Witness History

The Mont Blanc Tunnel


Listen Later

In July 1965, a 12km tunnel dug deep beneath the Alps was opened to traffic, making it the longest vehicular tunnel in the world. Linking France and Italy, the Mont Blanc Tunnel was a remarkable feat of engineering.

Franco Cuaz, a consultant on the project and the tunnel's first operations manager, spoke to Mike Lanchin in 2017 about the risks and challenges of the ambitious project.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there.

For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.
Recent episodes explore everything from the death of Adolf Hitler, the first spacewalk and the making of the movie Jaws, to celebrity tortoise Lonesome George, the Kobe earthquake and the invention of superglue.
We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: Eva Peron – Argentina’s Evita; President Ronald Reagan and his famous ‘tear down this wall’ speech; Thomas Keneally on why he wrote Schindler’s List; and Jacques Derrida, France’s ‘rock star’ philosopher.
You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the civil rights swimming protest; the disastrous D-Day rehearsal; and the death of one of the world’s oldest languages.

(Photo: The Mont Blanc Tunnel. Credit: AFP via Getty Images)

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Witness HistoryBy BBC World Service

  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5

4.5

903 ratings


More shows like Witness History

View all
Global News Podcast by BBC World Service

Global News Podcast

7,865 Listeners

From Our Own Correspondent by BBC Radio 4

From Our Own Correspondent

376 Listeners

Business Daily by BBC World Service

Business Daily

527 Listeners

More or Less by BBC Radio 4

More or Less

856 Listeners

Newshour by BBC World Service

Newshour

1,073 Listeners

World Business Report by BBC World Service

World Business Report

296 Listeners

In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,569 Listeners

The Documentary Podcast by BBC World Service

The Documentary Podcast

1,805 Listeners

HistoryExtra podcast by Immediate

HistoryExtra podcast

3,203 Listeners

The History Hour by BBC World Service

The History Hour

588 Listeners

Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4 by BBC Radio 4

Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4

2,102 Listeners

Great Lives by BBC Radio 4

Great Lives

500 Listeners

The Interview by BBC World Service

The Interview

358 Listeners

Lives Less Ordinary by BBC World Service

Lives Less Ordinary

588 Listeners

The Inquiry by BBC World Service

The Inquiry

743 Listeners

The Life Scientific by BBC Radio 4

The Life Scientific

228 Listeners

The Audio Long Read by The Guardian

The Audio Long Read

842 Listeners

Unexpected Elements by BBC World Service

Unexpected Elements

363 Listeners

CrowdScience by BBC World Service

CrowdScience

476 Listeners

Evil Genius with Russell Kane by BBC Sounds

Evil Genius with Russell Kane

354 Listeners

Have You Heard George's Podcast? by BBC Sounds

Have You Heard George's Podcast?

235 Listeners

Elis James and John Robins by BBC Radio 5 Live

Elis James and John Robins

330 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

3,216 Listeners

Sport's Strangest Crimes by BBC Radio 5 Live

Sport's Strangest Crimes

78 Listeners

Uncanny by BBC Radio 4

Uncanny

666 Listeners

Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley by BBC Radio 4

Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley

567 Listeners

Believe in Magic by BBC Sounds

Believe in Magic

628 Listeners

History's Heroes by BBC Radio 4

History's Heroes

507 Listeners

The Global Story by BBC World Service

The Global Story

392 Listeners

Miss Me? by BBC Sounds

Miss Me?

241 Listeners

The History Podcast by BBC Radio 4

The History Podcast

49 Listeners

Rory Stewart: The Long History of... by BBC Radio 4

Rory Stewart: The Long History of...

77 Listeners

The History Bureau by BBC

The History Bureau

82 Listeners