BBC

Investigations continue following the death of 20-year-old Karen Lojore at Afrobeats artiste Asake's concert in Nairobi. Karen died following a crowd crush as fans tried to access the show. Concerns about safety and crowd control at large entertainment events have been raised. We hear from Karen’s aunt as the family prepares to lay her to rest, and from a Kenyan journalist who was inside the venue and describes the moments as the situation escalated.

Then, we turn to West Africa’s end-of-year cultural phenomenon, Detty December. In Lagos and Accra, December is now synonymous with packed concerts and booming nightlife. But as the season grows more expensive, some locals are questioning who it’s really for.

Presenter : Nkechi Ogbonna

Producers: Chiamaka Dike, Bella Twine, Keikantse Shumba, Blessing Aderogba

Technical Producer: Mbarak Abdallah

Senior Producer: Daniel Dadzie

Editors: Samuel Murunga and Maryam Abdalla

Stephen speaks with guests about their favourite festive memories.

The Australian state of New South Wales has passed gun control laws ten days after the Hanukkah attack in which 15 people were killed. There are also strict limits on how many firearms people can have and the police will have more powers to ban demonstrations. Also: four Palestine Action prisoners in Britain continue a prolonged hunger strike; Libya’s army chief, General Muhammad Ali Ahmad al-Haddad, is killed in a plane crash shortly after take-off from the Turkish capital of Ankara; in Egypt, specialists are restoring a nearly 4,000 year old ceremonial boat from the reign of the Pharaoh Khufu; and a theatre company in Rome trains actors with psychiatric problems and learning disabilities to perform classic Italian plays.

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]

Image credit: Dean Lewins EPA Shutterstock

2025 on The Interview

In 2025, the BBC launched The Interview, bringing you the best conversations from across the BBC. People shaping our world from all over the world.

This special episode for The Documentary features three of the most compelling conversations from The Interview across the year. Senior politicians are held to account by experienced BBC journalists, who also bring a unique and personal insight to the conversation, with a behind-the-scenes take on each encounter that took place.

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright’s controversial challenge to climate orthodoxy was the subject of his conversation with the BBC’s climate editor Justin Rowlatt. Like his boss President Trump, Secretary Wright believes the threat from climate change is exaggerated, and the rush to decarbonisation by renewables has been an expensive mistake.

In an interview with BBC presenter Paul Njie, Somalia’s president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud defends his efforts to tackle the terrorist insurgency in his country. And he stands firm in the face of demands for independence from the northern region of Somaliland - the unity of Somalia, he says, is sacrosanct.

British Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood set out her plans for a radical reform of the UK asylum system in a conversation with the BBC’s Nick Robinson. It makes for an uncompromising message for those trying to enter Britain illegally.

Thank you to the all the teams across the BBC who have helped us make The Interview throughout 2025.

The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC. You can listen on the BBC World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out three times a week on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.

Presenter: Lucy Sheppard

Producers: Ben Cooper, Clare Williamson, Farhana Haider, Lucy Sheppard

Editors: Justine Lang and Nick Holland

Get in touch with us on email [email protected] and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.

For months we’ve heard speculation about what the Autumn Budget might bring - now we know. The Chancellor has delivered her statement, setting out plans for taxes, benefits, and spending. But what does it mean for your money? Our panel of experts break down the key announcements and explain how they could affect you.

Felicity Hannah is joined by David Dodgson, a partner at the independent financial advisors, The Private Office; Helen Thornley, a tax expert from the Association of Taxation Technicians; and Sarah Pennells, a consumer finance specialist for the mutual life and pensions company, Royal London.

Presenter: Felicity Hannah

Producer: Helen Ledwick

Researcher: Eimear Devlin

Editor: Jess Quayle

Senior News Editor: Sara Wadeson

(This episode was first broadcast at 3pm on Radio 4 on the 26th of November 2025).

Pro-Palestinian remand prisoners staging the largest organised hunger strike in over 40 years are to continue, after the government refused a meeting. We hear from the sister of one of them - and ask whether the government should now intervene.

Also on the programme:

The latest Epstein files include an email from Balmoral in which Ghislaine Maxwell is asked if she's found some new "inappropriate friends". We have the latest.

And what do Christmas cracker jokes do to our brains?

The US economy picked up speed over the three months to September, as consumer spending jumped and exports increased but consumer sentiment is low, Rahul Tandon hears from a business about what things are like on the ground.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a pill version of the weight-loss drug Wegovy, according to pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk.

And, an important moment for Indian female cricket players seeing their match fees doubled for domestic games.

(Photo: A person shops for products imported from Asia at a market in Los Angeles, California, USA, 07 April 2025. Credit: ALLISON DINNER/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

The US Department of Justice has published thousands more files relating to the late sex- offender, Jeffrey Epstein -- its largest such release to date. Among the documents is an email from an investigator that says Donald Trump travelled many more times on Epstein's private jet than was previously reported. Mr Trump has denied any wrongdoing in relation to the Epstein scandal.

Also on the programme: Amid ongoing violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, we report on the trauma of modern-day birth in Bethlehem; and we hear from Mulatu Astatke, known as the father of Ethio-jazz.

(Photo: A newly-released unsealed indictment of disgraced late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is seen in this handout image released by the U.S. Justice Department and printed and arranged for a photograph by Reuters in Washington, D.C., U.S., December 19, 2025. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)

Kenton makes an admission, and Hannah gets competitive.

In a newly released email, a US government investigator says that President Donald Trump flew on Jeffrey Epstein’s plane many more times than was previously reported. Also: Ukraine says it's suffering widespread power cuts after another night of deadly Russian air attacks; US regulators approve a pill version of the weight loss drug Wegovy; we hear what it's like to have a baby in Bethlehem; and how can you ensure that you'll keep your New Year's resolutions?

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]

Picture Credit: US Department of Justice/PA