The Documentary Podcast

To live in Sudan is to have experienced violence, protest, dictatorship, political instability and upheaval. But the scale of fighting during the last week has shocked many. Caught in the middle have been the people, as residential areas have been pummelled by missiles. Amid the crossfire, they have faced no power and no food and have had to decide whether to remain hiding in their homes or risk going outside. Three women from Khartoum - Dallia, Sara and Enass - share their personal situations and concerns with host James Reynolds.

What are the consequences of the Church of England's historic slave plantations in Barbados today? Theologian Robert Beckford considers why and how the Church's missionary arm, the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, got involved in the slavery business. He travels to Barbados to hear from a range of voices who tell the story of how in 1710, the Church turned the Codrington Plantation into a missionary experiment. The original mission failed but later generations did eventually adopt the Anglican faith. However, spurred by the country becoming a republic, some are now questioning the Church's historic role in slavery.

Record numbers are fleeing the island in the wake of a brutal economic crisis – perhaps one in twenty five Sri Lankans left last year alone. Some 300,000 went for contracted positions, mostly in the Gulf. But hundreds of thousands of others took less official routes. Many of them get scammed, some even lose their lives, as illegal migrants in what looks like a web of corruption and organised crime.

Ed Butler speaks to some of those who are involved in this industry, who’ve taken this perilous option, and asks why aren’t more Sri Lankans, and even the government, speaking out more loudly about what some see as a national tragedy?

Produced and presented by Ed Butler

(Photo by Abhishek Chinnappa/Getty Images)

Coming soon: The hunt for the suspected killer of 23-year-old Norwegian student Martine Vik Magnussen, whose body was found buried under rubble in a London basement in 2008. She died after a night out with "billionaire playboy" Farouk Abdulhak, son of one of Yemen’s richest and most powerful men. Police found Martine’s remains in Farouk's apartment building. But Farouk had already fled. Fifteen years later, he’s still on the run. The BBC's Nawal Al-Maghafi was born in Yemen and has been on the case for more than a decade. This is the story of how she finally tracked down the elusive Farouk Abdulhak.

Sam, Harsha and Siddhant are tech workers of Indian descent, who all say they have experienced discrimination in corporate America. They are not being singled out on the basis of race, gender, religion or nationality, but by an invisible factor; one they were born into, and one that others like them come to the US to try to escape. They say they have faced discrimination because of their caste.

Maggie O’Farrell’s historical novel Hamnet was published in 2020 to great critical acclaim, winning the Women's Prize. It tells the story of a gifted herbalist, Agnes Hathaway, who is married to a young William Shakespeare. We follow her on her journey as they meet, marry, and later come to terms with the death of their 11-year-old son, Hamnet. Now, the Royal Shakespeare Company is putting Hamnet on stage for the first time in Shakespeare’s birthplace of Stratford-upon-Avon. Presenter Dan Hardoon follows the RSC’s Acting Artistic Director Erica Whyman throughout the rehearsal process.

In the Persian gulf, a powerful storm appears to sink an oil tanker, prompting a dramatic Royal Navy rescue. But six weeks later, the same tanker causes a scandal when it drifts onto a luxury Bollywood beach in India - like a ghost. Environment journalists Dan Ashby and Lucy Taylor delve into the unsolved mystery, investigating allegations of murky goings-on.

A ground-breaking new medical trial has begun in the UK aimed at slowing the progress of multiple sclerosis. The Octopus trial is looking into whether existing drugs can be repurposed to help slow the progression of the condition. Alykhan, who was diagnosed with MS when he was still at school, is taking part in the study. He joins us in conversation with Professor Jeremy Chataway, from the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in London, who is leading the trial.

In the heyday of the Sikh Empire, Kirtan (Sikh hymns) were performed using stringed instruments such as the sarangi, rabab and taus. The rich, complex tones these instruments create are said to evoke a deeper connection to Waheguru (God). But in the late 19th Century, these traditional instruments were replaced by European imports like the harmonium. Now a new generation of diaspora Sikhs is painstakingly rebuilding that musical heritage - restoring scores and meeting up to teach and learn traditional instruments. Monika Plaha meets one these musical pioneers, Harjinder Singh Lallie, and finds out how his beliefs fuel his work and how his music shapes his faith.

The Gran Chaco Forest is Latin America’s second largest ecosystem. It is a mix of hot and arid scrublands, forests and wetlands, part of the River Plata basin, so large it extends into Paraguay, Brazil, Argentina and Bolivia. Large parts of the forests have already been cleared to make way for farms. Now a new highway being driven through it is heralding further change. The so called Bioceanic Corridor will transport the produce of cattle ranchers and soya-bean farmers in Brazil and Paraguay across to ports on the west coast. Members of some indigenous communities like the Ayoreo see it as a further threat to their way of life.

The new road is being cautiously welcomed by some members of the Mennonite Community, a Christian religious group who came to the Gran Chaco 100 years ago via Prussia, Russia and Canada and bought land from the government to farm. Will the impact of the road on the indigenous and Mennonite communities - and the environment - be worth the economic benefits?

Jane Chambers travels across the Gran Chaco for Assignment. Produced by Bob Howard. The Paraguay producer was Santi Carneri.