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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Britain's Landslide 1945 Election
Fri 24 Jul 2015
In July 1945 Labour won a surprise victory, defeating war-time leader Winston Churchill
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The Tulia Drug Bust
Thu 23 Jul 2015
A drug sting in a small Texas town in 1999 went badly wrong and caused a national scandal
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Tehran's Red Light District
Wed 22 Jul 2015
In July 1979 Iran's new Islamic government closed down Tehran's red-light district.
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CIA Mind Control Experiments
Mon 20 Jul 2015
In the 1950s the CIA began attempts to brainwash psychiatric patients.
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Ghiggia: Uruguay’s World Cup Hero
Fri 17 Jul 2015
Alcides Ghiggia scored a famous goal for Uruguay in a match at Brazil’s Maracana stadium
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The Manhattan Project
Thu 16 Jul 2015
The first ever nuclear weapon was detonated by scientists in the USA on 16 July 1945
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Poison Gas in WW1
Wed 15 Jul 2015
Soldiers who witnessed gas attacks recount their experiences in archive recordings
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Marie Curie
Tue 14 Jul 2015
Winner of two Nobel prizes for her pioneering research into radioactivity
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The Sinking of the USS Indianapolis
Mon 13 Jul 2015
In July 1945, the American warship was torpedoed in the shark-infested Pacific Ocean.
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The Death of MKO Abiola
Fri 10 Jul 2015
Nigerian opposition leader died suddenly days before his expected release from prison
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One Hundred Years of Solitude
Thu 9 Jul 2015
In 1967 the best-selling Latin American novel by Gabriel Garcia Marquez was published.
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Tamil Doctors and the Sri Lankan War
Wed 8 Jul 2015
In July 2009 doctors were forced to re-assess the number of casualties in the war.
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The Death of General Sani Abacha
Tue 7 Jul 2015
The Doctor who tried to save Nigeria's Military Ruler.
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Escape from the KGB
Mon 6 Jul 2015
In July 1985, Oleg Gordievsky, a high-ranking Soviet spy defected to the UK
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Red Cross Visits Nazi Concentration Camp
Thu 2 Jul 2015
In 1944 the International Red Cross was allowed into Theresienstadt concentration camp
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The Berlin Love Parade
Wed 1 Jul 2015
On 1 July 1989, 150 dancers set off on a demonstration for 'peace, love and pancakes'
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Helen Keller
Tue 30 Jun 2015
A childhood illness left Helen Keller deaf and blind - but she still learned to speak
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The Filming of Jaws
Mon 29 Jun 2015
It is 40 years since the blockbuster movie about a man-eating shark was released
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Save the Whale
Fri 26 Jun 2015
On June 27th 1975 Greenpeace activists launched their first direct action against whalers
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James Salter: Writer and Pilot
Thu 25 Jun 2015
The acclaimed American author died on 19 June 2015, aged 90
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Communist Yugoslavia breaks with the USSR
Wed 24 Jun 2015
In June 1948 Marshal Tito shocked the world by shunning his former Soviet ally, Stalin.
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Air India Flight 182
Tue 23 Jun 2015
On 23 June 1985 a passenger plane was blown out of the sky by Sikh extremists
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Britain's First Black Woman MP
Mon 22 Jun 2015
In 1987 Diane Abbott became the first black woman elected to the British Parliament
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The Six Day War: A Jewish view
Fri 19 Jun 2015
After the Six Day War in June 1967 Jews in Arab countries like Libya had to flee
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Iran's Cultural Revolution
Thu 18 Jun 2015
How Iran's Islamic hardliners shut down universities to drive out secular groups
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Inter-racial Marriage in South Africa
Tue 16 Jun 2015
In June 1985 the ban on inter-racial marriage in South Africa was finally lifted.
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Flying to Freedom
Mon 15 Jun 2015
In June 1970 a group of mainly Jewish dissidents tried to escape from the USSR by plane
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The Six Day War: A Palestinian view
Fri 12 Jun 2015
The Six Day War of 1967 between Israel and its Arab neighbours changed the Middle East
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The Death of Walter Rodney
Thu 11 Jun 2015
The Guyanese historian and political activist Walter Rodney was killed by a bomb in 1980
