Major series with Chatham House Iraq expert wins Emmy

Congratulations to Dr Renad Mansour for his work on the BBC documentary series Once Upon a Time in Iraq, a winner at the 2021 Emmy Awards.

News release Published 1 October 2021 1 minute READ

Press Office

The BBC documentary series Once Upon a Time in Iraq which Chatham House senior research fellow Dr Renad Mansour was the consultant on has won the Outstanding Historical Documentary category at the 42nd Annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards.

The BBC2 series tells the story of the Iraq war through the experiences of civilians, journalists and soldiers highlighting the real consequences of political decisions. It was directed by James Bluemel.

Dr Renad Mansour is senior research fellow in Chatham House’s Middle East and North Africa programme and project director for its Iraq Initiative.

The series was accompanied by a book co-authored by him and series director James Bluemel. The five-part documentary also won the Factual Series category at the 2021 British Academy Television Awards (BAFTAs) earlier this year.

The winners of the documentary categories were announced by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS). The news and documentary Emmys were presented this year at two individual ceremonies: categories honouring TV news and categories honouring documentaries.

I am so pleased to see that a documentary on Iraq and the legacies of war can reach so far. It’s a story with significant consequences for the people of Iraq, the region, and the international system. This time, it’s the voices of the most affected that are being heard.

Dr Renad Mansour

Announcing the award, Adam Sharp, President and CEO of NATAS said: ‘Tonight, we celebrate these documentary professionals who in the unprecedented year of 2020 delivered the insightful, clear, factual and timely filmmaking necessary to make sense of the tumultuous times that we live in.’

About

The Emmy Awards for News & Documentary, Sports are presented by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) in recognition of excellence in news and documentary programming.