Fifth Floor

By BBC World ServiceNews

Fifth Floor episodes

July 08, 2022 Reporting the Afghan earthquake
It's more than two weeks since a deadly earthquake struck south east Afghanistan, killing more than a thousand people and leaving tens of thousands homeless. Auliya Atrafi from BBC Media Action in Kabul and Aamir Peerzada from BBC Delhi both travelled to the epicentre in Paktika province, and Ali Hamedani tracked down survivors from his base in London.
Bolsonaro and Brazil's black women voters
Evangelical Christian black women from poor backgrounds played a significant role in the election of Brazil's right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro 4 years ago. BBC Brasil’s Nathalia Passarinho visited cities around the country to find out why they voted for a candidate accused of making racist and sexist comments then, and will they do it again?
Cairo houseboats
The famous houseboats on the River Nile in the heart of Cairo are being demolished and towed away. The authorities say they are standing in the way of the state's grand development plans, but there has been a campaign to save these iconic floating homes, in which some families have lived for decades. BBC Cairo's Sally Nabil visited the residents to hear their stories.
(Photo: Auliya Atrafi of BBC Media Action interviewing an earthquake survivor. Credit: Courtesy BBC Media Action Afghanistan)
42 min
July 01, 2022 Ukraine's foreign fighters
Since February, thousands of international volunteers have travelled to Ukraine to help in the fight against Russia. We hear about some foreign combatants whose stories have been reported by our language services, with Sunyoung Jeong of BBC Korean, Benny Lu of BBC Chinese and Beverly Ochieng of BBC Monitoring in Nairobi.
Lend me a saying
Our BBC Indian language service colleagues in Delhi share their favourite sayings, with Siddhanath Ganu of BBC Marathi, Sarika Singh of BBC Hindi, Khushboo Sandhu of BBC Punjabi, Venkat Prasad G of BBC Telugu, Saranya Nagarajan of BBC Tamil and Brijal Shah of BBC Gujarati.
A new king for Cameroon's Mankon people
For the Mankon community of Cameroon, a king, or fon, never dies, he simply disappears. Fon Angwafor III 'went missing' in May, and the enthronement of the new king took place last month. The BBC's Randy Joe Sa'ah attended the extraordinary ceremony and shares his impressions.
(Photo: Taiwanese volunteer fighter Mr Lee in Kyiv. Credit: Daniel Ceng)
35 min
June 24, 2022 Colombia's first leftist leader
In more than 200 years as a republic, Colombia has never elected a left-wing leader - until now. Gustavo Petro, a former member of the M-19 rebel group, narrowly won in a very polarised election. He said Colombia “voted for change.” BBC Mundo’s Daniel Pardo, who's from Bogota, witnessed the celebrations.
North Korean trash
Seoul politics professor Kang Dong-wan is fascinated by life inside North Korea, and based his latest research on the vast array of packaging washed up on South Korea’s Five West Sea Islands. BBC Korean’s Jungmin Choi tells us what he discovered there, and what it reveals about life inside the communist state.
Russia's lost generals
Why are so many Russian generals dying in the Ukraine conflict? At least four have been killed, possibly more, and yet it's usually rare for a general to die in battle. BBC Russian's Olga Ivshina explains what the high casualty rate tells us about the way Russian forces are fighting.
The imprisonment of Aung San Suu Kyi
The deposed former leader of Myanmar, Aung San Suu Kyi, has been moved from house arrest to solitary confinement in prison. BBC Burmese editor Soe Win Than tells us what's known about her previous living conditions, and the significance of the junta's decision to put her behind bars.
Vietnamese brides
China has a huge sex imbalance in its population, with 10% more men than women. This legacy of the one child policy has had a huge impact on neighbouring Vietnam; it's estimated 100,000 Vietnamese women married to Chinese men. Bui Thu from BBC Vietnamese spoke with one woman who married for love about her experiences.
(Photo: Gustavo Petro and Francia Marquez. Credit: Juan Barreto/AFP via Getty Images)
42 min
June 17, 2022 Racism for sale
BBC reporter Runako Celina tells us about her long search for the origins of a shocking video circulating on Chinese social media in 2020. It showed a group of African children being instructed to chant racist phrases in Chinese. The answers Runako found are in her BBC Africa Eye documentary Racism for Sale.
For the love of mangoes!
We unleash the Fifth Floor mic in the BBC Delhi bureau where colleagues from the Indian language services share their love of mangoes, especially their local varieties. Thanks to Siddhanath Ganu of BBC Marathi, Sarika Singh of BBC Hindi, Khushboo Sandhu of BBC Punjabi, Brijal Shah of BBC Gujarati, Venkat Prasad G of BBC Telugu and Saranya Nagarajan of BBC Tamil.
New words and a culture shift in Ukraine
'Putler', 'Ruscists' and 'Anglo-Saxons': what words can tell us about the cultural shift in Ukraine since the invasion, and why some are 'changing their shoes mid-air', with Vitaliy Shevchenko from BBC Monitoring.
Bangladesh container depot blast
The devastating explosion at the Sitakunda container depot near Chittagong killed more than 40 people and injured hundreds. BBC Bangla journalist Shahnewaj Rocky is from Chittagong and spoke with firefighters and some of those who rushed to help the victims.
Ventriloquist queen
