The iconic East German car dominated the roads of communist Central Europe for decades. The Trabant was made out of resin and cotton waste, had a two-stroke engine and its design remained virtually unchanged for thirty years. Johannes Dell has been hearing from legendary German designer Karl Clauss Dietel who worked for years to make improvements to the Trabant - but his innovations were never implemented.(Photo: a Trabant 601. Credit: BBC)

The iconic East German car dominated the roads of communist Central Europe for decades. The Trabant was made out of resin and cotton waste, had a two-stroke engine and its design remained virtually unchanged for thirty years. Johannes Dell has been hearing from legendary German designer Karl Clauss Dietel who worked for years to make improvements to the Trabant - but his innovations were never implemented. (Photo: a Trabant 601. Credit: BBC)

The Trabant

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about 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 how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.

Society & Culture

History

Personal Journals

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about 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 how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.

Share The Trabant

Sign up to save your podcasts

The Trabant

The Trabant

More shows like Witness History

Global News Podcast

From Our Own Correspondent

Business Daily

More or Less

Newshour

World Business Report

In Our Time

The Documentary Podcast

HistoryExtra podcast

The History Hour

Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4

Great Lives

The Interview

Lives Less Ordinary

The Inquiry

The Life Scientific

The Audio Long Read

Unexpected Elements

CrowdScience

Evil Genius with Russell Kane

Have You Heard George's Podcast?

Elis James and John Robins

You're Dead to Me

Sport's Strangest Crimes

Uncanny

Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley

Believe in Magic

History's Heroes

The Global Story

Miss Me?

The History Podcast

Rory Stewart: The Long History of...

The History Bureau