Episode description

Connecting families, separated by war, with a night time message. Millions of children have been separated from their dads by the war in Ukraine but with the help of an interactive story app, the bedtime ritual can continue. We speak to Leila Popovich of Better Time Stories, and mum Alla tells us how the app helps her daughter Olivia connect with her dad in Mykoliav.

Founder of Tip of the Spear landmine removal Ryan Hendrickson tells us about the dangers of cluster bombs and what drives him to risk his life de-mining in Ukraine.

And as Russia claims to have captured Soledar in Ukraine’s Donbas region, Nataliya Vasilyeva of the Daily Telegraph talks us through the rise of Yevgeny Prigozhin and the Wagner Group, the main force behind the push for this salt mining town. Today’s episode is presented by Victoria Derbyshire and Vitaliy Shevchenko. The producers were Arsenii Sokolov, Clare Williamson and Luke Radcliff. The technical producer was Emma Crowe. The series producer is Fiona Leach. The assistant editor is Alison Gee and the editor is Sam Bonham . Email Ukrainecast@bbc.co.uk with your questions and comments. You can also send us a message or voice note via WhatsApp, Signal or Telegram to +44 330 1239480