Insight with Patrick Symmes: Castro, his friends and the Revolution Generation

Journalist and author Patrick Symmes, who wrote Chasing Che, the book that was later made into the film The Motorcycle Diaries, talks to Rosalind Bain about Fidel and Raul Castro and the lives of the people who gave birth to the Cuban Revolution.

Patrick Symmes has been reporting from Cuba for 15 years. He writes about Latin American politics, globalisation and travel for a number of magazines, including Harper’s, Outside, Wired, Conde Nast Traveller and GQ. In his first book, Chasing Che, he retraced the 12,000-mile journey made by Che Guevara in 1952 that was later made into the film The Motorcycle Diaries.

His latest book, The Boys from Dolores, talks about the 230 young students – future doctors and engineers, refugees and warriors – who studied together with Fidel and Raul Castro and all those who fought for and against the Cuban Revolution.

Rosalind Bain is a freelance film-maker specialising in Hispanic history and current affairs.