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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:

Japanese death row guard Jan 24, 2023

Show notes

Yoshikuni Noguchi spent time as a guard in one of the prisons in Japan that would carry out the death penalty, and witnessed the hanging of a condemned prisoner in 1971, before going on to become a lawyer. He describes in detail what he saw.

Yoshikuni began speaking out to cast light on the reality of what death row inmates go through, as Japan continues to resist the calls to ban the practice, which is no longer in use in most countries. He tells his story to Dan Hardoon.

A Whistledown production for BBC World Service.

(Photo: Yoshikunu Noguchi. Credit: Alamy)

When Britain tried to censor the Troubles in Northern Ireland Jan 23, 2023

Show notes

Frontman of punk-rock band The Undertones, Paul McLoone, recalls the “weird, slightly funny, slightly sad, slightly surreal” time he was the voice of IRA commander-turned-politician, Martin McGuinness.

It was during the so called ‘broadcasting ban’ in the UK which came into force in 1988. It saw organisations believed to support terrorism forbidden from directly broadcasting on radio or television.

Paul tells Alys Harte how the legislation led to extra work for him.

(Photo: Paul McLoone during a performance. Credit: Getty Images)

Swine flu vaccine and narcolepsy Jan 20, 2023

Show notes

In 2009, hundreds of teenagers’ lives were changed forever, when a vaccine designed to protect them against swine flu appeared to trigger a sleep disorder.

It affected people in various countries including Sweden.

Maddy Savage speaks to Christopher Tyvi from Stockholm, who is one of those who experienced problems.

A Bespoken Media production for BBC World Service.

(Photo: Swine flu vaccine. Credit: Getty Images)

France's nuclear tests in Algeria Jan 19, 2023

Show notes

Between 1960 and 1966, France carried out 17 nuclear tests in the Algerian Sahara.

High levels of radioactivity, and a failure to safely dispose of nuclear waste, have left a dangerous legacy.

Dan Hardoon speaks to Abdelkrim Touhami, who was just a teenager when the French authorities announced a nuclear test near his home.

A Whistledown production for BBC World Service.

(Photo: Dummies at the nuclear testing site in the Algerian Sahara. Credit: Getty Images)

Kosovo’s house schools Jan 18, 2023

Show notes

In 1990s Kosovo, a generation of Albanians received their education crammed into thousands of private homes.

When Slobodan Milosevic’s Serb nationalist regime forcibly evicted them from schools and universities, Kosovan Albanians responded with improvised house schools in their apartments, attics and cellars.

The spontaneous reaction to their ethnic exclusion quickly evolved into a nationwide education system that would endure for the best part of a decade.

Linda Gusia, a pupil in the house schools, and university professor Drita Halimi speak to Jack Butcher. A Whistledown production for BBC World Service.

(Photo: A Kosovan house school. Credit: Shyqeri Obërtinca)

Europe's horse meat scandal Jan 17, 2023

Show notes

In 2013, horse meat was discovered in Irish beef burgers. The scandal snowballed and within six weeks horse meat was found in beef products in more than a dozen European countries.

The story revealed how complex and unregulated Europe’s meat industry was, making it a target for fraudsters.

Ben Henderson speaks to Alan Reilly, former Chief Executive of the Irish Food Safety Authority, who uncovered the scandal.

(Photo: Meat inspection in a French supermarket. Credit: Sebastien Bozon via Getty Images)

Miracle on the Hudson Jan 16, 2023

Show notes

On 15 January 2009, US Airways Flight 1549 landed in the Hudson River in New York, after geese struck both its engines shortly after take off.

All 155 people on board survived.

Rachel Naylor speaks to Dave Sanderson, the last passenger to be rescued.

(Photo: Passengers and crew aboard US Airways Flight 1549 await rescue. Credit: AP)

World’s first tidal power station Jan 13, 2023

Show notes

The world’s first tidal power station is on the estuary of the River Rance in France.

It was opened in 1966 by President Charles de Gaulle and has been capturing the natural power of the oceans’ tides and turning it into electricity ever since.

Alex Collins hears how the project to build it was a cause for national pride and how the facility is now a tourist attraction, as he speaks to Brittany historian Marc Bonnel.

(Photo: La Rance tidal power station. Credit: Getty Images)

Galápagos Islands’ sea cucumber dispute Jan 12, 2023

Show notes

A boom in demand for sea cucumbers in Asia in the 1990s set off a confrontation between fishermen and conservationists in the waters off the Galápagos Islands, where the protein-rich ocean creature was found in abundance.

The high price being paid for the sea cucumbers led to a gold rush on the South American archipelago, a chain of 21 islands home to many unique species.

In 2020, Mike Lanchin spoke to a Galapagos fisherman Marcos Escaraby and conservationist Alan Tye, who found themselves on opposite sides of the dispute.

(Picture: Sea cucumber. Credit: Getty Images)

Paul Robeson and the transatlantic phone line Jan 11, 2023

Show notes

In September 1956, a telephone cable called TAT-1 was laid under the Atlantic Ocean.

This made high-quality transatlantic phone calls possible for the first time.

Eight months later in May 1957, 1,000 people squeezed into St Pancras Town Hall in London to listen to a transatlantic concert.

The person performing, Paul Robeson, was a globally renowned singer, but he’d been banned from travelling outside the USA.

So, he made use of the new transatlantic telephone line to perform to his fans in the UK.

Ben Henderson speaks to John Liffen, who curated an exhibition on TAT-1 and the concert at the Science Museum in London.

(Photo: Engineers build repeaters used in TAT-1. Credit: Russell Knight/BIPs via Getty Images)

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