Witness History

In the 1990s, Ayia Napa, in Cyprus, went from quiet fishing village to party resort.

The Kool Club was one of the first nightclubs to open in 1995.

Rachel Naylor speaks to founder and DJ Nick Power, the 'godfather of Ayia Napa'.

(Photo: The Kool Club, in Ayia Napa. Credit: Nick Power)

Between 1963 and 1974, more than 2,000 people in Cyprus went missing during clashes, a coup and the Turkish invasion.

Only about half of them have been found.

Rachel Naylor speaks to Nick Neokleous, the President of the Organisation of Relatives of Missing Cypriots, whose brother, Pavlos, went missing in 1974.

(Photo: A Cypriot woman holds a picture of her relatives, who went missing in 1974. Credit: Laura Boushnak via Getty Images)

In April 2003, the people of Cyprus were allowed to cross the ceasefire line for the first time in 29 years.

Hundreds of people rushed to the check points and queued for hours to visit the homes they had left after the Greek coup and Turkish invasion of July 1974. Greek Cypriots made up the great majority of those displaced, often fleeing under fire with nothing but the clothes they had on.

Singer and ethnomusicologist Nicoletta Demetriou?s parents were among them. Nicoletta tells Maria Margaronis about the day the checkpoints opened, the experience of crossing, and her parents? encounter with their old neighbourhood and its new inhabitants ? and reflects on how it changed her.

(Photo: People crossing the ceasefire line in Cyprus in April 2003. Credit: Janine Haidar/AFP via Getty Images)

Music: Solo laouto by Michalis Tterlikkas.

On the 20 July 1974, a young pilot was preparing to land passenger flight CY317 into Nicosia Airport in Cyprus, amidst the threat of an imminent Turkish invasion. From the air, he could see warships approaching the island.

Little did he know that his aircraft would be the final one to land there, it would be destroyed within hours, and the airport remains frozen in time to this day.??

Fifty years later, Captain Adamos Marneros tells Amelia Parker about that fear-filled final flight, on a pivotal day in 1974, and the airport, which he revisited a few years ago.

(Photo: Captain Adamos Marneros outside the derelict Nicosia Airport in 2017. Credit: Leon Dimitrios)

On 15 July 1974, the Greek military dictatorship in Athens sponsored a coup on the eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus, aiming to overthrow its selected president and unite the island with Greece.

Days later, Turkey invaded the island, taking a third of it and displacing many thousands of its inhabitants.

The writer Bekir Azgun grew up in the village of Potamia, where Greek and Turkish Cypriots had once lived together in harmony. He speaks to Maria Margaronis about the day of the coup and reflects on the gradual separation of the island's two communities, beginning with the Greek Cypriot anticolonial struggle against Britain in the 1950s and culminating in the Turkish invasion and partition.

No outside power acted to stop this conflict between two NATO members. Cyprus, strategically positioned near the Middle East, remains divided to this day.

Archive by kind permission of the Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation.

Music by Michalis Terlikkas.

(Photo: The new de facto President of Cyprus, Nikos Sampson, holds a press conference after the military coup d'état which deposed Archbishop Makarios. Credit: Harry Dempster/Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Like many young children growing up in Brazil in the 1960s and 1970s, Dilma Mendes had one dream: to play football for her country.

There was just one problem. It was illegal for women in Brazil to play football at that time, a law that came into force in 1941 - and lasted nearly 40 years.

Dilma lost count of the amount of times she was arrested and taken to the police station for playing football.

She tells Vicky Farncombe the confusion and fear she felt as a child. "I did not understand why people didn't allow me to do something which I loved so much."

She also describes the ingenious ways she hid from the police officers.

(Photo: Dilma Mendes. Credit: Getty Images)

In September 1988, protests broke out in Manfredonia, Italy, after the arrival of a large ship carrying toxic waste of Italian origin. The Deep Sea Carrier had arrived from Nigeria, after a protracted diplomatic dispute between Italy and Nigeria.

For four days, the town was completely shut down and by the end of the protests, an environmental movement was born.

The Deep Sea Carrier and another ship, the Karin B, became known as the ?navi dei veleni?, or poison ships.

