BBC

Ex-Malaysia PM Najib Razak has been jailed for 15 years for abuse of power and money laundering - Bisi Adebayo looks at the details.

Japan approves a record-breaking budget with defence spending at a new high.

And we head to to Nigeria, where 'Detty December' is proving to be big business, a point echoed by Nigerian singer and event co-founder Darey Art Alade.

Nigeria's foreign minister has said US strikes against the Islamic State group were nothing to do with a particular religion, despite Donald Trump's assertions. He said that the attacks targeted militants killing Nigerians- irrespective of their faith.

Also in the programme: We head to the Netherlands to explore the Silicon Valley of farming; Malaysia's former prime minister Najib Razak has received a 15-year jail sentence over his involvement in one of the world's biggest corruption scandals; and could there be hope of a cure for dementia?

(Photo: The US defence department posted a short video that appears to show a missile being launched from a military vessel. Credit: US Department of Defense)

Well-known influencer and entrepreneur, Nancy Umeh, has spent the past year sharing her experience of welcoming her third child through surrogacy.

While the practice remains legally unrecognised in many African countries - and is often surrounded by stigma - Nancy has spoken openly about her journey on social media.

In this episode of Focus on Africa: The Conversation, host Charles Gitonga spoke with Nancy Umeh about why she chose surrogacy and how the journey has been for her.

We also heard from family lawyer, Eliud Ngugi on what laws are needed in Africa to protect both the surrogate and the commissioning parents.

Presenter : Charles Gitonga

Producers: Carolyne Kiambo, Ly Truong and Makouchi Okafor

Senior Producer: Priya Sippy

Editors: Samuel Murunga and Maryam Abdalla

Donald Trump says US air strikes have killed multiple Islamic State fighters in Nigeria. He described the group as "terrorist scum" who had persecuted innocent Christians. Also: as Russia considers the latest US-backed peace plan, Ukraine's President Zelensky hails "new ideas" to end the war; former Brazilian President, Jair Bolsonaro, endorses his son Flavio to effectively stand in for him in next year's elections; how neutral Switzerland tried to maintain an uneasy compromise during the Second World War; and how an unexpected knock at the door one Christmas led a homeless man making himself at home - for 45 years.

The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight.

Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment.

Get in touch: [email protected]

Michael Flatley is the most famous Irish dancer in the world, rising to stardom for his leading roles in Riverdance and Lord of the Dance. Colm Flynn travels to meet Flatley at home, where he reflects on the highs of his remarkable career and the personal experiences that shaped his outlook on life and faith.

Born in Chicago to Irish parents, Flatley grew up surrounded by music, dance, and the values of hard work and perseverance. His groundbreaking performance in Riverdance at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1994 brought Irish dance to a global audience, and his later productions redefined what Irish traditional dance could be. In recent years, Michael Flatley’s life was upended when he was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer. He describes the diagnosis as a moment that forced him to re-examine what truly matters: family, love, and belief in God.

This episode of The Documentary, comes to you from Heart and Soul, exploring personal approaches to spirituality from around the world.

A senior leader of Bangladesh's biggest political group, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Tarique Rahman, has returned to the country after seventeen years in exile. He promised to unite people of all faiths and ensure their safety.

Also in the programme: Pope Leo has used two Christmas Day addresses to call for peace and denounce war, plus the annual NewsHour Christmas quiz.

(Photo: Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman waves from a vehicle after his arrival from London, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, December 25, 2025. CREDIT: REUTERS/Anik Rahman)

Jolene receives an unexpected Christmas present, and there's a changing of the guard at The Bull.

Christmas is often imagined as a season of homecoming, but for millions of people around the world, that idea of home doesn’t exist.

In this episode, we meet Gopolang, one of an estimated 300 million people experiencing homelessness globally. He lives on the streets of Johannesburg, surviving through plastic recycling. Our reporter Mpho Lakaje spends time with him during the festive season, revealing what Christmas looks like when daily survival comes first.

