Documentaries
An indepth look at stories and issues from around the world. This podcast offers you the chance to access landmark series from our archive.
Ukraine v Russia: The drones race
The contest for technological supremacy, paving the way to future wars of algorithms. Across the skies of Ukraine and Russia, an arms race is unfolding in real time. Earlier this summer it seemed Ukraine had the edge when it delivered drone strikes deep inside Russian territory. But in recent months,…
Ten years of progress
To celebrate 10 years of People Fixing the World, Myra Anubi sits down with three regular contributors to talk about the ways the world has changed for the better over the last decade. While rarely making the headlines, huge improvements in healthcare, sanitation and the protection of the environment have…
The model trap: Exposing Jeffrey Epstein’s network
How was Jeffrey Epstein able to continue abusing young women for years after he became a convicted sex offender? BBC Eye has been speaking to survivors and analysing emails and documents in the Epstein Files to build up a picture of how a network of contacts in the modelling industry…
Restoring Libya’s Jasmine City
Derna, in eastern Libya, was devastated three years ago by the world’s deadliest flood disaster this century. About 4,000 lives were lost. Now, the historic Mediterranean port famous for its fragrant jasmine flowers has been rebuilt, with new roads, bridges, housing blocks, schools and medical facilities. Families that lost their…
Why Europe wants to rely less on US tech companies
Europe has long relied on America's tech giants to power its digital economy. Now, as geopolitical tensions rise, it is seeking greater control over its digital future through a push for digital sovereignty. We examine what is driving the push and what it could mean for businesses and consumers.
The US midterms and the cost of living
After the Democratic Party swept to victory in the US midterm elections, we bring people together to share their experiences of one of the major issues for voters - the cost of living. When he was elected as president two years ago, Donald Trump pledged to reduce prices. But the…
Michelle's dream
In 2005, Michelle Vanek, a 35-year-old mother of four, disappeared on Colorado's Mount of the Holy Cross, a rugged peak so steeped in symbolism that its snow-filled cross has become both landmark and legend. She was hiking with a friend when the pair split up and she vanished. Despite one…
River rebound
When cities industrialise the rivers they were built around are first polluted, then turned into sewers and finally built over. It’s a pattern that’s repeated itself for 250 years from 18th century Paris to 21st century Manila. But across the world the fight is on to release and revive our…
Japan’s next meal?
What will the food of the future taste like? In Japan, we discover a fungus turning waste into a high-protein alternative to meat. Then we visit a bedroom where amateur scientists are growing chicken cells. And a restaurant with its very own cultured-meat laboratory upstairs. Could these ideas eventually change…
Inheritance: Fiat
Gianni Agnelli is the head of the family that controls Fiat, and the vast business empire beyond the carmaker that helped shape modern Italy. Charming, charismatic and powerful, he's regarded by many as Italy’s unofficial king, and his family de facto royalty. When he dies the country is plunged into…
Can businesses trust AI?
Why does artificial intelligence sometimes make things up? From law firms to consultants, businesses are grappling with the risks of AI hallucinations. What's causing them, and can they be prevented?
Unlikely: A love across the political divide
Catalina and Jorge were born on the same day - 14 June. They also share a surname and, at one point, attended neighbouring schools. But that is where the similarities end. They hold radically different political views in a country that has endured Latin America's longest running and most violent…
Rebranding sleep apnoea
Obstructive sleep apnoea is a condition where a person’s breathing stops and starts repeatedly while they sleep, possibly over 30 times an hour, leaving them exhausted on waking. It affects millions around the world and can lead to serious health problems if left untreated. Patients are often given a CPAP…
The right thing: Uganda’s fearless nun
Rosemary Nyirumbe became a nun when she was just in her mid-teens – and she felt her true vocation lay in rehabilitating children who had been through some of the worst trauma imaginable. So that’s what she did. In this episode Mike Wooldridge hears Sr Rosemary’s astonishing story. The feared…
Good Bad Billionaire: Gautam Adani
Gautam Adani’s businesses span almost every part of life in India. From energy to food, ports to mining, and drinks to weapons, the Adani group has widespread influence over millions of people day to day. From his early career as a diamond trader, Gautam built a reputation as always looking…
Digging deep to help farmers
A new farming method is having a dramatic effect on maize crops in Malawi, and assistance is coming from a solar-powered tractor. In the last of her visits to Malawi, Myra goes to a village where they are using a new method called Deep Bed Farming. It has more than…
Loving, living and dying together in the Netherlands
Els and Jan have fewer than three days left on Earth. Childhood sweethearts who met in kindergarten more than six decades ago, they know precisely when they will die. And how. On an early summer’s Monday morning they will travel to a nearby hospice. Some of their family and friends…
If China's exports are booming, why are consumers struggling?
China's booming export figures, driven in part by demand for AI-related products, suggest a high-tech economy that's thriving. Yet many consumers at home continue to face economic pressures. Ed Butler asks whether there's a link between weakness at home and strength abroad, and what China's export surge could mean for…
Germany's rust belt revival
On location in Dortmund, in Germany's Ruhr region, historian and author Katja Hoyer reports on the dramatic transformation that has taken place in the city in the last 20 years. Once known for its heavy industry, especially steel production, Dortmund realised the future lay elsewhere. The city would instead become…
Living with dementia
A major new international study predicts that the number of people diagnosed with dementia will more than double by 2050. Researchers at the University of New South Wales in Australia, who led the study, predict that new cases worldwide will rise from some 11 million each year to around 25…