Jill Achineku speaks to Rosa Porcu, a teacher and one of the protesters. A Whistledown production for the BBC World Service.

(Photo: Rusty barrrels of toxic waste. Credit: iznashih)

On 2 October 1968, thousands of students protested in Mexico City, 10 days before the Olympics.

The students wanted the government to free political prisoners and respect their right to protest.

More than 4,000 activists came to the Plaza de las Tres Culturas in the capital's Tlatelolco district that evening.

It resulted in Mexican soldiers opening fire on the protesters. The death toll has never been confirmed, a government report from the time put it at 26, while student leaders estimated it at more than 100.

In 2011, one of the young protesters, David Huerta, spoke to Julian Miglierini.

(Photo: Students arrested by police in Tlatelolco on 2 October 1968. Credit: Bettmann / Contributor via Getty Images)

In January 1990, Cuban singer Celia Cruz, known as ?the Queen of salsa?, went back to Cuba. Banned by Fidel Castro for opposing his regime, it was the only time in her 43 years of exile that she was able to visit the island.

She was invited to sing in the US naval base on Guantanamo Bay. The trip only lasted a day and a half, but it was full of touching moments and symbolisms. Omer Pardillo Cid, Celia?s manager and close friend, tells Stefania Gozzer about the mark this visit left in the singer.

(Photo: Celia Cruz holds a Cuban flag as she performs during the 'Combinacion Perfecta' concert at Madison Square Garden, New York City, 1993. Credit: Getty)

In 2006, Dutch engineer Fred van der Weij invented a kitchen device that changed the way many of us cook today: the air fryer.

Fred?s first prototype was nearly as big as a dog kennel and made of wood and aluminium, with a chicken wire basket. It was only a partial success.

But Fred was certain he could make the machine work thanks to an idea he patented called rapid air technology.

Four years later, and after several more prototypes, Fred took his invention to the electronics company, Philips, and signed a deal.

Today, there are many other air fryer brands and models, and by the end of 2024, it?s estimated 80 million will have been sold around the world.

Fred died of cancer in 2022 but his daughter Suus van der Weij witnessed the development of his invention. She told Jane Wilkinson about the family?s pride in her father.

(Photo: Fred van der Weij with his prototypes. Credit: van der Weij family)

In Canada's 1993 election, the governing Progressive Conservative Party was routed, ending up with just two seats.

In the 1980s, the party won the largest majority in Canadian history. But by 1993, it was in crisis and the new Prime Minister, Kim Campbell, called an election. But she didn?t bank on the emergence of a new populist party called Reform, which stormed Canada?s traditionally two-party system claiming 52 seats. The Progressive Conservatives never recovered.

Ben Henderson speaks to the former Prime Minister, Kim Campbell, and Preston Manning, founder and former leader of Reform.

(Photo: Preston Manning. Credit: Peter Power/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

It's 35 years since the release of one of the most provocative songs in music history.

Fight the Power by hip-hop group, Public Enemy, was radical both politically and sonically.

The song was written at the request of filmmaker, Spike Lee, who needed an anthem for his 1989 movie, Do the Right Thing.

The film became a box office smash and - despite controversy surrounding Public Enemy's image - the song soon became an anthem of protest and rebellion all over the world.

Public Enemy frontman, Chuck D, shares his memories of that time with Matt Pintus.

(Photo: Chuck D and Spike Lee pictured in 1989. Credit: Getty Images)

Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in December 1991, the newly independent state Georgia found itself on the verge of a civil war.

Rebel groups in Tbilisi came together to overthrow the newly elected President Zviad Gamsakhurdia, who was forced into hiding. Gunmen took to the streets and hospitals were overwhelmed.

In 2010, Tom Esslemont spoke to Lamara Vashakidze, a survivor of Georgia?s crisis.

(Photo: Two Georgian soldiers stand among bomb-damaged buildings in Tbilisi. Credit: Patrick Robert/Sygma/CORBIS/Sygma via Getty Images)

Between 1937 and 1938, Soviet leader Josef Stalin carried out his most severe purge in Georgia.

Known as the Great Terror, thousands of political rivals, intellectuals and ordinary citizens were executed without trial and buried in mass graves.

