Witness History
Witness History brings you eye-witness accounts of historical events, from wars and coups to scientific discoveries and cultural moments. Each nine-minute episode takes you back in time through archive recordings and interviews with those who were there. Recent episodes cover topics like the invention of the Excel spreadsheet, the creation of Miffy the rabbit, and breaking the sound barrier. The podcast also explores the lives of famous leaders, artists, and scientists, including Reagan and Gorbachev's Geneva meeting and Omar Sharif's role in Lawrence of Arabia.
Episodes
Restoring the Statue of Liberty
Between 1984 and 1986, to celebrate 100 years since it was dedicated, the Statue of Liberty underwent a multi-million-dollar restoration project. The statue was a gift to the USA by France, to celebrate 100 years of American independence. The project also restored the former immigration processing centre on the nearby Ellis Island, which became a National Museum of Immigration. The entire project
KCOR: The first Spanish-language radio station in the US
In 1946, Mexican American Raoul Cortez launched the first US radio service in Spanish. Based in San Antonio, Texas, he used charm and creativity to win over advertisers in a time when Hispanic consumers weren't seen as a relevant market.Raoul's grandson Guillermo Nicolas spoke to Stefania Gozzer about the challenges his grandfather faced to push forward in building a pioneering business that would
Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott
In 1955, Rosa Parks made civil rights history in the US when she refused to give up her seat on the bus.Segregation laws in Montgomery, Alabama, meant that when a bus was full, black passengers had to stand and give up their seat to white passengers.Her subsequent arrest sparked a boycott of the city's buses by the African American population.Led by Dr Martin Luther King, the protest became one of
The final journey of Chief Long Wolf
In September 1997, the remains of a Native American chief were returned to the United States, more than a century after his death in England.Chief Long Wolf, a Lakota leader, died in 1892 while touring with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show. His family knew he had been buried in London, but they didn't know where, until a British woman came across his story in a second‑hand book.Following an exhumatio
Hawaii becomes the 50th American state
On 18 March 1959, Hawaii was brought into the United States of America as the 50th state with the passing of the Hawaiian Admission act.Five months later, on 21 August it was officially proclaimed the 50th state by President Eisenhower.Former governor of Hawaii, John Waihe'e, tells Jen Dale his memories of statehood and why Hawaii's history with America means it has become a divisive issue.Eye-wit
Rata de dos patas: Mexico’s famous insult song
For more than 25 years, Rata de dos patas has been one of Mexico’s most recognisable - and unusual - songs. A relentless string of insults, it was made famous by the singer Paquita la del Barrio. Composer Manuel Eduardo Toscano recalls the moment in 2000 that convinced him the song was right for Paquita, and reveals how it almost never saw the light of day. He speaks to Helen Ledwick about the son
WW1: The Battle of the Somme
In July 1916, Britain led an Allied offensive against German positions on the Western Front near the Somme river in France. The British army suffered 60,000 casualties on the first day. By the end of the battle in November, one million men had been killed or wounded. The Somme became synonymous with the horrors of war. We hear BBC archive recordings of veterans who fought in one of the bloodiest b
How Aussies taught kids to stay safe in the sun
In 1981, Australia launched a fight against skin cancer with help from a yellow cartoon seagull and a catchy jingle. The Slip Slop Slap campaign was created by an advertising team of Phillip Adams, Peter Best and Alex Stitt. The three men gave their services for free to help the Cancer Council Victoria charity spread the message.Soon, Australians began to slip on a shirt, slop on sunscreen and sla
Brexit: Ireland watches the vote unfold
In June 2016, voters in the UK were asked whether they wanted to remain in the European Union or leave. It was a decision that would divide the country and reshape relations with its closest neighbours.As the result emerged overnight, Rory Montgomery was one of the officials responsible for preparing Ireland's response.The former diplomat remembers watching the night unfold from Dublin and tells H
China detains Hong Kong booksellers
It's 10 years since a Hong Kong bookseller who was detained for selling material critical of China’s leaders, was released and went public.In 2015, Lam Wing-kee and four other men who published and sold books went missing. The case of the booksellers raised international concerns that Hong Kong's judicial independence and freedom of speech were being eroded. Protests followed. On 21 June 2016, Mr
The discovery of Lyme disease
In 1975, a mysterious outbreak of illness struck children in the United States, triggering a medical breakthrough.