American ventriloquist Angelique-Monet became a queen in Nigeria after falling in love with a Nigerian king and marrying him. She lives in Eti-Oni in southern Nigeria where she and her puppet, Milk the Cow, entertain local children with their skills. BBC Africa's Youth News reporter Damilola Oduolowu caught her show.
(Photo: A Chinese greeting from African children. Credit: BBC)
42 min
June 10, 2022 Is China’s population falling?
The numbers of people living in the most populated country in the world is expected to start falling this year, for the first time since the great famine more than six decades ago. There's concern about what that means for the global economy, but what do people in China think? BBC Chinese editor Howard Zhang explains why the 3-child policy hasn’t worked.
Afrocentrism
Njoroge Muigai of BBC Nairobi recently visited a Kenyan primary school with a difference; it takes an innovative, Afrocentric approach to learning.
Fortune-telling in Thailand
BBC Thai has been asking why fortune-tellers are still so widely consulted in Thailand. They interviewed popular fortune-tellers and found out from younger clients why they seek consultations. Sucheera Maguire explains.
A visit to Delhi's Lodi Gardens
Suhail Haleem of BBC Delhi takes us to the Lodi Gardens to look at Mughal monuments and contemplate India's relationship with its Islamic past and present.
My Arab Adolescence
BBC Arabic has given young people across the Arab world a platform to talk openly about the challenges they face, including taboo topics around mental health, in a podcast series for teenagers called My Adolescence. Presenter Karima Kouah shares their stories, and tells us what she hopes the series will achieve.
(Photo: Chinese babies in cots. Credit: Gong Bo/VCG via Getty Images)
42 min
June 06, 2022 Marriage and war
Natalya is a Russian journalist working for BBC Monitoring, and her husband and colleague, Yuriy, is Ukrainian. They have been evacuated from their home in Kyiv to Lviv. Natalya tells us about the challenges of family life during war, and how she’s given up trying to convince some friends in Russia about what’s really happening.
Changing attitudes in India
A recent survey of social attitudes in India showed that a large proportion of the population, both men and women, still believe that husbands have the right to beat their wives. Women's affairs editor Geeta Pandey talks us through the findings.
Why Germans are migrating to Paraguay
Thousands of German migrants have moved to Paraguay, some of them escaping Covid restrictions; others because they are uncomfortable with immigration itself in Germany. BBC Mundo's Mar Pichel travelled to Paraguay to explore the reasons behind this new wave.
Goodbye to South Korea's Blue House
The Blue House in Seoul has been the seat of power in South Korea for more than 70 years. But the new president, Yoon Suk-yeol, has moved his office to a Defence Ministry complex and opened the Blue House to the public. Julie Yoonnyung Lee of BBC Korean explains the reasons for this decision.
Uganda's Batwa people
Over 30 years ago, the Batwa people of Uganda were evicted from their ancestral forest home by the government. It was thought they might threaten the gorilla population, vital to Uganda's tourism industry. But the Batwa people have struggled ever since, as BBC Africa's Patience Atuhaire discovered when she went to report on their story.
Presenter: David Amanor
Producer: Sue Waldram
(Photo: Wedding rings. Credit: BBC)
42 min
May 27, 2022 Being a Russian in Ukraine
How have the lives of the thousands of Russians living in Ukraine changed since the invasion? BBC Arabic's Heba Bitar met three Russian nationals who told her about their conflicted sense of identity and the practical challenges they are facing.
The latest from Bollywood
Bollywood watchers Vidit Mehra and Vandana from BBC Delhi discuss the latest headlines. An Indian actor is a jury member at this year's Cannes film festival, two of Bollywood's most famous stars have recently married and it's the thirtieth anniversary of a film that put a civil war on pause.
Why battery-powered rickshaws are taking over in Bangladesh
Dhaka's notorious traffic jams are very polluting, as well as frustrating and noisy. Now there's a sustainable DIY solution to get around town: battery-powered rickshaws. But as BBC Bangla's Shahnewaj Rocky tells us, there are risks involved.
LGBTQ+ rights in Qatar
With just months to go before the Fifa World Cup 2022, the authorities in Qatar have assured LGBTQ+ visitors that they will be welcome. But the reality for LGBTQ+ people living in Qatar is very different, as BBC Arabic's Julien Hajj has been finding out.
Ukraine’s lost animals
As BBC Ukrainian reporter Roman Lebed was about to do a piece to camera, a cat walked into the shot. Roman burst out laughing – for the first time in months. The cat had burnt whiskers and wanted to become his friend. Roman says he’s seen many cats and dogs, often abandoned, in the areas he’s been reporting from.
(Photo: Russian man by a memorial in Kyiv for Ukrainian soldiers. Credit: BBC)
41 min
May 20, 2022 Love in a time of war
How do you arrange a wedding in a warzone? According to Ukrainian authorities nearly 4,000 couples tied the knot in the first 10 days after the invasion. BBC Ukrainian's Zhanna Bezpiatchuk has recently come back from Ukraine – where she met a couple who exchanged their vows as twin rockets hit the city of Lviv, in western Ukraine.

