The Documentary Podcast

The Documentary Podcast

society

<p>Hear the voices at the heart of global stories. Where curious minds can uncover hidden truths and make sense of the world. The best of documentary storytelling from the BBC World Service.From China’s state-backed overseas spending, to on the road with Canada’s Sikh truckers, to the front line of the climate emergency, we go beyond the headlines.Each week we dive …

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Episodes

Chef Rodolfo Guzman: Chilean summer menu

<p>Pink tomato ice cream decorated with edible poppy flowers feature on the summer menu created by chef Rodolfo Guzman for his celebrated Santiago restaurant Borago. Jane Chambers hears how the …

Apr 06, 2026 · 26m
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Growing up black in a white family – the truth behind my birth

<p>M People star Andrew Lovell’s home life hid a terrible – yet beautiful – secret. It would take him decades to find out the truth. At the height of his …

Apr 05, 2026 · 39m
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The woman fighting IS in Somalia

<p>The global activities of the Islamic State group are now believed to be run from the semi-autonomous region of Puntland in the north-east of Somalia, where IS fighters are entrenched …

Apr 04, 2026 · 25m
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Surviving a shark attack

<p>Shark attacks on humans are rare, but they are slowly on the rise in Australia where all our guests are from. In this episode, they share the terrifying moment when …

Apr 04, 2026 · 23m
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God, grief and the chatbot

<p>When Megan Garcia travelled to Rome, she carried with her a mother’s grief. At the Vatican she met the Pope and asked him to pray for her son Sewell, who …

Apr 03, 2026 · 26m
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The Saltmakers

<p>In India's Gujarat state lies the Little Rann of Kutch, a sprawling salt marsh desert where temperatures soar to 50 degrees Celsius. This harsh landscape is home to the Agariyas, …

Apr 02, 2026 · 26m
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Inheritance Samsung: 1. My kingdom for a horse

<p>In 2017, the heir to South Korea’s biggest company is facing jail, leaving it with an uncertain future. After 80 years of business, how did Samsung get here? And how …

Apr 01, 2026 · 25m
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India’s Shadow Children

<p>Stephanie was brought up in France in a French family, but her birth parents are Indian – she’s an intercountry adoptee. In the 1980s and 1990s thousands of babies, like …

Mar 31, 2026 · 27m
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Kubra Khademi: Art of strength and survival

<p>On a busy street in Kabul, a young artist steps into traffic wearing a steel sculpture she has shaped around her breasts and buttocks. She calls the piece Armour. Within …

Mar 30, 2026 · 26m
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Elana Meyers Taylor: A 20-year journey to gold

<p>Elana Meyers Taylor became the oldest-ever winner of an individual Winter Olympic gold medal when she won the women’s monobob event in Milan-Cortina, aged 41. It was the American’s sixth …

Mar 29, 2026 · 21m
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80 years of the BBC Russian Service

<p>The BBC's Russian service marks its eightieth anniversary this week. In eight decades, it has grown from a short wave radio service to a multimedia operation reaching upwards of 6 …

Mar 28, 2026 · 26m
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Eighty years of the BBC Russian Service

<p>The BBC's Russian service marks its 80th anniversary this week. In eight decades, it has grown from a short wave radio service to a multimedia operation reaching upwards of 6 …

Mar 28, 2026 · 26m
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Bombings in Lebanon

<p>Lebanon’s citizens are again caught under fire. As many as a million people are displaced as they search for a place of safety and there are fears of a major …

Mar 28, 2026 · 23m
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Deaf Umrah

<p>Islamic religious practice is deeply entwined with sound, from the call to prayer to memorising the Quran; learning to recite the holy text is very much an oral tradition relying …

Mar 27, 2026 · 26m
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Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's longest~serving PM

<p>Benjamin Netanyahu is Israel’s longest serving prime minister. He was born in Tel Aviv in 1949, the year after the State of Israel was founded. One of three brothers, Netanyahu …

Mar 26, 2026 · 32m
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Madagascar: From famine to hope

<p>Lying off the south-eastern coast of Africa, Madagascar has been pushed into crisis by a deadly combination of climate change, poverty and environmental degradation. In 2021, more than 1.6 million …

Mar 25, 2026 · 26m
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Billion dollar babies

<p>Eels are a popular food in parts of Asia, but they can’t be commercially bred in captivity. Coupled with trade bans to protect the highly endangered fish, this has led …

Mar 24, 2026 · 51m
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The Romeros: Developing digital games

<p>Brenda and John Romero are towering figures in modern game development, creators whose work has shaped how millions of players experience digital worlds. From their base in Galway on Ireland's …

Mar 23, 2026 · 26m
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Is the revolution in Cuba over?

