What on Earth Can Go Wrong

Richard Fenning

‘A funny and personal account of life in the risk business’ Financial Times

After spending three decades advising multinational companies on  geopolitics and security crises, Richard Fenning knows all about danger and intrigue.

Kidnappings, terrorist attacks, coups d’état, corruption scandals, cyber attacks, earthquakes and hurricanes were all in a day’s work in a career that coincided with the rise of China, the tumult of the Middle East wars, the resurgence of populism and the digital revolution.

Amid chaos and upheaval, he also found humanity and humour. Often witty and always insightful, What on Earth Can Go Wrong takes us from the battlefields of Iraq to the back streets of Bogotà, from the steamy Niger delta to the chill of Putin’s Moscow.

In a remarkable memoir of a life on the frazzled edge of globalisation, Fenning looks back with humanity and insight on the people and places he got to know, while offering some timely thoughts on the relationship between risk and fear in a profoundly volatile world.

‘A fascinating insight into the space where politics and business meet, filled with wit and wisdom. Highly recommended’ Lord Sedwill, former UK Cabinet Secretary

‘A must-read for every student of geopolitics, amateur or academic, professional or private’ Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles, former British ambassador

‘Take a spoonful of Evelyn Waugh, add a sprinkle of P.J. O’Rourke and garnish with a touch of Michael Palin. Fenning is not just wry, perceptive and informative: he is also laugh-out-loud funny, way more often than any CEO has a right to be’ Boris Starling, author of The Official History of Britain

‘A really fun and informative read. He’s not only got some great stories to tell, he does so in a very human and engaging way’ Christian Hunt, Human Risk

‘A brilliant, compelling, genre-bending book: part-memoir, part-travelogue, part-political analysis, it is, above all, a fascinating treatise on the risk business’ Off the Pitch

Paperback:

Published: Eye Books (March 2021)

ISBN: 9781785632242