The Documentary Podcast Podcast
Hear the voices at the heart of global stories. Where curious minds can uncover hidden truths and make sense of the world. Documentary storytelling from the BBC World Service.
Hear the voices at the heart of global stories. Where curious minds can uncover hidden truths and make sense of the world. The best of documentary storytelling from the BBC World Service.
From conflict in the Middle East to the advance of AI, to the front line of the climate emergency, we go beyond the headlines. Each week we dive into the minds of the world’s most creative people, take personal journeys into spirituality and connect people from across the globe to share how news stories are shaping their lives.
Episodes to download
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SOS from the Mediterranean
Thu 21 May 2020
The desperate race to save migrants at sea over one weekend
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Migrant medics
Wed 20 May 2020
Zeinab Badawi looks at doctors from developing countries working in the developed world
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Lockdown: Tales from Lebanon, Australia, Atlanta and India
Tue 19 May 2020
Listeners offer their perspectives on a global crisis and their lives in lockdown
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Seven dead, 46 injured: One Chicago weekend
Sun 17 May 2020
Stories from an August weekend of gun violence in Chicago, narrated by Clarke Peters
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Coronavirus Global Conversations: Making people laugh
Sun 17 May 2020
Comedians, loneliness and going back to school
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Stimulus cheques and sending money home
Sat 16 May 2020
How does the financial help on offer where you are compare to other parts of the world?
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Don't log off - part six
Sat 16 May 2020
Alan Dein connects with people who are anxious about their family businesses
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Boris Johnson and Britain’s Covid-19 crisis
Thu 14 May 2020
What catching Covid-19 reveals about the politics and leadership style of Boris Johnson
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Wuhan: The beginning of coronavirus Covid-19
Tue 12 May 2020
In December 2019, Chinese doctors and officials grapple with a mysterious new virus
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One hundred days of Brexit
Sun 10 May 2020
One hundred days with new MPs in the North of England from Brexit, Day to lockdown
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Coronavirus Global Conversations: Haircuts after lockdown
Sun 10 May 2020
Hairdressers, funeral directors and sex workers
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Coronavirus and Asia
Sat 9 May 2020
World Questions explores the impact of Covid-19 with experts from around the world.
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Don't log off - part five
Fri 8 May 2020
Alan Dein connects with individuals whose lives have shifted in the coronavirus pandemic
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Hanging by a thread: Bangladesh’s garment workers
Thu 7 May 2020
The devastating effect of the coronavirus pandemic on Bangladesh’s garment industry
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The Response: Coronavirus - Lockdown tales from Brazil, Germany and Australia
Tue 5 May 2020
Listeners from different countries offer their unique perspectives on a global crisis
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Coronavirus Global Conversations: Remembering medics who have died from Covid-19
Sun 3 May 2020
Losing loved ones on the frontline, coping during 40-day lockdown and hospital chaplains
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Spain’s care home nightmare
Thu 30 Apr 2020
Why did so many people die in just one elderly care home in Madrid?
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Universal Basic Income: Alaska style
Wed 29 Apr 2020
Every citizen gets an annual dividend from the state’s oil fund. Mark Whitaker reports
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Who cares
Tue 28 Apr 2020
The foreign care workers who look after Britain’s elderly and disabled people
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Coronavirus Global Conversations - Care home workers and Covid-19 vaccine volunteers
Sun 26 Apr 2020
Coronavirus Global Conversations is a place to talk about the impact of the disease
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Don't log off - part four
Sat 25 Apr 2020
Alan Dein connects with individuals whose lives have shifted in the coronavirus pandemic
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Saving Zimbabwe’s forests
Thu 23 Apr 2020
Honey bees, cow dung and mulch; how a company in Zimbabwe is preventing deforestation
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China and the virus
Wed 22 Apr 2020
Has the epidemic weakened or strengthened the grip of China’s Communist Party?
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In search of the quarter-life crisis
Tue 21 Apr 2020
Are millennials across the world being hit by a mid-20s crisis?
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The Response: Coronavirus - Lockdown tales from Riyadh, Hangzhou and Accra
Tue 21 Apr 2020
Listeners across the globe share their experiences of lockdown and the coronavirus crisis
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Togetherness: Coronavirus Global Conversations - Dealing with grief
Sun 19 Apr 2020
Losing loved ones, getting married in a lockdown and the risk to black Americans
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Personal finance for the pandemic
Sat 18 Apr 2020
As coronavirus spreads people are worrying about their money as well as their health
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Don't log off - part three
Sat 18 Apr 2020
Alan Dein connects with individuals whose lives have shifted in the coronavirus pandemic
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Chile: An education for all
Thu 16 Apr 2020
Students and teachers in Chile demand an end to inequality in education
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What we can do with our waste
Tue 14 Apr 2020
Two very different uses for everyday waste in Paraguay and Sweden
