Witness History
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Witness History
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The first Great Wall of China trek
In May1984, three friends starting trekking along the Great Wall of China. It took 508 days for them to complete and they became the first people to d...
How a Maasai community in Kenya overcame a deadly drought
In 2013, after losing most of their cattle, a Maasai community in Kajiado County formed an organisation to protect their land and culture.
It's...
The only Pope to visit New Zealand
In November 1986, Pope John Paul II visited New Zealand as part of his longest ever world tour.
He gave an open-air mass at Auckland Domain in f...
The reunification of Germany
When the Berlin Wall fell on 9 November 1989, it marked a turning point in the Cold War in Europe and set in motion the process that led to the reunif...
Women's rights in independent Tunisia
It's 70 years since Tunisian gained independence from France.
In August 1956, it brought in a new equality law that revolutionised women's lives...
The 'Cyprus Emergency'
Between 1955 and 1959, a Greek-Cypriot paramilitary group called EOKA rebelled against British colonial rule in Cyprus. In response, the British autho...
Oslo's anti-racism demonstration
On 1 February 2001, at least 30,000 people rallied in Oslo after the murder of 15-year-old Benjamin Hermansen by neo-Nazis.
It is thought to be...
The L'Amicale Four
In 1999, a fire at the L’Amicale gambling house in Port Louis, Mauritius, killed seven people. The fire began during riots that followed a disputed fo...
The nuclear mango deal
On 2 March 2006, the United States and India finalised a controversial nuclear deal, ending India's three decades of international isolation over its...
How Rang De Basanti inspired a generation
Released on India’s Republic Day in January 2006, the Hindi film Rang De Basanti, exploded onto the cultural landscape.
In its first week, it s...
My father directed Seven Samurai
Akira Kurosawa's film, Seven Samurai, is an epic three-and-a-half hour long black and white film set in 16th century Japan.
It was released in 1...
Triumph of the Will: A Nazi propaganda film
In 1934, one of the most controversial propaganda movies ever made - Triumph of the Will – was filmed at the Nazis’ Nuremberg rally.
The...
The invention of the mobility scooter
In 1967, American plumber Al Thieme promised his wife with multiple sclerosis that he would find her an alternative to a wheelchair.
He came up...
India’s first nuclear test
In May 1974 India successfully detonated its first atomic device. It had been developed in secret with the codename Smiling Buddha.
India calle...
Portugal’s worst train disaster
On 11 September 1985 in Mangualde, central Portugal, an express train collided head-on with a regional train killing an estimated 150 people.
Th...
Elvis visits Scotland
In 1960, as he headed home from military service, the King of Rock ’n’ Roll made an unexpected stop at Prestwick Airport.
It's believed to be th...
Sweden’s diplomatic freeze with the USA
Outraged by the Christmas bombings of Hanoi in 1972 by the USA during the Vietnam War, the Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme made a critical speech....
Syria's secret library
A group of young men in the besieged town of Darayya came together to build a secret library during the Syrian civil war, which started in 2011 and en...
The Aga Khan meets Florence Nightingale
In 1898, the British founder of modern nursing, Florence Nightingale, invited the Muslim leader Aga Khan III around to her London home for tea.
...
The storming of Spain's parliament
In February 1981, armed Civil Guards tried to take control of the Spanish parliament.
A total of 350 politicians were held hostage for 18 hours...
The playboy spy who inspired James Bond
During the 1940s, a playboy spy became one of wartime’s most successful double agents, as well as the reported inspiration behind James Bond.
A...
'I taught the Dalai Lama'
In 1944, two Austrian mountaineers fled into the forbidden land of Tibet to escape from a prisoner-of-war camp in India.
Heinrich Harrer and his...
The photo which symbolised Argentina’s resistance
Adriana Lestido, an Argentinian newspaper photographer, captured a mother and her young daughter raising their arms in protest in 1982.
With cl...
Toxic shock syndrome and tampon safety
In 1980, toxic shock syndrome (TSS) emerged as a public health crisis among women who used tampons.
There were hundreds of cases, and The Cente...
World War Two’s Shetland Bus
During World War Two, whilst Norway was occupied by Nazi Germany, a group of Norwegian sailors set up a base on the Shetland Islands and began aiding...
The Mont Blanc Tunnel
In July 1965, a 12km tunnel dug deep beneath the Alps was opened to traffic, making it the longest vehicular tunnel in the world. Linking France and I...
Gina Lollobrigida interviews Fidel Castro
Gina Lollobrigida was one of the biggest stars of European cinema in the 1950s and 1960s. Often described as "the most beautiful woman in the world",...
When Pink Floyd played in Venice
In July 1989, Pink Floyd played a free concert to 200,000 people in Venice, Italy. The British rock band took to a stage made of floating barges as cr...
The discovery of nerve growth factor
During World War Two, Italian scientist Dr Rita Levi-Montalcini was forced to do experiments in her bedroom after being banned from universities becau...
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...
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.
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...
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 educat...
John Logie Baird invents television
On 26 January 1926, John Logie Baird first demonstrated his 'televisor' in public. It was the prototype for television.
Many people couldn't be...
Agatha Christie: best-selling novelist of all time
On 12 January 1976, author Agatha Christie died peacefully, aged 85.
She created the detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple.
By the tim...
Exiled Ayatollah Khomeini returns to Iran
In February 1979, after the Shah left Iran, religious leader Ayatollah Khomeini flew back to Tehran from Paris.
He had been in exile and was gre...
Afghan Star
In 2005, a new show was launched on television in Afghanistan to find new musical talent – it was called Afghan Star and was inspired by formats like...
Creating Cluedo
Air raids and blackouts during World War Two helped Anthony Pratt invent one of the most popular family board games: Cluedo.
But the musician's...
The creation of the modern kitchen
In 1926, Austrian architect Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky created the modern kitchen. It was called the Frankfurt Kitchen and was something she didn’t li...
The first PC virus
In 1986, 'Welcome to the dungeon' was the message that flashed up on computer screens.
Brain is thought to be the first virus for personal comp...