Podcast Episodes

The discovery of New Zealand’s first dinosaur

On 2 December 1972, Joan Wiffen, her husband, son and daughter started a camping trip. But it was far from ordinary. They were obsessed fossil-hunters and they were deep in the largest rainforest of …

Published on 1 year, 3 months ago

India’s plague outbreak

In 1994, the pneumonic plague broke out in the city of Surat, causing mass panic.

It saw the largest migration across India since independence was declared in 1947.

Ashley Byrne speaks to Doctor Vibh…

Published on 1 year, 3 months ago

Camouflaging Leningrad

It’s 85 years since the start of World War Two.

During the conflict, the Russian city of Leningrad came under siege in 1941.

To camouflage the landmarks from enemy attack, a small group of mountainee…

Published on 1 year, 3 months ago

The invention of the CT scanner

In 1971, the CT scanner was invented by South African physicist Allan Cormack and British engineer Sir Godfrey Hounsfield.

It was a ground-breaking moment in modern medicine and they're now in almost …

Published on 1 year, 3 months ago

When Italy gave back Ethiopia’s stolen obelisk

In 2005, the pieces of an ancient monument were flown back to Ethiopia, having been stolen by Italy.

The Obelisk of Axum, built around 1,700 years ago, was 24-metres (78 feet) high and weighed around …

Published on 1 year, 3 months ago

Abebech Gobena: Africa's 'Mother Teresa'

In 1980, Abebech Gobena was on a pilgrimage to Wollo in Ethiopia, when she witnessed the devastating effects of a severe famine and drought, one of the worst in the country's history. Within a year s…

Published on 1 year, 3 months ago

Ardi: The oldest skeleton of a human ancestor

In 1994, a college student called Yohannes Haile Selassie unearthed a 4.4 million-year-old skeleton in Ethiopia.

She was the first near-complete skeleton of a species of human ancestor called Ardipit…

Published on 1 year, 3 months ago

Emperor Haile Selassie in Bath

In 1936, Haile Selassie came to Bath in the west of England to escape Mussolini and the fascists who had invaded Ethiopia.

He bought a property – Fairfield House - and moved his entire family and staf…

Published on 1 year, 3 months ago

Emperor Haile Selassie overthrown

Haile Selassie was Emperor of Ethiopia. His dynasty ruled for centuries, supposedly descending from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.

In 1974 he was overthrown in a coup by a Marxist-Leninist mili…

Published on 1 year, 3 months ago

Giant Gonzalez: from NBA star to WWE wrestler

In 1988, Jorge Gonzalez was a basketball star in Argentina and became the first athlete from this country drafted by an NBA team, the Atlanta Hawks. He was over 2.5m tall due to gigantism, which led …

Published on 1 year, 3 months ago