Fifth Floor

Latest Episodes:

The reporter who gave away his shoes May 22, 2020

Show notes

Salman Ravi was interviewing migrant workers in a Facebook live for BBC Hindi last week. India's rapid lockdown left hundreds of thousands without jobs or income, many left with no choice but to walk the hundreds of kilometres home. While interviewing one family Salman saw the man had no shoes. So he handed over his own. The video’s been viewed more than 22 million times, but the story didn’t stop there.

In China, Wuhan-based writer FangFang has enraged many of her fellow citizens with her blog about daily life under lockdown. They accuse her of providing opponents of China with more ammunition. BBC Chinese editor Howard Zhang explains the background.

And from Somalia how the grounding of international flights has left khat chewers without their favourite stimulant, as the leaf is usually flown in from Kenya. But anti-khat campaigners hope the lockdown proves permanent. Mohamed Harare of BBC Somali has been following the story.

The Facebook posts gripping Syrians May 15, 2020

Show notes

Rami Makhlouf, one of Syria’s richest men, recently took to Facebook to air his grievances against his cousin. As his cousin is President Bashar Al-Assad, the whole country took note. BBC Arabic’s Mahmoud Ali Hamad takes up the story.

Covid-19 from Belarus to Kenya BBC Russian’s Tatsiana Yanutsevich reports from Belarus, where there’s no lockdown, and where President Alexander Lukashenko describes fear of coronavirus as a 'psychosis'. And BBC Africa's Sharon Machira talks about her new TV programme The Breakdown, which covers everything from online criminal justice to haircare during the pandemic.

Picture: Rami Makhlouf's Facebook post Credit: AFP/Getty Images

Garment factories, missing buttons and Antarctic trips May 08, 2020

Show notes

Inside Dhaka's garment factories, and a Ukrainian journey to Antarctica.

Lockdown Ramadan, music and guns May 01, 2020

Show notes

David Amanor invites his guests to share stories they've been covering from inside and outside the Covid-19 pandemic. Sally Nabil of BBC Arabic describes lockdown Ramadan in Cairo. Zhaoyin Feng of BBC Chinese in Washington DC shares the political and personal impact of the war of words between the US and China. And Lucia Blasco of BBC Mundo tells the story of Paraquay’s 'recycled orchestra'.

Exiled Fifth Floorers’ hidden talents A tour round the virtual Fifth Floor as our language service colleagues share unexpected skills and interests they’re using to keep their spirits up while working from home. With Irena Taranyuk of BBC Ukrainian, Vietnamese journalist Nga Pham of BBC World TV, Prudent Nsengiyumva of BBC Great Lakes, women's affairs journalist Faranak Amidi, and Brazilian Fernando Duarte of the BBC Digi-hub.

Image: Egyptians in facemasks browse Ramadan lanterns, April 2020 Credit: MOHAMED EL-SHAHED/AFP via Getty Images

Surviving Everest's 2015 earthquake Apr 24, 2020

Show notes

On 25 April 2015, Aamir Peerzada was on the brink of realising a dream. After months of pitching and persuading, and as an ambitious new journalist for India’s NDTV network, he was finally at basecamp on Mount Everest, with the Indian Army’s mountaineering team, to make a film about why people climb Everest, despite the many dangers.

Aamir was not supposed to go beyond basecamp, but on the day the opportunity came up to join the team on the first leg of their climb, through the hazardous, crevasse-filled Khumbu Glacier. Aamir leapt at the chance, but as they climbed, a huge earthquake hit Nepal, and Everest. Aamir remembers that day with David Amanor.

Aamir Peerzada is now a journalist for the BBC’s Indian language services and based in Srinagar, Indian-administered Kashmir.

Image: Everest basecamp after the 2015 earthquake Copyright: Aamir Peerzada/NDTV

Songs of my life Apr 17, 2020

Show notes

Making good use of time in lockdown, we set our guests the task of telling the story of their lives through music. Ali Hamedani of BBC Persian, Vandana Dhand of BBC Delhi and Famil Ismailov of BBC Russian choose two tracks each, one from the past and one to pass on to future generations.

Photo: Multi-ethnic kids listening to vinyl on portable record player Credit: Bert Hardy/Getty Images

In praise of eggs Apr 10, 2020

Show notes

In many countries celebrating Easter this weekend, huge quantities of chocolate eggs will be consumed. It seems a good moment to look more closely at eggs, a symbol of new life and rebirth in cultures all around the world. Joining the Fifth Floor egg hunt for sayings, traditions and recipes are Ali Hamedani of BBC Persian, Sabir Mustafa of BBC Bengali and Sergei Goryashko of BBC Russian. They also share the latest news of the Covid-19 pandemic from their regions.

Picture: Painted Easter eggs Credit: Steffi Loos / Stringer via Getty

Lockdown, as seen from Miama, Kampala and Chennai Apr 03, 2020

Show notes

As more and more of the world has entered lockdown this week, we hear from Miami, Chennai and Kampala about what that’s been like for our language service journalists. Luis Fajardo of BBC Monitoring in Miami says there's been an exodus of New Yorkers to Florida, Catherine Byaruhanga of BBC Africa in Uganda talks us through the country’s rapid shutdown, and South Asia reporter Gaggan Sabherwal finds herself locked down during a family visit to Chennai.

PHOTO: A general view of the Nakasero market in Kampala on April 1, 2020.

PHOTO CREDIT: SUMY SADURNI/AFP via Getty Images

Yemen war: a feline perspective Mar 27, 2020

Show notes

With the Covid-19 pandemic dominating world news, David Amanor invites a panel of guests to share unusual angles from their regions, as well as other stories they have reported - or would like to.

Roncliffe Odit of BBC Swahili joins us from Nairobi to tell us how the public health emergency has dampened political rivalries.

Irena Taranyuk of BBC Ukrainian takes us into a religious tussle within the Orthodox church over how to worship during the pandemic.

Sumaya Bakhsh of BBC Monitoring shares her recently published story, A Tale of Two Kitties. It started with an online friendship between her cat Nelson and Helen, an imaginary cat living on the streets of Taiz, Yemen.

Picture: Bomb-damaged buildings in Taiz, Yemen. Credit: BBC

The Presidents came in two by two Mar 20, 2020

Show notes

Afghanistan's last election delivered not one but two presidents. Two swearing-ins followed, and both presidents continue to claim to the be rightful leader. But the Afghans are not alone: Guinea Bissau also found itself with two presidents recently. BBC Afghan's Dawood Azami and BBC Africa's Peter Okwoche discuss this strange phenomenon.

Image: Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani, both claim to be president Credit: Noorullah Shirzada/AFP via Getty Images