Prof Allen Steere uncovered a bacterial infection which was spread by blood‑sucking ticks. It was formally identified for the first time and would go on to be named Lyme disease, after the town where it first emerged. He speaks to Reena Stanton-Sharma about what led to the discover
The discovery of Mungo Man
On 26 February 1974, geologist Dr Jim Bowler discovered a 42,000-year-old skeleton in New South Wales, Australia.The remains were nicknamed Mungo Man, as they were found in Lake Mungo.The discovery rewrote Australia's history, it proved Aboriginal Australians had occupied the continent for tens of thousands of years.Rachel Naylor speaks to Dr Bowler about Mungo Man's original cremation with ochre
Women Walk Home: Cyprus' forgotten peace march
In June 1987, hundreds of women walked towards a ceasefire line that had divided Cyprus since 1974. The island was split after a coup backed by Greece and a subsequent Turkish military intervention, which left thousands displaced on both sides. Many of the women were Greek Cypriots who had fled their homes in the north during the conflict. They hoped their peace walk would draw international atten
50 years since the Soweto Uprising
Half a century ago, an event took place that shook the apartheid regime in South Africa to its foundations - the Soweto Uprising.It began with a demonstration by schoolchildren against being taught in Afrikaans.The government met the protesters with brutal force, and the ensuing violence shocked the world.In 2010, Alan Johnston spoke to one of those former schoolgirls, Bongi Mhkabela, about that p
The Georgian exodus from Abkhazia
In 1993, separatist forces took Sukhumi, the capital of the former Soviet territory of Abkhazia. As Georgian authorities lost control of the region, more than 200,000 people were forced to flee. Many had no choice but to cross the Caucasus Mountains on foot, and hundreds are believed to have died along the way.Georgian writer Guram Odisharia speaks to Stefania Gozzer about his harrowing escape fro
Hussein of Jordan: The survivor king
In 1970, King Hussein of Jordan survived after gunmen opened fire on his motorcade close to his summer palace. The king remained unharmed, but his driver was wounded. It wasn’t the king’s first near-miss. Before being crowned, Hussein survived another attempt when his grandfather, King Abdullah, was assassinated by a Palestinian gunman in 1951. Hussein was saved when a medal deflected a stray bull
The inspiration for Chekhov's Three Sisters
In 1897, Paul Shishkoff was 10 years old and living with his family in rural Russia.It was there he met the great Russian playwright, Anton Chekhov, who was resting after the end of Moscow's theatre season. During the long, hot summer, Paul became friends with Chekhov - accompanying him on rambles and fishing expeditions.In 1938, Paul spoke to the BBC about their friendship and how his family bec
Picasso and the Surrealist summer
In the summer of 1937, some of the 20th Century's most famous artists, writers and photographers were holidaying in the south of France. They included artist Pablo Picasso, photographer Lee Miller, poet Paul Éluard and the painter Man Ray.The group were part of the Surrealist movement – a style of art inspired by dreams and hidden thoughts that can look strange and bizarre - and one of their most
Mstislav Rostropovich: Virtuoso cellist
In 1978, Mstislav Rostropovich, one of the greatest cellists in history, was stripped of his Soviet citizenship for engaging in 'unpatriotic activity'. Rostropovich’s fallout with the Soviet leadership was precipitated by his decision to let the dissident writer, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, stay in his house. Joe Schultz tells his story using BBC archive.Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive
Nelson Mandela's incarceration at Robben Island
On 13 June 1964, Nelson Mandela, who later became South Africa's president, was taken to the maximum security prison on Robben Island off the coast of South Africa.Mandela had led the military wing of the African National Congress party which was banned by the apartheid government.He was sentenced to life imprisonment and spent 18 years on the island before being transferred to prison on the mainl
The creation of Inspector Montalbano
On 10 March 1994, Italian author Andrea Camilleri's The Shape of Water was published.It features Inspector Montalbano in the fictional Sicilian town of Vigàta.The novel is widely credited with helping start a new wave of Italian noir.It is the first book in a series that has had worldwide sales of 25 million and has been translated into 120 languages.Jen Dale uses BBC Archive to tell the story of
The protests that sparked the Tiananmen Square massacre
One month before the bloodshed in Beijing, a 10km line of protestors snaked through the city. For over a decade China had been opening up to global trade and there was promise that, with greater economic freedoms, democratic rights might be within reach too. In an emotional testimony, student organiser Wu'er Kaixi explains why he thought protest and demonstrations were encouraging leaders towards
Australia's first Big Thing
In 1963, a giant Scotsman sculpture appeared outside the Scotty Motel in Adelaide, in South Australia. A banana, a koala, and even a potato soon followed, paving the way for the country’s beloved Big Things - one of Australia’s quirkiest cultural phenomena. Paul Kelly was the artist behind both the Big Scotsman and the equally iconic Big Lobster. He and his daughter, Christobel Kelly, tell Stefani
The first Irish language television channel
