Stalked by a suicide bomber – life as the youngest ever female war artist

Charlie Calder-Potts had always been adventurous. After falling in love with the Middle East in her twenties as she travelled through Lebanon and Syria, she was desperate to tick Afghanistan off her list.

‘I’d read about it and wanted to explore the mountainous area. I was also fascinated by the way throughout history we’ve attempted and failed to take control of the region,’ Charlie tells Metro.

A successful artist in London, she came up with a novel way to achieve her dream by writing to as many different Army regiments as she could find, asking to be embedded with the British troops to experience the country on the ground, as a war artist. The role would see her documenting people, places and experiences connected to conflict – rather than the fighting – through a range of media.

‘I