The episode also looks at how Christmas traditions are changing in Nigeria. Many people remember a time of open doors and shared food, but rising costs and urban life have pushed some traditional dishes off the table. At a food festival in Lagos, chefs and organisers are working to revive those meals and the memories attached to them.

Presenter : Nkechi Ogbonna

Producers: Ayuba Iliya, Bella Twine, Keikantse Shumba, Blessing Aderogba

Technical Producer: Mbarak Abdallah

Senior Producer: Daniel Dadzie

Editors: Samuel Murunga and Maryam Abdalla

A senior leader of Bangladesh's biggest political group, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Tarique Rahman, has returned to the country after 17 years in exile. Mr Rahman is seen as the leading contender to become prime minister in this February's elections. Greeted by hundreds of thousands of people, Mr Rahman addressed a huge crowd and called on citizens from all ethnic and religious groups to join in creating a secular and inclusive nation.

Also in the programme: Pope Leo highlights the plight of the people of Gaza in a Christmas address; and a Christmas meeting between a bone marrow donor and a cancer survivor.

(Picture: Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman addresses his supporters. Credit: REUTERS/Mohammad Ponir Hossain)

To celebrate Melvyn Bragg’s 27 years presenting In Our Time, five well-known fans of the programme have chosen their favourite episodes. Author and columnist Caitlin Moran has picked the episode on the English medieval mystic Margery Kempe and recorded an introduction to it. Margery Kempe (1373-1438) produced an account of her extraordinary life in a book she dictated, "The Book of Margery Kempe." She went on pilgrimage to Jerusalem, to Rome and Santiago de Compostela, purchasing indulgences on her way, met with the anchoress Julian of Norwich and is honoured by the Church of England each 9th November. She sometimes doubted the authenticity of her mystical conversations with God, as did the authorities who saw her devotional sobbing, wailing and convulsions as a sign of insanity and dissoluteness. Her Book was lost for centuries, before emerging in a private library in 1934.

This In Our Time episode was first broadcast in June 2016. The image (above), of an unknown woman, comes from a pew at Margery Kempe's parish church, St Margaret’s, Kings Lynn and dates from c1375.

With

Miri Rubin

Professor of Medieval and Early Modern History at Queen Mary, University of London

Katherine Lewis

Senior Lecturer in History at the University of Huddersfield

And

Anthony Bale

Professor of Medieval Studies at Birkbeck University of London

Producer: Simon Tillotson

Reading list:

John H. Arnold and Katherine J. Lewis (eds.), A Companion to the Book of Margery Kempe, (D. S. Brewer, 2010)

Anthony Bale (trans.), The Book of Margery Kempe (Oxford University Press, 2015)

Santha Bhattacharji, God is an Earthquake: The Spirituality of Margery Kempe (Darton, Longman and Todd, 1997)

Anthony Goodman, Margery Kempe and her World (Longman, 2002)

Karma Lochrie, Margery Kempe and the Translations of the Flesh (University of Pennsylvania Press, 1991)

Gail McMurray Gibson, The Theater of Devotion: East Anglian Drama and Society in the Late Middle Ages (University of Chicago Press, 1989)

Lynn Staley, Margery Kempe’s Dissenting Fictions (Pennsylvania State University Press, 1994)

Jonathan Sumption, Pilgrimage: An Image of Mediaeval Religion (Faber & Faber, 2002)

Brett Whalen, Pilgrimage in the Middle Ages: A Reader (University of Toronto Press, 2011)

Barry Windeatt (ed.), The Book of Margery Kempe: Annotated Edition (D. S. Brewer, 2006)

Barry Windeatt (ed.), The Book of Margery Kempe (Penguin Classics, 2000)

Spanning history, religion, culture, science and philosophy, In Our Time from BBC Radio 4 is essential listening for the intellectually curious. In each episode, host Melvyn Bragg and expert guests explore the people, ideas, events and discoveries that have shaped our world

In Our Time is a BBC Studios production