Fifth Floor

By BBC World ServiceNews

Fifth Floor episodes

May 07, 2021 Women and peace in Afghanistan
The BBC Media Action team in Afghanistan recently went on the road with their programme Open Jirga to hear about women’s hopes and fears for any peace deal between the Afghan government and the Taliban. Presenter Shazia Haya heard from the ambitious young women of Herat’s all-female robotics team, and from women in the Taliban heartland city of Kandahar who risked their lives to have their voices heart.
Baghdad's graffiti artists
A group of graffiti artists in the Iraqi capital Baghdad have been painting murals and portraits in poor, rundown areas of the city. The artworks feature famous people and local folk heroes, as BBC Arabic’s Haddad Salih explains.
Who is the new president of Tanzania?
President Samia Suluhu Hassan took office less than two months ago after the sudden death of her predecessor, John Magufuli. She has already shown a very different style of leadership. Zuhura Yunus of BBC Swahili introduces us to Tanzania's first female president.
Egypt's female folk singers
Folk music in Egypt has traditionally been the domain of men. But an all-female folk group called Tablet El Sitt, 'the woman's drum', is reviving old songs sung by and about women. Aya Hashim of BBC Arabic has been investigating.
A short walk in the Russian woods
Another chance to hear Oleg Boldyrev of BBC Russian enjoying last year's Spring lockdown in the company of fallen trees, fungi, and beaver dams.
Image: 'Open Jirga' presenter Shazia Haya with all female audience in Kandahar
Credit: BBC Media Action
41 min
April 30, 2021 Reporting India’s Covid-19 crisis
We take a journalist's eye view of reporting the current Covid-19 crisis in India, with stories from Delhi-based team leader Jugal Purohit, BBC Gujarati's Roxy Gagdekar Chhara, BBC Marathi's Anagha Pathak, and Kirti Dubey and Piyush Nagpal of BBC Hindi.
Trade by barter
Nkechi Ogbonna of BBC Lagos describes a market in Cross River State in Nigeria, which works on a trade by barter system. She tells us how it works and who benefits.
Ramadan in Nablus
Nablus, in the occupied West Bank, is famous for its sweet makers, and Ramadan is when they’re busiest. BBC Arabic’s Alaa Daraghme takes us to his home town to share some mouth-watering treats.
BBC Xtra: Ramadan-themed cooking and dialects
Karima Kouah from BBC Arabic's radio show BBC Xtra tells us about some of their Ramadan topics, like favourite recipes shared by social media influencers, and the misunderstandings that can arise when two people speaking different Arabic dialects get together to chat.
Image: Two Delhi residents wearing PPE mourn their relative who died from Covid-19 in April 2021
Credit: Adnan Abidi / Reuters
42 min
April 23, 2021 Iran's #MeToo
The #MeToo movement is in the spotlight in Iran, where women have been taking to social media to share experiences of sexual harassment and assault. The response was broadly positive, until allegations were made against a popular singer. Soroush Pakzad has been covering the story for BBC Persian.
My Home Town: Sants, Barcelona
Enric Botella of BBC Mundo takes us to the Barcelona neighbourhood of Sants, to chat in the market with his grandmother and grab a beer with a friend.
Mukbang Indian style
Mukbang videos, where people eat large extravagant meals on camera, are usually associated with South Korea. But recently women in rural India have found success making their own videos. BBC Monitoring's Rupsha Mukherjee spoke to two emerging mukbang stars.
The forgotten Chinese survivors of the Titanic
Six Chinese passengers were among the survivors of the Titanic, only to be vilified and refused entry to the United States. Their stories were lost from history, but have been pieced together in a new documentary, The Six. Zhaoyin Feng of BBC Chinese has spoken to the American-born son of one of the six.
Lebanon's Fattoush Index
Lebanon has a new way of measuring the rapidly rising cost of living. It’s called the Fattoush Index - fattoush is a traditional Lebanese salad, as well as a staple for Muslims breaking their fast during Ramadan. BBC Arabic's Carine Torbey explains the findings, and the legend of the origins of this salad.
Image: A woman walks past a mural depicting Iranian national flags in the Iranian capital Tehran.
Credit: -/AFP via Getty Images
41 min
April 16, 2021 HRH Prince Philip: the world remembers
The death last Friday of Prince Philip was extensively covered on the BBC's language services. We hear from Peter Okwoche of BBC Africa, Janina Litvinova of BBC Russian and South Asia Diaspora reporter Gaggan Sabherwal about the challenges of the day, and tailoring their coverage for their audiences.
Venezuela's million bolivar note
BBC Mundo's Guillermo Olmo is based in Venezuela, where hyperinflation has left its currency, the bolivar, struggling to keep up. Prices rose so fast that people had to carry backpacks of notes to pay for their shopping. Now a one million bolivar note has been issued, but will it help?