Dan Hardoon speaks to Levan Pesvianidze in Tbilisi, Georgia, whose grandfather Viktor and uncle Giorgi were both executed.

(Photo: Viktor Pesvianidze with colleagues in Georgia in the 1930s. Credit: Levan Pesvianidze)

In 1984, urban photographers Martha Cooper and Henry Chalfant came together to publish an era-defining book about the early graffiti movement.

They had been documenting the work of graffiti arts on the subways system of New York for many years.

The colourful book was called Subway Art and it quickly became known as the graffiti bible.

Forty years on from its release, Martha and Henry explore its enduring legacy with Matt Pintus.

(Photo: Marta Cooper and Henry Chalfant pictured at the 25th anniversary event for Subway Art. Credit: Getty Images)

In 1974 an unknown Japanese artist put pen to paper and created a character that would go on to be worth more than $80 billion.

The illustration was titled ?Unknown White Cat? but you will probably know it better as Hello Kitty.

The artist, Yuko Shimizu, designed Hello Kitty while she was working for the firm Sanrio.

Fast forward 50 years and Yuko?s friendly feline has been on a fair few adventures including going to space and becoming Japan?s ambassador for tourism.

Yuko tells Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty the secrets behind Hello Kitty?s ?cuteness? and introduces her latest character, the stylish French bulldog Rebecca Bonbon.

(Photo: Hello Kitty. Credit: Getty Images)

In June 1954, the first CIA-backed coup took place in Guatemala, when President Jacobo Arbenz was overthrown in a operation organised by the US government. The Administration of Dwight D Eisenhower feared his policies - which included a land reform - could threaten the interests of one of the most powerful firms in the US at the time ? the United Fruit Company.

Arbenz was labelled a communist, and he was forced into a long exile that took him and his family to seek shelter across Europe and Latin America. Arbenz's son told Mike Lanchin in 2016 about the devastating impact the coup had on his family.

(Photo: The Arbenz family in 1955. Credit: RDB via Getty)

In 1998, the assisted dying society, Dignitas was set up in Switzerland by lawyer Ludwig Minelli.

It was the first end-of-life organisation in the world to help foreigners - non-Swiss citizens - to die.

Since then around 4,000 people from 65 different countries have ended their lives with help from the group, which operates under the full name 'Dignitas - To live with dignity. To die with dignity.'

But while 10 countries have legalised assisted dying, most have not. Critics say it can weaken respect for human life, put pressure on the terminally ill to die and lead to worsening end-of-life care.

Ludwig Minelli tells Jane Wilkinson why he believes freedom of choice is so important.

(Photo: Ludwig Minelli in 2012. Credit: Sebastien Bozon/AFP/GettyImages)

When visionary architect Antoni Gaudi died unexpectedly in 1926, his followers were left with incredible plaster of Paris models showing how to complete his famous church, La Sagrada Familia.

The only problem was they were smashed ?to smithereens? during the Spanish Civil War.

New Zealand architect Mark Burry was part of a small team trying to piece together Gaudi?s vision for the Barcelona basilica.

He tells Vicky Farncombe about his first week in the job.

?There were literally thousands and thousands of pieces and lots of missing pieces.

?By day three, I was in despair.?

He also shares the spine-tingling moment he heard music in the church for the first time.

(Photo: La Sagrada Familia. Credit: Getty Images)

At the end of World War Two, the Czechoslovak government expelled up to three million German speakers, known as the Sudeten Germans.

They were accused of being loyal to Nazi Germany and collaborating in war crimes.

By 1946 the expulsions were in full swing, and Helmut Scholz, who was a six-years-old at the time, was caught up in the turmoil.

Helmut tells Phil Jones about the traumatic train journey, in a cattle truck, from his home in Czechoslovakia to Germany.

(Photo: Helmut Scholz: Credit: Helmut Scholz)

On 12 November 1988, the world?s first commercial bungee jumping site was opened near Queenstown, New Zealand.

AJ Hackett and Henry Van Asch started out bungee jumping as a hobby with friends. They developed the bungee ropes and rigging system and found the perfect site ? the historic Kawarau Suspension Bridge ? which would give paying customers the chance to safely fall 43 metres.

It helped make Queenstown become the adventure tourism capital of the world. Josephine McDermott jumped from the bridge herself 20 years ago and finds out from AJ Hackett how it all came about.

(Photo: A jump from Kawarau Bridge. Credit: Getty Images)

On 16 January 1988, the world?s largest passenger ship, Sovereign of the Seas, set sail on her maiden voyage around the Caribbean.

She carried more than 2,600 passengers and had five restaurants, nine bars, four pools and a casino.

Rachel Naylor speaks to her captain, Tor Stangeland.

(Photo: Sovereign of the Seas. Credit: Getty Images)

In the 1950s, the transformation of the sleepy little town of Benidorm began when Pedro Zaragoza was appointed mayor. He started by getting pipes built to allow running water, then went on to pass a decree which allowed women to wear bikinis. Now, every year millions of tourists arrive in Benidorm, on Spain?s Costa Blanca. This episode was produced by Simon Watts in 2018, using recordings of Pedro Zaragoza.

(Photo: Tourists flock to the beaches in Spain. Credit: David Ramos via Getty Images)

In 1969, Antonio Enríquez Savignac was given the go-ahead to transform a secluded Mexican island into a world-beating tourist destination.

The technocrat believed tourism was a cost effective solution for fixing the country's faltering economy.

He was given funding from the Mexican federal government to create infrastructure on the island, including an airport.

The resort would be called Cancún.

More than 50 years later, Cancún welcomes more than 20 million guests to its shores every year, with over 30,000 hotels scattered across the island.

However, the island has become a crime hotspot and there are major pollution problems in the area.

Antonio's son, Juan Enríquez, shares his memories with Matt Pintus.

(Photo: Cancún. Credit: Getty Images)

In 1955, a small Icelandic airline, Loftleioir Icelandic, slashed the cost of flying across the Atlantic.

For the first time, thousands of young Americans were able to afford air travel to Europe on what became known as the 'Hippie Express.'

In 2017, Mike Lanchin spoke to Edda Helgason, whose father, Sigurdur Helgason, launched the ambitious scheme, and Hans Indridason, who ran the company's sales and marketing department at the time.

(Photo: Icelandic Airlines plane, with passengers disembarking, 1965. Credit: Smith Collection / Gado / Getty Images)

In 1971, a female architect called Chu Ming Silveira created Brazil's iconic egg-shaped telephone booth, Orelhão.

More than 50,000 of the booths were installed across Brazil and the design was so successful that other countries decided to use it.

Chu Ming was born in China and moved over to Brazil with her family in 1949, following the end of the Chinese Civil War.

At a time when not many architects were women in the country, she was tasked with creating a design for a cheap, light-weight and visually attractive public phone booth.

Chu Ming died in 1997, aged 58. In 2017, Google decided to celebrate her life by creating a doodle.

Her son, Alan Chu, has been sharing his memories of Chu Ming with Matt Pintus.

(Photo: Chu Ming using an Orelhão phone booth. Credit: Chu Ming Silveira?s Collection - Ouvio.arq.br)

In 1980, 123 men were killed when the Alexander L. Kielland platform capsized in the North Sea oil fields.

It was Norway's biggest industrial disaster and led to a range of safety improvements for those working in the country?s oil and gas sector.

Lars Bevanger speaks to survivor Harry Vike, who spent 10 hours in a lifeboat waiting to be rescued, and his wife Grete, who was waiting for a call to find out if he was alive or dead.

(Photo: The broken leg of the Alexander Kielland oil drilling platform, 1980. Credit: Alamy)

In 1984, a 21-year-old Irish shopworker refused to serve a customer buying two South African grapefruits. Mary Manning was suspended from the Dunnes store in Dublin, and ten of her colleagues walked out alongside her in protest.

It was the start of a strike that lasted almost three years, and ended when Ireland became the first western country to impose a complete ban of South African imports.

Why did Mary do it? In 1984, she and her colleagues were part of the Irish workers? union, IDATU, which had told its members not to sell items from South Africa.

At the time the 11 strikers knew little about apartheid ? South Africa?s system of racial segregation - but they soon learnt.

Their protest would lead to them addressing the United Nations, winning praise from Bishop Desmond Tutu, and meeting with Nelson Mandela.

