Jon Swift, the British TV broadcaster finds himself in trouble when his journalism career is not going the way he wants. Jon realises that he is too old to be part of the new world order and despite his predicament, he refuses to suck up to his superiors. But experience has taught him to trust his instincts. So this time, after being given his termination letter, Jon decides to visit China with his TV producer, Alyssa Roberts for a final hurrah and also to report on the new developments taking place there. That’s when his adventure in Beijing takes on a new challenge for him. Earlier on before his trip, Jon runs into Lin Lifeng for the first time in years, in a cafe in Oxford. Lin had evolved from a rebellious student marching round Tiananmen Square to a faithful scion of the Chinese Communist Party because of his family connection. Lin had helped Jon broadcast the atrocities of Tiananmen Square that took place in 1989, and now he is a well-dressed party official with his own agenda.
Jon begins to wonder if the meeting is a coincidence. But when Lin asks him to pass on a coded message to someone identified as Excalibur, Jon knows it's not.
Arriving in Beijing, Jon starts to follow a tangled web where he finds it difficult to differentiate who his friends are from his enemies. As Jon travels across the country, he seeks to make sense of the ways in which China's past and present are colliding - and also what that means for the future of the country and the world.
Under the watchful eyes of an international network of spies, double-agents and politicians, all with a ruthless desire for wealth and power, Jon finds himself caught in the middle of a high-stake conflict. And to save himself and Alyssa as well as his contacts, including a cameraman he has recruited in Beijing, Jon is in a race to expose the truth before things come crashing down on them.
Kidnapped and beaten, both he and Alyssa defy the odds to continue with their investigations on what Lin and his people are planning. Because of their past relationship, Lin surprises Jon when he reveals his plan to organise a coup d'etat against the current leadership.
Will Jon and his team succeed in outsmarting the powerful forces surrounding them? The ending, however, is filled with the unexpected and also a personal loss for Jon.
Our Friends in Beijing offers an insight of China post Mao Zedung and Deng Xiaoping and of a modern and prosperous nation seeking to reconcile its role on the world stage. An interesting read from John Simpson, a former BBC’s World Affair Editor for more than 52 years.
