Episodes
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The Battered Champions of Aleppo
A fuzzy team photo from the 1980s sends Tim Whewell on a journey to track down football players from a small town in northern Syria who were once the champions of Aleppo province. In the last four years of war their hometown, Mare'a, has become a war zone – bombed by the Assad regime, besieged by...
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A New Life 2 - Crossing the Continent
The Dhnie family find themselves sleeping rough, getting caught up in riots and being detained as they try to reach Europe after their flight from Syria.
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My Mother's Sari
Shahidha traces the story of the sari, explores how it feels to wear one and asks what it meant for women like her mother. She discovers the unexpected ways in which clothing can be imprinted with feelings of nostalgia, love and loss.
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Young, Clever and Libyan
Twenty three of Libya's finest technology graduates plan to rebuild their country
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A New Life 1 - The Dhnie Family
Meet the Dhnie family in Turkey as they prepare to make the journey to Greece, along with thousands of others, from Syria.
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In Search of Vadim Kozin
Marc Almond travels to Moscow in search of the marvelous Russian tenor Vadim Kozin, tango-singer and superstar. The darling of the Soviet Union, Kozin melted hearts by the tens of millions in the 1940s, playing to packed concert halls and rallying Red Army troops in World War Two. But he vanished...
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The Year of Migration
This year, the number of migrants reaching Europe has reached unprecedented levels. It is a crisis with roots in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, with many people heading from sub-Saharan Africa, Eritrea, Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan to European shores. Paul Adams takes a look back at some of the...
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Malaysia’s Runaway Children
The deaths of five school children in Malaysia have provoked an anguished debate about education and what it means to be Malay. The children ran away from their boarding school in Kelantan State and died of starvation in the jungle. They were afraid of harsh punishment from their teachers. Two...
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The Kampala Dream House
Amidst the slums of Kampala, MLISADA (Music, life skills and arts for destitution alleviation) is a success story. It is a children's home giving street kids a chance of a musical future. Sarah Taylor visits this remarkable children's home in Kampala, Uganda, to speak to teachers, former pupils…
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Online Shopping, Indian Style
Shopping in India is traditionally an intensely hands-on experience, but many are now embracing the online shopping revolution. From motorbike delivery couriers to Amazon India, and bringing online shopping to rural towns, Mukti Jain Campion discovers how Indian businesses are innovating to meet...
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A Greek Drama
This summer, as Greece and its creditors argued over the terms of a bailout, the fate of nations – and perhaps the whole European project – was held in the hands of just a few people. This original drama, tells the inside story of those extraordinary months.
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Space Wars
Why war in space is not just Hollywood fantasy but a fast-approaching threat
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Cambodia: Trust Me I’m Not a Doctor
A recent health scandal in Cambodia has prompted the government to clamp down on unlicensed doctors. But these 'doctors' are often the preferred option for many in the countryside
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A Cold War Dance
How dance during the Cold War was designed to challenge America's military image with The Martha Graham Dance Company’s US State Department tour of South East Asia, 1974.
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Young, Geeky and Black: Kampala
Akwasi Sarpong visits Uganda’s thriving coding scene, to find out if home-grown, technology-based solutions can help tackle some of the country’s big development challenges.
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A Home in Space
European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti is back on Earth after 200 days in space. She tells the full story of the International Space Station, in orbit 400 km above our planet.
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Homer, Hagrid and the Incredible Hulk
Ben Hammersley meets creators and fans to investigate how extended fictional universes, from Star Wars and Harry Potter to Game of Thrones, took over global culture.
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Robert Jones: Free at last?
Aleem Maqbool investigates New Orleans’ justice system to find out how Robert Jones spent 23 years in jail for crimes another man had already been convicted of.
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Does the House Always Win?
The world of in-game betting where gamblers test their skill and luck almost as the action happens is growing fast as the lucrative new frontier for the betting world, and is particularly popular in the huge Asian market. Does it pose a threat to the integrity of some our most popular sports?
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Young, Geeky and Black: Accra
Bola Mosuro travels to Ghana to meet the women who are making their mark in the male dominated world of technology, and inspiring young girls to follow in their footsteps.
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Albania: Shadows of the Past
Maria Margaronis explores the debris of Albania's past —the prisons, concrete bunkers and secret police headquarters - as the country attempts to deal with its troubled history.
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Young, Geeky and Black: Memphis
James Fletcher travels to one of America’s poorest cities to meet a passionate group of people working hard to get young, black women into technology and tech jobs.
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Changing Climate Change: Politics
So often climate conferences have ended in chaos and dispute but in the run up to Paris there has been something alien to climate talks - hope. A remarkable number of governments have agreed plans to cut emissions. China and the USA appear to be walking hand in hand. But will they arrive at an...
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Greece: No Place to Die
Greek cemeteries have run out of space so the dead are exhumed after just three years. In the only EU country without a crematorium the cash strapped population has few options.
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Changing Climate Change: Solutions
Roger Harrabin looks at the solutions to the emissions problem. He travels to Malawi, one of the world’s poorest nations, where the energy crisis is about access to energy. He looks at the solar revolution being driven by the falling costs of photovoltaic panels, and visits a huge power plant at...
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The Drug Mules of the Andes
The story of Peru's drug 'mules' - the youngsters who hike cocaine from a tropical valley up to highland towns in the Andes, and out towards the border with Brazil.
