Of all the seismic images taken in the past, momentous year, the sight of British slave trader Edward Colston's statue being toppled into Bristol Harbour was surely one of the most hard-hitting. Not only did it reveal to a wider public the embarrassing truth about the darker elements of British history, but it also sparked a divisive culture war about the whole notion of celebrating the British Empire.
The events prompted Sathnam Sanghera to embark on another rewrite of his urgent new book Empireland, a remarkable look at how British imperialism has not only shaped the world, but also the way in which Britain still regards itself.
“I started out thinking this was stuff only I was interested in, but by the end of writing, it was on the news every day, which totally freaked me out,” he says, with a laugh. “The first time I’ve ever been relevant in my life. It was like being a fan of a really obscure pop star, and they turn out to be Britney Spears!”
Such levity is found throughout Empireland. There are countless vignettes in the book about the way in which the fundamentals of Britishness are, in fact, derived from the country's Empire, such as the fact that the archetypal image of sitting down to afternoon tea is really the story of a plant from China traded for opium grown in Bengal, and sweetened by sugar cultivated by African slaves on West Indian plantations.
And yet the breezy, sometimes baffled tone never belittles what Sanghera calls the “wilfully white supremacist and occasionally genocidal” aspect of Britain’s imperial past.
Empireland actually grew out of a documentary Sanghera made about the 1919 massacre by the British Indian Army of at least 379 unarmed civilians, who had gathered in peace at the Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar in the Punjab region of India.
I've noticed that being brown and having a heritage where I was colonised means people think I'm going to be too emotional about this stuff or I'm woke
"To my shame, I knew barely anything about it," he says. Which might initially sound odd, given Sanghera's family are Sikhs from Punjab, but since he grew up in Wolverhampton wanting to play Nintendo, feeling as English as he did Asian, and never came into contact with an education system that offered much about the British Empire, why would he?
"It wasn't until my last term at university that I studied a single brown writer," he says. "My notions of India almost entirely came from western writers and western teachers, and I was kind of educated to look down on my ethnic heritage. I was brought up to believe I had the best education on the planet, but it probably took until I was about 44 to realise it was quite bad."
This idea, that deliberately or subconsciously, the British are not honest about the darker elements of the largest empire in history, is a key component of Empireland. There is a brilliant chapter about this "selective amnesia", as Sanghera puts it, which can find prominent politicians making major speeches about Britain's distinguished role as a beacon of liberty – without ever mentioning the reason why Colston was thrown into Bristol Harbour in the first place: because Britain facilitated and profited from the transportation of millions of slaves.
And what that lack of reckoning with the past does, says Sanghera, is instil this idea that the British still see themselves as exceptional – as Brexit and the continual promise of "world-beating" responses to the pandemic suggest. Which is fine, until you dare to point out the inconsistencies. Particularly if you're of Sanghera's heritage.
"As soon as I do, I'm told to go back to where I come from if I hate it so much, along with the demand I be more grateful," he says. "In general, being proud of the Empire is seen as being patriotic, it's a side of a culture war, like an extension of nationalism. But in Germany you can talk about the Holocaust and still be patriotic; in Japan, you can talk about Kamikaze pilots and still be patriotic.
“I’ve noticed that being brown and having a heritage where I was colonised means people think I’m going to be too emotional about this stuff or I’m woke. I’m not allowed to be unbiased, even though this book absolutely tries to navigate a path through the Empire, which gives it proper context.”
All British people are expats. Immigrants are brown people. Massive hypocrisy, really
Context is exactly the right word. There is a section in Empireland in which Sanghera cites a survey that finds British expatriates in the UAE are the least integrated in their societies, the suggestion being that while British people – from the times of Empire to present day – have always loved the excitement, and romance even, of travelling and working abroad, they are not necessarily open-minded once they get there.
"It is positive, completely, that we're so internationalist," he says. "We travel and relocate like almost no other country on the planet. But we also have to recognise that when people come to this country, we expect them to integrate. And there's no such thing as a British immigrant, is there? All British people are expats. Immigrants are brown people. Massive hypocrisy, really." Particularly since many black and Asian people in Britain were either invited to work in the country or enter as citizens. It's the closest Sanghera gets in our conversation – which is funny and full of the anecdotes that make this book such a joy to read – to anger. It's because he's infuriated that this myopia prevents people from understanding Britain is actually a multicultural society – and has been for centuries – because it had a multicultural empire. "It makes our national conversations about race tragic and absurd," he says.
