Witness History Podcast
History told by the people who were there. For nine minutes every weekday, Witness History takes you back to moments which have shaped our world.
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 the death of Adolf Hitler, the first spacewalk and the making of the movie Jaws, to celebrity tortoise Lonesome George, the Kobe earthquake and the invention of superglue.
We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: Eva Peron – Argentina’s Evita; President Ronald Reagan and his famous ‘tear down this wall’ speech; Thomas Keneally on why he wrote Schindler’s List; and Jacques Derrida, France’s ‘rock star’ philosopher.
You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the civil rights swimming protest; the disastrous D-Day rehearsal ; and the death of one of the world’s oldest languages.
Episodes to download
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Cuban Missile Crisis: The Missiles
Mon 22 Oct 2012
The gradual build up of weaponry - Soviet built ballistic missiles and nuclear warheads
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The Guggenheim Bilbao
Fri 19 Oct 2012
It's 15 years since an extraordinary building was opened in a Spanish industrial city.
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Colombia Peace Talks
Wed 17 Oct 2012
The last serious attempt to end Colombia's long civil war was more than a decade ago.
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Cuban Missile Crisis: The Photos
Mon 15 Oct 2012
CIA expert Dino Brugioni interpreted the ariel photographs of missiles in Cuba
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Modern art in Tehran
Fri 12 Oct 2012
It is 35 years since the opening of the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art.
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Search for the Loch Ness Monster
Thu 11 Oct 2012
It is 25 years since the most in-depth and expensive survey of Loch Ness.
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Solzhenitsyn and the Nobel Prize
Wed 10 Oct 2012
How the Soviet dissident smuggled his writing to the outside world.
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Che in Congo
Tue 9 Oct 2012
In 1965 the Latin-American revolutionary went to fight with rebels in the Congo.
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The Achille Lauro Hijacking
Mon 8 Oct 2012
In 1985 a luxury cruise liner was held by Palestinian gunmen in the Red Sea.
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US Support for Nicaraguan Contras
Thu 4 Oct 2012
In October 1986 a CIA plane carrying arms to "contra" rebels was shot down in Nicaragua
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Black Hawk Down
Wed 3 Oct 2012
The battle in Mogadishu in 1993 which had a dramatic impact on US foreign policy.
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The Taliban take Kabul
Tue 2 Oct 2012
It is 16 years since the Taliban took control of the Afghan capital.
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German refugees in post-war Europe
Mon 1 Oct 2012
At the end of WW2, many ethnic Germans in Central Europe were forced to leave their homes.
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Sharon at the al-Aqsa compound
Fri 28 Sep 2012
In September 2000 the Israeli opposition leader visited the Al-Aqsa compound.
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IRA jail break
Thu 27 Sep 2012
In September 1983 a group of IRA prisoners escaped from jail in Northern Ireland.
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Ireland's Magdalene Laundries
Wed 26 Sep 2012
The story of a young girl who survived Ireland's notorious Catholic workhouses for women.
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West Side Story
Tue 25 Sep 2012
It is 55 years since a groundbreaking musical, West Side Story, opened on Broadway.
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The Hobbit
Fri 21 Sep 2012
How an Oxford academic came up with a story that charmed children for generations.
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Blasphemy in Pakistan
Thu 20 Sep 2012
In 1998 a Roman Catholic Bishop killed himself in protest at Pakistan's blasphemy laws.
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Mules and the Mujahideen
Wed 19 Sep 2012
Twenty-five years ago, a shipment of mules was sent from the USA to Afghanistan.
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Ethiopia's Korean War Hero
Tue 18 Sep 2012
The Ethiopian soldier who became a hero in the Korean War
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The shooting of Tupac Shakur
Fri 14 Sep 2012
How the American hip hop star Tupac Shakur was killed in a drive-by shooting.
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Dingo Baby Trial
Thu 13 Sep 2012
It is 30 years since an Australian woman was accused of murdering her daughter.
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The Death of Steve Biko
Wed 12 Sep 2012
The authorities said he'd starved himself to death, but he died from head injuries
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Phoolan Devi - Bandit Queen
Tue 11 Sep 2012
It is 30 years since a teenage Indian woman spread fear in the North East of the country.
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Mo Farah
Mon 10 Sep 2012
How a London school sports teacher changed the life of the Somali-born Olympic champion.
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The "Last Indian"
Fri 7 Sep 2012
How a Yahi Indian called Ishi emerged from the Northern Californian wilderness in 1911.
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Attack on Springboks in New Zealand
Thu 6 Sep 2012
In 1981 anti-apartheid protestors used a plane to attack South African rugby players.