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.
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.
Episodes to download
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Haile Selassie in Jamaica
Mon 22 Apr 2013
Ethiopia's emperor visited Jamaica - the birthplace of the Rastafarian movement - in 1966
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The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
Fri 19 Apr 2013
Jewish fighters in the Polish capital rose up against the German army in 1943
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The Khmer Rouge take power
Thu 18 Apr 2013
In April 1975 the four-year rule of the brutal Khmer Rouge began in Cambodia.
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The funeral of Sir Winston Churchill
Wed 17 Apr 2013
In January 1965 Britain held a state funeral for the man who led it through World War Two.
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The discovery of LSD
Tue 16 Apr 2013
It is 70 years since a Swiss chemist stumbled on the controversial hallucinogenic drug.
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The First War in the Air
Mon 15 Apr 2013
The story of a young British pilot who survived the world's first war in the air
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Lee Elder at The Masters
Thu 11 Apr 2013
How Lee Elder broke one of the last barriers in US sport in 1975
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The Guinea Pig Club
Wed 10 Apr 2013
How severely burnt Second World War airmen learnt to overcome their terrible injuries.
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The Great Famine in China
Tue 9 Apr 2013
When Mao Zedong tried to force an industrial revolution in China millions starved to death
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Matabeleland Massacres
Mon 8 Apr 2013
In the early 1980s, thousands of civilians were killed in Zimbabwe by the security forces.
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James Brown Concert at the Boston Garden
Fri 5 Apr 2013
Held 24 hours after the death of Martin Luther King, the gig went ahead peacefully
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Howard Hughes
Thu 4 Apr 2013
The reclusive American billionaire remembered by one of the few journalists to meet him.
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Operation Babylift
Wed 3 Apr 2013
As the Vietnam war ended the US tried to fly thousands of orphans out of the country.
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The real Peter Pan
Tue 2 Apr 2013
A family of real boys inspired JM Barrie to write the story of Peter Pan.
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Women and the law in Britain
Mon 1 Apr 2013
Over 175 years ago, Caroline Norton began to fight for the rights of married women.
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The killing of Archbishop Romero
Fri 29 Mar 2013
On 24 March 1980, Archbishop Oscar Romero was shot dead while saying mass in San Salvador.
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American prisoners in Vietnam
Thu 28 Mar 2013
After their release in 1973, former US prisoners of war began to talk about torture.
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Unearthing the Terracotta Army
Wed 27 Mar 2013
Discovered by chance by farmers digging a well, the secrets of the Qin Dynasty in China.
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Living in Ceausescu's Romania
Tue 26 Mar 2013
The communist dictator ran one of the most feared secret police forces in Eastern Europe.
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The Profumo Affair
Mon 25 Mar 2013
Fifty years ago, a sex scandal threatened to engulf the British government.
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Iraq: Ten years on - The capture of Saddam Hussein
Fri 22 Mar 2013
In December 2003 the former Iraqi leader was finally caught by American forces.
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Iraq: Ten years on - Working for the Americans
Thu 21 Mar 2013
How one Iraqi who took a job with the US military, was threatened with death as a traitor.
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Iraq: Ten years on - Looting in Baghdad
Wed 20 Mar 2013
In April 2003, Baghdad descended into chaos as American troops took control of the city.
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Iraq: Ten years on - The invasion of Iraq
Tue 19 Mar 2013
John Crawford was part of the US forces that rolled into Iraq in March 2003.
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Iraq: Ten years on - The bombardment of Baghdad
Mon 18 Mar 2013
It is a decade since the US and its allies began their invasion of Iraq.
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Syrian uprising
Fri 15 Mar 2013
Two years ago Syria's conflict began with demonstrations in the southern city of Daraa.
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Giandomenico Picco - Hostage negotiator
Thu 14 Mar 2013
The UN envoy who tried to secure the release of Western hostages in Lebanon.
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Marie Stopes, Birth Control Pioneer
Wed 13 Mar 2013
In March 1921 Marie Stopes opened Britain's first birth control clinic in London.
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The Theft of Charlie Chaplin's Body
Tue 12 Mar 2013
In March 1978 thieves stole the body of Charlie Chaplin from a cemetery in Switzerland.
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The Tibetan uprising
Mon 11 Mar 2013
In 1959 the people of Tibet turned against Chinese occupying forces.