Videogames in the Arabic world
Millions of people around the world play videogames and the industry is getting bigger and bigger. One company is capitalising on this growth. Based in Jordan, their speciality is 'localising' videogames; making them more suitable for Arab audiences. Hossam Fazulla has been covering this story for BBC Arabic.
Meet the Nigerian Spiderman
Environmentalist Jonathan Olakunle dresses up as a superhero to help clean up the streets and raise awareness about illegal waste dumping. BBC Africa’s Joshua Akinyemi has spent a day with him.
Afghan women lawyers
Since the Taliban took over in 2021, women have been barred from working in the judiciary system, leaving thousands jobless and at risk. And whilst the Taliban government say women with legal claims can still go to court, some Afghan women say that their cases are better understood by female judges and lawyers. Shazia Haya from BBC Pastho has the story.

Bridgerton in India
The latest season of the drama Bridgerton has had a mixed reception in India. Set in Georgian London, the series follows the aristrocratic Bridgerton family. The second series introduces an Indian family visiting London to find a match for their youngest daughter. Though popular among Indians it proved controversial - as the BBC’s Meryl Sebastian in Delhi explains.
Presenter: Faranak Amidi
Producers: Alice Gioia, Caroline Ferguson, Rebecca Moore, Emily Naylor
(Photo: Newly-weds Aliona and Boghdan. Credit: Marek Polaszewski)
48 min
May 13, 2022 Mariupol: City at the heart of war
The Ukrainian port city of Mariupol has been under attack by the Russians since the first day of the invasion on 24 February. It now lies in ruins, but still Ukrainian fighters are resisting in the Azovstal steelworks. Vitaliy Shevchenko, Russia editor of BBC Monitoring, tells us about the complex history and identity of Mariupol.
Reporting Sri Lanka
It’s been a week of violent unrest in Sri Lanka, where peaceful protests in the capital turned into riots on Monday after the resignation of prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. For two members of the BBC Sinhala team, it’s a doubly difficult story, having moved from Colombo to Delhi. Editor Ishara Danasekara and her colleague Amanda Abeysooriya tell us about the challenges of reporting from a distance.
South Korea's hijabi influencer
Sabrina is a young hijab-wearing Malaysian Muslim who loves to dance to K-pop. When she moved to South Korea, she opened a YouTube channel and became a popular influencer. However, not all responses have been positive, as BBC Korean’s Bugyeong Jung found out.
My Childhood, My Country
A remarkable documentary which follows the life of a young Afghan from the age of 7 to 27 has just won a BAFTA award for Shoaib Sharifi, who runs the Kabul office of the BBC’s international charity, BBC Media Action. It’s called My Childhood, My Country, and Shoaib tells us how he first met its star, Mir Hussain, then recorded his life from child to adult.
Presenter: Faranak Amidi
Producer: Sue Waldram
(Photo: Theatre building destroyed in the Ukraine-Russia conflict in Mariupol, April 25, 2022. Credit: Reuters/Alexander Ermochenko)
42 min
May 06, 2022 Tattoo patriotism
Tattoo parlours have switched from hearts and roses to Cossacks and flags as Ukrainians ink their bodies with patriotic tattoos to permanently record what their country is going through. BBC Ukrainian's Anastasiya Gribanova visited a Lviv tattoo parlour to find out the most popular images, and what they mean to citizens and soldiers.
Miami's F1 vices
Organisers had hoped that Miami's Formula 1 race would give Monte Carlo a run for its money with drivers roaring along the seafront and superyacht-studded marina. So when they didn't get permission they decided to think outside the box - why not fake a marina, yachts and all? BBC Monitoring's Luis Fajardo has been enjoying the drama.
A 30 year battle for sewage services
A shanty town in Brazil’s richest city, Sao Paulo, has finally won its decades-long campaign to get basic sanitation. Millions of Brazilians live without proper sewage or water services, and Thais Carrança of BBC Brasil visited Favela do Moinho to find what the new services will mean for residents.
Real Housewives of Lagos
A group of wealthy, glamorous and fun-loving Lagos women are in the spotlight with the latest iteration of the Real Housewives franchise. Keisha Gitari at BBC Lagos tells us about the lives shown on screen, and how the city on the screen compares with the reality for most locals.
Why not... dance?
That’s the question being posed by the first in a new BBC Arabic series tackling topics that are seldom discussed or culturally contentious. Julien Hajj explains why they chose dance as a topic, and a male belly-dancer as a contributor.
(Photo: Ukrainian patriotic tattoo. Credit: BBC)
42 min