Mary tells Jane Wilkinson about what drove the strikers to continue despite little initial support.

(Photo: Strikers outside Dunnes store in Dublin in 1985. Credit: Derek Speirs)

In 2014, Boko Haram militants drove into Gwoza in north-east Nigeria and began an assault that would leave hundreds of people dead.

Ruoyah, who was just 14, hid in her house for eight hours under continuous fire.

She says when she finally opened the door to leave her house she says: "There were corpses everywhere, we even saw the corpse of our neighbour in our front door."

Ruoyah managed to escape to Cameroon, but her sister was kidnapped by Boko Haram militants.

She was taken into the Sambisa forest where she was forced to marry a militant and starved.

A few months later, Boko Haram's leader unilaterally declared that Gwoza was a caliphate.

Ruoyah now lives in an internally displaced persons camp, she speaks to Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty.

Archive credit: Channels Television.

(Photo: Credit: )

In April 1999 Nato bombed the Serbian state TV station in Belgrade, killing 16 people.

It was part of a military campaign to force Serbia to withdraw from Kosovo.

Mike Lanchin has been speaking to one of the survivors, Dragan ?ukovi?, a TV technician, who was working at the station that night.

This programme was first broadcast in 2015.

(Photo: The Radio Television of Serbia building. Credit: Getty Images)

In 2008, Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zaidi hurled his shoes at the President of the United States in protest at America's occupation of Iraq.

George W Bush had been giving a joint press conference in Baghdad with Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki at the time. He was in his final months as president as Barack Obama was due to take over.

As he threw the first shoe, Muntadhar yelled: ?Here is your goodbye kiss, you dog."

He tells Vicky Farncombe how he prepared for the moment and what happened to him next.

(Photo: President Bush ducks after Muntadhar al-Zaidi threw a shoe. Credit: Reuters)

Charles Norman Shay was a field medic in the United States Army when he landed on the Normandy beach codenamed Omaha on D-Day.

On June 6, 1944, the US 1st Infantry Division faced a bombardment of machine gun fire from the German soldiers on surrounding cliffs.

More than 1,700 men died on Omaha alone. Aged just 19, Charles risked his own life to save his comrades from drowning, for which he was awarded the US silver star for gallantry.

Although he had served his country, as a native American, he was deprived the right to vote until 1954.

Aged 99, he tells Josephine McDermott his remarkable account.

(Photo: Charles Norman Shay in October 1944 in Germany. Credit: Charles Norman Shay)

In 1944, a young Irishwoman called Maureen Flavin drew up a weather report that helped change the course of World War Two.

Maureen was working at a post office in Blacksod on the far west coast of Ireland. Her duties included recording rainfall, wind speeds, temperature and air pressure.

On 3 June, she sent one of her hourly reports to Dublin, unaware that the figures were being passed on to the Allied headquarters in England. It was the first indication of bad weather heading towards the coast of France - and it was a huge blow.

Hundreds of thousands of British, American and Canadian servicemen had already gathered for the most ambitious operation of the war, the assault of the Normandy beaches on 5 June.

But after reading Maureen?s report, chief meteorologist Group Captain James Stagg advised a delay of 24 hours.

US General, Dwight Eisenhower, gave the order, and D-Day was finally launched on 6 June, 1944. A date that went down in history.

Maureen's son Edward Sweeney tells Jane Wilkinson about the family's pride in their mother.

(Photo: Maureen Sweeney. Credit: Sweeney family photo)

In 1984, Russian engineer Alexey Pajitnov invented the popular computer game Tetris. But it was not until American businessman Henk Rogers joined him that the game became an all-time favourite in video game consoles across the world.

Chloe Hadjimatheou spoke to both of them about how the idea of the game originated and the challenges of exporting it from the Soviet Union. This programme was first broadcast in 2011.

(Photo: Tetris 99. Credit: Getty Images)

In 2008, panda-mania hit Taiwan when China gifted the country two giant pandas.

This practice known as ?panda diplomacy? is thought to date back as far as the 7th Century.

Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan flew into Taiwan and became instant celebrities.

Eve Chen, curator of the Giant Panda House at Taipei Zoo says: ?They were extremely cute and adorable. You could call them like the handsome and the beauty, like the Barbie and Ken in a panda.?

Eve tells Gill Kearsley about their arrival and what it meant to Taiwan.

(Photo: Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan in China. Credit: Visual China Group via Getty Images.)

Forty years ago, a Hollywood director, some tech revolutionaries and a group of London skinheads created a commercial that would rock the advertising world.

Based on George Orwell?s dystopic novel ?1984?, and launched in the same year, the ad was like nothing that had been seen before.

But its road to being shown was rocky, and the beleaguered advert almost never made it air.

Mike Murray was Apple marketing manager at the time, he speaks to Molly Pipe.

(Photo: Steve Jobs in a room of computers in 1984. Credit: Michael L Abramson/Getty Images)

Flint was once one of the richest cities in the United States. But in the 1980s, it was badly affected by the downturn in car manufacturing and by 2014 it was nearly bankrupt. To save money, the city switched its water supply away from Lake Huron to its own Flint River, but state officials failed to treat the river water properly. As a result lead, a powerful neurotoxin, was released into the drinking water.

Despite mounting evidence, officials denied anything was wrong and it took them a year and a half to switch water supply back to Lake Huron. But many residents of Flint ?a majority African-American city with high rates of poverty? have been left fearful about the long term impacts on their children.

Rob Walker speaks to lifelong Flint resident Jeneyah McDonald who had two young children at the time. He also hears from Dr Mona Hanna-Attisha ? a paediatrician and professor of public health? who helped bring the scandal to national attention after showing that lead had found its way into the bloodstreams of the city?s children.

(Photo: Bottled water donations to help with the Flint Michigan water crisis in 2016. Credit: Dennis Pajot via Getty Images)

A warning for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander listeners - this programme contains the names and voices of people who have died.

In 1971, Neville Bonner became the first Aboriginal person to become a member of the Australian Parliament.

In 1979, he was named Australian of the Year in recognition of his work fighting for the rights of indigenous Australians - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

His great niece Joanna Lindgren shares her memories of 'Uncle Neville' with Vicky Farncombe.

"He was gentle, he was a terrific listener. It didn't matter that you were 13 years old, you never felt that he was not interested in what you had to say," she says.

(Photo: Old Parliament House, in Canberra. Credit: Getty Images)

Ninety years ago, the first surviving quintuplets were born in a small village in northern Canada.

The Dionnes grew up in a specially-adapted nursery where millions of people could visit them.

But, years later they struggled to adapt to life back with their parents which led to a fight for compensation.

This programme was produced and presented by Simon Watts in 2012 using BBC archive.

(Photo: The quintuplets on their fourth birthday. Credit: Bettmann via Getty Images)

In 1964, João Goulart, the president of Brazil, was overthrown in a military coup.

In the repression which followed, hundreds of people were disappeared or killed, and many more detained and tortured.

Carlos Lamarca was a captain who deserted the army and joined in the armed struggle against the military regime. He was shot dead in 1971.

His friend and fellow fighter, João Salgado Lopes, tells Vicky Farncombe about their time together hiding in the Caatinga, the Brazilian outback.

(Photo: Wanted poster of Carlos Lamarca. Credit: Memories of the Dictatorship)

In 1984, Nike signed rookie basketball player Michael Jordan and created a shoe in his name ? the Air Jordan.

The unprecedented deal would change sports marketing forever.

Former executive Sonny Vaccaro was the man who persuaded his bosses to put all their marketing budget on one untried player.

He became convinced of Michael?s talent after seeing him make the winning shot in a college game.

He tells Vicky Farncombe about the challenges of persuading Michael ? an Adidas fan ? to sign, and how the Air Jordan's controversial black and red colour scheme upset the National Basketball Association (NBA).

(Photo: Air Jordans. Credit: Getty)

In 2001, more than 700 pairs of Imelda Marcos?s shoes were put on display at the Marikina Shoe Museum in the Philippines.

The wife of the dictator President Ferdinand Marcos, became famous for buying shoes, while millions of Filipinos were living in poverty. It?s thought she had in around 3,000 pairs.

Ella Rule has been through the archive to tell the story of Imelda and her shoes.

