Tayseer Abdullah

Tayseer Abdullah Hassan is a broadcaster, programme-maker, writer and consultant at the Theatre Affairs Centre. He chaired the media committee of the Doha Song Festival for eight years and has written for theatre, drama and song while organising cultural and artistic events.

His childhood was rich in experiences that developed a wide range of abilities. He explored art, theatre and poetry and also gained experience in charitable work.

Despite holding a modest post, his father—may God have mercy on him—played a major part in shaping his character. Open-minded and cultured, he kept a large home library in which he spent long hours immersed in stories, novels, history, literature, religion, science and popular proverbs. This reading broadened his awareness and nurtured an intellectual outlook from an early age. His father also helped direct him towards media by buying him newspapers and magazines, awakening a fascination with journalism and broadcasting that would determine his path.

University was one of the most important periods of his life and the decisive turning point in his career. It focused his interests and refined his abilities because it allowed him to enter the field he loved: radio and television.

One teacher strongly influenced his thinking, advising him to remain intellectually open, resist ideology and consider even unfamiliar or opposing ideas. Only after understanding and ordering them, the teacher argued, could he communicate every message effectively. The advice helped form the media professional he later became.

He entered media through Qatar Television, then a prominent regional broadcaster, and became one of its leading figures by the end of the 1980s. He approached the profession cautiously at first, using only his given name and his father’s name rather than his family name. He wanted to be judged on performance and competence, not family or social affiliation, and deliberately presented himself without factional loyalties. His successful start opened other doors and introduced him to people who encouraged and accelerated his career. The camera and microphone became his means of encountering many notable figures.

Early in his career, Saad bin Mohammed Al-Rumaihi, then a television director, gave him an important opportunity in media. He promised to justify Al-Rumaihi’s confidence, remained in contact with him and learned from his example. In particular, he came to understand that a media professional’s responsibility extends beyond fame: public words and positions require purpose, care and precision. That discipline reshaped his social and family interactions as well as his broader outlook.

A 1994 reporting visit to Yemen during the war was among the most important experiences of his media career. He entered military barracks and combat zones in circumstances that were both frightening and professionally valuable. As a young man accustomed to Qatar’s security and stability, he encountered a very different reality and met many of Yemen’s leading figures, including the late President Ali Abdullah Saleh. The experience taught him to represent Qatar to the best of his ability in the darkest and most difficult conditions.

Another defining moment came midway through his media career, when his love of sport and sports journalism led him to seek a move to Al Jazeera Sports. An administrative obstacle prevented the transfer. After an initial period of frustration and inner conflict, he renewed his energy and resumed his media work with a broader outlook. He moved into writing and authorship, created productions in Qatar and abroad across several fields, and collaborated with international stars.

Media opened the way into writing for theatre, drama, television and live performance. He drew on his talent, skills and deep passion for writing to put his ideas on paper, entering the field with confidence and distinction. Writing enriched his life; among his greatest pleasures was seeing the finished expression of his thought and effort.

He also helped organise the revival of the Doha Theatre Festival after a suspension of almost four years. He continues to contribute to theatre by organising activities entrusted to the Theatre Affairs Centre.

His achievements centred on culture, media and writing, fields to which he devoted his thought, time and energy. Working with the poet and writer Abdul Rahim Al-Siddiqi, he pursued writing boldly through an experience that was rich, enjoyable and challenging. They learned from mistakes, developed professionally and worked with leading actors over more than thirty years, helping build an archive of theatre for children and adults.

In the years before the late actor Abdulaziz Jassim’s death, he and his collaborators presented him in about five or six productions. He also worked beyond Qatar with MBC and several other channels.

He continues to write, and every new experience renews him. Writing makes him feel that he is not growing old: for as long as he writes, he remains young and his mind remains capable of giving.

In 1993, he worked with the accomplished actor Hoda Hussein and her sister, director Najat Hussein, on a major production marking 3 September, then Qatar’s Independence Day. He was selected to write the lyrics, but the director initially rejected them as incompatible with her approach. Deeply disappointed, he considered withdrawing. After reflecting, he showed the text to Hoda Hussein; she admired it, persuaded her sister and helped bring the successful production to the stage. Working with the renowned Kuwaiti actor Abdul Hussein Abdul Reda fulfilled another dream and brought memorable experiences. He also collaborated with the “Tash Ma Tash” team on a production that remained in audiences’ memories and with Tariq Al Ali on the comedy “Super Star”.

Among his principal achievements was a collaboration with composer Mohammed Al-Marzouqi, Director of Sawt Al-Khaleej Radio. Together they produced works with a distinctively Qatari character for Sawt Al-Khaleej, Qatar Television and Al Kass. These included a song performed by Qatari girls in support of the national team and “Land of the World Cup”, an Arab greeting presented in Qatar’s name. Broadcast during the global sporting event, the works foregrounded Qatari identity and heritage. He remains committed to presenting Qatari creativity at its best and bringing the country’s artistic identity to the world.

For eight years, he chaired the Media Committee of the Doha Song Festival. He met artists from many countries and formed enduring friendships with figures including Kazem Al-Saher, Mohammed Abdo, Najwa Karam, Saber Al-Rubai, Wadih Al-Safi and Mansour Al-Rahbani. He also moderated numerous seminars involving approximately sixty-two leading singers from across the Arab world. He documented those encounters and intends to publish them on social media.