
Sign up to save your podcasts
Or


Ten years ago, former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, was ousted after weeks of protest in Tahrir square in Cairo. Demonstrators proved an unstoppable force despite a brutal crackdown by authorities killing hundreds. But the post-Mubarak era has not heralded a period of greater freedoms. Kevin Connolly, who covered the fall of Mubarak, looks back on the protests in 2011 which have now fallen silent.
President Emmanuel Macron has chosen not to impose a further lockdown, instead tightening borders, closing shopping malls and imposing a night-time curfew to keep the virus under control. Mr Macron now has one eye on the looming presidential campaign as two polls this week suggested his lead over the far-right’s Marine Le Pen is narrowing. Hugh Schofield reports from Paris.
It's Oscar season again – and Pakistan’s entry in the best foreign film category is making the headlines. The plot centres on the fictional story of a devout Muslim and estate agent whose life is turned upside down when he dances sensually to a song at a wedding. The film has angered a religious group, and the government has postponed its release – indefinitely, says Secunder Kermani.
At the beginning of the pandemic, Bulgaria’s authorities moved swiftly to impose stringent lockdowns on the country’s Roma communities. Many Roma settlements are cut off from essential services. In some neighbourhoods, military police barred the exits. As Bulgaria starts to re-open, Jean Mackenzie visits one settlement.
On the ski slopes of Lake Tahoe, it’s taboo to mention the pandemic. In the Diamond Lake ski resort, slopes are full of visitors, happy to visit the restaurants – and casinos. It's a different story down the road in California, says Alice Hutton.
Presenter: Kate Adie
By BBC Radio 44.6
344344 ratings
Ten years ago, former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, was ousted after weeks of protest in Tahrir square in Cairo. Demonstrators proved an unstoppable force despite a brutal crackdown by authorities killing hundreds. But the post-Mubarak era has not heralded a period of greater freedoms. Kevin Connolly, who covered the fall of Mubarak, looks back on the protests in 2011 which have now fallen silent.
President Emmanuel Macron has chosen not to impose a further lockdown, instead tightening borders, closing shopping malls and imposing a night-time curfew to keep the virus under control. Mr Macron now has one eye on the looming presidential campaign as two polls this week suggested his lead over the far-right’s Marine Le Pen is narrowing. Hugh Schofield reports from Paris.
It's Oscar season again – and Pakistan’s entry in the best foreign film category is making the headlines. The plot centres on the fictional story of a devout Muslim and estate agent whose life is turned upside down when he dances sensually to a song at a wedding. The film has angered a religious group, and the government has postponed its release – indefinitely, says Secunder Kermani.
At the beginning of the pandemic, Bulgaria’s authorities moved swiftly to impose stringent lockdowns on the country’s Roma communities. Many Roma settlements are cut off from essential services. In some neighbourhoods, military police barred the exits. As Bulgaria starts to re-open, Jean Mackenzie visits one settlement.
On the ski slopes of Lake Tahoe, it’s taboo to mention the pandemic. In the Diamond Lake ski resort, slopes are full of visitors, happy to visit the restaurants – and casinos. It's a different story down the road in California, says Alice Hutton.
Presenter: Kate Adie

7,588 Listeners

524 Listeners

891 Listeners

1,049 Listeners

294 Listeners

5,470 Listeners

1,801 Listeners

959 Listeners

2,118 Listeners

106 Listeners

44 Listeners

72 Listeners

745 Listeners

236 Listeners

852 Listeners

81 Listeners

110 Listeners

624 Listeners

369 Listeners

232 Listeners

324 Listeners

3,180 Listeners

723 Listeners

68 Listeners

831 Listeners

3,005 Listeners

505 Listeners

625 Listeners

269 Listeners

256 Listeners

52 Listeners

65 Listeners

78 Listeners

3 Listeners