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Changing Climate Change: The Science
Roger Harrabin examines the science behind climate change. Predicting the future climate is a pretty tricky business and over the last 25 years or so it has had a chequered history. Roger talks to the scientists about their models and asks if they are accurate enough or should they just be...
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Sex and the Synod: Decision Time
Pope Francis has brought together nearly 300 bishops from all over the world for a special Synod on the Family. He has asked them to speak frankly and with courage about his Church’s most divisive teachings – those that affect the sex lives of more than billion people. Liberal Catholics would…
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Home: Bangladesh
Aasmah Mir hosts an intimate and revealing discussion between three women from the Bangladeshi diaspora in east London about the changes within their community.
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Home: Bangladesh
Aasmah Mir hosts an intimate and revealing discussion between three women from the Bangladeshi diaspora in east London.
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Norway-Russia: an Arctic friendship under threat
In Norway, the sacking of a newspaper editor, allegedly after pressure from Russia, has caused a political storm over media freedom, and raised questions over what price the country should pay for good relations with its powerful eastern neighbour. Thomas Nilsen is a veteran environmental…
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Minecraft: More Than a Game
Why are children hooked on the game Minecraft? Even when they are not playing the game themselves, millions of children enjoy watching other people playing in YouTube videos. Parents worry that their children find the Minecraft universe so rewarding that they are losing interest in the real…
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A Profile of Aung San Suu Kyi
Known by many simply as 'The Lady', Aung San Suu Kyi has become one of the world's most famous politicians. And yet she has never exercised any power in her country Myanmar, formerly known as Burma. Under the current constitution, she is forbidden from becoming president. But will she find a way…
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An Interview with Egyptian President al-Sisi
Lyse Doucet visits Cairo’s presidential palace for an exclusive interview with Egypt’s new strongman, President Abd-al-Fattah al-Sisi.
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Puerto Rico: The Have Nots and the Have Yachts
The US Commonwealth of Puerto Rico could be slipping into an economic “death spiral”, according to its Governor. Ten years of recession have led to deep cuts in services and more are on the way, as the government accepts it can’t pay its massive debts. Unemployment and poverty are spiralling, and...
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Philip Glass: Taxi Driver
Musician Philip Glass revisits his parallel lives in 1970s New York - as a taxi driver and an emerging composer in Manhattan's arts scene.
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Sex and the Synod: Pushing the Boundaries
Pope Francis has opened up debate about his Church’s most controversial teachings - on sex and the family. He’s raised hope among those who’d like the Roman Catholic Church to change its stance on issues like homosexuality, divorce and birth control. But can he meet their expectations? In the…
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Three Pounds in My Pocket - Part Two
Stories of the pioneers who came to post war Britain from the Indian subcontinent. By the early 1970s the numbers from the Indian subcontinent had increased with family reunions and people fleeing Bangladesh following the war of Independence in 1971. Racist abuse became commonplace as immigration...
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South Sudan – can the world’s youngest country survive?
Tim Franks travels to South Sudan to find out why the world's youngest nation has failed to deliver on the hopes placed in it at independence.
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Poems from Syria
During the conflict in Syria, it seems incredible that there are still writers expressing their experiences through poetry. News journalist Mike Embley meets and speaks to Syrian poets, writers and academics about how their work has reflected the emotions and humanity in a seemingly impossible...
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Myanmar’s Bright Young Stars
Forty Five percent of the population of Myanmar is 25 or under. This gives young adults a key role in the country’s first open election in 25 years, to be held on 8 November. Nomia Iqbal finds out how youth radio is helping to shape Myanmar's shift from military rule by spending time with…
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Misunderstanding Japan
From workaholics to submissive women and bizarre crazes, Dr Christopher Harding explores Western media representations of Japan and asks if these stereotypes have led to the country being misunderstood in West.
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The Mayor, the Migrants and France’s Far Right
Lucy Ash reports on the controversial mayor in charge of Beziers, the largest French city controlled by the Far-Right. Is Robert Menard a pioneer or a provocateur?
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Hanging Around - the Hang Drum Story
Virtuoso percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie explores the story of the Hang - the tuned metal pan that's become a global success.
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More Than One Kind of Love
Homosexuality in Namibia and the LGBT community's struggle for social acceptance
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Fighting Terror with Torture
In the aftermath of 9/11, the United States approved ‘enhanced’ interrogation methods that have been condemned as torture. The most notorious was controlled drowning, known as waterboarding. For Assignment, Hilary Andersson hears from those who approved, ran and suffered the programme in secret…
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The Pop Star and the Prophet
Nearly 40 years ago, French polymath Jacques Attali wrote a book called Noise which predicted a "crisis of proliferation" for recorded music – in which its value would plummet. As music sales went into freefall at the turn of the century, his prediction seemed eerily resonant. Singer-songwriter…
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Roma: A Decade On
In 2005 a plan was launched to improve education, health, housing and jobs for the Roma – Europe’s poorest minority. But did it succeed? Ten years later Delia Radu travels across Eastern Europe to find the Roma she spoke to when the plan was launched, to see if it has delivered its promise.
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An Interview with Edward Snowden
Why Edward Snowden exposed the mass surveillance by American and British intelligence
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Revolutionaries: Artificial Intelligence
Two pioneers in AI discuss their work and describe the way in which machine led intelligence is set to remake our world. Eric Horvitz, managing director of Microsoft Research and Cynthia Breazeal, chief scientist of the Robotics firm Jibo join the BBC’s Rory Cellan Jones to discuss the rewards…
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