<p>Cuba is facing one of its most severe humanitarian crises in decades.</p><p>For years, Cuba relied heavily on oil from Venezuela. Those supplies have largely stopped, contributing to widespread fuel shortages. …

Mar 22, 2026 · 24m
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Nepal - “Shot like enemies”

<p>Nepal has just held a historic election — one that has toppled the old political guard and swept a new generation of leaders into power, many backed by Gen Z …

Mar 22, 2026 · 26m
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Bangladeshi newspapers attacked by mob

<p>On 18th December 2025, the offices of two of Bangladesh's biggest newspapers, The Daily Star and Prothom Alo, were surrounded by mobs, attacked and set on fire. At The Daily …

Mar 21, 2026 · 26m
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Navigating the Strait of Hormuz

<p>The Strait of Hormuz has been effectively closed by Iran for more than a fortnight, preventing vital supplies of oil and gas from leaving the Middle East and sending global …

Mar 21, 2026 · 23m
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Can yoga be Christian?

<p>Yoga is an ancient practice with its roots in Hinduism. It originated over 5,000 years ago in northern India, but for many, has now evolved from a spiritual path into …

Mar 20, 2026 · 26m
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Iran's media at war

<p>The war in Iran through the eyes of the Islamic Republic, and how Tehran’s restrictions on information went full throttle. The Global Jigsaw looks under the bonnet of the machinery …

Mar 19, 2026 · 36m
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Hope and fear: India's space revolution

<p>India is revolutionising its approach to space exploration. Science journalist Alok Jha follows preparations for the country’s first human spaceflight mission. For decades, India focused its space programme on limited, …

Mar 18, 2026 · 49m
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How to spend billions – fast: Carney’s Defence Deadline

<p>The Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, has given his generals and admirals an unusual command: spend money. Lots of it. Quickly. For years, it was the other way around. Canada …

Mar 17, 2026 · 26m
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Mariam Issoufou: Designing a museum

<p>Architect Mariam Issoufou has always been very ambivalent about museums: "Who decided that the only way to look at art is inside this intimidating, grand building, full of looted objects? …

Mar 16, 2026 · 26m
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How the Oscars went international

<p>On Sunday, many of the film industry’s biggest stars will gather in Los Angeles for Hollywood’s biggest night: the 98th annual Academy Awards.</p><p>Looming over the celebrations are some major upheavals …

Mar 15, 2026 · 28m
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Europe's night train renaissance: Still on track?

<p>Night trains are making a comeback, once again connecting Europe’s cities with the promise of green, serene and iconic journeys. Just a decade ago, it appeared to be the end …

Mar 15, 2026 · 26m
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Iran war: What's life like inside Iran?

<p>The United States and Israel have now been at war with Iran for two weeks, since 28th February. In that time, there have been over 1200 civilian deaths in Iran, …

Mar 14, 2026 · 29m
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Women and the future of Formula 1

<p>Motor racing is one of the few sports where men and women can – in theory – compete on equal terms. But you wouldn’t think that from looking at almost …

Mar 14, 2026 · 23m
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The naked monks

<p>Why would someone live publicly nude for their faith? In parts of India, Jain monks belonging to the Digambara sect permanently renounce all possessions, including clothes. These monks walk naked …

Mar 13, 2026 · 26m
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The women of IS: Part three

<p>What next for the Syrian detention camps and their residents? After the fall of the so-called “caliphate”, tens of thousands of women and children from around the world - followers …

Mar 12, 2026 · 30m
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