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.

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

Episoder(2000)

The world's first general purpose electronic computer

In 1946, one of the world’s first electronic computers was unveiled in Philadelphia, in the USA. It was called the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer, or ENIAC, and was initially designed to...

9 Okt 20249min

WABOT-1: The first humanoid robot

Scientists at Waseda University in Japan built the world's first humanoid robot in 1973. They called it the 'WABOT', the Waseda robot. It could see, walk and even talk. It was a huge leap forward in t...

8 Okt 20249min

Eliza: When chatbots started

Eliza is the name of a 1966 invention by German born scientist, Joseph Weizenbaum, that is said to be the first chatbot.Eliza worked by someone typing their feelings into a computer keyboard, and then...

7 Okt 202410min

The longest plane hijacking in Latin America

In 1973, two men pretending to be Colombian guerrillas took a plane and flew across Latin America for 60 hours. It was the longest hijacking of an aircraft in the region.The SAM Airlines plane stopped...

4 Okt 20249min

The speech that inspired the Law of the Sea

In November 1967, the Maltese diplomat, Arvid Pardo, addressed the United Nations with a remarkable speech that shaped the laws governing the sea.Pardo's message is immortalised in the United Nations ...

3 Okt 20249min

South Africa’s nuclear weapons

In 1989, South Africa became the first, and only country to make and then dismantle nuclear weapons.The project was conducted at Kentron Circle, a secret weapons facility.André Buys was plant manager ...

2 Okt 20249min

Cambodia war crimes

In 2009, a UN-backed war crimes tribunal opened in Cambodia to try the senior Khmer Rouge commanders responsible for genocide.An estimated two million people were killed during Pol Pot's regime in the...

1 Okt 20249min

Kristallnacht: The night of broken glass

In November 1938, the Nazis organised a night of terror against Jews in Germany. Windows of homes, businesses and synagogues were broken. Kurt Salomon Maier was eight years old, living with his Jewish...

30 Sep 20249min