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
The 'guardian angel' of Route 66
In 1978, a new highway bypassed the US town of Seligman, Arizona. It diverted traffic away from Route 66, decimating local businesses which relied on passing trade. In 1985, the whole of Route 66 was officially decommissioned.99-year-old Angel Delgadillo tells Helen Ledwick how he fought back, founding the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona and helping to secure historic status for part of
Bangladesh: The first country to impose a plastic bag ban
On 1 January 2002, Bangladesh became the first country to ban single use plastic bags, following a unanimous parliamentary vote. In the gallery sat Shahriar Hossain, returning from years in exile to witness the outcome of a campaign he had helped to drive. The roots of that decision stretch back 15 years when, as a young reporter, Shahriar plunged a bamboo pole into a flooded drain and watched pol
The first execution by lethal injection in the US
In 1982, the state of Texas began using a new method to execute prisoners: lethal injection. Charlie Brooks became the first person to be put to death this way. Among those who witnessed the execution was Bill LaRowe, then director of the Texas Department of Corrections. In 2009, he spoke to Claire Bowes about that day.Witness History is a short BBC World Service podcast about history that takes y
Robert Prevost in Peru: The Pope's 'compadre'
In 1985, Father Robert Prevost arrived in the small northern Peruvian town of Chulucanas for his first missionary assignment. It was a rural community with unpaved streets, widespread poverty and frequent flooding caused by the El Niño weather phenomenon. For local boys like Héctor Camacho, becoming an altar boy was one of the few after-school activities available. Prevost was the first priest Héc
'I'm the father of stencil graffiti'
In October 1981, technology teacher Xavier Prou, also known as Blek le Rat, spray painted rats all over Paris, in France.Inspired by subway art in New York and propaganda posters in Italy, he made stencils to apply his designs to public walls faster.His work went on to influence street artists around the world.He speaks to Rachel Naylor about how his idea was years in the making and his terrible f
Brazil's Mariana dam disaster
In November 2015, the Fundão dam near the city of Mariana in Brazil collapsed, unleashing a torrent of mud and mining waste and killing 19 people. Entire communities were destroyed in one of the worst environmental disasters in Brazilian history. As the flood swept towards her village, Paula Geralda Alves jumped on her motorbike and raced from house to house warning people to flee, earning her th
'I survived Typhoon Haiyan'
In early November 2013, Super Typhoon Haiyan struck parts of Asia and Oceania, with the Philippines experiencing the brunt of the storm. It would prove to be one of the most powerful typhoons to hit land in recorded history.Joanna Sustento, who lived in Tacloban City during the disaster, was just 22 years old when she lost most of her immediate family. She tells Ryan Keane her devastating story of
The first Day of the Dead parade
On 29 October 2016, Mexico City held the first Día de los Muertos parade, inspired by the opening scene of the 2015 James Bond film, Spectre.The Day of the Dead, an annual festival in Mexico, has been celebrated for thousands of years but didn't used to involve a carnival procession. The director of Spectre, Sam Mendes, invented the parade, complete with giant skeletons on floats, for the film. I
George Michael's Outside: The story behind the video
In 1998, after his arrest in a public toilet in Beverly Hills, USA, made headlines around the world, international pop star George Michael chose not to hide from the controversy. Instead, he turned it into Outside - a hit single and music video that playfully embraced the scandal.The colourful video helped transform an embarrassing moment into one of the most memorable pop culture statements of th
Mexico's life-saving warning system
In 1991, Mexico launched the world’s first public earthquake early warning system, giving people precious seconds to get to safety before strong shaking begins. The system was developed in the aftermath of the devastating 1985 Mexico City earthquake, which killed thousands and highlighted the need for advance warning.Director of the Seismic Instrumentation and Record Centre (CIRES) in Mexico, Juan
Britain's real ale revolution
In 1971, a boozy trip to Ireland led four young men to create one of Europe's most influential consumer campaigns. Alarmed by changes in brewing that they believed threatened traditional ale, they set up the Campaign for Real Ale, or CAMRA. Graham Lees tells Reena Stanton-Sharma how an impromptu idea between friends grew into a movement that transformed Britain's beer culture.Witness History is a
