Sam McAlister

Meet Sam McAlister

Sam McAlister is a BAFTA-nominated interviews producer and LSE senior fellow who has negotiated with everyone from Buckingham Palace to The White House, Tesla to Facebook. With skills honed over a decade in the BBC’s elite news programmes, notably BBC Newsnight, she is used to persuading reluctant individuals to participate in a news programme renowned for its rigour and bite.

Exclusives include, most famously, that interview with HRH Prince Andrew, but also; Sheryl Sandberg, Prime Minister Trudeau, President Clinton, Prime Minister Netanyahu, Elon Musk, James Comey, Stormy Daniels, Julian Assange, Trevor Noah, Amy Schumer and Eric Schmidt.

She has the inside scoop on what interviews like this say about leadership, reputation, and communication in the modern age. She knows how to avoid making terrible mistakes and how to deal with the media and its fiercest inquisitors. She also talks about the art of negotiation, honed over decades, with her most famous one, ‘How to convince a Prince’.

Negotiation, dealing with the media, strategy and public speaking have always been at the core of everything that Sam has done, from her time as a criminal defence barrister to her many public speaking and debating prizes, as well as her dealings with celebrities and governments.

Sam’s book Scoops: Behind the Scenes of the BBC’s Most Shocking Interviews was released in 2022 and details the secrets of a former BBC producer who found her way to Buckingham Palace, giving a backstage pass to the most unforgettable journalism of our times. Not only was it an Amazon bestseller, it was optioned for a documentary for Channel 4, ‘The Problem Prince”, which aired as part of the channel’s Coronation coverage in May 2023.

Subsequently, “Scoops” has also been optioned for a Netflix film later this year, with the acclaimed screen-writer Peter Moffat (Your Honor, Silks and Criminal Justice). Sam will be played by Billie Piper with Gillian Anderson as Emily Maitlis, Rufus Sewell as Prince Andrew and Keeley Hawes as Amanda Thirsk, his private secretary

Outside of her media fame, Sam has recently been appointed as a Visiting Senior Fellow at the London School of Economics (LSE) teaching negotiation at the law faculty.

She has extensive experience of keynote speaking with everyone from banks to law firms, CEOs and Embassies. She’s comfortable facilitating day long events, speaking on panels and hosting awards ceremonies. Sam also advises private clients on media and negotiation issues.