On Friday 13 February 1970, Black Sabbath released their first album and a new genre was born - heavy metal. Witness speaks to guitarist Tony Iommi about the band's origins in Britain's industrial West Midlands - and the day his career nearly ended when he lost the tips of two fingers in a metal-working accident.(Photo: Black Sabbath backstage at Top of the Pops (BBC). From left: Bill Ward, Ozzy Osborne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler)

On Friday 13 February 1970, Black Sabbath released their first album and a new genre was born - heavy metal. Witness speaks to guitarist Tony Iommi about the band's origins in Britain's industrial West Midlands - and the day his career nearly ended when he lost the tips of two fingers in a metal-working accident. (Photo: Black Sabbath backstage at Top of the Pops (BBC). From left: Bill Ward, Ozzy Osborne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler)

Black Sabbath

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more. Recent episodes explore everything from how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.

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Personal Journals

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more. Recent episodes explore everything from how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.

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Black Sabbath

Black Sabbath

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