Dinner for One: How an English comedy became a German tradition
Every New Year’s Eve, millions of Germans turn on their TVs to rewatch an old favourite – the comedy Dinner for One.The black and white sketch is in English and features a British cast but is virtuall...
27 Dec 20249min
'Kimchi war'
In the run-up to the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, in the United States, a row broke out between Japan and South Korea over who would supply the athletes' village with kimchi.The two countries also t...
26 Dec 202410min
Chef to five presidents
Cristeta Comerford has cooked for some of the most powerful people in the world. She spent almost three decades as a chef in the White House, serving five presidents from Bill Clinton to Joe Biden. On...
25 Dec 20249min
When instant noodles came to India
The arrival of instant noodles in India was a turning point in culinary history. In 1983, before Maggi 2-Minute Noodles launched, the country’s food culture centred around chapati, lentils and rice an...
24 Dec 20249min
'I created MasterChef'
In 1990, a cookery programme launched on BBC TV that would become a global phenomenon. Today, MasterChef airs in 70 countries around the world and has an estimated audience of one billion people.Briti...
23 Dec 20249min
Australian republic referendum
On 6 November 1999, voters in Australia were asked if they wanted to break ties with the British monarchy and become a republic.The No campaign won with 55% of the vote.Rachel Naylor speaks to former ...
20 Dec 202410min
Poland's bleak Christmas
In 1981, the communist government of Poland declared martial law in an attempt to suppress rising protests and strikes.The civil unrest had been sparked by Solidarity, a trade union which became a soc...
19 Dec 20249min
Ceefax: the start of interactive television
In 1974, the BBC launched the world's first teletext service.It provided information, like news and weather, through our TV screens, whenever users wanted, at the push of a button.Rachel Naylor speaks...
18 Dec 202410min
