The Hillsborough disaster episode artwork

EPISODE · Jan 5, 2026 · 10 MIN

The Hillsborough disaster

from Witness History · host BBC World Service

On 15 April 1989, there was a crowd crush at a football match in Sheffield, England, which led to the death of 97 fans. It was the semi-final of the FA Cup between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest and the worst sporting disaster in UK history.Rachel Naylor speaks to Jenni Hicks, whose daughters died in the disaster.This programme contains distressing details. Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more. Recent episodes explore everything from the death of Adolf Hitler, the first spacewalk and the making of the movie Jaws, to celebrity tortoise Lonesome George, the Kobe earthquake and the invention of superglue. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: Eva Peron – Argentina’s Evita; President Ronald Reagan and his famous ‘tear down this wall’ speech; Thomas Keneally on why he wrote Schindler’s List; and Jacques Derrida, France’s ‘rock star’ philosopher. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the civil rights swimming protest; the disastrous D-Day rehearsal; and the death of one of the world’s oldest languages.(Photo: Tributes laid in memory of those who died at Hillsborough. Credit: Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Jan 5, 2026

Embed this episode

Ready to play

The Hillsborough disaster

0:00 10:29

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

No similar podcasts found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of Witness History?

This episode is 10 minutes long.

When was this Witness History episode published?

This episode was published on January 5, 2026.

Can I download this Witness History episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!