Bonn v Berlin: How Germany chose its capital
In 1989, the Berlin Wall fell and a reunited Germany had to decide which city would be its new capital.The contenders were the West German city of Bonn and the East German city of Berlin and the two fought it out in a ferocious political battle that would help define the country.In 2023, Ilona Toller heard from Bonn citizen Jürgen Nimptsch, who would later become the mayor of the city, and Wolfgan
The Siege of Paris
During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, the city of Paris was besieged by the Prussian army. The citizens of Paris experienced starvation and fuel shortages during a period of extreme cold. They resorted to eating horses, cats, dogs, rats and even animals from the city's zoo. Mrs Sydney Snell was 10 years old during the siege and spoke to the BBC about her memories of that time in 1946. Produced a
The Hungarian Revolution
In October 1956, students and workers took to the streets of Budapest to protest at Soviet rule in Hungary.The demonstrations turned violent and for a while, the revolutionaries were in control, before being brutally repressed. In 2010, Ed Butler spoke to one of the rebels, Péter Pallai.Witness History is a short BBC World Service podcast about history that takes you inside big moments from the pa
Keith Haring’s Berlin Wall mural
American artist Keith Haring became extremely successful and popular in the 1980s for his mix of graffiti and pop art-style work. In 1986, he was invited to paint a mural on the Berlin Wall by the director of the Wall Museum at Checkpoint Charlie, Dr Rainer Hildebrandt. The mural spanned 300 metres and incorporated the three colours of the German flag. Keith Haring said he wanted the mural to be a
Malta’s divorce referendum
In 2011, Maltese voters were called to the polls to decide whether Malta should remain one of the few places in the world where divorce was not permitted.The referendum divided the country. Supporters of divorce, including a group of MPs and civil rights campaigners, argued that couples should have the right to end a marriage that had irretrievably broken down. Opponents, led by the Catholic Churc
How Ten Canoes made cinema history
In 2006, Ten Canoes made Australian cinema history. It became the first feature film performed entirely in Aboriginal languages and the first to bring a traditional Yolngu story to the screen. Shot in the remote swamplands of Arnhem Land, the production relied on old anthropological photographs, clan languages and ancestral hunting knowledge to recreate life before European settlement.For the cast
Gerald Durrell's mission to save species from extinction
In 1959, British conservationist and author Gerald Durrell opened the gates to a zoo with one clear aim - to save endangered species from extinction. Gerald had grown up fascinated by the natural world and had spent years travelling across the globe, collecting animals for major zoos in the United Kingdom. It was during these trips that he saw just how quickly the animals he loved were disappearin
Manchester City’s inflatable banana craze
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Manchester City supporters became famous for an unusual sight on the terraces: inflatable bananas. What began as a light-hearted joke soon turned into one of the most memorable fan crazes in English football.Uma Doraiswamy tells the story of football, terrace culture and one of the game’s most unlikely symbols. She speaks to former Manchester City striker Imre Va
Declaring chimpanzees an endangered species
In 1990, after years of campaigning by activists, including Dr Jane Goodall, chimpanzees were declared endangered for the first time. The apes had been classed as threatened since 1976, but their situation hadn’t improved. Dr Ron Nowak led the team who wrote the new regulations, working with Dr Goodall to change the chimpanzees’ classification. He's been recalling that period with Tim O’Callagha
When Dian Fossey was murdered
In 1985, American gorilla expert Dian Fossey was murdered in her cabin at the research station she established in the mountains of Rwanda. Lucy Burns spoke to Kelly Stewart in 2013 who worked alongside Dian for 10 years in Volcanoes National Park.(Photo: Dian Fossey in 1983. Credit: Peter Breining/San Francisco Chronicle/Getty Images)Witness History is a short BBC World Service podcast about histo
Washoe: The chimp who learnt to sign
In 1970, Washoe the chimpanzee was widely recognised as the first non-human to learn a human language.
