‘After nearly annihilating our world, the families are allies’: the thrilling audio series featuring JFK & Khrushchev’s relatives.

During October 1962, humanity came nearer to ruin than at any other point during the contemporary era. This happened when an American surveillance plane found that Soviet atomic missile sites were being built in Cuba, less than 100 miles from the US mainland. In response, President John F Kennedy ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a maritime quarantine around the island. What followed was nearly two weeks filled with extreme anxiety.

The Unthinkable Threat

The threat remained clear. If President Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack on their enemy, a chain reaction of worldwide atomic attacks followed by counterstrikes could have followed, plunging mankind toward all-out destruction.

The Cuban missile crisis has been documented repeatedly, in books, movies, and TV documentaries. But, for its third season, the BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" presents a novel perspective to the story. The series is co-presented by Kennedy's relative alongside Khrushchev's descendant, relatives belonging to the figures that, for 13 days, controlled the destiny of the planet in their hands.

"What were the Soviet side considering? What were the American side thinking?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant who is also a professor specializing in global relations.

In her view, the beauty of the show lies in its attempt to question: "How can people hate one another to the point they go against each other?"

"It struck me how profound the fact that humans can be friends or else have the potential to be complete adversaries," remarks Max Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to JFK and now a writer as well as attorney. "History shows this repeatedly when nations have gone to war, demonstrating the profound irrationality involved to fight."

A Precipice of Catastrophe

What is remarkable about the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it unfolded so publicly, individuals globally were able to observe nearly in real time while it edged towards armageddon. However, the threat of destruction came closer than most people realised.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for a military strike and an invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, it is certain Soviet forces on the ground would have fired a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've obliterated our aircraft carriers and sunk our largest and most important naval force. And, we would have retaliated with massive retaliation which would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The fact this did not occur highlights the composure of both leaders, who succeeded in remain calm while calmly negotiate at a time when everyone in their governments was pushing for action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island and President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) removed American missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was palpable, as was the sense of hope.

A Different Viewpoint

Still, during those two weeks in October, the anxiety was palpable by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts were born shortly after these events, and Khrushcheva being taught about the crisis through the Soviet education system, which painted an alternative picture of what happened.

"You said your father recalls it, describing it as a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "But for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware that much regarding the crisis, since it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are always fine and sunny."

Within Khrushchev’s family, however, it was different. "They told me that it was a triumphant moment it was, as it represented a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to find a solution, thus avoided a global war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she continues. Subsequently, though, that interpretation was not held by all Russians. "For decades in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a defeat for Khrushchev, simply he refrained from destroying the United States."

A Unlikely Partnership

The Bomb is so even-handed and well produced so much so that Khrushcheva jokes she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This is, partly, due to the participation of historians. But, truly, the most momentous thing remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable for relatives of the leaders of the United States and the USSR would appear side by side. The fact that these two individuals are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, must be seen as a sign of optimism.

"Max and I are not the first," notes Nina. "After 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"However we were strangers before the podcast," adds Max. "Which is unfortunate because we got along really well and now we’re friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, after almost six decades since nearly annihilating the world, our lineages have become allies, suggesting the world is safer, a little bit."

Modern Echoes and Present Perils

Or is it? One reason the reason The Bomb seems so urgent is that we once again are living living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight in its history, in part because world leaders appear not to have the capacity to grasp