Following nearly annihilating the world, our families have become friends’: the gripping audio series from JFK and Khrushchev’s relatives.

In October 1962, humanity came closer to destruction than at any other point during modern times. This happened after a US surveillance plane found the fact that Soviet nuclear weapon sites were under construction on Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of the United States. In response, President John F Kennedy commanded a naval task force to enact a naval blockade around the island. The next phase constituted almost 14 days of impossible stress.

The Catastrophic Threat

The threat was clear. If President Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, had fired on their enemy, a chain reaction involving global atomic strikes followed by counterstrikes might have followed, thrusting civilization into total destruction.

The Cuban missile crisis has been documented endlessly, in volumes, movies, as well as TV documentaries. But, for its third season, the BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" introduces an unprecedented element into this historical narrative. The series is co-presented featuring Kennedy's relative and Khrushchev's descendant, family members belonging to the leaders who, for two tense weeks, controlled the fate of the world within their grasp.

"What were the Russians planning? What was the American side considering?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor of international affairs.

For her, the strength of the show is its endeavor to question: "How can people hate each other and go against one another?"

"It was not lost on me how spectacular it is that individuals can be allies or else can become complete adversaries," adds Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to the late president and currently an author as well as attorney. "We see this over and over when countries have gone to war, and it just illustrates the profound irrationality it is to engage in warfare."

The Precipice Towards Disaster

What is striking regarding this event was that, because it transpired so publicly, people worldwide were able to observe almost as it happened while it moved closer to disaster. However, the risk of destruction was more imminent than anybody understood at the time.

"The overwhelming majority in the White House were advocating for a military strike and an invasion," says Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba with the naval blockade, it is certain the Russians on the ground would've deployed a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've obliterated the naval vessels as well as destroyed our primary fleet. And, the U.S. would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended all life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, who succeeded in exercise restraint while calmly negotiate when hawkish elements around them was pushing for military action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in Cuba and Kennedy (although not reported then) removed American similar weapons based in Turkey. The relief was immense, as was a feeling of hope.

A Different Perspective

Still, for those two weeks of October 1962, the fear was felt by everyone. The podcast's presenters came into the world in the years following the crisis, and Khrushcheva being taught about the crisis through the USSR's education system, which presented an alternative picture of what happened.

"You said your father remembers it, and it was a scary day," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, people really didn’t know a great deal about it, because it was a crisis, and under the Soviet system the official line was that everything was constantly fine or sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, however, the perspective was different. "I was informed that it was a triumphant occasion it was, because it was a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to find a solution, and didn’t start the war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she continues. Subsequently, though, that view would not be shared by all Russians. "For decades in Russian politics, it was considered a setback for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up America."

An Unlikely Collaboration

The Bomb is remarkably even-handed and well produced so much so that Nina quips it almost made her forget the known the ending. This is, partly, thanks to contributions from historians. But, really, the most momentous thing remains the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable that relatives of the leaders of the United States and the USSR would appear together publicly. That these two individuals are able to do so, and be so warm with each other, has to be a sign of progress.

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

"But we had never met prior to this project," clarifies Max. "Which is unfortunate since we got along really well and we are friends, something that is wonderful. Finally, after almost six decades of almost destroying the world, our lineages have become friends, so I think global relations is safer, a little bit."

Modern Parallels with Present Perils

Or is it? One reason the reason this series feels so necessary is that we once again find ourselves living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe in its history, partly since today's statesmen appear not to be able to grasp