She was taught American sign language in a revolutionary experiment led by psychology professors Allen and Trixie Gardner at the University of Reno.But the project faced scepticism from some academics who argued that humans were the only animals capable of language.Dr Roger Fouts was among thos
Harry Harlow's monkey attachment studies
In the late 1950s, psychologist Harry Harlow conducted a series of experiments on baby rhesus monkeys which would become some of the most controversial in modern science.Using wire models as surrogate mothers, he explored how infants form emotional bonds. His findings challenged the widely held belief in the West that babies form attachments to their mothers primarily because they provide food. Hi
The first monkeys to survive space travel
On 28 May 1959, the USA sent two monkeys, Able and Baker, into space.They were the first living creatures to survive a space flight.It was a watershed moment for the American space agency NASA and its rivalry with the Soviet Union and it helped to pave the way for manned space missions. In 2012, Mike Lanchin spoke to Lieutenant Joe Guion, commander of the USS Kiowa, whose mission was to retrieve t
The most successful Paralympian in history
Trischa Zorn-Hudson is the most decorated Paralympian in history.Competing across seven games, Trischa - who has been blind since birth - won a remarkable haul of 55 medals.In that time, she also saw the Paralympics go through drastic changes, as competitors campaigned to get similar privileges and rights as Olympic athletes.Trischa shared her memories of her career with Matt Pintus in 2024.Eye-wi
The boy behind the creation of the Winnie-the-Pooh books
When the first Winnie-the-Pooh book was published in 1926, few could have imagined that the stories of a honey-loving bear would capture the hearts of readers across the world. Author A.A. Milne based the stories on the toys belonging to his young son, Christopher Robin. The books would become a global phenomenon, but they also left Christopher with a complicated relationship to the fame that foll
How rats were trained to clear landmines
In 2004, the world's first team of mine-detecting rats passed accreditation tests, opening the way for them to be used in humanitarian demining operations. The project was the brainchild of Belgian researcher Bart Weetjens, who was inspired to tackle the global landmine crisis after seeing Princess Diana walk through a minefield in Angola in 1997. Drawing on a lifelong love of rodents, he worked w
The mirrors that lit up a dark Norwegian town
In October 2013, people in the small Norwegian town of Rjukan experienced winter sunshine for the first time in history.This was thanks to the arrival of an unusual invention - giant mirrors high up on one of the mountains that make up the deep and narrow valley where Rjukan sits.They reflected the sun directly down to the town square – to the joy of local people who had previously lived through l
Egypt’s President Sadat is assassinated
President Anwar Sadat of Egypt was the first Arab leader to make peace with Israel, two years later he was assassinated. The president was killed at a military parade by a group of army officers, in October 1981. His decision to make peace with Israel had angered many Egyptians, and Sadat, and his wife, Jehan, knew that the decision was a dangerous step. Jehan Sedat spoke to Louise Hidalgo in 20
The Peruvian pilots who secretly delivered fighter jets during the Falklands War
In June 1982, 10 Peruvian pilots were tasked with a secret mission: deliver fighter jets to Argentina as it battled the UK over the Falkland Islands.One of those pilots, Rubén Mimbela, tells Stefania Gozzer about the risks they faced and how the mission remained out of the public eye for more than 25 years.Witness History is a short BBC World Service podcast about history that takes you inside big
The first Rubik's Cube world champion
On 5 June 1982, a teenage refugee from Vietnam became the first Rubik's Cube world champion. Representing the United States, 16-year-old Minh Thai took on contestants from 18 other countries at the championship in Hungary.He made history by solving the cube in 22.95 seconds.He tells Helen Ledwick about his first encounter with the iconic puzzle, his journey from Los Angeles to Budapest, and a last
Boer War: Siege of Ladysmith
The Siege of Ladysmith was a key moment in the Boer War, also known as the South African War. In 1899, British troops and civilians were trapped in the besieged South African town for 118 days.