In 1996, Ireland launched its first television channel broadcasting exclusively in the Irish language. Teilifís na Gaeilge, later renamed TG4, went on air on Halloween night. It aimed to appeal to both native and non-native speakers. The launch followed decades of campaigning for more Irish-language broadcasting in the country. Sinéad Ní Ghuidhir was the first presenter to speak on the new station
Recording the Eichmann interviews
In the 1950s, Dutch journalist Willem Sassen recorded hours of interview with the Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann about his involvement in the Holocaust, before his capture in Argentina by Israeli agents.Willem's daughter Saskia Sassen tells Louise Hidalgo about the tapes, her memories of their secret visitor and the night the Israelis snatched Eichmann off the streets of Buenos Aires. This progr
Filming Titanic in Mexico
In 1997, Titanic, one of the most successful films in movie history, and one of the most expensive, was made in Mexico. The director James Cameron and his production team built an almost full-size replica of the ship in Rosarito, Baja California, in the world’s biggest water tank. Over the seven-month shoot, the budget soared to more than $200m, and there were worries about recouping costs. But w
I escaped Mexico's deadly gas explosion
Just before dawn, on 19 November 1984, an explosion at a gas plant in San Juanico, Mexico killed hundreds of people, injured thousands and destroyed buildings.Virginia Martínez Tellez was a young teenager at the time and talks to Jen Dale about how she and her family escaped the intense heat and fire of what's considered one of the world's deadliest industrial gas accidents.This programme contains
I fought for Mexico’s indigenous women to get political equality
In October 2014, indigenous women in Mexico won a landmark victory in their struggle for political rights. It came after years of campaigning by Eufrosina Cruz Mendoza, a Zapotec woman who had been prevented from becoming mayor of her local community. She believed a system of special laws, allowing indigenous communities to self-govern with their own traditions, had allowed men to maintain their p
Mexico: The election that ended one‑party rule
In July 2000 an historic election in Mexico saw a change of government for the first time in 71 years. Vicente Fox of the National Action Party was elected president, defeating the Institutional Revolutionary Party, which had held power since 1929.Marketing strategist Francisco Ortiz worked on the Fox campaign. He speaks to Helen Ledwick about an election many thought impossible.Eye-witness accoun
The Mexican song that captivated lovers during World War II
In 1944, as World War II was drawing to a close, the Mexican love song Besame Mucho crossed the Atlantic and became one of the most recognisable melodies of the post-war era. Its lyrics were daring for the time: an open plea for a passionate kiss.The song had been written years earlier by Consuelo Velazquez, a young woman who composed romantic melodies for pleasure but kept her authorship a secret
Canada's worst E.coli outbreak
In 2000, contaminated drinking water in the small Canadian town of Walkerton triggered one of the country’s worst public health disasters.Heavy rainfall washed E. coli bacteria into the town’s water supply, but failures in testing and reporting meant residents continued to drink the water. Seven people died and thousands fell ill.Megan Lawton speaks to resident Bruce Davidson who experienced the c
Montenegro votes for independence
Montenegro achieving independence from Serbia in 2006 was the final part of the break-up of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Montenegro and Serbia had been joined since the end of the First World War, but after other Yugoslav countries broke away in the 1990s, an independence movement began to grow. In 2006, the people of the small European nation went to the polls and narrow
Exposing King Albert II's secret child
In 1999, a teenager's debut book unintentionally caused a royal scandal in Belgium that wouldn't be resolved for more than 20 years.Each evening after he'd finished his homework, Mario Danneels dedicated his spare time writing a biography of Queen Paola. While researching her, he'd discovered that her husband, King Albert II, had fathered a child outside of his marriage.It was just one sentence in
Poland’s underground newspaper
In 1981, Poland's communist regime imposed martial law and the dissident Solidarity movement was suppressed. In response, Helena Luczywo helped set up an underground newspaper called Mazovia Weekly to communicate uncensored information to the population. Despite police raids and arrests, the newspaper played a significant role in the fall of communism in Poland. Helena tells Ben Henderson about th
The Sami protest song that made Eurovision history
In 1980, Norway’s entry to the Eurovision Song Contest included a traditional Sami joik song from the country’s indigenous community. It was the first time joiking was heard by an international audience. The song was originally created by Mattis Haetta as part of a protest against the building of a dam in Finnmark, in northern Norway – which would have flooded traditional Sami reindeer herding rou
When Sweden invented the reality game show
In 1997, Sweden changed television history. That year saw the launch of Expedition Robinson, widely regarded as the world’s first reality-based competitive television programme.The premise was strikingly simple. A group of ordinary people were stranded on a remote island, where they were required to build shelter, compete in challenges and vote one another out — until only one contestant remained.
