
Witness History
The story of our times told by the people who were there.
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.
On radio
More episodes
Broadcasts
- Tue 29 Jul 2025 07:50GMTÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ World Service
- Tue 29 Jul 2025 11:50GMTÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ World Service
- Tue 29 Jul 2025 17:50GMTÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ World Service except East and Southern Africa, News Internet & West and Central Africa
- Tue 29 Jul 2025 21:50GMTÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ World Service East and Southern Africa & West and Central Africa only
- Wed 30 Jul 2025 02:50GMTÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ World Service except East and Southern Africa, East Asia, South Asia & West and Central Africa
Podcast
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Witness History
The story of our times, told by the people who were there