Using a BBC archive recording, James Dalton, a British Army bandsman with the Gordon Highlanders, recalls shelling, hunger, disease and the dramatic relief of Ladysmith. Produced by Helen Ledwick in colla
The Dead Sea Scrolls
In 1947, a missing goat led to the chance discovery of the first Dead Sea Scrolls. These ancient Jewish manuscripts became one of the most important archaeological finds of the 20th century. British archaeologist Gerald Lankester Harding was one of the key figures in the early investigation of the scrolls. In a BBC recording made in 1949, he describes how they were found, the painstaking excavatio
The contraceptive pill gets legalised in Japan
After decades of campaigning in Japan, the pill was finally legalised in 1999. In contrast, the male impotency drug Viagra was approved for use in just six months, and legalised before the contraceptive pill for women. Politician Yoriko Madoka pushed hard for the right to take the pill and told Rebecca Kesby that sexism and male dominance in parliament is why it took so long.This programme was fir
Sulawesi's cave art and the origins of storytelling
In 2012, the discovery of rock art in caves on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi changed our understanding of early human history.Archaeologist Maxime Aubert tells Leo Dunlop how his team used a new dating technique to reveal that some of the cave paintings were tens of thousands of years older than previously thought.This challenged long-held ideas that art and storytelling originated in Western
The birth of Jodrell Bank
On an English field in 1957, the final touches were made to what was then the largest radio telescope in the world. But designing and building the Jodrell Bank Observatory hadn’t been easy.Sir Bernard Lovell, the mastermind behind the 76m wide dish, had to overcome money shortages, engineering difficulties and media scepticism. But as the space race took off in the 1960s, Jodrell Bank proved its w
Harold Riley: Painting Nelson Mandela
Harold Riley was the only artist in the world given the opportunity to paint Nelson Mandela from life.When Mandela agreed to pose for the English artist, it marked the beginning of a remarkable relationship. Over 18 months, the pair met on six occasions in South Africa, resulting in a portrait unveiled in 2005 that later raised more than $1m for children's charities when it was sold at auction in
Kinder Scout mass trespass
In 1932, hundreds of walkers organised a mass trespass on Kinder Scout, the highest point in England's Peak District.It was a major step in the campaign by workers from the industrial city of Manchester for access to the surrounding countryside, much of which was privately owned. In 2012, Simon Watts used interviews from the BBC archives to tell the story through the memories of those who took par
The gathering that helped shape decolonisation
The Fifth Pan-African Congress was held in Manchester, England, in 1945, helping to shape the post-war struggle against colonialism and racial discrimination. Prominent black activists, intellectuals and trade union leaders from around the world attended, including Kwame Nkrumah and Jomo Kenyatta, who would later become the leaders of independent Ghana and Kenya.In 2020, Alex Last explored the sto
‘Baby’ computer is invented
In June 1948, the ‘Baby’ was invented. It was the first stored-program computer, meaning it was the first machine to work like the ones we have today. It was developed in England at the University of Manchester.The computer was huge; it filled a room that was nearly six metres square. The team who made it are now recognised as the pioneers of modern computing.Gill Kearsley has been looking through
The nightclub that changed Manchester
In 1962, Nigerian-born Phil Magbotiwan opened a brand-new nightclub in Manchester, England. In part because of his own personal experiences of racism, Phil wanted to create somewhere where everyone would be welcome – Manchester’s first racially inclusive nightclub The Reno was born.The nightclub became a particularly important space for Manchester's mixed heritage community, who felt unwelcome in
The discovery of the San José shipwreck
In November 2015, the 'holy grail' of shipwrecks, laden with treasure worth an estimated $18 billion, was found off the coast of Colombia.The San José, a Spanish galleon, sank in 1708, when a British warship intercepted it. Rachel Naylor speaks to former Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos about how it was located and the ongoing international dispute over who owns it. Witness History is a shor
The birth of India's call centre industry
In 1997, after years working abroad, Pramod Bhasin returned to India and spotted an opportunity that would help transform his country's economy.Despite major telecommunications challenges, he went on to set up India's first call centre, laying the foundations for a new outsourcing industry.In 2019, he told Rebecca Kesby how he overcame unreliable phone lines, scepticism and technical hurdles to tu
Stardust: Ireland's deadly nightclub fire
In the early hours of 14 February 1981, a fire broke out at the Stardust nightclub in Artane, Dublin which was filled with more than 800 people. The blaze killed 48 people and injured 200. A tribunal in 1983 found the cause to be probable arson. This was rejected by many victims' families and survivors and the ruling was dismissed in 2009. Fresh inquests were granted in 2019.
In April 2024, the
Connecting homes to the internet using cable TV
In 1991, a small company led by an Iranian-born engineer, Rouzbeh Yassini, created a technology which enabled millions of homes across America to access the internet for the first time. Rouzbeh and his team found a way to use the existing cable TV infrastructure that was already installed all over the country to allow data to go both to and from the home, making it possible for everyone to use the
Norway’s teacher resistance in World War Two
When Norway was invaded by Nazi Germany in 1940, a collaborative government led by Norwegian Vidkun Quisling was put in place. Quisling believed that Norwegians would become more receptive to Nazi ideology if the education system was controlled. However, thousands of the country’s teachers resisted joining a new union. More than 1,000 of them were sent to concentration camps for their refusal.
