Ittai is convinced he’s found his thief, but not everyone is so sure. “I mean, to me, it just sounds like a setup. It sounds like he’s being framed”, one former museum insider tells us.Peter Higgs is a well respected curator, highly regarded for his expertise on the ancient world and known for helping to return stolen antiquities, not selling them on eBay. When Ittai shares his evidence with the British Museum, laying out why he thinks Higgs is a thief, no one seems interested. Has he missed something? Presenter: Katie Razzall 
Producers: Darin Graham, Ben Henderson and Larissa Kennelly 
Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman 
Mix and sound design : James Beard
Composer: Jenny Plant 
Exec-producer: Joe Kent 
Investigations Editor: Ed Campbell 
Series Editor: Matt Willis 
Commissioning Executive: Tracy Williams
Commissioning Editor: Dan ClarkeArchive: Galleries of the British Museum

Ittai is convinced he’s found his thief, but not everyone is so sure. “I mean, to me, it just sounds like a setup. It sounds like he’s being framed”, one former museum insider tells us. Peter Higgs is a well respected curator, highly regarded for his expertise on the ancient world and known for helping to return stolen antiquities, not selling them on eBay. When Ittai shares his evidence with the British Museum, laying out why he thinks Higgs is a thief, no one seems interested. Has he missed something? Presenter: Katie Razzall Producers: Darin Graham, Ben Henderson and Larissa Kennelly Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman Mix and sound design : James Beard Composer: Jenny Plant Exec-producer: Joe Kent Investigations Editor: Ed Campbell Series Editor: Matt Willis Commissioning Executive: Tracy Williams Commissioning Editor: Dan Clarke Archive: Galleries of the British Museum

Thief at the British Museum: 4. Seeds of Doubt

In 1986, members of environmental group London Greenpeace published a leaflet called What's Wrong with McDonald's? It claimed McDonald's was exploiting workers, destroying rainforests, torturing animals, and promoting food that could make people sick, even cause cancer... McDonald's said the claims in the leaflet were untrue, harmed its reputation and demanded an apology. Helen Steel, a gardener, and a former postman named Dave Morris, refused. Mark Steel takes us into the murky world of McDonald's Corporation v Steel &amp; Morris - aka 'McLibel' - the longest-running trial in English history, which turned the spotlight on the way big business operates. The case would help bring issues like rainforest destruction and advertising to children into the mainstream. It would also - spoiler alert - be the moment our current prime minister first comes to prominence. And if that isn't enough, this story would ultimately have connections with a dark and shameful secret at the heart of the British state - something which Mark discovers he himself had been a victim of. Presenter: Mark Steel 
Producer: Conor Garrett Executive 
Producer: Georgia Catt 
Commissioning Editor: Dan Clarke 
Archive Research: Emma Betteridge 
Production Co-ordinator: Dan Marchini 
Music Score: Phil Kieran Archive excerpts from director Franny Armstrong's 'McLibel,' reproduced with the kind permission of Spanner Films Shadow World: Gripping stories from the Shadows - BBC investigations from across the UK. BBC Studios for BBC Radio 4

Society & Culture

Documentary

True Crime

In 1986, members of environmental group London Greenpeace published a leaflet called What's Wrong with McDonald's? It claimed McDonald's was exploiting workers, destroying rainforests, torturing animals, and promoting food that could make people sick, even cause cancer... McDonald's said the claims in the leaflet were untrue, harmed its reputation and demanded an apology. Helen Steel, a gardener, and a former postman named Dave Morris, refused. Mark Steel takes us into the murky world of McDonald's Corporation v Steel & Morris - aka 'McLibel' - the longest-running trial in English history, which turned the spotlight on the way big business operates. The case would help bring issues like rainforest destruction and advertising to children into the mainstream. It would also - spoiler alert - be the moment our current prime minister first comes to prominence. And if that isn't enough, this story would ultimately have connections with a dark and shameful secret at the heart of the British state - something which Mark discovers he himself had been a victim of. Presenter: Mark Steel Producer: Conor Garrett Executive Producer: Georgia Catt Commissioning Editor: Dan Clarke Archive Research: Emma Betteridge Production Co-ordinator: Dan Marchini Music Score: Phil Kieran Archive excerpts from director Franny Armstrong's 'McLibel,' reproduced with the kind permission of Spanner Films Shadow World: Gripping stories from the Shadows - BBC investigations from across the UK. BBC Studios for BBC Radio 4

Share Thief at the British Museum: 4. Seeds of Doubt

Sign up to save your podcasts

Thief at the British Museum: 4. Seeds of Doubt

Thief at the British Museum: 4. Seeds of Doubt

More shows like Shadow World

File on 4 Investigates

The Slow Newscast

The Story

Cyber Hack

Tortoise Investigates

Coining It

The Guardian Investigates

Intrigue

The History Podcast

Crime Next Door

Marianna in Conspiracyland

Havana Helmet Club

The Crime Agents

Making of a Fugitive