BBC OS Conversations: Three months after the fall of Assad

The fighting between Sudan’s military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces started around three weeks ago. Since then, the UN estimates that more than a 100,000 people have fled the country and more than a third of a million have been displaced within Sudan. Host James Reynolds hears from some of those who have been forced to flee their country.

6 Maj 202324min

According to the national census, the number of British people who say they follow Shamanism as a religion has risen twelvefold in the space of 10 years. While the numbers are still low – at around 8,000 followers - the increase has put pressure on those who have followed the practice for years. The BBC’s Amber Haque visits a British shaman to find out what Shamanism is, what it means to her and her circle of believers and why they think it should be taken seriously.

5 Maj 202327min

Thousands of Kenyan villagers are being given free cash as part of a huge trial being run by an American non-profit, GiveDirectly. Why? Some aid organisations believe that simply giving people money is one of the most effective ways to tackle extreme poverty and boost development. After all, they argue, local people themselves know best how to use the funds to improve their lives. But does it work? Is it really a long term solution? In 2018, the BBC visited a Kenyan village whose residents received money at the start of the trial. Five years on, the BBC’s Mary Harper returns to see what’s changed.Photo: Woman frying fish in village in western Kenya (BBC)Reporter: Mary Harper Producer: Alex Last Studio Manager: Graham Puddifoot Series Editor: Penny Murphy Production Coordinator: Helena Warwick-Cross With special thanks to Fred Ooko

4 Maj 202329min

Charles III waited a very long time to become King. Since his investiture as Prince of Wales in 1969, he filled his life with activity, pursuing deeply held passions and causes – on the environment, farming, architecture, charities to help young people and projects to improve understanding between religious groups. We speak to the people who know him best, to explain the ideas and values which motivated him for so many decades. We discover how his many eclectic projects are rooted in his spiritual beliefs about the essential harmony of the universe and his reverence for the natural world.

2 Maj 202326min

The acclaimed British theatre director, Tinuke Craig embarks on her opera debut at the English National Opera with Blue, a tale of police violence in America and its impact on a New York family. The opera has been composed by the Tony award-winning Jeanine Tesori, with a libretto by Tazewell Thompson. Anna Bailey follows Tinuke and her operatic collaborators as she embarks on a challenging new chapter in her career.

1 Maj 202326min

People from all over the globe remember their meetings with King Charles III over the years. They include Dr Joe McInnes who took the former Prince for a dive beneath the ice of the North West passage in 1975, holocaust survivor Lily Ebert, Joseph Hammond who met the King when he visited a military cemetery in Ghana and former pop singer and Spice Girl Mel B who remembers several hilarious encounters with the King including one involving the former President of South Africa Nelson Mandela.

30 Apr 202350min

Fentanyl is a potentially deadly synthetic opioid. The other month, a drug enforcement official in the country described it as the single deadliest drug threat the US has encountered. It’s been around since the 1960s and small doses are used safely every day by medics for pain relief. But as an illegal drug, Fentanyl is blamed for more than 70,000 deaths in the US every year. We bring together two parents who lost children to the drug. George Gerchow in Colorado tells us that one of the hardest aspects is dealing with the stigma and lack of support from the community.

29 Apr 202324min

Professor Robert Beckford explores the Christian understanding of reparations. He speaks to Christians in Barbados who say reparations from the Church are now both justified and necessary. But their perspective is only one side of the story. In England, representatives from the Church of England and the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel articulate their understanding of reparations and why they believe it is unnecessary. Robert looks into Christian scripture to explore if there could be a theological case for the payment of reparations.

27 Apr 202327min