Witness History25 Jul 2024

Building the Moscow Metro

More than 10,000 Russian workers built the first line of the Moscow Metro which opened in 1935 to great fanfare.

The spectacular stations were designed to show the world the power and possibility of Russian strength. Stalin wanted architects to design stations to be 'palaces for the people', with statues and structures built to make people look up and admire the marble walls, high ceilings and grand chandeliers.

Now one of the busiest undergrounds in the world, Uma Doraiswamy goes through the archives and hears from Tatiana Fedorova, one of the workers who sometimes had to use her hands to dig the tunnels.

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 football in Brazil, the history of the ‘Indian Titanic’ and the invention of air fryers, to Public Enemy’s Fight The Power, subway art and the political crisis in Georgia. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: visionary architect Antoni Gaudi and the design of the Sagrada Familia; Michael Jordan and his bespoke Nike trainers; Princess Diana at the Taj Mahal; and Görel Hanser, manager of legendary Swedish pop band Abba on the influence they’ve had on the music industry. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the time an Iraqi journalist hurled his shoes at the President of the United States in protest of America’s occupation of Iraq; the creation of the Hollywood commercial that changed advertising forever; and the ascent of the first Aboriginal MP.

(Photo: The Sokolniki Metro station in Moscow in 1935. Credit: Getty Images)

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(2000)

'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 ...

30 Jul 10min

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 ...

29 Jul 11min

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...

27 Jul 10min

Creating Africa’s largest film festival

On 1 February 1969, the first African film festival of Ouagadougou opened in the Republic of Upper Volta, now known as Burkina Faso.In 1972, the event was made into an official institution by governme...

24 Jul 10min

The first solar-powered flight around the world

In 2016, a fragile-looking aircraft with the wingspan of a jumbo jet and the power of a scooter attempted something no-one had ever managed before: flying around the world without a drop of fuel.But b...

23 Jul 10min

Unveiling the face of Crazy Horse

On 3 June 1998, a stone carving of Native American warrior Crazy Horse's face was unveiled in South Dakota.It is 27m tall and is part of a much larger sculpture showing the Native American warrior rid...

22 Jul 10min

How a Peruvian instrument revolutionised flamenco

Before 1977, flamenco percussion relied solely on hand‑clapping and dancers' footwork. But that year, at a party in Lima, Peru, the cajon entered the scene.Spanish guitarist Paco de Lucia and Brazilia...

21 Jul 10min

Mexico’s ‘little old lady killer’

In March 2008, former female wrestler Juana Barraza was found guilty of murdering at least 11 elderly women in Mexico City. The murders took place over a period of seven years, and Barraza became kno...

20 Jul 10min