book of Pillar of Fire, explains: "And then the need to explain to the world, what Zionism is, arose. Actually, the need to explain this to ourselves also became clear". Pillar of Fire is based on a large number of documentary archival footages as well as interviews with 250 persons from Israel and around the world, including, Anwar Sadat, Abba Eban, Golda Meir, Menachem Begin, holocaust survivors and more. Pillar of Fire was released in Hebrew and English versions. The narrator of the Hebrew version was Israeli Performer Yossi Banai and the English version was read by the English stage and screen actor Ian McKellen. The original film score music was composed, arranged, and conducted by the Israeli singer, music producer, and composer, Shem Tov Levi. The first episode was also broadcast on Russian Television after the fall of Communism. In 1998, Israeli Channel 1 produced an additional documentary series, Tkumah (also known as Tekuma or "Revival"), that practically picked up from where Pillar of Fire has stopped, and introduces the Israeli narrative of the History of the State of Israel, beginning from the Israeli Declaration of Independence, in 1948, and ends with the Assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995. Episodes The English version has 7 episodes (420 minutes). The Hebrew version has 19 episodes (855 minutes). References External links Pillar of Fire's Episodes on IBA website (Hebrew) 1980s Israeli television series 1981 Israeli television series debuts 1981 Israeli television series endings Israeli television shows Channel 1 (Israel) original programming Zionism Documentary television series about historical events 1980s documentary television series