‘After nearly destroying our planet, the families are friends’: the gripping audio series from JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

During October 1962, humanity came closer toward destruction than at any other point during the contemporary era. This transpired after a US surveillance aircraft discovered the fact that Soviet nuclear weapon sites were under construction on the island of Cuba, less than 100 miles from American soil. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to enact a naval blockade around the island. The next phase constituted almost a fortnight filled with unbearable anxiety.

An Unthinkable Danger

The peril remained clear. If President Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire on their enemy, a series involving worldwide nuclear attacks followed by counterstrikes could have followed, thrusting mankind toward total destruction.

This pivotal 1962 event has been examined repeatedly, in books, films, as well as television programmes. But, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb has brought a novel dimension to this historical narrative. The series is co-presented featuring Max Kennedy alongside Khrushchev's descendant, relatives belonging to the men who, for 13 days, controlled the destiny of the planet within their grasp.

"What were the Russians considering? What were the United States considering?" questions Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter who is also an academic specializing in international affairs.

For her, the strength of the podcast is its endeavor to question: "How can nations hate each other to the point they go against one another?"

"It was not lost on me how remarkable it is that people have the potential to be friends or else have the potential to be total adversaries," remarks Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to the late president and currently an author as well as lawyer. "History shows this over and over when countries enter into conflict, and it just illustrates the sheer folly it is to engage in warfare."

The Precipice of Disaster

What is remarkable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it transpired so publicly, individuals globally could watch almost as it happened while it edged closer to disaster. However, the risk of annihilation came closer than what most people realised.

"Virtually everyone in the White House were advocating for a military strike and a ground invasion," says Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba using the naval blockade, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would've fired a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, which would've destroyed our aircraft carriers and sunk our primary naval force. And, the U.S. would have responded through an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended most life on the planet."

The fact it didn’t highlights the composure of both leaders, they succeeded in exercise restraint and calmly negotiate at a time when everyone in their governments demanded military action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons from Cuba and President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) withdrew American similar weapons from NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, as was the sense of optimism.

A Different Viewpoint

Yet, for those two weeks in October, the tension was felt by everyone. The podcast's presenters came into the world shortly after the crisis, and Nina being taught about the crisis via the USSR's education system, which presented a slightly different version of events.

"You said your father remembers it, describing it as a frightening day," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware a great deal about it, because it was a crisis, whereas under the Soviet system the official line was that things are constantly fine and sunny."

Within Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion it was, as it was eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to find a solution, thus didn’t start the war, which was a wonderful thing," she adds. In the years to come, however, that perspective would not be shared by everybody. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a failure for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying America."

An Unlikely Partnership

This podcast is so balanced , well produced that Nina jokes it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This effect is, partly, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. But, really, the most momentous thing is the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was unthinkable that descendants of the heads of state of America and Soviet Union would appear together publicly. That these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth with each other, must be seen as a sign of progress.

"Max and I aren't the first," smiles Khrushcheva. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he became great friends with the former president's family."

"However we were strangers prior to this project," clarifies Max. "Which is a shame because we got along really well and we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, following almost six decades since nearly annihilating the planet, our lineages are now allies, suggesting the world is safer, a little bit."

Contemporary Echoes with Current Dangers

Or is it? Part of why this series feels so necessary is that we now are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight in its history, in part because world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to grasp