In an ideal world, Empireland would be a set text in the education system that Sanghera says failed him so badly – simply because it refuses to reduce imperial history to a matter of good or bad. It's a deeply personal – moving, even – reflection of the country he lives in, which could start as many conversations about the continued corrupting influence of the British Empire as the statue of Colston.
"There are signs of progress," says Sanghera. "People have learnt more about imperialism through these campaigns than they would have done at school.
“For me personally, though, I feel like I’m deep into a very long marriage. I’m just beginning to realise that my partner is complicated, there’s some dark history there – and just because there’s darkness and awkwardness in a relationship, it doesn’t mean you love them any less. I just feel like I understand my home nation better.”
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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Paltan
Producer: JP Films, Zee Studios
Director: JP Dutta
Cast: Jackie Shroff, Sonu Sood, Arjun Rampal, Siddhanth Kapoor, Luv Sinha and Harshvardhan Rane
Rating: 2/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3ECompany%20name%3A%20CarbonSifr%3Cbr%3EStarted%3A%202022%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20Dubai%3Cbr%3EFounders%3A%20Onur%20Elgun%2C%20Mustafa%20Bosca%20and%20Muhammed%20Yildirim%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20Climate%20tech%3Cbr%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%241%20million%20raised%20in%20seed%20funding%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Read more about the coronavirus
Men's football draw
Group A: UAE, Spain, South Africa, Jamaica
Group B: Bangladesh, Serbia, Korea
Group C: Bharat, Denmark, Kenya, USA
Group D: Oman, Austria, Rwanda
How Islam's view of posthumous transplant surgery changed
Transplants from the deceased have been carried out in hospitals across the globe for decades, but in some countries in the Middle East, including the UAE, the practise was banned until relatively recently.
Opinion has been divided as to whether organ donations from a deceased person is permissible in Islam.
The body is viewed as sacred, during and after death, thus prohibiting cremation and tattoos.
One school of thought viewed the removal of organs after death as equally impermissible.
That view has largely changed, and among scholars and indeed many in society, to be seen as permissible to save another life.
TRAINING FOR TOKYO
A typical week's training for Sebastian, who is competing at the ITU Abu Dhabi World Triathlon on March 8-9:
- Four swim sessions (14km)
- Three bike sessions (200km)
- Four run sessions (45km)
- Two strength and conditioning session (two hours)
- One session therapy session at DISC Dubai
- Two-three hours of stretching and self-maintenance of the body
ITU Abu Dhabi World Triathlon
For more information go to www.abudhabi.triathlon.org.
The specs: Macan Turbo
Engine: Dual synchronous electric motors
Power: 639hp
Torque: 1,130Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Touring range: 591km
Price: From Dh412,500
On sale: Deliveries start in October
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SCORES IN BRIEF
Lahore Qalandars 186 for 4 in 19.4 overs
(Sohail 100,Phil Salt 37 not out, Bilal Irshad 30, Josh Poysden 2-26)
bt Yorkshire Vikings 184 for 5 in 20 overs
(Jonathan Tattersall 36, Harry Brook 37, Gary Ballance 33, Adam Lyth 32, Shaheen Afridi 2-36).
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The five pillars of Islam
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
Porsche Macan T: The Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 265hp from 5,000-6,500rpm
Torque: 400Nm from 1,800-4,500rpm
Transmission: 7-speed dual-clutch auto
Speed: 0-100kph in 6.2sec
Top speed: 232kph
Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km
On sale: May or June
Price: From Dh259,900
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Results
Ashraf Ghani 50.64 per cent
Abdullah Abdullah 39.52 per cent
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar 3.85 per cent
Rahmatullah Nabil 1.8 per cent
The biog
Simon Nadim has completed 7,000 dives.
The hardest dive in the UAE is the German U-boat 110m down off the Fujairah coast.
As a child, he loved the documentaries of Jacques Cousteau
He also led a team that discovered the long-lost portion of the Ines oil tanker.
If you are interested in diving, he runs the XR Hub Dive Centre in Fujairah
The%20specs
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GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
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The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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