Rwanda's milk bars
Milk bars are a unique feature of Rwandan towns and highlight the popularity of milk in the country. Prudent Nsengiyumva of BBC Great Lakes tells us what makes them so successful, and why milk is so important to Rwandans.
Myanmar's New Year festival
This week would usually see joyful celebrations in Myanmar for Thingyan, the Buddhist New Year festival. But many Burmese boycotted the festival, as part of continuing protests against February’s military coup, as BBC Burmese editor Soe Win Than explains.
My journey to journalism: Dan Ikpoyi, BBC Pidgin
As part of our series into our language service colleagues' routes into their jobs, we hear from Dan Ikpoyi, whose progress from the Lagos slum of Ketu to BBC Pidgin video journalist took a circuitous route through comedy, poetry and bottle top collection.
Image: A captain's cap with message of condolence on flowers outside Windsor Castle
Credit: Chris Jackson/Getty Images
41 min
April 09, 2021 Chile's Covid-19 paradox
Chile has become a global example of how a high vaccine rollout may not mean the end of the Covid-19 pandemic. Numbers of infections and deaths are higher than ever, and a strict new lockdown has been imposed. BBC Mundo contributor Paula Molina explains how this situation arose.
Egypt's new Coptic speakers
Coptic can be traced back to the language spoken in Ancient Egypt, but only survives today in the liturgy of the Coptic Orthodox Church. Apart, that is, from a growing number of Egyptians who want to reconnect with their history. Rana Taha of BBC Arabic explains how they're bringing the language back to life.
South Korea's Olympic diplomacy
North Korea's announcement that it will not take part in the Tokyo Olympics, in order to protect its athletes from Covid-19, has disappointed South Korea. Julie Yoonnyung Lee of BBC Korean explains why the Games are seen as such an important opportunity for South Korea to engage with the North.
Meeting the female 'kolbars'
The 'kolbars' or porters, who illegally carry heavy loads across the Iran-Iraq border, are mostly Kurdish people, who turn to this dangerous work because it's impossible to find other employment. It is thought of as a man's job, but Parham Ghobadi of BBC Persian tells us there are also women taking part.
Bosnia's forgotten king
Tvrtko I, the first King of Bosnia, ruled over Serbs, Croats and Bosnians in the 14th century, and expanded Bosnian territory to the greatest it's been before or since. Today, he's largely forgotten. BBC Serbian's Nataša Anđelković tells us why she wanted to remind her audience about him.
Image: A Chilean woman shows an identification card during the vaccination against Covid-19
Credit: Claudio Santana / Getty Images
40 min
April 02, 2021 The men making money from migrants
The sinking of a boat carrying illegal migrants across Lake Van in Turkey last year caused shockwaves in Afghanistan. Many of the passengers were Afghans, and while more than 60 bodies were recovered, others remain missing. BBC Afghan’s Hafizullah Maroof decided to investigate, telling the story of one of the victims, and gaining rare access to the people trafficker responsible for his journey.
An algorithm for the perfect biryani
Even throughout lockdown boredom, Aparna Alluri of BBC Delhi steered clear of cooking a biryani, a notoriously complex balancing act of meat, rice and spices. That is, until she found a cookbook that demonstrated how to do it with an algorithm rather than a recipe. She joins us to share her results.
The end of Vietnam's love affair with karaoke?
BBC Vietnamese recently ran a story about the possible banning of karaoke in Ho Chi Minh City. Karaoke is hugely popular in Vietnam, so who better to turn to to find out what's gone wrong than Bui Thu of BBC Vietnamese in Bangkok.
The deep-rooted tradition of dowry in Pakistan
BBC Urdu has been asking what happens to young Pakistanis who turn their backs on dowry. As reporter Sarah Atiq explains, there is huge pressure to conform, despite the financial burden and some cases of torture and even death when demands fail to be met.
Image: People trafficking has made 'Elham Noor' a wealthy man
Credit: 'Elham Noor'
41 min
March 26, 2021 Remembering a Zulu king
King Goodwill Zwelithini, who died two weeks ago, led the Zulu people for fifty years, gaining both praise and criticism for the way he ruled. Pumza Fihlani of BBC Africa went to his funeral and discusses the significance of the Zulu king.
Ukraine's Eurovision entry
This year's Eurovision entry from Ukraine sounds like a super modern dance track. But the lyrics are a traditional folk song, sung to usher in Spring. Roman Lebed of BBC Ukrainian tells us more.
Nepal’s women masons
BBC Marathi’s Mayuresh Konnur has visited Nepal’s Gurkha district, near the epicentre of the 2015 earthquake, to meet some of the country’s new female masons enlisted to help rebuild the country.
Egypt's mother of feminism remembered
Nawal El Saadawi was one of the most outspoken feminists in the Arab world, fearlessly commenting on religion, sex and FGM. The BBC's Sally Nabil joins us in the week after her death to discuss her life and legacy.
