Keith Kahn-Harris describes himself as professionally curious. This curiosity has taken him around the world in search for the big fish who make their splash in small communities. Just who is the best waterskier in Luxembourg, and what is the name of the most powerful politician on the tiny island of Alderney?
Keith set out to write a book: The Best Water Skier In Luxembourg – Tales Of Big Fish In Small Ponds recounting his adventures in pursuit of these answers. When I contacted Keith, the project was on pause, but I was fascinated by his outlook on travel and the world, and decided that he would make a fascinating subject for an Intrepid Times interview.
The author of several books, Keith is an expert on extreme metal, an underground music genre that has followed in the heels of bands like Black Sabbath and now exists everywhere from Saudi Arabia to Botswana. A proud member of the British Jewish Community, is the author of Turbulent Times – The British Jewish Community Today.
Keith’s many interests may seem unconnected on the surface, but what binds them together is a focus on the small sometimes overlooked communities which, as Vitali Vitaliev puts it, have preserved “a quirkiness that bigger countries have lost.”
In our conversation, you’ll hear about Keith’s meeting with the best waterskiers in Luxembourg, the political intrigue on Alderney, and interesting tales of quirky communities and the world over, from Poland’s baseball team to breakaway territories like Transnistria.
Listen below:
Referenced in the interview:
- Keith’s Guardian article on Gibraltar
- The Best Water Skier in Luxembourg archive including first chapters available read
And here’s Keith’s speech at TedX Krakow:
Cheers!
Nathan J Thomas