Uncovering a lost burial ground in Rio
In 1996, the bricklayer renovating Merced dos Anjos’ home in Rio de Janeiro told her something strange had happened. Bones appeared as he was breaking ground. As she inspected the site, she found they were human. But why so many bones? Was it the work of a serial killer?The answer was more macabre. They had unearthed an ancient cemetery. The discovery shed light on the brutal history of Brazil’s s
The fossil that revealed the first dinosaur feathers
In 1996, a fossil unearthed in China became the first confirmed record of a dinosaur covered in feathers.Before this discovery, some palaeontologists had suggested that dinosaurs might have developed feathers and eventually evolved into modern birds, but the idea remained controversial due to the lack of concrete evidence.Canadian palaeontologist Philip Currie was among the first experts to examin
Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission
Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission was a seven-year project which examined the country’s residential school system. For more than 100 years, Indigenous children were taken from their families to boarding schools with the sole purpose to “kill the Indian in the child”. The schools were run by various church organisations on behalf of the Canadian government, and many children were subje
Sir David Attenborough's first Zoo Quest
In 1954, the BBC broadcast a new television programme in the United Kingdom. It was called Zoo Quest and it launched the career of a man who has since brought the natural world into millions of homes around the world, the broadcaster Sir David Attenborough. In 2021, Louise Hidalgo dove into the BBC archives to hear Sir David tell the story of the first natural history expedition for Zoo Quest - th
Africa's worst stadium disaster
On 9 May 2001, 127 people died and dozens more were injured at the Accra Stadium in Ghana.It is Africa's worst football stadium tragedy.
The disaster happened at the end of a match between Asante Kotoko and Hearts of Oak. Police fired tear gas after angry fans threw chairs onto the pitch. It caused a stampede.
Herbert Mensah was the Asante Kotoko chairman at the time and speaks to Jen Dale abo
Finding the world’s most complete T-rex fossil
On 12 August 1990, the world's most complete skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus rex was found in South Dakota.Deena Newman speaks to Peter Larson whose team made the landmark discovery.This programme was first broadcast in 2015.Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world throug
Norway's WW2 railway sabotage plot
In May 1942, a team of Norwegian resistance fighters in occupied Norway were getting ready to blow up a railway carrying materials crucial to the German war machine. Led by Lieutenant Peter Deinboll, a local from the area, they set out to execute what the Allied forces saw as the top priority sabotage operation in Norway at that stage in the war. Should they fail, allied planes would carpet bomb t
Nuns killed in Algeria
In the early 1990s, Algeria was engulfed by a brutal civil conflict, as armed Islamist groups fought the state and civilians lived in fear. Foreigners were urged to leave, and many did. But Sister Lourdes Migueles, a Spanish Augustinian nun who had already spent decades serving in Algeria, chose to stay.As the violence worsened, religious figures also became targets. In October 1994, two of Sister
The origins of World Press Freedom Day
In April 1991, journalists from 38 African countries came together in Namibia for a week-long seminar to discuss the need for a free, independent and pluralistic press on the continent.When discussions ended after five days on 3 May, they had created the Windhoek declaration - a declaration of free press principles.Later that year, Unesco’s general conference endorsed the declaration.In 1993, the
