The Lockerbie Bombing

A father fights for the truth after his daughter's death in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103—The inspiration for the 2025 miniseries starring Colin Firth.

The destruction of Pan Am Flight 103 over the Scottish town of Lockerbie in December 1988 was the largest attack on Britain since World War II. 259 passengers and 11 townsfolk of Lockerbie were murdered. Libyan Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was convicted of the crime. He maintained his innocence until his death in 2012.

Among the passengers was Flora, beloved daughter of Dr Jim Swire. Jim accepted American claims that Libya was responsible, but during the Lockerbie Trial he began to distrust key witnesses and supposed firm evidence. Since then, it has been revealed that the United States paid millions of dollars to two central identification witnesses, and the only forensic evidence central to the prosecution has been discredited.

The book takes us along Dr. Swire's journey as his initial grief and loss becomes a campaign to uncover the truth behind not only a personal tragedy but one of the modern world's most shocking events.
Praise for The Lockerbie Bombing

"It is hard to read this book without concluding that Dr Swire is right, and that for reasons that are both understandable and shameful, successive British governments repeatedly obstructed the investigation and they did so at the instigation of our American allies. . . . This book recounts Swire's long and painful search for the truth about Lockerbie and his version is persuasive. It is disturbing too because, if he has it right, the Scottish judges who have now three times rejected appeals against the original verdict, have made it hard to have confidence in the integrity of our law." —The Scotsman

"Fascinating, compelling—a book about international intrigue, personal feelings, and ethics. Right at its heart is the search for truth." —Kate Adie

"Lockerbie's heartrending epitaph. . . . A shattering tale of grief and love." —Daily Mail