Following nearly destroying our planet, our families have become allies’: the thrilling podcast featuring John F. Kennedy & Khrushchev’s descendants.

During the month of October 1962, humanity came nearer toward ruin than at any other point during recent history. This occurred following the discovery that an American reconnaissance aircraft identified that Soviet nuclear weapon installations were being assembled in Cuba, less than 100 miles off the coast of the United States. In response, President John F Kennedy directed a naval task force to establish a naval quarantine encircling the island. The ensuing period was nearly a fortnight filled with impossible tension.

An Catastrophic Threat

The peril was obvious. If President Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire against the other side, a chain reaction involving global atomic attacks followed by retaliatory strikes might have ensued, thrusting mankind into total destruction.

This pivotal 1962 event has been examined endlessly, through books, films, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb has brought a completely new perspective to this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted by Kennedy's relative alongside Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the leaders that, for 13 days, controlled the fate of humanity within their grasp.

"What were the Russians planning? What was Washington thinking?" ponders Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also an academic specializing in global relations.

In her view, the unique appeal of the podcast lies in its attempt to objectively ask: "How can nations detest one another and oppose each other?"

"It struck me how remarkable it is that individuals have the potential to be allies or else have the potential to be complete enemies," remarks Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to JFK and currently a writer and attorney. "We see this dynamic over and over when nations enter into conflict, demonstrating the profound irrationality it is to fight."

The Brink of Disaster

What’s striking regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, because it unfolded so publicly, individuals around the world were able to observe nearly in real time as it edged towards catastrophe. Even so, the risk of destruction was more imminent than what most people realised.

"Virtually everyone in the White House were advocating for an airstrike followed by an invasion," explains Kennedy. "If we had attacked the Cubans with the Sixth Fleet, it is certain the Russians stationed there would have launched a nuclear warhead at the US Sixth Fleet, which would've sunk our aircraft carriers as well as sunk our largest and most important fleet. And, we would have retaliated with massive retaliation that would have ended all life on the planet."

The fact this did not occur is a testament to both leaders, who managed to exercise restraint while engaging in diplomacy when everyone in their governments was pushing for action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew his similar weapons from Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, matched by the sense of hope.

The Divergent Viewpoint

Yet, for those two weeks in October, the fear was palpable by everyone. The podcast's presenters came into the world in the years following these events, with Nina being taught about the crisis via the USSR's school curriculum, which portrayed a slightly different narrative of what happened.

"As you mentioned your father remembers it, describing it as a scary day," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a crisis, whereas under the Soviet system we were told that things are always wonderful or positive."

Within Khrushchev’s family, however, it was distinct. "They told me what a great moment for the USSR, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus avoided a global war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. In the years to come, however, that perspective was not held by all Russians. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a failure for Khrushchev, because he didn’t blow up America."

A Unlikely Collaboration

The Bomb is so even-handed , well produced that Khrushcheva jokes it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This effect is, in part, thanks to the participation of historians. Yet, really, the most significant thing remains the participation of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable for relatives of the heads of state of America and USSR to appear side by side. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and exhibit such warmth with each other, has to be a sign of hope.

"We are not the first," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"However we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is unfortunate because we connected really well and we are friends, which is really great. Ultimately, following almost six decades of almost destroying the world, our families are now allies, suggesting global relations is safer, somewhat."

Contemporary Parallels and Present Dangers

Or is it? Part of the reason The Bomb feels so necessary is because we now find ourselves in a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight in its history, partly since today's statesmen don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend