Death Diminishes Me
A soundscape of memory, loss, regret and hope from men who have been living with HIV for over 20 years in New Zealand.
Jul 17, 2009•24 min
The Documentary Podcast: Archive 2009
The BBC World Service's wide range of documentaries from 2009.
Last refreshed: ⓘ
Follow this podcast in the Metacast mobile app to refresh it and see new episodes.
Podcasts are better in Metacast mobile app
Don't just listen to podcasts. Learn from them with transcripts, summaries, and chapters for every episode. Skim, search, and bookmark insights. Learn more
Episodes
The Greening of the Deserts - part three
In this series, Ayisha Yahya explores climate change issues in the African desert. In the final programme, she meets Egyptian scientists experimenting with techniques to make the desert bloom.
Jul 15, 2009•23 min
From Guantanamo to Paradise
The story of four imprisoned Uyghur men transferred from Guantanamo Bay to the wealthy paradise of Bermuda.
Jul 10, 2009•24 min
Global Persepctive: Islands of Security
South Africa's wealthy are retreating to high-security gated communities to protect themselves from violent crime. In Islands of Security we explore why the issue of keeping people out is a sensitive one in post-Apartheid times.
Jul 10, 2009•23 min
Assignment - Land Grab Cambodia
150,000 Cambodians are reported to be facing eviction from their land. Huge tracts of the country have been granted to private companies for large scale agriculture or other purposes. Some of those who have tried to resist say they have been attacked or threatened. Rob Walker reports for Assignment.
Jul 09, 2009•23 min
The Greening of the Deserts
In this three part series, Ayisha Yahya explores climate change issues in the African desert. In programme two she visits the Desert Research Station in Namibia. Can they increase the water available in arid areas such as the Namib?
Jul 08, 2009•23 min
Global Perspective: Alert Bay
Teenagers on the island of Alert Bay, British Columbia, talk openly about the beauty and frustration on living in a remote place.
Jul 02, 2009•24 min
Thembi’s Story
Thembi Ngubane’s Radio Diary about living with Aids in a South African Township.
Jul 02, 2009•23 min
Assignment - The Opus Dei enigma
It's widely regarded as one of the most secretive religious organisations in the world. It makes heavy demands on its members - and has been accused of cult-like practices. It's also an influential movement within Roman Catholicism. Opus Dei, made famous by Dan Brown's bestselling novel the Da Vinci Code, has many critics - but few have found out what life is like on the inside. The BBC's religious affairs correspondent, Christopher Landau, has been granted exclusive access to the movement's ext...
Jul 02, 2009•23 min
The Greening of the Deserts
In this three part series, Ayisha Yahya explores climate change issues in the African desert. In programme one she asks, what are the implications for traditional nomadic desert communities?
Jul 01, 2009•24 min
Iran in crisis
In this special edition of Assignment, John Simpson reveals how the protests, and the police reprisals that followed, are intricately linked to the rivalry inside the clique of clerics who created the Islamic state.
Jun 27, 2009•23 min
Blood and lava
When the dried blood of Naples' patron saint fails to liquefy, Neapolitans believe great misfortune will descend upon them. With Mount Vesuvius overdue for a major eruption, Malcolm Billings investigates if tragedy awaits this historic city.
Jun 26, 2009•23 min
Mubarak's Egypt - part two
After 28 years in power, President Mubarak's promise of shepherding his country into a stable democracy has all but dissipated.
Jun 25, 2009•23 min
Assignment - The Rich in Retreat
In a programme first broadcast in April, Ed Butler reports from New York on how the super rich have been dealing with the impact of the financial crisis.
Jun 25, 2009•23 min
Farm Swap - part two
In the final part of this series, Mike Gallagher meets a British farmer working vast landholdings in Hungary and Serbia. Does 'going global' in agriculture really offer a better future?
Jun 24, 2009•24 min
Mubarak's Egypt - part one
After 28 years in power, Mubarak's promise of leading Egypt into stable democracy has dissipated. Magdi Abdelhadi reports.
Jun 22, 2009•23 min
Dear Birth Mother
Listen to the story of Suzanne, a single woman in her forties who opted for a trans-racial adoption and became the mother of an African-American baby.
Jun 18, 2009•24 min
Assignment - America's Somali Bantu
Hundreds of thousands of people have fled from Somalia since civil war broke out there in the early 1990s. Many of them go to refugee camps in Kenya, others to Tanzania - and many have spent more than 15 years living in those camps. But one group has been more fortunate than others - the Somali Bantu, whose ancestors were taken to Somalia as slaves from southern Africa in the 19th Century. In 2001 the Somali Bantu were recognised as an especially vulnerable group by the United States and two yea...
Jun 18, 2009•23 min
Farm Swap - part one
In this series, Mike Gallagher meets two farmers working outside their own countries. In programme one, a young Ecuadorian visits Hawaii. What farming techniques can he take back to Ecuador?
Jun 17, 2009•23 min
Diabetes: The Silent Killer
Justin Webb goes beyond his role as a journalist to explore the issue from the perspective of a parent who is desperate to know what the future holds for his child.
Jun 12, 2009•23 min
My world: Thailand's Dr Death
The final programme in the My World series explores the story of Pornthip Rojanasunan, Thailand’s leading forensic scientist who has turned a straightforward autopsy into a battleground for the truth.
Jun 12, 2009•23 min
The Cricket Revolution - part two
In this series, David Goldblatt charts the rise of Twenty20 cricket. In the final programme he asks, can the Twenty20 revolution help to make cricket become a truly global game?
Jun 10, 2009•24 min
My World: Kades
A poetic story of survival set against the soundscape of the Mathare slums in Kenya. Meet Kades, a teenage poet who has escaped poverty.
Jun 08, 2009•23 min
The Economy on the Edge
Martin Wolf, of the Financial Times, predicted that the global downturn would be much worse than anyone had reason to believe.
Jun 08, 2009•24 min
Anatomy of a Hijack
Since the beginning of last year, pirates have succeeded in seizing more than 70 ships off the coast of Somalia. Hundreds of crew members have been held to ransom, and millions of dollars have been paid to the pirates to secure their release. For Assignment Rob Walker has gained exclusive access to the people involved in one of those hijacks – the captain, the ship owner and the mysterious middleman – the pirates negotiator.
Jun 04, 2009•23 min
The Cricket Revolution - part one
David Goldblatt charts the recent arrival and rise on the sporting scene of Twenty20 cricket. David meets those who run the game, former and current players, and seasoned commentators. Has Twenty20 changed cricket for ever?
Jun 03, 2009•23 min
Anatomy of a Car Crash
Tracing the profound physical and emotional toll on all those involved in the wake of a single collision on a road.
May 29, 2009•23 min
My world: A different kind of stroke
Every year, 15 million people will suffer from a stroke, five million of them will die and a further five million will be left permanently disabled. This documentary tells the story of Dr Jill Bolte Taylor, a brain scientist who suffered a massive stroke 13 years ago. Knowing how the brain operates, she was able to observe and understand the deterioration that followed.
May 28, 2009•23 min
The Lost Voices of Tiananmen Square - part two
James Miles, the BBC's China correspondent in 1989, was an eye-witness to the events leading up to the Tiananmen Square protests.
May 26, 2009•23 min
Lincoln and the World
Abraham Lincoln's legacy and political influence is more powerful today than it ever was. Allan Little looks at how movements and leaders from very different political perspectives have looked up to Lincoln.
May 25, 2009•23 min
For the best experience, listen in Metacast app for iOS or Android