History

A Wing and a Prayer
Battle of Britain fighter pilots recall the summer of 1940. Presented by Misha Glenny.
24 Mar 2015,28 mins
The Secret Catacombs of Paris
Jonathan Glancey investigates Paris's secret underground maze of tunnels.
30 Jan 2012,30 mins
A Voyage on Livingstone's Lake
The story of the MV Ilala, a 60-year-old boat still in use in Malawi and Mozambique.
20 Jan 2009,30 mins
The Miners' Strike: 40 years on
Surviving the strike
Hard-working families faced new poverty in confusing times for the community.
02 Mar 2024,18 mins
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Mao's Golden Mangoes
Benjamin Ramm explores one of the strangest chapters in China’s history - mango mania.
12 Feb 2016,30 mins
Haiti - Descent Into Anarchy
Mike Thomson looks at Haiti's long descent into anarchy.
14 Apr 2024,28 mins
How Did We Get Here...? Egypt
Stephen Sackur uncovers the history behind the upheavals in Egypt.
04 Feb 2011,30 mins
Tibet Remembered
A portrait of pre Chinese Tibet through the voices of the British who worked there.
23 Sep 2013,28 mins
From Dunkirk to D-Day
Charles Wheeler recalls the epic of strategic success that made victory possible.
05 Jun 2004,45 mins
Inside the Academie Francaise
Agnes Poirier explores the role of the body which protects the French language.
23 Dec 2011,30 mins
The Lost Songs of Hollywood
Julia Kogan explores the little-known personal music of exiled composers in Los Angeles.
12 Nov 2015,30 mins
Who Are the '22?
David Cannadine tells the story of the origins of the 1922 Committee.
29 Aug 2022,28 mins
Aberfan Disaster
October 21st, 1966. The Welsh mining village of Aberfan suffers a terrible tragedy.
21 Oct 2011,10 mins
How New Is the New Philanthropy?
Two 'New Philanthropies'
Hugh contrasts the role of philanthropy today with that of the middle of the 20th century.
26 Dec 2011,30 mins
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The Cuban Missile Crisis: As Seen From Moscow and Havana
Allan Little pieces together the "untold" side of the Cuban Missile Crisis.
23 Oct 2002,45 mins
The British Road to Bolshevism
Martin Rosenbaum explores how events in London played a role in the Russian Revolution.
16 Oct 2017,28 mins
Bhopal
Bhopal (Omnibus)
The story of Rajkumar Keswani, the man who foretold the world's worst industrial accident
09 Sep 2022,57 mins
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Who found Machu Picchu?
Hugh Thomson travels to Peru's ancient wonder to unearth the truth behind its discovery.
05 Oct 2011,30 mins
Charisma: Pinning Down the Butterfly
Omnibus
Episode 2
Francine Stock's history of the alluring yet elusive quality that is charisma.
04 Sep 2015,58 mins
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A Brief History of TIM
Lynne Truss explores the history of the Speaking Clock. With Professor Stephen Hawking.
16 Jul 2016,30 mins
When Yorkshire Played New York
A legendary match leads us into the extraordinary cultural history of cricket in America.
19 Jul 2017,30 mins
The Unconscious Life of Bombs
Daniel Pick traces how aerial bombardment has made the unconscious mind a field of battle.
11 Dec 2017,30 mins
Verdun - The Sacred Wound
Loss and Legacy
David Reynolds explores how France marked the enormous sacrifice of the battle of Verdun.
24 Feb 2016,28 mins
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One Man's War
Katie Derham delves into the fascinating world of musical life during the Second World War
09 Oct 2012,30 mins
Poetry Idol
Shahidha Bari goes in search of the biggest poetry competition in the Middle East.
23 Mar 2014,30 mins
The Great Inflation
How has the experience of hyperinflation in Germany in 1923 shaped the past 100 years?
20 Mar 2023,28 mins
Notes From a Northern Irish Childhood
Marie-Louise Muir revisits youth orchestras set up during the Troubles in Northern Ireland
04 Jun 2015,30 mins
Ayo Gorkhali: The Gurkhas Are Coming!
Military historian Hew Strachan on 200 years of Gurkha service to the British Crown.
08 Jun 2015,28 mins
The Ever Widening War
The War Without End
Christopher Clark explores the dark legacy of the First World War.
15 Jan 2016,15 mins
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Famed For Its Knitting
The life and changing times of Woman's Weekly as it celebrates its centenary
09 Feb 2012,30 mins