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PODCAST

Witness History

BBC World Service

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

society & culture personal journals

All Episodes

10:35

The Gratitude Train: France thanks America

Witness History ·

2025/06/23

In 1949, the Gratitude Train arrived in the United States, made up of 49 wagons filled with thousands of gifts from France.The convoy was a thank-you to American families who’d sent food and supplies across the Atlantic, via a ‘friendship train’ in the aftermath of World War Two.It was the idea of a French railworker called Andre Picard. In the same spirit as the friendship train, he asked families across France to make donations.The response was 52,000 gifts that filled 49 rail wagons or ‘boxcars’,

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10:29

Making Jaws

Witness History ·

2025/06/20

It’s 50 years since the original Jaws film was released in cinemas across America. The movie premiered on 20 June 1975. Directed by a young Steven Spielberg, who was relatively unknown at the time, it was considered Hollywood’s pioneering summer blockbuster. The thriller broke records by becoming the first movie to gross over $100 million at the US box office and made millions of people afraid to go into the water. Carl Gottlieb, who co-wrote the screenplay, looks back at guiding the chaotic

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9:48

The signing of the Treaty of Versailles

Witness History ·

2025/06/19

On 28 June 1919, in the Palace of Versailles in Paris the signing of the Treaty of Versailles took place. It was a peace agreement that marked the end of World War One.The terms of the treaty punished Germany for their involvement in starting the war. British journalist, William Norman Ewer attended the signing. He told his story to the BBC World Service in 1967. He recalls the moment of the signing and the treatment of the German delegates in this fascinating account.Produced and presented by

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10:48

Civil rights swim-in

Witness History ·

2025/06/18

On 18 June 1964, black and white protesters jumped into a ‘whites only’ swimming pool at a motel in St Augustine, in Florida.Photos of the Monson Motor Lodge manager, James Brock, pouring cleaning acid into the pool to get them out, made global headlines.The following day, the Civil Rights Act - a landmark bill to end discrimination which had been stalling in the Senate – was finally passed.Using archive interviews with two of the swimming activists, JT Johnson and Mimi Jones, Vicky Farncombe looks

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8:59

Charleston church shooting

Witness History ·

2025/06/17

On 17 June 2015, white supremacist Dylann Roof attended a bible group at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina, in the United States. As it was ending, the 21-year-old started shooting and killed nine people.Polly Sheppard was one of the survivors. She called 911 whilst hiding from Roof. The shootings at the historic African-American church shocked a nation already too used to gun violence. President Barack Obama delivered the eulogy at one of the victim’s funerals

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10:00

'Tripperburgen' the sexual health clinics that...

Witness History ·

2025/06/16

After the Second World War, in what was then East Germany, or the German Democratic Republic (GDR), tens of thousands of women and girls were forcibly detained and abused in sexual health clinics. In 1977, at the age of 15, Sabine was at a house party in Leipzig when police came for her. She was taken to a so-called ‘Tripperburgen’ which translates to ‘gonorrhoea castle’. After 31 days she was told to leave. Research shows at least 10 of these wards existed in the GDR and 70% of the women had not

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10:12

The Schengen Agreement

Witness History ·

2025/06/13

On 14 June 1985, five politicians met on a boat in the town of Schengen, in Luxembourg, to sign an agreement to get rid of border checks between their countries: Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France and West Germany. The Schengen Area now encompasses more than 450 million people and 29 countries in Europe.Rachel Naylor speaks to Robert Goebbels, who was Luxembourg’s Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, and one of the original five signatories. Eye-witness accounts brought to life by

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10:35

Ronald Reagan’s ‘Tear down this wall’ speech

Witness History ·

2025/06/12

In 1987 Uunied States President Ronald Reagan spoke at the Berlin Wall. In his speech he called on the leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev to "Tear down this wall". The famous words were met with applause and cheers by the large crowd of West Berliners who had lived in a divided city since 1961 when the wall was built. However, that phrase was very nearly omitted from the address. The speechwriter, Peter Robinson, tells Tim O’Callaghan what happened.Eye-witness accounts brought to life by

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10:49

Lonesome George: The celebrity tortoise

Witness History ·

2025/06/11

In 2012, Lonesome George, the last tortoise of his species died.George, from from Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands in the Pacific Ocean, was a global symbol of conservation and brought to the attention of the world the reality of extinction.James Gibbs, vice president of science and conservation at the Galapagos conservancy knew George well. He looked after the tortoise in life, and in death. James says: “You know, moving Lonesome George across the islands by truck, people were asking, what's in the

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10:52

The woman born in a prisoner of war camp

Witness History ·

2025/06/10

After the Sino-Indian war in 1962, around 3,000 men, women and children were incarcerated in a disused World War Two prisoner of war camp. Indians of Chinese descent were sent there having fallen prey to government suspicion following the war which only lasted a few weeks. Joy Ma was born in the camp in Deoli, Rajasthan, and spent the first four years of her life there with her family. She speaks to Reena Stanton-Sharma about her family’s story. Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive

