The Calais 'Jungle' migrant camp

The Calais 'Jungle' migrant camp

In 2015, Europe was in the grip of a migrant crisis, as more than one million people fled regions including the Middle East. Many set their sights on a new life in the UK. But, in order to get there, they had to cross the English Channel.

One of the most common methods was to hide aboard vehicles destined for Britain at the French port city of Calais. This led to the creation of a squalid migrant camp outside Calais, known as the "Jungle". It was populated by seven to ten thousand people at its largest.

Jean-Marc Puissesseau was head of the Port of Calais during the crisis. He speaks to Ben Henderson.

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: Chris Patten hands over flag during Honk Kong handover ceremony. Credit: Guillaume Pinon/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Episoder(2000)

Flight 655: When The US Shot Down An Airliner

Flight 655: When The US Shot Down An Airliner

On 3 July 1988, a US Navy warship, the USS Vincennes, shot down an Iranian civilian airliner over the Persian Gulf. All 290 on board the aircraft were killed, among them 66 children. The plane was flying a scheduled service from Bandar Abbas in Iran to Dubai but was mistakenly identified as "hostile" by the US ship. Alex Last has been hearing a rare first-hand account from Rudy Pahoyo, a former US Navy Combat Cameraman who happened to be filming on the USS Vincennes that day. Photo: The USS Vincennes fires a surface to air missile towards Iran Air flight 655 on 3 July 1988 (Rudy Pahoyo)

3 Jul 20189min

The Search For Deep Throat

The Search For Deep Throat

In July 2005, the identity of one of the most famous informants in American political history was revealed. Deep Throat leaked details of President Nixon's Watergate cover-up to the Washington Post leading eventually to the president's resignation. He was former assistant director at the FBI, Mark Felt. Louise Hidalgo has been talking to the lawyer who helped persuade the elderly Mark Felt to go public after 30 years of silence and speculation.Picture: Bob Woodward (left) and Carl Bernstein, the Washington Post reporters who broke the Watergate story, at their desk, 29th April 1973. They nicknamed their anonymous source Deep Throat. (Credit: Getty Images)

2 Jul 20189min

The President and the Gun Lobby

The President and the Gun Lobby

Former President George Bush Senior gave up his lifetime membership of the country's most powerful gun-lobby, the NRA, in 1995. Claire Bowes has been speaking to his speechwriter, Jim McGrath, to find out why the 41st President turned his back on the National Rifle Association, a body so closely associated with political power.Photo: Portrait Of President George Herbert Walker Bush in 1991 (credit: Bachrach/Getty Images)

29 Jun 20189min

Whiskey On The Rocks

Whiskey On The Rocks

In 1981 a Whiskey-class Soviet submarine became stranded on a rock just off the coast of southern Sweden. For years Sweden had suspected the Soviets of patrolling illegally in their territorial waters. Now they had their proof. It took 11 days of tense negotiation before the submarine was allowed to leave. Tim Mansel speaks to Klas Helmerson, who helped interpret on behalf of the Swedish navy.Photo: The Soviet submarine U-137 that ran aground in Karlskrona archipelago, Sweden in October 1981 (Credit: TT agency via Press Association)

28 Jun 20188min

The SARS Emergency

The SARS Emergency

Early 2003 saw a medical emergency sweep across the world. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome was a deadly virus which had first struck in southern China but soon there were cases as far away as Canada. William Ho and Tom Buckley were at the forefront of the battle against the epidemic.Photo: Image of the SARS virus. Credit: Science Photo Library.

27 Jun 20188min

Veronica Guerin - Dying for the Story

Veronica Guerin - Dying for the Story

In June 1996, the campaigning Irish journalist Veronica Guerin was murdered by a hit squad as she waited in her car at a set of traffic lights. Guerin had become famous in Ireland for exposing the activities of the country's drug barons. Her life was later turned into a Hollywood film. Simon Watts talks to Guerin's friend and fellow journalist, Lise Hand.(Photo: Veronica Guerin. Credit: Getty Images).

26 Jun 20188min

The King of Lampedusa

The King of Lampedusa

In June 1943 a young Jewish RAF pilot from the East End of London was forced to make an emergency landing on the Italian island of Lampedusa. The Italian forces stationed there promptly surrendered to him. He told his story to the BBC ,and soon he was a hero back home. A musical about his story even became a hit in London. Daniel Gordon has been listening to the BBC's archive, and talking to Arnold Schwartzman who made a film about Flight Sgt Sydney Cohen.Photo: A Swordfish bi-plane, the type of plane that Sydney Cohen was flying when he landed on Lampedusa. Credit: Alamy.

25 Jun 20188min

How the World Woke Up to Global Warming

How the World Woke Up to Global Warming

Professor James Hansen finally got US politicians to listen to his warnings about climate change in June 1988 after years of trying. He and fellow NASA scientists had first predicted global warming in 1981. Professor Hansen spoke to Ashley Byrne about his discoveries.Image: Map of the world. Credit: Science Photo Library.

22 Jun 20189min

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