Inside the Cuban thaw
On 17 December 2014, United States president Barack Obama and the leader of Cuba, Raúl Castro, announced the normalisation of their countries' relations, ending 54 years of hostility.The announcement was a shock to most except a few trusted aides who had worked for 18 months to make it happen.Alejandro Castro, Raúl Castro's son, represented the Cuban side, while Ben Rhodes, Obama’s speech writer,
Peter Singer’s Drowning Child thought experiment
In 1971, the region that is now Bangladesh fought for independence from Pakistan. At the time, Peter Singer was a philosophy lecturer at the University of Oxford. Horrified by the suffering in Bangladesh, Singer wrote an essay in which he put forward his Drowning Child thought experiment, one of the most influential ideas in modern philosophy. The thought experiment, published in 1972, inspired th
Car-free Sundays during the global oil crisis
In October 1973, the Netherlands was the only western European country to face a full oil embargo from the Organisation of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries, OAPEC.During the global oil crisis, they became the first country in Europe to introduce car-free Sundays with most private cars banned from public roads on Sundays. Wim Meijer was the State Secretary for Culture, Recreation and Social Work
The world's first perfume archive
On 26 April 1990, the world's first perfume archive opened in Versailles, France.The idea behind L'Osmothèque was to create a collection of scents and preserve their memory.Perfumer Jean Claude Ellena was one of the team who created it.He speaks to Jen Dale about how L'Osmothèque was founded and how perfumes from previous centuries, that no longer existed, were re-created.Eye-witness accounts brou
The Tabasco floods
In 2007, the Mexican state of Tabasco experienced its worst flooding in 50 years, with more than a million people affected. Eighty per cent of the region was under water, with people having to be rescued from the roofs of their homes by boat. The flooding occurred after heavy rain caused rivers in the state to break their banks. Marco Franco worked as an emergency coordinator for the Red Cross du
The clean-up of Chernobyl
The disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, in Ukraine, on 26 April 1986, was the world’s worst nuclear accident. The explosion in reactor four caused radioactive parts to be spread over the nearby area. Hundreds of thousands of people were involved in the decontamination efforts, including soldiers and workers at the power station. They were known as the liquidators. Some even had to run
Canada's war in the woods
In 1993, plans to log one of Canada’s ancient rainforests sparked the country’s largest act of civil disobedience. It was known as the war in the woods. For months, protesters blocked a remote logging road on Vancouver Island, leading to more than a thousand arrests. Megan Lawton speaks to protest organiser Tzeporah Berman who, aged 23, was arrested and charged with 857 criminal counts. Eye-witnes
Europe’s long drought of 2011
In 2011, after months of little or no rain in central and eastern Europe, water levels on some parts of the Danube River fell to their lowest level in 70 years.It’s one of Europe’s busiest shipping routes, but in November of that year, traffic ground to a halt on major sections of the Danube, and, on the Serbia-Hungary border, dozen of cargo ships were stranded. In Romania, one of the country’s nu
Mymba Kuera: The race to save wildlife at the Itaipu dam
In October 1982, Paraguay and Brazil closed the gates of the Itaipu River, beginning to fill the reservoir of what would soon be the world's largest dam.
