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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Dungeons and Dragons
Fri 20 Jan 2017
The fantasy role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons launched in January 1974.
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Roots - The TV Series
Thu 19 Jan 2017
The epic mini-series about slavery in the USA hit TV screens in January 1977
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Dadaab: The World's Largest Refugee Camp
Wed 18 Jan 2017
How one young woman fled war in Somalia to grow up in Kenya's massive refugee camp
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The Murder of Journalist Hrant Dink
Tue 17 Jan 2017
The Turkish Armenian journalist was shot dead in January 2007 in front of his office.
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The End of El Salvador's Civil War
Mon 16 Jan 2017
A former Salvadoran guerrilla fighter talks about her experience of war and peace.
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US Presidential Transitions
Fri 13 Jan 2017
What exactly goes on during the months between election and inauguration?
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Princess Diana's Minefield Walk
Thu 12 Jan 2017
How Britain's most famous Royal brought the danger landmines to the world's attention.
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Chicago's Police Torture
Wed 11 Jan 2017
A victim of abuse at the hands of the Chicago police tells his story.
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The Zimmermann Telegram
Tue 10 Jan 2017
How British code-breakers exposed a German plot against the United States in 1917
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Turkey's Headscarf Row
Mon 9 Jan 2017
In 1999 a Turkish woman MP appeared in parliament wearing a headscarf. It caused uproar.
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Death in the Amazon
Fri 6 Jan 2017
Auca tribesmen killed five American missionaries in the jungle in January 1956.
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Albania's Economic Chaos
Thu 5 Jan 2017
How the collapse of 'pyramid' investment schemes caused riots in Albania in 1977
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Charter 77
Wed 4 Jan 2017
In January 1977 an opposition movement began in Soviet-era Czechoslovakia.
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Vietnam War: The Cu Chi Tunnels
Tue 3 Jan 2017
A Vietnamese war veteran on life in the Viet Cong's tunnel network in South Vietnam
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Russia's 'Dog Man'
Fri 30 Dec 2016
How conceptual artist Oleg Kulik posed as a dog, attacking passers-by in Moscow.
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The Launch of Vogue Russia
Thu 29 Dec 2016
Aliona Doletskaya remembers starting post Soviet-Russia's biggest glossy fashion magazine
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The Nuclear Legacy
Wed 28 Dec 2016
The story of how the world was made safe from the former Soviet Union's nuclear legacy
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Georgia In Crisis
Tue 27 Dec 2016
After the breakup of the Soviet Union, Georgia found itself on the verge of civil war.
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The Break-Up of the Soviet Union
Boxing Day 2016
Hear from two of the key players who brought to an end over 70 years of communism
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Apollo 8
Fri 23 Dec 2016
How the first mission around the Moon captured the world's imagination at Christmas 1968
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Samuel Beckett
Thu 22 Dec 2016
The great Irish playwright and novelist Samuel Beckett died on 22nd December 1989
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Turkey-Greece Island Dispute
Wed 21 Dec 2016
How Greece and Turkey almost came to war over a tiny rocky island in the Aegean sea.
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Derek Jarman
Tue 20 Dec 2016
The experimental film-maker made his first feature film 'Sebastiane' in 1976.
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Death of an Anarchist
Mon 19 Dec 2016
Giuseppe Pinelli was an Italian anarchist who died in police custody - but why?
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The First Latin American 'Telenovela'
Fri 16 Dec 2016
Brazil's Vida Alves starred in the first ever Latin American soap opera in December 1951.
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Cot Death
Thu 15 Dec 2016
The 'Back to Sleep' campaign was launched in 1991 to prevent babies dying in their cots
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The Hindu 'Milk Miracle'
Wed 14 Dec 2016
Millions of Hindus were gripped by reports of their God, Ganesha, 'drinking' milk.
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Sara Ginaite Lithuanian Jewish Partisan
Tue 13 Dec 2016
A young Jewish woman escaped from the Kaunas Ghetto in Lithuania to fight the Nazis.
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Yoyes - Woman leader of ETA
Mon 12 Dec 2016
The life and tragic death of the first woman leader of the Basque separatist group ETA.
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Fighting for Rural Women in South Africa
Fri 9 Dec 2016
Sizani Ngubane set up the Rural Women's Movement in South Africa in the 1990s
