Witness History - TopPodcast.com

View Top 200 Chart

Back to Rankings Page

Witness History — History
Witness History

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.

Copyright: © (C) BBC 2024

Latest Episodes:

José Mujica: Prison break to president Jul 31, 2023

Show notes

In the 1960s and '70s, José Mujica was a leading member of a notorious left-wing militant group in Uruguay called the Tupamaros. He survived multiple bullet wounds, torture, and executed a daring prison escape.

After years held in solitary confinement, Mujica was released from prison in 1985 and entered politics. He became Uruguay’s president in 2009. He speaks to Ben Henderson.

(Photo: José Mujica at home in Montevideo. Credit: Ricardo Ceppi/Getty Images)

Mr Bigg's: The birth of Nigeria's iconic takeaway Jul 28, 2023

Show notes

It’s been 50 years since a popular Nigerian fast food chain which later became known as Mr Bigg's was first launched.

The restaurants began as coffee shops in department stores in the 1960s and were later rebranded in 1986.

Mr Bigg's currently has more than 170 locations in 40 cities around Nigeria, and there were also restaurants in other African nations at one time.

Justice Baidoo spoke to Emmanuel Osugo, one of the pioneers of the chain.

A Made in Manchester production for BBC World Service.

(Photo: A Mr Bigg's restaurant. Credit: Adebola Familusi)

The 1960 coup against Haile Selassie Jul 27, 2023

Show notes

In December 1960, there was an attempt to dethrone the Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie and replace him with his son.

While the emperor was out of the country, the crown prince was taken to the headquarters of the military unit, the Imperial Bodyguard.

The conspirators, led by the troops' commander and his brother, also took top government officials hostage.

In 2015, Alex Last spoke to Dr Asfa-Wossen Asserate, the grandnephew of Haile Selassie, about the failed coup.

(Photo: Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia. Credit: Terry Fincher via Getty Images)

The Pope’s controversial Nicaragua visit Jul 26, 2023

Show notes

In 1983 Pope John Paul II visited Nicaragua as part of an eight-day tour of Central America.

His trip came at a time of heightened tensions between the ruling Sandinista revolutionaries and the country’s Roman Catholic hierarchy.

The Pope, a staunch anti-communist, condemned members of the Nicaraguan clergy serving in the left-wing government and was heckled by Sandinista supporters during a large open-air mass in the capital, Managua.

Mike Lanchin has been hearing the memories of Nicaraguan Carlos Pensque, who turned out to protest as the Pope passed by, and of former US Catholic News Service reporter, Nancy Frazier O’Brien, who covered the papal visit. A CTVC production for BBC World Service.

(Photo: Pope John Paul II. Credit: Bettmann via Getty Images)

Brain: A personal computer virus Jul 25, 2023

Show notes

'Welcome to the dungeon' was the message that flashed up on computer screens in 1986.

This was widely reported as the first virus for PCs and became known as 'Brain'.

'Brain' spread around the world and became infamous when it was featured in newspapers and magazines.

Amjad Farooq Alvi tells Gill Kearsley how he and his brother, Basit, came to develop this accidental virus from their shop in Lahore, Pakistan.

(Photo: The 'Brain' computer virus. Credit: Amjad and Basit Alvi)

Escaping the Nazis in Greece Jul 24, 2023

Show notes

The Greek city of Thessaloniki, or Salonica, was once known as the Jerusalem of the Balkans.

It was previously home to a large and thriving Sephardi Jewish population whose ancestors had been expelled from Spain in 1492.

However, the Nazi occupation of Greece from 1941 to 1944 almost completely wiped out that culture and community.

More than 90% of the approximately 50,000 Jews living in Salonica in 1943 were deported to Auschwitz and killed.

Yeti Mitrani was a young teenager at the time.

She speaks to Maria Margaronis about her family's escape and her childhood.

(Photo: Yeti as a child. Credit: Doris Mitrani)

The US singer who became the Soviet Union’s Red Elvis Jul 21, 2023

Show notes

In 1966, at the height of the Cold War, American singer Dean Reed became the first western rock and roll star to tour the Soviet Union.

His visit was such a success that over the next two decades Dean became known as ‘Red Elvis’.

His concerts behind the Iron Curtain were sell-outs and he was mobbed by fans.

But when he wanted to return home to the United States, the reaction he faced was very different, as Dean’s daughter Ramona told Jane Wilkinson.

(Photo: Dean Reed in East Berlin, 1976. Credit: Getty Images)

The birth of Barbie Jul 20, 2023

Show notes

The first Barbie doll was sold in 1959.

It took Ruth Handler, who created it, years to convince her male colleagues that it would sell.

The plastic creation sold 350,000 in the first year and went on to take the world by storm selling millions.

It’s now been turned into a live action film starring Margot Robbie which hits the cinemas on Thursday 20 July.

Ruth and husband Elliot Handler spoke to the BBC’s Alan Dein in a 1990s documentary which Claire Bowes used to make this programme first broadcast in 2014.

(Photo: A Barbie doll from 2009. Credit: Victor Chavez/WireImage via Getty Images)

Japan surrenders in China Jul 19, 2023

Show notes

In the autumn of 1945, World War II surrender ceremonies took place across the Japanese Empire. The one in China was held at the Forbidden City in Beijing bringing an end to eight years of occupation. Thousands of people watched the incredible moment Japanese generals handed over their swords. The United States, China, Russia and the United Kingdom were all represented. John Stanfield, now 103, is the last surviving British person who was there. He recalls to Josephine McDermott how he signed the surrender declaration documents on behalf of the British.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.

Recent episodes explore everything from football in Brazil, the history of the ‘Indian Titanic’ and the invention of air fryers, to Public Enemy’s Fight The Power, subway art and the political crisis in Georgia. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: visionary architect Antoni Gaudi and the design of the Sagrada Familia; Michael Jordan and his bespoke Nike trainers; Princess Diana at the Taj Mahal; and Görel Hanser, manager of legendary Swedish pop band Abba on the influence they’ve had on the music industry. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the time an Iraqi journalist hurled his shoes at the President of the United States in protest of America’s occupation of Iraq; the creation of the Hollywood commercial that changed advertising forever; and the ascent of the first Aboriginal MP.

The ‘Barricades’ of Latvia Jul 18, 2023

Show notes

In January 1991, more than half a million people protested in Riga, the capital city of Latvia. They wanted to stop Soviet troops taking over important landmarks, so they built barricades and camped out on the streets.

Vents Krauklis was among the demonstrators. He’s been speaking to Laura Jones.

(Photo: People filling the streets of Riga during the Barricades. Credit: 1991 Barricades Museum, Riga/Ilgvars Gradovskis)

Related Podcasts