John Keay is a writer, broadcaster and historian whose books include INTO INDIA, INDIA DISCOVERED, WHEN MEN AND MOUNTAINS MEET, HIGHLAND DROVE, THE HONOURABLE COMPANY: A HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH EAST INDIA COMPANY, THE GREAT ARC and (with his wife Julia) the COLLINS ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF SCOTLAND. He has travelled extensively in India and the Far East, and specialised in Asian history and current affairs.