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10:31

World War Two’s Rome escape line

Witness History ·

2025/06/09

Between September 1943 and June 1944 in World War Two, the Italian capital Rome was occupied by German soldiers.Italy had surrendered and thousands of Allied prisoners of war had escaped from internment camps in the country. An Irish priest, Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty, who was working for the neutral state of Vatican City set in the heart of Rome, did everything he could to help the escaped prisoners evade capture by the Nazis. Tim O’Callaghan has been speaking to his nephew – also named Hugh

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10:13

Usonia: Frank Lloyd Wright’s ‘utopian’ town

Witness History ·

2025/06/06

In 1948, the foundation was laid for a “utopian” community of houses designed by a man described as America’s greatest ever architect.Frank Lloyd Wright had been approached by a group who wanted to create a social collective of affordable homes, on land an hour north of New York city.The group of 47 flat-roofed, open-plan homes became known as Usonia. Roland Reisley, now aged 100, is the last founding member of the community where he still lives.He reveals what it was like to be a client of the

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9:36

Favela life: The diary of Carolina Maria de Jesus

Witness History ·

2025/06/04

Carolina Maria de Jesus was a poor, single mother-of-three who lived in a derelict shack and spent her days scavenging for food.Her diary, written between 1955 and 1960, brought to life the harsh realities faced by thousands of poor Brazilians who arrived in cities like São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro looking for better opportunities. In 1960, her diary was published and became a bestseller, turning Carolina into a celebrity.Her daughter, Vera Eunice de Jesus Lima, spoke to Thomas Pappon in 2020 about

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10:36

The world’s largest model train set

Witness History ·

2025/06/03

In 2000, nightclub owners and twins Frederik and Gerrit Braun went from the neon lights of a Hamburg nightclub to building the world’s largest model trainset. Miniatur Wunderland is now a top tourist destination and global attraction visited by millions, including celebrities like Adele and Sir Rod Stewart. Frederik and Gerrit Braun tell Megan Jones where this crazy idea came from.Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the

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10:08

Dolly Rathebe: South Africa’s first international...

Witness History ·

2025/06/02

South Africa’s first feature film aimed at black audiences was released in 1949, launching Dolly Rathebe’s career. The actress and jazz musician was discovered by chance by two British film makers and with no previous acting experience, she was cast in Jim Comes to Jo’burg, also known as African Jim.She played Judy, a glamourous nightclub singer. Soon she was gracing magazine covers and proclaimed Africa’s first black female movie star.Reena Stanton-Sharma listens back to an archive interview of

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10:10

The Battle of the Beanfield

Witness History ·

2025/05/30

On 1 June 1985, a convoy of New Age Travellers set off for the ancient stone circle of Stonehenge in the south of England. They were planning to hold a festival there for the summer solstice, but they were stopped by police blocking their access to the site. The authorities had heard the travellers were carrying chainsaws and petrol bombs. The police smashed the hippies’ vans and tents in what became known as the Battle of the Beanfield. It was a turning point for British alternative culture. Lucy

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10:40

The legacy of The Pirate Bay

Witness History ·

2025/05/29

On 31 May 2006, police launched one of the largest raids in Swedish history, seizing servers from The Pirate Bay - a hugely popular but highly controversial file-sharing website.Co-founder Peter Sunde managed to copy a backup meaning the site could relaunch just days later. He became a folk hero among internet users who relied on the platform for free access to pirated films and music. Sunde and his fellow founders were eventually jailed for assisting in the unauthorised distribution of copyrighted

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9:07

Chinua Achebe’s revolutionary book Things Fall Apart

Witness History ·

2025/05/28

In 1958 Nigerian writer, Chinua Achebe, published his first book, Things Fall Apart. Set in pre-colonial rural Nigeria, it examines how the arrival of foreigners led to tensions within traditional Igbo society. The book revolutionised African writing, and began a whole new genre of world literature.In 2016, Rebecca Kesby spoke to Achebe's youngest daughter, Nwando Achebe.Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events

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9:55

The Tragically Hip's final gig

Witness History ·

2025/05/27

In 2015, rockstar and Canadian icon Gord Downie was given months to live, after doctors found he had a terminal brain tumour. But instead of quietly exiting the stage, Gord and his band, the Tragically Hip, came up with a plan to play 15 shows across 10 of Canada’s major cities. Megan Lawton speaks to lead guitarist Rob Baker about the tour and the remarkable final gig that was watched by millions across the country.Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those

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10:18

'I wrote the Champions League anthem'

Witness History ·

2025/05/26

In 1992, European football was at a turning point. The European Cup was going to be replaced with a new format: The Champions League. European football’s governing body, Uefa wanted a classical theme to accompany the new competition, in an attempt to try and fix the image of football which was mired by hooliganism at the time. Tony Britten was the man tasked with writing such a piece of music. He tells Tim O’Callaghan how he did it. Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History

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