Located in a rainforest on the border between the two countries, the Itaipu dam would go on to supply vast amounts of energy for decades. But the rising waters also put thousands of animals at risk, as their habitat was flooded.To mitigate this
Discovering Hans Christian Andersen's 'lost fairytale'
In October 2012, a local historian stumbled upon a misplaced pamphlet in the Danish Archives. It was a story called the Tallow Candle and is believed to be Hans Christian Andersen’s first fairytale. Ejnar Askgaard, Curator and Senior Researcher at Museum Odense, verified the document. He speaks to Surya Elango. Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinate
The introduction of Sharia law in Aceh, Indonesia
Aceh in Sumatra is the only Indonesian province where Sharia Law, Islamic religious law, is in force. It followed years of conflict between Aceh and the central government.In Arabic, Sharia means "the clear, well-trodden path to water". It is derived from the Quran, Islam's holy book and from the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad.Interpretation of Islamic law is nuanced according to local culture
The assassination of Thomas Sankara
In October 1987, one of Africa's most radical leaders, Captain Thomas Sankara, was gunned down in a coup in Burkina Faso.His overthrow was orchestrated by his old friend, Blaise Compaore. Thomas Sankara's brother, Paul, spoke to Alex Last in 2013.Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that ha
Roddy Doyle: Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha
In 1993, the Irish writer Roddy Doyle won the prestigious Booker Prize for Fiction. His novel, Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha, was remarkable for the way it conveyed gritty drama through the eyes of a 10-year-old boy. Roddy tells Ben Henderson about his inspiration for Paddy Clarke, how he balanced writing with becoming a father and teaching, and the emotions of the night he won the award.Eye-witness accou
The creation of My Little Pony
My Little Pony first appeared in shops in the United States in 1983 and in that decade alone more than 100 million would be sold.But American toymaker Bonnie Zacherle tells Josephine McDermott how her idea to make a pony you could play with like a doll was turned down several times. She reveals the toys she liked to play with as a child living in Japan, how she updated Mr Potato Head and how her p
The turtle freed after 41 years in captivity
In 1984, loggerhead sea turtle Jorge became trapped in fishing nets and was moved to an aquarium in Mendoza. He was kept in captivity for more than 40 years until legal action and a campaign led to the closure of the aquarium and his release in 2025. But, where is he now?Megan Jones asks marine biologist Alejandro Saubidet, who was in charge of his rehabilitation.Eye-witness accounts brought to li
Khula Manch, the victory rally
On 9 April 1990, people gathered at Khula Manch, an open stage in Kathmandu. They were celebrating the end of Nepal’s party-less Panchayat system and the beginning of multi-party democracy.Among the crowd was Durga Thapa, who had spent weeks organising and coordinating the protests.A photo of her in a sea of men, leaping up and giving the peace sign, her hands covered in red paint, came to mark th
Hitler's teeth
On 8 May 1945, Yelena Rzhevskaya was handed a small box covered in red satin. The box had once held perfume but now inside – so she said – were Adolf Hitler’s teeth. Yelena later claimed this marked the beginning of the search for Hitler’s dental records and, with it, official confirmation that the Soviet Red Army had found the burnt corpse of the German leader.According to her memoir, the hunt to
Marcel Duchamp and the urinal that changed art
In October 1942, the great French conceptualist artist Marcel Duchamp helped put on the first major surrealist exhibition in New York. Carroll Janis's parents were friends of Duchamp.Louise Hidalgo spoke to him in October 2016 about the exhibition, the man and his art, including his famous urinal, Fountain.Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by
Straightening the Leaning Tower of Pisa
On 15 December 2001, the Leaning Tower of Pisa reopened to the public after an unprecedented 11-year closure.Famous worldwide for its dramatic lean, the tower also became, during the 1990s, the most closely monitored building on Earth. Engineers and scientists watched anxiously as the tilt worsened year by year, raising the very real possibility that the tower could topple.The lengthy restoration
The first commercially successful electronic cigarette
In the summer of 2003, pharmacist Hon Lik was one of millions of smokers in China.He was coughing a lot and having problems with his breathing and wondered if he could make an alternative cigarette.After various experiments, he created a vape prototype. It went on sale in May 2004 and was instantly a hit - selling 100,000 in China.Hon tells Megan Jones how he brought it to market.Eye-witness accou
Spain welcomes Picasso’s Guernica
In 1981 one of the world’s most iconic works of art – Guernica - was finally handed to Spain after a 44-year exile.Pablo Picasso had created the huge mural in 1937 followed the bombing of the Basque town of Guernica during the Spanish civil war. And, after being shown in Paris, the painting went on tour in Europe and America, where it was loaned to the Museum of Modern Art in New York.At the time,
New Nordic cuisine
In 2004, Danish food entrepreneur Claus Meyer launched the ‘Nordic Kitchen Manifesto’, kick-starting a revolution in Nordic cooking focused on local seasonal ingredients. The new approach was most famously embodied by the Copenhagen restaurant Meyer founded, Noma, which was anointed the world’s best restaurant five times. New Nordic cuisine is credited with shifting global dining away from the imp
