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.
Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there.
For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.
Recent episodes explore everything from how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.
We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.
You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.
Episodes to download
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Diane Blood
Tue 31 Jan 2012
Winning the chance to conceive a child using sperm from her dead husband
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Dickens in America
Mon 30 Jan 2012
How a visit to America in 1842 became a turning-point in the career of Charles Dickens.
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Bloody Sunday
Sun 29 Jan 2012
It is 40 years since 13 civil rights marchers were killed in Northern Ireland.
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The rise of Hitler
Tue 24 Jan 2012
On 25 January 1933 the last legal communist march was held in Berlin.
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Japanese soldier in hiding
Mon 23 Jan 2012
In January 1972 a Japanese soldier was found in the jungle of Guam.
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Jackson Pollock
Sun 22 Jan 2012
It is one hundred years since the great American abstract painter was born.
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The Wannsee conference
Thu 19 Jan 2012
It is 70 years since senior Nazi officials met to plan the killing of European Jews.
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The Warsaw ghetto
Tue 17 Jan 2012
On 18 January 1943 German soldiers began a final drive to empty the Polish capital of Jews
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The Great Brinks Robbery
Mon 16 Jan 2012
In 1950 a Boston gang stole over $2.5m and they almost got away with it.
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Vietnam draft pardon
Sun 15 Jan 2012
In January 1977 President Jimmy Carter said draft dodgers could come home.
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Folsom Prison Blues
Thu 12 Jan 2012
In January 1968 the country legend Johnny Cash recorded a concert in a high-security jail.
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Perez de Cuellar goes to Baghdad
Wed 11 Jan 2012
In January 1991 the UN Secretary General tried to avert the first Gulf War.
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Zola and the Dreyfus affair
Tue 10 Jan 2012
In 1898 the novelist Emile Zola took up the cause of a Jewish prisoner - Alfred Dreyfus.
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The death of Emperor Hirohito
Mon 9 Jan 2012
When the Japanese Emperor died in 1989 it marked the end of an era.
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Crossing the Rubicon
Sun 8 Jan 2012
Over 2000 years ago Julius Caesar made a decision which changed European history.
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Charter 77
Thu 5 Jan 2012
Taking you back 35 years when an opposition movement began in Czechoslovakia.
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Project Stormfury
Wed 4 Jan 2012
Fifty years ago the USA launched an ambitious attempt to control the weather.
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The Hollywood blacklist
Tue 3 Jan 2012
A list of radicals in the US entertainment industry was published more than 60 years ago.
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The capture of the USS Pueblo
Mon 2 Jan 2012
In January 1968 an American spy ship was captured by North Korean forces.
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Birth of the Euro
New Year's Day 2012
How millions of Europeans celebrated the launch of the euro in 2002.
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US troops in Iraq
Thu 29 Dec 2011
All US troops have now left Iraq. We take you back to when they first invaded in 2003.
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The Creation of Tetris
Wed 28 Dec 2011
One of the most popular computer games ever was invented in Moscow in 1984
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Enid Blyton and the BBC
Tue 27 Dec 2011
The difficult relationship between the BBC and the children's writer, Enid Blyton.
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The release of Sakharov
Boxing Day 2011
In December 1986 the Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov was allowed to return to Moscow.
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The sinking of the Scharnhorst
Christmas Day 2011
She was one of Germany's greatest battleships during World War II.
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The Christmas Truce
Thu 22 Dec 2011
On Christmas Eve 1914, during World War I, British and German soldiers stopped fighting.
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Concert for Bangladesh
Tue 20 Dec 2011
In 1971 the first big rock benefit gig was organised by former Beatle, George Harrison.