Sri Lankan babies sold abroad for adoption
The Netherlands has suspended adoptions from abroad after uncovering violations in how they were arranged. The BBC's Saroj Pathirana has spoken to birth mothers in Sri Lanka and adoptees in the Netherlands, now grown up and trying to discover their origins.
Image: Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini, dressed in traditional Zulu warrior outfit in August 2000
Credit: RAJESH JANTILAL/AFP via Getty Images
42 min
March 19, 2021 Syria: Two women, ten years on
It has been ten years since the start of the Syrian civil war. The lives of Syrians were turned upside down and many fled the country. BBC correspondent Lina Sinjab tells the contrasting stories of two women - one is still in Damascus and the other now lives in Beirut.
My Home Town: Shovot, Uzbekistan
Candyfloss, dancing in the park, and a secret library: Ibrat Safo of BBC Uzbek takes us to his hometown in north-west Uzbekistan.
Chernobyl forest fires
Forest fires are increasingly in the news around the world. But what happens when the forest is radioactive? Zhanna Bezpiatchuk of BBC Ukrainian has made a documentary called 'Are forest fires unlocking radiation in Chernobyl?', which tells the stories of firefighters who tackled last year's wildfires in the Chernobyl exclusion zone.
Kafeel Khan: the doctor who took on the government
How did an Indian doctor hailed as a hero after a medical emergency become labelled a ‘career criminal’? Khadeeja Arif of BBC Urdu has been following Dr Kafeel Khan from one jail sentence to another, and she tells us what light his story sheds on politics in India today.
‘I am my song’
Afghan women and girls protested in song after a recent announcement that public singing would be banned for girls over the age of 12. After a social media storm of musical protest, the Education Ministry backed down. Zuhal Ahad, women's affairs journalist at BBC Kabul, was among those shocked by the original announcement.
Image: Syrian artist painting mural
Credit: BBC
42 min
March 12, 2021 Two to tango
Astor Piazzolla is known as the father of modern tango. The BBC's Valeria Perasso is from Argentina and was born and raised listening to his music. Irena Taranyuk of BBC Ukrainian is a big fan – and dancer - of tango. In the centenary year of Piazzolla’s birth, they discuss his “tango revolution” and its legacy around the world.
Loaves, oil and meat: Iran's lean Nowruz
Queues outside butchers, fights over cooking oil, and buying loaves by the half – all images seen on social media in Iran at a time of year when families would usually be stocking up for Nowruz, the celebration of Spring. Parham Ghobadi of BBC Persian reports on this very visible sign of the ongoing economic crisis in Iran.
The rise and fall of India's fugitive diamond merchant
How did one of the world’s leading fashion jewellers become India’s most wanted man? The story of diamond merchant Nirav Modi from fairytale rise to riches to fugitive accused of fraud, with the BBC’s South Asia Diaspora reporter Gaggan Sabherwal.
Russia’s ice-dancing ballerina
A Russian ballerina in full costume dancing on the frozen sea near St Petersburg caught the world’s attention. Ilmira Bagrautinova chose scenes from Swan Lake to highlight the threat to endangered swans of a proposed port nearby. She told BBC Russian’s Ekaterina Venediktova why that landscape means so much to her.
Image: Couple dancing tango
Credit: Hans Neleman / Getty
42 min
March 05, 2021 Life in a Kurdish military camp
BBC Arabic's Namak Khoshnaw was given unfettered access to film in a military camp of Komala, the Revolutionary Party of Iranian Kurdistan, in Iraqi Kurdistan for his film Escape from Iran. Komala has become a magnet for young Iranian Kurds prepared to risk everything to leave their homeland and train as Peshmerga fighters. We find out about the challenges of filming it, the people fleeing Iran, and the memories it brought back for Namak, himself a former refugee.
Reciting the Koran
Nourin Mohamed Siddig was a Nigerian Koranic reciter who died recently. He found popularity on social media and sang in a unique African style, rather than the more usual Middle Eastern way. We hear from Ahmed Ambali of BBC Yoruba and Reem Fatthelbab of BBC Arabic, about the different ways of singing the Koran and why it’s important to keep them.
Selling the Amazon
A wealthy farmer, looking for investment opportunities in the Amazon. That was BBC Brazil’s Joao Fellet's assumed identity for almost a year, after he discovered “traders” illegally selling rainforest plots on Facebook Marketplace. From Sao Paulo to the Amazon, to Brazil's Supreme Court, Joao shares the “behind the scenes” of his epic report.
Russian prison colonies
Notorious Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny has been sentenced to 2 years imprisonment and it's rumoured he may spend them in penal colony ‘Number 2’. Oleg Boldyrev of BBC Russian explains the differences between prison and penal colonies, and what life in a penal colony might entail.
Image: Trainee graduating at Komala training camp, Iraqi Kurdistan
Credit: BBC
42 min