The discovery of the Terra Nova shipwreck
In 2012, a team of researchers discovered one of the most famous polar shipwrecks - the Terra Nova.The ship was famous for carrying Britain’s doomed explorers in their race to reach the South Pole more than a century ago.It was later sunk - laying unseen on the seabed for decades.Oceanographer Leighton Rolley tells Megan Jones how he and the rest of his crew used sound waves to find the hidden wre
Echo and the elephants
In 1972, the world’s longest-running study of wild elephants was first launched in Kenya, making a star of one of its subjects – Echo.For decades, the Amboseli Elephant Research Project followed Echo and the rest of the park’s population to learn more about their behaviour, communication and social bonds. And in 1990, when the project began to attract wider attention, a documentary TV crew asked t
Anthony Bourdain's 'Don't Eat Before Reading This'
In April 1999, Anthony Bourdain's essay Don't Eat Before Reading This was published.It was an unfiltered look into restaurant kitchen culture. It launched his career as a celebrity chef.He changed the way television told stories about food. Surya Elango speaks to Philippe Lajaunie, his friend and former boss at Les Halles restaurant, in New York.Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Wi
The first Great Wall of China trek
In May1984, three friends starting trekking along the Great Wall of China. It took 508 days for them to complete and they became the first people to do it. They finally reached their destination at the Jiayu Pass on 24 September 1985, having documented the condition of the wall every step of the way. The men became national heroes, as the press followed their progress. Dong Yaohui spoke to Rebecca
How a Maasai community in Kenya overcame a deadly drought
In 2013, after losing most of their cattle, a Maasai community in Kajiado County formed an organisation to protect their land and culture.It's called ‘Ildalalekutuk Maasai Action for Development' and was formed by Dalmas Tiampati.He tells Megan Jones how the aim was to help the community become more resilient and find ways to protect the culture. Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Wi
The only Pope to visit New Zealand
In November 1986, Pope John Paul II visited New Zealand as part of his longest ever world tour.He gave an open-air mass at Auckland Domain in front of thousands of people.He remains the only Pope to have visited the country.Jen Dale speaks to Michael Jarka who was in the crowd and performed as part of a Polish cultural dance group for the pontiff.Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Wi
The reunification of Germany
When the Berlin Wall fell on 9 November 1989, it marked a turning point in the Cold War in Europe and set in motion the process that led to the reunification of East and West Germany.
But before that could happen, Chancellor Helmut Kohl, had to address fears about the return of a powerful Germany and convince the four allied powers of France, Russia, the US and the UK - which had occupied German
Women's rights in independent Tunisia
It's 70 years since Tunisian gained independence from France.In August 1956, it brought in a new equality law that revolutionised women's lives.Under the socialist President Habib Bourguiba, the North African country became the first in the Muslim world to legalise civil divorce and abortion and to ban polygamy.Bourguiba also gave women the vote and widened access to education.Nidale Abou Mrad spo
The 'Cyprus Emergency'
Between 1955 and 1959, a Greek-Cypriot paramilitary group called EOKA rebelled against British colonial rule in Cyprus. In response, the British authorities declared a state of emergency. A young Cypriot lawyer named Renos Lyssiotis joined EOKA. He was interrogated and imprisoned by the British authorities for nearly two years. He looks back on the period with Ben Henderson.Eye-witness accounts br
Oslo's anti-racism demonstration
On 1 February 2001, at least 30,000 people rallied in Oslo after the murder of 15-year-old Benjamin Hermansen by neo-Nazis.It is thought to be Norway's first racially motivated killing.News reports said the rally saw the largest crowd in Oslo since the liberation of Norway in 1945.Benjamin's childhood friend, Luciana Parvaneh Zehi, tells Jen Dale about the march and the events leading up to it.Eye
The L'Amicale Four
In 1999, a fire at the L’Amicale gambling house in Port Louis, Mauritius, killed seven people. The fire began during riots that followed a disputed football final between the Catholic Fire Brigade and the Muslim supported Scouts Club.Police arrested dozens of suspects, and four men were later convicted of arson and murder. They became known as the L’Amicale Four. Years later, a group of senior law
The nuclear mango deal
On 2 March 2006, the United States and India finalised a controversial nuclear deal, ending India's three decades of international isolation over its nuclear policy. Sweetening the deal, President George W Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced cooperative agreements not just on nuclear power but also on the import of Indian mangoes. Surya Elango speaks to Ronen Sen, the former Indian am
Casablanca: Making one of Hollywood’s greatest movies
When Warner Bros assigned twin brothers and screenwriters Julius Epstein and Philip Epstein to adapt a stage play for the big screen in 1942, no one could have predicted the impact it would have. Casablanca has since become one of the most recognisable and quotable films of all time, firmly embedded in Hollywood history. But what appears effortless on screen was anything but behind the scenes. The
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