History's Heroes

By BBC Radio 4Society & Culture Documentary History

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History's Heroes episodes

April 29, 2024 History's Secret Heroes: Series 2: Josefina Guerrero: The Maid of Manila
After contracting Hansen’s Disease, then known as leprosy, Josefina Guerrero makes a remarkable decision. She becomes a spy for the resistance in Manila.
Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for incredible tales of deception, acts of resistance and courage.
A BBC Studios Audio production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.
Producer: Suniti Somaiya
Edit Producer: Melvin Rickarby
Assistant Producer: Lorna Reader
Executive Producer: Paul Smith
Written by Alex von Tunzelmann
Commissioning editor for Radio 4: Rhian Roberts
29 min
April 22, 2024 History's Secret Heroes: Series 2: The Unbreakable Navajo Code
A group of Native American soldiers use their language to devise a secret code for the Allies. Can the Navajo code help win one of the fiercest battles of the war?
Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for incredible tales of deception, acts of resistance and courage.
A BBC Studios Audio production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.
Producer: Suniti Somaiya
Edit Producer: Melvin Rickarby
Assistant Producer: Lorna Reader
Executive Producer: Paul Smith
Written by Alex von Tunzelmann
Commissioning editor for Radio 4: Rhian Roberts
29 min
April 15, 2024 History's Secret Heroes: Series 2: Christine Granville: The Spy Who Skied In From The Cold
Thrill-seeker Christine Granville offers to ski across enemy lines and over the deadly Carpathian mountains, into Nazi-occupied Poland to gather intelligence for the British. Churchill would later call her his favourite spy.
Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for incredible tales of deception, acts of resistance and courage.
A BBC Studios Audio production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.
Producer: Suniti Somaiya
Edit Producer: Melvin Rickarby
Assistant Producer: Lorna Reader
Executive Producer: Paul Smith
Written by Alex von Tunzelmann
Commissioning editor for Radio 4: Rhian Roberts
29 min
April 08, 2024 History's Secret Heroes: Series 2: Flying High with Johnny Smythe
In Sierra Leone, navigator Johnny Smythe becomes one of the first West African airmen to join the Royal Air Force. His fellow crew consider him as a lucky charm, but as he faces a series of terrifying flights, will his good fortune run out?
Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for incredible tales of deception, acts of resistance and courage.
A BBC Studios Audio production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.
Producers: Suniti Somaiya and Elaina Boateng
Edit Producer: Melvin Rickarby
Assistant Producer: Lorna Reader
Executive Producer: Paul Smith
Written by Alex von Tunzelmann
Commissioning editor for Radio 4: Rhian Roberts
30 min
April 01, 2024 History's Secret Heroes: Series 2: The Extraordinary Cook Sisters
How did Ida and Louise Cook, two opera-loving sisters from England, help dozens of Jewish people escape Nazi Germany?
Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for incredible tales of deception, acts of resistance and courage.
A BBC Studios Audio production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.
Producer: Suniti Somaiya
Edit Producer: Melvin Rickarby
Assistant Producer: Lorna Reader
Executive Producer: Paul Smith
Written by Alex von Tunzelmann
Commissioning editor for Radio 4: Rhian Roberts
30 min
March 25, 2024 History's Secret Heroes: Series 2: Trailer
Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for tales of deception, resistance and courage in History's Secret Heroes Series 2.
3 min
August 02, 2023 History's Secret Heroes: Series 1: Arslan Rezniqi and the Besa Code
Albania was one of the few European countries to have a larger Jewish population at the end of the war than it had at the beginning. What role did Arslan Rezniqi, a Kosovan Albanian merchant, play in this?
Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for incredible tales of deception, acts of resistance and courage.
A BBC Studios Podcast production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.
Producer: Amie Liebowitz
Executive Producer: Paul Smith
Written by Alex von Tunzelmann
31 min
July 26, 2023 History's Secret Heroes: Series 1: Jack King and the Fifth Column
Eric Roberts, a bank worker from Surrey, joins MI5. He is given the alias Jack King and his job is to hunt for British Nazi-sympathisers.
Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for incredible tales of deception, acts of resistance and courage.
A BBC Studios Podcast production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.
Producer: Amie Liebowitz
Executive Producer: Paul Smith
Written by Alex von Tunzelmann
29 min
July 19, 2023 History's Secret Heroes: Series 1: Skiing Commandos
Can a team of Norwegian men stop Hitler from obtaining the materials to create an atomic bomb large enough to destroy London?
Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for incredible tales of deception, acts of resistance and courage.
A BBC Studios Podcast production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.
Producer: Clem Hitchcock
Executive Producer: Paul Smith
Written by Alex von Tunzelmann
29 min
July 12, 2023 History's Secret Heroes: Series 1: Bela Hazan and the Jewish Resistance
Poland, 1941. Bela Hazan, a young Jewish woman, secures an undercover job at the Gestapo headquarters. She is about to go undercover to fight against the Nazis.
Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for incredible tales of deception, acts of resistance and courage.
A BBC Studios Podcast production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.
Producer: Amie Liebowitz
Executive Producer: Paul Smith
Written by Alex von Tunzelmann
30 min

