The Forum

The programme that explains the present by exploring the past.

World Service,763 episodes

Episodes

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Napoleon: From empire to exile
Exploring the life and legacy of France’s revolutionary emperor
28 Mar 2019,40 mins
The spice trade: Selling the scents of luxury
The unique allure of spices that preyed on emotion and taste, and powered whole Empires
21 Mar 2019,40 mins
Moomin Creator Tove Jansson
Tove Jansson was the Finnish-Swedish author and illustrator best known for the Moomins.
14 Mar 2019,40 mins
Anaesthesia: Unwrapping oblivion
Getting under the skin of the discovery which made pain-free operations possible
07 Mar 2019,40 mins
Calouste Gulbenkian: The architect of Middle East oil
The secretive Armenian financier who shaped petroleum production for decades
28 Feb 2019,40 mins
Robinson Crusoe: The man and his island
Daniel Defoe’s classic adventure story
21 Feb 2019,40 mins
Lu Xun: Writing the story of New China
Life and works of the man who transformed Chinese literature.
14 Feb 2019,40 mins
The talking drums of West Africa
A source of music, spiritual power and oral literature
07 Feb 2019,40 mins
The Top of the World
The history of the North Pole as both a place on the map and in our imaginations.
31 Jan 2019,40 mins
The Heel and the Sneaker
A history of footwear
24 Jan 2019,40 mins
Goya: Seeking truth through art
The Spanish artist Francisco Goya, whose work explored the darker side of human nature
17 Jan 2019,40 mins
Antigone: A drama of defiance
The classic play from Ancient Greece about civil disobedience
10 Jan 2019,40 mins
The Master and Margarita: Devilish satire
One of Russia’s favourite novels that combines magical fantasy with dark political satire
03 Jan 2019,40 mins
Fermentation: Ancient Food Alchemy
What's your brew? Friendly microbes making our fare tastier
27 Dec 2018,40 mins
The Emergence of Modern Turkey
The birth of the secular republic of Turkey from the ashes of the Ottoman Empire
20 Dec 2018,40 mins
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn: Revealing the Gulag
The Russian writer who exposed the grim, nightmarish world of Soviet forced labour camps
13 Dec 2018,40 mins
The Iranian Coup of 1953: Overthrow of a Prime Minister
How British and US intelligence agencies helped oust Iran’s leader Mohammad Mossadeq
06 Dec 2018,40 mins
Diaghilev and the ballet revolution
The Russian impresario whose Ballet Russes company transformed 20th century dance
29 Nov 2018,40 mins
Charlie Chaplin
The life and work of early Hollywood's most successful comedian
22 Nov 2018,40 mins
Coal: a Burning Legacy
How coal created empires and wealth but also caused misery and unprecedented pollution
15 Nov 2018,40 mins
Lifting the lid: The history of the toilet
An invention many rely on, but prefer not to discuss
08 Nov 2018,40 mins
Calm in the chaos: The story of the Stoics
A philosophy for resilience and equanimity
01 Nov 2018,40 mins
Cambodia's ancient Khmer Empire
Builders and sculptors of South East Asia's awe-inspiring monuments
27 Oct 2018,40 mins
Who was the real Cleopatra?
Unpicking fact from fiction in the life of the last queen of Egypt
20 Oct 2018,39 mins
Karl Kraus: Austria’s fearless satirist
The scathing critic of deceit and corruption in Vienna
13 Oct 2018,40 mins
Cool: Sunglasses, style and American counter-culture
Exploring the elements of that seemingly effortless pose to which so many aspire
06 Oct 2018,40 mins
Frida Kahlo: A life in colour
The life of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, known for her ground-breaking self-portraits
29 Sep 2018,39 mins
The Jet Engine
The trailblazing technology which made the air age soar
22 Sep 2018,40 mins
Edgar Allan Poe: Master of horror
The dark, tumultuous life of America’s great gothic writer
15 Sep 2018,40 mins
The Making of Modern Japan
Rajan Datar and guests discuss the astonishing transformation of Japan over 150 years
08 Sep 2018,40 mins