Isabel Allende: The House of the Spirits
In 1982, Isabel Allende published her debut novel, The House of the Spirits. The characters are based on her family, and the story reflects Chile’s 20th Century history, including the 1973 military co...
6 Jan 9min
The Hillsborough disaster
On 15 April 1989, there was a crowd crush at a football match in Sheffield, England, which led to the death of 97 fans. It was the semi-final of the FA Cup between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest and ...
5 Jan 10min
South Africa's luxury train
In 1986, South African businessman Rohan Vos was sitting in the bath when he decided to pursue his passion and launch a vintage railway business. However, the venture nearly bankrupted him, and he was...
2 Jan 10min
The American Freedom Train
In April 1975, the American Freedom Train set out on a tour across the United States to celebrate 200 years of American independence.On-board were more than 500 priceless artefacts, documenting import...
1 Jan 9min
The longest musical composition
On 31 December 1999, a piece of music started playing in a lighthouse on the River Thames in east London. It’s called Longplayer, and it’s set to keep going, without repeating, until the year 2999. It...
31 Dec 202510min
Radio Free Europe
Seventy-five years ago, Radio Free Europe started broadcasting news to audiences behind the Iron Curtain.It initially broadcast to Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland and Romania and programmes ...
30 Dec 20259min
SMS: The invention of text messaging
In October 1984, as the market for mobile phones was just opening up, one man decided it would be useful if the new technology could be used to send and receive short, electronic messages.But colleagu...
29 Dec 202510min
Creating the board game Catan
In 1995, Klaus Teuber’s board game Catan launched in Germany. The board is made up of hexagonal tiles, and it's a game about strategy and collecting resources.It's since sold over 40 million copies an...
26 Dec 202510min
