LONDON — The BBC has apologized to Zaha Hadid after the architect cut short a live radio interview over poorly researched questions. Radio 4's Today program has issued a correction on its website and has sent a personal apology to Zaha Hadid following the interview with presenter Sarah Montague on Thursday, which quickly turned sour, Britain's Daily Mail reported. Hadid stormed out of the interview after she was asked about the deaths of migrant workers in Qatar, where she has designed one of the World Cup stadiums. The Iraqi-British architect, who has just won one of the prestigious awards in the business, also objected to questions about the cancellation of her project to build Tokyo's Olympic stadium. She cut short her appearance on the Today program on BBC Radio 4, saying: ‘Let's stop this conversation right now, I don't want to carry on.' Hadid, 64, who designed the Aquatics Centre at the London Olympics, was being interviewed by Montague after becoming the first woman ever to win the Royal Gold Medal for Architecture. The presenter asked her about allegations that workers at the Al-Wakrah stadium in Qatar, designed by Hadid for the 2022 World Cup, had died during the construction process - prompting a furious response “There haven't been problems actually, I have to put you right, there hasn't been a single problem in Qatar,” the architect said. “It is absolutely untrue.” She added: “There's no deaths on our site whatsoever, absolutely not. You should check your information before you say anything.” When Montague suggested that the issue was “fascinating,” Hadid replied: “It's not fascinating, because it was reported in the Press and they had to withdraw their statement and they had to apologize to me for wrongdoing.” The interviewer then went on to discuss the Olympic stadium in Tokyo, which was scrapped earlier this year - five years before the Games - after the Japanese prime minister suggested that it was too expensive. Hadid said: “I didn't pull out, I pulled out because there was no contractor to go with. Again, this is a very serious story and it should be reported accurately.” Montague tried to change the subject, but the architect said: “Don't ask me a question when you can't let me finish it, then I won't say anything.” She added: “Listen to me - let's stop this conversation right now, I don't want to carry on. Thank you very much.” — Agencies