(Photo: Imelda Marcos' shoe collection. Credit: Christophe LOVINY/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

How the Dassler brothers created two global sportswear firms.

In 1948, Adi and Rudi Dassler who lived in a small German town fell out. They went on to set up Adidas and Puma.

Adi Dassler played a crucial role in West Germany's victory in the 1954 World Cup with his game-changing footwear.

In 2022, Reena Stanton-Sharma spoke to Adi's daughter Sigi Dassler, who remembers her dad?s obsession with sports shoes and talks about her fondness for rappers Run-DMC, who paid tribute to her dad?s shoes in their 1986 song My Adidas.

In 1962, a new brand of footwear launched that would become one of Brazil?s most successful and best-known exports: Havaianas. As the country?s footwear industry started to expand, one company wanted to make something that was comfortable, inexpensive, and ideal for South America's long hot summers.

Havaianas soon became the favourite of the working class because of their affordability. Fast forward almost forty years and they featured on catwalks in Paris and Oscar goody bags in Hollywood, a surprisingly journey from their modest beginnings as the choice of farmers, builders, and tyre fitters.

Johnny I?Anson has been speaking to former employee and author Sergio Sanchez about the birth of a humble flip-flop, and how they became a global success story selling 250 million pairs a year.

(Photo: Rows of brightly coloured Havaianas flip-flops. Credit: Miguel Schincariol/AFP via Getty Images)

Bata was a Czech company which pioneered assembly line shoemaking and sold affordable footwear around the world.

The factory near London was opened in 1933 and it became key to its expansion.

In 2018, Dina Newman spoke to one of its senior engineers, Mick Pinion, about the company's remarkable history, including how it sold millions of shoes in Africa and Asia.

(Photo: mobile shoe shop selling Bata shoes. Credit: Getty Images)

In 2001, the American Ana Montes, who was working for the United States Defense Intelligence Agency was arrested for espionage.

Although the FBI knew that there was a spy they didn't know who it was. The Cubans always referred to Ana by a man's name.

Former FBI agent, Pete Lapp, tells Gill Kearsley the fascinating story of how he and his team tracked down and arrested Ana, who is known as ?Queen of Cuba?.

(Photo: Ana Montes in 2001. Credit: FBI )

In the late 1990s, a heavy metal band called Acrassicauda formed in Iraq, when the country was under the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein.

Over the next decade, the pioneering band found themselves on a collision course with the dictatorship militants and the west.

The band was able to get inspiration from various bootleg tapes of heavy metal's greatest acts.

Acrassicauda performed under Saddam's regime, but because of censorship restrictions, they had to write a song that praised the dictator.

Johnny I'Anson speaks to bass player, Firas Al-Lateef.

(Photo: Acrassicauda perform in Iraq in 2004. Credit: Getty Images)

It's 20 years since elections in French Polynesia in 2004, where the independence movement stunned the France-aligned government of the day, propelling pro-independence leader Oscar Temaru to the presidency.

It was a landmark in the country's politics, where protests against French rule had increased due to the practice of using Polynesian islands for nuclear tests.

Antony Geros, who helped lead the independence movement, recounts that night to Lizzy Kinch.

This is a Whistledown production for BBC World Service.

(Photo: Antony Geros. Credit: Getty Images)

On 14 May 1948, the state of Israel was proclaimed.

Tears and applause met the declaration, witnessed by 200 dignitaries, but fighting intensified in the days that followed.

In 2010, Arieh Handler and Zipporah Porath spoke to Lucy Williamson about that day and its fallout.

(Photo: Young Jewish people celebrate the new state. Credit: AFP/Getty Images)

In 1948, tens of thousands of Palestinians were forcibly expelled from their homes in the Middle East.

The period after World War Two in the region was tense, at times violent and politically complex.

For Israeli Jews it was a chance to build their own nation after the genocide of the Holocaust. But for Arab Palestinian Muslims and Christians it was a time of loss.

Many were intimidated by the violence and changing demographics.

Rebecca Kesby speaks to Hasan Hammami who was 15-years-old when his family was forced out off Palestine.

The interview was recorded before the Hamas attacks on 7 October 2023 and subsequent Israeli military operation.

(Photo: Palestinians forced from their homes in 1948. Credit: Getty Images)