researched and engagingly written, MacGregor’s wonderful book shines important new light on the most horrific, and arguably the most important, battle of the 20th century. It is a story of “backs to the wall” defence of the Motherland that modern Russians, with the boot now on the other foot, would do well to study.’ — Professor Saul David ― The Telegraph

‘In the midst of Moscow’s bloody war on Ukraine, with Putin invoking ‘glorious victories’ of World War II to inspire his country, Iain MacGregor’s vivid, dramatic, day-by-day account reminds us that the awful reality of Stalingrad for soldiers on both sides was: ‘The lucky ones bled, froze or starved to death in temporary field hospitals in bunkers or cellars.’ – William Taubman, Pulitzer prize-winning author

Checkpoint Charlie: The Cold War, the Berlin Wall and the Most Dangerous Place on Earth

(Constable, 2019)

Checkpoint Charlie captures the nerve-wracking confrontation between the West and the Soviet Union, containing never-before-heard interviews with the men who built and dismantled the Wall; lovers who crossed it; relatives and friends who lost family trying to escape over it; German, British, French, and Russian soldiers who guarded its checkpoints; CIA, MI6 and Stasi operatives who oversaw secret operations across its borders; politicians whose ambitions shaped it; journalists who recorded its story; and many more whose living memories contributed to the full story of Checkpoint Charlie. A brilliant work of historical journalism, Checkpoint Charlie is an invaluable record of this period.

‘A lively, evocative account of the life and death of the world’s most notorious wall. In capturing the essence of the old Cold War he may just have helped us to understand a bit more about the new one’ The Times

‘Checkpoint Charlie is a fascinating and telling reminder of what was perhaps the most potent symbol of the Cold War . . . Iain MacGregor writes with great fluency and narrative drive’ William Boyd, New Statesman

‘A rich collection of tales from cold war Berlin captures the city’s mad complexities’ Observer

‘With a gripping narrative and vivid interviews with those on all sides whose lives were directly affected by that grim symbol of the East-West divide that poisoned Europe for almost half a century, [MacGregor] has made an important contribution to the history of our times’ Jonathan Dimbleby

‘Captures brilliantly and comprehensively both the danger and exhilaration that I and other reporters, soldiers, and people experienced intersecting with the wall – a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the Europe we have inherited’ Jon Snow