About History's Heroes

From the publisher's feed

Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for tales of deception, resistance and courage in History's Secret Heroes Series 4.

History's Heroes: the BBC's breathtaking, high stakes, story-led history podcast feed that shines a light on extraordinary people from across history.

Series include 'History's Heroes' with narration from Historian Alex von Tunzelmann, 'History's Toughest Heroes' with narration from Ray Winstone, 'History's Youngest Heroes' with narration from Nicola Coughlan and 'History's Secret Heroes' with narration from Helena Bonham Carter.

In History's Heroes, Historian Alex von Tunzelmann (Radio 4's The History Podcast: The Lucan Obsession/writer of all the History's Heroes series) shines a light on the inspiring and unusual stories of courage, pioneering and people who used their voice to spark change. Heroes covered include groundbreaking surgeon Harold Gillies, composers Rodgers and Hammerstein and swimming champion Gertrude Ederle. Join Alex for stories of bold voices, with brave ideas and the courage to stand alone.

In History's Toughest Heroes, Ray Winstone reveals wild, true stories of adventurers, rebels and survivors. Heroes covered include arctic explorer Peter Freuchen, Hollywood stunt woman Kitty O'Neil and medieval knight William Marshal. Join Ray for tales of fearsome heroes who lived life on the edge.

In History's Youngest Heroes, actress Nicola Coughlan (Bridgerton, Derry Girls) tells twelve true stories of rebellion, risk and the radical power of youth. Before she became a Hollywood star, how did the young Audrey Hepburn take on the Nazis during World War Two? As a young activist, how did Nelson Mandela attempt to overthrow the South African government to end apartheid? Did Queen of England, Lady Jane Grey give up her faith or face the executioner's axe? Why did Terry Fox, a young man with a prosthetic leg, set out to run the length of Canada? Join Nicola to hear inspiring tales of young heroes both famous and forgotten, whose bravery demonstrates how young people can change history.

In History's Secret Heroes, Helena Bonham Carter recounts untold stories of heroes from World War Two whose acts of resistance, deception and courage helped defeat fascism. In each episode, Helena shines a light on the spies, Royal Air Force pilots, army officers, prisoners of war and double agents who risked their lives to save others. Learn all about forgotten stories of survival, bravery and espionage - from the opera singers who helped dozens of Jewish people escape Nazi Germany, to the woman that Winston Churchill would go on to call his favourite spy.

Previous episodes have looked at the story of the American actor George Takei (Star Trek), who was imprisoned without trial along with 12,000 other Japanese Americans, and Bela Hazan, a young Jewish woman who went undercover at the Gestapo headquarters to fight against the Nazis. From secret missions behind enemy lines in occupied Europe, to underground resistance movements across Germany, France, Poland, Great Britain and beyond, History's Secret Heroes reveals how ordinary people can make an extraordinary impact.

Join Alex, Ray, Nicola and Helena for tales of deception, rebellion, risk and courage.