The Shah of Iran's party
Witness History6 Nov 2024

The Shah of Iran's party

In 1971, the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, celebrated 2,500 years of the Persian Empire by throwing a huge three-day party.

Trees were planted, birds imported, and a runway built in the middle of the desert with royalty from across the world attending.

But the event united opposition parties against the Shah and lost him public credibility.

Author and journalist Sally Quinn was “party reporter” for the Washington Post and covered the event.

She speaks to Megan Jones.

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.

Avsnitt(2000)

The book that changed Norway’s view of immigrants

The book that changed Norway’s view of immigrants

In 2010, a book came out in Norway that transformed the way people looked at paperless immigrants. The author, a 25-year-old Russian woman, fled North Ossetia as a child with her parents. They were ne...

20 Aug 202510min

One man’s escape from McCarthyism

One man’s escape from McCarthyism

In 1951, at the height of the McCarthy era, a time when the US government pursued suspected communists, Victor Grossman was drafted into the army. A committed communist since his teens, he hid his pol...

19 Aug 202510min

Spot the Dog

Spot the Dog

In 1978, British artist Eric Hill designed an interactive book about a yellow puppy for his two-year-old son, Chris.Eric had noticed Chris kept lifting up the paper he was working on to see what was u...

18 Aug 202510min

Pramoedya Ananta Toer: The banned author of Indonesia

Pramoedya Ananta Toer: The banned author of Indonesia

In 1969, Indonesian writer Pramoedya Ananta Toer was imprisoned without trial in the notorious labour camp on Buru Island. He spent 10 years there.He is best known for his novels about the rise of Ind...

15 Aug 202510min

Jakarta’s ban on dancing monkeys

Jakarta’s ban on dancing monkeys

In 2013, Jakarta's governor moved to outlaw the use of dancing monkeys on the city’s streets.The Indonesian tradition saw macaques made to perform for passers-by - often restrained by chains and dress...

14 Aug 202510min

Discovery of the 'Hobbit'

Discovery of the 'Hobbit'

In 2003, archaeologists on the island of Flores, in Indonesia, discovered the skeleton of a new species of human - Homo floresiensis.It was nicknamed the 'Hobbit', because they were just over a metre ...

13 Aug 202510min

Borobudur Temple

Borobudur Temple

In 1983, Borobudur Temple in Indonesia reopened. The worlds’ largest Buddhist monument is in the shadows of an active volcano and was once lost to the jungle. In 1973, major restoration work started o...

12 Aug 202510min

The Santa Cruz Massacre

The Santa Cruz Massacre

On 12 November 1991, Indonesian troops opened fire on independence activists in East Timor's capital, Dili.During a protest march to the Santa Cruz cemetery after a memorial service for an independenc...

11 Aug 20259min

Populärt inom Samhälle & Kultur

podme-dokumentar
aftonbladet-krim
gynning-berg
p3-dokumentar
svenska-fall
en-mork-historia
mardromsgasten
creepypodden-med-jack-werner
skaringer-nessvold
killradet
spar
rattsfallen
flashback-forever
hor-har
vad-blir-det-for-mord
rss-sanning-konsekvens
historiska-brott
kod-katastrof
rss-mer-an-bara-morsa
rss-brottsutredarna