The discovery of the coelacanth
Witness History10 Dec 2025

The discovery of the coelacanth

In 1938, South African museum curator Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer discovered a coelacanth, a fish that was believed to have been extinct for 65 million years.

It is thought to be our ancestor and the missing link between how fish evolved into four-legged amphibians.

This was produced and presented by Rachel Naylor, in collaboration with BBC Archives.

Eyewitness 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 the death of Adolf Hitler, the first spacewalk and the making of the movie Jaws, to celebrity tortoise Lonesome George, the Kobe earthquake and the invention of superglue.

We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: Eva Peron – Argentina’s Evita; President Ronald Reagan and his famous ‘tear down this wall’ speech; Thomas Keneally on why he wrote Schindler’s List; and Jacques Derrida, France’s ‘rock star’ philosopher.

You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the civil rights swimming protest; the disastrous D-Day rehearsal; and the death of one of the world’s oldest languages.

Avsnitt(2000)

My dad created Mr Men and Little Miss

My dad created Mr Men and Little Miss

In 1971, advertising writer Roger Hargreaves's eight-year-old son Adam asked him an unusual question: 'What does a tickle look like?'Inspired, Roger got out his marker pens and created an orange chara...

6 Feb 10min

Austria's wine scandal

Austria's wine scandal

In 1985, government scientists discovered anti-freeze in bottles of fine Austrian wine. No one died or fell ill from drinking the poisoned wine, but the scandal nearly destroyed the country's wine-mak...

5 Feb 10min

Jimmy Carter visits Cuba

Jimmy Carter visits Cuba

In May 2002, former US President Jimmy Carter paid a controversial visit to Cuba, which had been subject to a US trade embargo for more than 40 years.The trip culminated in a speech, broadcast live on...

4 Feb 10min

Cuba's Mariel boatlift

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 w...

3 Feb 10min

The 'Jugroom Fort' rescue mission

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 ha...

2 Feb 10min

Ötzi: The Iceman of Bolzano

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 ins...

30 Jan 9min

The Kaohsiung Incident

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.Rac...

29 Jan 10min

Chile's 'Penguin Revolution'

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" bec...

28 Jan 9min

Populärt inom Samhälle & Kultur

podme-dokumentar
badfluence
en-mork-historia
aftonbladet-krim
mardromsgasten
p3-dokumentar
creepypodden-med-jack-werner
gynning-berg
skaringer-nessvold
nemo-moter-en-van
killradet
hor-har
flashback-forever
rattsfallen
svenska-fall
vad-blir-det-for-mord
rss-sanning-konsekvens
aftonbladet-daily
kod-katastrof
historiska-brott