Firefighter: Surviving the 9/11 North Tower collapse
On 11 September 2001, firefighter Jay Jonas and his crew were sent into New York's North Tower after a hijacked plane crashed into the World Trade Center.As they climbed the stairs searching for people who needed help, the South Tower collapsed.Realising their rescue mission could no longer continue, the firefighters turned around and began making their way down.On their descent they came across a
The weather report that changed the date of D-Day
In 1944, a young Irishwoman called Maureen Flavin drew up a weather report that helped change the course of World War Two.Maureen was working at a post office on the far west coast of Ireland. Her duties included recording rainfall, wind speeds, temperature and air pressure.On 3 June, she sent one of her hourly reports to Dublin, unaware that the figures were being passed on to the Allied headquar
Bayeux Tapestry: the lost Nazi archive
In 1994, documents from a Nazi study of the Bayeux Tapestry were rediscovered after more than 50 years. Former curator of the tapestry, Sylvette Lemagnen, tells Helen Ledwick how the missing archive was found and returned to Bayeux, revealing new details about a wartime investigation into one of the world's most famous medieval artworks. Witness History is a short BBC World Service podcast about h
The 'moving' statue of Ballinspittle
In 1985, reports of a moving statue of the Virgin Mary drew thousands of people to the village of Ballinspittle in County Cork, Ireland. Helen Ledwick speaks to Ita Dungan, who travelled there as a teenager and remembers the crowds gathering at the shrine. Similar reports soon spread across Ireland, and that summer became known as the 'summer of the moving statues'.This episode was produced in col
Surviving the Long March
In 1935, tens of thousands who had followed Mao Zedong on the Long March across China struggled to survive. They were fleeing Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalist forces during the country's civil war.Zhong Ming was one of them. In 2014, a year before his death, he spoke to the late Edward Stourton about his experience.Witness History is a short BBC World Service podcast about history that takes you insi
Star Trek: America's first interracial TV kiss
In 1968, American television boldly went where it had never gone before, broadcasting what's claimed to be the country's first interracial kiss in a TV programme. The moment of passion was between Captain Kirk of the starship USS Enterprise and communications officer Lieutenant Uhura, in Star Trek. Nichelle Nichols played Uhura in the cult series, and she was one of the first black women to be fea
The making of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
In 1982, audiences around the world fell in love with a gentle alien stranded on Earth and the young boy determined to help him get home. Steven Spielberg's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial became a global phenomenon and gave us one of cinema's most memorable lines, ‘E.T. phone home.’Peter Coyote played Keys, the mysterious government agent on the trail of E.T., a role that became one of the film's most
‘Genius’ sci-fi writer Octavia E Butler
In 1995, Octavia E Butler became the first author to receive a MacArthur “genius” award for science fiction writing.From a young age she dreamed of writing books, but faced many challenges, including poverty, sexism and racism in the publishing industry.Her sci-fi books are now taught in schools and universities across the United States. She died aged 58 in 2006. Her friend Nisi Shawl spoke to Al
Making Turkish Star Wars
When the set fell apart for an ambitious cinematic space opera that was produced on a characteristically small Turkish budget, nationally famed director Çetin İnanç had to think fast to save his film. What resulted was a domestic hit in 1982, originally called The Man Who Saves the World. Now known as Turkish Star Wars, it's a production regularly referenced as the worst movie ever made. Louis Har
How the Star Wars toys were created
In 1976, American toy designer Jim Swearingen was working at Kenner, a mid-sized company in the American Midwest.When a script for a new film called Star Wars landed on his desk, Jim was intrigued. Larger toy companies had already passed on the chance to make the figures."It was difficult from the point of view that it was a movie, could be in and out of theater in weeks, maybe months," he said. "
The hijacking of Pan Am Flight 73
On the 5 September 1986, hijackers took over a Pan-American Airways flight during a stop-over at Karachi Airport in Pakistan. The armed Palestinian terrorists wanted to fly the plane to Cyprus and Israel, to free members of their organisation who were jailed there. But, after the pilots escaped the cockpit, the plane stayed on the ground for 16 hours with almost 400 passengers on board. When th
Hurricane Luis hits Antigua
