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Witness History
BBC
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.
Beschikbare afleveringen
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Cuba's Mariel boatlift
In April 1980, thousands of Cubans tried to escape the country by claiming asylum at the Peruvian embassy in Havana. In response, Cuban President Fidel Castro opened the port of Mariel to anyone who wanted to leave, including... -
The 'Jugroom Fort' rescue mission
In 2007, four British servicemen perched on the wings of an Apache helicopter in Afghanistan, in an audacious mission to rescue a fallen comrade. Lance Corporal Mathew Ford was part of a unit which had attacked Jugroom Fort - a major... -
Ötzi: The Iceman of Bolzano
In September 1991, two German hikers found a dead body while walking through Europe’s Ötzal Alps. It turned out to be a perfectly preserved 5,000-year-old mummy. The archaeologist Konrad Spindler inspected the body along with the... -
The Kaohsiung Incident
On 10 December 1979, pro-democracy activists clashed with police in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. The incident, which happened during Taiwan's martial law period, paved the way for the transition to democracy. Rachel Naylor speaks to Yao... -
Chile's 'Penguin Revolution'
In 2006, hundreds of thousands of school children in Chile took over their schools and marched in the streets, in a protest about inequality in education. It was known as the "Penguin Revolution" because of their black and white... -
The liberation of Auschwitz
On 27 January 1945, prisoners at the Nazis’ largest death camp were freed by the Soviet Union’s Red Army. General Vasily Petrenko commanded one of the four units that liberated Auschwitz. The Nazis murdered 1.1 million people at... -
John Logie Baird invents television
On 26 January 1926, John Logie Baird first demonstrated his 'televisor' in public. It was the prototype for television. Many people couldn't believe what they were seeing whilst others thought it was a pointless invention. In 2010,... -
Agatha Christie: best-selling novelist of all time
On 12 January 1976, author Agatha Christie died peacefully, aged 85. She created the detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. By the time of her death, Christie had written more than 80 books. Most of her works were detective novels... -
The Challenger space shuttle tragedy
On 28 January 1986, a space shuttle launch went wrong. Six astronauts and a teacher, Christa McAuliffe, were killed. In 1984, US President Ronald Reagan had announced that Nasa would search for a member of the public to accompany... -
Operation Mincemeat
In the early hours of 30 April, 1943, one of the most audacious hoaxes of World War Two has just got underway. Its code-name - Operation Mincemeat. The body of a British naval officer, Major William Martin, has been washed up on a... -
The Irish priest who built an airport
In May 1986, a new airport opened in Knock in the west of Ireland. It was the dream of an Irish priest, Monsignor James Horan, who raised millions to have it built. The location for the airport seemed impossible – set in the boggy,... -
Exiled Ayatollah Khomeini returns to Iran
In February 1979, after the Shah left Iran, religious leader Ayatollah Khomeini flew back to Tehran from Paris. He had been in exile and was greeted by millions of people lining the streets. In 2011, Mohsen Sazegara who worked for...