Witness History

The contraceptive pill gets legalised in Japan

After decades of campaigning in Japan, the pill was finally legalised in 1999. In contrast, the male impotency drug Viagra was approved for use in just six months, and

Sulawesi's cave art and the origins of storytelling

In 2012, the discovery of rock art in caves on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi changed our understanding of early human history. Archaeologist Maxime Aubert tells Leo

The birth of Jodrell Bank

On an English field in 1957, the final touches were made to what was then the largest radio telescope in the world. But designing and building the Jodrell Bank Observat

Harold Riley: Painting Nelson Mandela

Harold Riley was the only artist in the world given the opportunity to paint Nelson Mandela from life. When Mandela agreed to pose for the English artist, it marked the

Kinder Scout mass trespass

In 1932, hundreds of walkers organised a mass trespass on Kinder Scout, the highest point in England's Peak District. It was a major step in the campaign by workers from

The gathering that helped shape decolonisation

The Fifth Pan-African Congress was held in Manchester, England, in 1945, helping to shape the post-war struggle against colonialism and racial discrimination. Prominent b

‘Baby’ computer is invented

In June 1948, the ‘Baby’ was invented. It was the first stored-program computer, meaning it was the first machine to work like the ones we have today. It was developed in

The nightclub that changed Manchester

In 1962, Nigerian-born Phil Magbotiwan opened a brand-new nightclub in Manchester, England. In part because of his own personal experiences of racism, Phil wanted to crea

The discovery of the San José shipwreck

In November 2015, the 'holy grail' of shipwrecks, laden with treasure worth an estimated $18 billion, was found off the coast of Colombia. The San José, a Spanish galleo

The birth of India's call centre industry

In 1997, after years working abroad, Pramod Bhasin returned to India and spotted an opportunity that would help transform his country's economy. Despite major telecommun

Stardust: Ireland's deadly nightclub fire

In the early hours of 14 February 1981, a fire broke out at the Stardust nightclub in Artane, Dublin which was filled with more than 800 people. The blaze killed 48 peo

Connecting homes to the internet using cable TV

In 1991, a small company led by an Iranian-born engineer, Rouzbeh Yassini, created a technology which enabled millions of homes across America to access the internet for

Norway’s teacher resistance in World War Two

When Norway was invaded by Nazi Germany in 1940, a collaborative government led by Norwegian Vidkun Quisling was put in place. Quisling believed that Norwegians would b

Firefighter: Surviving the 9/11 North Tower collapse

On 11 September 2001, firefighter Jay Jonas and his crew were sent into New York's North Tower after a hijacked plane crashed into the World Trade Center. As they climbe

The weather report that changed the date of D-Day

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 on the fa

Bayeux Tapestry: the lost Nazi archive

In 1994, documents from a Nazi study of the Bayeux Tapestry were rediscovered after more than 50 years. Former curator of the tapestry, Sylvette Lemagnen, tells Helen L

The 'moving' statue of Ballinspittle

In 1985, reports of a moving statue of the Virgin Mary drew thousands of people to the village of Ballinspittle in County Cork, Ireland. Helen Ledwick speaks to Ita Dun

Surviving the Long March

In 1935, tens of thousands who had followed Mao Zedong on the Long March across China struggled to survive. They were fleeing Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalist forces during

Star Trek: America's first interracial TV kiss

In 1968, American television boldly went where it had never gone before, broadcasting what's claimed to be the country's first interracial kiss in a TV programme. The m

The making of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

In 1982, audiences around the world fell in love with a gentle alien stranded on Earth and the young boy determined to help him get home. Steven Spielberg's E.T. the Extr