Witness History Podcast
History told by the people who were there. For nine minutes every weekday, Witness History takes you back to moments which have shaped our world.
Witness History is a short BBC World Service podcast about history that takes you inside big moments from the past through first-hand testimony and archive. Each weekday, in around nine minutes, we revisit one moment that helped shape the world and hear it through the voice of someone who was there. Scientists, artists, campaigners, soldiers, leaders and everyday people tell their true stories.
When you subscribe to Witness History, you’ll be taken inside turning points in world affairs, from West Africa’s fight back against Boko Haram in 2015, to the behind-closed-doors talks that led to the US-Cuba “thaw” and the surprise announcement of restored relations.
You’ll discover what it was like to experience disasters and how people recovered from them, including the Tabasco floods in Mexico, Portugal's worst train disaster, and the huge clean-up after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.
You’ll explore culture and ideas too: Sweden’s Expedition Robinson, often credited as the first modern reality TV game show; the friendship between The Beatles’ George Harrison and Indian sitarist Ravi Shankar; and the night a tiger attack brought Las Vegas superstars Siegfried and Roy’s show to a sudden end.
And if you’re curious about inventions, we’ll tell you how air fryers, BlackBerry, YouTube, Alexa, GPS, superglue, the shopping cart (shopping trolley) and bubble tea were created.
If you’re new to Witness History, the appeal is simple: real voices, one strong true story, and a fresh way to understand today through events from history – all in the time it takes to enjoy a cup of tea or a walk around the block. Join millions of BBC World Service podcast listeners around the globe and enjoy the insight, context and detail Witness History will bring you.
Episodes to download
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The Wizard of Oz
Wed 13 Aug 2014
The cast and crew remember one of the most popular Hollywood musicals of all time
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The Supremes
Tue 12 Aug 2014
The Supremes had their first hit 'Baby Love' in August 1964, 50 years ago
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Marooned in Stalin's Russia
Mon 11 Aug 2014
How thousands of Polish citizens tried to flee the USSR after being freed in August 1941
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Internment in Northern Ireland
Fri 8 Aug 2014
In 1971 the British Army detained hundreds of suspects without trial in Northern Ireland.
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The Resignation of President Nixon
Thu 7 Aug 2014
On 8 August 1974 Richard Nixon became the first US president in history to resign.
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Lindow Man
Wed 6 Aug 2014
In 1984, the 2000 year old remains of a man were found preserved in a peat bog in England
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Japanese Prisoner Breakout
Tue 5 Aug 2014
On 5 Aug 1944, hundreds of Japanese prisoners attempted the largest breakout of WW2.
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The Mississippi Burning Case
Mon 4 Aug 2014
On 4 Aug 1964 the bodies of three murdered civil rights workers were found in Mississippi
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The Warsaw Uprising
Fri 1 Aug 2014
On 1 August 1944, resistance fighters in the Polish capital rose up against German forces
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Martha Stewart in Jail
Thu 31 Jul 2014
A fellow prisoner recalls how the American TV celebrity survived five months behind bars
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Christian: The Lion From London
Wed 30 Jul 2014
In 1969 two young Australians bought a lion cub in Harrods and raised it in London
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The World's First Jet Airliner
Tue 29 Jul 2014
In July 1949, the British-built de Havilland Comet took off for the first time
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The Outbreak of World War One
Mon 28 Jul 2014
Eyewitness accounts from the archives of the start of war in the summer of 1914
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Purple Rain
Fri 25 Jul 2014
It's 30 years since the release of the film Purple Rain, starring musician Prince
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The First Palestinian Intifada
Thu 24 Jul 2014
In 1987, the first Palestinian uprising, or intifada, started in Gaza
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The Last Days of British Rule in India
Wed 23 Jul 2014
In summer 1947 India declared independence after hundreds of years of British rule.
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The Killing of Miguel Angel Blanco
Tue 22 Jul 2014
In 1997 a young Spanish politician was murdered by the Basque separatist group ETA
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Attack on Argentina's Jews
Mon 21 Jul 2014
In 1994 a bomb exploded in Argentina killing 85 people at a Jewish centre
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The Plot to Kill Hitler
Fri 18 Jul 2014
Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg attempted to kill Adolf Hitler on 20 July, 1944
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The Fall of General Somoza
Wed 16 Jul 2014
In July 1979 left-wing rebels toppled the last member of the Somoza dynasty in Nicaragua.
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The Chappaquiddick Incident
Tue 15 Jul 2014
In July 1969, Edward Kennedy was involved in a car accident in which a young woman died
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The Death of Frida Kahlo
Mon 14 Jul 2014
On 13 July 1954, the celebrated Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, died at the age of 47
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Pablo Neruda
Fri 11 Jul 2014
The great Latin American poet was born in a remote town in southern Chile in July 1904
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The Srebrenica Massacre
Thu 10 Jul 2014
Bosnian Serb troops murdered thousands of Bosnian Muslim men and boys in July 1995
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The Sinking of the Rainbow Warrior
Wed 9 Jul 2014
On 9 July 1985 the Greenpeace campaign ship was bombed by French secret agents
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The Death of Kim Il Sung
Tue 8 Jul 2014
It is 20 years since the death of North Korea's founding leader Kim Il Sung
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The Storming of the Red Mosque
Mon 7 Jul 2014
When militants took over a mosque in Islamabad, troops were sent in to end the siege
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Iraq's Awakening Movement
Fri 4 Jul 2014
Sunni tribal militia turned on Al Qaeda in Iraq and began working with US forces In 2006
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Artek - the Soviet Holiday Camp
Thu 3 Jul 2014
Every year, thousands of Soviet children visited the holiday camp Artek by the Black Sea
