Death in Riyadh: A cautionary tale for expat language teachers in the Middle East

March is hot in Saudi Arabia. Temperatures might not reach the barmy heights of mid-summer, when thermometers can on occasion tip 50 degrees Celsius, but averages for this month are still around 35˚C. Wherever you are in the world, extreme heat and alcohol binges are never a good mix, but they can prove to be deadly in the peculiar world of Middle East English language teaching, as was the case in early March, 2011.

The facts of the case in question are ostensibly straightforward. On 1st March, 2011, an illegal drinking session got under way on an expatriate residential compound in the Saudi capital, Riyadh. Andrew Cannon, 41, from Basingstoke, and Robert Colman, 57 from Newcastle, were among the English teachers living in bachelor accommodation in the same building on the private compound. The pair were both said to have ‘had a tendency to become violent with alcohol’ and fell out at some point during the drinking session. The falling out would in turn lead to an exchange of physical blows. This book follows the events that transpired...