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Kultur & Gesellschaft

Witness History

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.

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Folgen von Witness History

2000 Folgen
  • Folge vom 22.04.2026
    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-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 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 how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.(Photo: Protesters sat disrupting the loggers. Credit: Jacob Sutton/Getty Images)
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    • im Online-Player
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    • Was ist das?
      Radio hören mit phonostar Help layer phonostarplayer Um Radio anzuhören, stehen dir bei phonostar zwei Möglichkeiten zur Verfügung: Entweder hörst du mit dem Online-Player direkt in deinem Browser, oder du nutzt den phonostar-Player. Der phonostar-Player ist eine kostenlose Software für PC und Mac, mit der du Radio unabhängig von deinem Browser finden, hören und sogar aufnehmen kannst. ›››› phonostar-Player gratis herunterladen X
  • Folge vom 21.04.2026
    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 nuclear power stations was at risk of shutdown because of insufficient water for cooling, and, in Serbia, the drought revealed sunken World War Two ships and unexploded bombs.In the lower Danube, low water levels also caused a decrease in bird and fish populations.Kristian Yakimov, an ecologist and tourist guide in Bulgaria, speaks to Jacqueline Paine.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 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 how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.(Photo: Cracked, muddy ground at the river bank of the Danube river. Credit: Alexanda Rilich/Getty Images)
    Jetzt anhören
    • im Online-Player
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    • Was ist das?
      Radio hören mit phonostar Help layer phonostarplayer Um Radio anzuhören, stehen dir bei phonostar zwei Möglichkeiten zur Verfügung: Entweder hörst du mit dem Online-Player direkt in deinem Browser, oder du nutzt den phonostar-Player. Der phonostar-Player ist eine kostenlose Software für PC und Mac, mit der du Radio unabhängig von deinem Browser finden, hören und sogar aufnehmen kannst. ›››› phonostar-Player gratis herunterladen X
  • Folge vom 20.04.2026
    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, the company launched one of the largest wildlife rescue operations in South America. It was called Mymba Kuera - 'the animals' in Guarani, the local language. Dario Perez Chena led the operation on the Paraguayan side. He speaks to Stefania Gozzer about the challenges his team faced in saving nearly 30,000 animals.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 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 how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines' life and Omar Sharif's legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives' ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.(Photo: A rescue team trying to grab a monkey. Credit: Itaipu Binacional)
    Jetzt anhören
    • im Online-Player
    • im phonostar-Player
    • Was ist das?
      Radio hören mit phonostar Help layer phonostarplayer Um Radio anzuhören, stehen dir bei phonostar zwei Möglichkeiten zur Verfügung: Entweder hörst du mit dem Online-Player direkt in deinem Browser, oder du nutzt den phonostar-Player. Der phonostar-Player ist eine kostenlose Software für PC und Mac, mit der du Radio unabhängig von deinem Browser finden, hören und sogar aufnehmen kannst. ›››› phonostar-Player gratis herunterladen X
  • Folge vom 17.04.2026
    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 fascinated by and curious about 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 how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.(Photo: Hans Christian Andersen. Credit: Hulton-Deutsch Collection via Getty Images)
    Jetzt anhören
    • im Online-Player
    • im phonostar-Player
    • Was ist das?
      Radio hören mit phonostar Help layer phonostarplayer Um Radio anzuhören, stehen dir bei phonostar zwei Möglichkeiten zur Verfügung: Entweder hörst du mit dem Online-Player direkt in deinem Browser, oder du nutzt den phonostar-Player. Der phonostar-Player ist eine kostenlose Software für PC und Mac, mit der du Radio unabhängig von deinem Browser finden, hören und sogar aufnehmen kannst. ›››› phonostar-Player gratis herunterladen X