On 4 September 1995, Hurricane Luis hit the Caribbean island of Antigua.Two people were killed and three-quarters of homes were destroyed.Authorities said it set the island back by a decade.Resident Eli Fuller tells Jen Dale about the havoc caused by the hurricane.Witness History is a short BBC World Service podcast about history that takes you inside big moments from the past through first-hand t
Peace People: The Northern Ireland campaign group born from tragedy
It is 50 years since a peace movement began in Northern Ireland spawned by the killing of three children. There had been seven years of sectarian violence. On 10 August 1976, Anne Maguire was walking along Finaghy Road North in West Belfast with her children when an out-of-control car plunged into them. It was driven by a member of the Irish Republican Army paramilitary group who had been fatally
Auschwitz: An SS officer’s photo album
In 2007, an abandoned photo album revealed the chilling normality of life at the Nazis’ most notorious concentration camp, Auschwitz.The 116 black-and-white images had been sent to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, in Washington DC, to be considered for their archives.In the photographs, SS officers are seen laughing, singing and celebrating, while a short distance away hundreds of thou
Uruguay's water referendum
On 31st October 2004, Uruguayans voted to enshrine water as a human right in their constitution, the first country in the world to do so. The so-called water referendum was organised by an alliance of residents' associations, trade unions, scientists, and environmentalists. Campaigners on horseback criss-crossed the country, they held community meetings in towns and villages across Uruguay and
Defeating the screwworm
In the 1950s, scientist Edward Knipling began what would become one of the most successful eradication campaigns in history: the fight against the New World screwworm, a flesh-eating parasite that caused devastating injuries to livestock and wildlife across the Americas.Edward Knipling proposed breeding and releasing millions of sterile male screwworm flies to prevent the insects from reproducing,
'I created the duck cake from Bluey'
First published in 1980, the Australian Women's Weekly Children's Birthday Cake Book brought novelty cakes to the masses. From the swimming pool filled with jelly, to the ghost and the 'choo choo train', its recipes became core memories for generations of children. Agnes Lee was part of the team behind the book, designing more than 20 of its quirky cakes, including the famous Rubber Ducky, which w
Canada's controversial resettlement programme
In 1954, a massive government-run resettlement programme began in Canada.This saw the relocation of nearly 30,000 people from isolated ‘outport’ fishing communities in Newfoundland and Labrador to designated ‘growth centres', intended to provide better education and facilities.In some cases this involved physically moving houses with ropes and pullies, then floating them to new locations.Catherine
The battle of Mandalay in WW2
In March 1945, the British Fourteenth Army were advancing on the city of Mandalay in central Burma, now known as Myanmar, which was held by the Japanese Army. The army was made up of soldiers from across the British Empire, with units from the United Kingdom, India, East and West Africa all fighting side by side. The BBC’s Douglas Cleverdon accompanied those troops into battle, making what is tho
Asha Bhosle: The world's most recorded artist
In 2011 Asha Bhosle, India’s queen of melody, was officially named the most recorded artist in music history. The Guinness World Record recognised the astonishing scale of her career, having performed up to 11,000 songs in more than 20 Indian languages since 1947.The title previously belonged to her sister Lata Mangeshkar, and together the siblings dominated India’s playback singing world for deca
The tortoise and the hippo
When the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami struck the coast of Kenya, a baby hippo named Owen was swept out to sea and separated from his family.After being rescued, he was taken to Haller Park in Mombasa, where he formed an extraordinary bond with Mzee, a 130-year-old giant tortoise. Their unlikely friendship captured the world's imagination and became an international sensation.In 2023, conservationist
Kenya's power-sharing deal
In 2008, Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and his rival Raila Odinga signed an unprecedented power-sharing deal to end a wave of violence that had left more than 1,200 people dead.Kibaki would remain president, while Odinga would become prime minister, a role created as part of the settlement. They hoped the accord would end the bloodshed that had engulfed Kenya after the disputed election two months
The last of the Mau Mau fighters
In 1963, as Kenya celebrated independence from British rule, one of the last Mau Mau fighters came out of hiding and laid down her arms. Muthoni Kirima was the first and only woman to be appointed field marshall in the Kenya Land and Freedom Army - better known as the Mau Mau. She had been living in the Kenyan forest for 11 years, fighting with other armed rebels to reclaim land taken by European
