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27 October 1931 – 21 March 2021The influential and fearless Egyptian feminist author, doctor and government official is remembered by the journalist and social commentatorUna Stubbs remembered by Martin FreemanRead the Observer’s obituaries of 2021 in fullI often say I met Nawal El Saadawi four times but only two of those were in person, because the other two times made such a massive impression on me. When I was 13 and living in London, we were watching a documentary on telly about Egypt and this woman with bright white hair came on the screen. She spoke so powerfully and was so completely in charge, I thought, “Wow, who is she?” Then an Egyptian man came on and said: “This woman is ruining Egypt’s reputation.” I was so blown away by this idea that one woman could ruin a country’s reputation, I thought, oh my God, I want to be that.The second time I “met” her was when I was 18 and living in Saudi Arabia. I was in a deep depression because of the misogyny and ultra-conservatism there, but at university I discovered a bookshelf of feminist literature. It included works by Nawal and they saved my mind. Continue reading...