Sean Langan

So not giving them that.

That was part of that thing.

So news blackout became the news.

All TV agencies, governments now, if someone's kidnapped, they have a news blackout.

So in fact, there was no news.

But I figured that out.

There must be a news blackout because...

The running joke was, how many journalists do you have to know before you could get any?

I knew all the foreign journalists.

We're a small traveling bunch who go around the world to war zones.

And I was like, fucking hell.

I mean, if I don't make the news, they're not doing their job.

So there was a news blackout.

Later on, I found out, of course, the government's doing its thing, Channel 4.

I'd written a security protocol.

Before you go off to war zones in very dangerous situations, you write, like, if the worst comes to worst,

here are people I'd like you to call my family.

But I'd mentioned some journalists and Afghans, could you call, who in fact proved quite instrumental, had managed to make contact with the Taliban, start negotiations.

A female reporter I know from the BBC, the Taliban had sent her a message.

So there was a lot happening.