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Witness History Episodes

  1. When Stalin silenced Shostakovich

    In 1936, Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich was denounced.

  2. Omar Sharif stars in Lawrence of Arabia

    Egyptian film star Omar Sharif made his Hollywood debut in Lawrence of Arabia in 1962

  3. The Aswan High Dam

    In the 1960s, the construction of one of the world’s largest dams in Egypt took place

  4. Egypt criminalises sexual harassment

    In 2014, Egypt’s outgoing president issued a decree criminalising sexual harassment

  5. Reforming Egypt’s divorce laws

    In 1979, Egypt’s first lady Jehan Sadat campaigned to grant women new rights to divorce

  6. Mohamed Morsi: Egypt's first democratically elected president

    A political rival looks back on Morsi's victory in June 2012

  7. How the Philippines saved Jews during World War Two

    In 1935, after the Nuremberg Laws were passed, Manila opened its doors to Jewish families

  8. 9/11: The generosity of Gander

    The small Canadian town that helped diverted passengers after the 9/11 terror attacks.

  9. The story behind The Peter Principle book

    In 1969, a satirical book was published suggesting promotion led to incompetence

  10. The Enabling Act

    In 1933, the Enabling Act was passed, handing Adolf Hitler unchecked power

  11. Festac ’77: Nigeria’s largest festival of African arts and culture

    The 1977 celebration of African culture that attracted half a million visitors

  12. ‘How I sold my clothes and created a $5 billion Vinted empire’

    In 2008, Lithuanian student Milda Mitkutė realised she had too many clothes

  13. World's first womb transplant baby

    In 2014, the world's first baby born to a mother with a transplanted womb was delivered

  14. The Chindits

    The Chindits, an unconventional special force was formed during World War Two

  15. The founding of USAID

    One woman’s influence on USAID during the 1960s 'Decade of Development’

  16. Discovering the Titanic

    In September 1985, the wreck of the lost ship was discovered during a joint expedition

  17. John Lennon's final headline concerts

    In 1972, John Lennon and Yoko Ono performed at the One to One benefit concerts in the US

  18. The making of the Third Man: A film noir classic

    In 1948, filming began in Austria on one of the greatest British films of all time

  19. Washington DC’s Mount Pleasant riot

    In 1991, rioting broke out in the US capital after a police officer shot a Salvadoran man

  20. Creating CAPTCHA

    In 2000, the Completely Automated Public Turing test was introduced as a security tool

  21. The creation of the International Criminal Court

    The world's first permanent International Criminal Court was created in 1998

  22. Geneva Conventions

    In 1864, Henry Dunant came up with a treaty to protect those injured in wartime

  23. The rise and fall of BlackBerry

    In the early 2000s, BlackBerry was the phone that ruled the world

  24. The book that changed Norway’s view of immigrants

    Maria Amelie's 2010 book triggered a change to Norway's immigration regulations

  25. One man’s escape from McCarthyism

    In 1951, a US soldier defected to the Soviet Union during the anti-communist crackdown

  26. Spot the Dog

    In 1978, British artist Eric Hill designed a book about a puppy for his two-year-old son

  27. Pramoedya Ananta Toer: The banned author of Indonesia

    Indonesian writer, Pramoedya Ananta Toer wrote novels whilst imprisoned on an island

  28. Jakarta’s ban on dancing monkeys

    In 2013, Jakarta's governor banned the use of dancing monkeys in Indonesia's capital

  29. Discovery of the 'Hobbit'

    In 2003, archaeologists in Indonesia discovered the skeleton of a new species of human

  30. Borobudur Temple

    Borobudur Temple in Indonesia reopened in 1983, following a restoration project

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