This Week in History

By BBC Radio 4

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

... more

· History

Download on the App Store

Download on the App Store

Get it on Google Play

FAQs about This Week in History:

How many episodes does This Week in History have?

The podcast currently has 12 episodes available.

This Week in History episodes:

June 16, 2025 June 16th - June 22nd
Fascinating, surprising, and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.
BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what has happened on this same week throughout history.
With short looks at the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.
This week. June 16th - June 22nd
- 16th of June 1961. At Le Bourget Airport in Paris, the ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev dramatically defects, claiming asylum in the French capital city.
- 17th of June 1631. Arjumand Banu, the wife of the Emperor Shah Jahān, died after giving birth to her 14th child. The Taj Mahal was then built in her honour.
- 18th of June 1822. To commemorate the Duke of Wellington's victory at Waterloo, a statue of Achilles was unveiled in his likeness. However, it caused a bit of a scandal amid polite London society.
Presented by Jane Steel and Ron Brown
Produced by Amanda Litherland and Luke Doran
...more
6min
June 09, 2025 June 9 - June 15
Fascinating, surprising, and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.
BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what else has happened on this same week throughout history.
With short looks at the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.
This week. June 9th - 15th
- 12th June 1215. King John signs the Magna Carta at Runnymede, enshrining the right to a fair trial in British law.
- 14th June 1972. IFALPA call an airline strike in response to increasing threats of plane hijackings.
- 13th June 1920. The US postmaster general bans children being posted through the US mail system.
Presented by Jane Steel and Caroline Nicholls.
Produced by Sofie Vilcins
...more
6min
June 02, 2025 June 2nd - June 8th
Fascinating, surprising, and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.
BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what has happened on this same week throughout history.
With short looks at the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.
This week. June 2nd - June 8th
- 5th of June 1989. On Chang’an Avenue in Beijing one man stands alone, blocking of a column of tanks leaving Tiananmen Square. Captured on film, the image of the 'Tank Man' protestor goes around the world.
- 4th of June 1913. At the 133rd Epsom Derby, the suffragette Emily Davison walks in to the path of the onrushing King's Horse.
- 6th of June 1962. Performing at Abbey Road studios for the first time, The Beatles meet George Martin for the first time.
Presented by Ron Brown and Caroline Nicholls
Produced by Luke Doran and Stuart Ross
...more
6min
May 26, 2025 May 26 - June 1st
Fascinating, surprising, and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.
BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what else has happened on this same week throughout history.
With short looks at the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.
This week. May 26th – June 1st
- 29th May 1953. At 1130 in the morning, Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay stood at the peak of mount Everest, becoming the very first people to do so.
- 28th May 1588. After two years of development, the Spanish Armada leaves the port of Lisbon, on an ill-fated attempt to invade England.
- 1st June 1935. By the 1930 there were around a million cars on the road, and thousands being killed by road accidents. Something had to be done. In 1935 Compulsory Driving Tests began.
Presented by Viji Alles and Ron Brown
Produced by Luke Doran
...more
6min
May 19, 2025 May 19 - May 25
Fascinating, surprising, and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.
BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what else has happened on this same week throughout history.
With short looks at the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.
This week. May 19th – May 25th
- 20th of May 1948. It used to be a German owned boat, used throughout the Second World War. But in May 1948 the HMT Empire Windrush first set sail from the Caribbean, bringing new settlers to the United Kingdom.
- 20th of May 1570. The Flemish cartographer Abraham Ortelius changes how we viewed the world with the publication of his atlas, the 'Theatrum Orbis Terrarum'.
- 21st of May 1916. William Willett spent his years campaigning against the 'Waste of Daylight’ but was not around to see British Summer Time introduced in 1916.
Presented by Caroline Nicholls and Jane Steel
Produced by Stuart Ross and Kerry McCarthy
...more
6min
May 12, 2025 May 12 - May 18
Fascinating, surprising, and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.
BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what else has happened on this same week throughout history.
With short looks at the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.
This week. May 12th – May 18th
- 13th of May 1981. While conducting blessings to a crowd in St Peter's Square, Pope John Paul the Second is shot four times in front of twenty thousand witnesses.
- 15th of May 1536. After only three years as Queen, Anne Boleyn goes on trial at the Tower of London, accused of treason, adultery, and incest.
- 14th of May 1796. Edward Jenner conducts a groundbreaking experiment on his gardener's son, creating the world's first 'vaccination', and beginning the fight against smallpox.
Presented by Caroline Nicholls and Ron Brown
Produced by Luke Doran
...more
6min
May 05, 2025 May 5 - May 11
Fascinating, surprising, and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.
BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what else has happened on this same week throughout history.
With short looks at the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.
This week. May 5th – May 11th
- 8th of May 1945. Nazi Germany surrenders unconditionally to the Allied forces, and Victory in Europe Day – VE Day – was declared.
- 6th of May 1937. A disaster captured in real time, as the radio reporter Herbert Morrison reports on the crash of the LZ 129 Hindenburg airship.
- 9th of May 1671. The audacious attempt of the notorious Colonel Blood to steal the Crown Jewels from the Tower of London, the last man to ever try such a feat.
Presented by Ron Brown and Viji Alles
Produced by Luke Doran and Kerry McCarthy
...more
6min
April 28, 2025 April 28 - May 4
Fascinating, surprising, and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.
BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what else has happened on this same week throughout history.
With short looks at the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.
This week. April 28th – May 4th
- 30th of April 1945. Deep beneath the Reich Chancellery in Berlin, Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun take their own lives. The BBC announces it in a newsflash the following day.
- 29th of April 1429. A 17-year-old peasant girl enters the siege of Orleans to defeat English forces. Nearly five hundred years later Joan of Arc is canonised and becomes a patron Saint of France.
- 1st of May 1840. The world's first postage stamp is issued. Known as the Penny Black it revolutionised the postal service and has today become a collector’s item.
Presented by Jane Steel and Viji Alles
Produced by Luke Doran and Clara Nissen
...more
6min
April 21, 2025 April 21 - April 27
Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life
BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what else has happened on this same week throughout history.
With short looks at the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.
This week. April 21st – April 27th
- 26th of April 1986. The Chernobyl power plant saw the worst nuclear accident in history, but are we still dealing with the fall out?.
- 23rd of April 1564. It's celebrated as the birthday of one of England's greatest ever writers, but was William Shakespeare actually born on this day?
- 27th of April 1994. After decades of white minority rule under apartheid, it was the first free elections in South Africa, a day that has became known as Freedom Day.
Presented by Ron Brown and Caroline Nicholls
Produced by Luke Doran
...more
6min
April 14, 2025 April 14 - April 20
Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life
BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what else has happened on this same week throughout history.
With short looks at the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.
This week. April 14th – April 20th
- 14th of April 1865. On a fateful night at Ford's Theatre, Abraham Lincoln became the first US President to be assassinated.
- 15th of April 1755 - They took nine years to finish, contained the definition of over 42 thousand words, and were published 270 years ago. Discover all about Samuel Johnson’s ‘A Dictionary of The English Language’
- 16th of April 1912. Harriet Quimby was a trailblazing aviator, a pioneering pilot, and on the 16th of April 1912 became the first woman to fly across the English Channel.
Presented by Jane Steel and Ron Brown
Produced by Luke Doran
...more
6min

FAQs about This Week in History:

How many episodes does This Week in History have?

The podcast currently has 12 episodes available.