Treetops: The day a princess became a queen
In 1952, Princess Elizabeth became queen while staying at the Treetops Hotel in Kenya. But she wouldn't make the discovery until hours later.The 25-year-old Princess Elizabeth and her husband were on five-month royal tour of the Commonwealth, and their first stop was Kenya. The overnight trip to Treetops, a lodge in the Aberdare National Park, was supposed to be a relaxing break. But the princess
Finding the den of the Tsavo man-eaters
In 1997, scientists travelled to Tsavo, Kenya, in search of a cave believed to have been the den of the man-eating lions that terrorised railway workers in 1898.The two lions stalked Indian and African men building the Uganda Railway, dragging victims from their tents at night. It was nine months before the officer in charge of the railway project, British Lieutenant-Colonel John Henry Patterson,
The origins of the all-inclusive holiday
Holidaymakers arrived at the first Club Med resort on the Spanish island of Majorca in the summer of 1950. Founded by the Belgian water polo player Gérard Blitz, Club Méditerranée offered a new kind of post-war holiday built around the idea that leisure should be simple, sociable and accessible.The facilities were basic at first. Guests slept in huts and shared communal meals. But the company's al
When Taiwan’s ‘White Terror’ ended
In 1987, Taiwan finally lifted martial law after nearly four decades of authoritarian rule.The moment marked a profound shift for a society long shaped by censorship, surveillance and political fear.For many who had lived through the ‘White Terror’, it opened the possibility of speaking openly for the first time.Among them was Malaysian student Fred Chin, who had arrived in Taiwan in the late 1960
Ashley Kriel: South Africa's anti-apartheid 'Che Guevara'
In the 1980s, townships in the Cape Flats area of Cape Town became an unexpected hotbed of activity against South Africa's apartheid government. One charismatic young activist emerged as a leader of the struggle against white minority rule, becoming known as the Che Guevara of the Cape Flats.Former anti-apartheid activist Adiel 'Gorie' November tells Sumaya Bakhsh about his memories of his friend
The first carbon offset
In 1988, as floods struck Bangladesh and a heat wave swept across the United States, climate change became a political issue. Governments and businesses alike talked about how to stop it, or at least slow it down. That year the think tank World Resources Institute and the energy company Applied Energy Services announced a novel idea that has been credited as the first example of a ‘carbon offset’:
City of God: The film that reshaped global cinema
In 2001, filming began on City of God which would stun audiences with its unflinching honesty.It captured the brutal realities of child gangsters from Rio De Janeiro’s favelas trapped in an unforgiving cycle of violence.Local children were cast in the film, which was nominated for four Oscars, and their own lives weren’t far from the stories on screen.Katia Lund who co-directed the movie, speaks t
The cellist who survived Auschwitz-Birkenau
In 1943, the cellist, Anita Lasker-Wallfisch was sent to the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. She expected to be killed in the gas chambers but survived because she was recruited to play in an orchestra set up by the women prisoners. In 2015, Anita Lasker-Wallfisch told Simon Watts about her experience and the power of music in the darkest moments in history.Eye-witness accounts brought to l
'I organised the first Comic Con'
In 1964, a group of teenage boys organised a convention in New York – it became known as the first official Comic Con.The idea began after 16-year-old Bernie Bubnis wrote an article in his comic book fanzine. But when no-one else took on the project, he rounded up friends to help. Together, they booked a venue, arranged a date, sent out letters and posted ads. And for the star attraction, they inv
Sweden's summer shutdown
In the summer of 1978, many Swedish workers relished the chance to take longer, paid vacations than ever before.This was thanks to an update to Sweden’s Annual Leave Act - or Semesterlagen in Swedish - passed the previous year. The law guaranteed all employees four consecutive weeks of vacation, and increased their total annual leave to five weeks, giving them some of the longest paid holidays in
The last execution by garrote: Salvador Puig Antich
In 1974, an execution method known as the garrote, a chair with a metal collar tightened by a screw to break the neck, was used for the last time.Francisco Franco's regime used it to execute two young men on the same day. The last was Catalan Salvador Puig Antich, a 25-year-old member of an anarchist group that robbed banks to fund its activities and support working class people. He was accused of
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